₦airaland Forum

georgeakins:
Why was he not one of the highest paid players during his time?

Why was he not playing for one of the top clubs? He never played in any champions league matches

georgeakins:
Why was he not one of the highest paid players during his time?

Why was he not playing for one of the top clubs? He never played in any champions league matches

I came too early, Okocha jokes following Messi’s £1million weekly pay

Former Super Eagles captain, Austin Jay Jay Okocha, declared yesterday that his footballing days ‘came too early.’ He was reacting to news of Lionel Messi’s weekly take home of £1 million at Paris St-Germain.

After more than 20 years, 778 games, 672 goals, 35 trophies, including 10 La Liga titles, four Champions Leagues and numerous personal records and honours, Messi finally left Barcelona to pitch his tent with the French giant, PSG.

Okocha, a quick and skillful playmaker, who is considered as one of the best Nigerian footballers and players to come out of African continent, told The Guardian in a telephone chat soon after the news of Messi’s big pay broke out that his time as a footballer came too early.

“I came too early and Messi came at the right time,” Okocha joked. “If I was paid such amount of money in my playing days, maybe I would have stayed back in France forever. I wouldn’t have thought of coming to Nigeria.”

Jay Jay Okocha’s magical display lured many Nigerian fans to French League in his playing days. In 1998, the Nigerian set a transfer record when he left Fenerbahce in Turkey to PSG in France on a fee of £12.4 million, which was the highest by an African player at that time. He left PSG for Bolton Wonderers in England in 2002 on a free transfer.

For many Nigerian fans, Okocha’s magical skills on the field of play is comparable to whatever Messi offers in present day football.

Messi, who has won Ballon d’Or six times, now prepares himself for a new life in Paris, after he parted ways with Barcelona. He said he feels betrayed by the club he has given so much to. Barcelona had asked Messi to accept a 50 percent reduction in wages, which he accepted without even trying to negotiate it.

But the club later told him to leave, claiming that getting the Argentine to remain in Catalonia would ruin the club.

SECURITY: RRS OPERATIVES ARREST ARMED ROBBERS

... Recover One Locally Made Gun, Two Rounds Of Ammunition, ATM

Following sustained crime surveillance patrols across suspected flashpoints in Lagos, the operatives of the Lagos State Rapid Response Squad (RRS), arrested two armed robbers in the early hours of Tuesday along Akowonjo Road, Alimosho.

Speaking on the arrest, the Commander, Lagos State Rapid Response Squad (RRS), CSP Olayinka Egbeyemi, explained that the arrested suspects, Samuel Akabueze, 'M', (31yrs), of 34, Valentine Obasi Street, Idimu Road, and Onuoha Joshua, 'm', (37yrs), of 52, Yusuf Street, Ipaja, were arrested by RRS operatives for driving a Lexus jeep (LSD 666 GK) suspiciously along Akowonjo Road.

His words: “The suspects were trailed by the team before their eventual arrest for underhand dealings. Some of the illegal items found on them include a locally made gun with two rounds of ammunition, four stolen ATM cards, charms, BRT cowry cards, two different set keys for Lexus SUV and a motorcycle”.

“During the preliminary interrogation by the Police team, the arrested suspects confessed to being members of the ‘Aye Confraternity' and perpetrating series of robberies across different locations in Lagos State”, he added.

Egbeyemi also disclosed that the suspects have since been transferred to the Lagos State Command for further investigation in line with the directive of the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, CP Hakeem Odumosu.

#LASG
#ForAGreaterLagos

CAPTION:
PIX: The arrested suspects, Samuel Akabueze (31yrs), of 34, Valentine Obasi Street, Idimu Road and Onuoha Joshua (37yrs), of 52, Yusuf Street, Ipaja, respectively.

naptu2:
Reignition of their 2000s feud.

Chris Okotie vs Chris Oyakhilome and TB Joshua.

(The other person that he was referring to is Oyakhilome).

naptu2:
Aha! That was in 2001. Pastor Chris Oyakhilome appeared with TB Joshua on television and they were ministering to a man. Pastor Chris Okotie said that Chris Oyakhilome was a man of God, but that he had lost his way and had been recruited into a cult by TB Joshua. It caused a lot of controversies back then and other pastors weighed in. I believe that PFN also stated that TB Joshua was not a member of their group.

Anyway, here is a 2009 interview in which Pastor Chris Oyakhilome responded to the allegations.

PFN ARE WRONG ABOUT T.B JOSHUA SAYS PASTOR CHRIS OYAKHILOME

By Amita Jones


How did your relationship with Prophet T.B Joshua begin? Rev Chris Okotie said then that T.B. Joshua recruited or ordained you into his cult way back 1986.

I remember in 2001 a lot of ministers including Pastor Chris Okotie, Bishop Mike Okonkwo and Pastor Tunde Bakare did say things along that line. The truth is that they were all wrong. They were getting information from the wrong sources, and it is unfortunate that they believed their wrong sources; incidentally none of them asked me intelligent questions. I hope to write a book on the episode someday. I have so much to say about all that transpired, maybe for the future. It was an interesting period, but the truth is that what they said was not true. I was surprised when the fact that I related with Prophet T.B Joshua, sparked off controversies. I was very surprised. You wonder why? Because I related with a lot of folks and nobody said anything, so I wondered why they got so mad about this one.

This was no ordinary person. This was Prophet T.B. Joshua; a man whom most ministers believe is involved in occultic practices.

I was surprised that they all said that. Remember that Jesus visited non-followers, non believers and he was criticized by the religious folks of his day. They said this man eateth and drinketh with sinners. They said Jesus could not be a prophet of God because he ate and drank with sinners. I thought if I related with anybody, it shouldn't be a problem, even if he was a sinner. There was no reason for that. After all everybody needs the gospel. So from that stand point I was surprised at their response. It was the wrong response anyway. I remember that I made a tape then, called 'Truth on Trial' and there I said, “Just because you hate somebody does not mean I have to hate with you”. When Jesus related with sinners, they did not change him. So, no matter what they thought T.B. Joshua was, my relating with him shouldn't have been expected to change me. So, it was very wrong for anyone to have interfered.

They said he was of the devil…

Well, that is between them and God.

How exactly did you meet T.B. Joshua?

It was in 2001 that I met him or spoke with him for the first time, contrary to the assertions of the PFN leaders. He called me on the phone. He had been watching our programme on television with some of his visitors, and there was this episode of a little girl who was born blind, who received her sight at our crusade. He said he was moved by the miracle and decided to call me. That was our first contact. After that, we spoke several other times on telephone. At that time, I had only seen maybe two or three of his programmes on TV. I did not know much about him at all, and so when he spoke with me on the phone, we exchanged pleasantries, and made references to what we were doing.

In the process of time, on a particular Wednesday, several weeks after we had been talking on the phone, he called me on the phone and requested that I joined him in ministering to a particular man that was coming from Holland, during a special service that night. I said we'll be having a service and he said his service was going to be all night long. I was going to finish mine about 9 pm and his was going to be all night, so I said 'alright, how long is it going to take me to get to where you are?' He said it's about 30 minutes, half an hour. I said ok, 'if I get out of here around 9 o' clock, I'll be there by 9.30. I'll try to make it'. I went there with several people.

We met for the first time, face to face then, and went into the congregation and he introduced me to them and I greeted the people. Of course a lot of them had been seeing me on television and so they were excited to see me come to their church. Shortly after I greeted them, I went with him to the healing section. We got to the healing section; he started out ministering to them while I was waiting because I was only going to join him in ministering to the foreigners based on his earlier request. When we got to the section where the foreigners were, most of whom were from Holland, we both ministered to the man who was sick of multiple sclerosis. I believe his name was Jan Westerhof; that was about it.

Now you must realize that before I met with T.B. Joshua, I'd been holding crusades and healing services for years. This was 2001 and by then I had held many crusades with thousands of people and we already had our programme, Atmosphere For Miracles, where we showed testimonies of people who were getting healed in our meetings. So healings and miracles were not new to me. When I met with him, of course I was excited, glad to see someone who was interested in the kind of things that I was doing.

When these controversies came up, when these pastors, Pastor Chris Okotie, Bishop Mike Okonkwo and Pastor Tunde Bakare got on television and began to say a lot of things, I actually had to maintain an association of sympathy with the man. There are so many things I have to say like I told you, but these are all leaders in the church and I wouldn't want to say things that would make them unhappy with themselves or even make members of their congregation unhappy with them. I do not think that is my responsibility. So I would not want to go into certain details.

Did you at any moment think that your detractors were right and you wrong? After all you were the only man on your side of the divide.

I knew they were wrong all the time. Maybe I should define something, because the issue was not T.B. Joshua. They tried to make him the issue. He was not the issue. And I can prove that. The reason I said they tried to make him the issue is this; the president of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, became the Vice President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, of which the Synagogue Church headed by T.B. Joshua is a part, Cherubim and Seraphim is a part, Celestial Church of Christ is a part and many other groups. In fact, he became the de facto Vice President of the Synagogue! And nobody said anything about it. There could be no better endorsement of T.B. Joshua from the PFN than that. If you could fraternize with all these groups as their Vice President, doesn't that say something, if indeed any of them was really of the Devil? Imagine Paul the Apostle as the Vice President of an occultic group? The point is T.B. Joshua was not the problem. They used him as the reason for their actions which were based on their wrong spiritual perceptions.

https://www.thenigerianvoice.com/lifestyle/1389/pfn-are-wrong-about-tb-joshua-says-pastor-chris-oyakhilome.html

LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT DIRECTS ASPAMDA CARETAKERS TO CONDUCT ELECTIONS IN 60-90 DAYS

The Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu has directed the Interim Leadership of the Auto Spare Parts and Machinery Dealers Association Nigeria (ASPAMDA) to conduct elections in the next 60 days or 90 days. The deadline is to end all the leadership crises that have bedeviled the market since 2018.

In a press statement issued in Lagos, the State government said that it was necessary for the interim leadership of ASPAMDA to conduct elections and end its protracted leadership crises.

The crises started in 2018 when the tenure of the last substantive leadership ended and its efforts to extend its tenure led to judicial contestation.

A high court in 2018 kicked out the former leadership in a judgment that was affirmed by the Court of Appeal.

Despite the judgments, the past leadership continued to hold sway. This led to bitter agitations. The State Government received a flood of petitions about the past leadership's refusal to obey court orders, refusing to vacate office.

The State Government, through the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, wrote the Inspector General of Police, requesting that Sunday Igboanuzuo and Emeka Chukwueloka be appointed Chairman and Secretary of the Caretaker Committee immediately, with the mandate to conduct elections to elect a credible leadership for ASPAMDA within 30 days, in accordance with the court judgment. The Caretaker Committee took off on the 20th July 2020.

The Caretaker Committee did not conduct elections within the 30 days or even the 90 days specified by the ASPAMDA constitution.

The State Government notes that the Caretaker Committee is rather bent on perpetuating itself in office without due process.

The above scenario has bred wide division, bad blood, tension and acrimony in ASPAMDA as a result of the self-perpetuation plan of the Caretaker Committee.

On Saturday, August 7th 2021, the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, summoned a meeting of all stakeholders of ASPAMDA at Lagos House Marina. After listening to all the stakeholders present, the Governor directed that:

i. the Caretaker Committee headed by Sunday Igboanuzuo with Emeka Chukwuloka as Secretary, should conduct election into ASPAMDA offices within 60 to 90 days; and

ii. that the Lagos State Government will provide security and other logistics that will enable the conduct of free and fair elections within this said period.

While the government will monitor developments to ensure this directive is carried out, it expresses the hope that this will end the protracted leadership crises in ASPAMDA and install an atmosphere of peace and harmony needed to maximise the business potential of ASPAMDA.

Gbenga Omotoso
Commissioner for Information and Strategy