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While the Barcelona star has remained tight-lipped on his future, the Argentinian legend believes the country cannot ask anything more of him


Argentina legend Diego Maradona has advised Lionel Messi to make his retirement from international football permanent as the uncertainty continues over the star's future with the Albiceleste.

Messi and Argentina suffered a mediocre World Cup campaign, crashing out in the last-16 after a tournament plagued with internal conflicts and sub-standard performances.

The exit cost coach Jorge Sampaoli his job, while Messi has not been included in the two squads subsequently selected by interim boss Lionel Scaloni.

And while the Barcelona star has refused to confirm his international future, his former Argentina boss believes he should not return.

"What would I tell Messi? To not come back any more. To retire," the current Dorados coach told Clarin on Sunday.

"The Under-15s lose and it is Messi's fault, the fixture list in Argentina puts Racing against Boca and Messi is to blame. He is always to blame. Stop breaking my balls.

"I would tell him: 'don't go anymore, man'. Let's see if they can handle that. Let's see if they're really big men.

"I would have liked to see him tell us all to f**k off. Because he is not to blame for us not being world champions. Fine, we all placed our hopes in him, but when you go to the racetrack you hope your horse wins and he comes in eighth.

"In Formula One Vettel has a great engine and Hamilton beats him. Right now the national team doesn't do anything for me or for the people. We have lost that. The passion. It cannot play against Nicaragua or Malta, no, brother. We are throwing all the prestige we earned down the toilet."


When questioned over who he would like to see succeed Sampaoli, Maradona backed 1978 World Cup winner Cesar Luis Menotti, now 79 years old.

And he was particularly scathing when asked about Scaloni's decision to leave the No. 10 jersey vacant while Messi weighs up his future.

"[Scaloni] is an idiot. He seems like an idiot. Because if I went and gave the 10 to Messi, Messi should give it to the next 10. It's ridiculous, it gets me angry," he fired.

"Scaloni is a great kid but he can't even manage traffic. How can we give the national team to Scaloni?! With everyone who has passed through that team, who got their teeth and heads broken, you're going to put Scaloni in?

"Now Scaloni says 'I am prepared'. I've never even seen you score for Argentina. No offence. As a person, let's go and share a barbecue. But as a coach and in the national team, no."
http://mognews.com/2018/10/01/dont-go-back-to-argentina-maradona-tells-messi/

She asks him why he loves her because she doesn’t understand. Why would a guy like him love a girl like her, and how? What did she do to be so lucky? What did she do to deserve his love?

“Why do you love me?” she asks. And he looks at her, not like she’s crazy, but like he’s wondering how she could be so beautifully unaware, unaware of the fact that he simply loves her the way she deserves to be loved. That his love is effortless because of the person that she is.

He loves her because she’s there for him. Because when he feels like his life is slowly falling apart, somehow she’s picking up the pieces before it even happens. Because when he comes home from work and has had the worst day ever, she listens, and she doesn’t make him feel bad for harboring negativity, or for venting it on her, she knows that he just needs someone to hear him. He loves her because she listens.

He loves her because she doesn’t try to change him. She doesn’t lay a list of things down that she wish he would do, or say, a list of qualities she wishes he would embody. She doesn’t wish he were anything other than who he already is, and he loves her because she seems to enjoy and support the person he continues to become.



He loves her because she doesn’t apologize for being herself. She doesn’t apologize for crying through an argument that doesn’t make sense. She doesn’t apologize for reacting, whether it’s excitement or anger or joy. She doesn’t apologize for her feelings. He loves her because she doesn’t say sorry for being the person that she is, having the feelings that she feels, or acting on the reactions those feelings cause.

He loves her because when she does apologize, it’s for messing up. And he loves her because she doesn’t expect the apology alone to fix it. She doesn’t expect the apology to erase her bad decisions, to wipe the slate clean of her mistakes. He loves her because her apologies mean she’s willing to move forward and not make those same mistakes again.

He loves her because she accepts the things about him that most people consider flaws. She sees his imperfections and she understands that’s what makes him human. She sees his imperfections and understands that she’s got them too. He loves her because she doesn’t expect their love to be perfect. She doesn’t expect him to be perfect either.

He loves her because she doesn’t make him feel like a disappointment. He loves her because she is proud of him and everything that he’s done, because she doesn’t pressure him with expectations that he needs to live up to, or benchmarks he needs to reach. He loves her because she accepts him even when he fails. He loves her because she doesn’t leave when it happens. He loves her because she encourages him to keep going , to try again, and to not feel discouraged while doing so. He loves her because she motivates him to be strong.

So when she asks him why he loves her, he’ll ask her how she doesn’t know. “How could I not love you? How could you not understand why?” And in her head she knows it’s because a small part of her can’t believe it and a larger part of her maybe doesn’t want to, because if she believes him when he says, “I love you,” if she believes all of the reasons he gives, that must mean that love is something she deserves. That must mean that this love is real, because she’s finally found a person who can give it to her.
http://mognews.com/2018/10/01/why-do-you-love-me-i-dont-understand/

A Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos on Wednesday, fixed July 31, 2018, to deliver ruling on the no-case submission filed by the former Governor of Abia State, Orji Uzor-Kalu, and other defendants.

At the last hearing on the case, Justice Mohammed Idris, the presiding judge, dismissed the defendants' application seeking to throw out the amended charge instituted against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

In dismissing the application, Justice Idris made reference to Sections 216 and 217 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act that allows the prosecution to amend the charge at any stage of the trial.

The trial judge further stated that the prosecution could not be shut out from filing a second amended charge as the defence had not shown that the amendment would be prejudicial to it.

Immediately after the ruling, Uzor-Kalu, Slok Nigeria Limited and Udeogu, were subsequently re-arraigned on the new charge to which they pleaded not guilty.

After the defendants' not guilty plea, their lawyers notified the judge of various “no case submissions” which had been served on the anti-graft agency.

The defence team also pleaded with Justice Idris for adequate time to respond to the EFCC's written address.

The court then adjourned till July 25, 2018, to entertain arguments on the “no case’’ submissions.

According to the amended charge filed by the commission, Uzor-Kalu and other defendants were alleged to have committed the offence between August 2001 and September 2006.

In specific terms, the former Governor was accused of using his firm, Slok Nigeria Ltd., to retain N200 million in an account domiciled in First Inland Bank, now First City Monument Bank (FCMB).

The said sum, according to the EFCC, formed part of funds illegally derived from the treasury of the Abia State Government.

The anti-graft agency insisted before Justice Idris that Uzor-Kalu, his company (Slok Nig Ltd), one Emeka Abone and Michael Akpan, who are now at large, allegedly collaborated to commit the offence between 2001 and September 2006.

The former Governor and others were equally alleged to have concealed the genuine origin of a total sum to the tune of N7.2 billion, which the anti-graft agency declared formed part of funds illegally derived from the Abia State treasury, and converted same into several bank drafts, which were subsequently paid into the account of Slok Nigeria Ltd.

Even in counts one to 10, the EFCC pointed accusing fingers at the defendants for retaining about N2.7 billion in different bank accounts — funds said to belong to the Abia State government.

In all, Uzor-Kalu and others were alleged to have diverted over N7.1 billion from the Abia State government’s treasury, when he was Governor of the state.

The offence, according to the EFCC, contravenes Sections 14, 15(6), 16, 17 and 21 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2005.

The commission further insisted that the offence flouts the provisions of the Money Laundering Act of 1995 as amended by the amendment Act No. 9 of 2002 and Section 477 of the Criminal Code Act, Laws of the Federation, 1990 http://mognews.com/2018/07/25/orji-uzor-kalu-to-appear-in-court-for-7-1bn-fraud/

http://mognews.com/2018/07/24/police-block-sarakis-convoy/ Operatives from the Special Anti Robbery Squad unit of the Nigeria Police, on Tuesday morning, have blocked the convoy of Senate President Bukola Saraki from leaving his Maitama Residence.
The stern-looking policemen, it was learnt, stormed the residence at about 6:00a.m. and prevented vehicles from coming in or going out of the expansive residence of Nigeria’s third citizen.

Seven people have been killed in a suicide attack on a mosque in a town near northeast Maiduguri, Borno capital.

A suicide bomber reportedly infiltrated  a mosque at Konduga, located some 43 kilometres from Maiduguri, early Monday morning.

The bomber, believed to be a Boko Haram member,  detonated explosives in the mosque at about 5:00a.m., killing seven people and injuring eight others, residents and rescue workers said.

Those injured had been taken to a public hospital in Maiduguri, the state capital for treatment, a local official told The Sun on condition of anonymity.

The police, however, was yet to confirm the bomb attack as at time of filing this report. http://mognews.com/2018/07/23/breaking-suicide-bomber-kills-7-in-borno-town/

Of course I want to hear it. Of couse I have stayed up for more nights than anyone would want to admit, imagining what it would be like when you would finally tell me that you reciprocate all of my squirming, embarrassing feelings. It would be disingenuous for me to say that I don’t care — even if it would make this easier for all parties involved. We always want to hear each other say “it doesn’t matter.” We want to believe that we can behave however we’d like without any effect on those around us, that we hold no responsibility to one another.

And yes, to be perfectly honest, we don’t really owe each other anything. Being forthright and not intentionally hurting each other would be a good start to how we should treat each other, but when you throw my feelings around with complete impunity — do I really have a right to hold your feet to the fire? Do I really have some territorial claim to your behavior? You never said we were together. You never promised me something you weren’t going to deliver on. Yes, you misled me with enough half-truths and vague semi-promises to love me that I filled in the blanks with what I wanted to hear, but that was my fault. It was my choice to give you my heart, and you breaking it is not something I didn’t anticipate on some level.

Still, despite the fact that I would love to hear you tell me that you feel the same, I’ve learned that waiting for it to happen — and for you to really mean it — is only an exercise in masochism. There have been plenty of times where you’ve called me, drunk, at some ungodly hour. You’ve told me that you want me, that you need me, that you miss me. I melt before these words, suddenly unable to recall all of the times before in which you have treated me like an unpleasant object on the sidewalk which got stuck to the bottom of your shoe and now must be pulled off. In those moments, you are everything I’ve ever projected on you. You are my Prince Charming, even if you smell like whiskey and slur your words. And, for at least a bit, that is enough.



But there is only so much I can convince myself about how you feel and what you think before I am making a fool of us both. I am not interested in being the person who follows you around, the embarrassing little girl whose inability to control her own emotions makes it okay to treat her however you want. As much as I look forward to your temporary lapses in judgment which allow you to tell me everything you know I want to hear, I know that they are not good for me. And I know that the time we spend together — even the time when I am naked, in your arms, resting my head on your chest — are little more than wisps of smoke that I am trying to hold onto forever. I know that I have been allowing this game to be played for far longer than I should have, and that there is nowhere positive for this to go.

So don’t tell me you love me. Yes, I want to hear it, but I am trying to put one foot in front of the other and walk towards a kind of emotional maturity which doesn’t tolerate this self-destruction. So I will fight that instinctive desire to be hurt and walk away. I won’t make dramatic proclamations about erasing you from my memory or wishing I had ever known you. You are someone I chose to be with, someone I chose to love, and these are the consequences. But I must learn to take away the power over me that I have given to you and put it towards parts of my life which aren’t so dead-set on hurting me. And even if my newfound independence inspires in you a renewal of your desire to exert your control over me (to sleep with me, I guess, just to prove you can), your efforts will be wasted. Because I love you — I’m not afraid to admit that, even if it isn’t reciprocated — but I love myself more. And I must start taking care of the things I love.
http://mognews.com/2018/07/23/dont-tell-me-you-love-me-2/

Iran’s president has warned Donald Trump against provoking the country, telling the United States leader that “war with Iran is the mother of all wars”.

In a televised speech, Hassan Rouhani told the American president: “Do not play with the lion’s tail, you will regret it forever.” Iran is facing increased US pressure and looming sanctions after Mr Trump’s decision to pull out of the 2015 international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.

Washington has also been accused of posting propaganda on social media aimed at stirring up unrest in Iran. A review of the US State Department’s Farsi-language Twitter account and its Share America website reveals a number of posts critical of Tehran over the last month. Addressing Iranian diplomats, Mr Rouhani said: “America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars.

“You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran’s security and interests.” Mr Rouhani also scoffed at Mr Trump’s threat to halt Iranian oil exports, saying: “Anyone who understands the rudiments of politics doesn’t say ‘we will stop Iran’s oil exports’.

“We have been the guarantor of the regional waterway’s security throughout history.”

Mr Rouhani has suggested Iran may block Gulf oil exports if its own trade is disrupted, a proposal backed by the country’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran’s oil exports could fall by as much as two-thirds by the end of the year because of new US sanctions, putting oil markets under huge strain amid supply outages elsewhere. http://mognews.com/2018/07/23/expect-mother-of-all-wars-if-iran-leader-warns-trump/

The military has said troops in the counter-insurgency operation in the North-east killed scores of Boko Haram during an offensive against the insurgents in Yobe State.

Army spokesman, Brig. Gen Texas Chukwu in a statement said troops encountered some insurgents at remote Sasawa village in Babangida Local Government of Yobe State.

“Troops of 233 Battalion deployed in Operation Lafiya Dole have killed scores of Boko Haram insurgents while countering an ambush staged by elements of Boko Haram insurgents along Sasawa Road in Babangida Local Government Area of Yobe state,” Chukwu said.

He said the troops encountered Boko Haram ambush last Saturday at about 12.30 noon. He said the ambush occurred while troops were on fighting patrol to clear the general area of fleeing elements of Boko Haram insurgents who have been on rampage for food and logistics.

He said the troops overpowered and neutralised the insurgents in the battle that ensued and successfully extricated themselves from the ambush.

He, however, disclosed that some troops were wounded.

The military said it got information that the insurgents were on attack mission on Babangida market, looking for food and logistics.

“The situation has been brought under firm control by troops of Operation Lafiya Dole and additional troops have been drafted to the area to reinforce the patrol troops, while the Air Task Force is on aerial surveillance of the area to track down fleeing insurgent survivors,” the spokesman said.

Meanwhile, there are indications that the army authorities may sanction some of its personnel on counter insurgency operations in the region following the July 14, attack on its locations at Bama, Borno State and Jilli, Yobe State.

This is coming after the operational visits embarked upon by the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Yusufu Buratai, to the locations of the attack.

Many soldiers were said to have died, others injured, several others missing and equipment carted away by the terrorists, a development the army has since denied.

Daily Sun gathered that the attack did not go down well with the authorities.

To forestall further attacks on the area, the Chief of Army Staff ( COAS) Lt. General Tukur Yusufu, Buratai, has designated 21 Brigade, Bama, a Special Forces Brigade.

It was gathered that the attack which was uncalled for was said to have happened because of carelessness on the part of the personnel on duty, who they say took the relative peace enjoyed in the area for granted.

While the attack at Jilli, a border town linking Nigeria to Cameroon and Niger Republic, was said to have occurred when the soldiers were returning from purchasing some items in a neighboring village, that of Bama, was actually invaded by terrorists who paid dearly for their attack. Reliable sources told Daily Sun, that the soldiers at Jilli were attacked as they tried to recover their operational vehicles which got stuck in the sandy road. Three soldiers were said to have been killed in the process, while some others who did not take their weapons along with them ran to safety but returned to their base afterwards.

The attack has left the army authorities to resort to change of tactics as the terrorists have now resorted to using military camouflage vehicles labeled “operation last hold”, for their attacks. Angered by the attack, Buratai left Abuja for an- on-the-spot visit to the locations where he met with officers and soldiers. He also visited injured soldiers in the hospital.

At press time, it could not be ascertained whether or not the authorities have apprehended those found to have been responsible for the operational blunder.

Director, Army Public Relations, confirmed that soldiers had taken over Jilli, which he said was never overran nor captured by the terrorists.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria (SCSN) has said unless the Ulama and the Council were involved in the deradicalisation process of Boko Haram, the insurgency would not end.

Rising from a meeting that lasted several hours at the weekend in Kaduna, tagged: “High level roundtable meeting on deradicalisation agenda of Boko Haram extremists in Nigeria”, the group stressed the need to involve key leaders in the faith in the anti-insurgency war.

Assistant Secretary of SCSN, Dr. Auwal Faruq Abdulsalam told journalists that the meeting was in partnership with King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue.

“As you are aware, the issue of Boko Haram insurgency has been persisting in the country for the past 10 years…

“But mainly deradicalising prisoners of Boko Haram that defects from the group, and in all this process, the ulamas and the Islamic organisations have been completely excluded and we felt that the ulamas and the Islamic organisations are the major stakeholders because the Boko Haram are claiming to be muslims.

“They are claiming to use the scriptures from Islamic faith to unleash their terror. So I think the right people that can change the narrative, that can counter their Ideology are the real Islamic leaders or ulamas and Islamic organizations.

“But we realised that these major stakeholders are completely excluded from the process. I don’t know maybe at a very local level some are contacted and that is why our council, which is an umbrella organisation, all maintsream Islamic organisations in the country, looking at the composition of the meeting you can see that they are ulamas from all over the country. We should be involved.” http://mognews.com/2018/07/23/scores-of-bokoharam-troops-killed-millitary/

Four operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), attached to the Lagos State Police Command, Ikeja, Lagos, have been dismissed for armed robbery, kidnapping, extortion, threat to life and other crimes.

The assistant inspector-general of police in charge of Zone 2 Command, AIG Adamu Ibrahim, who set up an orderly room trial for the dismissed operatives, has upheld the decision of the police disciplinary body that recommended their dismissal.

The AIG said the policemen were dismissed and subsequently charged to court on offences of armed robbery, kidnapping, unlawful detention, intimidation and threatening violence.

He said Mr. Chukwudi Godwin Odionye, aka Bishop, submitted a petition against the four on May

2, 2018, that, on June 24, 2017, he was in his house in Alagbado, Lagos, when the four armed policemen stormed his house to effect his arrest on the allegation of performing ‘fake’ miracles.

He stated that, after his arrest, he was taken to one hotel in Agege, where he was detained and threatened with death, if he failed to cooperate and part with some money.

The following day, June 25, he was taken to a bank, where he was made to transfer N7 million to one of the operative’s account.

On the receipt of the petition, the AIG ordered an investigation into the matter and it was revealed that no proper police procedure for investigation was followed in Odionye’s arrest and that the four SARS operatives actually abducted him from his house and unlawfully detained him in the hotel for personal gain.

The police men, Sgt. Adeoye Adekunle, Sgt. Adenira Adebowale, Sgt. Agbi Lucky and Sgt. Odighe Hehosa, were subsequently found guilty during the orderly room trial for professional misconduct, corrupt practices and discreditable conduct.

They were dismissed and consequently charged to court on criminal charges of armed robbery, kidnapping, unlawful detention, stealing, intimidation and threatening violence.

The AIG warned that the police force would not tolerate any act of misconduct that undermines the values of international best practices of policing. http://mognews.com/2018/07/23/4-sars-operatives-dismissed-for-robbery-kidnapping-others/