₦airaland Forum

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Source:http://www.akelicious.com/2017/02/chelsea-legend-didier-drogba-and.html?m=1

Even though Nigeria did not feature in the 2017 African Nations Cup, the Super Eagles moved up nine places to 41 in the latest world football ranking released by FIFA yesterday. But the team maintained its seventh spot in Africa.

Nigeria’s new position could be a result of the team’s victories against Zambia and Algeria in the 2018 World Cup qualifying series last year.

In total, 60 matches counted towards the latest ranking. The most significant changes for the February edition of the FIFA world ranking was rated on matches played at the just concluded 2017 CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which took place in Gabon. Cameroun’s victory at the tournament helped them climb 29 places into 33rd position, while Egypt’s silver-medal finish secured the team a place in the top 25 spot.The Pharaohs (23, plus 12) are now the highest ranked CAF team despite their 2-1 defeat by the Indomitable Lions of Cameroun at the finals of the 2017 prestigious Africa football showpiece.



AFCON semi-finalists Burkina Faso (38, plus 15) and Ghana (45, plus 9) also benefited, while quarter- finalists Congo DR (37, plus 12), Morocco (48, plus 9) and hosts Gabon (87, plus 21) also have cause to celebrate.

Super Eagles’ Group E opponents in the 2019 AFCON qualifiers, South Africa (13), Libya (23) and Seychelles (51) all dropped in the latest ranking.
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/02/eagles-jump-to-41-in-new-fifa-rankings.html#more

more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/01/fuji-star-malaika-daughter-graduated.html#more

The scarcity of kerosene, used by millions of largely poor Nigerians for cooking, has hit major cities causing huge increase in price. The situation has also caused some residents to turn to alternatives such as firewood and cooking gas.
Some kerosene consumers in Lagos at the weekend appealed to the Federal Government to assist the masses by making the product available for them at a reduced price. In her comments, Mrs. Moradeyo Adisa, a widow, who resides at No 10, Abeokuta St., Ilasamaja area of Lagos, said that she bought a bottle of kerosene for N250.
Adisa said the product was sold for N300 per litre at the filling station against the official price of N83, while retailers sold at N350 per litre. She urged government to do something about it to make life more bearable for the masses during this biting recession.Another consumer, Mrs. Kikelomo Joseph, a 67-year-old food vendor at Agege area, said she had turned to firewood to cook her food because kerosene was expensive. “Instead of spending over N3,000 on kerosene to prepare food for my customers, I have adjusted to using firewood, because it is a bit cheaper.
In Kaduna, none of the filling stations visited in the state capital on Saturday had kerosene (DPK) for sale. In one of the stations, the attendants said the scarcity began on January 2, as they got no supply from Lagos and Kaduna refineries.
In Calabar, the scarcity has led to an increase in price to between N350 and N400 per litre from less than N300 per litre. It is also being sold for N350 per litre in Lagos as against the earlier price of N220 at the few filling stations still having the product.
A News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) survey on Sunday showed that the product was not available in any filling station in most states of the country. However, the product was available only in surface tanks in parts of the city, where dealers sold it for between N350 and N400 per litre.
A resident, Elizabeth Sunday, decried the situation and described it as greed on the part of the product marketers. “This is bad for us the poor people of this country. I am a widow and I don’t have money to buy gas cooker. Now the price of kerosene is out of my reach and it is hard to feed nowadays. My appeal is that government should do something to change the situation in the interest of the masses,” she said.
This development has pushed consumers to turn to alternatives. In Kaduna, the kerosene scarcity has led to a 30 per cent increase in price of cooking gas. At the popular gas vendor station on Ali Akilu Road Kaduna, a seller attributed the price hike to the scarcity of kerosene.
“From yesterday, we started noticing more people coming to buy gas. And because of the sudden demand, some of us started to increase the prices and yet people are buying. Before this morning, we used to refill the 12kg cylinder for N3,500, but now refill it for N4,200,” the trader said.Maryam Malam, a bean cake (akara) seller at Unguwan Yero, Kaduna, said the kerosene scarcity has led to a reduction in the volume of firewood sold per price.
“I bought N100 firewood this afternoon and the quantity has reduced because everybody around is buying,” the akara seller, who uses firewood for her cooking said.
In its reaction to the scarcity, the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) at the weekend said there was no drop of kerosene in the private and NNPC depots in Lagos. Rotimi Benjamin, National Chairman of Surface Tank Kerosene Peddlers (SUTAKEP) branch of NUPENG told the newsmen in Lagos that the product was last brought to the depot on December 27, 2016.
read more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/01/citizens-lament-as-kerosene-scarcity.html#more

Who owns this sprawling estate in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State? The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) suspects it belongs to former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke.

It was discovered by operatives of the anti-graft agency in the course of their investigation of public funds allegedly stolen by the former minister.

The investigators conducted a search on some of the houses on the estate.

Acting Chairman of the EFCC , Mr. Ibrahim Magu has already left Nigeria for London in connection with the investigation of the ex-minister and some upscale properties traced to her at home and abroad.

About five bank chiefs are likely to face trial over the $153million allegedly withdrawn by the ex-minister from the accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation( NNPC) in December 2014.

The Nation gathered that the EFCC team,acting on intelligence,uncovered the sprawling estate which is coded as BGIS/OK/02/16/310.

It is located on Diepreye Alamieyeseigha Street, off Goodluck Jonathan Road in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

A source familiar with the investigation said: “Following our obtaining a court order to recover some assets belonging to Diezani, we were able to gather intelligence which led to the location of the hidden estate in question in Bayelsa State.

“Our operatives also conducted searches in some houses on the estate based on tip off on the ex-minister.

“We will follow due process in invoking the relevant laws on asset forfeiture on all the mansions in the estate.”

Section 7 of the EFCC Act says: “The commission has power to (a) cause any investigations to be conducted as to whether any person, corporate body or organization has committed any offence under this Act or other law relating to economic and financial crimes.

“(b) Cause investigations to be conducted into the properties of any person if it appears to the commission that the person’s lifestyle and extent of the properties are not justified by his source of income.”

Sections 26 and 29 of the EFCC Act read in part: “Any property subject to forfeiture under this Act may be seized by the commission in the following circumstances- (a) the seizure is incidental to an arrest or search; or (b) in the case of property liable to forfeiture upon process issued by the Court following an application made by the Commission in accordance with the prescribed rules

“Whenever property is seized under any of the provisions of this Act, the Commission may-(a) place the property under seal; or (b) remove the property to a place designated by the Commission.

“Properties taken or detained under this section shall be deemed to be in custody of the Commission, subject only to an order of a Court.”

Sections 28 and 34 of the EFCC (Establishment Act) 2004 and Section 13(1) of the Federal High Court Act, 2004 empower the anti-graft agency to invoke Interim Assets Forfeiture Clause.Section 28 of the EFCC Act reads: ‘Where a person is arrested for an offence under this Act, the Commission shall immediately trace and attach all the assets and properties of the person acquired as a result of such economic or financial crime and shall thereafter cause to be obtained an interim attachment order from the Court.’

Section 13 of the Federal High Court Act reads in part : “The Court may grant an injunction or appoint a receiver by an interlocutory order in all cases in which it appears to the Court to be just or convenient so to do.

(2) “Any such order may be made either unconditionally or on such terms and conditions as the Court thinks just.”

On the EFCC boss, Magu’s trip to London,a second source said: “We are getting closer to the biggest fraud trial in the UK. The Acting EFCC chairman has left Abuja for London to compare notes with his colleagues.

“The EFCC is collaborating with prosecutors in the United Kingdom by providing incontrovertible evidence against the ex-minister.

“Some of the UK investigators visited Nigeria in 2016.
Read more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/01/breakingnews-efcc-uncovers-diezanis.html?m=1

Mr Pretty Okafor, President of the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN) has said that the economic recession facing the nation since 2016 did not stop its entertainment industry from thriving, adding that “In the whole of Africa, only Nigerian Artistes fly Private Jets around.”

He stated this in an interview with newsmen in Abuja.

Okafor, in a retrospective look into 2016, noted that while other sectors of the nation’s economy were grappling with the realities of the recession, the music and motion pictures industry was ‘doing well’.
The entertainment industry is the only sector that recession did not affect, and will never affect.

“While other sectors were retrenching workers in the past year and finding it difficult to pay workers salaries, the entertainment industry was employing people.

“Artistes and everyone in the industry were busy working, going for concerts, producing movies and music all over the place.

“We were shooting movies and distributing our albums all over Africa and beyond,” he asserted.

The PMAN boss explained that the Nigerian brand and artistes, in the last year, gained both local and global acceptance and relevant than ever before.

He added that besides the artistes, producers, promoters and others involved in other ancillary services within the industry reaped increased income during the year.

“Everybody who is creative and hard-working chunked out albums, and within the year, thousands of music and movie albums were produced.

“Presently, there is no other African Artistes that collect the fee Nigerian artistes collect per show.

“They collect from 100,000 to 150, 000 dollars for a single performance wherever they go all over the world.

“In the whole of Africa, it is only Nigerian Artistes that fly Private Jet around, it has never happened in Africa,” he noted.

According to Okafor, the Nigerian brand of entertainment is now competing effectively on the global stage.

“In the whole of Africa, it is only Nigerian Artistes that fly Private Jet around, it has never happened in Africa,” he noted. According to Okafor, the Nigerian brand of entertainment is now competing effectively on the global stage.This he said has attracted a lot of foreign investors and promoters, and thereby added to the nation’s foreign exchange.

He noted that many dance steps that were originated by Nigerian artistes have gained popularity around the world.

“In many media stations abroad, Nigerian music earn not less than 75% air- time, that tells you that our brand has global market.

“If you visit many night clubs in the U.S, Jamaica and other countries, Nigerian music is played.

“In Aruba Island and the Trinidad and Tobago, they collect tax from their citizens for buying Nigerian movies and music albums.

“So other countries are making money from what we produce, and we can’t even appreciate what is it has to offer back at home.”

Okafor, therefore, called on relevant stakeholders and Government at all levels to focus on exploring the potentials the industry has to offer, especially as the nation advocates economic diversification.

According to him, if given adequate attention, the entertainment industry is the only viable sector that can bail the country out of its recession in no distant time.

“The era of sole reliance on oil is gone, and the earlier Nigeria realises this, the better it will be for its citizens.

“The entertainment industry does not need intensive capital and long period to yield return on investment.

“Government just needs to demonstrate a strong political will in providing the necessary regulations and enabling environment.

“We are not telling them to give us loan, but they should provide a strong system that provides adequate management and protection for the creative rights of Nigerians, “he urged.

He said since the Nigerian entertainment industry is globally acclaimed as the third largest in the world and the best in Africa, there was need to harness its potentials.

Read more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/01/in-africa-only-nigerian-artistes-that.html?m=1

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye has retired.Pastor Adeboye, on Saturday named a new General Overseer (GO), Pastor J.O Obafemi, as his his successor, ahead of his 75th birthday on 2 March.

The new GO is Pastor Joshua Obayemi was appointed the new GO at the Annual Ministers Thanksgiving at Shimawa, in Ogun State.

The newly appointed GO was the former Special Assistant to the General Overseer (SATGO) on Finance.

Adeboye also appointed Pastor Johnson Odesola, who was the Special Assistant on Administration and Personnel, as the church Secretary.

Adeboye was born on March 2, 1942, in Ifewara, Osun State.

Pastor Adeboye had his B.Sc. in Mathematics at University of Nigeria Nsukka, and subsequently got his PhD in applied mathematics from the University of Lagos, and worked as a lecturer in Mathematics at the universities of Lagos and Ilorin, before going into full time priesthood in 1984.

After joining the RCCG in 1973, he began working to translate the sermons of its then Pastor and founder, Rev. Josiah Olufemi Akindayomi, from Yoruba into English.

In 1981, Adeboye was appointed General Overseer of the church.

He took over from Papa Akindayomi, who had died the previous year.

For three years he performed the role part-time, still lecturing at Ilorin.

He finally gave up his university position to preach full-time.

The church, which was not well known prior to Adeboye’s ascendance has grown phenomenally, to become Nigeria’s biggest, with branches globally in about 190 countries, including more than 14,000 in Nigeria.

Adeboye has stated that his aim is to put a church within five minutes of every person on Earth.
Read more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/01/pastor-adeboye-retires-as-general.html?m=1

The Governor of Ebonyi State, Engr. David Umahi, has called on the state’s Ministry of Agriculture and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to work harder this year to make the state attain greater heights in rice production.
He told delegations from the ministry, IFAD, Abakalili Amalgamated Market Traders Association and pUmahi, according to a statement on Friday by his spokesman, Emma Anya, said it was necessary for the ministry and IFAD to work harder to enable the state get to where it should be in rice production.
He told the traders that there would be discussions on plans to create wealth for the people and make the International market in the state be like other big markets in the country. He advised them to quickly obtain forms to ensure that shops were allocated to them at the international market.olitical stakeholders from Ivo LGA who visited him in Uburu, that the reason the state is being celebrated today is because of Agriculture.
Read more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/01/umahi-prepare-for-bumper-rice-harvest.html#more

Immediate past Jigawa State Governor and founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Sule Lamido, has declared that President Muhammadu Buhari and his ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, would be shocked in 2019, insisting that if God says he (Lamido) would be President, the same God would clear the way for him.
He spoke in an exclusive interview with Saturday Sun, in his country home, Bamaina, last Sunday, shortly after playing host to hundreds of youths from across the country.

In the build up to the 2015 polls, many Nigerians thought you were going to run for the Presidency. What happened, why did you not run?

You are asking this question because you are not a politician. But then political parties have got history; they have traditions. In the world over, where you have your party, as the one in government, and which produced the incumbent President, it is not in tune with such political party’s tradition to sponsor a candidate against him; for the purpose of pulling him down and then replace him with another person, no matter what. If that is done, it shows lack of party unity; lack of party coherence. It is like passing a vote of no confidence on the person. So, those who are asking me to run then, fail to understand this particular background and also the peculiarity of the third world politics, where, for instance, the President is virtually the lord. The entire party system, organs, the institution of the state is under him, because, as the leader of the party, he is the symbol of authority. And therefore Mr. President is also the leader of the country, and he has all the legal institutions, reins of power also under him. So, it is simply unthinkable, amounting to personal delusion, to say you want to run against him, in the same party.

Now assuming you run with him, assuming you defeat him in your own party and he is the country’s President, you are simply passing a vote of no confidence on him as a person. And, therefore, there is no way you will do this and then expect the country and Nigerians to respect him. If his own party could formally denounce him, what do you expect other Nigerians to do? That is one.

Secondly, by the time you renounce him, it will also pose a threat condition on the election management. If you humiliate him, you embarrass him, you think he will watch and allow you win the election? These are things which are simply unthinkable. They don’t make sense. It is not fair. It is not right. It is not right to the system. It can lead to political revolution and even destabilize the country, for a party to pull out its own President. Again, if he is defeated and in the process of primaries you create your own kind of support base and he defeats you, there will be people who will feel highly aggrieved. And the resultant consequences in terms of the party acrimonies would be so difficult to manage and reconcile before the elections. And it will also cost you the election. These are realities.

Would it have been better for the party, if Jonathan had not presented himself for election?

You see, it is up to him to understand that as a leader he is also the symbol of the country’s stability and symbol of the party’s fortune. It is up to him to understand that running will either enhance the fortunes of the party or deflate it. The decision is entirely his; because there are no way you will have any other means by which you are going to check that. It is not even possible. There is no way that somebody who has the right to go for a second term can be denied. It is a very difficult thing. That is why in America there was no one that will be challenging the incumbent President; Obama was never challenged during his second tenure in the primary by anybody. It is the tradition. It is an unwritten code in terms of maintaining party discipline and cohesion. And based on the narrative I gave earlier, the decision was entirely his and that of the party. It is the responsibility of the system to decide how to deal with such a situation, where incumbents insist on running.

Still on 2015, would you say PDP was defeated or that the PDP lost that election?

Let me answer you this way, if you look at the history of the PDP and elections, from 1999 when Obasanjo ran, the margin of his victory was twice that of the person who ran against him. In 2003, when he ran against Buhari, Buhari ran under APP, the total number scored by PDP was more than 2/3 of the vote and, therefore, attracted majority. In 2007, when Yar’Adua, Buhari and Atiku ran, the total number scored by Yar’Adua was more than 2/3 of all the other contestants; so if you put Buhari’s votes to Atiku’s vote, they were not enough to beat Yar’Adua. In 2011, it was the same scenario, like it, or hate it, these are historical facts. So long as PDP is united and standing, there was no way any party could defeat it. In 2015, it is the votes of the PDP which produced the current government, simple. It was the PDP votes which went into the APC that enabled it (APC) to win the centre. From 1999 to 2003 through 2011, the votes from the South-South alone normally gives us 5million, the one from the South-East gives us 8million plus, so we have 13million votes coming from those two regions, in the last three elections. In the election of 2015, the innovation of the card reader was designed to rig PDP out, and it was very strict in the South-South and the South-East. Even some of the voters could not vote because their names were not there. So, what I may call scientific rigging denied a lot of people the opportunity to vote for the PDP. So in the end, the votes came to 3million in the South-South, in the East we got 5million so if you sum it up it is 8million, so PDP lost 5million votes through the card reader. And because we had no intention to simply create problem for the government or Nigerians, we let it be. I say so because in the entire north there was no card reader; people knew it. There was nothing like card reader in the north. The card reader was also a kind of scientific rigging which was made to blackmail PDP because the INEC had been blackmailed too, and all these, plus the governors who left the party, made it possible for the APC, to win. But even at that, the margin was only 2million votes. So, I can say it that APC won by PDP votes, otherwise by history, with the votes of all the opposition party put together, in the past, they were never able to win the PDP. So, when I hear Oyegun calling PDP the party of evil, I just laugh, because the parts of this government came from the shameless party and the evil votes. He has been saying that PDP are shameless, PDP are evil, but it is these evil votes, these shameless votes that produced this government. But then, that is now history.

PDP, from what we gathered, is trying to put its house in order and as part of the processes, some are suggesting that it should either merge or change the name of the party. As a founding member of the party what is your take on these propositions?

When you say we should merge; merge with whom? Like AC, ANPP, PDP merged to form APC? Who will PDP merge with? To merge with who? Now on changing of name, I am saying this over and over again, APC which metamorphosed from AD to AC to ACN and APC; are the members different? ANPP which transformed from APP to ANPP, to CPC and to APC, tell me in this coalition of so called small, small parties put together, the faces there, are they also changed faces? When you look at APC don’t you see Buhari? Is it the transformation from CPC to APC that will change his face? Look at Tinubu; it is the same person, from AD, to AC, ACN and APC. What I am saying is, if you change the name, what about the faces of the people representing these parties? Are you going to change the people too?

PDP might have made a lot of mistakes. There might have been a lot of things that went wrong. There might have been impunity, call it anything you want, but it is not caused by the alphabets or the letters. P and D are very innocent. I do not think it is proper for us as leaders in this country to begin to engage in some kind of relief, running away from our current pain, to seek a temporary relief; you don’t build a nation like that. You build a nation with reflection. I am this and I made some mistakes here, how do I correct what I have done wrong. Correct it, and move on.

In APC what do you find, it is same people. So, to me, maybe because I am an old man I have been very conservative. If you ask His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar, he will say he is a former Vice President, but then, it was under the PDP, today, he is in APC, now why can’t he change it, and stop being addressed as Vice President, since to him, PDP is a history of shame that was why he left it. Then, the governors who are now in APC, who are ashamed of their history, ashamed of their own past, they should not be addressed as former PDP governors. If PDP is filthy and dirty as people call it, our concern should be how to clean it up, and not to abandon it, because we are the children of PDP. It is just a leprous woman, who gave birth to a child; the child suckles her breast to grow up. But after growing up, he now says he was ashamed of the milk he sucked to grow up. If he feels the mother is dirty, he should clean her up, not abandon her.
Read more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/01/sule-lamido-buhari-apcll-be-shocked-in.html#more

The embattled acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, on Friday joined President Muhammadu Buhari and other Muslim faithful for Jumat prayers inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja.Other top government officials who took part in the Friday prayers inside the mosque located beside the President’s office are the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali; National Security Officer, Babagana Mongunu; and the Director-General of the Department of State Services, Lawal Daura.

There was no meeting between the President and Magu after the service.

He left the Presidential Villa shortly after exchanging pleasantries with a few people.

Magu’s nomination as substantive chairman of the EFCC was recently rejected based on a security report said to have emanated from the DSS.
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/01/magu-joins-buhari-for-friday-prayers.html#more

With only a few days into 2017, maritime operators including seaport operators, clearing agents and all stakeholders are unanimous in their assessment that the outgoing year has been the most challenging and one that will linger in their mind for a long time to come.
They attributed these challenges to many of what they described as Federal Government’s unfavourable policies, a development that saw the seaports, which used to contribute a large chunk of Nigeria’s non-oil revenue becoming less active.
This left government almost financially stranded, with less capacity to invest in infrastructure, create more jobs, address security, including fighting insurgency, and funding other activities that define good governance.
Recent statistics from Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), which governs and operates the nation’s ports showed that container traffic inward Nigerian ports (import) dropped to 6,831,348 tonnage as at September 2016, from 9,419,672 in 2015. Besides, the outward container (export) also dropped drastically from 2,263,594 tonnage in 2015 to 1,485,338 in September 2016.
Also, the number of vessels dropped to 11year lows and stood at 3,347 against 5,014 in 2015 and 5,333 in 2014.
The Guardian gathered that importation of raw materials has also dropped significantly, as importers argued that lack of access to foreign exchange and low patronage was killing their business.Many of the terminal operators are groaning under poor handling of goods, while many of them are finding it difficult to meet their payment obligations to the Federal Government.
As such, opinions are varied regarding the effect of government’s policy pronouncements during this fiscal year, while hoping that 2017 will turn out to be much more fruitful, as captured below:
Reduce tariffs to bolster ports activities, urges STOAN
The Spokesperson for Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN), Bolaji Akinola, while declaring that Year 2016 has been a very difficult year for port operations, told The Guardian that government needs to reduce tariffs to boost activities.
According to him, “The ports have dried up. Usually at this time of the year (December), it will be difficult to get into Apapa or come out of it. But go to Apapa now, the whole place is as free as ever. This is the peak season, yet there is no traffic. No cargo movement. Everywhere is dried up and the main reason like we have said severally is government’s unfavourable policies.”
Such unfavourable policy is also seen in the National Automotive Policy, which he said has wiped out vehicle cargo traffic at the ports completely and almost decimated the roll-on, roll-off, RORO terminals in the country.
Akinola said: “The hike in import duty of vehicles; hike in rice duty has take away the rice cargo traffic, that is why you have some terminals like ENL Terminal drying up overnight. It’s a terminal that used to be very boisterous and very active, providing jobs for many people.”
He argued that although the ban on importation of vehicles through the land borders will take effect from January 1, 2017, but it will not be effective, as it will lead to increase in smuggling.He insisted, “The ban will not be effective without a corresponding slash in vehicles tariffs. I am not trying to scare anyone, but that is the truth of the matter. It will only lead to high rate of smuggling. The only way to check smuggling right now is to accompany that ban with a slash in tariff so that you bring it to the same level as what obtains in the ports of Cotonou and other countries in the sub-region. Otherwise smuggling will be heightened.
“I will give you a practical illustration. Look at rice, importation of rice through the land border has been banned, yet there is no scarcity of imported rice in Nigeria today. Those imported rice you see in the market did not come in through the ports. You can go to the ports and check; you will not see rice vessel there. So how do they come in? They are smuggled in. The same thing will happen to the vehicles, so that is why the only way out is to slash the tariff to 10 per cent that it was, so that it will be at par with other ports in the sub-region,” he said
For Akinola, the final nail on the coffin is the “ill-advised” Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the lender of last resort, restriction of 41 items from the official forex window.
As the New Year is ushered in, he urged the government to look into these policies and reverse them, especially the CBN’s policy and the hike in tariff of imported vehicles.
Ports upgrade is a necessity
For Master Mariner, Captain Adamu Audu Biu, the upgrade of the nation’s ports must take a centre stage in the coming year, saying that Nigeria must rise up and develop its ports facilities. He said this will enable the country to accommodate very large crude carriers (VLCCs) and ultra large crude carriers (ULCCs), which are the latest trend in the global market now, if its desire of becoming the maritime hub in West Africa would be realistic.
full details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/2016-worst-year-for-port-operations.html#more

The Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the November 26 governorship election in Ondo State, Mr. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN) has said that he contested to serve the people rather than for personal gains.
Jegede, said in a statement in Akure to mark the Christmas celebration that he decided not to challenge the poll result, won by All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu SAN like a statesman despite the glaring flaws.
With the mandatory 30 days to challenge the results at the tribunal expiring last weekend, Jegede stated that he had decided to accept the result in the spirit of sportsmanship.He expressed appreciation to Governor Olusegun Mimiko, the PDP leadership under Senator Ahmed Markafi, Ondo State executives led by Clement Faboyede, residents of the state, lovers of democracy and other stakeholders whom he affirmed took interest in the affairs of the state.
For his stand, the governorship candidate of the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP), Mrs. Olamide Falana has commended Jegede for his maturity and disposition towards the poll.
While congratulating Akeredolu, the DPP candidate, who has been a strong voice for women rights, inclusion in governance and the 35 per cent affirmative action, urged him to ensure the appointment of enough women into his government.
Meanwhile, lawmaker representing Akoko South East/South West Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Babatunde Kolawole, has donated relief materials worth millions of naira to victims of storm in the area.
Kolawole, who distributed the items in Oka-Akoko, the headquarters of Akoko South West council, at the weekend, also urged the governor-elect, Akeredolu to unite members of the APC in the state.
Other items that were donated included: 150 bundles of iron sheets, 100 bags of cements, several bags of nails for St. Augustine Catholic Church, Ifira Akoko and St. Patrick’s Catholic Primary School, Oka-Akoko, whose roofs and walls were destroyed by the raging storm, benefited.
Kolawole said it was high time representatives of the people started giving dividends of democracy to the people in tangible items that add quality value to them.
The Reps member said this was why he lobbied and obtained 123 Nigeria Peace Corps forms for the unemployed graduates in his constituency, which he distributed at the occasion. He revealed that he had paid N5 million for their training that would hold next year.
more details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/jegedewhy-i-did-not-challenge-ondo.html#more

The Federal Government says MTN had paid N80 billion of the N330 billion fine imposed on it for failing to deactivate more than five million unregistered SIM cards.This means that the telco is still owing Nigerian government about N250 billion out of the total sum agreed following the infraction.
Adebayo Shittu, Minister of Communications, who disclosed this at a forum organised by NAN in Abuja yesterday said the company paid the said sum for the first year.
MTN was initially fined 5.2 billion dollars (N1.04 trillion) but this was later reduced to N330 billion.
“For the first year, they paid N80 billion, after paying the initial N50 billion, and they will have to pay for three years until they complete the N330 billion,” Shittu said.
“MTN does not have a choice, when the law was made, it said for every unregistered SIM card in use, the fine is N200,000, the law never anticipated that one company will be in violation to the tune of millions of lines. “It was inconceivable, so when the thing was added 200,000 times 5.2 million lines, it came to a trillion plus.
“When it happened, MTN did four things; one they accepted that they were in default, two, they apologised for that and three they committed themselves never to allow such a thing to happen and number four, they asked for remission.
“Government had to look at a number of factors because if they have to pay this amount; they will pack up.
“We also knew that we invited the international community to come and invest and anything that will be done which will shake the confidence of international investors in Nigerian economy, we must avoid it.”
He said the Federal Government decided to be considerate, explaining there would have been mass job loss if MTN had folded up.
“Consequently, we must not throw away the baby with the bath water, if they had packed up and left, let us assume all their staff are not more than 5, 000, it means all of those 5,000 will lose their jobs,” he said.
“Also those who made investment, and bought their shares will lose their equity and the Nigeria banking sector would go into crisis.”
more details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/ministermtn-pays-n80bn-to-fg.html#more

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike has said no power can bring him down because he is solidly and comfortably rooted in God.
Wike spoke at the Rivers State Headquarters of the Living Faith Church in Port Harcourt at a special Christmas service yesterday.
The governor who was accompanied by his wife, Justice Eberechi Suzzette and children said Rivers State will continue to overcome trials and oppressive tendencies because of God’s grace.
According to him, while other states are battling with economic downturn, Rivers State is operating a Jesus economy, which entails divine provision and sustenance.
“If God be for us, nobody can be against us. We have had turbulent times, but we have always come out victorious.
“This state is a Christian state. Therefore, we shall continue to collaborate with the church,” the governor said.
He informed that the government will support schools owned by churches with grants, adding that the ongoing construction of the state Ecumenical Centre will be completed in May 2017.
He noted that the church stood by him right from the campaign period till date and called on the church to continue praying for his administration for God’s protection and wisdom.
More details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/gov-wikeno-power-can-bring-me-down.html#more

In a bid to ensure a hitch-free Christmas, the Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris has directed all Zonal Commanders and Commissioners of Police (CPs) to ensure all-day round security surveillance around places of worship and strategic points in all the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
He also called on policemen on federal highways to allow free flow of traffic, to avoid congestion and unnecessary delaying of commuters.
A statement yesterday by the Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO) Don Awunah said the police leadership had put in place “robust and elaborate security arrangement and crime prevention strategies to ensure crime free Christmas celebration nationwide.”The statement added that besides the conventional policemen, personnel of the specialised units of the Force had been deployed to assist in providing the needed security in the country during the Christmas.
The specialised police units include, “Police Mobile Force, Counter Terrorism Unit, Special Protection Unit, Federal Highway Patrol, Explosive Ordinance Department, the Armament Unit, Sniffer dogs section, the Marine Police and Police Air wing.
“Visible police presence is already emplaced in the highways and major roads across the country, deployment of the police patrol teams and surveillance squads will cover places of worship, other public places, venue of recreation and celebrations throughout the period of the festivities”, Awunah said.
While appealing to motorists, commuters and other road users to cooperate with the policemen on duty, the police spokesman said the policemen had been warned against any unprofessional behaviour or that which may compromise the objective of the police leadership.
“The police officers and men are under strict instructions to be very polite and civil but firm in the discharge of their duty during the period.
“They are to observe and respect the diversity and peculiarity of the people, display courage, show compassion and demonstrate professionalism in their interaction and engagement with the citizenry throughout the period of the celebration.
more details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/ig-wants-free-flow-of-traffic-on.html#more

West Africa’s regional bloc, ECOWAS, has put standby military forces on alert in case Gambian President Yahya Jammeh does not step down when his mandate ends on January 19.
The ECOWAS commission president, Marcel de Souza, said this on Malian TV Thursday night.
Mr. Jammeh has vowed to stay in power despite losing a December 1 election to rival Adama Barrow, raising the possibility that regional powers may intervene to oust him if diplomacy does not succeed in persuading him to leave.
“We have put standby forces on alert if he does not (step down) on January 19 when his mandate ends,” De Souza said.
“No one has the right to oppose the will of the people.”
Barrow’s surprise victory and Jammeh’s initial decision to concede after 22 years in power was seen across Africa as a moment of hope.
But the president changed his mind a week later and said again on Tuesday that he would not step down, rebuffing efforts by West African leaders to persuade him.
Mr. Jammeh said the electoral count was flawed and that ECOWAS has no right to meddle in Gambia’s internal affairs.
The regional bloc has mandated Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari as mediator to offer Jammeh an “honourable exit”, but if he does not take it then forces might be deployed, Mr. De Souza said.
The BBC quoted De Souza as saying in an interview that Senegalese troops would lead any military intervention. Senegal is Gambia’s only territorial neighbour and has a frequently stormy relationship with the country, having sent troops there during a 1981 coup.
Senegal has indicated that military action would be an absolute last resort.
Diplomats say ECOWAS would probably seek approval from the U.N. Security Council for the use of force. ECOWAS deployed troops, led by Nigeria, to Liberia and Sierra Leone during civil wars in the 1990s, setting a precedent for possible intervention.
A first step for raising pressure once the handover date passes is likely to be targeted sanctions by the U.N. and others, diplomats say, also raising the possibility that Mr. Jammeh could be offered asylum abroad.
Mr. Barrow’s supporters suggested on Thursday that the president might not immediately be prosecuted for alleged human rights abuses during his rule.
“Justice is absolutely essential … but we are going to take the route to truth and reconciliation,” said coalition spokesman Halifa Sallah at a meeting with the African Bar Association.
more details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/nigeria-senegal-other-ecowas-members.html?m=1

The Senate of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) on Friday announced the expulsion of 22 students of the university for various offences including assault of a female lecturer.

A statement signed by the Registrar of the university, Mrs. Dorcas Otto, in Port Harcourt, said the offences also included being members of different cult groups and undermining security on campus.

According to the statement, the decision to expel the students was taken at the 426th Senate Meeting of the university held on Wednesday.

It added that eight of the students were expelled for being part of different cult groups, two for assaulting a female lecturer and disrupting a congress meeting of the department.
more details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/uniport-expels-22-over-cult-membership.html?m=1

The Nigerian Army announced, yesterday, that some Boko Haram members have escaped from their hideouts in Sambisa, Borno State and urged the public to be on the alert.

The army specifically urged residents of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states to be extra-vigilant and be suspicious of strange people in their communities and strange movements.

In a statement by Acting Director of Army/Public Relations, Brigadier General Sani Kukasheka Usman, the army said “due to the ongoing final clearance and occupation of Boko Haram hideouts in Sambisa forest, quite a number of them are escaping the theatre of operation in the North East, to various parts of the country and elsewhere.

“Therefore, members of the public, especially residents of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states, are, hereby, requested to be extra vigilant and conscious of strange movements or persons in the society.

“The public are also requested to report any suspicious person or group of persons to security agencies for prompt action. We wish to reiterate our commitment of clearing the remnants of the Boko Haram terrorists in all their suspected hideouts by the end of this year.”
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/army-alerts-on-escapee-boko-haram.html#more

A Lagos banker, Oluchi Tockukwu Onyebuchi, who allegedly hired two assassins to murder her husband, was on Tuesday granted N1 million bail by an Ebute-Meta Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos.
Magistrate M.O. Olajuwon also ordered that the two alleged hired assassins, Chigozie Nworie (32) and Kingsley Ofelete (36), be remanded in Ikoyi Prisons.
The prosecutor, Insp. Julius Babatope, told the court that Onyebuchi, 32, contracted Nworie and Ofelete to assassinate her husband on October 9 at No. 18, Fatai Kofo St., Agungi, Lekki.He said: “The accused made away with the victim’s Land Rover jeep with Reg. No. LND 275 DZ after hacking the complainant and pouring acid on him. The victim’s HP laptop, iPhone, car documents and other valuables estimated at N9.3 million were also taken away by the accused.
“Onyebuchi had informed the two accused on where she had hidden machete, cutlass and acid in her husband’s compound which they were to use in eliminating him.”
Babatope said that Nworie and Ofelete were arrested with the victim’s bloodstained Range Rover on their way to deliver the car to Onyebuchi’s brother in Anambra.
The trio are facing a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy, robbery and attempted murder. The accused plea was, however, not taken. The offences committed contravene Sections 228, 294 and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.
more details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/banker-who-allegedly-hired-assassins-to.html#more

www.nairaland.com/attachments/4617872_misschiomarepresentinganambra_jpeg76052fc2c99bebbb0a1e59cf68f6c757 Miss Anambra got the highest votes via likes on Nairaland here https://www.nairaland.com/3522652/photos-miss-nigeria-2016-contestants#51984574

After days of hot but healthy competition, Miss Anambra has emerged the 40th Queen to be adorned with the Miss Nigeria beauty pageant crown.

The elegant Chioma was crowned after the judge’s unanimous decision; she was closely chased by Miss Kwara(Shade), Miss Delta, Miss Ebonyi(Blessing) and Miss Osun in no particular order.

http://www.goldmyne.tv/2016/12/miss-anambra-wins-40th-edition-of-miss-nigeria-beauty-pageant/



Watch her videos here https://www.instagram.com/p/BOIk5Y4l091/

Barely a week away, 2016 would be history and in its place would be a new year. The natural transition is as sure as the celestial movement between day and night. And characteristically, as the curtain is gradually but steadily being drawn on the outgoing year, many are patiently and anxiously waiting for a fresh calendar.
As expected, this is a period of sober reflection and stock taking. And in the minds of critical observers, one question that keeps recurring is –how has the receding year impacted on various sectors of the nation’s political economy. Of course, for obvious reasons, politics would always be at the epicenter of public discourse.
In the recollection of informed observers, the outgoing year started with high hopes and expectations from a fairly new government headed by President Muhammadu Buhari which came to power on the mantra of change. But after the turbulent 2015 presidential election and eventual inauguration of Buhari’s administration on May 29, not much happened until the end of that year. The situation was excused because many believed that the government needed some gestation period to stabilise, hence the expectation that 2016 would be a new dawn in terms of the Buhari government meeting the expectation of a seemingly disenchanted citizenry.
It was not surprising that on January 1, 2016, many heaved a sigh of relief when during the New Year Presidential address, Buhari in the spirit of his campaign promises, assured Nigerians of the commitment of his administration to alleviate the problems confronting the nation on various fronts. He had said:
‘’The effective and efficient implementation of our 2016 budget proposals will address many of the socio-economic issues that are of current concern to our people. One area in which Nigerians, especially those in the North East, have already begun to experience major change is in the war on terror.’’
However, even as inspiring as Buhari’s 2016 New Year message was, it did not take long to observe that the year was not going to be one smooth journey ride. As early as February, the signs that 2016 was going to be a challenging year had already started to manifest. The two arms of the National Assembly, the Senate and the House of Representatives declared that the 2016 budget was full of errors, saying the document could no longer be passed on February 25 as earlier promised. The development consequently sparked off the budget crisis between the Legislature and Executive arms which eventually metamorphosed into the budget padding scandal that subsisted till September of this year. Many believe that the crisis which eventually led to the suspension of the erstwhile chairman of the House Committee on Appropriation, Hon. Jibrin Abdulmumin affected governance in 2016.
more details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/2016-year-of-party-crises.html#more

Against the backdrop of mounting corruption allegations against some top officials of his government, President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), to investigate the involvement of any of the officials.
A two-paragraph statement issued by the president’s media aide, Mr. Garba Shehu, said: “The attention of the presidency has been drawn to a number of reports in the media, in which various accusations of corruption have been levelled against some top officials in the administration.
“In that regard, President Buhari has instructed the Attorney General of the Federation to investigate the involvement of any top government officials accused of any wrong-doing. If any of them is liable he will not escape prosecution.”
‎There have been allegations of corruption against top government officials. Even the AGF who was directed by the president to carry out the investigations had been accused of corruption.
The Senate last week asked the president to suspend the Secretary to the Federal Government (SGF), Mr. Babachir David Lawal, and ensure his prosecution over alleged breach of the Nigerian laws in the handling contracts awarded by the Presidential Initiative for the North East, (PINE).
It had also refused to screen and confirm the acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, following a damning report by the Department of State Services (DSS), which alleged that he was corrupt and had been leading a double life.
THISDAY also learnt that the president had directed Malami to investigate the DSS report on Magu and revert to him today, prior to the AGF’s departure for an official trip to China.
The decision to possibly investigate Lawal followed a report by an ad-hoc committee of the Senate, led by Senator Shehu Sani, on the mounting humanitarian crisis in the North-east.
The committee, in its interim report submitted last Wednesday, indicted the SGF for allegedly receiving a N233 million contract to clear invasive plant species (removal of weeds) in Yobe State through his company, Rholavision Nigeria Limited.
The Senate alleged that he had remained a director of the company till September 2016, over a year after his appointment, in breach of Nigeria’s code of conduct for public officials as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution.
In response to the indictment, Lawal confirmed that he set up Rholavision in 1990 to carry out information and communications technology services.
But it was found by the Senate to be handling a N233 million bush clearing contracts in the North-east in 2016. Even worse, the Yobe State Government alleged the contract was never executed.
The SGF denied any wrongdoing. He even accompanied the president to the National Assembly to present the 2017 budget proposal.
After the budget presentation, the SGF told journalists that the Senate was only victimising him and trying to “rubbish” his personality.
He said: “The senate is talking balderdash; it has developed the habit of the bring-him-down syndrome.”
“I have the report of the Senate committee in which it was said that I didn’t resign from Rholavision Nigeria Limited. Let me tell you, Rholavision was formed by me in December 1990, and it has been a company that was run very successfully.
“Now, when I was appointed Secretary to the Government of the Federation, I resigned from that company on 18th August 2015. I can see that in their report, they are talking about 2016. I don’t know where they got their facts.
read more details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/agf-to-investigate-top-government.html

An incident which can aptly be tagged as most outrageous happened in the north central state of Plateau, Nigeria. In a remote and sleepy hamlet of Kanke local government, a little girl of Five was found to be pregnant. According to the child's parents,the perpetrator of the bizzare act is not known but the police has begun an inquiry with the view to fathom the identity of the mystery man or men behind the heinous crime.

Speaking further,they Father of the girl told newsmen that until few months ago,the poor child began to complain of excruciating pains in her groin which they didn't pay commensurate attention to. After a while,they noticed that her breasts were developing,all of which they attributed to early adolescence precocity. Their fears was confirmed after tests were carried out on her when they noticed her protuberant tummy.
Full details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/omg5-years-old-girl-pregnant-in-plateau.html#more

Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) has described the decision by the Abuja Federal High Court, presided over by Justice Binta Nyako, to allow witnesses testify in masks, in the trial of leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, as a sign that the Federal Government.

MASSOB leader, Uchenna Madu, in a statement, yesterday, described the lates development as judicial manipulation.

“How can a presiding judge allow herself to be manipulated in such a bizarre manner? Kanu and others are not terrorists who can be tried in secrecy.

“Why must the witnesses cover their faces? These are signs of (being) jittery, frustration. This judgment is not targeted against the people of Biafra but Nigerian Christians in general.”

The MASSOB leader reiterated that Kanu is unbowed and that the Biafran profile has risen higher than the Nigerian state.

“MASSOB wishes to inform Nyako that Kanu is among the few determined factors of current Biafran struggle for actualisation and restoration, the more he’s being caged, the more diplomatic relationship of Nigeria with G8 is shaken and shrinks.

“Though Kanu represents the people of Biafra and carries the burden of the Biafra nation, the federal government and Nyako must know that caging him is far from caging the conscience and consciousness of the Biafra people or the self-determination struggle. The people’s struggle is not centred around one man.

“Alhough Kanu may seem to be the leading figure of the current Biafra struggle, Biafra is bigger, taller and greater than leaders of pro Biafran groups.”

Meanwhile, MASSOB and Biafran Independent Movement (BIM), yesterday, announced that five members have been missing since November 26, 2016, during the Dim Chukwuemeka Ojukwu memorial celebration.

MASSOB-BIM leader for Anambra North Zone, Pastor Emmanuel Omenka, who spoke through the Director of Information, Charles Igbokwe, also raised the alarm over what they described as “a sinister plot by the Nigerian Army from the 302 Artillery Regiment, Onitsha, to wipe out all our members.”

The group queried “why soldiers have been haunting members for no just cause while they have continued to push for their self determination struggle in a non-violent manner…”

Giving a graphic account of their ordeal, the group alleged that, “soldiers from 302 Artillery take delight in tormenting us. They shoot our members and cover some of them with tarpaulin inside the barracks. In 2013, during our 15th year celebration, they ambushed us at St. Lwanga Catholic Church, Okpoko.

“It was the same thing in 2015, during our anniversary. The most recent happened on November 26, on our way to Owerri, Imo State, for the Ojukwu memorial.

“They hijacked our bus, offloaded all members on board and later took away five people among us and till today, we have not set our eyes on them again. We are afraid that they might have been wasted them.”
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/massob-opens-up-on-kanus-secret-trial.html#more

the marriage is now official
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/aisha-buhari-announce-daughter-zahra.html?m=1

The federal government has announced the recovery of N1.44 billion from the N450 billion operating surpluses that some revenue generating agencies reportedly failed to remit into the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) between 2010 and 2015.
The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, penultimate week disclosed that 17 defaulting agencies, including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), had been summoned for a meeting with a committee set up to recover the revenue and headed by the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris.The meeting, according to her, was to avail the agencies the opportunity to present proposals on how and when to repay the funds.
A statement issued by the Finance Ministry yesterday, said an additional N793 million had been recovered from three federal government agencies by the Idris-led recovery committee.
The Nigeria Shippers Council had earlier refunded N650 million.
Further recoveries totalling N793 million were said to have been made from the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), N278 million; Nigeria Shippers Council, N407 million; and Nigeria Export Promotion Council, N108 million.
According to the statement, “So far, the cumulative total amount recovered is N1.44 billion, given the earlier recovery of N650 million from the Nigeria Shippers Council, even as several other agencies are in the process of submitting repayment plans for approval.”
Four agencies which were unable to make it to the meeting due to the short notice have been rescheduled to appear before the recovery committee, the statement said.
They include the CBN, National Pensions Commission (PenCom), Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).
Revenue generating agencies are required to pay their operating surpluses to the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the federal government not later than one month following the statutory deadline for the publication of their accounts, as provided under Section 22(2) of the Fiscal Responsibility Commission Act.
Also, the federal government said it has enhanced and restructured the Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (YouWin) programme into a multimedia-based programme and re-launched it as YouWinConnect!
full details at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/fg-recovers-n144bn-from-unremitted.html#more

Yahoo late Wednesday disclosed a breach that took place in August 2013 that may have resulted in the theft of data associated with more than one billion user accounts.

The latest breach is separate from a 500-million-account breach the company disclosed in September of this year. At the time, the 500-million-account breach, which took place in 2014, was believed to be the largest on record.

Yahoo (YHOO)shares fell 2.5% after hours.

The new revelation comes at a time when cybercrime issues loom larger than ever.

The CIA has accused Russia of specifically attempting to tamper with the U.S. election via hacked emails, ransomware hit the nation's seventh-largest transit system, in San Francisco and a monster botnet of hijacked devices took down much of the East Coast's Internet traffic for a day in October.

“We truly are under major siege and we’re unprepared for it. It really is a national emergency,” said Avivah Litan vice president at Gartner Research. “We need a national response plan for this.”

Whether the attacker in this instance was state-sponsored or merely economically motivated, the danger is very real, said Steve Grobman, chief technology officer at Intel Security.

“We're increasingly seeing data being used as a weapon, where leaked or fabricated information is being used to intentionally damage individuals and governments,” he said. “As is the case in any cyber-attack, the incentive is there, the reputation threat is real, and intelligence services have 1 billion reasons to try.”


Top hacks and data breaches


Yahoo said in September that it had evidence linking the 500-million-account breach to a state-sponsored actor.

It does not know who is behind the 1-billion-account breach announced Wednesday and it does not appear the two are linked.

In a statement on its website, the company said, "We believe that the August 2013 incident is likely distinct from the incident we disclosed on September 22, 2016."

There is some overlap between the affected accounts, but Yahoo is not disclosing how much.

Ongoing acquisition

Verizon announced a $4.8 billion deal to acquire Yahoo on July 25 and work on the takeover has been ongoing since then.

"As we’ve said all along, we will evaluate the situation as Yahoo continues its investigation. We will review the impact of this new development before reaching any final conclusions,” it said in a statement to USA TODAY.

The revelation could absolutely derail the Verizon acquisition, said Jacob Olcott, former legal advisor to the Senate Commerce Committee and now vice president at the security firm BitSight.

Verizon was buying Yahoo in part to get customer accounts.

“Now Verizon will be trying to figure out what the customer loss will be, based on this information that’s being released now and how it affects their valuation,” he said. In addition, Verizon will need to factor in how much it will cost for them to bring Yahoo up to their security standards, he said.


Verizon begins Yahoo breach evaluation, earnings hit by Samsung Note 7 recall


November disclosure

Yahoo disclosed in November that a law enforcement officials had given it data files showing what appeared to be evidence that an unknown third party had access to Yahoo user data.

Yahoo brought in outside forensic experts and confirmed that the data was in fact from Yahoo users.

As part of that analysis, Yahoo now says it believes the attacker “stole data associated with more than one billion user accounts,” the company said in a release.

Yahoo does not know who was behind the theft.

The company has pinpointed the date when the attackers were able to remove user information from the system as August 2013, but it does not know when they gained entry to its network or how long they were there.

The fact that the breach went unnoticed for so long isn’t surprising, said Arun Vishwanath, a security expert at the University at Buffalo.

“The sobering facts are that almost all such hacks are only accidentally discovered and that hackers usually stay in the system undetected for at least a year if not more," he said. "Yahoo's case is not so unique. Only its scale is troubling.”



The stolen account information may have included names, email addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, hashed passwords and, in some cases, encrypted or unencrypted security questions and answers, the company said.

The stolen information did not include payment card data, or bank account information, Yahoo said.

Yahoo is working to notify affected users, and is working closely with law enforcement to investigate the breach.

Some in the security community said Yahoo had not been as concerned with security as it might have been.
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/yahoo-discloses-1b-account-breach.html#more

A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof. Kingsley Moghalu has stressed that the current economic recession facing the country as well as the profound structural challenges posed by the dependence of the economy on oil, calls for a serious political response.
To this end, Moghalu urged President Muhammadu Buhari to respond with decisive action and a clear vision that will restore confidence in the economy.
This, according to him would require a re-appraisal of the role of the state, adding that government should be an enabler of growth and development, not an impediment.As the experience of other emerging markets shows, economic success does not happen without independent institutions. Few things have been as damaging as a series of questionable foreign exchange policies adopted by the central bank.
In response to sharply declining dollar revenues from oil that have depleted the country’s external reserves, the bank first maintained an artificial exchange rate and refused to further devalue the naira for 16 months. This was in addition to the bank’s ban on access to the foreign exchange market for importers of a range of items, from cement to toothpicks.
“A growing black market for hard currency and sharply reduced output by manufacturers unable to import raw materials quickly followed. After much criticism, the central bank announced in June that it would explore a flotation of the naira. It has turned out to be anything but. The secret police have entered the foreign exchange market, arresting currency dealers who sell at rates above profit benchmarks set by the central bank.
These policies appear to have been motivated by a perceived imperative to maintain an “affordable” exchange rate because devaluation would hurt the poor. By contrast, the central banks of South Africa and Egypt, the largest African economies after Nigeria, have responded better to economic stress.
The former has allowed the rand to find its market value. Egypt followed with a devaluation of the Egyptian pound in November, a $12bn bailout from the International Monetary Fund and a commitment to macroeconomic reforms,” Moghalu, who is now a professor at the Fletcher School, Tufts University, said in an article made available to THISDAY.
He stressed that Nigeria’s policies have had effects that should bother the president, saying that a short-term, populist approach to economic thinking is exacerbating poverty, which the president vowed to tackle.
He alleged that political expediency in foreign exchange management has fuelled corruption, undermining the president’s avowed commitment to combating the problem.
“Investors worry about the direction of policy and the competence of economic managers.
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/buhari-urged-to-restore-confidence-in.html#more

Lagos State recorded about 246 murder cases between December 2015 and November 30, 2016, the state Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni has said.
The state also recorded 486 armed robbery cases, with 180 domestic and sexual violence cases reported to the police and 542 vehicles stolen in the past 12 months.
Owoseni disclosed these figures at the 10th yearly Town hall meeting in Lagos yesterday, jointly organised by the State Security Trust Fund, The Guardian and others. The theme was “Optimising Security Funding in a Recession.”The event, which was attended by traditional rulers, politicians and captains of industries, including former managing director of Zenith Bank Plc, Jim Ovia and the Publisher of The Guardian Newspapers, Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru, the CP said the murder cases were higher compared with that of the previous year.
According to him, of the 246 cases of murder recorded, cultism, gangster violence, youths restiveness and street fights among youths, with ages between 10-14 years ranked highest.
He also disclosed that the menace was most prevalent in areas within Ijede, Morogbo and Surulere Police Area Commands respectively, though it cut across the three senatorial districts of the state.
According to Owoseni, while 486 armed robbery suspects were arrested, 46 of them were killed during confrontation with the police, just as 38 suspected kidnappers were arrested and 181 other suspects were nabbed in connection with cultism and street fights.
“Areas within Ogba Area Police Command accounted for the highest number. 51 cases of kidnapping were recorded, with Ijede Police Area Command accounting for the highest number of 47 per cent. They may not be unconnected with the physical and cultural environment of the area,” he added.
The police chief challenged parents and elders in Lagos to rise up to the occasion to help the security in the state by looking after the young people.

According to him, there were youths all over the place but the most challenging part is that when their parents were contacted in efforts to rehabilitate them, they claimed they did not know when their children left home.
http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/just-in-1yearlagos-records-246-murder.html#more

As the year comes to an end, the time for Donald Trump to take his place as the president of the United States of America . Americans are getting scared of what his administtation would do to them.

American Singer John Legend has written an open letter to President Barack Obama pleading that he “brings justice to the thousands of families of non-violent drug offenders” before he leaves office because he wasn’t sure the Trump administration would do anything about it.

Read his letter below from Rolling Stones

“First of all, I would like to thank you for your friendship and for your outstanding service to our country,”

“I’m particularly grateful for the concrete steps your administration has taken to provide opportunities to tens of millions of young people and families who have been impacted by mass incarceration.”

He expressed fear on his uncertainty of Trump and if the Trump administration “will maintain this progress.”
He added:

“It is unclear what their priorities will be and when families can expect justice.” According to a report published by the Pew Research Center on Dec. 9, Obama “has granted clemency to more people convicted of federal crimes than any chief executive in nearly 50 years.” As of Nov. 30, he’s “granted clemency to 1,093 individuals (the vast majority convicted of drug-related offenses).” In his letter, Legend later urged Obama “to consider issuing categorical commutations to bring an end to the injustice that remains in our federal sentencing schemes.”

Rounding up, he said;

“Just as George W. Bush urged you to proactively address clemency on your way to your first inauguration in 2009, I am asking you to bring justice to thousands of families by granting as many clemencies as possible before you leave office.” adding that..

“approximately 5,000 individuals are serving sentences based on prejudiced laws which punished drug crimes involving crack cocaine more severely than crimes involving powder cocaine. Rectifying these crack-powder disparities would not only correct the mistakes of the past,
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/john-legend-pleads-to-obama-to-bring.html?m=1

Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has appealed to the Police Service Commission (PSC) to increase the quota allotted to the state.
Okorocha, who made the appeal recently at the Government House, Owerri, during a courtesy visit of the members of the commission, led by the Chairman, Mike Okiro, decried low quota given to the state presently, which deprive young Imo youths in enlisting in the Police Force.
Publisher of Source Magazine, Dame Comfort Obi, is the Commissioner representing the Southeast geopolitical zone on the commission.The governor said the commission is the mirror in which public sees the Nigerian Police, suggesting that promotions be done properly, while events to honour deserving officers who distinguished themselves, in conduct and character, including Police Merit Award, be created.
He said: “If the Nigerian Police Service Commission is not doing its job, we cannot have the Nigerian Police. So it is more tasking job.”
Okorocha said those who secure lives of the citizenry even when the people are asleep, must be appreciated well.
Okiro, a former Inspector General of Police, said they were in Imo in continuation of the 10,000 police recruitment exercise, which started in April, promising the determination of the commission to conclude it to the satisfaction of Nigerians.
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2016/12/gov-rochas-okorocha-seeks-increment-in.html#more