FYI: Hair Stylist Kept Armed Robber As Sex Slave « on: May 16, 2009, 03:31 PM »

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[size=14pt]COMEDY[/size] Reloaded


^{Godfrey C. Danchimah}

Godfrey C. Danchimah, Jr. (born July 21, 1969), professionally known as Godfrey, is an American comedian and actor who has appeared on BET, VH1, Comedy Central, and feature films such as Soul Plane, Original Gangstas, Zoolander, and Johnson Family Vacation. He was[b] also a spokesperson for 7 Up during the popular '7up yours' advertising campaign[/b]. He was also a cast member on the first season of The It Factor, a reality television show. Currently, he is a regular performer at the comedy club Comedy Cellar in New York City.

Biography

Godfrey's parents fled to the United States from Nigeria to escape the Nigerian Civil War. Godfrey was born in Nebraska on July 21, 1969. Soon after, the family settled in Chicago where Godfrey grew up. He attended Lane Technical College Preparatory High School and received an academic scholarship to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he majored in psychology. Here he tried out for and made the varsity football team, where he performed at a traditional talent show for new team members. He stole the show performing impressions of his coaches and teammates and discovered his comedic talent. Godfrey honed his stand-up skills at the legendary All Jokes Aside Comedy Club in Chicago in the early 90's. In 1995, Godfrey made his New York debut at Caroline's Comedy Club and The Comic Strip Live and was soon signed by the William Morris Talent Agency. He began working regularly in television, first behind the cameras as a warm-up comedian for The Cosby Show and Soulman. His first on-camera appearance featured him performing stand-up comedy for NBC's Friday Night Videos, followed by more small television and film roles. In 2000, Godfrey appeared in the Aspen Comedy Festival and on Comedy Central's Premium Blend. He also played a comical role in the urban movie Soul Plane, acting as an African pilot. He has also been in numerous episodes of BET's Comic View. He continues to do film and television work alongside his stand-up career in New York.

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Huxley:


Hello,

Good try

- but what questions are you gonna ask God to find out if He was really God. 

Or what behaviour traits would you expect to see from him to reassure you that he was really God - behaviour that only God is capable of?

@Huxley

- Huxley

Hell-no!. ^{That was a joke}

Not providing you with questions to ask wasnt an omission but intentional & deliberate.

This is because the questions to ask will be relative to the circumstances

As regards ""behaviour that only GOD is capable of" that you raised

I did preempt this by stating that "GOD will not go against His word"

Behaviour that only God is capable of? Is, GOD can/will not LIE

whereas satani is the father of lies

Other behaviour is that GOD is selfless,

satani on the other hand will be selfish and self-centered

^{Popping out for a sec to post a letter}

Huxley:


If God appeared to you today, how would you know that this was the almighty God and not an impostor? 

Bear in mind that the Devil (or Satan) also has many of the abilities of God

and can pass himself off as God by mimicking God's properties.

What questions would you ask this Being, answers of which will allow you to assess whether he is an impostor or the real God?

@Huxley

- Huxley

Brilliant question

For starters, God is 24/7, always present - omnipresent

The litmus test will be GOD will not go against His word

Recall Test 101; the one that Eve woefully failed

(i.e. Satan saying to Eve "You shall not surely die" when God emphatically said ". . . thou shall surely die"

Interview Part 1 and 2

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[size=14pt]COMEDY[/size] Reload

 
  ^{Stephen K. Amos}

Stephen K. Amos (born 1967) is a British stand-up comedian of Nigerian origin. A regular on the London comedy circuit, he is also a compere.

Personal life

Amos lives in South-West London. His parents came to London from Nigeria in the 1960s.He is openly gay. He is a celebrity supporter of the British Red Cross, where he is interested in their work with refugees.

He is represented by Lisa White of Glorious Talent.

Performances and tours

He has performed stand-up at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe every year since 2003, after making his début in 2001.

During the 2006 Fringe, he performed the revealing solo show "All of Me", in which he publicly acknowledged his own homosexuality to his audience for the first time, hosted a chat show on weekends (in addition to his own show), performed as a guest at various extra festival shows such as Spank! and performed daily in Stewart Lee's production of Eric Bogosian's play Talk Radio.

Away from the fringe, Amos is a regular performer at The Comedy Store, London, featuring on the bill several evenings each month as well as various other venues around central London.

Amos appeared in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival's Great Debate in 2006, 2007, & 2008 for the negative team, & in 2009 for the affirmative team. In May 2007, he appeared at the New Zealand International Comedy festival. He performed at the 2007 class clowns state final in South Australia.

During late 2008 and early 2009, he embarked on a UK tour of his show "Find the Funny".

As an actor, he performed in both the Edinburgh Fringe & London run of a version of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

His Debut DVD will be released in November 2009 entitled 'Find The Funny - Live'[8]

Television appearances

In his native UK, Amos has appeared as a guest on panel shows such as Have I Got News For You, Mock The Week, The Wright Stuff and And Then You Die.

In March 2007, his documentary on homophobia in the black British community and Jamaica, Batty Man, was broadcast by Channel 4.

He made a guest appearance as Jimi Hendrix on the third episode of the BBC Three show, Snuff Box. He has also appeared in Rich Hall's Cattle Drive, EastEnders, Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle and as a featured performer on the BBC's Live at the Apollo after Dara Ó Briain and before Frankie Boyle.

Amos has the distinction of being one of the few stand up comics chosen to appear at the 2007 Royal Variety Performance.

Amos made an appearance on the gala/comedy gig "We Are Most Amused" an ITV televised production on 15 November 2008 in celebration of HRH The Prince of Wales' 60th Birthday. The event took place in the New Wimbledon Theatre.

He hosted a 2007 documentary, Penis Envy, for the free UK digital TV channel Virgin1 (which has since been broadcast on a number of occasions), in which he explored men's ongoing insecurities with penis size with the help of actors from Puppetry of the Penis, naked rugby players and the men willing to experiment with apparent penis enlarging 'treatments'. In the programme Amos is shown publicly completing an online British penis survey, originally verbalising and inputting 9.2 cm length and 4 cm girth for his own penis anthropometric data. He later realised his error, stating that in fact he meant inches not centimetres: i.e. his penis length is actually 9.2 inches and his penis girth 4 inches.

While in Australia for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Amos often appears on Australian television shows such as the improvisational Thank God You're Here; the music-based panel game show Spicks and Specks; and satirical news-based comedy quiz show Good News Week.

for SOURCE: Click here

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[size=14pt]COMEDY[/size]


^{Gina Yashere}

Gina Obedapo Yashere (born 6 April 1974) is an English comedienne of Nigerian descent.

Biography - Early life

Yashere was born in Bethnal Green, London, England. Before becoming a comedienne she worked as a Elevator maintenance engineer. Her mother is an immigrant from Nigeria.

Career - Stand-up comedy

Yashere was a finalist in the prestigious Hackney Empire New Act of the Year competition in 1996. She continues to actively perform live stand-up comedy to the present, appearing on such shows as Mock the Week. She has released two live stand-up DVDs: one in 2006, and one in 2008.

Television

She has appeared in many television programmes. She is probably best known for appearing in the comedy series The Lenny Henry show, where she played Tanya and Mrs. Omokorede, the pushy Mum as well as voicing Keisha on Bromwell High.

In 2005, she appeared in the reality television series, Comic Relief does Fame Academy, in aid of Comic Relief, and she co-hosted the 2006 & 2007 MOBO Awards alongside Akon & Coolio. She has also made numerous appearances on Mock the Week, and also appears on the CBBC show Gina's Laughing Gear.

In 2007, she tried out for Last Comic Standing during the Sydney, Australia auditions and qualified for the semi-finals and was then chosen as one of the ten finalists to compete in the final rounds. On August 1, 2007, she was eliminated in the first elimination round along with Dante.

In 2008, she was the first-ever British person to be on Def Comedy Jam.

On september of 2009, she appeared on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien as a stand up comedienne.
for SOURCE: Click here

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Gina Yashere is a female stand up comedian from the UK. She currently lives in London, but her parents are both Nigerian. 

Gina Yashere has worked the stand up comedy circuit in the UK for over a decade now, although is probably best known for her appearances on several UK panel shows, including Mock the Week where she is a regular guest. Gina Yashere tours annually and she currently has two DVDs of her previous stand up tours available for purchase.  Gina Yashere is also well known for being the first ever British person to appear on popular US comedy show ‘Def Comedy Jam’.

A little known fact about Gina Yashere is that before she started her career in stand up comedy she worked as a lift engineer, repairing and maintaining lifts and escalators. Gina Yashere’s talent for stand up comedy was realised when she was spotted performing at the Edinburgh fringe festival in the late nineties.

Gina Yashere is also well known for her work with Lenny Henry on the comedy sketch show ‘ Lenny Henry in Peices’ which aired from 2000 to 2003 on BBC One in the UK. Since then Gina Yashere has appeared in numerous panel shows and has worked on several BBC children’s television programmes including ‘Gina’s Laughing Gear’ in which she starred. Gina Yashere has also had numerous Cameo appearances in several UK comedy shows.

http://www.ginayashere.co.uk/

[size=16pt]Christian hotel owners hauled before court after defending their beliefs in discussion with Muslim guest[/size]

A Christian couple have been charged with a criminal offence after taking part in what they regarded as a reasonable discussion about religion with guests at their hotel.

Ben and Sharon Vogelenzang were arrested after a Muslim woman complained to police that she had been offended by their comments.

They have been charged under public order laws with using ‘threatening, abusive or insulting words’ that were ‘religiously aggravated’.

The couple, whose trial has been set for December, face a fine of up to £5,000 and a criminal record if they are convicted.

Although the facts are disputed, it is thought that during the conversation the couple were challenged over their Christian beliefs.

It is understood that they suggested that Mohammed, the founder of Islam, was a warlord and that traditional Muslim dress for women was a form of bondage.

They deny, however, that their comments were threatening and argue that they had every right to defend and explain their beliefs.

Mrs Vogelenzang, 54, who has run the Bounty House Hotel near Aintree racecourse in Liverpool with her husband Ben, 53, for six years, said:  ‘Nothing like this has happened to us before. We are completely shocked.’

She added that the episode had damaged their business and they had been forced to lay off staff and run the nine-bedroom hotel by themselves, leaving them exhausted.

Sources said that a number of guests staying at the hotel, which charges £92 a night for a double room, were having breakfast in its restaurant on March 20 when comments were made about religion.

One of those involved was the Muslim woman, who was staying at the hotel while she received treatment at a hospital nearby.

The couple, who are members of the Bootle Christian Fellowship, and their solicitor, David Whiting, said they could not discuss the content of the conversation for legal reasons. But the independent lobby group, the Christian Institute, which has seen both the prosecution and defence legal papers, is supporting their defence.

Mr Whiting, who last year successfully defended street preacher Anthony Rollins in Birmingham, said: ‘There is a dispute as to the facts of the allegations, but Ben and Sharon do not accept they were threatening, abusive or insulting.

‘They are committed Christians and it is the defence’s contention that they have every right to defend their religious beliefs and explain those beliefs to others who do not hold similar views.’

After the incident, the couple voluntarily attended St Anne’s Street police station in Liverpool, where they were interviewed under caution.

In July they were arrested and charged under Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 and Section 31 (1) (c) and (5) of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.

They appeared briefly at Liverpool Magistrates Court on Friday to hear the date of their trial before magistrates, and were granted bail on the condition that they did not approach any of the witnesses expected to appear.

The use by the police of the Public Order Act to arrest people over offensive comments has dismayed a number of lawyers, who say the legislation was passed to deal with law and order problems in the streets.

Neil Addison, a prominent criminal barrister and expert in religious law, said: ‘The purpose of the Public Order Act is to prevent disorder, but I’m very concerned that the police are using it merely because someone is offended.

‘It should be used where there is violence, yobbish behaviour or gratuitous personal abuse. It should never be used where there has been a personal conversation or debate with views firmly expressed.

‘If someone is in a discussion and they don’t like what they are hearing, they can walk away.’

He added that the police had a legal duty under the Human Rights Act to defend free speech ‘and I think they are forgetting that’.

A number of Church leaders in Liverpool have written to Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions, voicing their concerns and pressing for the case to be dropped.

Christian Institute spokesman Mike Judge said ‘important’ issues of religious liberty were at stake.

‘In recent years, we have backed several cases where Christians have suffered unfair treatment because of their faith,’ he said. ‘We have detected a worrying tendency for public bodies to misapply the law in a way that seems to sideline Christianity more than other faiths.’

A spokesman for Merseyside Police said: ‘It would be inappropriate to comment as this is an ongoing case.’

for SOURCE: Click here

[size=16pt]Peter Ololo: Biggest Bank Debtor [/size]
August 31, 2009 11:21, 5,489 views
By Tayo Odunlami

Peter Ololo might not have been born great. But he has achieved greatness the negative way with his company, Falcon Securities, emerging Nigeria’s biggest bank debtor

 
  ^{Ololo and Madoff}
Until two weeks ago, Peter Ukuoritshemofe Ololo, to nearly all Nigerians, was a completely unknown quantity. Today, however, a national record of financial default has thrust the Delta State-born stockbroker into prominence. Since penultimate Monday, Ololo, Managing Director of Falcon Securities Limited, has been hugging the headlines as the biggest debtor to Nigerian banks.

Ololo’s induction process into Nigeria’s Hall of Infamy  began on 14 August when Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Lamido Sanusi removed Erastus Akingbola, Cecilia Ibru, Barth Ebong, Okey Nwosu and Sebastian Adigwe as managing directors of Intercontinental Bank plc, Oceanic Bank, Union Bank plc, Finbank plc and Afribank plc respectively. Offences that earned the bank chiefs the sack, as reeled out by the CBN Governor, are poor corporate governance practices, lax credit administration processes and non-adherence to sound credit-risk management practices, lapses that aggregated in high level of non-performing loans that threatened the survival of banks and the economy.

The five banks were said to be responsible for 39.9 per cent of loans in the banking industry. Oceanic Bank plc, the CBN maintained, had the highest non-performing loan of N278.2bn as at May 2009; Intercontinental Bank, N210.9bn; Afribank, N141.9bn; Union Bank, N73.6bn and Finbank, N42.4bn. Altogether, the five banks had a total loan portfolio of N2.8trillion, with margin loans given to borrowers to buy stocks contributing N456.3bn. Loan exposure to the oil and gas sector was N487billion. Aggregate non-performing loans stood at N1.14tn, representing 40.81 per cent of the total loans.

Such bad loans endangered the capital adequacy of the five banks; one bank actually had a ratio of only 1.01 per cent. Sanusi said the five banks needed a minimum capital injection of N204.9bn to enable them meet the industry’s minimum capital adequacy ratio of 10 per cent. Worse, the banks’ liquidity ratio by 31 May 2009 was below the regulatory minimum requirement of 25 per cent. To address the situation, the CBN gave N400 billion to the  five administrators it picked to replace the sacked managing directors. The administrators are Mahmoud Lai Alabi for Intercontinental; John Aboh for Oceanic; Suzanne Iroche, Finbank; Nebolisa Arah, Afribank and Funke Osibodu, Union Bank. Sanusi signed off on these dramatic disclosures with a promise to name the non-performing debtors endangering the existence of the five banks.

Four days later, the CBN Governor matched his promise with mind-boggling revelations that are still reverbrating through the country. Names of some influential Nigerian businessmen that have always been suspected to be heavy debtors to banks were in the CBN’s blacklist quite all right. Aliko Dangote. Femi Otedola. Jimoh Ibrahim. Henry Imasekha. But the pack was led by a name hitherto uncelebrated in Nigeria’s social and economic scene: Falcon Securities owned by Peter Ololo. The company was said to be owing the five delinquent banks a total of N88.3 billion, eclipsing fellow debtors Imasekha, who, through Ascot Offshore Nigeria Ltd., owes N44.67bn; Onajite Okoloko, who operates Notore Chemical Industries Limited and owes N32.39bn; Johnson Arumeni’s Rockson Engineering  Limited, which owes N36.9bn and Transnational Corporation (Transcorp), chaired by Prof. Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, which owes N30.86bn. There are numerous other lesser debtors, many of whom have since been offsetting their obligations as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, hounded them all through last week.

Though widely unknown till now, Ololo has been around at the Nigerian Stock Exchange for over 15 years as a chartered stockbroker. A Bachelor of Science (Accounting) graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Ololo had worked at Union Bank of Nigeria plc and ICON Limited (Merchant Bankers) where his exposure to the capital market adequately prepared him for his current responsibilities as Managing Director of Falcon Securities. Regarded by his professional colleagues at the NSE as unassuming, the stockbroker is a conservative breed of the old school who, a friend confided in TheNEWS, hardly dons designer suits and rode for a long time in an old Peugeot 505 saloon car. Beneath all that spartan outlook, however, is an astute businessman who controlled the largest volume of trading business on the Exchange.


Over the years, Ololo built up a solid reputation as a shrewd, reliable and fearless stockbroker so much so that banks and his other clients readily entrusted him with huge funds. The stockbroker, a colleague said, would always produce funds for his clients whenever they demanded, even if he had to do so at a personal loss. “Mr. Ololo is such a person that will even sell stocks at losses just to satisfy any bank that will request for their funds or demand a sudden fund recall. He will sell stocks just to satisfy them. And because of that credibility he has earned that he would always produce results at such notice, banks have so much confidence in him and were always falling over one another to grant him huge facilities with which he traded on the floor of the Exchange,” a fellow stockbroker disclosed.

Colleagues have always marvelled at what they considered Ololo’s queer practices, sometimes. For instance, he would trade in the opposite direction when his colleagues were flocking in one direction. A source at the NSE explained that when certain stocks were on offer, with supply exceeding demand and every stockbroker was offering, Ololo would just decide to mop up the entire market, buy up whatever his colleagues were offering, to a wide applause from his colleagues and even the regulatory authorities. The huge volume and value of his transactions always impacted tremendously on market operations. Ololo is reputed to have been the regular largest contributor in transaction fees to the regulatory authorities of the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC; the NSE and the Central Securities Clearing System, CSCS, since the CSCS came on stream in 1997.

As TheNEWS investigations uncovered, banks were actually the driving force behind Ololo’s wild transactions on the floor of the Exchange. The embattled stockbroker, now singing like a canary at the Lagos offices of the EFCC, was understood to have confessed to the Commission how banks have been granting him huge facilities to manipulate stocks at the market. He was understood to have received a N30bn facility from Union Bank, another N22.2bn from Oceanic Bank and N3bn from Finbank. The stockbroker was learnt to have said that the banks, in most of the debt albatross round his neck, were the Muhammed that approached his mountain with credit facilities to invest in stocks. But the investments were largely questionable. According to his company’s audited accounts for 2007, Falcon secured a total of N89 billion in loans and overdrafts from the banks to buy shares. In addition, the company got N43 billion from the investing members of the public, among whom must be some banks in search of profitable deals in stocks at the Exchange. In all, in 2007 alone,

Falcon splashed N133 billion on stocks at the Exchange, the biggest by any stockbroking firm in the country and almost a 1000 per cent increase over the company’s outlay in 2003.

With a seemingly bottomless treasury, Ololo’s Falcons almost became the single driver of the Nigerian Exchange. His company’s modus operandi was simple. In cahoots with some banks that wanted to jack up the price of their shares, Ololo’s Falcon would mop up the shares even when other traders were dumping them, creating the illusion that the stocks were in hot demand. At a stage, the Nigerian market really turned an illusionist market, run by Houdinis of all shades. Companies that wanted to raise fresh capital, enlisted the services of brokers like Falcon to play games with their stocks, usually magically engineering them to move upwards, without sound financial underpinnings. There were some cases where some stocks appreciated more than 100 per cent, sometimes 200 per cent  in one month, making the Nigerian market the best yielding globally. Having driven the stock to the desired level,  the company would announce a public offer ‘‘at a discount.’’ The public would think the company was doing it a favour, but in actuality, it was taking everyone for a ride. But it was all a game of illusion, that entrapped millions of innocent Nigerians. And Ololo and his Falcon were the grandmasters.

The banks shared in the drama of deception by providing  the stockbroker with funds to purchase their shares to give the impression of huge public demand and market appreciation. Union Bank, one of Nigeria’s oldest banks, secured the services of Ololo last year on the eve of its aborted attempt to raise fresh capital. It gave his company N30 billion to buy its shares and in the process increase the market valuation of the shares. But the market meltdown that started in March last year became unrelenting as it thwarted all the games and made Ololo’s loan  a bad loan. In his statement to the interrogators at the office of the EFCC, Ololo confessed that he did not go out of his way to seek the loan, Union Bank sought him out and gave him the money.

To be sure, some Nigerians were suspicious about the market, about the inexplicable price increases of stocks, even for dead companies. But the regulators, the SEC and the NSE did not heed their protests. Even the regulators enjoyed the bizarre bazaar in accruing fees. No one cared about the integrity of the market.

Ololo, with so much money to play with, did not restrict his investment to stocks. He diversified into real estate, oil and gas through substantial ownership in Petosan Property and Development Company Ltd and Petosan Oil & Gas Company Ltd. The former owes N10bn to Afribank plc and N6.39bn to Oceanic Bank plc.  Both are bad loans. The oil  firm is owing Oceanic Bank N5.10bn.

Unfortunately for Ololo, misfortune didn’t just rain on him in his three investment areas of stocks, property and oil and gas, it poured, and simultaneously too. The global financial meltdown infected the business clime in Nigeria in all those areas and the value of his investments crashed extensively.

As the EFCC mounted  pressure last week on many bank debtors to  meet their obligations, investment [b]analysts generally posited that it would be extremely difficult to squeeze anything near a quarter of the N88.3bn Ololo is owing to the five banks. Unlike some well-heeled debtors who boast of multi-billion choice properties they can sell, and, indeed, have been selling to offset their debts, Ololo’s investments in property and oil are still inconsequential and yet unrewarding as to have any impact on his debt commitments. His sight, and that of his financiers, that is the banks, was fixed squarely on the stock business which, at a time promised and did churn out dizzying, immediate returns. A greater percentage of the stockbroker’s investments are, understandably therefore, in stocks, on which the loans were collaterised in the first place. With stocks on a free fall since March last year, Ololo’s multi-billion Naira investments in them amounted to nothing and he began finding it impossible to service his loans. Consequently too, the share accounts as collaterals also became useless. Compound interest mounted on the capital and the crazy debt burden suddenly brought Ololo out of obscurity and turned him into a national figure, albeit an unenviable one.[/b]

But for Sanusi, Ololo’s Falcon’s monumental debt profile to banks may have remained unpublicised for a long while, even as they drag the creditors into possible extinction. As far back as 2007, Falcon’s debt exposure to banks read N89.16bn. The overdraft/short-term loans were, according to its 2007 Annual Report, “secured by lien on various stocks” valued at N70.93bn that it owned. The company’s management and its bank creditors were apparently banking on huge returns from this huge investment in stocks to provide a steady stream of capital to gradually wipe off the equally huge debts, all things being equal. Unluckily for Ololo, all things are not always equal in the turbulent waters of business, most especially the stock market.

It is a lesson the stockbroker learnt too late as he undergoes the EFCC grill and public opprobrium. The Commission’s Chairman, Farida Waziri blew hot last week, ordering debtors like Ololo to pay back every kobo they borrowed or they would go to jail for the “illegalities” they committed.

Ololo’s colleagues at the stock market detested the use of the word “illegalities”. To them, the stockbroker has not committed any crime in collecting loans from banks to invest in the stock business. One told this publication last week that for a long period, Ololo was an efficient growth engine that had propelled the market and loans from banks had assisted him in that regard. “It was just a business deal gone bad because the market crashed. He has been doing it successfully for years and everybody was happier for it. Remember, he didn’t just start yesterday. If he had not cut a figure of trust, confidence and efficiency in the business, banks would not be falling over one another to entrust him with so much of people’s funds,” he quipped.

The defence may not be entirely justifiable. For when Ololo began his business of buying and selling stocks, he did it cautiously. In 2003, he borrowed N1bn from the banks. This jumped to N2bn in 2004. In 2005, his company’s exposure to the banks was N9bn and N17.7bn a year after. Falcon’s borrowing in 2007 became unbridled, jumping to N89bn. Unfortunately, the market imploded in 2008.

Falcon Securities Limited was incorporated on 1 April 1993 and registered by the SEC and the NSE as capital market operators (Issuing House and Brokers/Dealers) and financial advisory services. Its directors are Chairman of the Board, Mr. Jonathan Idudu, an Estate Valuer with a shareholding of 12,673,398 as at 31 December 2007; Brig.-General (retd.) Tunde Ogbeha (6,307,122 shares); Captain T. G. Ogisi (4,691,802 shares); Olorogun Lucky Oghene-Omoru (2,88,932 shares); Senator S. A. Otegbola (21,935674 shares); Chief Eric Nwobi (14,539,976 shares); Rear Admiral (retd.) F. O. Nesiama (5,671,996 shares); Dr. M. A. Uduebo (3,649,985 shares) and Ololo himself who has 347,114,062 direct shares and 1,444,041,278 indirect shares.

for SOURCE: Click here

[size=16pt]Police Smash Kidnap Syndicate, Arrest 70-Year-Old Leader[/size]

THE Police yesterday announced the dismantling of a 25-man gang of suspected kidnappers in Abiriba, Abia State, led by a 70-year-old community leader who is also a high chief in the state.

The dismantling of the gang, according to the force, also l[b]ed to the discovery of a number of shallow graves in a swampy swath at Ogbu Amaogudu in Abiriba, where a number of people abducted by the gang for ransom were buried.[/b]

Sources at the Force Headquarters, Abuja told The Guardian that the discoveries were made by the team investigating the case of the latest victim of the gang, Chief (Mrs.) Oyediya Udensi Ifegwu, the 89-year-old mother of Chief Udensi Ifegwu, the founding chairman of the defunct Alpha Merchant Bank.

Mrs. Ifegwu was abducted and killed even after the payment of the N5 million ransom demanded by the kidnappers, together with her 14-year grand daughter, Joy Asiegbu Agwu, a class three pupil of Egwuena Girls Secondary School, Abiriba.

Their bodies have been dug out of the shallow graves at Ogbu Amaogudu.

Sources said police officers investigating the deaths are working on the theory that both Mrs Ifegwu and the grand daughter were killed despite the huge payment because the kidnappers felt that the victims knew them very well and would spill the beans if released.

All the suspects and the dead hail from the same village.

The member of the gang who collected the N5m ransom opposite Nova Flour Mills on the Abiriba-Igbere Highway was killed moments later, prompting the Police to work on the theory that a disagreement must have occurred between the kidnappers over the murder of Mrs Ifegwu and her grand daughter.

"A senior Police officer, who preferred anonymity said: "It was a member of the gang who squealed on the leaders of the group and another member showed the graves to security agents."

A Police source in Abuja gave the names of the gang leaders as Chief Esere Opie Ukpabi, alias Anini (apparently named after Lawrence Anini, a notorious armed robber in Benin City, Edo State, in the 1980s), Chief Ojebe Uguru and Ndukwo Uguru, also known as Caesar. They are all now in Police custody.

The Inspector General of Police, Ogbonna Onovo, is said to be alarmed that elderly people could be involved in "conspiracies, robberies, kidnappings and killings and could lead such a large gang."

He has directed a crack team of detectives at the Force Headquarters to take over the matter "and ensure that all culprits are brought to book, no matter whose ox is gored"

Members of the gang were named as John Kalu, Eme Uguru, Emeka Eme, Eni Esobe, Moses Orika Ifegwu, Awo Nduka Okiriko, Mba Orika Ifegwu, Akanu Akanu Kalu Emeri alias Fash, Ogbonnaya Nwaonyeuku, Arua Agwu Uwa, Oediya Ole, madam Nneji Uguru, Agbai Agwu Eleanya Okpoto alias Nothing Spoil and Ojigwo Ndukwo.

Others include Agbai Agwu Eleanya alias Man Double, Ojigwo Ekekwo, Kalu Nkpa Etughu, Nduka Dimgba, Anya Kalu, Orji Okuwa Edede alias Choppinson, Agbai Kalu Ejituru also known as Jatamanta, Agwu Arua Agwu, Ekeagbara Obewu, kelechi Akwasco, Kalu Okorie and Anagha Chukwu.

Among victims [/b]of the 25-man gang [b]are Rev. Fr. Pascal Ajuka of the Catholic Church at Ogbu, Abiriba, who was released after a N200, 000 ransom payment; Chief Nwojo Omokorie Nwojo, who[b] regained freedom after N5 million ransom was paid; Hon Vincent Egbuta, released when his family paid N50, 000; and Chief Orji Asaa, freed following a payment of N1.5 million ransom.[/b]

Meanwhile, the IGP has expressed satisfaction with the Police team and intelligence officers who recently unmasked the kidnappers who abducted and killed the owner of God Is Good Motors, a prominent transporter based in Benin, Edo State, after a huge ransom payment.

The kidnap was, according to Police investigations, masterminded by a relation of the transporter whose cover was blown when a stop-and-search Police team stopped a young man in a new Camry car for a routine check and grew suspicious when the fellow became incoherent. The Police arrested him and as they were going through his telephone text messages they discovered messages with the chairman of God Is Good Motors when he was in captivity.

"The young man, in turn, led our men to his gang members who are now in our custody," the Force Public Relations Officer, Emmanuel Ojukwu, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, told The Guardian.

"But before we could apprehend the mastermind of the abduction who is a relative of the transporter, he escaped. He is the only one at large, but we shall definitely catch him."

Ojukwu said: "The Inspector General is impressed with the thoroughness, maturity, intelligence and professionalism exhibited by the team in Edo State."

for SOURCE: [url=http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/news/article03//indexn2_html?pdate=190909&ptitle=Police%20Smash%20Kidnap%20Syndicate,%20Arrest%2070-Year-Old%20Leader]Click here[/url]

[size=16pt]I will convert to Islam if the incentives are attractive - FCT minister of state[/size]

MINISTER of State of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, Chief Chuka Odom, a devout Christian, shocked many on-lookers in Abuja on Friday when he declared that he would consider converting to Islam if the incentives are attractive.

Chief Odom, who recently confessed that he jettisoned the celibacy of the Catholic faith by running away from the seminary against the wishes of his father , however, did not elaborate on the type of incentives that would make him abandon his Christian faith to become a Muslim.

The minister who spoke at the Jabi Mosque in Abuja while presenting gifts to Muslims to celebrate the Sallah festivities said he was not embarrassed to have visited mosques as the Pope, the epitome of Christianity on earth, also visited mosques.

“The Pope had visited Mosques before and so, I don’t know yet if I would consider defecting to the Islam religion but it depends on the incentives,” he declared.

He said he visited the mosques in the spirit of religious harmony and appealed to the Chief Imam of Yoruba-dominated Ansar-ud-deen Mosque, Wuse 2, Abuja to impress it on Muslims to see reason with the FCT Administration and assist the government by desisting from harsh criticisms of the policies of the Federal Government without offering constructives alternative so that the FCT could grow.

The minister, who called on critics of government policies in Abuja to take advisory positions that would promote the growth of democracy in the country, described the concept of running down, the government and its leaders by some Nigerians as a wrong attitude.

for SOURCE: Click here

[size=14pt]Athletics[/size]

[img]http://1.bp..com/__qzX-0fL9Js/SK2qmdEkxFI/AAAAAAAAG7g/ofCZ5PITZGs/s400/Daley-Thompson-A.jpg[/img]
^{Daley Thompson}

Daley Thompson (born 1958) was one of the best decathlon athletes in history. He began competing in the decathlon in 1975 and won every event he entered from 1978 until 1988. Thompson won gold medals at the 1980 and 1984 Olympic Games.

Daley Thompson was born Francis Ayodele Thompson in London, the son of a Nigerian cab driver and a Scottish mother. His father gave him the African name Ayodele, but this was later shortened to Dele, and then to Daley, the name the world would come to know him by.

Even in childhood, he wanted to win. Cordner Nelson wrote in Track's Greatest Champions that Daley said, "I just had to be first at everything, from catching the bus to finishing my lunch." And his brother agreed, "Sport was life and death to Daley." Thompson's parents divorced when he was seven. Because his mother had to work, he was sent to boarding school

His mother did not particularly encourage his interest in sports, but at the school, he grew up in a disciplined environment where skill in sports was highly valued. At first, he liked soccer, but eventually turned to track and field.

In 1973, at the age of 14, Thompson competed in his first open meet. He took fifth place in shotput, placed third in two sprinting events, and won the high jump with a height of 5'7 3/4". In 1975, he won the national junior indoor 60 in 6.9 seconds. He thought of himself as a sprinter, but in June 1975, on a whim, he entered the Welsh open decathlon.

Chose the Decathlon

"Decathlon" means "ten events" in Greek, and a form of it was a part of competition in the ancient Greek Olympics. The modern version has been around since the turn of the twentieth century. It is a series of ten track-and field events. Any athlete who participates must be an all-around talent. First day events include 100-meter sprinting, long jump, shot put, high jump, and running 400 meters. On the second day the athlete must run the 110-meter hurdles, throw the discus, pole vault, throw the javelin, and run 1,500 meters.

SOURCE: Encyclopedia of World Biography on Daley Thompson - Pages 1 and 2

or Click here

[size=14pt]Victor Adebowale, Baron Adebowale[/size]


^{Lord Victor Adebowale}

Lord Victor Adebowale is one of the most charismatic and influential figures in the voluntary sector. He is someone who has made a huge difference not only to the organisations he has worked for, but on the environment they work in and on the sector as a whole.

He jokes that he first became involved in the sector because he was very bad at selling video recorders. More seriously, he decided it was where his future lay when he was still at school, at a time when everyone else wanted to be an airline pilot.

Victor started a career in housing with Newham Council before moving in 1985 to become head of permanent property at Patchwork Housing Association and then regional director of Ujima Housing Association. From 1990 to 1995 he was director of the Alcohol Recovery Project and then became chief executive of homelessness charity Centrepoint. Here, he says he had to make difficult decisions from day one in the full glare of publicity. His leadership skills and vision developed Centrepoint as an important provider of advice in key areas of Government policy around social change, including advising the Social Exclusion Unit and New Deal for Communities

Recognition for Victor's achievements has already come with a CBE in 2000 for services to the unemployed and homeless young people, and his influence further increased when he became one of the first People's Peers in 2001.

As well as his day job and his role in the House of Lords, Victor is patron of a number of organisations, a member of the National Employment Panel, the Demos Advisory Council, the New Economics Foundation board, the Institute of Fiscal Studies council, and a trustee of RNID.

'This stuff really matters,' he states. 'The bottom line is important for a lot of organisations but what really counts is whether you can change lives.'

for SOURCE: Click here

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[size=14pt]Victor Adebowale, Lord Adebowale[/size]

[img width=372 height=192]http://www.charityawards.co.uk/home/images/adebowale.jpg[/img]
^{Lord Victor Adebowale}

Victor Olufemi Adebowale, Baron Adebowale, CBE (born 21 July 1962) is the Chief Executive of the social care enterprise Turning Point and was one of the first to become a People's Peer.

Adebowale joined Turning Point as Chief Executive in September 2001. Turning Point is the UK’s leading social care organisation and provides services for people with complex needs, including those affected by drug and alcohol misuse, mental health problems and those with a learning disability. Turning Point runs projects in 244 locations across England and Wales and last year had contact with 130,000 people. In addition to providing direct services, Turning Point also campaigns nationally on behalf of those with social care needs.

Adebowale was born to Nigerian parents Ezekiel & Grace Adebowale and was educated at Thornes House School, Wakefield and the Polytechnic of East London. He began his career in Local Authority Estate Management before joining the housing association movement. He spent time with Patchwork Community Housing Association and was Regional Director of the Ujima Housing Association, Britain’s largest black-led housing association. He was Director of the Alcohol Recovery Project and then Chief Executive of youth homelessness charity Centrepoint before taking up his current post.

Adebowale was a member of the Social Exclusion Unit’s Policy Action Team on Young People and was Chair of the Review of Social Housing Co-ordination by the Institute of Public Policy Research.

Adebowale divides his time between a wide range of influential policy-making bodies. He is involved in a number of taskforce groups, advising the government on mental health, learning disability and the role of the voluntary sector. He is Co-Chair of the Black and Minority Ethnic Mental Health National Steering Group and is a member of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.

Adebowale is a patron of Rich Mix Centre Celebrating Cultural Diversity, a patron of Tomorrow’s Project and of the National College for School Leadership. He is a member of the National Employment Panel, the New Economics Foundation Board and the Institute for Fiscal Studies Council. He is also on the policy advisory board of the Social Market Foundation, and on the board of the National School of Government.

Adebowale has an honorary PhD from the University of Central England in Birmingham, an honorary doctor of letters from the University of Lincoln, an honorary PhD from the University of East London and most recently an honorary doctor of the university from the University of Bradford, where he is involved with their Centre for Inclusion and Diversity, in December 2007. He is an honorary fellow of South Bank University and Honorary Senior Fellow in the Health Services Management Centre at the University of Birmingham.

In 2000, Adebowale was awarded the CBE in the New Year’s Honour List for services to the New Deal, the unemployed, and homeless young people. In 2001, Adebowale became one of the first group of people to be appointed as people's peers and the title was gazetted as Baron Adebowale, of Thornes in the County of West Yorkshire on 30 June.

On 12 December 2008, Adebowale was installed as Chancellor of the University of Lincoln.

for SOURCE: Click here

- Didnt know he was Naija until when I read his autobiography - it was an emotional read I must admit


[size=14pt]FOOTBALL[/size]

 

  [img width=348 height=400]http://www.soccer-ireland.com/football-images/irish-footballers/paul-mcgrath.jpg[/img]
  ^{Paul McGrath : Irish international footballer
  Ireland versus Italy : 1994 World Cup}

Paul McGrath (born 4 December 1959 in Ealing, London, England) is a former football defender, a long-time member of the Republic of Ireland national team. He was one of the first Irish celebrities of mixed-race background.

[size=14pt]Childhood[/size]

McGrath is the son of an Irish mother and a Nigerian father. According to Donald McRae, McGrath's father disappeared soon after his conception. His mother, Betty McGrath, had given Paul up for adoption when he was four weeks old. Terrified that her father would find out she had become pregnant in an interracial relationship, McGrath's mother travelled in secret to London to have her child, who was considered illegitimate.

Although McGrath's mother would eventually track him down again, Paul Nwobilo, as he was then known, was brought up in a number of orphanages in Dublin.

[size=14pt]Career - Club[/size]

McGrath began as a schoolboy with Pearse Rovers and played junior football for Dalkey United. While at the latter, he attracted the attention of the Manchester United scout Billy Behan. McGrath worked briefly as an apprentice sheet metal worker and a security guard in Dublin before becoming a full time professional with Football League of Ireland club St Patrick's Athletic in 1981. He made his debut in a League Cup clash with Shamrock Rovers in August at Richmond Park. He ultimately excelled at St Pat's, earning the nickname "The Black Pearl of Inchicore" and receiving the PFAI Player of the Year Award in his first and only season. He scored 4 goals in 31 total appearance for the Saints.

McGrath moved to Manchester United, then managed by Ron Atkinson, in 1982. His only honour there was the 1985 FA Cup, where United defeated Everton 1–0. McGrath was named Man of the Match in the game, the game is remembered for the sending off of Kevin Moran - the first person to be sent off in an FA Cup Final - and where Norman Whiteside scored the winner.

In his early years at Manchester United, he was frequently used as a midfielder, changing to defender still at Old Trafford. McGrath relied mainly on pace, strength and his ability to read the game. Ben Dyson quoted: 'Defending is known as the devil of football, McGrath makes it seem like a work of art'.

Often regarded as one of the best defenders in the game, several knee injuries stopped McGrath from becoming a regular under new United manager Alex Ferguson. McGrath and Ferguson also faced a turbulent relationship, as McGrath's alcohol addiction and physical problems led to United offering him a retirement package of £100,000 with a testimonial. McGrath refused, and instead Ferguson began to inform clubs of his availability. Although McGrath's former manager Atkinson made an offer from Sheffield Wednesday, Aston Villa F.C.'s offer was accepted and McGrath signed in 1989.

While at Villa, McGrath played some of the best football of his life despite recurrent problems in his knees. Villa came close to winning the title in McGrath's first season, finishing second to Liverpool F.C,  The next season saw Villa fighting relegation for much of the season, a shadow of the side the previous season under Graham Taylor, who had left to take control of England. Atkinson then took over and Villa again ended as runner-up, to McGrath's former employer Manchester United. McGrath won the PFA Player of the Year award at the end of the season, and would also win his first Villa trophy in 1994, defeating Manchester United in the League Cup final.

McGrath left Aston Villa in 1996, considered one of the greatest players in the side's history and is nicknamed "God" by their fans, who also remember his services by singing a terrace chant every matchday to the tune of "Kumbayah". He retired from the game in 1998, after very brief spells with Derby County and Sheffield United. He helped Derby to a secure 12th place finish in their first Premier League season, and completed his playing career by guiding Sheffield United to the FA Cup semi-finals as well as helping them secure a playoff place - although they were beaten by Sunderland in the play-off semi-finals.

For many years he suffered from alcoholism, and missed occasional matches as a result. In an interview with FourFourTwo, McGrath admitted to playing football while still under the influence of alcohol. His recurrent knee problems resulted in him undergoing a total of eight operations during his career. McGrath's autobiography, Back from the Brink, co-written with journalist Vincent Hogan, was the most successful Irish sports book ever. Upon retiring, McGrath settled in Monageer, County Wexford.

for SOURCE: [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_McGrath_%28footballer%29]Click here[/url]

FYI: https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-324505.0.html

^{Wondering whether this is possible in Naija}

[size=16pt]Synagogue doubles as mosque during Ramadan[/size]

‘Here is a story that shatters the stereotype’ of Jewish-Muslim conflict


[center]
^{Muslims pray in a synagogue}[/center]
RESTON, Va. - On Friday afternoons, the people coming to pray at this building take off their shoes, unfurl rugs to kneel on and pray in Arabic. The ones that come Friday evenings put on yarmulkes, light candles and pray in Hebrew.

The building is a synagogue on a tree-lined street in suburban Virginia, but for the past few weeks — during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan — it has also been doubling daily as a mosque. Synagogue members suggested their building after hearing the Muslim congregation was looking to rent a place for overflow crowds.

"People look to the Jewish-Muslim relationship as conflict," said All Dulles Area Muslim Society Imam Mohamed Magid, saying it's usually disputes between the two groups in the Middle East that make news. "Here is a story that shatters the stereotype."

Magid, who grew up in Sudan, said he did not meet someone who was Jewish until after he had moved to the U.S. in his 20s, and he never imagined having such a close relationship with a rabbi. But he said the relationship with the Northern Virginia Hebrew Congregation has affected him and his members. Beyond being tolerant, the synagogue and its members have been welcoming.

He said one member of the mosque told him, "Next time I see a Jewish person I will not look at them the same."

Rabbi Robert Nosanchuk, who leads the Reform congregation of about 500 families, said the relationship works both ways.

"You really only get to know someone when you invite them into your home ,  you learn to recognize their faces. You learn the names of their children," Nosanchuk said.

Prayers in social hall
The actual prayers are held in the building's social hall, which is used by the synagogue for a range of activities from educational programs to dance classes and receptions.

Both the synagogue and the mosque have a history of sharing space with other religious groups. People coming to Friday night services at the synagogue sometimes park in an adjoining church's parking lot; on Sundays, sometimes churchgoers park behind the synagogue.

And the mosque has rented space from others since it was founded in 1983. Members have prayed in a recreation center, a high school, an office building and, for a long time, a church. As the mosque has grown, however, it has needed more space. In 2002 the community opened its own building in Sterling, Va. It holds 900 people for prayers, but the community has satellite locations to accommodate more people: a hotel, a banquet hall and even a second synagogue, Beth Chaverim Reform congregation, in Ashburn, Va.

The community began renting space at the two synagogues in 2008. They began holding daily prayers at the Ashburn synagogue and prayers on Friday afternoons, the week's main prayer service, at the Northern Virginia Hebrew Congregation.

This is the first year, however, they have rented space at the synagogue for the daily prayers for Ramadan, which began at the end of August. More than 100 people come to the daily services, which are held from 9 p.m. to 10:45 p.m. except for Friday, when the services are in the afternoon. The society pays the synagogue $300 a day.

The partnership isn't entirely new. The two communities have held occasional events together going back a decade: dialogues and community service. Still, some members of both communities were unsure of how things would work at first.

"When they rented the place, I was surprised, but then after that when I came here and saw how nicely everything is set up and how well done it is ,  I am very happy with it," said mosque member Ambreen Ahmed.

Now, mosque members sometimes greet the rabbi with the Hebrew greeting "Shalom"; he'll answer back with the Arabic equivalent, "Salaam."

Nosanchuk spoke at Friday afternoon prayers recently. The imam spoke at Friday evening Shabbat services.

Joint trip to Middle East?
Both groups say the relationship won't be over when Ramadan ends in North America over the weekend. The rabbi and imam are talking about possibly even making a joint trip to the Middle East, and Friday prayers will still be held at the synagogue.

Magid says some mosque members, in fact, have permanently moved from the mosque to the synagogue.

"Where have you been?" he asked one man who used to pray regularly at the mosque.

"You saw me in the synagogue," the man replied.

"All the time?" the imam asked.

"It's cozy, it's nice. Your parking lot is overcrowded ,  and I like to be there," the man said.

The imam joked maybe the man should stay for the Sabbath service.

Said the imam: "That shows you how comfortable they have become."

for SOURCE: Click here

[center]
^{'Try not to burst my lips, babe!'
Jocelyn attempts to smile as her beau snuggles up to her for a kiss after a romantic dinner date}[/center]

[size=16pt]Bloated Bride of Wildenstein looks more frightening than ever[/size]

She has spent more than £2million altering her face only to emerge as a stark warning against too much cosmetic surgery.

But just when it seems Jocelyn Wildenstein's face couldn't get any more terrifying, she was seen in Los Angeles looking strangely swollen and bloated.

Perhaps it was the result of yet another tweak by her plastic surgeon, whom she has visited regularly over the years to work on her trout pout and bizarre taut look.

[center]
^{Bloated bride: Jocelyn Wildenstein face looks even more painful and swollen than usual
as she steps out for dinner
Feline features: The surgically-enhanced face is said to be modelled on a love of exotic wild cats}[/center]
The 63-year-old has earned the nickname the Bride of Wildenstein for her obsessive approach to surgery which has left her with incredibly strange features.

The ex-wife of late billionaire Alec Wildenstein has undergone at least seven face lifts and drastic eye reconstruction surgery and received collagen injections to her lips, cheeks and chin.

During her marriage to Alec, the socialite began to fear her husband was losing interest in her and, inspired by his love for cats, began altering her face to make her appear more feline.

Alec was said to have screamed in horror when he saw her face, but her current beau seems to be built of braver stuff.

The mother-of-two got up close and personal on the night out with her new flame, believed to be fashion designer Lloyd Klein.

With what looked like an attempt to smile at one point, Jocelyn was happy to share the tender moment in the presence of snapping photographers.

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[center][/center]

for SOURCE: Click here

Hmm. There are troubled times ahead . . .

[size=16pt]You mustn't mention God . . . council bans church from putting up notices about its meetings[/size]

A Christian campaign group has been banned from pinning up notices about its meetings in libraries or community centres.

The activists were told their posters advertising talks about climate change could not be shown in public because they mentioned Christianity and God.

Officials declared that the flyers for a talk on 'climate change is a Christian issue' and and another by a spokesman for the Christian Ecology Link were in conflict with town hall policy against the promotion of religious ideas.

The ban in Camden in North London bemused campaigners from the Roman Catholic Our Lady Help of Christians parish church - not least because they were told they could display posters advertising green rallies so long as they did not refer to God.

There was also confusion among the greens that while borough officials insist they cannot lend a hand to a Christian group, it provides for inquirers details of no fewer than 13 mosques, Muslim study groups, and Islamic social groups.

It is currently advertising for a £32,714-a-year youth worker to engage with 'especially Muslim teenagers' and the borough's website publishes the news that 'Camden council raises awareness of Islam', complete with assurances from a former leader that 'we work hard to spread a true picture of Islam and the Muslim faith.'

The rejection of flyers by local Christian group at libraries and community centres in Camden follows a growing number of incidents of official disapproval of Christians and Christianity.

They range from the refusal by some local authorities to allow any recognition of Christmas through attempts by police forces to silence activists and authors who oppose the gay rights lobby, to disciplinary action by schools and hospitals against teachers who make their Christianity public or nurses who offer to pray with patients.

Jo Siedlecka is organising the climate change meetings for the Our Lady parish. They are part of a national push by church leaders who want to publicise their fears over the greenhouse effect which involves Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams and Anglican Bishop of London Dr Richard Chartres as well as Roman Catholic clergy.

'I went to the local library with the posters,' Miss Siedlecka said. 'This time last year we had a green fair and lots of the councillors came, along with our local MP Frank Dobson.

'We had a  good deal of support from Camden council who had stalls promoting recycling and compost and so on. I don't understand why they they won't allow us to put up our posters this year.'

Miss Siedlecka said she asked her local library to use its distribution service to put up flyers throughout the borough giving notice of the talks.

'A lady in a yashmak, a Muslim lady, told me that they could not advocate religions and that they could not promote religious ideas.

'Then I spoke to officials at the town hall who told me again that they could not promote a religion. They said they would be very happy if it was green, but it could not be Christian.'

She added: 'This is bizarre. This is annoying.'

Christian pressure groups called for an immediate rethink from borough leaders.

Mike Judge of the Christian Institute said: 'This is another case of Christians being told to go to the back of the class.

'It is prejudice against Christianily. Christians run huge numbers of community projects and they pay council taxes.

'They are not promoting their religion at the expense of anyone else and they are entitled to put their posters up. It is time Camden got a grip.'

The London borough, where the Liberal Democrats are the biggest party and provide the council with its leader Ken Moffitt, told a Roman Catholic news agency: 'We are happy to put up posters supporting green issues but council policy does not allow the promotion of religion.'

for SOURCE: Click here