₦airaland Forum

Koikoi: Possession Nigeria 31:69 Mexico. What's going on?

History will soon confine this into the dustbin.Winner takes it all.

FIFA has just credited the goal scored by Nigeria to a Mexican player.

At d end of today's match, Nigeria will either become d 1st to win d championship for a record 4th time in history or Mexico become d 1st 2win it back-to-back.
Anyhow, history is about to be made.

bigheart2013: Poor Kids, sorry! The price of coming from a corrupt nation. However, I never had to write TOEFL when I did my post-graduate in USA. The admission office of the Uni insisted, but I went to the Dean's office and argued it out that Nigeria is an English-speaking country. I was very courteous, never raised my voice but remained adamant and passionate. During the course of my discussions she was paying attention to my use of English Language. At the end she agreed with me that I didn't need it, and sent email to the admissions officer to allow me register. Maybe I was lucky. But sometime if you can prove yourself USA administrators are very hands-on & believe in merit. You just need to prove yourself.

Well, with corruption everyone pays dearly. Another reason why you young Nigerians must stop cheering corruption and wealthy criminals. They are wasting your future, while you applaud them.

I just cant shake it off my mind that Nigeria is exactly the way the majority of Nigerians want it to be, right now. I have turned it over in my mind time and again and I can clearly see that Nigerians do not innately believe in equality of man or in fair distribution of wealth. Somehow, we are opportunistic in our outlook on life and believe more in stratification, in a social echelon based not on contribution or achievement, but on privileges obtained by almost any means at all. We love a setting where hard work does not necessarily guarantee wealth but where mysterious luck ('favour') intercept the course of things and the unpredictable hands of something called destiny comes to bring sudden, unheard of riches. And it is interesting how this outlook on life has been adopted and incorporated into our standard religious liturgies. Corruption saw this weakness in our world view and snugly wriggled in.

Our society believe there are masters and there are slaves by sine divine arrangement, there are 'heads' that are destined to be great and those bound to be base. These beliefs have no logical, historical, spiritual or humane basis but a synthesis of our selfish attitude and a will to deny others by reducing their rights to mere privileges. Our ancient religions taught this and people were enjoined to court the gods in whose hands is the power to bestow wealth. Fetish practices up to the extent of human sacrifice are still the order of the day in our society all in a bid to supernaturally and unfairly gain mileage over competitors, knowing full well that such advantage could not be secured legally or in good conscience. That same mindset of winning at terrible costs to everyone else has been transplanted into our version of modern faiths and modified into saccharine-coated doctrines, paws of the devouring lions of cruel opportunism in the velvety glows of fine Sunday morning religion.

In all, the average Nigerian is not really against corruption, he is only pissed off that he is not the one who has a chance at the public treasury. Which also explains why he is longsuffering with the problem of corruption and why it is hard to expect a revolution in Nigeria: the people generally do not want the fall of the system. Why destroy a thing that promises such sudden, stupendous wealth when, wish some more patient, it can someday be your turn, even you!

Mexico and Nigeria captains pose with the U-17 trophy earlier today.

History has it that Nigeria had never won a rematch, which happened to be a final match at the FIFA U-17 World Cup. In canada'87 Nigeria drew 1-1 with Sovient Union when both sides first met in the opening group game. When they met again in the final, the eaglet lost on penalties 4-2 after playing 1-1 at 120'minutes of duration. 14 years later, at T & T'01 Nigeria beat france 2-1 at the group stage only to lose the final 3-0.

History has it that, the three times (1985, 1993 and 2007) Nigeria golden eaglet have won the U-17, they were the once that scored. While the three times (1987, 2001 and 2009) they finished as runners up, their opponent scored first.

Do you know that On Saturday November 16 2013,it will be exactly 19 years the Super Eagles faced the Three Lions of England at the famous Wembley Stadium London in a friendly match which ended in a lone goal victory for the English.The Super Eagles were adjudged the second most entertaining team behind Brazil at the USA 1994 World Cup which ended few months earlier.

Assam, INDIA — Men in India are already beginning to celebrate as the annual Assam Rape Festival is just days away. Every non-married girl age 7-16 will have the chance to flee to safety or get raped.

Madhuban Ahluwalia who heads up the annual festival told reporters why the event is so important. “This is a long time tradition in Assam dating back thousands of years,” says Ahluwalia. “We rape the evil demons out of the girls, otherwise they will cheat on us and we will be forced to kill them. So it is necessary for everyone.”

The Assam Festival began in 43 BC when Baalkrishan Tamil Nadu raped everyone in his village of Ludhiana. Baalkrishan Tamil Nadu is remembered every year at this event, in fact the trophy given to the man with the most rapes is called “The Baalkrishan”.

23-year-old Harikrishna Majumdar told reporters that he has been training all year for this event. “I’m going to get the most rapes this year. I’ve been practicing raping my sister and her friends every day. I will be rape superstar number one! I will get the Baalkrishan prize this year for sure!”

11-year-old Jaitashri Majumdar told reporters she almost made it through last year’s festival without getting raped. “I came so close to not getting raped. I almost got to the ‘rape-free-zone’ at the edge of town, but at the last minute 9 men jumped on me and raped me. Luckily I am just recovering now so I can participate in this year’s events, otherwise I would be put to death by stoning.”

34-year-old Brian Barnett from Toronto who is visiting Assam on business told reporters he will be missing the festivities this year. “My company did not tell me anything about a rape festival happening while I was here. Are you serious, a rape festival? I’m getting the f*ck out of this backwards country tonight.”

India is second in reported rapes in the world only behind the United States, though critics are quick to point out that is only because most rapes in India go unreported. For more information on the festival or if you would like to participate, please call the 24-hour Assam Rape Festival hotline at (785) 273-0325.
http://nationalreport.net/assam-rape-festival-india-begins-week/

The Lagos-Ibadan press phenomenon is like the Kaduna mafia. Like a phantom, it exists and at the same time it doesn’t exist. That the media in Nigeria is fractured and flawed is not in question. But the majority of the Lagos-Ibadan media is owned by people from the minority ethnic groups. By the way, Igbo people own enough newspapers in the Lagos-Ibadan axis that, if what is going on is an ethnic war to expose corrupt practices of government officials from other ethnic groups, the Igbo have the means to get into the game.

Of course, that is not what is happening. But should that be, Nigeria would be the beneficiary if all corrupt elements are exposed.
The engine driving the Stella Oduah’s story does not come from the Lagos-Ibadan press. Saharareporters broke the story. And Saharareporters and Premium Times have kept the heat on. The Lagos-Ibadan press is reluctantly following along. Saharareporters and Premium Times are not owned by Yoruba people.

Online, the Igbo own more news websites than any other ethnic group. So nothing stops them from exposing the corrupt practices of other government officials. And you can be sure that once the evidence is out, the Lagos-Ibadan press will join in to lynch the suspect.TT

Yorubas wan give me migraine!

Conversation as it was captured and reported by a Yoruba fly on Stella Odua’s living room wall . Stella: Old girl , how you dey ? Friend: I dey O! People wan chop you raw because of two small cars . Stella: No mind them, I chop pass my two female colleagues, the skinny one and the fat cheek one ? Friend: You think say na them set you up ? Stella: Who know ? Them too don dey avoid me, I flash them , no answer, I ping them, them no ping back, I BB them, for where ? . Friend: Wetin Oga on top talk ? Stella: He say make I relax becos he dey behind me like Iroko tree . He even say make I no go for the hearing, but I go there ,I show those little men my power nothing go happen, you know say their oga balls dey my pocket . Friend: Wetin you wear go for the hearing, you show them those curves ? laughter… Stella: I wear that Tie dye suit wey you give me for my birthday with matching head tie. Friend: Wetin your ex-husband talk about all this wahallah ? Stella: He say na God catch me . Friend : You go resign ? Stella: For where ? God forbid , You ever hear say Oba go transfer ?.. Laughter Friend : You dey read the things wey dem dey talk about you for punch ? Stella: I no dey read that Yoruba newspaper Friend: Your Ibo brothers and sisters dey fight for you there O! Stella : Make them dey fight for me , wetin them know ?..mugus. Stella: Chukwudi !!! Come kill this fly for wall… FLY.. Oh crap !!!… gat to go!!!!! That was when the house boy sprayed it with insecticide and the fly managed to fly in to file this report , he is recovering in a local hospital.

History has it that the golden eaglet had never lost to a South American at the knockout stage of the FIFA U-17 World Cup. In 2007, nigeria beat Colombia and Argentina in the R16 and QF of that tournament. However, in seven meetings with the South American's, Nigeria have won 5, drew 1 and lost 1. The only draw and loss was against Argentina in scotland'89 and Finland 2003 respectively.

Gov Peter Obi of APGA walks through an impassable major road in Onitsha to campaign for Willie Obiano. This unmotorable road was neglected for 8 whole years, but he unashamedly walks through the same road to beg residents for votes. Ndi Anambra, VOTE WISELY!!!

A married woman, who met a man on the Internet, decided to meet after talking for some time.

They decided a time to meet at a hotel in Heilongjiang province, north-east China.

Lili Jai, 28, went to the hotel, and got ready for her date, but she got a nasty surprise when her date arrived and he turned out to her father-in-law.

Both Lili Jai and her father-in-law, Wang Pai, 57, had been using false identities while chatting online, therefore, they didn’t realize that they know each other.

Things did not end there for the woman and her father-in-law. Lili Jai’s husband, Wang Jai, suspected that she was cheating on him. So he followed her to the hotel.

When the father-in-law knocked on the hotel room, the woman opened the door in a pink bathrobe. She had the shock of her life when she came face to face with her father-in-law.

Pai said that both of them were very shocked. "She turned around and started running down the hall where she came face to face with her husband, my son," Pai said.

The husband began beating his wife and punched out two of her teeth.

The husband was not done. He went to his father and assaulted him. The father was taken to a hospital with a head wound.
Police were called and Wang Jai was arrested for assault.

http://www.yourjewishnews.com/2013/10/w8024.html#.UnOjTAK1SZ8.facebook

A President from an East African nation will soon be kidnapped by terrorists, renowned Nigerian televangelist TB Joshua has prophesied.

The televangelist also said he saw a vision of people having a good time in a nightclub before it was blown up.

His prophecy has got many Kenyans worried even though the pastor clarified that Kenya was not the East African country he is prophesying about.

Perhaps having come from a terrorist attack just over a month ago, Kenyans are still over the edge and fear is yet to leave the hearts of many.

TB Joshua, whose net worth the BBC puts at between N1.6Billion and N3.7Billion, is said to have given several prophecies in Nigeria, most of which have come true.

http://ireporterstv.co/president-from-an-east-african-country-will-soon-be-kidnapped-by-terrorists-prophet-tb-joshua/

Oziddy: my grandmother's hands would av been strong enough to make dis boi feel pain, i rememba wen we dey small, if we play ball dislocate any part or our legs, we don finish b dat, wen we com bak frm field, injured, we go pretend as if notin apund, if u dare leap, grandma go no say u get injury. Nd mistakingly she catches u leapin, she'll b like, Oziddy wt apund to u, dem em like, grandma, em reharsing a drama role, i'll be potraying a one-legged man in skul drama,nd she hates it wen we lie, now she goes like dis, ok jst com closer, lemme apply a ROBB custume to make it look real, nd she grabs me, folds me wit her two strong legs, work don finish be dat, if u dey outside our house, na so so helpless shouts of agony u go dey hear, i could rememba my cousins laffin at me tru d windows, den i'll be like, grandma Robinson is injured too, even victor nd chizzy, she go kip ear like say she no hear, den for nyt, she go enta our room com grab the remaining of us dt escaped, den person wey dey outside go dey hear voices of 2 or 3 bois crying, nd D oda one laffing(me). R.I.P mama Mary Johnson, me miss you. Nd we love you. 13 yrs gone, still like its yesterday.

limp,limping(correct spelling)

Stereotypes…

“Everyone should have kids; they are God’s greatest blessing…”

NO. Everyone shouldn’t have kids. People should have kids only when they can afford to be responsible to the needs of children, and be equipped to cater for them; many people aren’t! God’s “greatest blessing” is comparative to your personal desires and goals; and it doesn’t have to appear as a kid…or a marriage.
***

“Women are their own worst enemies…”

Yes, when you keep the company of cretins, halfwits, clods; jobless rumour-mongers, trouble-brewers, loud with accusation, ugly, easily swayed, insecure, looking for whom to rope into their web of confusion. But that is just a small per cent. There are great women out there- find your crowd.
***

“Men will always cheat…”

Your man is cheating, abi? Ok. He is just one man; and throwing all men into that box makes you fairly narrow-minded.
***

“All women are gold diggers…”

Poor men *sigh*…their utterances make you want to shove a loaf of bread down their throats. Just so they can be filled, and grow some common sense.
***

“Beautiful girls are dumb…”

You have dated a couple of baby-plix-send-me-recharge-card girls; that is your problem. Just because you have a peculiarly poor taste in women, doesn’t make your assertion correct.
***

“Women find full happiness only in marriage…”

Of course…just like chickens find happiness only in being slaughtered for Christmas.

Gunmen attacked a central bank van in the Libyan city of Sirte on Monday, stealing $54 million in different currencies, the official Lana news agency reported.

The report said “10 heavily armed men” had made off with the funds, which were destined for the Sirte branch of the Libyan central bank and had been flown to the city from Tripoli.

Citing an source from the local branch of the central bank, LANA said that the gunmen stole “53 million Libyan dinars ($42 million)” and another $12 million in U.S. dollars and euros.

The gunmen attacked the van on the road between Sirte airport and the town itself, 500 kilometers (300 miles) east of Tripoli, LANA said, without saying if there had been any casualties.

Only one security vehicle had been assigned to protect the van, and the agency said that the guards “were unable to resist the 10 attackers.”

Sirte, the last bastion of support for dictator Muammar Qaddafi to fall to rebel forces in the 2011 uprising, has largely been spared the wave of violence that has swept the country since the strongman’s ouster.

The eastern city of Benghazi -- cradle of the 2011 uprising -- has seen a series of attacks in recent months, including the bombing of a reception hall early Monday which caused damage but did not wound anyone.

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/10/28/State-news-Libya-gunmen-steal-54-million-in-bank-van-attack-.html

THE catalogue of financial scams rocking the nation’s economy, may have found a disturbing expression in the nation’s agriculture sector, as about N776 billion has been allegedly stolen from the N873 billion released for fertilizer subsidy between 1980 and 2010.

The Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwunmi Adesina, made the disclosure Tuesday, at Ikogosi Resort Centre, Ikogosi, Ekiti State, during the Agbeloba AgriBusiness Forum 2013 organised by the state government.

Indeed, the minister pointed out that the looting, which details were not made available, contributed immensely to the development inertia in the country’s agriculture sector.

Adesina, who was represented by the Director of Rural Development in the Ministry, Alhaji Azeez Olumuyiwa, said it was discovered that only 11 percent of farmers in the country had access to the distribution of the product.

The Minister, however, said this has changed because of the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan, which now ensures direct distribution of fertilizers and other farm implements to the farmers through e-wallets.

He said: “In 2012, 1.5 million smallholder farmers got their

subsidized seeds and fertilizers using their mobile phones. This had

an impact on 7.5 million persons. So far this year, over 3.5 million farmers have received their subsidized inputs via electronic wallet scheme. The system saved the country about N25 billion in 2012.

Speaking at the event, Ekiti State governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, revealed his government’s intention to facilitate investment worth $500 million for the building of agricultural processing plants in the state.

He said the government is partnering with the private sector and the academia in facilitating investments in processing equipment and facilities to establish cassava, broiler and fish processing facilities in Ekiti.

Fayemi stated that the proposed facilities, which he said would create

a big agro-allied market in Ekiti, would complement over $300 million

investment his government has brought to Ekiti State through partnership with private sector and international organizations.

Present at the two-day forum were Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola, his Osun counterpart, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and Commissioner for Agriculture in Ekiti, Babajide Arowosafe among others.

Fayemi posited that the giant strides of his government in Agriculture sector, particularly the Youth in Commercial Agriculture programme , was targeted at making Ekiti the food basket of the nation and enhance food security.

He said: “The deal with Dutch Agriculture Development and Trading

Company will bring a new dimension to this, that is the processing and sales of cassava cake and eventual setting up of one of the biggest cassava Mills in Ekiti State and hundreds of youths are involved in this commercial endeavour and about 10,000 persons engaged along the value chains

“We appreciate that food security challenges abound across many domains in Nigeria and Africa, due to complex interplay of ageing farm hands , declining farm productivity from largely subsistence farm holdings and archaic farm practices.

“As many will notice, we have recently resolved to retool and refocus the operations of these three systems to directly support real farmers and not political farmers”.

http://www.16www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php/business/business-news/137100-n776b-stolen-from-fertilizer-subsidy-says-minister

Buying green and white undies for her on independence day.

BUHARI IN STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN: A picture taken 13th July 1977, in Stockholm , shows King Carl Gustaf of Sweden(R), talking to Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani of Saudi Arabia(C), the strongman of the OPEP summit and Colonel Muhammad Buhari of Nigeria(L).

Babalegba: Strange observation from a Nigerian dentist. Will the chewing stick dislodge particles of food stuck between the teeth. Wisdom and nigerians are not bedfellows.

Neither chewing stick nor toothbrush can remove particles of food stuck between the teeth.Flossing is the best method for that.

If the house is insured,Lekan Balogun will be compensated after a due diligence has been carried out by the insurers.Please insure your properties in case of any eventuality.

Can the boy recite the multiplication table up to 5?

The House of Representatives committee on Aviation, this afternoon began hearing on the purchase of two armoured cars for the aviation minister, Stella Oduah, at the cost of N255 million.

The hearing was earlier scheduled to hold on Tuesday but was postponed to allow the minister, who was away in Israel for a bilateral air service agreement signing, to return to the country.

PREMIUM TIMES’ National Assembly correspondent, Ini Ekott, will provide you with updates as they unfold from the hearing room.

———————————————————————————————

15: 07

Coscharis’ Maduka: To the best of my knowledge, we followed all due process. We were interviewed by SSS. We were interviewed by the National Security Adviser. Every due process by law was followed. “We do business with morality,” he says.

Another Coscharis official: Armoured cars are in levels; Level B7 is the highest for any civilian/VIP armoured cars. More than that is for military tanks.

Coscharis: The controversial cars are level B7. The BMW 760 series, bought by NCAA, goes for 418 thousand Euro from factory without shipping cost, taxes, etc.

Coscharis offers to demonstrate a powerpoint to show how it arrived at the cost. But is disallowed by committee.

14.55

Coscharis’ Maduka: “People have spoken, different media have written, I kept quiet. Nobody has called me to ask anything. But I thank God for this opportunity to state my own side of the story.”

“People have called me from US embassy to ask when did you start money laundering.”

He says the whole controversy is “politically motivated”. He pleads to be allowed to speak.

Mr Maduka said the matter is so important that his Uncle died and will be buried tomorrow, but he has to attend the sitting.

He said he is prepared to give details how Coscharis arrived at the price.

14.46

First Bank asked to step aside. Coscharis takes over.

Coscharis chief, Cosmas Maduka, calls the car scandal “very controversial matter that has made newspaper headlines for two consecutive weeks” as he takes the hot seat.

14.37

First Bank cannot explain how the loan given to NCAA for all its 54 cars climbed from earlier stated N564 million to N643 million.

The bank claimed earlier that the difference was because the two armoured cars were not included-apparently untrue because of the cost.

Under questioning by the committee, the bank now says only the NCAA can explain the difference; the bank says it was only concerned about what the NCAA as a customer asked for.

“Our job as financier are based on what the customers are asking for”

14.29
Interaction with First Bank representative continues…

First Bank: The armoured BMWs were not part of the first order from NCAA which comprised mainly Land Cruisers totaling less than N600 million.

House chair, Nkiruka Onyejeocha: So could it be that the BMWs were an afterthought?

First Bank: That’s for the NCAA to answer.

14.24

“Absence of the minister is a slap on the face of the House,” Jerry Manwe, a member of the committee from Taraba state said, apparently angered by the minister’s absence.

14.23

First Bank official, Seyi Oyefeso, that oversaw the transaction addressed the House committee on behalf of the Executive Director of the bank.

First Bank was invited to make proposals alongside other banks and tender was opened publicly on 21 of May, 2013 in the presence of other banks and media

First Bank was afterwards shortlisted alongside 7 others.

First Bank granted a loan facility of N643 million for purchase of assorted cars.

14.19

The Customs representatives at the hearing said Coscharis lied to the Ministry of Finance and NSA, making them to believe that the cars were for Lagos state government, for the National Sports festival.

The NSA office issued End User certificate without knowing that it was doing so for cars to be delivered to Stella Oduah or the NCAA.

So, in a way, the NSA office is right to have told PREMIUM TIMES it did not issue end user certificate for any bullet proof cars for Minister Oduah and the NCAA.
14.11
Deputy Comptroller General of Customs, Manasa Daniel Jatau, said the following

The two cars were imported through Tin Can Port 2; Imported from Antwerp Netherlands.

The vehicles were cleared 19/6/2013.

Coscharis imported the cars without paying import duties since there was a waiver from the ministry of finance.

Coscharis obtained the waiver claiming the armoured cars were part of 300 vehicles imported for the Sports festival in Lagos last year, and therefore the beneficiary was Lagos state government.

The due import duty should have been N10.1 million.

The cars had an End User Certificate from the NSA office in the name of Coscharis.

The waiver obtained by Coscharis was for one year; as such the time of importation this year was covered.

Customs admit its laws requires that it enforces duty on any item for which waiver was obtained, which was not used for the purpose stated-in this case, for Sports festival.

13.53

Car dealers as well as end users of armoured cars are mandated to seek authorization from the office of the National Security Adviser, NSA, before ordering or importing such vehicles into Nigeria.

Last week, reliable sources at the office of the NSA told PREMIUM TIMES no authorization certificate was ever issued to either Minister Oduah or the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, to procure the controversial vehicles.

13.50

Nigerian Customs confirmed that the two cars were imported and cleared at Tin Can 2.

The Customs said the import duty on the two cars which should have been N10 million plus were not paid because there was a waiver note issued by the finance ministry.

Customs also confirmed there was an End User certificate issued by the office of the National Security Adviser, NSA.
13.43

The hearing, proposed to start at noon, started 25 minutes late. The minister is absent at the hearing. The committee said it will take a position on that later.

http://premiumtimesng.com/news/147512-stella-oduah-armoured-car-scandal-house-committee-hearing-live-updates.html

A law that will not bend will certainly be broken!

As a country, Turkey is often described as a bridge between Europe and Asia. On Tuesday, for the first time, the two continents will be officially connected by a multi-billion dollar underwater railway tunnel.

Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta and numerous transport and trade ministers gathered to open the giant rail system, on the country's republic day.

The Marmaray link, named by combining the Sea of Marmara with "ray," meaning rail in Turkish, is a part of $4.5 billion, 76-kilometer mega-project launched by the government in 2004.

Erdogan, speaking at the event, said the project "connects history and future, past and the future, as well as connecting continents, Marmaray connects people, nations and countries."

Its scale, along with designs for a third airport, a parallel canal for the Bosphorus river and a third suspension bridge, are seen as overly ambitious plans by Erdogan to build his legacy and hark back to days of the Ottoman Empire.

The bold project brings the dreams of Sultan Abdul Medjid, first outlined more than a century ago, to reality as the Turkish Republic celebrates its 90th anniversary.

It is finally being completed by Erdogan after he faced intense protests for the redevelopment plans of a central Istanbul park with Ottoman-era military barracks and a mosque. The 13.6 kilometer (8.5 miles) tunnel -- the deepest of its kind -- passes under the Bosphorus Strait, one of the busiest shipping arteries in the world.

The financial capital of Istanbul, with a population of nearly 15 million people, is often snarled with traffic, with some two million residents making the crossing between continents on a daily basis.

According to Erdogan, Marmaray "is not a project only for Istanbul Marmaray is a project for whole humanity."

The rail system, built by a Turkish-Japanese consortium, is expected to have a capacity of one and a half million people a day, connecting the two continents in about four minutes.

The Marmaray is being described as a vital link on the modern Silk Road, which will provide seamless rail transport from Turkey to China.

Turkey, under Erdogan, has looked east to tap emerging markets for growth. More than half its exports go to the European Union, and that slowdown has cut Turkey's annual growth in half after it peaked above 8% before the 2008-09 financial crisis.

Beyond the size of such an undertaking, digging for the Marmaray uncovered some 40 thousand artefacts and helped archaeologists trace Istanbul's history back 8,500 years, 2,500 more than ever believed before.

However the discoveries delayed the project for four years, which frustrated the prime minister who, analysts and businessmen say, wants to put a permanent imprint on Turkey's financial capital.

The project also had to account for Turkey's long history of violent earthquakes, and the tunnel's position parallel to a major fault line. Transport minister Binali Yildirim has outlined the precautions, including that the tunnel is designed handle a quake of 9.0 magnitude due to construction that allows movement.

With these infrastructure projects Erdogan is aiming high, striving to increase Turkey's impact as the republic heads towards its 100th anniversary.

Erdogan believes Turkey can double its gross domestic product to $2 trillion, and by doing so stake its claim as one of the top ten economies internationally.

But obtaining the financing for this activity after such fierce public resistance may stand in the way of this government's master plan.

Tuesday, however, was a day in which Erdogan could point to his pride in Marmaray. It is, he said, "an artwork that will find its place in history as an environmentalist project as well as being a project of precision and excellence."

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/29/business/marmaray-tunnel-turkey-john-defterios/index.html?sr=fb102913europeasia430p

Agrika: Mustapha Chike-obi, only an igbo man with an in-born bussiness nature can handle this job

Did you study zoology like your President?When did CBN become a profit maximisation outfit?

The question that should influence the choice of Sanusi’s successor is this: at what cost have Sanusi’s successes been achieved, and were those costs avoidable? The costs that have attended Sanusi’s tenure in office have been many, and most of those costs were perfectly avoidable and extremely damaging, not only to the CBN itself but also to the wider Nigerian polity. He has politicised the office of the governor of the CBN far more than any other governor in the history of the organisation. He triggered a constant stream of attention grabbing controversies and created a cult of personality. Ironically for someone who claims to be a risk manager, he became the chief risk factor to the institution he heads by causing directly the numerous misguided attempts by some legislators and sundry other vested interests to revoke the statutory independence of the CBN. Without that independence, no central bank of a country can function effectively and will become just another government parastatal run or teleguided by politicians. Had this happened in Nigeria at this stage of our economic evolution, it would have been a terrible outcome, confirming our retrogression to the status of a banana republic. But we came close, and the threat has not completely dissipated, all thanks to our CBN Governor.

Lamido Sanusi gave the appearance of having a religious agenda in the manner in which he arrogantly and brazenly promoted Islamic banking, needlessly overheating the country’s domestic political space in a manner that suggests poor political judgment for someone in his position. Questions have been raised about the legitimacy and impartiality of some of his regulatory decisions because of his background as a banking industry operator and the partisan wars with some of his erstwhile colleagues in the banks, which he may have carried into his regulatory function and executed under that guise.

Many critics believe he had a personal agenda dressed up in elegant arguments and rhetoric, demonstrated in the sale and recapitalization of some of the troubled banks. And there have been questions also about the professionalism with which he has managed the CBN. He is believed to have imported political agendas into the management processes of the apex bank. He has evidently been unable to separate his personal and traditional ambitions in his native Kano from what is supposed to be a professional office of CBN Governor, and has in fact used what is a public office and public funds to pursue that ambition. Overall, Sanusi will be leaving behind a much weakened CBN than the one he met on his appointment to the post.

When we consider the lessons from Sanusi’s tumultuous era as CBN Governor, what kind of person should be appointed to replace him? Perhaps it is better to start with who should not be appointed. The next CBN Governor should not be a politician. Such a background automatically makes a partisan approach to the duties of the office likely. This would still be a bad idea regardless of whether or not the individual has been either a commercial banker or even a CBN staff in a previous career.

The next CBN Governor should not be a banking industry operator. To appoint a serving or former bank managing director would be a big mistake. The conflicts of interest in such a scenario are fundamental. Commercial bankers think mostly about making profit for their shareholders, and most have significant ownership interests in the banks they manage. As a regulator, a person with this kind of background may have difficulty balancing the many interests a central bank governor should consider and will likely promulgate regulatory policies that are pro banks at the expense of other important calculations. It is true that Sanusi has imposed a contribution by Nigerian banks to a sinking fund to help resolve Nigeria’s banking crisis, but that is because he had no other choice if the problem was to be addressed without direct intervention by the Federal Government.

Also, commercial bankers have a more narrow perspective that is focused on finance, technical banking and business deals. Very few have the intellectual weight or professional exposure needed to manage a central bank in today’s world or a public institution such as the CBN, including essential experience in formulating broader monetary and economic policy or the regulation of the financial sector. A CBN Governor is at its essence a public policy function. Again, a commercial banker will have gathered many “friends” and “enemies” in the banking industry during a long career, and will be tempted to favour friends while “regulating” detractors. As we have seen, this is a subtext in some of the regulatory actions taken by Sanusi in his banking reforms. Lastly, individuals with controversial histories should not be considered for appointment as CBN Governor.

With this in mind, current speculation about the possible appointment of some politicians and bank executives should make us wonder when we will get truly serious about institutional leadership appointments in this country. One can only hope that President Jonathan does not capitulate to the desperate lobbyists parading the corridors of the presidency with deep pockets and appoint another CBN Governor that will trigger controversies from day one, further lowering confidence in his government and in the CBN. Jonathan needs to make an appointment to this post that will bolster the sagging ratings of his embattled government.

What type of person should get the job? Professionalism, and competence as an economic and regulatory policy maker should be the leading factor in the President’s consideration. These factors are far more important, and may even reap greater political benefits for the government, than factors such as what geopolitical zone the nominee comes from. The next CBN Governor should be someone able to repair the political battering the apex bank has suffered on account of the personality and tendencies of its present governor, which have unquestionably weakened and distracted the institution. This should narrow the field and result in a more serious search process in which the track record of potential appointees is well investigated and objectively evaluated. Looking at the CBN at this juncture and at what Nigeria needs, it is important that the reforms instituted by Sanusi be continued, deepened and executed with less drama and bad blood to avoid unnecessary policy reversals. What this suggests is that President Jonathan should take a close look inside the CBN hierarchy itself, especially since he claims that he wants to build institutions. One advantage with a CBN insider is that it will build the institution instead of building someone’s ego, and ensure continuity of policy in a most important part of our country’s economic management. The President can also look at other regulatory or government institutions, or perhaps the academia, although academics may be too wedded to theories and may lack leadership experience with running large institutions and with financial regulation.

A little bit of research on the CBN website revealed a surprising and little-known fact: five out of the nine Nigerians who have served as CBN Governors have been senior executives of the apex bank before their appointment. A sixth, Chukwuma Soludo, did not come from within the apex bank but was the chief economic adviser to the Federal Government prior to his appointment. With the exception of Lamido Sanusi, the two other CBN chiefs who had served as managing directors of banks before becoming governor (and even one of these, Joseph Sanusi, was a career CBN official who rose to become Deputy Governor for several years before leaving to be the Managing Director of UBA and later First Bank) did so in a completely different era. That era was one in which Nigeria’s leading commercial banks were largely owned by governments. Lamido Sanusi is therefore the first “pure” free-market-era bank chief to head the CBN. The experience of his tenure and many other factors clearly recommend against appointing a successor with a similar profile.

Dannyxy: forget this story, history are been made everyday, and another one will made today.

our 5-0 win over Iraq was d very first time Nigeria will beat an Arab nation at d U-17 level. They drew 0-0 wit Saudi Arabia in china'85, lost to the Saudi's on penalty in 1989, drew 1-1 wit Qatar and lost 2-1 to Oman respectively in 1995.

Actions continue today at the on going FIFA U-17 world cup in UAE as Nigeria take on Iran. However, history has it that Nigeria had never beaten an Arab nation in the knockout stage of the competition. In the quarterfinal fixture of scotland'89 Nigeria lost 2-0 on penalty to saudi arabia after 0-0 at 120'minutes of duration. 6 years later at the 1995 edition in Ecuador, The golden eaglet lost 2-1 to Oman in the quarterfinal before crashing out of that tournament.