₦airaland Forum

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VRA: Drastic reduction in gas from Nigeria forces load management
Source: GNA - Ghana News Agency

Accra, Feb. 3, GNA – The Volta River Authority (VRA) announced on Thursday that a drastic reduction in gas supply from Nigeria through the West African Gas Pipeline to its thermal plants was forcing the power companies to embark on a load management exercise.

A statement issued by VRA in Accra said the situation meant there would be a reduction in power supply by 100 megawatts during the peak periods from 6.00 p.m. (1800 hours) to 10.00 p.m (2200 hours).

“VRA has therefore requested the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to undertake a load management exercise in various parts of the country, until the situation returns to normalcy,” the statement said.

VRA said discussions were, meanwhile, ongoing with the suppliers of the gas to increase supply from the current 40 million standard cubic feet per day (mscf/d), to the contractual volumes of 100 mscf/d, to enable the company to operate all its thermal facilities.

“We assure our valued customers and the general public that VRA is committed to ensuring the supply of adequate power to all its customers, and regret any inconvenience caused,” it added.

VRA generates power mainly through hydro and thermal sources.

http://www.businessghana.com/portal/news/index.php?op=getNews&news_cat_id=&id=159702

X-2-X, thanks for the update!

And yet some Nigerians keep referring to Rawlings as a hero.

Even going as far as suggesting that the first Nigerian coup would have "cleansed" Nigeria of corruption.

Chinese firm, CCECC wins Lagos-Badagry Expressway Phase II contract
Monday, 30 January 2012 00:00 By Tunde Alao

FRESH building blocks were again laid last week towards redevelopment of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, following the award of the second phase contract to the China Civil Engineering and Construction Corporation (CCECC). The entire project will gulp N220 billion.

The firm emerged winner out of the four other companies shortlisted in the bidding process for the ongoing expansion of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway. They are Messrs Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Moreno- Marina – Lagoon Plc, Salini Nigeria Limited, and CGGC Global Projects Nigeria Limited.

Prior to the final selection exercise, the bids were opened at Alausa Secretariat seat of government in the presence of the representatives of the companies, in compliance with international best practices and evaluated by the Tenders Board, which made its recommendation known to the State Executive Council and the state governor for further deliberation and award.

The contract involves the Lot 2A covering Mazamaza to Okokomaiko. It was further rescheduled into tranches as Lot 2A and 2B covering Mazamza to Okokomaiko and from Okokomaiko to Agbara respectively.

In March 2009, the contract for the Lot 1 of the project was awarded to Messrs Julius Berger Nig Plc. The state government had commenced the expansion of the road as a strategic development that will open the West African market to Nigerian businesses and also ensure the take off of the axis designed as the state’s tourism corridor. It also reflects the change in the population density of the area.

The development was confirmed at the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, Alausa, Ikeja, last week by the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, who said that CCECC had responsibility for the rail content in the LOT 1 along with the new contract.

Hamzat revealed that the stakeholders’ meeting was initiated to bring on board the views of those who will be affected by the construction process along the axis. He emphasised the importance of the project, adding that the development would not only open up the West African market to Nigerian businesses, but will also affect positively the value of properties along the corridor.

The commissioner assured that the “Lot 1” segment of the project, the rail component, is in progress, noting that the firms handling the project would certainly meet the schedule.

Responding to comment by stakeholders, especially, from the landlords association on the issue of Right of Way and compensation, the commissioner assured property owners that due diligence will be followed.

He further assured that the government will abide by its citizens’ rights always.

He disclosed that the Right of Way for the project is 120 metres, adding that the state is committed to carrying the people along as it implements its development agenda.

In his remarks, the Commissioner for Transportation, Kayode Opeifa urged all the owners of abandoned vehicles on the axis to remove them so as to forestall their being towed by the Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA), as the agency will ensure effective traffic management when the project takes off.

He explained that the motor parks and mechanic village indiscriminately sited around the corridor will be eliminated and other options provided to ensure continuity of business.

Present at the forum were the Special Adviser to the Governor on Works and Infrastructure, Mr. Ganiyu Johnson, an engineer, chairmen of Oriade LCDA and Amuwo Odofin local council, community leaders, telecom operators, Power Holding Corporation of Nigeria (PHCN), National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Federal Ministry of Works and oil and gas companies, among others.

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=75379:chinese-firm-ccecc-wins-lagos-badagry-expressway-phase-ii-contract&catid=25:property&Itemid=655

U.S. Senator Rand Paul, son of Ron Paul, detained by TSA after refusing airport patdown

Reuters Jan 23, 2012 – 11:09 AM ET | Last Updated: Jan 23, 2012 5:30 PM ET

By Thomas Ferraro and John Crawley

WASHINGTON — Republican Senator Rand Paul was stopped at an airport on Monday for setting off an alarm and refusing a patdown, prompting his father, U.S. presidential candidate Ron Paul, to accuse security officials of being part of an “out of control” police state.

In a harshly worded attack on the Transportation Security Administration, which handles security screenings at U.S. airports, Ron Paul, known for his strident libertarian views, said the TSA “gropes and grabs our kids and our seniors and does nothing to keep us safe.”
Related

After Rand Paul refused the patdown, he was escorted out of the airport security area in Nashville, Tennessee, by local authorities, the TSA said. Paul missed his flight to Washington, but was later rebooked and rescreened without incident.

As favorites of the anti-Washington Tea Party movement, Paul and his father, who is a U.S. Represenative from Texas, have helped lead the charge against what critics call excessive federal intrusion, from health care to body searches.

At a Senate hearing last June, Rand Paul challenged TSA Administrator John Pistole over his agency’s random patdowns of travelers at airports, including the case of a 6-year-old girl from his home state of Kentucky.

“This isn’t to say that we don’t believe in safety procedures,” Paul said. “But I think I feel less safe because you’re doing these invasive exams on a six-year-old. It makes me think you’re clueless that you think she’s going to attack our country and that you’re not doing your research on the people who would attack our country.”

On the campaign trail, Ron Paul has called for the abolition of the TSA on the grounds that it wastes taxpayer money and violates personal liberties.

Rand Paul has recommended that authorities eliminate patdowns as part of everyday security, saying TSA should more heavily emphasize non-invasive methods for assessing risk.

The senator has even complained that close screening of members of Congress and other frequent fliers known to airlines and security officials is a poor use of security resources.

TSA DEFENDS PROCEDURES

The TSA was created following the Sept. 11, 2001, airplane attacks by al Qaeda on the United States.

Full body imaging and patdowns at U.S. airports began in 2010, and immediately triggered a public backlash and fire from both sides of the political aisle.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a leading member of the Obama administration, weighed in on the controversy at the time, saying she would avoid pat downs if possible.

More than 650 million passengers fly on U.S. airlines, most using one of the more than 400 airports where TSA operates checkpoints.

The agency defends its procedures, which they say are needed to ensure passenger safety.

Paul’s personal showdown with airport security unfolded as he headed to Washington to address an anti-abortion rally and to return to work after a long congressional holiday break.

The senator’s father, Ron Paul, tweeted that his son was detained for refusing a full-body pat-down “after anomaly in body scanner.”

The TSA did not say what triggered the alarm and denied Paul had been detained.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/01/23/u-s-senator-rand-paul-son-of-ron-paul-detained-by-tsa/

GHANA, THE BEGGING MILLIONAIRE – AFRICA, THE BEGGING TRILLIONAIRE
By Nana Kofi


Recently, I witnessed in dismay a tirade by a white man in the first class cabin of a mid-size airplane, admonishing another first class passenger, a Ghanaian male, for “begging” for his seat. What is wrong with you Africans? All you do is beg, beg, beg for everything!! You can beg all you want; I am not going to give you my seat. Tempers finally cooled down, and the aircraft took off. Unfortunately, I was sitting next to this white man who, a few minutes ago, had insulted my whole race. With nothing else to do, I turned and asked him “what was all that about”? Apparently, the Ghanaian man was travelling with his “wife”; they had been seated in 1st class on separate rows, and apart. The man had asked this white man to exchange his seat, so the couple could be close. The white man had refused, but the Ghanaian man had persisted with numerous “I beg you”; which eventually took the white man to his boiling point. “So what would it have cost you to exchange your seat?” I asked. His response, the essence of this article was this.

“I booked my flight the last minute, and got the last 1st class seat available, this one. This means it was also available to this man, if only he had asked to be seated close to his wife. He did not, but now comes “begging” for what WAS DUE HIM in the first place.” “That still shouldn't get your collar up”, I said. “You may be right; unfortunately, I have just finished a month long negotiations with your Ministers and Government officials over your god given mineral rights, and what my gold mining company should pay.

I come to your country, see all this poverty everywhere, with wealth right under your feet. Your own government gives only foreign companies the rights and privileges to violation and steal your country blind. For a few thousand dollars, your government officials allow these foreign companies to walk away with: (a) Perpetual tax holidays, (b) Duty free imports, (c) Bloated capital and operational investment costs,

(d) under-declared mineral output, (e) minimum wages for local employees doing all the work, but FAT salaries and expense accounts for foreigners who do almost nothing; (f) exaggerated cost of shoddy school blocks and boreholes instead of meaningful royalty to local land owners and communities;

(g) destruction of local farm lands with pitiful resettlement payments; (h) pollution of local drinking water; (i) destruction of local infrastructure, etc.

My bosses had counseled me at a briefing before my departure. I was asked to read your Osageyefo's “Neo-Colonialism”. Then I was told: “be prepared, and the first, to offer the negotiating team, (a) a few thousand dollars each; (b) a center, or a 6-room school block, or a few bore holes for the community; and there will be no mention of the usual above 10% royalties, or an actual government oversight of our operations, or adequate resettlement compensations, etc.”

I did not believe my bosses since I, a mere high school graduate, was coming to deal with officials with Masters and Doctorate degrees. Imagine my shock and disappointment when these officials, instead of demanding what is INTERNATIONALLY ACCEPTABLE COMPENSATIONS AND ROYALTIES for their country and communities, only accepted the 3% royalties, and with ALL KINDS OF GIVEAWAYS, and then came to me later BEGGING me to deposit “something” in their foreign accounts (numbers written on pieces of paper). I do not want to hear the phrase “I beg you” again.

The irony here is that these so called Educated people, after negotiating away the countries wealth, and depositing their “something”s into foreign banks, turn round to go and BORROW their own money from the IMF, World Bank, or “Donor” countries/ “Development Partners”. Do you remember the number of PhD beneficiaries, and the destinations of the Mabey & Johnson kickbacks? It amazes me that your intelligentsia, Ministers and Presidents, who have studied, or have travelled oversea, still don't get the idea that “THERE IS NO FREE LUNCH”. THERE ARE NO “DONOR COUNTRIES” OR “DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS”. THE FOREIGN MINING COMPANIES TAKE YOUR MINERALS FOR NEXT TO NOTHING, DEPOSIT THEIR HAUL INTO THEIR BANKS, AND THEN TURN ROUND TO LOAN THE SAME TO OUR GOVERNMENTS, AGAIN WITH REDICULOUS CONDITIONS.SUCH AS “NO SUBSIDIZED” BASIC EDUCATION.

Surely, companies like Anglogold and Newmont are contributing to our economy, I offered.

“At what price? Have you been to Obuasi recently to see the devastation and destruction of once a beautiful city? Newmont has over 740 sq. km concession in Ahafo; what did the Ahafo's get in return for Newmont's ANNUAL revenues of over $750,000,000? Almost NOTHING!!

This is exactly what your first President was talking about in “Neo-Colonialism“. Have you read that book? He asked me. I was ashamed to answer “No”. “I don't blame you; none of your “Educated” officials at the negotiating table had read it. That book ought to be a must-read textbook in your schools and colleges, so that you can understand how foreign companies and governments strive to rob you blind, just as before. Only this time, their methods are cloaked in one-sided “agreements” with the connivance of your “Educated” Managing Directors, Ministers, and Presidents. “How can you accuse our officials of complicity?” I asked defensively. Has your media asked why the MD's of the Ghana Chamber of mines keep defending the mining companies, or how a Ghanaian, working for a Ghanaian/British joint company in Ghana earned the “Order of the British Empire (Sir)”? Can you imagine these foreign companies, under the watchful eyes of your govt. officials, paying the indigene 5 pesewa (GhC 0.05) ground rent for their acre of concessional land after they have hauled away GhC 1,000,000 from the same acre?

THE BIG COMPANIES, NEWMONT AND ANGLOGOLD ARE NOT EVEN ASHAMED TO CONNIVE WITH YOUR GOVT OFFICIALS TO SIDESTEP PAYING THE INCREASED 5% ROYALTY. THEY ARE PAYING THE 5% BASED ON ANCIENT GOLD PRICE OF $300.00/OZ INSTEAD OF THE CURRENT WORLDWIDE PRICE OF $1500.00/OZ., SHORTCHANGING YOUR PEOPLE $75,000,000 in the process. Unfortunately, your negotiating officials are happy to giggle to the foreign banks with their thousands, accompanied in some cases by “Dr”s and “Sir”s.

Even the Chinese are getting in on the act, albeit ILLEGALLY. They are threatening communities with guns and firepower, AND YOUR MILITARY LOOKS ON UNCONCERNED. Your media is just as bad. With buffet lunches or dinners and a few Cedis in their pockets, your print media become the propaganda machines of these mining companies. They tout the few boreholes and the 6-room schools, but leave out the callous treatment of local employees and residents, and the destruction of the environment. The airwaves are SILENT on all this. WACAM IS THE LONE VOICE FOR THE PEOPLE. Why don't your media SUPPORT WACAM by broadcasting and educating the masses, especially the officials that (a) THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT APPROVE OF FOREIGN COMPANIES ROBBING THE INDEGENES FULL BENEFITS OF THEIR GOD GIVEN MINERAL AND OIL DEPOSITS. (b) Before Rawlings, foreign mining companies in Ghana could not hold more than 40% interest in their partnership with the government; now the Ghana govt. holds ZERO percent, while they hold 100%,; and therefore do not account to any authority.

A 50% annual return on investment (ROI) for the first 7 years, is generally considered EXCELLENT. Foreign mining/ oil companies in Ghana and the rest of Africa, are PERPETUALLY hauling away over 400% return on their investments, without any regard to the plight of the indigenes.

I feigned sleep, so he stopped talking. I was actually reflecting on all that he had said. I realized that YES, we had become too “give me, give me”; “I beg”, “I beg you”; “My Christmas box”; “Give us something for water”.

I am reminded by this my brother's analogy. His cat will “meow” for some food, usually crumbs, in his bowl outside. The bowl of food will attract the resident mice. One would think the cat would opt for the juicy mice, NOO. He would lay there and watch the mouse eat all his food, and then come back “Meowing” for more crumbs.

WE WATCH OUR OFFICIALS GIVE AWAY OUR GOLD, OIL, BAUXITE, DIAMOND, ETC FOR THEIR MEAGRE KICKBACKS, WHILE WE WALLOW IN POVERTY. IT IS TIME WE WAKE UP FROM OUR SLUMBER, AND TAKE WHAT IS RIGHTFULLY OURS AT THE NEGOTIATING TABLE. AT THAT TIME, WE CAN TELL OBAMA AND CAMERON TO TAKE BACK THEIR GAYS AND AID.

http://www.modernghana.com/news/375003/1/ghana-the-begging-millionaire-africa-the-b.html

Why Jonathan chose Abubakar
By Yusuf Alli, Abuja 10 hours 46 minutes ago


Acting Inspector-General of Police Mohammed Abubakar got the job based on merit and professional excellence, Presidency officials said yesterday.

President Goodluck Jonathan chose Abubakar because there was no report indicting him before the Police Service Commission.

A Presidency source, who gave an insight into the appointment, said the government did enough checks and discovered that Abubakar has a high moral pedigree to occupy the office.

The source, who pleaded not to be named because he was not permitted to speak on the matter, spoke against the backdrop of the controversy generated by the recommendation of the Justice Niki Tobi Panel on the Plateau crisis in 2001.

The panel recommended that Abubakar, who was then the Commissioner of Police in Plateau State, should be dismissed from service.

But the presidency said the new IGP has a clean record at the Police Service Commission.

The source said: “The truth of the matter is that Niki Tobi Panel was set up by the Plateau State Government under ex-Governor Joshua Dariye. You need to appreciate the delicate nature of Plateau politics because of the ethno-religious polarisation.

“Each time the state raises a panel on Plateau unrest, the report usually follows a pattern. And when the Federal Government sets up its panel, the report takes a different dimension.

“Most of the Commissioners of Police posted to Plateau State in the last 12 years have always been accused of one thing or the other.

“In the specific case of this new IGP, there is no record that the report was forwarded to the Inspector-General of Police or the Police Service Commission.

“The man was not at any time queried; he was not sanctioned in any way. The principle in law is that an indictment is not a conviction as pronounced by the court in the case of Atiku v. INEC.

“The report is over 12 years and what they are quoting in that report is only a recommendation.

“Since that recommendation, the same man being criticised had been Commissioner of Police in Kwara, Kano and Lagos. He has been an Assistant Inspector-General of Police in about four zones.”

The source said: “I am not aware of any report indicting him; no disciplinary action has been taken against him; and he has not been accused of any misdemeanour.

“He is a man of sterling records and with a track of professional achievements.

“This is a man that is recommended even by his own colleagues and the rank and file for his competence, professionalism and discipline.

“That is the kind of man that is needed at this time. He is disciplined and highly respected by his own colleagues.”

http://www.thenationonlineng.net/2011/index.php/news/34750-why-jonathan-chose-abubakar.html

[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