₦airaland Forum

A corrupt Nigerian Minister will be promoted since he can use the stolen loot to lobby for higher position. Ministers will be prosecuted in Nigeria when there is true democracy instead of the farce that currently exists in Nigeria

Medical checkup: 48-year-old Obama `fit for duty'

By NATASHA METZLER
The Associated Press
Sunday, February 28, 2010; 12:27 PM

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama is in "excellent health" and "fit for duty," the White House physician said Sunday after the 48-year-old commander in chief's first checkup since he took office.

Navy Capt. Jeffrey Kuhlman said after the 90-minute exam at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., that he saw nothing that would prevent Obama from fulfilling his term as president.

According to a White House release after the exam, Kuhlman recommended that Obama "continue smoking cessation efforts" and modify his exercise regimen to strengthen his leg muscles to overcome occasional pain from chronic tendinitis in his left leg.

The report said Obama uses a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory for the tendinitis and "nicotine replacement therapy" - believed to be nicotine gum - in his bid to quit smoking. Obama said at a June news conference that he still had an occasional cigarette. It was his first public acknowledgment that he hadn't kicked the habit.

White House officials were not immediately available for comment about whether the president was relying solely on nicotine gum or still occasionally smokes cigarettes.

The doctor said the president should modify his diet to bring his LDL, or bad cholesterol, below 130. At the time of his last exam, in January 2007, when he was an Illinois senator, Obama's total cholesterol was 173, while his LDL was 96 and HDL, or good cholesterol, was 68. That was an excellent report.

This time total cholesterol was up to 209, with HDL down slightly at 62. LDL was up to 138. Borderline high cholesterol starts at 200, with HDL considered in the same category at 130.


The overall results, the doctor said, indicated the president need not return for a physical until August 2011 - after he turns 50.

The president is the picture of health, eats modest portions and exercises regularly. He is an avid basketball player and golfer.

The report said Obama, at 6-feet,1-inch, weighs 180 pounds in shoes and exercise clothing. His pulse rate is 56, which is very good, as is his blood pressure - 105 over 62. The doctor said Obama's vision was 20/20 in both eyes for both distance and near vision.

The president was checked for and found free of colon cancer with a virtual colonoscopy, a scan that avoids the more invasive visual inspection with a camera device that is passed into the large intestine.

The tendinitis that Obama suffers in his left leg could be the result of his regular basketball playing. He is left-handed and he would use his left leg primarily in taking jump-shots.

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President Yar Adua is a public figure and not a private citizen. He is receiving the best health care in the world at the expense of Nigerians and the country deserves to know the true condition of his health.

If his wife wants to continue to keep his health a secret, he can do the right thing by resigning to become a private citizen.

Nigerians deserve a President who will show up to deal with the myriad of problems confronting the nation.

Shocked SA caller speaks to Zuma

Jacob Zuma urged call centre staff to show "empathy"

A South African woman phoned up a new anti-corruption hotline and was shocked to find herself talking to President Jacob Zuma.

The woman phoned to complain that she had been ill-treated at a local magistrates' court while trying to access her late husband's pension.

She was in tears as she told Mr Zuma that she had been visiting the office since 2006 to no avail.

The pair spoke for 10 minutes before she was told who she was talking to.

Mr Zuma assured her that the matter would be investigated and dealt with speedily.

The free hotline was launched on Monday and in its first three hours received some 7,300 complaints from frustrated citizens, the presidency's Vusi Mona told the BBC.

The number is 17737 from within South Africa.

True test

Mr Mona said Mr Zuma was "moved" by the woman's call and told the consultants at the Pretoria call centre to "always show empathy when dealing with people".

Mr Zuma also took a call from a man from Benoni, east of Johannesburg, who highlighted his disappointment that his area has been experiencing sewerage leakages for months without the municipality resolving the matter.


There were protests in July by people demanding better public services
The call centre was set up in response to concerns in the country about corruption and lack of accountability in public offices, poor service delivery and government's inaccessibility to ordinary citizens.

Mr Zuma answered one of the first calls himself and spoke to a woman from Mount Frere, a remote town in the Eastern Cape Province.

She did not recognise the president's voice.

"She asked who she was speaking to before ending the conversation and she was shocked to learn that her complaint had gone through to the president himself," Mr Mona told the BBC.

Her husband died in 2006 and she has been trying to access her husband's pension since then but has been sent away a number of times and told to return at a later date.

Mr Zuma first mentioned the hotline during his election campaign, saying it would help make the government more accessible to the public.

The opposition Democratic Alliance has welcomed Mr Zuma's initiative, saying it is the first step in ensuring that public servants are held accountable for their actions.

DA MP Athol Trollip said a true test of the effectiveness of this service will be what actions are taken against those reported.

Desperate

Mr Zuma has himself been accused of corruption, which he has always denied.

The charges were dropped in April after prosecutors said there had been political interference in the case under the previous administration.

In July, there were widespread protests by township residents demanding better public services, such as electricity, water and housing.

Mr Mona said the high call volumes at the centre showed that South African's were desperate to make their grievances heard.

It is reported that setting up the hotline cost around 4m rand ($541,000; £325,000).

Call centres have been established across the country, including a 21-member team operating from the Union Buildings in Pretoria.

The team is believed to have close to 100 trained public liaison officers who will be the public's link to Mr Zuma's office.

Taiwan ex-leader jailed for life

Mr Chen chose to stay in detention rather than hear the verdict in person
Taiwan's former President Chen Shui-bian has been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of corruption by a court in Taipei.

Mr Chen was charged with embezzlement, taking bribes and money laundering, involving a total of $15m (£9m) while in office from 2000-2008.

Mr Chen had denied the charges, saying they were politically motivated.

His wife, Wu Shu-chen, already jailed for perjury in the case, was also sentenced to life for corruption.

'Illegal' sentence

Taipei District Court convicted Mr Chen on six charges and Mrs Wu on seven charges. The were also fined $15m.

"Chen Shui-bian and Wu Shu-chen were sentenced to life in prison because Chen has done grave damage to the country and Wu because she was involved in corruption deals as the first lady," said court spokesman Huang Chun-ming.

CHEN SHUI-BIAN SENTENCES
Life sentence for embezzling $3.15m from a presidential fund
Eight years for money laundering
Lesser sentences for taking $12m in bribes and kickbacks


A spokesman for Mr Chen said the sentence was "illegal", pointing to a decision to replace the judges in mid-trial. The former president has said he will appeal.

Mr Chen has previously said the charges were constructed by the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) government in a political vendetta. He has admitted accepting money but said it was campaign contributions.

Several dozen of his supporters were outside the court on Friday as the verdict was given, waving placards declaring his innocence.

Unprecedented trial

Mr Chen and his wife were both sentenced to life for embezzling $3.15m (£1.9m) from a special presidential fund.

They received lesser sentences on the charges related to accepting at least $9m in bribes from a Taiwanese company to help it sell a piece of land to the government and of accepting nearly $3m more in kickbacks for helping a contractor gain a government project.

Mrs Wu had already been sentenced on 2 September to one year in prison for perjury for asking her children to lie in court.


Mr Chen's supporters say he is being persecuted
The three-year case also involved close family members of the couple, as well as former aides and government officials.

Their son and daughter-in-law received sentences ranging from 20-30 months for money laundering. Other relatives received suspended sentences. Two former advisors were given sentences of 16 and 20 years in prison.

The case, involving revelations of corruption at the highest levels, has gripped the nation, says the BBC's Cindy Sui in Taipei.

It is unprecedented in Taiwan's short history as a democracy. Direct presidential elections were first held in 1996, after one-party rule ended in the 1980s.

Many expected a guilty verdict but some believed the trial was political revenge on the part of the new ruling party.

Mr Chen and his Democratic Progressive Party favoured Taiwan's independence from the Chinese mainland, angering Beijing as well as the pro-China Kuomintang (KMT) in Taiwan.

Relations between Beijing and Taipei have been improving since the KMT, under President Ma Ying-jeou, took office last year.

Taiwan has been ruled separately from China since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949, when the defeated Kuomintang retreated to Taiwan to create a self-governing entity.

But Beijing sees the island as a breakaway province which should be reunified with the mainland, by force if necessary.

Mbulela, is the total compensation of #40 million for a Senator per month or annum?

Fhemmmy:
Even without fact, it is common sense.

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Fhemmmy, I asked Becoomrich where he derived his population figures since there has been no verifiable census. Rural-urban drift has been written about forever so nothing new. The policy makers are deaf to this phenom.

I do not care about common sense but rather scientific analysis based on facts. If you cannot answer direct questions then do not jump into the exchange.

Where did you get your population figures for these extrapolations? Nigeria has not had a reliable census in recent times. You often state your assumptions as facts. Give us facts to back up your figures.

becomrich,:
villages are disappearing from Nigeria.


contrast to people believe in Nigeria


About 44 to 49 % of nigerian lived in the 81 cities with population above 300,000 , I once listed.

And another 23 to 26 % live in another 280 cities which i would list later, with population from 40,000 to 300,000

while just 19 to 24 % live below towns, or villages less than 40,000

it shows immigration is affecting Urban movement. And it is danger to Nigeria food production, which you already seen in more export.

People are moving away from the villages and agriclture. while our cities have increase in size.

The south east have the largest concentration of linear settlement in Nigeria.

villages are disappearing from Nigeria.

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Becoomrich, there you go again crying wolf. Your post is loaded with contradictions. You stated that rural-urban migration has led to the neglect of agriculture and thus a danger to food production. Then you conlude that this has led to more food export. How can that be possible?

Nigerian has not had a credible census since 1963 so it is strange that you can cook up these stats with any degree of certainty. I will like some of the kool-aid you are drinking.

Date Published: 09/07/09

Oni reacts to criticism over salary delay


The Ekiti State governor Engr. Segun Oni has reacted to criticism over delayed payment of government workers in the state, saying that the delay would soon be over.

Governor Oni said in Ado - Ekiti that the delay was a fallout of the present world economic recession, adding the situation would be put under control soon.

The governor, who pointed out that he does not joke with workers' salary added that his government had before now adhered strictly to paying of salaries and allowances between 20 th and 25 th of the month.

Governor Oni disclosed that the delay in payment of salary will fizzle out soon as measures are being taken to ensure that workers take home their pay as at when due.

While expressing his sympathy to the workers, Governor Oni said he knows the pains the delay in payment of salary would have inflicted on them.

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He appealed to the workers to bear with the government as the situation will be normalised soon.

His words; “As a responsible government, we will not deliberately do anything that can inflict pains on the people; especially those who sweat daily to see to the implementation of government policies and programmes.

“Our prompt payment of salaries of our workers and settlement of arrears of pensions and gratuities owed retirees in the State since 1994 are pointers to the fact that we hold the workers in high esteem and will continue to protect their interests.

“Even as we are convinced that the delay in payment will soon be over, we urge the workers to bear with us as we journey through the path of putting our State in a sound footing economically.

“We are convinced that with all the efforts that we are putting in place, our dream of Ekiti State as one of the best economies in the world would be realised soonest. “

Benin chief, 4 juju priests arrested for human trafficking

Cover Stories Sep 7, 2009 By Simon Ebegbulem

BENIN—THE National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons (NAPTIP), Benin zone, has arrested a Benin Chief, and four juju priests over alleged involvement in human trafficking.

The agency also alleged administering of oath to some girls who are trafficked abroad for prostitution.
According to the Benin zonal Head of NAPTIP, Barrister (Mrs) Olufunke Abiola, who spoke to Vanguard on the arrest of the Chief and the juju priests, the arrest of the Benin Chief of Benin Kingdom, is sequel to a petition by one Mrs Juliet Osifo who claimed that the chief sponsored her daughter, to Italy, enroute Libya but was trapped in Libya after she was arrested by the Libyan authorities.

She expressed worries over what she described as the incessant denials of the “fact that young girls of Benin decent are still in human trafficking and taken away for prostitution.

“Now as you would see, there is a very big case on hand that would prove to every body that no one is exempted, whether Benin, Urhobo, Itsekiri or Yoruba, every body is involved in this and it must stop.

“The young girls are ignorant. Like I said, sometimes, we find it difficult to prove a case against these traffickers because the girl will not want to expose her trafficker and apart from that, they are put under oath.

“So, this zone has been very very busy looking for all the juju priests that put some of the girls under oath. Some of them are even in our cell.

“We asked them to go and renounce that oath of the life of that girl so that the girl can feel free to be a human being because the oath ties them down spiritually.”

The Chief, who spoke to Vanguard, admitted that his daughter in Italy requested he should bring the lady to Italy to assist her in her beer parlour, but that she was, however, stuck in Libya. “So what we are doing now is to see how we can bring her back to Nigeria so that she can stay with her parents,”he said.

Meanwhile, over 500 indigenes of Edo state who have been languishing in Libyan jails arrived Benin weekend, just as they appealed to both the state and federal governments to assist their colleagues who are still left in the Arab country to come back home to avert further deaths of the Nigerians.

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The names of the Chief and his juju priests were not mentioned by Vanguard Newspaper but the young prostitute's mother's name was clearly spelt out in the article. Why are these trashy newspapers in Nigeria continually protecting the crooks in the society. The petitioner said her intent was to highlight the involvement of highly placed pimps in the prostitution rings around the world that have ruined the lives of girls and Nigeria's image. Vangurad News did a disservice to this intention by failing to publish the names of these perverts who were arrested. Shame on Vanguard.

Romance Gone Bad

A Florida minister accused of faking his own kidnapping so he could cheat on his wife.

Hillsborough County deputies say Wikler Moran-Mora's wife received a disturbing text message from him on the night of Aug. 25. He said he had been abducted but he was negotiating with his captors, so she shouldn't worry or panic. She did both -- and called the cops.


Officers launched a full-scale search that included more than a dozen deputies and dogs. While the manhunt was going on, Mrs. Moran-Mora received more texts from her husband telling her the kidnappers were letting him go and he would be home soon.
It wasn't long before deputies used signals from his cell phone to locate the Seventh Day Adventist Church of Reform pastor. They say Moran-Mora, 38, was with another woman and admitted that he'd fabricated the kidnapping story so his wife wouldn't find out he was spending time with his mistress.
The minister was charged with filing a false police report and released on $500 bail.

Larez, please find the Lagos state Governor's email and send your thoughts to him directly. I understand that he is actually net literate unlike some other Governors. Your response to Topup was very moving and profound and I feel your pain about the lack of foresight and imagination of our national planners. Keep up the good fight as we will have to take back Nigeria from the current retrogressives.

naijaking1:
My brother, that's what happens when you put the cart before the horse.
His actions are not bound by "if"
The stupid man has sent people off to jail, and he is still saying "if"
He has sacked whole boards of private banks, based on "if"
The whole banking future of this country is shaken, because of his "if"
Don't mention the money lost by shareholders already, because "if he found that they mismanaged -------------"
So sad

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NaijaKing 1, these banks are not private banks as they all listed on the NSE and are publicly traded firms. The CBN has a duty to ensure that the funds of shareholders and investors entrusted to the care of these banks are properly managed. Most Nigerian banks have been cooking their books for years and Soludo knew this but probabaly did not have the courage or political capital to clamp down on these criminal practices.

It is a felony for the  banks to file false financial statements to the regulator(CBN) or investors. These banks have played fast and loose with the funds of depositors by giving out unsecured loans and gambling in the scam that is the current NSE.

When these banks eventually fail, the NDIC will have to step in and spend tax payers fund to pay back all depositors subject to the maximum guarantee. In the U.S. it is $250,000 per depositor.

He could have lived longer – doctors

By Sun News Publishing

Sunday, September 6, 2009


Death is an angel that leaves a vacuum behind when it passes by. It has beaten the whole world to it in the person of Gani Fawehinmi under the guise of lung cancer. Cancer is a terminal illness generally defined as a malignant growth that spreads across the available surface area.

Gani was initially treated for heart related problem until he was flown abroad for thorough medical check where he was correctly diagnosed for lung cancer.

“He was not given proper diagnosis of what was wrong with him in the hospital in Nigeria where he was attended to. They told him something different was wrong with him. Even when he was trying to make sure that everything was alright, it was obvious that something was wrong somewhere”, the daughter, Rabiat had said during the 70th birthday anniversary of the legal icon.

In reaction to the statement, Dr Olofumilade Omisanjo said he does not know much about Gani’s illness.
However, speaking about sickness generally, he said once a sickness is diagnosed, treatment follows immediately. “I know he was flown abroad for treatment and before he was taken out for treatment, the cancer was not diagnosed on time but I believe that if the diagnosis was rightly and clearly revealed, he would have lived longer because the disease would have been well managed”.
On the usage of pain killer drugs, Dr Omisanjo explained that where nothing could be done about an illness, pain killer drugs could be administered.

Dr Nosirudeen Bello said diagnosis of cancer is not something difficult. According to him, it can affect any part of the body and can spread further to other parts. He said, “It is an illness that will eventually kill the patient. I would say if Gani’s cancer was diagnosed on time, his would have been managed such that he can stay for a period and if he was given pain killer drugs, it was not wrong. It can be used to enhance the patient’s life.

For Dr Olatunbosun Olaniyi, “Cancer is cancer irrespective of whatever part of the body it is ravaging, and as we know, it is a terminal illness that the chances of survival is slim. That is, it is a matter of grace and divine healing but that is not to rule out the fact that if he had been diagnosed early enough with cancer of the lungs that he wouldn’t have survived it. I believe that the doctors would have tried their best to sustain him. I mean they would have given him adequate treatment available that would have kept him alive a little longer.

Another medical practitioner, Dr Sola Akinde said that anywhere in the world, cancer generally not to talk of cancer of the lungs has a poor prognosis and it is not easily diagnosed. He said, “Doctors generally are not magicians but they only use what is at their disposal to treat whatever ailment brought to them. So I believe the doctors only diagnosed with the available facility they have on ground and you know for Nigeria, our facility are very poor and so they only used what was on ground. If the disease was diagnosed early enough, the chances are slim as cancer of the lungs doesn’t have a good outlook”.

How Bank MDs Gave Fake Monthly Returns To CBN - EFCC - Ex-Bank Chiefs To Remain In Detention Till Sept 15

Akeem Nafiu, Lagos - 05.09.2009

THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on Friday, accused sacked chief executives and executive directors of the five banks of financial crimes running into billions of naira.


It specifically accused both the former Managing Director of Oceanic Bank International, Mrs. Cecilia Ibru and her FinBank Nigeria Plc counterpart, Mr. Okey Nwosu, of falsifying monthly returns of the banks to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) while they were at the helm of affairs.


The EFCC said this at the Federal High Court, Lagos, where the bank chiefs were arraigned. During the trial, the judge, Justice Dan Abutu, fixed the 14th and 15th September as the dates to rule on their bail applications.


He also ordered that the accused persons be remanded in custody till then. The former Managing Director of Afribank Plc, Sebastian Adigwe and Peter Ololo, the Managing Director of Falcon Securities Limited, are to be in prison custody while the rest, including the seven executive directors of Intercontinental Bank Plc are to be remanded in EFCC’s custody.


The anti-graft commission, on Friday, opposed the bail applications of all the accused persons. In its counter affidavit to the bail application of Mrs. Ibru, the EFCC disclosed that it embarked on an investigation of the bank’s management upon the receipt of a petition in August.


The commission stated further that its investigations revealed that Mrs. Ibru granted unsecure credit facilities running into billions of naira to some companies after the board of directors of the bank had refused to grant same.


It was also alleged that the Oceanic Bank’s monthly return to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was falsified by Mrs. Ibru. She was also said to have released the bank’s fund to acquire its shares, contrary to the accepted practice and CBN directives.


The EFCC stated that if the accused was granted bail by the court, she would use her position as a former managing director to interfere with the proposed prosecution witnesses.


It said it would not be in the interest of justice to grant her bail. However, the arguments were countered by the accused in her application.


She asked the court, through her lawyer, Akin Olujimi (SAN), to grant her bail pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit. In the EFCC’s counter affidavit to the bail application of Nwosu, the commission disclosed that it conducted an investigation into the running of the bank upon the receipt of a petition from the CBN in August.


The EFCC stated that its investigation showed that Nwosu made the bank to borrow N44.8 billion from the CBN through expanded discount window and standing credit facility was still outstanding as of July 23.


It also alleged that the bank’s monthly return to the CBN was falsified by the accused and that he would not be available for trial if granted bail.


Nwosu, speaking through his lawyer, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), asked that he be granted bail by the court on liberal terms. On the former Managing Director of Union Bank, Bartholomew Ebong and his co-accused, Henry Onyemem and Niyi Albert Opeodu, the EFCC disclosed in its counter-affidavit that the accused conspired among themselves to manipulate the bank’s shares.


Counsel for Ebong, Professor Alfred Kasumu (SAN), asked the court to grant his client bail on self recognition. In his own submission, Anthony Idigbe (SAN), counsel for Onyemem, told the court that his client was absent due to ill-health.


He accused the EFCC of filing the proof of evidence after the accused’s bail application had been filed, and urged the court to admit his client to bail on the ground of ill-health.


Chief Olanipekun, who argued for the third accused, Albert Opeodu, also canvassed for the his client’s bail application. The commission also countered the bail applications of Adigwe, Ololo and the seven executive directors of Intercontinental Bank Plc.


The executive directors are Raymond Obieri, Hyacinth Enuha, Christopher Adebayo Alabi, Samuel Adegbite, Alhaji Isyaku Umar, Bayo Dada and Sanni Adams.

When the bank becomes insolvent, your shares will be worth zilch.

Panel Rules Against Ashcroft in Detention Case

By JOHN SCHWARTZ
Published: September 4, 2009

Former Attorney General John Ashcroft may face personal liability for the decisions that led to the detention of an American citizen as a material witness after the Sept. 11 attacks, a federal appeals court panel ruled on Friday.

In the decision, a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in San Francisco, was sharply critical of the Bush administration’s practice of holding people it suspected of terrorism without charges, as material witnesses.

“We find this to be repugnant to the Constitution, and a painful reminder of some of the most ignominious chapters of our national history,” said the opinion, written by Judge Milan D. Smith Jr.

The lawsuit was brought in 2005 by Abdullah al-Kidd, who was born Lavoni T. Kidd in Kansas and converted to Islam in college. He was arrested in 2003 at Dulles Airport as he prepared to fly to Saudi Arabia for graduate work in Islamic studies, and was held for weeks under a law that allows the indefinite detention of material witnesses to a crime. After his detention, he was ordered to stay with his in-laws in Las Vegas; his travel was restricted over the next year.

Mr. Kidd, who was not called as a witness in the case in which he was detained and was never charged with a crime, sued Mr. Ashcroft and other officials in 2005, challenging his detention as unconstitutional and saying it cost him his marriage and his job. His lawyers argued that he was held as part of a secret Bush administration policy to use the material witness statute as a tool to detain and interrogate people when there was insufficient evidence to charge them with a crime.

Mr. Ashcroft, who was represented by the Justice Department, disputed Mr. Kidd’s version of the facts and claimed his position granted him immunity.

Lee Gelernt, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union who represented Mr. Kidd, called it “an enormous decision” that says “no official, including the attorney general of the United States, can be immune if he adopts and implements an unconstitutional policy.”

Material witness laws, said Ronald L. Carlson, a law professor at the University of Georgia, have generally been used to hold witnesses briefly if they have crucial information but are thought to be likelier to flee than to testify. But during the Bush administration, the use of the law was expanded for use in terrorism investigations, and “the net swept pretty widely,” Professor Carlson said.

Charles S. Miller, a spokesman for the Justice Department, said, “We’re reviewing the court’s ruling.” Mark Corallo, a spokesman for Mr. Ashcroft, would say only that Mr. Ashcroft was reviewing the decision as well.

A report in 2005 by Human Rights Watch and the A.C.L.U. said that 70 people were improperly detained under the material witness law after 9/11. Although the decision could conceivably apply to those people, few, if any, of them could now sue because of the statute of limitations, Mr. Gelernt said.

Judge Smith, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, was joined in the majority opinion by Judge David R. Thompson, who was appointed by President Ronald Reagan. The third judge on the panel, Carlos T. Bea, filed an opinion that concurred in part and dissented in part. Judge Bea, who was also appointed by President Bush, argued that Mr. Ashcroft should have immunity in the case, and that the majority was wrong to allow Mr. Kidd “to seek redress from the wallet of a federal cabinet-level official.”

Unless Mr. Ashcroft appeals the decision, the case will go back to federal district court for further hearings, which could involve extensive investigation of the former administration’s antiterrorism policies.

Becoomrich, do not blame Nairaland since your spelling and grammer are both atrocious. Just look at your current heading. It is quite painful to read your posts but I am sure we are all used to them.

Signorina:
I LOVE THIS COUNTRY SO MUCH! I DON'T EVER REGRET BEING A NIGERIAN. GOD WILL RAISE GOOD LEADERS FOR US VERY SOON. IT DEPENDS ON YOU AND I. PLEASE WATCH OUT FOR THE NEXT REGIME,
SO MANY THINGS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN, SO SO TERRIBLE BUT IN THE END IT WILL TURN OUT FOR GOOD.

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It is not necessary to shout in your post by writing in upper case letters. Nigerians keep waiting for God and a divine intervention to turn the country around while the thieves empty the treasury.

Remember that Heaven helps those who help themselves.

The Nigerian populace is the cause of leadership failure.

Next week Cameroon will have the nerve to ask the British government for financial aid. A reflection of the sad state of African governments.

A corrupt and inept Nigerian Federal government has no moral authority to take Sony to task for speaking the truth about Nigerians. There are posts on this forum all day defending scammers in both Nigerian government and public life, but we suddenly develop a moral outrage when foreigners point out just how bad and deep rooted crime has become in the Nigerian culture.

Charity should begin at home. Let us start by showing our righteous indignation at the corrupt government and private institutions that have turned Nigeria into the land of misery.

Remember it is not libel or defamation if it is the truth.

ajileko:
That's Nigeria for you. We do things differently here and we are proud of it.

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More power to you if you are happy with the state of progress in Nigeria and your station in it.

CHANCEMAN:
Jazzsoul, for nija we no too need garage our cars na part of the scenery for our compund howpeople go know say you load when your car dey inside garage.

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Bill Gates has a home that is worth $150 million dollars and the 6,300 sq ft garage for all his cars is completely underground. The psychology of wealth in Nigeria is shocking.

Former Ontario AG Bryant charged in cyclist's death
Last Updated: Tuesday, September 1, 2009 | 4:18 PM ET Comments471Recommend349CBC News
Former Ontario attorney general Michael Bryant is shown in the back of a police cruiser in Toronto on Monday night. (Tony Smyth/CBC) The man who was once touted as a future premier for Canada's largest province is now facing charges involving the death of a cyclist on one of Toronto's busiest streets.

"Michael James Bryant, 43 years of age, of Toronto, is now charged with criminal negligence causing death and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death," said Toronto police Sgt. Tim Burrows at an impromptu news conference outside the headquarters of the force's traffic division.

Cyclist Darcy Allan Sheppard, 33, worked for a city courier service and was the father of an infant son. (Facebook)
Bryant was a high-profile Ontario cabinet minister until May of this year when he stepped down to take the job as president and CEO of Invest Toronto.

Until then, the man who became the youngest-ever attorney general in Ontario history had been frequently mentioned as a possible successor to Premier Dalton McGuinty as leader of the province's Liberals.

But Bryant's future is unclear following the death of a cyclist on Bloor Street West near Bay Street on Monday night.

According to police, Bryant was driving his black Saab convertible at about 9:45 p.m. when he and the cyclist became involved in an altercation.

Michael Bryant issues condolences
Let me ask for your understanding in not making a statement today on last night's tragic events. At an appropriate moment I will, of course, speak to you.

I would, however, like to extend my deepest condolences to the family of Mr. Sheppard.

To all those who have offered support to my family over the past 12 hours, thank you.

May I ask that the media continue to respect my family's need for distance and privacy for the next few days.

Thank you.

— Issued Tuesday at a press conference in Toronto
The cyclist has been identified as 33-year-old Darcy Allan Sheppard of Toronto.

Police said the incident quickly escalated.

"There was some sort of altercation between the two people involved in this investigation, which has ended in, unfortunately, the death of a cyclist," Burrows said.

Burrows described what led to Sheppard's death as a "minor collision" between the bicycle and the black Saab.

"The cyclist ended up on the side of the car, holding on, and the driver continued along, driving westbound on Bloor Street."

Witnesses said Bryant crossed lanes of traffic to the south side of Bloor Street, still heading west.

Burrows could not explain why Bryant allegedly drove up onto the curb.

"I don't want to try to say why [he] did that, only [he] knows exactly why, but he was travelling westbound in the eastbound lanes," he said.

A number of witnesses have come forward, police said, and investigators want anyone else who saw anything to contact them.

"We had seven witnesses that identified themselves to police last night, having seen the events that transpired. As in any investigation, however, the more witnesses we have, the better," Burrows said.

The witnesses said it appeared as though Bryant was attempting to knock Sheppard off the car by brushing against trees and mailboxes on Bloor Street approaching Avenue Road. Burrows said Sheppard was "essentially a pedestrian," having left his bicycle.

Police said Sheppard sustained severe injuries after striking a mailbox and a tree while still hanging on to the car.

Former Ontario attorney general Michael Bryant told reporters in Toronto on Tuesday that he wants to offer his deepest condolences to the family of cyclist Darcy Allan Sheppard. (Darren Calabrese/Canadian Press) He was dragged and then run over by the rear wheels of the vehicle.

He was rushed to Toronto's St. Michael's Hospital, according to police.

Sheppard was pronounced dead a short time later.

Other evidence police have collected includes security camera images from stores along one of Toronto's wealthiest business strips.

"We actually have viewed two videos that were provided to us by two different businesses along Bloor Street. We have officers right now on Bloor Street canvassing some of the other stores , to see if they have any video that their systems may have captured," Burrows said.

Police said several 911 calls were made during the incident. One call came from Bryant while he was still in the vehicle.

Police spotted the Saab after it pulled into the nearby Hyatt Hotel. Bryant was later seen in the back of a police cruiser.

The head of the city's high-profile investment agency spent the next 14 hours in police custody answering questions.

A note of remembrance is posted near the scene of the cyclist's death. (Cheryl Krawchuk/CBC)
When he emerged from the police station he offered his condolences to the Sheppard family and then asked to be left alone.

Police said Bryant will make a court appearance on Oct. 19 in connection with the case.

Bryant was first elected as the Liberal MPP for St. Paul's in 1999 and won re-election in 2003 — becoming the province's youngest-ever attorney general at the time — and again in 2007. He also served as aboriginal affairs minister and minister of economic development.

Bryant is a Harvard-trained lawyer who clerked at the Supreme Court of Canada and later taught law at the University of Toronto, Osgoode Hall and King's College, London.

His wife, Susan Abramovitch, is also a lawyer. He has two children.

Bryant resigned from politics three months ago to become president and CEO of Invest Toronto, which is chaired by Toronto Mayor David Miller.

The byelection to replace Bryant as MPP for the riding of St. Paul's is scheduled for Sept. 17.

Dele Momodu is a glorified photographer who thinks he is a journalist. I sent an email to him and his editor last week and I am waiting for a response. Dele Momodu calls himself an opinion leader while he is actually a follower.

I asked him what his opinions were on power supply, health care, corruption and security of life and property. Has he ever written a well researched investigative piece on any of the delicate issues confronting Nigeria today?

Notice how he mentioned in his last piece of thrash that Nigeria is controlled by an oligarch whom he failed to mention its menbers or was too scared to do so. I guess he is thinking of the Dele Giwa treatment so he can continue to spend quality time with his dear wife and child in London or Cotonou.

Bola Ige, Alfred Rewane and Abiola do not have the luxury of time that he now enjoys. Since the price of success has been so hard on Dele Momodu, I advised him to try being poor for a change and experience what the vast majority of Nigerians go through daily.

Seun:
You still don't get it. Any "official" exchange rate separate from the prevailing
"black" market rate is an attempt to fight the forces of demand and supply.

The only way you can bring down the naira price of the dollar is by injecting more dollars
into the system. I.e. increasing the supply to meet the demand. End of story.

The reason the exchange rate is crashing is simple: the price of oil has gone down.
The CBN is just playing politics by blaming the banks. It's all about dollar supply.

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When the banks buy dollars from the CBN and you as the customer goes to your bank with your pro forma invoice to buy dollars and the bank lies to you that they not have any dollars. What do you think that does to the supply of forex in the open market?

I agree that the slide in the price of crude has adversely affected the Naira but there is a lot more that affects an exchange rate other than the price of a country's primary export product. What do you think the exchange rate will be if the supply and demand for dollars were at an equilibrium? Give me a guess.

Nigerias' current account deficits, balance of payments and purchasing power parity all play a role in the exchange rate.

$140 barrel of crude is not coming back anytime soon and every small manipulative action by market players will have ramifications on the exchange rate.

The problem with Nigeria. Why take from the poor market woman who struggles to pay her govt rates(taxes) to buy three jeeps for a man who has it all. I grew up in Midwest State and I know the Ogbemudia family well.

Where are the armed robbers to carjack these undeserving and corrupt ex governors with free cars. Nobody gives an Ex governor in the U.S anything. The Ex Vice President is not even entitled to security after his term of office.

President Obama made an exception for Dick Cheney to have security for a limited time at the request of the Secret Service because of proven threats.

Ex Governors in America often go back to work in the public and private sector when they leave office because they are skilled. Nigerian Ex Governors who have looted the states finances are treated like kings with cars and police security by the same states their imcompetence and greed devastated. Pity

mahal:
mahalarchitectsltd@yahoo.com, info@mahalgoldfingers.com

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Mahal, I noticed there are no attached garages in any of your residential designs. Could it be that Nigerians do not care about their automobiles or is it a function of the lot sizes?

Thanks for the heads up Candylips.

Seun:
Repeat after me: "exchange rate is controlled by demand and supply"

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Did you bother to read the article before your lecture on fundamental Economics 101? The crooked banks in Nigeria are creating an artificial scarcity of forex in the official market thus boosting the black market rates. The CBN has been sending cease and desist orders to banks who have been receiving forex for sale at the official market only to turn around and sell such at the black market.