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Navigating the world of real estate, you’re going to end up coming across all kinds of real estate terminology that you may not be familiar with. Whether it’s your first time buying, or just don’t quite understand something, there is a lot of confusing terms used between real estate professionals.
Knowing what your real estate agent is talking about when they use common real estate terms will make the process smoother, and will also ensure communication is much easier.
Here are 17 basic real estate terms that will allow you to be better informed and involved in any real estate transaction.
• Buyer’s Agent and Listing Agent: Typically, there are two types of real estate agents that are involved in the home buying process. If you are buying a home, then you will want to be represented by a buyer’s specialist, while the listing agent will represent the seller of the home.
• Acceptance: The acceptance is the agreement to the terms of an offer, which then creates a contract. As soon as the seller signs on the dotted line on the purchase agreement, you’re in a binding contract for the sale of the house. Once the contract is signed, neither parties can back out without facing consequences. In the buyer’s case, they will lose the earnest money deposit and in the seller’s case, it could end up in a potential lawsuit.
• Closing: The closing date is the scheduled day on which the sale of the property is officially finalized and transferred thereafter. In order to meet the closing date, the buyer must sign all the mortgage documents and pay all closing costs and the seller completes the transaction with the buyer.
• Closing Costs: Closing costs are fees paid at the home closing, which is when the title of a residence is transferred from the seller to the buyer. These costs typically include real estate commissions, escrow fees, document recording fees, lawyer fees, title insurance fees, survey fees, and taxes. These costs can also include the expenses the home has incurred by buyers and sellers during any negotiations.
• Comparative Market Analysis: The best method available to home sellers to learn their home’s current value so they can select the best sale price is a CMA, or Comparative Market Analysis. CMA is the term real estate agents use when they conduct an in-depth analysis of a home’s worth in today’s market.
• Contingencies: A contingency is the condition that must be met before the deal can be finalized between the buyer and the seller becomes legally binding. If the home inspection reveals major problems, then the contingency allows the buyer to walk away from the contract without losing money. A common contingency is the home inspection. Other contingencies can include appraisal contingencies or financing contingency.
• Down Payment: The down payment is the amount of out of pocket money you pay toward a home before your lender provides you with a loan to cover the rest of the purchase amount. Your down payment can vary depending on the type of mortgage you take out. It can be anywhere from 3 percent to 20 percent of the total cost.
• Escrow: The escrow is a deposit of funds or documents, such as the earnest money deposit, that are held by an escrow agent, or other third party, until the sale goes through. The third party holds the property, cash, and the property title until all conditions of the property agreement have been met.
• Appraisal: An appraisal is a third-party opinion of value, as we covered in our appraisal blog recently. This is usually based on comparable sales within the area of the “subject property” (the house for sale).
• Equity: Your home’s equity is the difference between the home’s fair market value, and the unpaid balance of the mortgage. Equity increases over the life of the loan. For example, if your home is worth $100,000, and you owe $50,000 still, the other $50,000 is your equity.
• HUD-1 statement: A document that provides an itemized listing of the funds that are payable at closing. Items that appear on the statement include real estate commissions, loan fees, points and initial escrow amounts. A separate number within a standardized numbering system represents each item on the statement. The totals at the bottom of the HUD-1 statement define the seller’s net proceeds and the buyer’s net payment at closing.
• Home Warranty – Similar to any warranty, sellers and buyers can pay a fee to protect the home against future issues depending on how much their package covers, like plumbing, heating, or appliances.
• Inspection: A home inspection is scheduled after you have made an offer on a home. Some municipalities require an inspection, whereas some do not. The inspector goes through every part of the home to check on the foundation, walls, heating, electricity, plumbing, and appliances to see if they are up to code or need repairs. If the inspector finds something wrong in the home during the inspection, the inspection will fail.
• Lien: A lien is when a legal claim is put on a property in order to receive payment for debt. The holder of the lien can sell the property to recover the money owed.
• Listings: Real estate agents will often refer to homes for sale on the market as listings. These listings include basic information about the home for sale, such as the price, number of bedrooms and square footage.
• Private Mortgage Insurance: PMI allows buyers to put less than a 20 percent down payment on a home. A PMI is an insurance premium paid by the buyer to the lender to protect the lender if you are unable to pay your mortgage. Once you have 20% equity in the home, this insurance is discontinued.
• Realtor®: Don’t make the mistake of thinking a Realtor is the same thing as a real estate agent. Not all real estate agents are Realtors; only those that are members of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) can call themselves Realtors.
• Title and Title Insurance: Title is the legal term that identifies a piece of property that the owner is in lawful possession of that property. The title insurance protects real estate owners and lenders against any property loss or damage they might experience due to liens, encumbrances, or defects.

CONTACT AYEYE PROPERTIES IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BUY PROPERTY IN ANY PART OF NIGERIA

Navigating the world of real estate, you’re going to end up coming across all kinds of real estate terminology that you may not be familiar with. Whether it’s your first time buying, or just don’t quite understand something, there is a lot of confusing terms used between real estate professionals.
Knowing what your real estate agent is talking about when they use common real estate terms will make the process smoother, and will also ensure communication is much easier.
Here are 17 basic real estate terms that will allow you to be better informed and involved in any real estate transaction.
• Buyer’s Agent and Listing Agent: Typically, there are two types of real estate agents that are involved in the home buying process. If you are buying a home, then you will want to be represented by a buyer’s specialist, while the listing agent will represent the seller of the home.
• Acceptance: The acceptance is the agreement to the terms of an offer, which then creates a contract. As soon as the seller signs on the dotted line on the purchase agreement, you’re in a binding contract for the sale of the house. Once the contract is signed, neither parties can back out without facing consequences. In the buyer’s case, they will lose the earnest money deposit and in the seller’s case, it could end up in a potential lawsuit.
• Closing: The closing date is the scheduled day on which the sale of the property is officially finalized and transferred thereafter. In order to meet the closing date, the buyer must sign all the mortgage documents and pay all closing costs and the seller completes the transaction with the buyer.
• Closing Costs: Closing costs are fees paid at the home closing, which is when the title of a residence is transferred from the seller to the buyer. These costs typically include real estate commissions, escrow fees, document recording fees, lawyer fees, title insurance fees, survey fees, and taxes. These costs can also include the expenses the home has incurred by buyers and sellers during any negotiations.
• Comparative Market Analysis: The best method available to home sellers to learn their home’s current value so they can select the best sale price is a CMA, or Comparative Market Analysis. CMA is the term real estate agents use when they conduct an in-depth analysis of a home’s worth in today’s market.
• Contingencies: A contingency is the condition that must be met before the deal can be finalized between the buyer and the seller becomes legally binding. If the home inspection reveals major problems, then the contingency allows the buyer to walk away from the contract without losing money. A common contingency is the home inspection. Other contingencies can include appraisal contingencies or financing contingency.
• Down Payment: The down payment is the amount of out of pocket money you pay toward a home before your lender provides you with a loan to cover the rest of the purchase amount. Your down payment can vary depending on the type of mortgage you take out. It can be anywhere from 3 percent to 20 percent of the total cost.
• Escrow: The escrow is a deposit of funds or documents, such as the earnest money deposit, that are held by an escrow agent, or other third party, until the sale goes through. The third party holds the property, cash, and the property title until all conditions of the property agreement have been met.
• Appraisal: An appraisal is a third-party opinion of value, as we covered in our appraisal blog recently. This is usually based on comparable sales within the area of the “subject property” (the house for sale).
• Equity: Your home’s equity is the difference between the home’s fair market value, and the unpaid balance of the mortgage. Equity increases over the life of the loan. For example, if your home is worth $100,000, and you owe $50,000 still, the other $50,000 is your equity.
• HUD-1 statement: A document that provides an itemized listing of the funds that are payable at closing. Items that appear on the statement include real estate commissions, loan fees, points and initial escrow amounts. A separate number within a standardized numbering system represents each item on the statement. The totals at the bottom of the HUD-1 statement define the seller’s net proceeds and the buyer’s net payment at closing.
• Home Warranty – Similar to any warranty, sellers and buyers can pay a fee to protect the home against future issues depending on how much their package covers, like plumbing, heating, or appliances.
• Inspection: A home inspection is scheduled after you have made an offer on a home. Some municipalities require an inspection, whereas some do not. The inspector goes through every part of the home to check on the foundation, walls, heating, electricity, plumbing, and appliances to see if they are up to code or need repairs. If the inspector finds something wrong in the home during the inspection, the inspection will fail.
• Lien: A lien is when a legal claim is put on a property in order to receive payment for debt. The holder of the lien can sell the property to recover the money owed.
• Listings: Real estate agents will often refer to homes for sale on the market as listings. These listings include basic information about the home for sale, such as the price, number of bedrooms and square footage.
• Private Mortgage Insurance: PMI allows buyers to put less than a 20 percent down payment on a home. A PMI is an insurance premium paid by the buyer to the lender to protect the lender if you are unable to pay your mortgage. Once you have 20% equity in the home, this insurance is discontinued.
• Realtor®: Don’t make the mistake of thinking a Realtor is the same thing as a real estate agent. Not all real estate agents are Realtors; only those that are members of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) can call themselves Realtors.
• Title and Title Insurance: Title is the legal term that identifies a piece of property that the owner is in lawful possession of that property. The title insurance protects real estate owners and lenders against any property loss or damage they might experience due to liens, encumbrances, or defects.

CONTACT AYEYE PROPERTIES IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BUY PROPERTY IN ANY PART OF NIGERIA

gypsey:
Really? why did God let the boy be homeless? does that mean God is useless?

I Never said anything about God

NwaAmaikpe:



Eminem rightly said, "when something seems too good to be true, they are usually opposites".

She has stolen that boy's destiny.
Everyone knows that witches in the south south do their meetings on top of the Oha tree.
Now see, the boy is eating oha soup with the evil lady closely supervising his every swallow.

The main reason I am suspicious is the girl's surname and the town in question.
Add 2 and 2 together.

Too much sense wee not kee me.

Please the times are bad in Nigeria
Nigeria is too evil for anyone to be genuinely concerned about a stranger.
Nigeria is too tough for anyone to be so kindhearted.
Say no to strange helpers.
Say no to unsolicited acts of kindness.
Maka ndi destiny hunters.

You are very wrong on this. Just yesterday I saw a homeless boy not up to 10 years and hasn't eaten the entire day I bought a meal for him and I plan to do alot more for him next time I see him.

The University of the Witwatersrand’s School of Public Health, in conjunction with the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR), hosted at the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, invites suitably qualified candidates to apply for University of Witwatersrand Postgraduate Training Scholarships, a full scholarship supported by TDR to undertake the full-time Master Degree Programme in the field of Implementation Science.

Application Deadline: 31st July 2018.

Eligible Countries: African countries

To Be Taken At (Country): South Africa, Switzerland

Field of Study: MSc Epidemiology in the field of Implementation Science (18 months full-time)

Eligible Fields of Study:

The degree programme is open to candidates from a range of disciplines including clinical and other health-related fields; statistics and other quantitative fields, as well as demography and social sciences. The degree programme should also appeal to candidates who want to become more involved in research in health-related fields.

Type: Masters

Eligibility: To be eligible for University of Witwatersrand Postgraduate Training Scholarships:

Be resident in and a national of a low- or middle-income country in the WHO African Region. Applicants should normally be 35 or younger for the Master Programme. Women are encouraged to apply. Be interested in developing a career in implementation research on infectious diseases of poverty. Be proficient in English. Meet the Programme’s requirements: http://www.wits.ac.za/publichealth/academicprogrammes/postgraduate/master-of-science-in-epidemiology/

Number of Awards: Not specified

Value of Award: The scheme will provide full scholarships for seven Masters in the 2019 academic year and covers the following:

Return economy airfare. Tuition fees. Basic medical and accident insurance. Monthly stipend to cover living expenses including accommodation.Support for the research project expenses.

Further, recipients’ careers will be tracked with the new TDR Global alumni and stakeholder platform that will monitor the impact of the programme, as well as provide networking and increased visibility opportunities for the Fellows.

Duration of Programme: Full duration of candidate’s course.

How to Apply: The application process is two-fold.

1. Application to the University of the Witwatersrand: Apply by completing a University of the Witwatersrand postgraduate application form online at:

http://www.wits.ac.za/postgraduate/applications/

Application fee is R200 for both international and local applications.

Application deadline is 31 July 2018.

For GMAT, GRE, TOEFL, IELTS Training/Registration Click Here

Applicants should note to apply for accommodation also.

For more information on applications, please go to: www.wits.ac.za/askwits for general application queries or Mrs. Gloria Bowe (Gloria.Bowes@wits.ac.za) for the MSc Programme related queries

2. Application for the TDR scholarship: The application for the TDR scholarship should be made separately in writing and should include the following documents:

a. A letter of motivation for applying for the scholarship.
b. A certified copy of the bio-data page of the passport.
c. Evidence of application to study Implementation Science as the field of study in the MSc Epidemiology Programme at the University of the Witwatersrand of the School of Public Health commencing in the 2019 academic year.
d. A comprehensive curriculum vitae including a description of relevant research and work experience.
e. Two confidential referee reports should be sent directly by the referees to Mrs Gloria Bowes (Gloria.Bowes@wits.ac.za).

Scholarship applications should be sent to: Mrs Gloria Bowes (Gloria.Bowes@wits.ac.za) and copied to Prof. Latifat Ibisomi (Latifat.Ibisomi@wits.ac.za).

Visit the Programme Webpage for Details

Award Providers: University of the Witwatersrand, Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR).

For GMAT, GRE, TOEFL, IELTS Training/Registration Click Here

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The rumours making the rounds that the embattled Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. David Babachir Lawal might be among those who would be removed from President Buhari’s cabinet in 2017, took a different turn on Wednesday when Senator Dino Melaye (Kogi West) openly referred to him as “the outgoing SGF”.

The SGF has been caught by the anti corruption web of the Senate, when he was accused of awarding contract of grass clearing at the IDPs camps in the North-East to his own company, to the tune of N220m.The revelation which was contained in the report of the Senator Shehu Sani led Adhoc Committee on Humanitarian Crisis in the North East region of Nigeria, also got the attention of the Presidency, with the security agencies mandated to investigate the allegations.

Senator Dino, had raised a point of order during a Senate plenary last week to tender more evidences against Babachir, after it was ale ged that the SGF referred to the Senators as “talking rubbish”; the Senate consequently frowned at the allegation and insisted it must be investigated by relevant agencies.

Dino Melaye however, took the campaign further when he, on Wednesday, during his speech at the Gala Night organised by the Nigerian Peace Corps in Abuja; insisted that corrupt persons under President Buhari’s government must be shown the way out.

He said “I saw that the outgoing Secretary to the federal government, Babachir Lawal is taking the Nigerian youths to protest against his investigation, spending millions of naira on pages of newspapers and sponsoring commentators on programmes on TVs.

“But I want to say that, those the gods want to kill, he first make mad. That will not help him; neither will it help any other corrupt person in power. Either by fire or by force, we will fight corruption in Nigeria”

He charged the Nigerian youths to be a change agent and not to be used by corrupt elements; even as he added that the Nigerian Peace Corps would be part of the revolution that would soon start in Nigeria, against those whom he described as “financial scavengers and economic cankerworm”.

Senator Dino also tasked the youths to wake up to the realities and take necessary positions on salient issues, so as to rescue the Nigerian Democracy from those who want to turn it to “greedocracy”, which he defined as “government of the greedy, by the greedy and for the greedy”.

The Peace Corps of Nigeria also on Wednesday conferred on Senator Dino Melaye, the Senior Advocate of Peace Award which was presented by the Honourable Minister of Youths and Sports, Barr. Solomon Dalung.

Sources: http://nignews.com.ng/sen-dino-melaye-slams-babachir-lawal-describes-him-as-outgoing-sgf/

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A Mexican man believed to be the world’s most obese plans to undergo gastric bypass in the new year and reduce his 590 kilos (1,300 pounds) by half, his doctor said Wednesday.The man known as Juan Pedro has diabetes, high blood pressure and chronic lung obstruction, and needs to reduce his weight dramatically to reduce his health risks, doctor Jose Castaneda Cruz said.

He said the man, who does not give his family names to media, would actually undergo a couple procedures along the way.

“It’s surgery that is going to be done in two parts. That is because of the high risk of complications he faces. So it’s going to be done in two parts, six months apart,” Castaneda told reporters.

In the first procedure, surgeons will remove more than three-quarters of the patient’s stomach.

And in the second procedure, his remaining stomach will be partially blocked, helping to give a feeling of fullness. Juan Pedro would also undergo intestinal surgery, his doctor said.

Castaneda wants him to lose 59 kilos in the first six months, which alone reduces his risk of obesity-related cancer by 52 percent.

Juan Pedro, 32, has a good chance of losing half his body weight by about six months after his first surgery, according to his medical team.

“Slowly but surely, I’ll get there,” Juan Pedro told reporters.

Source: http://nignews.com.ng/my-new-year-resolution-worlds-fattest-man/

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The family members of a two-year-old, Chijindu Felix, are in distress over the disappearance of the child during a church service at the Immaculate Heart parish of the Catholic Church, Umuagwo, in the Ohaji Local Government Area of Imo State.
It was learnt that Chijindu attended the first mass with her elder sister, Chima, last Sunday, but suddenly went missing.

The father, Stanley Felix, said efforts to find him had been abortive, adding that the police had yet to have any clue on the disappearance of the nursery one pupil.He said, “I attend another church, while their mother attends that church. But on that day, she had to go to another branch, where they were holding an anniversary. So, she was not around that day.

“Chijindu’s elder sister, Chima, took him to church. It was while they were together in the church that he went missing. The sister said she didn’t know when he went outside and started running around.

“She said she later saw him playing around the statue in the church. Unknown to her, somebody had picked him from the back of the statue because the statue has a low fence. The boy couldn’t have climbed the fence and jumped out; so we believe somebody picked him. This happened during the first mass of the church.”

He said the case was reported at the Umuagwo Police Station, adding that the family had spent a lot of money to search for the victim without any success.

Felix, an engineer, told PUNCH Metro that the family had been distressed as a result of the incident, urging anyone with information on his whereabouts to contact the police.

The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Enwerrem Andrew, confirmed the incident, adding that it was a case of child stealing and not kidnapping.

He said, “It is a case of child stealing. Since nobody has called for ransom, it is not kidnapping. The child was trailed and stolen. The family left the child alone and he got missing in the crowd. Investigations are ongoing.”

Source: http://nigerianewsnow.com.ng/2016/12/21/two-year-old-abducted-during-church-service/

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Ijaw leader, Chief Edwin Clark, has decried the way the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Commission are going about the anti-corruption fight.

Clark, who expressed worry that the anti-corruption fight would be lost with the way the EFCC and the ICPC were prosecuting the campaign against corruption, said that the fight was becoming selective.The leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum maintained that although President Muhammadu Buhari’s fight against corruption was genuine, the fight would only succeed if it was not selective.

Clark stated this during a news conference on Tuesday at his Kiagbodo country house in Burutu Local Government Area where he read an open letter addressed to the Attorney General of the Federal and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN).

The Ijaw leader particularly condemned and described as unimaginable the manner at which the anti-graft agencies abandoned corruption cases in court for several years despite enough glaring evidence to nail the accused persons in court.

Making references to the recent re-arraignment of a former Governor of Abia State, Chief Orji Uzor Kalu; and a former Governor of Oyo State, Alhaji Rasheed Ladoja, by the EFCC — after their cases were abandoned for over nine years, Clark said such an action smacked of selectivity.

Clark said, “While Nigerians appreciate this, it must be observed that the activities of some of the anti-graft agencies may seriously affect Mr. President’s fight against corruption. All patriotic Nigerians are very supportive of President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption crusade.

“He (Buhari) has done well in his fight against corruption, and we all commend him for that. But for this fight to succeed, there should not be sacred cows. Therefore, those heading the anti-graft agencies must be seen to be above board in the discharge of their duties.

“A situation whereby cases on corruption have been abandoned in the courts for years is unimaginable. Now that they want to reopen them, only a very few of them seem to be selected for re-arraignment. This negates the principle of impartiality. The war against corruption should be total.”

Clark demanded that other abandoned cases involving ex-governors such as Gbenga Daniel (Ogun State), Ikedi Ohakim (Imo State), Murtala Nyako (Adamawa State), Senator Danjuma Goje (Gombe State), Sule Lamido, (Jigawa State) and his two sons be reopened without further delay.

Source: http://nigerianewstoday.com.ng/buharis-anti-corruption-war-is-selective-clark/

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Those who have been wondering where the Federal Government kept recovered funds got an answer yesterday.

About N288.6 billion is in next year’s budget, according to Budget Office Director-General Ben Akabueze, who was fielding questions during the public presentation of the 2017 budget at the old Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja.He said: “A total of N288.6 billion. This includes N97.6 billion, which is equivalent of $220 expected from the Swiss, part of what is called Abacha loot recovery. Then it also includes N72 billion that has already been received in recent cases of loot recovery.

“And a balance of N90 billion, other expected recoveries that are at an advanced and reasonable stage that we feel comfortable and confident that they would come through in 2017 and so they have been reflected in the budget.”

Budget and National Planning Minister Udoma Udo Udoma also allayed fears over the non-approval of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) by the National Assembly.

According to Udoma, the National Assembly already has both the MTEF and the 2017 budget proposal and would work on them at its own pace.

Stressing that the government was determined to pull Nigeria out of recession, he said: “We are determined to bring succour to our people. The only way is by taking strong actions to change the current trajectory of the Nigerian economy.

“To get out of the recession and bring the country back on the path of growth, government must find the resources to spend on infrastructure, and to spend to reflate the economy.”

Minister of State for Budget and National Planning Zainab Ahmed also admitted that the Social Intervention Scheme, otherwise called N-Power jobs, piloted by the Federal Government had not performed well.
The programme, she said, encountered teething problems but the issues would be solved in the 2017 budget to meet the scheme’s objective.

Giving a background to the budget proposal earlier, Udoma said: “Global economic activities remained sluggish in 2016. In particular, global GDP growth rate is projected at 3.1% for 2016 from 3.2% in 2015. Due to: (i)Lower-than-expected economic activity in the U.S, (ii) Uncertain economic, political and institutional implications of BREXIT (iii) Slowdown in China’s growth.

“(iv) Weak demand in advanced economies and its spill-over effects (v) Geopolitical tensions in several countries.”

In spite of the developments, he said that the outlook remained bright as global GDP growth rate is expected to rise to 3.4% in 2017.

The challenges in the domestic environment in 2016 included Crude oil production shut-ins resulting from vandalism of oil facilities, insurgency in parts of the Northeast, fuel shortages and increase in electricity tariffs, kerosene and PMS prices in the first half of the year and Foreign Exchange (FX) scarcity.

The factors, Udoma said, have constrained fiscal operations, real sector activities, and the external accounts.

Other challenges in the domestic economy include Contraction in growth (-2.24% in Q3), high unemployment rate (13.9% as at Q3), higher inflation rate (18.5% as at November 2016), pressures on foreign reserves ($25.04 billion as at 14th December), and slowdown in corporate sector, resulting in lower credit quality and rising non-performing loans.

Speaking on the Nigerian Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (NERGP), the minister said that a Medium Term Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP 2017 – 2020) was being finalised, which addresses the current economic challenges and is aimed at restoring growth.

“The plan builds on the existing Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP), and contains strategic objectives and enablers required to revive the economy. The strategic objectives of the NERGP are: (i) Pulling the economy out of recession; (ii)Investing in our people (iii) Laying the foundation of diversified, inclusive and sustainable growth.”

On the approach to the Budget, he said: “The 2017 Budget is designed to expand partnership between public and private sectors, including development capital to leverage and catalyse resources for growth.

“Other key objectives of the 2017 Budget include: (i) focusing on critical on-going infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, power, ICT, etc., that have quick positive effects on the economy; (ii) utilising Special Economic Zones and Industrial Parks as vehicles to accelerate domestic economic activity for innovation and wealth creation; (iii) contributing to food security and creating platform for agro-business in agriculture supply chains through the Agriculture Green Alternative Plan; (iv) establishing a Social Housing Fund to deepen the mortgage system and expand its availability across all states of the Federation; (v) encouraging and stimulating the growth of small and medium scale industries for innovation, job creation, productivity and wealth creation; and (vi) providing social safety nets for poor and vulnerable Nigerians.”

The key assumptions and macro-framework for the 2017 Budget are: (i)Oil production – 2.2mbpd, (ii)Benchmark oil price – US$42.5/b, (iii)Exchange rate – N305/US$, (iv)Inflation rate- 15.74%, (v)GDP Growth Rate- 2.5%, (vi)Nominal Consumptio (N’trillion)- 87.95, (vii)Nominal GDP (N’trillion)-107.96

According to him, the Key Budgetary Reform Initiatives to improve the revenue base of the country include: (i) Subjecting the JV operations to a new funding mechanism, which will allow for Cost Recovery, (ii) Sustaining the use of TSA to monitor the financial activities of over 900 MDAs from a single platform; (iii) Broadening the tax base, improve effectiveness of revenue collecting agencies, improve tax compliance etc;

(iv) Reducing leakages by tacking trade mis-invoicing and introducing the single window to drive Customs efficiencies; (v) Improving the performance of independent revenue of government by ensuring that all MDAs (particularly revenue generating MDAs) present their budget in advance, and remit their operating surpluses as required by the FRA; (vi) Extension of the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) to all MDAs.

Giving an overview of the Revenue framework, Udoma said: “Based on the key assumptions and budgetary reform initiatives, the 2017 Budget envisages a total revenue of N4.94 trillion, exceeding FY 2016 projection by 28%. The Projected revenue receipt from oil is N1.985 trillion and Non-oil is N1.373 trillion. The contribution of oil revenue is 40.2% compared to 19% in FY 2016 driven mainly by JVC cost reduction, higher price, exchange rate and additional oil related revenues.”

The largest recurrent allocations, according to him, are i. Ministry of Interior – N482.37 billion; ii. Ministry of Education – N398.01 billion; iii. Ministry of Defence – N325.87 billion; iv. Ministry of Health – N252.86 billion.

“These four MDAs collectively take up about N1.46 trillion (about 70% of the combined provision for personnel and overhead). They have the largest share because of the size of their personnel. Some of the agencies and parastatals under these MDAs are yet to be captured on the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) platform.

“The sum of N2 billion has been provided in the 2017 Budget for the capturing to ensure all personnel that are not enrolled on the platform are captured.
Udoma said the Administration had allocated at least 30% of the Budget to Capital expenditure against 16% allocation in 2015.

“In dollar terms, the 2017 budget proposal (at $23.80bn) is lower than 2016 estimates ($30.76bn)… we have grown the size of the Budget from 4.7% in 2015 to 5.9% in 2016 and to 6.7% in 2017.

Compared with South Africa (20.7%) and Ghana (19.2%) as at 2015, this is very low. The ratio of capital spending in total increased from 16% in 2015 to 30% in 2016 and 30.7% in 2017.

“The increase in infrastructure spending is expected to enhance revenue generation opportunities and over time significantly reduce deficit,” Udoma said.

Source: http://nignews.com.ng/n289-billion-looted-fund-captured-in-2017-budget/

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Lagos lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to pardon 70 soldiers found guilty of mutiny by various military court martial since 2014.

He made the request in a letter to the President on December 19, 2016, pursuant to Section 175 of the 1999 Constitution.The 70 soldiers, whose death sentence was commutted to 10 years imprisonment, are in custody at the Ikoyi and Kirikiri Prisons in Lagos State.

Falana argued that since the demand of the convicted soldiers and others for weapons found justification in the criminal diversion of the fund provided for the purchase of arms and armament to fight terrorists, there was no legal and moral justification for the conviction and sentences imposed on them by the courts-martial.

“In Your Excellency’s interview aired by BBC Hausa Service on December 28, 2015, you observed that “the government at that time sent soldiers to the battlefield without arms and ammunition to prosecute the war. That was what led some of them to mutiny. They were arrested and detained because of this.”

“In the light of the foregoing, Your Excellency will agree with us that since the armed forces were not equipped to defend the territorial integrity of the nation the convicts did not commit mutiny or any other offence whatsoever in demanding for weapons to fight well armed insurgents. But assuming without conceding that our clients committed any offence they have suffered enough, having spent over three years in dehumanising prison conditions.

“However, since the demand for weapons to carry out counter-insurgency operations in the Northeast zone was legitimately made by our clients under the Armed Forces Act, we urge Your Excellency to grant them pardon pursuant to Section 175 of the Constitution of Nigeria, 1999 as amended”, he pleaded.

Falana listed grounds upon which he based his appeal.

He said: “The courts-martial, which tried our clients, deliberately failed to take cognisance of Section 179 of the Armed Forces Act, which permits “a soldier, rating or aircraftman to make a complaint to his commanding office and that he shall not be penalised for having made a complaint.

“The Arms Procurement Panel set up by Your Excellency has confirmed that the fund earmarked for the purchase of arms and ammunition was criminally diverted by former service chiefs and other senior military officers.

“The indicted military officers are being prosecuted by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for unlawful enrichment and criminal diversion of public funds.

He argued that members of the armed forces are not excluded from the application of fundamental rights, right to life, right to personal liberty, right to fair hearing, and right to freedom from discrimination.”

“In light of the foregoing, Your Excellency will agree with us that since the armed forces were not equipped to defend the territorial integrity of the nation the convicts did not commit mutiny or any other offence whatsoever in demanding for weapons to fight well armed insurgents. But assuming without conceding that our clients committed any offence they have suffered enough having spent over three years in dehumanising prison conditions”, he added.

Source: http://nignews.com.ng/falana-seeks-pardon-for-70-soldiers-serving-10-years-for-mutiny/

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Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State on Sunday expressed worry over the huge pension and gratuity burden successive administrations had been battling with since the state’s creation.

Ugwuanyi, who spoke at a forum of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists in Enugu, said the state had the highest pension burden in the South East.

“The effect of pension and gratuities on us are so high and more than any other state in the region and this arises from the status of the Coal City as the headquarters of the former eastern region,” he said.
“Today, there is no money to meet some of these obligations and many more but the masses do not want to hear that.”

The governor also spoke about the infrastructure problems, saying the state had some of the worst rural road networks with more than 47 communities largely inaccessible due to absence of link roads, culverts and bridges.

He explained that the landscape of most of the rural communities was so bad that the people in the affected areas do not bury their dead during the rainy season.

He said, “There are several communities in the state that have not seen earth moving equipment for road construction in the past 40 years.

“Most local government areas are finding it difficult to pay salaries not to talk of construction of roads, but in all of these challenges, we are grateful to God.”

Ugwuanyi said his administration was ready to face the challenges and provide good link roads across the state.

He described the media as a major development partner since the inception of his administration.

Ugwuanyi said that his administration was not unmindful of the expectations from the masses, adding that payment of salaries was now the major indicator of governance in the face of the current hardship.

“I thank you for your support and for giving us the platform for development and I pray that in the discharge of our duties we will not be charged with actions we cannot defend,” he said.

Source: http://nignews.com.ng/no-money-to-pay-pensions-gratuities-enugu-governor/

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Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has said that neither he nor the commission is under any external influence or pressure in conducting election in Nigeria.

Yakubu stated this at a capacity development workshop for INEC press corps on Friday in Abuja.
Yakubu, answering question on allegations that the commission was operating under the influence of the presidency and political actors, said there was no influence on the commission.

““There is nothing I am looking for that God has not given to me.

“”I don’t think there is anybody that can influence or intimidate me.

“I have never been approached by anybody to do anything in any way other than what is appropriate.

““I am not under any external pressure, neither are the members of the Commission,” he said.

He said that the outcome of the election so far was a proof that the independence of INEC was not compromised and opposition party still won in majority of the recently conducted elections.

He said that more than 70 per cent of the election conducted by the commission in the recent time was won by opposition parties.

He added that only one out of the 163 elections conducted under his watch has been nullified in the court of the law.

Source: http://nigerianewstoday.com.ng/inec-is-not-operating-under-any-external-influence/

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​Manchester City’s Nigerian forward, Kelechi Iheanacho and his club teammates committed funds to refurbish the Child and Adolescent Mental Health ward of the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital on Friday.

It was however not revealed how much each player donated, according to the Daily Mail.
Iheanacho was one of the six first team players, City boss Pep Guardiola led to cheer hundreds of youngsters during their annual visit to the Royal Manchester Children’s hospital.

Iheanacho who has made 11 English Premier League appearances, scoring once, was joined by John Stones, Alex Kolarov, Pablo Zabaleta and Willy Caballero.

Commenting on City’s visit, Guardiola said at the venue: “Today, the team has come together to see the life-changing work the hospital and its staff are doing every day right here in Manchester – it’s a very special place,” Guardiola told Daily Mail.

“The kids were so happy and to see the smiles on their faces was fantastic. We are part of this city and if we can help them for a short time, then it’s an honour.

“A big thank you to the people from the hospital, they are the real heroes. As the manager of Manchester City, thank you so much.

​Manchester City take on Arsenal on Sunday in the English Premier League fixture.

Source: http://nigerianewsnow.com.ng/2016/12/17/royal-manchester-childrens-hospital-receives-donation-from-iheanacho/

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The Bayelsa State Government on Saturday said it had fished out 5,000 ghost workers from its payroll.

The Chief Accountant, office of Special Adviser, Bayelsa Treasury, Account and Revenue, Dr David Ala-Peter, said the ghost workers were identified in the recent staff verification exercise, where more than 50,000 workers participated.Ala-Peter said the exercise was aimed at identifying fake names to reduce the state’s wage bill.

He said, “The panel has done well during the exercise. We use software of international standard; we use oracle software.

“The method used was very effective. We have established staff data base; we captured both their finger prints, dates of birth and their credentials.

“During the exercise, we verified more than 50,000 staff. Right now, we are operating with little above 45,000 workers”.

Source: http://nigerianewsnow.com.ng/2016/12/17/bayelsa-state-fishes-out-5000-ghost-workers-from-payroll/

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The remains of renowned industrialist, Olorogun Michael Onajirevbe Ibru, were buried yesterday at his Agbara-Otor country home in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State.

At a funeral service for the industrialist at the All Saints’ Cathedral Church, Anglican Communion in Ughelli, Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa urged the residents to unite so that development could be spread across the state.Commiserating with the Ibru family, the governor noted that the major honour the people could accord the late Ibru was to remain together.

He described the late family patriarch as a man who touched the lives of so many people in the state, the country and the world.

Okowa advised well-meaning Nigerians to emulate the exemplary life of the late business tycoon.

He said: “I want to plead with each of you that no matter what might have gone wrong, it is time for us to unite and truly forget the past. This is because it is only then we can say we have done what our father, Olorogun Michael Ibru, asked us to do.

“There is no doubt that he has impacted the lives of people in Delta State and the world. I am glad that a lot of good things have been said about him. He was a great man and still a great man even in death.

“A lot of people are rich but they are arrogant with their riches. That is not the life we expect people to live. It is my plea to those who live, especially the extended Ibru family, that the best we can do is to ensure that we stay humble in all we do. A very humble heart is a loving heart. Every humble heart is for unity and for peace.”

The Archbishop of Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria, Most Rev Nicholas Okoh, urged Christians to reconcile their problems with God before “the final day of rest”.

In his sermon, taken from Matthew 11:28, Okoh described death as a permanent rest without any of life’s worries and calamities.

The cleric urged all to pay their last respect to the late Ibru.

He said the time was short and all must act fast to safe themselves from the clutches of death.

Source: http://nignews.com.ng/tributes-as-michael-ibru-is-buried-in-delta/

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A new born baby delivered on Tuesday at a hospital in Ogudu on the outskirts of Lagos.

The baby has two heads with oxygen tube strapped on each, a neck, chest, two legs and two hands.Doctors at Med-In Specialist Hospital, Osogbo Street, who took the delivery, said the baby was born around 6:30pm on Tuesday through an elective caesarean section. Its mother, surgeon and nurses entered the theatre prepared to take delivery of a set of twins as indicated by the various scans she underwent in the course of the pregnancy.

But what they saw were two heads sharing a body.

At the hospital yesterday, it was gathered that the baby was resuscitated and transferred to the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) for advance care.

According to one of the nurses who was in the delivery room, they had prepared two cots for each of the twins but were shocked when they saw that they were conjoined.

“This is the first time I am seeing anything like this. I have watched it in movies but seeing it in real life was such an experience for me. Thankfully, the surgeon ensured that they survived.

“As I speak to you, the mother doesn’t know the condition of the babies. She still believes and expects to carry her twins. We haven’t told her yet. Only her husband was brought into the theatre to see his children and he was the one who went with the doctors to LUTH,” said the nurse.

In medical parlance, the condition is known as Parapagus. It is a rare form of partial twinning where there are two heads and two necks side by side on one torso.

Such cases are rampant in India and doctors say they cannot be separated since they have only one pair of arms and one pair of legs and one heart. This disorder is different from conjoined twins as the baby has only one set of internal organs. The extremely rare case is thought to be brought on during the early stages of pregnancy as a result of genetic mutation.

Med-In Hospital Manager Dare Moses said the baby was taken to LUTH so that tests can be conducted to ascertain if they share also vital organs like hearts and lungs.

He said: “There is need to find out if they share major organs together. They may have to be flown abroad for separation if they have separate hearts and other vital organs. It is possible for them to survive. I have seen cases of twins like this in movie surviving and living normal lives.

“Normally, when we have cases of pregnant woman expecting twins, we usually go for elective caesarean, which was what the mother opted for.

“But when the doctor was trying to extract one of the babies (first one), it got stuck and when he examined further, he discovered that there were two heads in one body. We are happy that the baby was delivered alive and placed on oxygen. Both heads were alive.

“It was really amazing. I am proud and thankful that we delivered the baby alive. Yes, several scans were done by the mother in the course of pregnancy at different places, but none discovered any abnormality. We are thankful that the operation was successful.”

According to a doctor, who refused to be named, the babies were meant to come as identical twins and must have shared the same sac and placenta.

She said: “Nobody can specifically say the reason for the condition. At different stages during pregnancies. Twins divide but these ones didn’t divide fully. We can’t really say if they have only two pairs of legs and hands, there’s a possibility the other pairs are inside. But we don’t know yet.

“There are so many things we can’t really determine physically. That’s why several scans would be conducted, including CT Scans, to know their exact condition and the best option.

“It is a situation that would be best managed abroad because it requires the putting together of a team of paediatric surgeons who must have the best facilities, which we do not have presently on Nigeria.

“We have good doctors but the materials are not there. Specialists in different fields would be working on them at the same time if they are to be separated. Chances of their survival in Nigeria are very poor giving the realities of our society.

“If they can’t be separated and are left to survive, people might ridicule them or see them as curses, which isn’t good. But in other climes, some conjoined twins have survived to adulthood and they are doing fine.

“You should also know that it would be very expensive to foot the bills, and it isn’t what any parent can handle alone. The government and good spirited individuals would have to assist them so that the kids stay alive. All we want is to give them as much chances as they can possibly get to survive.

“Our medical system in Nigeria is in poor shape. Even at the teaching hospitals, chances are that they may not even have those necessary equipment to support survival of children like this. There is need for a multi-specialist team, drawn from various teaching hospitals, to handle cases like this and they should be provided the right equipment.”

The Ministry of Health has been notified of the development. The hospital plans to inform the baby’s mother.

Source: http://nigerianewsnow.com.ng/2016/12/15/nigerian-mum-delivered-of-baby-with-two-heads/

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The police on Wednesday in Abuja paraded five suspects for allegedly hijacking electoral materials during the legislative rerun election in Rivers State last Saturday.

The Force spokesman, Donald Awunah, stated that the police recovered from them, a green Independent National Electoral Commission branded bag, eight booklets of ballot papers meant for Emohua Local Government Area, and one INEC accreditation incident reports booklet.The police also recovered one statement of results booklet and one blood-stained All Progressives Congress agent card from the suspects–Noble Nwaerema, Dike Deinpiribo, Valentine Alalibo, Onwunari Warmate and Iloke Stephen.

Awunah said arms and ammunition recovered from the suspects included, one AK47 rifle, one assault rifle, six magazines and 112 rounds of live ammunition.

He explained that Nwaerema was arrested on December 10, 2016 by the state Anti-Robbery Squad operatives along the Rumusi Elele Road, adding that the suspects claimed that he was hired by the youth president of Itu-Ikwere community together with eight others imported from a neighbouring state.

“They invaded Emohua Local Government and carted away electoral materials meant for polling units within the area; intelligence report confirmed the electoral materials were taken to a government facility and escorted by armed personnel,” Awunah stated.

The spokesman said that the quartet of Deinpiribo, Alalibo, Warmate and Stephen belonged to a group of cultists and professional political thugs.

The boys, he added, claimed to have been engaged by one Boma Goodhead who procured two Ak47 rifles and commissioned his driver, one Iryo to convey the weapons in his black Toyota Prado SUV and handed same to the suspects in Degema.

The spokesman stated that the suspects were responsible for several armed attacks that took place during the elections in places like Abonnema, Emuoha, Elele, Eteche and Omoku where a police officer was gruesomely killed.

“The rifles and 112 rounds of ammunition were recovered from them, other members of the killer gang fled and detectives are on their trail,” he emphasised.

Awunah said that some security personnel were arrested for professional misconduct, “actions, inactions, omission and commission that were detrimental to the electoral process.”

Meanwhile, the state Governor, Nyesom Wike, has said that the violence unleashed on the state during the December 10 rerun elections was planned by some politicians and selected APC governors.

Wike said the violence and theft of mandate of a few constituencies by security agencies were bankrolled by the governors of Plateau, Benue, Kano and Bauchi States through the donation of N1bn each.

Wike expressed regret over the brazen manner that “federal might” was negatively used to ensure the return of APC candidates at all costs.

But the state Publicity Secretary of the APC, Mr. Chris Finebone, described the allegation as mere imagination, adding that no APC governor donated money in respect of the rerun election.

Finebone said, “I think the whole obsession with federal might by Governor Wike stems from his use of federal might to rig himself to power in 2015, the APC has nothing to do with that. Governor Wike should exorcise the spirit of what he did in 2015 so that he will be free from his present hallucination around federal might that is not in use today unlike it was done during the last PDP federal administration.”

Source: http://nigerianewsnow.com.ng/2016/12/15/police-parade-suspected-snatchers-of-rivers-poll-materials/

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Former Super Eagles skipper, Joseph Yobo, has expressed his sadness over the poor treatment meted on players of the Super Falcons since they returned from this 2016 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.

Since returning from the Women’s AFCON, the Falcons are yet to be paid their outstanding allowances by the cash-strapped Nigeria Football Federation, and have not been hosted nor rewarded by the federal government.On Wednesday morning the Falcons decided to embark on a protest march at the entrance of the National Assembly Complex in Abuja, agitating for their outstanding allowances and bonuses estimated to be $24,000 each, approximately N11.5m per player.

In the course of the protest, the Chief of Staff to President Muhammad Buhari, Abba Kyari met with the players and assured them that they will be paid their entitlements in two days.

Reacting to the protest march by the Super Falcons, Yobo called on the concerned bodies to look into the issue.

“My feelings are hurt by the treatment of our champions, the Super Falcons. This issue must be resolved for the dignity of our sports people,” Yobo wrote on his Twitter handle on Wednesday.

Source: http://nigerianewstoday.com.ng/yobo-laments-poor-treatment-of-super-falcons/

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Sergey Mavrodi, founder of MMM, a ponzi scheme making the waves in Nigeria has written to the Buhari-led government, listing its benefits.
The letter was displayed on the page of all participants. Here’s a copy of the letter obtained from the Dashboard of one of the participants.

Open Letter from Sergey Mavrodi to the Nigerian Authorities

Honorable authorities,

So far MMM has come under a constant attack from you. In this regard, I would like to ask you a few simple questions. Since you are concerned with the interests of millions of your fellow citizens, I hope that you would be so kind to answer them. What are you trying to get?

Do you want the MMM System to collapse and millions of people to suffer? Who will support them then if now MMM is their only means of livelihood? Will you? You even don’t pay wages to people? Or might you not care about them? Might you be using a trendy topic to make a good name for yourselves?

What will you say to a mother who will have no money to buy food for her child? Will you let her child die for the sake of the higher interests of the economy? You say that MMM is a scam. What is the scam here, if all members are warned in advance about all the risks, the possible and impossible ones?

They know there are no investments at all. The warning is a red text on a yellow background placed on most prominent place of the website. You say that MMM is bad. Why? Yes, it produces nothing, but nothing gets out of the country either.

The money is just redistributed among the citizens of Nigeria. It gets from those who are richer to poorer ones, in this way restoring social justice. What”s wrong with that? You have repeatedly stated that “it should be investigated!.. researched!..”

It means you know nothing about this System yet; you even haven’t understood how it works……… And finally. If you know what is right for people, why is the life so bad in the country?

Sincerely yours,

Sergey Mavrodi

P.S. As for your statement that “everything will collapse soon”. The system has been working in Nigeria for a year, and according to your estimates, the total number of members now is about 3 million people. In Nigeria the population is approximately 195 million. Can you calculate? Will it be “soon”? )

Source: http://nigerianewsnow.com.ng/2016/12/12/mmm-founder-sergey-mavrodi-allegedly-writes-open-letter-to-nigerian-govt/

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President Muhammadu Buhari has assured Nigerians that the current economic hardships will soon end.

Daily Trust reports that the president made this assurance in a speech at the 42nd convocation ceremony for a total 6,827 graduates of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile-Ife, Osun state on Friday, December 9.Buhari is confident that the days of economic recession are coming close to an end

Buhari said the government was making serious efforts to stop the economic recession. The President was represented at the event by Professor Adamu Rasheed, the executive secretary of the National University Commission.

He said:

There is no gainsaying that we live in challenging times. Nigeria is not exempted from the political, security and economic upheavals going on, worldwide.
We have been making good progress, particularly on security issues, and we are relentless in our efforts to ensure that this economic recession is a very temporary experience in our national life.
I am firmly convinced that with the measures being put in place and the cooperation of all Nigerians, it will soon be a thing of the past.
This administration is committed to ensuring that as a nation, we are self-sufficient in food staples and thereof no longer dependent on food importation by 2019.
Foreign exchange saved in the process will be channeled into reviving our industries, enhancing the hydrology and ecology of the Lake Chad Basin, improving our power generation and distribution infrastructure and completing all the abandoned rural electrification projects nationwide, among other things.
Meanwhile, the federal government and Nigerians in general are turning to agriculture as an alternative as the economic recession currently ravaging the nation gets worse.

There are reports that the government already has extensive plans in place to use agriculture to stabilize the economy.

Source: http://nigerianewstoday.com.ng/economic-recession-has-almost-ended-pres-buhari-tells-nigerians/

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The Federal Government may have agreed to pay the Government of Switzerland $79m (N25.2bn) as part of conditions for the repatriation of almost $400m (N128bn) recovered from the family of the late military ruler, Gen. Sani Abacha.

The Chairman of the Civil Society Network Against Corruption, Mr. Olanrewaju Suraj, said this during a seminar to commemorate the 2016 International Anti-Corruption Day in Abuja on Friday.The event was jointly organised by Nigerian anti-corruption agencies, the European Union, the United States and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and had in attendance senior diplomats and politicians.

It will be recalled that the Swiss Ambassador to Nigeria, Eric Mayoraz, had said in July that his country would return $321m out of the Abacha loot to Nigeria.

However, Suraj, who was a member of a panel of discussants, said the original figure that was meant to be returned to Nigeria was about $400m.

He said the Nigerian Government had secretly agreed to forfeit $79m as part of negotiations.

Suraj said this was disgraceful as the Swiss Government was meant to pay Nigeria an interest instead of dictating the terms of agreement.

He said, “Unfortunately, the government goes to beg countries to get our money back rather than making demands, we appeal for the money and beg them to return it. We are fed with half information such that we even assume that we actually recover the amount stolen.

“I had a very funny experience and it is still ongoing. The $321m that the Swiss Government is meant to return to Nigeria, we discovered three weeks ago that the original money was about $400m. The legal process in Switzerland actually charged the Nigerian Government about $79m and that is why we are receiving $321m.

“The $321m is now to be returned to Nigeria with the condition that the World Bank will monitor how the funds will be spent. I cannot imagine anything more insulting.”

Attempts to speak with the spokesperson for the Swiss Embassy, Mr. Pascal Holliger, proved abortive as telephone calls were not responded to while he had yet to respond to a text message as of press time.

Also, an inquiry sent to the Office of the Attorney-General in Switzerland by email had yet to be responded to as of press time.

However, it will be recalled that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Geoffrey Onyeama, had said in June that the government of former President Olusegun Obasanjo had paid the Swiss Government over $100m as commission for the return of Abacha’s loot.

He had said, “If you remember the Abacha loot in Switzerland at the time, Obasanjo’s government had to finally agree to give them 10 per cent of the amount. This was about $100m and so they returned $900m to Nigeria.

“If they (Swiss Government) had not agreed and said they wanted to keep the whole money, it would have been very difficult for us and that is why the anti-corruption summit and the initiative of President Muhammadu Buhari is really focused on these western countries to remove some of those barriers and lengthy procedures that are in place and make it possible for these people to delay (the payment).”

Meanwhile, the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has described fighting corruption as a very expensive task.

He maintained that there was a need for the government to focus on crime prevention rather than crime fighting.

Fayemi, who spoke on the theme, ‘Corruption: An Impediment to the Sustainable Development Goals, said Buhari, administration would promote transparency.

The Country Representative of the UNODC, Cristina Albertin, lamented the high level of corruption in Nigeria and other developing nations.

She said 37 per cent of Nigeria’s gross domestic product would be lost by 2030 if corruption wasn’t curbed.

A spokesperson for the Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs, Noemie Charton, told our correspondent in an email that he would find out the situation.

The message read, “Thank you for your query. I have forwarded it to our colleagues in charge, and will get back to you in the course of next week.”

Source: http://nigerianewstoday.com.ng/nigeria-to-pay-switzerland-79m-commission-on-400m-abacha-loot/

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There are so many amazing things happening in the world. Some of these things will leave you awestruck as you will be left wondering if you are in a trance or not.Sandra Pedro’s story will leave you feeling emotional and grateful for life at the same time. She was a 37-year-old woman full of life and ready to take on the world.

She lived in Portugal with her first child, a boy, for about 8 years. When she got pregnant the second time, her joy knew no bounds as she looked forward to seeing her baby. However, the report she got from the doctor left her in bewilderment.

She was warned about the risk of having the baby because of her medical history. Earlier, she had suffered from pneumonia and some heart conditions. At some point she was in a coma after having a kidney surgery.

Pedro despite being warned about the risk of having the baby decided to bring her child to the world. In the second month of this year, the pregnant woman was rushed to the intensive care unit after she had a brain hemorrhage. The doctors did all they could to save Pedro who eventually gave up on the 20th of February.

However, Pedro’s death brought about a shocking discovery. An echo-cardiogram was used on her and it was revealed then that the baby’s vital signs remained positive. The baby’s heart beat was beating normally and appeared strong from all indications.

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from the dead woman

It was an amazing discovery as no one imagined a baby could stay alive inside its mother long after she had died. This discovery made the family of Sandra and that of the baby’s father to draw a conclusion that the pregnancy should be sustained in order to preserve the baby. The tests results were also sent to the Hospital Ethics committee in Lisbon.

The dead woman was placed on life support in order to keep her alive so the baby growing within her will not die. It was a depressing phase for the family members who had to see her lifeless body but the thought of the unborn child growing within her was the ray of light they hoped to see at the end of it all.

Although putting her on the life support was to ensure the survival of the baby, it also meant the medical staff had to do a lot of work in monitoring the body of Pedro and the baby within her. After 107 days of intensive care, the baby was born as a premature baby boy whose vital signs were strong enough for a premature baby.

Sandra Pedro’s body was finally released to the family for them to perform the last rite after the life support machines were turned off. The survival of the baby is considered to be a miracle by many baby.

Source: http://nigerianewsnow.com.ng/2016/12/09/omg-this-baby-was-delivered-from-the-body-of-a-dead-woman/

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Former vice chairmen of the local government areas in Anambra state have called on Governor Willie Obiano to stop paying them what they described as illegal salaries as their tenure ended in July.

Vanguard reports that the 20 former vice chairmen said N40,000 is being paid into their account monthly and that they don’t know what the payment is for considering their tenure had ended.They said they would not want to get into problem with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the future and called on the governor to pay them their severance package amounting to N10.78 million for each person.

The spokespersons for the former vice chairmen who are Hon Chuks Obiweluozor for Anambra Central, Hon Michael Anedu for Anambra South and Hon Chris Arinze for Anambra North said they decided to speak out so as not have problems in the future.

They said:: “We left office since July, 2016 and as such, see it as an illegality to draw salaries from the state government. It may interest you to know that up till now, the local government joint account allocation committee office still pays us salaries to the tune of N40,000 per month.

“May we sound it loud and clear that we do not need to be part of this illegality. Therefore, we call on those concerned to stop this illegality forthwith. If there should be any payment, then let the payment be correctly tagged.”

They said their main concern was how they would be paid their furniture allowance, entertainment allowance, accommodation allowance, constituency allowance, domestic allowance, severance gratuity, utility allowance, personal staff, among others, totaling N10.78 million.

Source: http://nigerianewstoday.com.ng/fear-of-efcc-stop-paying-us-illegal-salaries-ex-chiefs-warn-obiano/

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Former Aviation Minister, Spokesperson to ex- President Goodluck Jonathan’s presidential campaign Organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode has backed the call by Sam Omatseye, Chairman, Editorial Board, The Nation that Christens Association of Nigeria (CAN) should use tithes to buy arms for Christians for self-defence.

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has said in November that 102 Christians were killed, over 50,000 houses burnt while another 215 were injured since May 2016 by suspected Fulani herdsmen in 25 villages in Kaduna state.CAN said the villages include Godogodo, Gidan Waya and Ninte communities in Jema’a local government area of the state. CAN President Dr. Samson Ayokunle also berated President Muhammadu Buhari and the state governor, Malam Nasir el-Rufai over their lukewarm attitude to the killings.

Fano-Kayode in his tweet said that ‘those that take pleasure in mass murder and carnage must be stopped. Enough is enough’ as his begged CAN to help stop the killings.

Omatseye, Thursday, on his twitter handle @samomatseye had tweeted ‘102 killed and 500000 houses razed in southern Kaduna. Isn’t it time for CAN to use its tithes to buy arms for Christians for self defense?’

‘Same happened when govt didn’t defend Itsekiris against Ijaws, they armed themselves and ended the war. It’s called balance of terror’

‘Those attacking me don’t know English. I only called for self-defence. If no one attacks them then there will be peace. FG should do its job’ And today he tweeted

‘Southern Kaduna youths have threatened self defense if neglect continues. Is anyone listening?’ Fani-Kayode backing the call by Omatseye tweeted that

‘I support @samomatseye’s call on Xtians in southern Kaduna to defend themselves from genocide and his appeal to CAN to help them.’

‘Self-defence, like self-determination, is a right. Those that take pleasure in mass murder and carnage must be stopped. Enough is enough.’


https://mobile.twitter.com/realFFK/status/804978170499919872

Source: http://nignews.com.ng/use-tithes-to-buy-arms-for-christians-femi-fani-kayode-backs-can/

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A Pakistani plane carrying 47 people crashed Wednesday on a domestic flight from the mountainous northern city of Chitral to Islamabad, aviation authorities said.


Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Flight PK661 crashed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the civil aviation authority told AFP.
An earlier airline statement said the ATR-42 turboprop aircraft had lost contact en route from Chitral.

“A plane has crashed and locals told us that it is on fire,” said Saeed Wazir, a senior local police official.

“Police and rescue officials are on the way but have yet not reached on site.”

The plane came down near the town of Havelian in Abbottabad district in the province.

Pakistan’s last major air disaster was in 2015 when a Pakistani military helicopter crashed in a remote northern valley, killing eight people including the Norwegian, Philippine and Indonesian envoys and the wives of Malaysian and Indonesian envoys.

The deadliest crash was in 2010, when an Airbus 321 operated by private airline Airblue and flying from Karachi crashed into hills outside Islamabad while about to land, killing all 152 on board.

The accident was blamed on a confused captain and a hostile cockpit atmosphere in an official report.

Source: http://nignews.com.ng/plane-disappears-with-37-passengers/