₦airaland Forum

[size=14pt]God has blown NDC's cover; 'they are hypocrites, liars and thieves'[/size]


The opposition New Patriotic Party says their defeat in the 2008 general elections was a blessing in disguise.

According to the campaign manager of the NPP, Boakye Agyarko, the loss suffered by the NPP in 2008 has given Ghanaians the real opportunity to assess the two parties and to know which of them CAN best serve the interest of the country.

Speaking at a news conference to announce the party's first ever national interdenominational prayer session, Mr Agyarko said he was confident Ghanaians' assessment of the Mills administration will bring the NPP back to power.

It was the wish of the NPP to win the 2008 elections but God, in 'His own infinite wisdom', did not grant that wish for a reason, Mr Agyarko stated.

'But I believe God did not grant us because he needed to expose the NDC for what they are - hypocrites, liars, thieves of the first order. Otherwise how does a president who has declared himself righteousness allow such perfidy of taking the nation's money to one person'


Mr Agyarko went Biblical and said God works in a mysterious way, and asked people to remain patient for God's appointed time, professing that unanswered prayer 'does not mean He (God) has not heard you, but He will grant you that wish in His time.'

Boakye Agyarko said the prayer session would be used by the party to pray for peace ahead of their campaign for the December elections.

http://www.modernghana.com/news/374473/1/god-has-blown-ndcs-cover-they-are-hypocrites-liars.html

President Obama, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer Share Tense Tarmac Moment
ABC NewsBy Devin Dwyer | ABC News – 2 hrs 57 mins ago

Longstanding tension between Republican Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer and Democratic President Barack Obama flared into the public spotlight Wednesday just after Air Force One touched down in Phoenix.

Brewer, who was on the tarmac to greet Obama, hand-delivered a letter before engaging the president "intensely" for several minutes, including pointing her finger directly at him, according to Politico's Carrie Budoff Brown, acting as a pool reporter for other media outlets.

Accounts from both camps later said the terse talk focused on Brewer's book - "Scorpions for Breakfast: My Fight Against Special Interests, Liberal Media and Cynical Politicos to Secure America's Border."

The book, which was released in November, describes a June 2010 Oval Office meeting between Obama and Brewer aimed at diffusing conflicts surrounding Arizona's controversial state immigration law and the administration's immigration policy.

[b]At the time, the White House called it a "good meeting," while Brewer's staff said it was "cordial."

But Brewer paints a much different picture in her book.

Brewer complains in "Scorpions for Breakfast" that she and her staff were treated coldly by White House aides, prevented from taking pictures in the holding room outside the Oval Office and that their cell phones and cameras were "confiscated" by Secret Service.

"Too bad we weren't illegal aliens, or we could have sued them," she writes.

During her meeting with the president, Brewer said Obama was "condescending" and professorial, "lecturing" on his efforts to promote comprehensive immigration reform.

"It wasn't long before I realized I was hearing the president's stump speech," she said. "Only I was supposed to listen without talking. Did he care to hear the view from the actual scene at the border? Did the opinions and observations of the people of Arizona mean anything to him? I didn't think so."

"He was patronizing," she said. "Then it dawned on me: He's treating me like the cop he had over for a beer after he bad-mouthed the Cambridge police, I thought. He thinks he can humor me and then get rid of me."[/b]

Obama raised his objections to Brewer's account face-to-face with the governor Wednesday.

"He was a little disturbed about my book," Brewer told reporters after the meeting broke. "I said to him that I have all the respect in the world for the office of the president. The book is what the book is. I asked him if he read the book. He said he read the excerpt."

Obama told Brewer "that he didn't feel that I had treated him cordially," Brewer said. "I said I was sorry he felt that way but I didn't get my sentence finished.

"Anyway, we're glad he's here. I'll regroup," she added.

A senior administration official later told reporters that Obama's comments were in response to Brewer's request for another one-on-one meeting.

"The governor handed the president a letter and said she was inviting him to meet with her. The president said he'd be glad to meet with her again, but did note that after their last meeting, a cordial discussion in the Oval Office, the governor inaccurately described the meeting in her book," the official told reporters, on condition of anonymity.

Brewer, who said in her letter to Obama that she wanted to discuss "Arizona's comeback" with him, did not attend the presidential event at a Phoenix factory today. But she did make several subsequent media appearances to talk about her tarmac encounter.

In an interview with KFYI radio in Phoenix, Brewer said Obama was "somewhat thin-skinned and a little tense, to say the least."

"I was very surprised. I was taken aback. I really was," she said. "I was shocked by the sternness of it all."

http://news.yahoo.com/chilly-reception-obama-lands-phoenix-words-gop-governor-001215385--abc-news.html

It's a hard life,

Julia Gillard 'rescued' amid Australia Day protests

Australian PM Julia Gillard and leader of the opposition Tony Abbott had to be rescued after becoming trapped by an angry protest, local media reports.

About 50 police escorted the pair from Canberra's Lobby restaurant after it was surrounded by some 200 supporters of the city's Aboriginal Tent Embassy.

Mr Abbott had reportedly angered them by suggesting it was time for the camp - marking its 40th year - to come down.

The pair had been at a ceremony for the inaugural National Emergency Medals.

The honours - presented as the country marked Australia Day - were introduced to recognise those who served their communities during events such as the 2009 bushfires in Victoria and the floods in Queensland in 2010 and 2011.

But Australia's newspapers reported that riot police were called to the restaurant at about 14:30 local time as protesters gathered outside, with people banging on the glass yelling "shame" and "racist".

Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott were reportedly forced to wait 20 minutes before police escorted them through a side door.

According to the BBC's Duncan Kennedy, chaos ensued as a bodyguard grabbed Ms Gillard by the shoulders and shoved her into a waiting car.

The prime minister appeared to have stumbled in the process and was missing a shoe. Protesters continued to slam on the car's roof and the bonnet as it sped off.

Supporters had gathered for a three-day Corroborree for Sovereignty to mark the 40th anniversary of the tent embassy.

Media reports suggested some had been angered by Mr Abbott's suggestion in a TV interview that it was "time to move on" from the camp in light of current plans to recognise indigenous people in the country's constitution.

The tent embassy was established in 1972 by four men as a protest against the prime minister of the time's refusal to acknowledge indigenous land rights.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16736054


[flash=600,600]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIeUq7HVCzI[/flash]

Another crash for David Cameron as he bumps car while reversing
By Martin Fricker 25/01/2012


Since David Cameron came to power, the stock market and housing prices have crashed. And the PM was at it himself yesterday.

He continued his habit of lurching from one embarrassing clanger to another when he lent his family’s nanny a helping hand to park her car – only to bump it into a stationary vehicle.

Mr Cameron was left embarrassed after he returned home from a workout with personal trainer Matt Roberts. Wearing a personalised Nike tracksuit, the PM went to the aid of grateful nanny Gita Lama in Downing Street.

A source said: “She was struggling to park her Honda Jazz in a tight space as she arrived at work.

“It was just after 8am and Mr Cameron came back home in a Jaguar with his trainer and protection officers. He saw Gita was having difficulties, jumped out of his car and ran over to help.

"She got out of the driver’s seat and he got in. He was trying to carefully move the Honda forward when the front bumper hit the back of a parked Peugeot 206.


“It wasn’t a big noise. It was just the two bumpers coming together. Mr Roberts and the protection guys all burst out laughing. When Mr Cameron eventually parked the car, he got out and glanced down at the bumper to see what damage there was.

“From what I could see there was no damage to the car and everyone saw the funny side.”

It is believed the Peugeot – which also emerged from the bump unscathed – belongs to a Downing Street cleaner.

Last night Downing Street tried to play down the accident. A source close to the PM said: “He helped park the nanny’s car.

“They have a new car and she was trying to park it. The Prime Minister reverse parked it. He did not prang or bump the car.”


His doubters will be hoping he spends less time parking cars and more time on a collision course with City fatcats.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/2012/01/25/another-crash-for-david-cameron-as-he-bumps-into-car-while-reversing-115875-23718853/#ixzz1kZZ1TsPR

Chai!  See hard life oooo .
-----------------------------------------------


Left: JAN 20, to 2009 a Barack Obama is sworn in as the 44th President of the United States

Right: MAY 25, in 2009 From Barack to grey. Obama in the White House rose garden

Barack Obama has definitely let the presidency go to his head - with his hair going rapidly grey since he took office in January.

Now the 47-year-old American leader looks more head of slate than head of state.

Obama himself admitted while on the election trail last year that he was noticing increasing numbers of grey hairs. He told supporters: "The grey is coming quick. By the time I'm sworn in, I will look the part."

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2009/05/27/obama-the-first-100-greys-115875-21392115/

^^^

These Yoruba Muslims are in the government of Ghana, abi?

^^^

Who is Boko Haram in love with?

ZEN:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrSH6hE4Oqo

funmi with our new I.G

Who is Funmi?

leksiding:
Goodluck dey vex

Sebi dem talk say him no get liver?

[size=14pt]Remarks of President Barack Obama – As Prepared for Delivery
"An America Built to Last"[/size]

Mr Speaker, Mr Vice President, members of Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow Americans:

Last month, I went to Andrews Air Force Base and welcomed home some of our last troops to serve in Iraq. Together, we offered a final, proud salute to the colors under which more than a million of our fellow citizens fought – and several thousand gave their lives.

We gather tonight knowing that this generation of heroes has made the United States safer and more respected around the world. For the
first time in nine years, there are no Americans fighting in Iraq.

For the first time in two decades, Osama bin Laden is not a threat to this country. Most of al Qaeda's top lieutenants have been defeated.
The Taliban's momentum has been broken, and some troops in Afghanistan have begun to come home.

These achievements are a testament to the courage, selflessness, and teamwork of America's Armed Forces. At a time when too many of our
institutions have let us down, they exceed all expectations. They're not consumed with personal ambition. They don't obsess over their
differences. They focus on the mission at hand. They work together.

Imagine what we could accomplish if we followed their example. Think about the America within our reach: A country that leads the world in
educating its people. An America that attracts a new generation of high-tech manufacturing and high-paying jobs. A future where we're in
control of our own energy, and our security and prosperity aren't so tied to unstable parts of the world. An economy built to last, where
hard work pays off, and responsibility is rewarded.

We can do this. I know we can, because we've done it before. At the end of World War II, when another generation of heroes returned home
from combat, they built the strongest economy and middle class the world has ever known. My grandfather, a veteran of Patton's Army, got
the chance to go to college on the GI Bill. My grandmother, who worked on a bomber assembly line, was part of a workforce that turned
out the best products on Earth.

The two of them shared the optimism of a Nation that had triumphed over a depression and fascism. They understood they were part of
something larger; that they were contributing to a story of success that every American had a chance to share – the basic American promise
that if you worked hard, you could do well enough to raise a family, own a home, send your kids to college, and put a little away for
retirement.

The defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise alive. No challenge is more urgent. No debate is more important. We can either
settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while a growing number of Americans barely get by. Or we can
restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules. What's
at stake are not Democratic values or Republican values, but American values. We have to reclaim them.

Let's remember how we got here. Long before the recession, jobs and manufacturing began leaving our shores. Technology made businesses
more efficient, but also made some jobs obsolete. Folks at the top saw their incomes rise like never before, but most hardworking
Americans struggled with costs that were growing, paychecks that weren't, and personal debt that kept piling up.

In 2008, the house of cards collapsed. We learned that mortgages had been sold to people who couldn't afford or understand them. Banks had
made huge bets and bonuses with other people's money. Regulators had looked the other way, or didn't have the authority to stop the bad
behavior.

It was wrong. It was irresponsible. And it plunged our economy into a crisis that put millions out of work, saddled us with more debt, and
left innocent, hard-working Americans holding the bag. In the six months before I took office, we lost nearly four million jobs. And we
lost another four million before our policies were in full effect.

Those are the facts. But so are these. In the last 22 months, businesses have created more than three million jobs. Last year, they
created the most jobs since 2005. American manufacturers are hiring again, creating jobs for the first time since the late 1990s.
Together, we've agreed to cut the deficit by more than $2 trillion. And we've put in place new rules to hold Wall Street accountable, so a crisis like that never happens again.

The state of our Union is getting stronger. And we've come too far to turn back now. As long as I'm President, I will work with anyone in
this chamber to build on this momentum. But I intend to fight obstruction with action, and I will oppose any effort to return to the
very same policies that brought on this economic crisis in the first place.

No, we will not go back to an economy weakened by outsourcing, bad debt, and phony financial profits. Tonight, I want to speak about how
we move forward, and lay out a blueprint for an economy that's built to last – an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy,
skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values.

This blueprint begins with American manufacturing.

On the day I took office, our auto industry was on the verge of collapse. Some even said we should let it die. With a million jobs
at stake, I refused to let that happen. In exchange for help, we demanded responsibility. We got workers and automakers to settle
their differences. We got the industry to retool and restructure. Today, General Motors is back on top as the world's number one
automaker. Chrysler has grown faster in the U.S. than any major car company. Ford is investing billions in U.S. plants and factories.
And together, the entire industry added nearly 160,000 jobs.

We bet on American workers. We bet on American ingenuity. And tonight, the American auto industry is back.

What's happening in Detroit can happen in other industries. It can happen in Cleveland and Pittsburgh and Raleigh. We can't bring back
every job that's left our shores. But right now, it's getting more expensive to do business in places like China. Meanwhile, America is
more productive. A few weeks ago, the CEO of Master Lock told me that it now makes business sense for him to bring jobs back home. Today,
for the first time in fifteen years, Master Lock's unionized plant in Milwaukee is running at full capacity.

So we have a huge opportunity, at this moment, to bring manufacturing back. But we have to seize it. Tonight, my message to business
leaders is simple: Ask yourselves what you can do to bring jobs back to your country, and your country will do everything we can to help
you succeed.

We should start with our tax code. Right now, companies get tax breaks for moving jobs and profits overseas. Meanwhile, companies
that choose to stay in America get hit with one of the highest tax rates in the world. It makes no sense, and everyone knows it.

So let's change it. First, if you're a business that wants to outsource jobs, you shouldn't get a tax deduction for doing it. That
money should be used to cover moving expenses for companies like Master Lock that decide to bring jobs home.

Second, no American company should be able to avoid paying its fair share of taxes by moving jobs and profits overseas. From now on,
every multinational company should have to pay a basic minimum tax.

And every penny should go towards lowering taxes for companies that choose to stay here and hire here.

Third, if you're an American manufacturer, you should get a bigger tax cut. If you're a high-tech manufacturer, we should double the tax
deduction you get for making products here. And if you want to relocate in a community that was hit hard when a factory left town,
you should get help financing a new plant, equipment, or training for new workers.

My message is simple. It's time to stop rewarding businesses that ship jobs overseas, and start rewarding companies that create jobs
right here in America. Send me these tax reforms, and I'll sign them right away.

We're also making it easier for American businesses to sell products all over the world. Two years ago, I set a goal of doubling U.S.
exports over five years. With the bipartisan trade agreements I signed into law, we are on track to meet that goal – ahead of
schedule. Soon, there will be millions of new customers for American goods in Panama, Colombia, and South Korea. Soon, there will be new
cars on the streets of Seoul imported from Detroit, and Toledo, and Chicago.

I will go anywhere in the world to open new markets for American products. And I will not stand by when our competitors don't play by
the rules. We've brought trade cases against China at nearly twice the rate as the last administration – and it's made a difference.
Over a thousand Americans are working today because we stopped a surge in Chinese tires. But we need to do more. It's not right when
another country lets our movies, music, and software be pirated. It's not fair when foreign manufacturers have a leg up on ours only because they're heavily subsidized.

Tonight, I'm announcing the creation of a Trade Enforcement Unit that will be charged with investigating unfair trade practices in countries
like China. There will be more inspections to prevent counterfeit or unsafe goods from crossing our borders. And this Congress should make
sure that no foreign company has an advantage over American manufacturing when it comes to accessing finance or new markets like
Russia. Our workers are the most productive on Earth, and if the playing field is level, I promise you – America will always win.

I also hear from many business leaders who want to hire in the United States but can't find workers with the right skills. Growing
industries in science and technology have twice as many openings as we have workers who can do the job. Think about that – openings at a
time when millions of Americans are looking for work.

That's inexcusable. And we know how to fix it.

Jackie Bray is a single mom from North Carolina who was laid off from her job as a mechanic. Then Siemens opened a gas turbine factory in
Charlotte, and formed a partnership with Central Piedmont Community College. The company helped the college design courses in laser and
robotics training. It paid Jackie's tuition, then hired her to help operate their plant.

I want every American looking for work to have the same opportunity as Jackie did. Join me in a national commitment to train two million
Americans with skills that will lead directly to a job. My Administration has already lined up more companies that want to help.
Model partnerships between businesses like Siemens and community colleges in places like Charlotte, Orlando, and Louisville are up and
running. Now you need to give more community colleges the resources they need to become community career centers – places that teach
people skills that local businesses are looking for right now, from data management to high-tech manufacturing.

And I want to cut through the maze of confusing training programs, so that from now on, people like Jackie have one program, one website,
and one place to go for all the information and help they need. It'stime to turn our unemployment system into a reemployment system that
puts people to work.

These reforms will help people get jobs that are open today. But to prepare for the jobs of tomorrow, our commitment to skills and
education has to start earlier.

For less than one percent of what our Nation spends on education each year, we've convinced nearly every State in the country to raise their
standards for teaching and learning – the first time that's happened in a generation.

But challenges remain. And we know how to solve them.

At a time when other countries are doubling down on education, tight budgets have forced States to lay off thousands of teachers. We know
a good teacher can increase the lifetime income of a classroom by over $250,000. A great teacher can offer an escape from poverty to the
child who dreams beyond his circumstance. Every person in this chamber can point to a teacher who changed the trajectory of their
lives. Most teachers work tirelessly, with modest pay, sometimes digging into their own pocket for school supplies – just to make a difference.


Teachers matter. So instead of bashing them, or defending the status quo, let's offer schools a deal. Give them the resources to keep good
teachers on the job, and reward the best ones. In return, grant schools flexibility: To teach with creativity and passion; to stop
teaching to the test; and to replace teachers who just aren't helping kids learn.

We also know that when students aren't allowed to walk away from their education, more of them walk the stage to get their diploma. So tonight, I call on every State to require that all students stay in high school until they graduate or turn eighteen.

When kids do graduate, the most daunting challenge can be the cost of college. At a time when Americans owe more in tuition debt than credit card debt, this Congress needs to stop the interest rates on student loans from doubling in July. Extend the tuition tax credit we started that saves middle-class families thousands of dollars. And give more young people the chance to earn their way through college by
doubling the number of work-study jobs in the next five years.

Of course, it's not enough for us to increase student aid. We can't just keep subsidizing skyrocketing tuition; we'll run out of money. States also need to do their part, by making higher education a higher priority in their budgets. And colleges and universities have to do their part by working to keep costs down. Recently, I spoke with a group of college presidents who've done just that. Some schools
re-design courses to help students finish more quickly. Some use better technology. The point is, it's possible. So let me put colleges and universities on notice: If you can't stop tuition from going up, the funding you get from taxpayers will go down. Higher education can't be a luxury – it's an economic imperative that every family in America should be able to afford.

Let's also remember that hundreds of thousands of talented, hardworking students in this country face another challenge: The fact that they aren't yet American citizens. Many were brought here as small children, are American through and through, yet they live every
day with the threat of deportation. Others came more recently, to study business and science and engineering, but as soon as they get
their degree, we send them home to invent new products and create new jobs somewhere else.

That doesn't make sense.

I believe as strongly as ever that we should take on illegal immigration. That's why my Administration has put more boots on the border than ever before. That's why there are fewer illegal crossings than when I took office.

The opponents of action are out of excuses. We should be working on comprehensive immigration reform right now. But if election-year politics keeps Congress from acting on a comprehensive plan, let's at least agree to stop expelling responsible young people who want to staff our labs, start new businesses, and defend this country. Send me a law that gives them the chance to earn their citizenship. I will
sign it right away.

You see, an economy built to last is one where we encourage the talent and ingenuity of every person in this country. That means women
should earn equal pay for equal work. It means we should support everyone who's willing to work; and every risk-taker and entrepreneur
who aspires to become the next Steve Jobs.

After all, innovation is what America has always been about. Most new jobs are created in start-ups and small businesses. So let's pass an
agenda that helps them succeed. Tear down regulations that prevent aspiring entrepreneurs from getting the financing to grow. Expand tax
relief to small businesses that are raising wages and creating good jobs. Both parties agree on these ideas. So put them in a bill, and get it on my desk this year.

Innovation also demands basic research. Today, the discoveries taking place in our federally-financed labs and universities could lead to
new treatments that kill cancer cells but leave healthy ones untouched. New lightweight vests for cops and soldiers that can stop
any bullet. Don't gut these investments in our budget. Don't let other countries win the race for the future. [/b]Support the same kind of research and innovation that led to the computer chip and the Internet; to new American jobs and new American industries.

Nowhere is the promise of innovation greater than in American-made energy. Over the last three years, we've opened millions of new acres
for oil and gas exploration, and tonight, I'm directing my Administration to open more than 75 percent of our potential offshore
oil and gas resources. Right now, American oil production is the highest that it's been in eight years. That's right – eight years.
Not only that – last year, we relied less on foreign oil than in anyof the past sixteen years.

[b]
But with only 2 percent of the world's oil reserves, oil isn't enough. This country needs an all-out, all-of-the-above strategy that
develops every available source of American energy – a strategy that's cleaner, cheaper, and full of new jobs.

We have a supply of natural gas that can last America nearly one hundred years, and my Administration will take every possible action
to safely develop this energy. Experts believe this will support more than 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade. And I'm requiring all
companies that drill for gas on public lands to disclose the chemicals they use. America will develop this resource without putting the
health and safety of our citizens at risk.

The development of natural gas will create jobs and power trucks and factories that are cleaner and cheaper, proving that we don't have to
choose between our environment and our economy. And by the way, it was public research dollars, over the course of thirty years, that
helped develop the technologies to extract all this natural gas out of shale rock – reminding us that Government support is critical in
helping businesses get new energy ideas off the ground.

What's true for natural gas is true for clean energy. In three years, our partnership with the private sector has already positioned America
to be the world's leading manufacturer of high-tech batteries. Because of federal investments, renewable energy use has nearly
doubled. And thousands of Americans have jobs because of it.

When Bryan Ritterby was laid off from his job making furniture, he said he worried that at 55, no one would give him a second chance.
But he found work at Energetx, a wind turbine manufacturer in Michigan. Before the recession, the factory only made luxury yachts.
Today, it's hiring workers like Bryan, who said, "I'm proud to be working in the industry of the future."

Our experience with shale gas shows us that the payoffs on these public investments don't always come right away. Some technologies
don't pan out; some companies fail. But I will not walk away from the promise of clean energy. I will not walk away from workers like
Bryan. I will not cede the wind or solar or battery industry to China or Germany because we refuse to make the same commitment here. We
have subsidized oil companies for a century. That's long enough.

It's time to end the taxpayer giveaways to an industry that's rarely been more profitable, and double-down on a clean energy industry that's never been more promising. Pass clean energy tax credits and create these jobs.

We can also spur energy innovation with new incentives. The differences in this chamber may be too deep right now to pass a comprehensive plan to fight climate change. But there's no reason why Congress shouldn't at least set a clean energy standard that creates a market for innovation. So far, you haven't acted. Well tonight, I will. I'm directing my Administration to allow the development of clean energy on enough public land to power three million homes. And I'm proud to announce that the Department of Defense, the world's largest consumer of energy, will make one of the largest commitments to clean energy in history – with the Navy purchasing enough capacity to power a quarter of a million homes a year.

Of course, the easiest way to save money is to waste less energy. So here's another proposal: Help manufacturers eliminate energy waste in
their factories and give businesses incentives to upgrade their buildings. Their energy bills will be $100 billion lower over the next decade, and America will have less pollution, more manufacturing, and more jobs for construction workers who need them. Send me a bill
that creates these jobs.

Building this new energy future should be just one part of a broader agenda to repair America's infrastructure. So much of America needs to be rebuilt. We've got crumbling roads and bridges. A power grid that wastes too much energy. An incomplete high-speed broadband
network that prevents a small business owner in rural America from selling her products all over the world.

During the Great Depression, America built the Hoover Dam and the Golden Gate Bridge. After World War II, we connected our States with
a system of highways. Democratic and Republican administrations invested in great projects that benefited everybody, from the workers
who built them to the businesses that still use them today.


In the next few weeks, I will sign an Executive Order clearing away the red tape that slows down too many construction projects. But you
need to fund these projects. Take the money we're no longer spending at war, use half of it to pay down our debt, and use the rest to do
some nation-building right here at home.

There's never been a better time to build, especially since the construction industry was one of the hardest-hit when the housing
bubble burst. Of course, construction workers weren't the only ones hurt. So were millions of innocent Americans who've seen their home
values decline. And while Government can't fix the problem on its own, responsible homeowners shouldn't have to sit and wait for the
housing market to hit bottom to get some relief.

That's why I'm sending this Congress a plan [/b]that gives every responsible homeowner the chance to save about $3,000 a year on their mortgage, by refinancing at historically low interest rates. [b]No more red tape. No more runaround from the banks. A small fee on the largest financial institutions will ensure that it won't add to the deficit, and will give banks that were rescued by taxpayers a chance to repay a deficit of trust.

Let's never forget: Millions of Americans who work hard and play by the rules every day deserve a Government and a financial system that do the same. It's time to apply the same rules from top to bottom: No bailouts, no handouts, and no copouts. An America built to last
insists on responsibility from everybody.

We've all paid the price for lenders who sold mortgages to people who couldn't afford them, and buyers who knew they couldn't afford them. That's why we need smart regulations to prevent irresponsible behavior. Rules to prevent financial fraud, or toxic dumping, or
faulty medical devices, don't destroy the free market. They make the free market work better.

There is no question that some regulations are outdated, unnecessary, or too costly. In fact, I've approved fewer regulations in the first three years of my presidency than my Republican predecessor did in his. I've ordered every federal agency to eliminate rules that don't make sense. We've already announced over 500 reforms, and just a fraction of them will save business and citizens more than $10 billion over the next five years. We got rid of one rule from 40 years ago that could have forced some dairy farmers to spend $10,000 a year proving that they could contain a spill – because milk was somehow classified as an oil. With a rule like that, I guess it was worth crying over spilled milk.

I'm confident a farmer can contain a milk spill without a federal agency looking over his shoulder. [/b]But I will not back down from making sure an oil company can contain the kind of oil spill we saw in the Gulf two years ago. I will not back down from protecting our kids from mercury pollution, or making sure that our food is safe and our water is clean. I will not go back to the days when health insurance companies had unchecked power to cancel your policy, deny you coverage, or charge women differently from men.

[b]And I will not go back to the days when Wall Street was allowed to play by its own set of rules. The new rules we passed restore what should be any financial system's core purpose: Getting funding to entrepreneurs with the best ideas, and getting loans to responsible families who want to buy a home, start a business, or send a kid to college.

So if you're a big bank or financial institution, you are no longer allowed to make risky bets with your customers' deposits. You're required to write out a "living will" that details exactly how you'll pay the bills if you fail – because the rest of us aren't bailing you out ever again. And if you're a mortgage lender or a payday lender or a credit card company, the days of signing people up for products they can't afford with confusing forms and deceptive practices are over.


Today, American consumers finally have a watchdog in Richard Cordray with one job: To look out for them.

We will also establish a Financial Crimes Unit of highly trained investigators to crack down on large-scale fraud and protect people's
investments. Some financial firms violate major anti-fraud laws because there's no real penalty for being a repeat offender. That's bad for consumers, and it's bad for the vast majority of bankers and financial service professionals who do the right thing. So pass legislation that makes the penalties for fraud count.

And tonight, I am asking my Attorney General to create a special unit of federal prosecutors and leading state attorneys general to expand
our investigations into the abusive lending and packaging of risky mortgages that led to the housing crisis. This new unit will hold accountable those who broke the law, speed assistance to homeowners, and help turn the page on an era of recklessness that hurt so many Americans.

A return to the American values of fair play and shared responsibility will help us protect our people and our economy. But it should also guide us as we look to pay down our debt and invest in our future.

Right now, our most immediate priority is stopping a tax hike on 160 million working Americans while the recovery is still fragile. People cannot afford losing $40 out of each paycheck this year. There are plenty of ways to get this done. So let's agree right here, right
now: No side issues. No drama. Pass the payroll tax cut without delay.

When it comes to the deficit, we've already agreed to more than $2 trillion in cuts and savings. But we need to do more, and that means
making choices. Right now, we're poised to spend nearly $1 trillion more on what was supposed to be a temporary tax break for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans. Right now, because of loopholes and shelters in the tax code, a quarter of all millionaires pay lower
tax rates than millions of middle-class households. Right now, Warren Buffett pays a lower tax rate than his secretary.

Do we want to keep these tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans? Or do we want to keep our investments in everything else – like education
and medical research; a strong military and care for our veterans? Because if we're serious about paying down our debt, we can't do both.

The American people know what the right choice is. So do I. As I told the Speaker this summer, I'm prepared to make more reforms that
rein in the long term costs of Medicare and Medicaid, and strengthen Social Security, so long as those programs remain a guarantee of
security for seniors.

But in return, we need to change our tax code so that people like me, and an awful lot of Members of Congress, pay our fair share of taxes. Tax reform should follow the Buffett rule: If you make more than $1 million a year, you should not pay less than 30 percent in taxes. And my Republican friend Tom Coburn is right: Washington should stop subsidizing millionaires. In fact, if you're earning a million dollars a year, you shouldn't get special tax subsidies or deductions. On the other hand, if you make under $250,000 a year, like 98 percent of American families, your taxes shouldn't go up. You're the ones struggling with rising costs and stagnant wages. You're the ones who need relief.

Now, you can call this class warfare all you want. But asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes? Most
Americans would call that common sense.

We don't begrudge financial success in this country. We admire it. When Americans talk about folks like me paying my fair share of taxes, it's not because they envy the rich. It's because they understand that when I get tax breaks I don't need and the country can't afford, it either adds to the deficit, or somebody else has to make up the difference – like a senior on a fixed income; or a student trying to get through school; or a family trying to make ends meet. That's not right. Americans know it's not right. They know that this generation's success is only possible because past generations felt a responsibility to each other, and to their country's future, and they know our way of life will only endure if we feel that same sense of shared responsibility. That's how we'll reduce our deficit. That's an America built to last.


I recognize that people watching tonight have differing views about taxes and debt; energy and health care. But no matter what party they belong to, I bet most Americans are thinking the same thing right now: Nothing will get done this year, or next year, or maybe even the year after that, because Washington is broken.

Can you blame them for feeling a little cynical?



The greatest blow to confidence in our economy last year didn't come from events beyond our control. It came from a debate in Washington over whether the United States would pay its bills or not. Who benefited from that fiasco?

I've talked tonight about the deficit of trust between Main Street and Wall Street. But the divide between this city and the rest of the country is at least as bad – and it seems to get worse every year.

[b]
Some of this has to do with the corrosive influence of money in politics. So together, let's take some steps to fix that. Send me a
bill that bans insider trading by Members of Congress, and I will sign it tomorrow. Let's limit any elected official from owning stocks in
industries they impact. Let's make sure people who bundle campaign contributions for Congress can't lobby Congress, and vice versa – an
idea that has bipartisan support, at least outside of Washington.

Some of what's broken has to do with the way Congress does its business these days. A simple majority is no longer enough to get
anything – even routine business – passed through the Senate. Neither party has been blameless in these tactics. Now both parties should
put an end to it. For starters, I ask the Senate to pass a rule that all judicial and public service nominations receive a simple up or
down vote within 90 days.

The executive branch also needs to change. Too often, it's inefficient, outdated and remote. That's why I've asked this Congress
to grant me the authority to consolidate the federal bureaucracy so that our Government is leaner, quicker, and more responsive to the
needs of the American people.

Finally, none of these reforms can happen unless we also lower the temperature in this town. We need to end the notion that the two
parties must be locked in a perpetual campaign of mutual destruction; that politics is about clinging to rigid ideologies instead of
building consensus around common sense ideas.[/b]

[b]I'm a Democrat. But I believe what Republican Abraham Lincoln believed: That Government should do for people only what they cannot do better by themselves, and no more. [/b]That's why my education reform offers more competition, and more control for schools and States. That's why we're getting rid of regulations that don't work. That's why our health care law relies on a reformed private market, not a
Government program.

On the other hand, even my Republican friends who complain the most about Government spending have supported federally-financed roads, and
clean energy projects, and federal offices for the folks back home.

The point is, we should all want a smarter, more effective Government. And while we may not be able to bridge our biggest philosophical differences this year, we can make real progress. With or without this Congress, I will keep taking actions that help the economy grow.
But I can do a whole lot more with your help. Because when we act together, there is nothing the United States of America can't achieve.


That is the lesson we've learned from our actions abroad over the last few years.

Ending the Iraq war has allowed us to strike decisive blows against our enemies. From Pakistan to Yemen, the al Qaeda operatives who
remain are scrambling, knowing that they can't escape the reach of the United States of America.

From this position of strength, we've begun to wind down the war in Afghanistan. Ten thousand of our troops have come home. Twenty-three
thousand more will leave by the end of this summer. This transition to Afghan lead will continue, and we will build an enduring partnership
with Afghanistan, so that it is never again a source of attacks against America.

As the tide of war recedes, a wave of change has washed across the Middle East and North Africa, from Tunis to Cairo; from Sana'a to
Tripoli. A year ago, Qadhafi was one of the world's longest-serving dictators – a murderer with American blood on his hands. Today, he is
gone. And in Syria, I have no doubt that the Assad regime will soon discover that the forces of change can't be reversed, and that human
dignity can't be denied.

How this incredible transformation will end remains uncertain. [/b]But we have a huge stake in the outcome. And while it is ultimately up to the people of the region to decide their fate, we will advocate for those values that have served our own country so well. We will stand against violence and intimidation. We will stand for the rights and dignity of all human beings – men and women; Christians, Muslims, and
Jews. We will support policies that lead to strong and stable democracies and open markets, because tyranny is no match for liberty.

[b]And we will safeguard America's own security against those who threaten our citizens, our friends, and our interests. Look at Iran. Through the power of our diplomacy, a world that was once divided about how to deal with Iran's nuclear program now stands as one. The regime is more isolated than ever before; its leaders are faced with crippling sanctions, and as long as they shirk their responsibilities, this pressure will not relent. Let there be no doubt: America is determined to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, and I will take no options off the table to achieve that goal. But a peaceful resolution of this issue is still possible, and far better, and if Iran changes course and meets its obligations, it can rejoin the community of nations.

The renewal of American leadership can be felt across the globe. Our oldest alliances in Europe and Asia are stronger than ever. Our ties
to the Americas are deeper. Our iron-clad commitment to Israel's security has meant the closest military cooperation between our two countries in history. We've made it clear that America is a Pacific power, and a new beginning in Burma has lit a new hope. From the coalitions we've built to secure nuclear materials, to the missions we've led against hunger and disease; from the blows we've dealt to
our enemies; to the enduring power of our moral example, America is back.

Anyone who tells you otherwise, anyone who tells you that America is in decline or that our influence has waned, doesn't know what they're talking about. That's not the message we get from leaders around the world, all of whom are eager to work with us. That's not how people feel from Tokyo to Berlin; from Cape Town to Rio; where opinions of America are higher than they've been in years. Yes, the world is
changing; no, we can't control every event. But America remains the one indispensable nation in world affairs – and as long as I'm
President, I intend to keep it that way.

That's why, working with our military leaders, I have proposed a new defense strategy that ensures we maintain the finest military in the
world, while saving nearly half a trillion dollars in our budget. To stay one step ahead of our adversaries, I have already sent this Congress legislation that will secure our country from the growing danger of cyber-threats.

Above all, our freedom endures because of the men and women in uniform who defend it. As they come home, we must serve them as well as they
served us. That includes giving them the care and benefits they have earned – which is why we've increased annual VA spending every year
I've been President. And it means enlisting our veterans in the work of rebuilding our Nation.

With the bipartisan support of this Congress, we are providing new tax credits to companies that hire vets. Michelle and Jill Biden have
worked with American businesses to secure a pledge of 135,000 jobs for veterans and their families. And tonight, I'm proposing a Veterans
Job Corps that will help our communities hire veterans as cops and firefighters, so that America is as strong as those who defend her.

Which brings me back to where I began. Those of us who've been sent here to serve can learn from the service of our troops. When you put on that uniform, it doesn't matter if you're black or white; Asian or Latino; conservative or liberal; rich or poor; gay or straight. When you're marching into battle, you look out for the person next to you, or the mission fails. When you're in the thick of the fight, you rise
or fall as one unit, serving one Nation, leaving no one behind.

One of my proudest possessions is the flag that the SEAL Team took with them on the mission to get bin Laden. On it are each of their names. Some may be Democrats. Some may be Republicans. But that doesn't matter. Just like it didn't matter that day in the Situation
Room, when I sat next to Bob Gates – a man who was George Bush's defense secretary; and Hillary Clinton, a woman who ran against me for
president.

[b]All that mattered that day was the mission. No one thought about politics. No one thought about themselves. [/b]One of the young men involved in the raid later told me that he didn't deserve credit for the mission. It only succeeded, he said, because every single member of that unit did their job – the pilot who landed the helicopter that spun out of control; the translator who kept others from entering the
compound; the troops who separated the women and children from the fight; the SEALs who charged up the stairs. More than that, the
mission only succeeded because every member of that unit trusted each other – because you can't charge up those stairs, into darkness and
danger, unless you know that there's someone behind you, watching your back.

So it is with America. Each time I look at that flag, I'm reminded that our destiny is stitched together like those fifty stars and those thirteen stripes. No one built this country on their own. This Nation is great because we built it together. This Nation is great because we worked as a team. This Nation is great because we get each other's backs. And if we hold fast to that truth, in this moment of trial, there is no challenge too great; no mission too hard. As long as we're joined in common purpose, as long as we maintain our common resolve, our journey moves forward, our future is hopeful, and the state of our Union will always be strong.

Thank you, God bless you, and may God bless the United States of America.

Check out the placard that reads 'Boko Haram Govt' with reference to the Atta Mills Govt of Ghana



------------------------------------------
AFAG hits streets to protest government’s handling of the Woyome saga
Posted on January 25, 2012



Pro-opposition pressure group, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG), is embarking on a street match this morning to protest what it says are economic hardship and corruption under the Mills administration.

Spokesperson, Samuel Awuku, says AFAG is particularly unhappy with government’s handling of the Woyome saga.

He told Joy News the removal of fuel subsidies also smacked of insensitivity on the part of the government.

Myjoyonline.com’s Ernest Dela Aglanu who is at the Obra Spot near the Kwame Nkrumah Circle reports organizers are excited about the numbers turning out for the match.

Dela reports of excited crowds of demonstrators draped in red drumming and dancing.

The Director of Protocol at AFAG, Maame Afua Akoto, told journalists the disorganized state of affairs in the country testified to the gross incompetence of government.

She said the situation is even worse when the incompetence and incoherence in government is cupped by massive corruption, citing the all too familiar Wayome judgement debt scandal.

Miss Akoto said while President Mills at his interaction with editors said he would not be so criminally minded and irresponsible to order the payment made to Mr Wayome, he had failed to take action on those responsible for the payments.

The match is expected to be ignored by government.

Some of the placards carried by demonstrators read: Atta will go; Atta Nie, Wayo Nie; Corruption na Doube Double;

The AFAG demonstration comes just a day after a pro-government group petitioned President Mills to compel former government officials to cooperate with EOCO as it investigates the matter.

http://www.dailyguideghana.com/?p=37487

We'll deal ruthlesly with and crush imposters to ashes - AFAG warns
Source: Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Derick Romeo Adogla

Pressure group, Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG), is raising red flags over what it says is the decision by a faceless group to sabotage their planned 'Atta Wayo Demonstration' on Wednesday, in protest of fuel price increases and the controversy surrounding the payment of judgement debts to NDC financier, Alfred Woyome.

In a statement signed by some of its leading members, the group said: “credible information available to the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) indicates that some unscrupulous persons sympathetic to Mr. Alfred Woyome, the renowned NDC financier and beneficiary of a whooping sum of GHS 58.0 million (580 Billion Cedis) of the tax payer's money, are feverishly organizing and arming themselves to cause and create unwarranted confusion on the day of the 'Atta Wayo Demontration' by way of a counter demonstration.”

The statement warned that “AFAG is fully prepared for the occasion and will as a result not hesitate to smoke out, deal ruthlessly with and crush to ashes any imposter who sets out to foment trouble.“

The statement said the attempt to disrupt the demonstration is “a grand machination by the powers that be to derail the focus of AFAG from throwing more light on the corrupt deeds of the NDC government.”

The group said they have concluded every arrangement with the police as required by the Public Order Act and that any other group that would want to stage a demonstration should be law abiding and clear their plans with the police.

“We entreat any group of persons including those sympathetic to Mr. Alfred Woyome and by extension, the Mills-Mahama government interested in demonstrating to take note and follow due process.

“Again, as AFAG, we regard the impending demonstration as a rather sensitive one, given the fact that the issues involved are ones which directly touches on the lives of millions of Ghanaians who reposed their trust in then candidate Mills in anticipation of a better Ghana only to be 'WOYOMIZED' by now president Mills,” the statement added.

The group however promised to ensure the safety of the general public and is thus, inviting the general public to join in the protest against what it describes as the “gross mismanagement and 'killer' policies of the Mills-Mahama government.”

http://www.modernghana.com/news/373535/1/well-deal-ruthlesly-with-and-crush-imposters-to-as.html

manchy7531:
The entire northern governors, according to the Boko Haram source, have ongoing relationships with the group. ”Most of them pay us monthly to leave their states alone”.


In Kano State, the former state governor, Malam Shekarau reached an agreement with the terrorist group in late 2004 for an initial monthly disbursement of N5million which was later bumped up to N10million in 2009. The agreement, according to the source, included provision of institutional infrastructural support through the Hisbah [Islam police] project which received yearly budgetary allocation of N1.01billion.

State police or private militia?

Haba!

That is not the picture of the ramp!

That is a picture of the long-existing Falomo Bridge, taken at the junction with the ramp!

I was hoping to get a follow up to this stadium thingy.

Can anyone confirm if the humble general was at the stadium when Nigeria played the crucial final match that would have seen us qualify for the ongoing Nations' Cup tournament or any other Eagles' match after this one?

Or was the photo-op just shakara for the elections that were then due in a few weeks?

God bless you!

@sun_temi,

You haven't answered the question(s)

And who are these wanton and reckless that the SNG refers to?

@Koruji.

Spot on!

I thought people were castigating NLC and TUC leaders for suspending their strike based of the security reports the FG shared with them (NLC/TUC).

Why is SNG now "suspending" their own rally due to the same security concerns?

Can someone please explain this to me?

Am I missing something?

Those of you clamoring for a "Jerry Rawlings" should read this article:

https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-639186.160.html#msg10009079

Then let's discuss!

[size=18pt]Politicians and phantom promises[/size]
By Ghanaian Chronicle - Ghanaian Chronicle

On Monday, January 16, this year, the veteran prolific writer, Mr. I.K. Gyasi digested Nana Akufo-Addo's campaign promise to make secondary education free in Ghana, if he is elected as President.

The Chronicle columnist noted in his article that tuition from primary up to University level is virtually free, and that the NPP flagbearer should tell Ghanaians how he is going to bear the rest of the cost associated with secondary education.

It is important to note that it is not only the veteran writer who has raised concerns over the promise being made by the opposition. Few months ago, The Chronicle also raised the issue in its editorial and called on Nana Addo to come out and explain how he is going to fund it.

I am, therefore, happy that Mr. Gyasi, who is also an educationist has added his voice to the call for proper explanation on how this ambitious policy is going to be implemented.

Politicians always behave like the proverbial animal which has different ways of crying when it is trapped, and also when it is set free. A hungry politician would always come out with phantom promises he or she knows can never be fulfilled, and I have historical evidence to back my argument.

Soon after the late Dr. Hilla Limann's government was sworn into office, a former military pilot by name Jerry John Rawlings started attacking him for allowing corruption to permeate every fabric of the Ghanaians society. In fact, he based his decision to overthrow the constitutionally elected government that he himself put in place, on the corruption allegation.

But after gaining power and later turning himself into a constitutionally elected President, some of his Ministers became the worst offenders of the same crime. At a point in time, he issued a white paper to exonerate some of the Ministers who had been found guilty of corruption by the Commission of Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ).

When he was hungry for power, the Dzelukope born military strongman did everything possible to convince Ghanaians that the Limann government was corrupt, but after grabbing what he was looking for, he started singing a different tune, to the extent of setting free his own Ministers caught in the  corruption web.

Enter ex President Kufuor, the Atwima Dabaa born legal practitioner. After being in opposition for many, many years, the man was simply desperate for power and did not care a hoot about some of his criticisms of the Rawlings government.

Whilst on one of his campaign tours, Mr. Kufuor lifted a gallon and asked his audience why a petrol in such a small can should callously be sold for ¢6,000. After brainwashing Ghanaians to believe that Mr. Rawlings was a monster, Mr. Kufuor did not only raise the price of petrol after assumption of office in 2001, but to as high as ¢20,000.

At the time he was leaving office, petrol was being sold for GH¢5.40 per gallon as against 60GP that he criticized in 2000. The 2000 election manifesto of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) also promised to make the District Chief Executive positions elective, but after Ghanaians had bought the idea and voted for the party, that promise was never fulfilled.

Mr. Kufuor also promised to fight corruption with the alacrity it deserves, but when he became President, he was always asking journalists to provide evidence, before his government would investigate such complaints.

Meanwhile, he did not tell the same journalists during his campaign that they must provide evidence before he would investigate any corrupt allegation. His Ministers and other government appointees were also grabbing state lands with careless abandon.

Those who questioned this bad practice were attacked from all fronts. That is President Kufuor and NPP for you. They hoodwinked Ghanaians to vote for them, after which they started singing different tunes.

After reneging on the aforementioned promises, Ghanaians thought the time had come for them to go back for the NDC, headed by the law and tax professor, John Evans Atta Mills. [b]As Kufuor did in 2000, the then candidate Mills also started doing the petrol politics by persistently telling the voters that the Kufuor government had loaded the price build up for petrol with so many taxes, thus making the product expensive.

Led by Kwesi Pratt and veteran Ato Ahwoi, the NDC used the Committee for Joint Action (CJA) as a smokescreen to organize series of demonstration against prices of petroleum products, thereby making Kufuor and his Ministers look like people who did not care about the welfare of Ghanaians.

I attended some of the fora organized by the CJA when I was the Western Regional Correspondent of The Chronicle and heard some of the issues raised, especially by Mr. Ato Ahwoi, about the petrol price build up.

Candidate Mills himself joined some of the demonstrations to protest against the high cost of petrol. The NDC and candidate Mills also wrote in their 2008 election manifesto a promise of one time payment for all National Health Insurance (NHIS) subscribers.

Though Professor Badu Akosa warned against such a promise because it would not be workable, NDC and candidate Mills insisted that they could do it. Like Kufuor's case, Ghanaians again bought the idea and voted for the Ekumfi Otuam born law Professor.

President Mills and his government have been in office for three years now, but nothing has been done to implement the one time premium payment policy, as contained in the manifesto.[/b]

The Atta Mills government has now been confronted with the reality that it is impossible to implement such a policy in a poverty stricken country like Ghana.

The big question is, if Ghanaians were asked to pay GH¢1,500 across board as one time NHIS premium, how many of us can afford that money. Instead of admitting that they have deceived Ghanaians and apologise accordingly, some of the hot-headed people in government are still insisting that the one time premium payment will be implemented.

[size=16pt]
The petrol prices which candidate Mills criticized as being too exorbitant and that the Kufuor government was insensitive to the plight of Ghanaians, has not only being increased by his administration, but the subsidy that cushioned the consumer has also been withdrawn.[/size]



As CJA did in the past, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) is also threatening to go on a demonstration to protest against the withdrawal of the subsidy by the Atta Mills government.

With this 'promise and fail' syndrome that has characterized our politics, one would have thought that politicians have learnt their lessons, but alas, that is not the case.

Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo, the NPP flagbearer is also promising to make secondary education free in Ghana. Meanwhile, he has not told the voters how he is going to fund that ambitious policy.

Granted that Ghana has 200 senior High Schools, and each school has on average 1,000 students, the total student population would be 200,000.  Again, if each student spends on average GH¢500 per term on food, books and other items, this would bring the total figure to GH¢300,000,000 per each academic.

It is instructive to note that this is a conservative figure. Implementation of free secondary education could go as high as GH¢600,000,000 per each academic year.

The big question is -where is Nana Addo and NPP going to raise this money from?  I do not think the total budget for the Ministry of Education could match the sponsorship of free education at the secondary school level, yet this is what Nana Addo is promising Ghanaians.

To me, it is high time the NPP flagbearer comes out to clarify what he meant by free secondary school education. As I.K. Gyasi noted, tuition is already free, so we need to know whether the free would cover boarding, books and other fees paid by the students or their parents.

Ghanaians are no more prepared to accept another promise and fail from a politician.

To me, this policy, like the failed one term premium payment for the NHIS promised by the NDC, would not be sustainable. In simple terms, the economy cannot support it because we are already running a deficit budget.

To avoid some of these phantom promises in future, I suggest to Parliament to enact a law that would make all the promises made by the political parties legally binding, so that Ghanaians can hold them accountable if they fail to implement them.

Until this is done, politicians would continue to deceive the good people of this country, with the intention of just grabbing power.

http://www.modernghana.com/news/373147/1/politicians-and-phantom-promises.html

MILLS FIRES MARTIM AMIDU……, and leaves anti-corruption mantle in tatters
Source: Ghanaian Chronicle - Ghanaian Chronicle

When the Attorney -General and Minister of Justice, Martin Amidu, openly castigated some colleague ministers of the Mills-led government for their complicity in what he termed as 'gargantuan crimes' against the people of Ghana, there were people who applauded his guts, but not without a pinching thought that he might as well have set foot in a mine field.

Yesterday, the fears of this group of people were confirmed, when the President, John Evans Atta Mills, issued the marching orders for the dismissal of Mr. Amidu as Attorney General.

A statement to this effect, which was signed and issued by the Chief of Staff, John Martey Newman, said: 'His Excellency President John Evans Atta Mills has, with immediate effect, relieved Mr. Martin Amidu of his post as Attorney-General and Minister of Justice.

'The decision is as a result of Mr. Amidu's misconduct at a meeting last Friday, January 13 th , 2012, presided over by His Excellency.'

[b]A reason assigned to his dismissal, according to the statement said: 'Mr. Amidu's behaviour is incompatible with acceptable standards expected of ministers and appointees of the President.'

Mr. Amidu had earlier concluded that his integrity and professionalism as a lawyer had been a threat to the concealment of 'gargantuan crimes' against the people of Ghana, in which they might be implicated, hence the various attacks on his personality, and the call for the President to sack him from government.

Mr. Amidu had also openly challenged his critics and elements within the government, who are bent on covering up naked fraud and corruption in the Mills-led administration. 'Fairness requires that NDC criminals be prosecuted by me as well, as an independent and impartial Attorney-General, albeit appointed by the NDC Government.'

The guts and fearless expressions of the Minister landed before the First Gentleman of the state, who demanded that Mr. Amidu provide a list of the 'criminals' in his government, or be sacked.

This approach by the President has, however, received varied criticisms from sections of the public, who argue that the President Mill's directive was a slap in the face of efforts in the fight against corruption.[/b]

Proponents of this line of argument, and equally shared by the Executive Secretary of the Ghana Integrity Initiative, local Chapter of Transparency International, Mr. Vitus Azeem, say President Mills could have demonstrated his commitment to fighting corruption by investigating Mr. Martin Amidu's claims, instead of asking him to prove them or be sacked.

His dismissal is, however, indicative that Mr. Amidu was not able to furnish the President with the names he requested, or if he did, the President did not see then as tenable.

A few hours after the dismissal of Mr. Amidu the Progressive Nationalist Forum (PNF) issued a statement expressing its resentment at the President's action.

'We are appalled by the lack of sense of judgment on the part of the President, and his decision to dismiss Hon. Martin Amidu, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice,' the group stated.

According to the group, 'the President's dismissal of Mr. Amidu was to save his own skin, as the successful prosecution of the matter would have implicated the President in the scheme to deprive this country of such gargantuan sums of money.'

They said information available to them indicates that President Mills chaired a Cabinet meeting with 20 people in attendance in 2010, at which he authorised the payment of the money to Woyome.

'Mr. Martin Amidu's insistence to prosecute the Woyome saga, and to retrieve the money to the state is borne out of his sense of duty, his integrity, and the fact that his conscience will not allow him to conceal such crimes, and an amount which could have successfully implemented SADA for the three Northern regions, the most impoverished parts of this country, and an area he hails from.'

The group has thus given the President a 21-working days ultimatum to re-instate Mr. Amidu, or they would stage a massive protest against the government.

http://www.modernghana.com/news/373169/1/mills-fires-martim-amidu82308230and-leaves-anti-co.html

NPP Smells Cover Up In Amidu’s Sack
Source: Daily Guide - Daily Guide


The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has pointed at a cover-up by government in the Woyomegate debacle, describing the payment to Alfred Woyome as a stinking rip-off.

According to a statement signed by Nana Akomea, NPP's Director of Communications, Martin Amidu's Tuesday 17 th January 2012 press statement exposed 'government's efforts to cover up on the stinking payment of public money to a self-confessed NDC financier, Mr. Alfred Woyome.'

An Auditor General's report to Parliament suggested that in 2010 the NDC government paid out tranches of money to Alfred Woyome, which came out last October 2011.

'The Auditor General reported to Parliament that in 2010, the NDC government paid out GH¢58million (¢580billion) in a so-called judgment debt to Mr. Woyome.

'The report stated that the first payment was done on 4th June 2010 (GH¢41.8 or ¢ 418 billion) and the second payment done on the 26 th of September 2010 (GH¢17.0 or ¢170 billion),' the statement explained.

Additional payments were made in the first week of January 2012 and subsequent months, the NPP said.

'If the Auditor General stated in his letter that the GH¢41.8m payments were stopped in April 2010, how come he reported on it in June 2010 when the payment was supposed to have been stopped in April 2010?' the party queried.

Turning to the President, the party wondered why he did not know about what was happening regarding this issue when 'all letters of this affair from the Attorney General to the Minister of Finance and vice-versa were all copied to the office of the President?', adding, 'If the President really did not know, or was not briefed, what else is our President not told about?'

Another question the NPP posed, whose answer might give a clearer picture about what remained a murky affair was: 'How come after the court had granted the government a stay of execution on the GH¢34m on September 6, 2010, the government still went ahead and paid the GH¢34m in 2011?'

The Amidu press statement, the party noted, put a finality to the deep public suspicion of a cover-up in the Woyome payout as it (NPP) questioned the integrity of the leadership being offered by President Mills under the disturbing circumstances.

The decline by NPP officials to cooperate with the EOCO, the party explained, was borne out of a deep suspicion about cover-up actions in the Woyome affair.

'The officials are fully ready to take part in an enquiry/investigation that would be conducted in public by an independent body, and this is what the bi-partisan Public Accounts Committee of Parliament offers,' the statement expatiated.

The NPP, the statement declared, had joined their compatriots in demanding to know which minister Mr. Amidu alluded to in his bombshell press release, adding, 'The NPP and Ghanaians want nothing less than the whole truth in this Woyome pay-out.!'

By A.R. Gomda
 
http://www.modernghana.com/news/373139/1/npp-smells-cover-up-in-amidu8217s-sack.html

Marianne Gingrich, Newt’s ex-wife, says he wanted ‘open marriage’

By James V. Grimaldi,

Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich in 1999 asked his second wife for an “open marriage” or a divorce at the same time he was giving speeches around the country on family and religious values, his former wife, Marianne, said Thursday.

In an interview with The Washington Post, Marianne Gingrich said her former husband called her on May 10, 1999, as she was having dinner with her 84-year-old mother and said, “I want a divorce.”

“Is there anybody else?” Marianne Gingrich recalled saying. “He was quiet. Within two seconds, when he didn’t immediately answer, I knew.”

Two days later, Newt Gingrich gave a speech at a conference titled “The Demise of American Culture” sponsored by the Republican Women Leaders Forum in Erie, Pa. Gingrich extolled the virtues of the Founding Fathers and criticized liberal politicians for supporting tax increases, which he said hurt families and children. In the speech, which was televised on C-SPAN, he spoke often of God, families and values.

“When a liberal talks about values, will he or she actually like us to teach American history?” Gingrich told the women’s group. “Will they actually like young people to learn that George Washington was an ethical man? A man of standards, a man who earned the right to be father of this country?”

Marianne Gingrich said she was surprised at the timing. “How could he ask me for a divorce on Monday and within 48 hours give a speech on family values and talk about how people treat people?” she said.

At the Republican presidential debate Thursday night, Gingrich responded directly to his ex-wife’s allegations for the first time, issuing a blanket denial. “The story is false,” he said.

After Gingrich’s comments at the debate, Marianne Gingrich declined to direcly respond to the denial, other than to say she was sticking by her story, which she said is “the truth.”

Earlier in the day at a campaign event in South Carolina, the former speaker of the House had called the interviews with his former wife “tawdry and inappropriate” and refused to answer questions about them. “I’m not going to say anything about Marianne,” he said with his third wife, Callista, standing a few paces behind him.

Gingrich has said on several occasions that he has made mistakes in his life and has asked God for forgiveness.

Marianne Gingrich, 60, has been publicly critical of her former husband in the past, but her most recent accounts are more explicit about the demise of their marriage.

She said she was speaking out because she wanted her story told from her point of view rather than to be depicted as a victim or suffer a whisper campaign by supporters of her former husband’s presidential bid.

She said she had received so many requests for interviews that “it was unavoidable” and“I knew I wouldn’t get through this year without” doing an interview.

In the four weeks after Gingrich asked for a divorce, the couple saw a counselor, and he seemed to vacillate, Marianne Gingrich said. She had learned the name of his paramour, Callista Bisek — now his wife — although Newt Gingrich never talked about her by name. Callista had worked in the House for a GOP representative from Wisconsin, her home state, and then as clerk of the House Agriculture Committee.

After one counseling session, Newt Gingrich asked Marianne for an “open marriage” — though not in exactly those words — so that he could see other women, she said.

Marianne, who had attended services in a Baptist church with her husband, refused.

“He said the problem with me was I wanted him all to myself,” she said. “I said, ‘That’s what marriage is.’ He said [of Callista], ‘She doesn’t care what I do.’ ”

Marianne said, “He was asking me for an open marriage, and I wouldn’t do it.”

Later, Marianne said, her husband told her, “In a few years I’m going to run for president. She’s going to help me become president.”

The divorce was “ugly,” she said, and the stress exacerbated her multiple sclerosis.

Marianne Gingrich also spoke about her marriage to ABC News’s “Nightline” in an interview aired Thursday. Newt Gingrich’s daughters from his first marriage wrote a letter Wednesday to the network asking that the broadcast be killed.

For more than a decade, daughter Kathy Lubbers served as president and chief executive of Gingrich Communications, which promoted her father’s speeches and activities. It was disbanded last year when he decided to run for president.

Her sister, Jackie Gingrich Cushman, has earned more than $56,000 working for her father’s campaign committees in the past two years, records show.

Marianne Gingrich, who was a full-time political wife when married to Gingrich, said many of her views of her former husband and his political positions are positive. She believes that she and Gingrich, whom she married in 1981, accomplished a lot together when he was in Congress.

She said Gingrich has not spoken to her since the divorce.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/marianne-gingrich-newts-ex-wife-says-he-wanted-open-marriage/2012/01/19/gIQAJzgwAQ_story.html?tid=sm_twitter_postpoliticshttp://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/marianne-gingrich-newts-ex-wife-says-he-wanted-open-marriage/2012/01/19/gIQAJzgwAQ_story.html?tid=sm_twitter_postpolitics?hpid=z1#photo=1

johnie:
That was a shift from the preliminary results the party announced after the Jan. 3 caucuses, which showed the former Massachusetts governor winning Iowa by eight votes. Iowa Republican leaders said that they had still not received results from eight of the state’s 1,774 precincts.[/color][/b]


The news does not alter the bottom line of the GOP primary race: the number of delegates that Santorum or Romney will receive at the national convention. For all their hype, the Iowa caucuses do not actually decide that.

Romney, for his part, issued a statement calling the results “a virtual tie.”’

Santorum’s strange, belated victory also served to embarrass the Iowa GOP — which had to admit that it had misallocated some votes, and simply lost some others, in a razor’s-edge election where every vote mattered.

It also cast an unflattering light on the old-fashioned and convoluted system that the party uses to collect and count caucus votes.


In fact, Iowa Republican leaders seemed to cast doubt on their own results, saying Thursday that it was hard to declare a “winner” without knowing what happened in those eight precincts. Matthew N. Strawn, the state party chairman, simply “congratulated” Santorum and Romney “on a hard-fought effort during the closest contest in caucus history.”[/color]


But some Form E’s didn’t show up at all.[/b]


But now it is too late for the missing votes to count.

“It’s done,” said a party spokesman, who asked that his name not be used. About the missing votes, he said: “We never got ’em. We tried to track ’em down, and for whatever reason, we don’t have them.”

One of the missing forms was from the Geneva-Reeve precinct, which covers two small towns in Iowa’s midsection. Local volunteers in that precinct were supposed to return Form E to the county GOP chair, Karen Zander.

After the caucuses, Zander said she gathered paperwork that was sent to her from precincts across the county. She emptied the envelopes and sorted the loose papers into piles.

Then she bundled the Form E’s that she found together and sent them in. So how did that single one vanish? Zander said she doesn’t know: Did the volunteers at the caucus site lose it? Did she misplace it in the shuffle of paperwork?

“Now that the count is done, I don’t think that there’s anything we can do about it,” she said. “I’m going to take the blame for it, because I am the county chair. . . . If I blame one of [the volunteers], I’ll never get another precinct chair to volunteer.”

[size=18pt]
I thought they said "it is only in Nigeria that these things happen?"[/size]

johnie:
One of the missing forms was from the Geneva-Reeve precinct, which covers two small towns in Iowa’s midsection. Local volunteers in that precinct were supposed to return Form E to the county GOP chair, Karen Zander.

After the caucuses, Zander said she gathered paperwork that was sent to her from precincts across the county. She emptied the envelopes and sorted the loose papers into piles.

Then she bundled the Form E’s that she found together and sent them in. So how did that single one vanish? Zander said she doesn’t know: Did the volunteers at the caucus site lose it? Did she misplace it in the shuffle of paperwork?

“Now that the count is done, I don’t think that there’s anything we can do about it,” she said. “I’m going to take the blame for it, because I am the county chair. . . . If I blame one of [the volunteers], I’ll never get another precinct chair to volunteer.”

This is the part I like.

Few people would be like Ms Zander and take responsibility.

baba_eko:
Hello Johnie,

Whats the daily commute now like, lets say from Ajah to the intersection with Falomo bridge.
Last time I done it about a year ago, takes me about an hour and can take almost 2hrs or more on a bad day.

Is it now on a cruizing level with the expressway, best time I ever done from phase 1 to Ajah is 20 mins on a sunday afternoon. Any advice on the alternative road or is it just not worth the hassle ?

I cannot give you the commute position from Ajah to Falomo as my journey is somewhere in between.

What I can tell you is that between Chevron and Falomo, traffic has eased tremendously compared to about a year ago.

The challenge within that space however is with the roundabouts. Vehicles tend to congregate at the round abouts causing some delays.

Other than that it is a smooth ride except if you decide to drive through the 'alternative' route where there are some choke points.


Talking about the other direction, (I.e. going home from Falomo to Ajah) the same pattern as the morning applied from Falomo to Chevron.

However from Chevron round about to Ajah is still as chaotic as it has ever been in not worse.

Between Chevron round about and Oluwanishola Estate (Eleganza) could take an hour in some instances!

Hope this is useful information.

Anyone with more information may also add.

Osun Police parade alleged killer of protester, 22 others
On January 19, 2012 · In News
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By GBENGA OLARINOYE
OSOGBO—Osun state Police command yesterday paraded 23 suspects, including one Lawrence Dada who allegedly murdered a protester in Osogbo during the last nationwide protest against fuel subsidy removal.

Parading the suspects in Osogbo, Osun state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Olusegun Solomon, said the suspects were picked up in different locations in the state in the last three weeks.

He disclosed that Dada aka “The Law” with his friend, Tunde Ajiboye, while driving his car with number plate XG 109 AA  on January 9,  this year at Jolayemi junction in Osogbo met a road block mounted by labour strike protesters.

According to him, a quarrel ensued between them and the protesters where Dada Lawrence was said to have inflicted a deep machete cut on one Mojeed Wale Kareem’s head during a free for all which eventually resulted in his death.

The Commissioner said  the suspects had made useful information to the police while investigation was still ongoing.

Similarly, five suspects were also paraded for the alleged murder of an 80- year old, James Komolafe on his farm at Jagun village, Osun sate in December last year.

The Police boss recalled that the deceased with his son, Olagunju Komolafe, went to the farm at Jagun village where they saw one Ajibade Adeoye and Omoworare Adesoji felling trees in his farm.

He said: “An argument ensued between them which was later settled. Thereafter, the deceased’s son left for his farm but on his return to his father’s farm he could not see his father and went back home to inform his elder brother, Wale Komolafe of the development.

“Search was conducted around the farm where the deceased was found dead in his pool of blood. Police investigations later revealed that the suspects used their Dorman sawing machine to cut the deceased in the face, killed him and hid his corpse in the forest where it was later found.”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/osun-police-parade-alleged-killer-of-protester-22-others/

Santorum finished 34 votes ahead of Romney in new Iowa tally; votes from 8 precincts missing

By David A. Fahrenthold and Debbi Wilgoren,


Rick Santorum won the Iowa caucuses Thursday — 16 days after the last vote was cast — when the state Republican Party said a final count showed him 34 votes ahead of Mitt Romney.

That was a shift from the preliminary results the party announced after the Jan. 3 caucuses, which showed the former Massachusetts governor winning Iowa by eight votes. Iowa Republican leaders said that they had still not received results from eight of the state’s 1,774 precincts.

 After what was widely considered an unfocused and bloated campaign in 2008, the Republican former Massachusetts governor is returning to the presidential sweepstakes with a more tightly knit team.

The news does not alter the bottom line of the GOP primary race: the number of delegates that Santorum or Romney will receive at the national convention. For all their hype, the Iowa caucuses do not actually decide that.

But Santorum’s belated victory did seem likely to alter the pundits’ narrative of the Republican race — by demonstrating that the long-shot former senator from Pennsylvania did, indeed, have the ability to beat the front-runner.

At least once. By a little bit.

“The narrative that Governor Romney and the media have been touting of ‘inevitability’ has been destroyed,” Santorum communications director Hogan Gidley said in a news release. “Conservatives can now see and believe they don’t have to settle for Romney, the Establishment’s moderate candidate.”

Santorum’s squeaker victory means that Romney can no longer claim to be the only non-incumbent Republican candidate since 1976 to win both the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary.

Romney, for his part, issued a statement calling the results “a virtual tie.”’

Santorum’s strange, belated victory also served to embarrass the Iowa GOP — which had to admit that it had misallocated some votes, and simply lost some others, in a razor’s-edge election where every vote mattered.

It also cast an unflattering light on the old-fashioned and convoluted system that the party uses to collect and count caucus votes.

“It should be like a fine Swiss watch,” said Iowa State political science professor Steffen Schmidt. “It’s really more like a sundial.” He said the system used by Iowa Democrats was not significantly better.

In fact, Iowa Republican leaders seemed to cast doubt on their own results, saying Thursday that it was hard to declare a “winner” without knowing what happened in those eight precincts. Matthew N. Strawn, the state party chairman, simply “congratulated” Santorum and Romney “on a hard-fought effort during the closest contest in caucus history.”

This is how the process is supposed to work:

On caucus night, local volunteers collect the votes of local Republicans. Often, this is done by asking voters to write their choices on small slips of paper, all in a uniform color to prevent fraud.

After the votes are counted up (and bad handwriting is puzzled out), local officials write each candidate’s total on something called a “Form E.” This form — but not the ballots themselves — is then sent to the state GOP.

Thursday’s final count came from these forms, which had to be submitted by Wednesday evening. The Des Moines Register, citing unidentified officials in the Iowa GOP, reported that in 131 precincts, the forms showed numbers different than those reported on caucus night.

But some Form E’s didn’t show up at all.

The state party found that it was missing results from eight precincts, spread across five counties. The eight precincts probably did not account for a huge number of votes — in the 2008 GOP caucuses, they had a total of 298 votes. But in this election, of course, 298 votes could easily have swung the outcome.

But now it is too late for the missing votes to count.

“It’s done,” said a party spokesman, who asked that his name not be used. About the missing votes, he said: “We never got ’em. We tried to track ’em down, and for whatever reason, we don’t have them.”

One of the missing forms was from the Geneva-Reeve precinct, which covers two small towns in Iowa’s midsection. Local volunteers in that precinct were supposed to return Form E to the county GOP chair, Karen Zander.

After the caucuses, Zander said she gathered paperwork that was sent to her from precincts across the county. She emptied the envelopes and sorted the loose papers into piles.

Then she bundled the Form E’s that she found together and sent them in. So how did that single one vanish? Zander said she doesn’t know: Did the volunteers at the caucus site lose it? Did she misplace it in the shuffle of paperwork?

“Now that the count is done, I don’t think that there’s anything we can do about it,” she said. “I’m going to take the blame for it, because I am the county chair. . . . If I blame one of [the volunteers], I’ll never get another precinct chair to volunteer.”

Staff writers Philip Rucker and Rosalind S. Helderman contributed to this report.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/report-santorum-finished-34-votes-ahead-of-romney-in-new-iowa-tally-votes-from-8-precincts-missing/2012/01/19/gIQAJGuRAQ_story.html

Ghanaian president sacks justice minister for “misconduct”
On January 19, 2012 · In News
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ACCRA(AFP) -Ghana’s President John Evans Atta Mills on Thursday sacked Justice Minister Martin Amidu for “misconduct” during a cabinet meeting, an official statement said.

According to media reports, Amidu — a lawyer who took office last year — levelled serious accusations of corruption at some of his government colleagues but was unable to substantiate them.

“Mr Amidu’s behaviour is incompatible with acceptable standards expected of ministers and appointees of the president,” said the statement from the office of the president, who chaired the January 13 meeting.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/ghanaian-president-sacks-justice-minister-for-misconduct/