₦airaland Forum

Lagos State governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has approved the release of N77, 536,621.20 as scholarships to 337 indigenes of the state in various tertiary institutions throughout the country for the 2011/2012 session.

In a release from the Secretary, Lagos State Scholarship Board, Mrs Yetunde Jegede, the awardees include 223 undergraduate students with 3.5 grade point and above and 74 postgraduate students who took part in the last local scholarship interview conducted in January.

“Others are the 40 undergraduate students who automatically qualified for merit award having got 4.0 grade point and above,” it stated.

According to the statement, documentation exercise in readiness for the presentation of award to this category of awardees will commence on Monday, on the premises of the board in Agege, after which ATM cards would be released to them.

Jegede, therefore, implored benefitting students to come with original and photocopies of relevant documents, including school identity cards, current progress report, two passport photographs, letter of admission, N2,000 Lagos State Scholarship Board brochure, receipt obtained from the Office of the Special Adviser on Education, Alausa and any other documents that were not submitted before now.

The award value ranges from N200, 000 to N300, 000 to N400, 000 for undergraduate, master’s and doctoral students, respectively.

http://tribune.com.ng/index.php/news/49485-lagos-releases-over-n775m-for-payment

October 19, 2012 by Chukwudi Akasike, Port Harcourt

NOBEL Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, on Thursday said recent developments in Nigeria portrayed it as a country at war.

Soyinka also described the current killings in parts of the country as an ongoing war between the forces of good and evil.

Speaking at the presentation of Port Harcourt as the UNESCO World Book Capital for 2014, he said Nigerians would cease to be human beings if they yield to evil forces.

Soyinka, who condemned the murder of four students of the University of Port Harcourt and the Mubi killings, noted that the forces of evil were out to wipe out any trace of enlightenment and creativity in the country.

The Nobel Laureate urged literary minds in the country not to see themselves as authors, writers and readers, but as part of a creative army against the forces that had come to extinct creativity.

He said, “I believe quite frankly this country is at war; the war is between the forces of darkness and the forces of light, the forces of intellect, the forces of rationality and the forces of atavism, retrograde thinking, the forces of hatred against humanism.

“I believe that if we surrender to these banal forces in our society, we cease to be human beings because we succumb completely to fear and it is the same message we must take to those in this nation, who believe that books are wrong.

“I don’t care whether they call themselves the final defenders of the pure road and the ultimate salvation or call themselves Boko Haram.

“Boko Haram and all organisations, all movements that wage war against books, against literacy, against education and enlightenment in any form have declared war, not on the state, but on humanity itself and in spite of such setbacks, in spite of such horrors, we have the responsibility to support and to sustain efforts such as being made by the Rainbow Club and allied societies and organisations.”

He stated that the recognition of Port Harcourt as UNESCO’s World Book Capital was an indication that something was going right in the country.

Soyinka added, “One plea that I want to make to my fellow writers, authors everywhere is that we are not just engaged in the business of writing books; we are part of a large army of creative people.

Earlier, the Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, said his administration had been investing in the education of the people of the state.

Represented by the Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, the governor explained that such investment was aimed at growing a literate citizenry that would be able to take the state to the next level of development.

http://www.punchng.com/news/nigeria-is-at-war-soyinka/

Written by Taiwo Olanrewaju, Kola Oyelere and Ademola Adegbite Friday, 19 October 2012

SOME members of the Batch ‘C’ corps members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), in Adamawa State, on Thursday, were stranded in Yola, the state capital, following the non-payment of N20,000 state allowance by the state Post-Primary School Management Board (PPSMB).

Nigerian Tribune gathered that the corps members, immediately after the collection of their discharge certificates at their various local government areas, besieged the PPSMB office for their allowances, but were disappointed, as their names were omitted in the list.

Addressing them in his office, the state director of PPSMB, Alhaji Haruna Tola, attributed the problem to negligence on the part of school principals, adding that the board had compiled the list since February.

10 bag awards in Oyo
In Oyo State, 10 out of the 3,560 2011 Batch ‘C’ corps members, who successfully ended their service year and had their passing-out parade ceremony on Thursday, distinguished themsel-ves while an undisclosed number of corps mem-bers had been penciled in for sanctions.

The state NYSC direc-tor, Pastor Olaonipekun Alao, in his speech at a brief ceremony held at the secretariat of Ibadan North Local Government Area of the state, noted that two of the 10 corps members bagged the state honours award, while others got the chairman’s award.

He, however, added that names of erring corps members had been sent to the NYSC disciplinary committee, adding that he was awaiting further instructions from Abuja.

State chairman of the governing board of the NYSC, who is also the Commissioner for Youths and Sports, Mr Dapo Adesina, described the corps members as the best in Oyo State so far, adding that the governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, was impressed with them.

The two corps members who got the state award were 27-year-old Igba Teso and 24-year-old Odunayo Elizabeth Amosu.

Teso is from Gboko, Benue State and a gradu-ate of Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi. He served at Ilora, where he built a block of two classrooms for First Baptist Primary School, Ilora.

Amosu is from Iworo, Badagry, Lagos State, a graduate of the Lagos State University (LASU), who served at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan and bagged the chieftaincy title of Atunluse of Iseyin, for donating grinding machi-nes, pop corn machine and N25,000 to widows in Iseyin.

5 to repeat programme in Kano
In Kano, the state NYSC coordinator, Alhaji Bashir Salisu Yakasai, said five corps members, who absconded during the service year, would have to repeat the exercise.

This is just as he said out of the 2,100 members that registered in camp, 1,079 redeployed due to alleged security challenges.

Speaking during the passing-out parade in Kano, Alhaji Yakasai said eight of the corps members who served in the state got different awards.

Alhaji Yakasai, however, charged prospective corps members to be deployed in the state not to entertain any fear, saying adequate protection of their lives and properties would be guaranteed.

http://tribune.com.ng/index.php/news/49480-corps-members-stranded-in-adamawa-over-allowances

The Senate has called for the removal of the Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Arunmah Oteh.

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Capital Market, Senator Ayoade Ademola Adeseun (ACN, Oyo), who made the call in a statement today, said the Senate backed the Lower Chamber in its resolution asking President Goodluck Jonathan to relieve Oteh of her job.

He said the committee was constrained to call for her removal to save the nation’s capital market from imminent collapse.

According to him, the committee noted that since Oteh's return, the commission has been plagued with series of protests that have pitted her against the staff.

"You will recall that the House of Representatives, few months ago, set up an Ad-hoc committee which investigated the "Near Collapse of the Nigerian Capital Market. Consequently, the House passed a resolution based on the report of that committee that the president should sack the Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms. Arunmah Oteh.

"The House further resolved that should the president fail to comply with its resolution, the House would cease to accord any recognition to the SEC DG. You are also aware that instead of complying with that resolution of the House, the SEC DG was reinstated in a flagrant disregard of the resolution”, he said.

The lawmaker said its committee observed that the way the embattled DG was running the commission could further destroy the capital market and concluded that “if this trend is not arrested, the Nigerian capital market might be brought finally to its knees, with attendant deleterious effect on the economy of the country”.

"The committee, therefore, resolved to support the position of the House of Representatives that the SEC DG be removed forthwith. The committee also resolved to have nothing to do with Arunmah Oteh for as long as she remains at the helm of affairs at the SEC", he said.

http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/index.php/news/179168-senate-calls-for-otehs-sack

The inexplicable absence of Justice Mudashiru Oniyangi of an Abuja High Court on Thursday stalled the scheduled delivery of the judgment in a suit instituted by a Peoples Democratic Party chieftain to prevent President Goodluck Jonathan from contesting the 2015 Presidential election.

The court had earlier scheduled to deliver its decision on the matter for today but the event was stalled as the judge was said not to be around to deliver the judgment which, P M News learnt, was ready to be delivered.

A female court official who declined to be named said the judge traveled out of the jurisdiction but could not say whether the judge was attending a conference or any other official assignment that made him to be absent from his duty post.

The President’s party chieftain, Mr. Cyriacus Njoku, was miffed with Jonathan’s statement earlier in March that he is serving his first term in office as the elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Njoku subsequently dragged him to court urging that Jonathan should be declared unfit to contest the 2015 election as he is currently serving his second term of office.

Mr. Njoku, before the present suit, had attempted to stop the President from contesting the 2011 Presidential election on the ground that Jonathan’s candidacy violated the zoning principle of their party, PDP.

He however failed to get Jonathan disqualified as the court declined to stop the President from running for office. Jonathan went on to participate in the election and was declared winner by the Independent National Election Commission, INEC.

The President and his aides have consistently maintained that he is currently serving his first term of four years in office as the President of the federal Republic of Nigeria as provided by the 1999 constitution.

Jonathan has also emphasized that he has not indicated or announced anywhere that he would contest the presidential elections in 2015 and had described the suit against an undeclared ambition as frivolous and vexatious.

A Senior Special Assistant to the President, Mr Mattew Aikhionbare and Dr Reuben Abati, the Presidential Spokesman, both spoke in support of their principal whom, they argued is currently doing his first term of 4 years in office as the president of Nigeria as provided by the 1999.

They argued that the Nigerian constitution only makes provisions for a president to contest for not more than 2 terms of 4 years each and that their principal has not indicated or announced anywhere whether in words or in writing that he will contest for the presidential elections to be conducted in 2015.

The court official promised to contact the lawyers for a new date for the judgment to be delivered.

http://pmnewsnigeria.com/2012/10/18/2015-judges-absence-postpones-verdict-on-jonathan/

I'll listen to 24 Hours To Live by Mase, Black Rob, DMX and L.O.X all day.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgtU_SJ72Ng

It's very apt IMO

18 RECs to be used for election – Jega
BY DAYO JOHNSON

CHAIRMAN of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof Attahiru Jega, yesterday, assured that all the votes cast in the October 20 governorship election in Ondo State wouldl count and that the winner of the election would be declared Sunday morning.

Jega, who spoke in Akure during a stakeholder meeting with all the political parties said that the Ondo State elections would be a tremendous improvement on the one held in Edo State last July. He also declared that the commission would not remove any of the already accredited election observing groups without clear evidence of partisanship.

He said that 18 Resident Electoral Commissioners, REC from states outside the South West would act as Electoral Officers in the 18 council areas of the state
The Chairman assured that the election would be free, fair and credible and that the electoral body would create an enabling atmosphere for all political parties without any bias.

Jega said the commission had done its best in discharging its responsibilities even as he admitted that the commission was not perfect but had been able to improve on the challenges it faced in previous elections especially that of Edo State.

“We are committed to conducting the best election in Ondo State come October 20 and we want to assure all that we are ready to put in all the professionalism and integrity that are required to this election.”

He called on the political parties to report any INEC official found to have compromised in the October 20 election.Jega said that the commission would however not bulge to spurious allegation but added that all allegations would be investigated

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/10/18-recs-to-be-used-for-election-jega/

Pirates kidnap seven expatriates
October 18, 2012 by Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa Leave a Comment

Gunmen at dawn on Tuesday attacked a vessel belonging to Bobon International Oil Limited, off the coast of Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, Bayelsa State, and abducted six Russians and one other expatriate believed to be an Estonian.

Our correspondent learnt that the expatriates were abducted at a time the security sources described as “wee hours of Tuesday”

Confirming the incident, Media Coordinator, JTF, Lt. Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, told our correspondent that operatives of the outfit had intensified the search for the kidnapped expatriates.

“Some unknown gunmen attacked a vessel and abducted seven persons consisting of six Russians and one Estonian national. We have deployed our naval elements to comb the area and track down the kidnappers. We have also alerted all operational bases,” he said.

Though the identities of the attackers and their motives were not known, security sources described them as pirates.

The incident, which had created tension in the Niger Delta region, occurred along the Pennington River.

Fifteen workers were said to be on board the vessel which was believed to be sailing from the Pennington Offshore Terminal, situated 16 miles to the entrance of Fishtown River when the incident happened.

http://www.punchng.com/news/gunmen-attack-oil-vessel-kidnap-seven-expatriates-2/

ABUJA — An Abuja High Court sitting at Maitama, will today, determine whether President Goodluck Jonathan is eligible or not to contest Presidency in 2015.

It was an aggrieved member of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Mr Cyriacus Njoku, that approached the court, asking it to go ahead and determine “whether Section 135(2) of the Constitution, which specifies a period of four years in office for the President, is only available or applicable to a person elected on the basis of an actual election or includes one in which a person assumes the position of President by operation of law, as in the case of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan.”

Likewise, a seven-man panel of Justices of the Supreme Court has fixed December 14, to deliver judgment on another suit seeking to nullify the April 16 general election that brought President Jonathan to power.

The suit was filed before the apex court by the National Democratic Party, NDP, which is alleging that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, violated several provisions of the Electoral Act, 2010. The party contended that the second timetable the electoral body used for the general election was illegal, null and void.

Meantime, in his suit, Cyriacus who said he intended to vie for the Presidency in 2015, is also urging the high court to determine “whether Section 137(1) (b) of the Constitution, which provides that a person shall not be qualified for election to the office of President if he has been elected to such office at any two previous elections, applies to the first defendant, who first took an oath of office as substantive President on May 6, 2010 and took a second oath as President on May 29, 2011.”

He is seeking a declaration that ‘the President’s tenure of office began on May 6, 2010 when his first term began and his two terms shall end on May 29, 2015 after taking his second oath of office on May 29, 2011; and by virtue of Section 136 (1) (b) of the Constitution, no person (including the first defendant) shall take the oath of allegiance and the oath of office prescribed to in the Seventh Schedule to this Constitution more than twice.

Meanwhile, both President Jonathan and the PDP, in separate preliminary objections they filed against the suit, described it as “frivolous and highly vexatious,” saying it ought to be dismissed in its entirety as grossly lacking in merit.

They contended that the plaintiff failed to disclose any reasonable cause of action that precipitated the suit, insisting that Jonathan is currently doing his first term of four years in office as the President of Nigeria as provided by the 1999 constitution as amended.

According to the PDP, “President Jonathan’s status and position is formidably backed by the 1999 constitution. The constitution of Nigeria only makes provisions for a president to contest for not more than two terms of four years each. The constitution recognizes the President’s tenure of office to be four years.”



PDP further maintained that Jonathan had not indicated or announced anywhere whether in words or in writing that he would contest for the presidential election in 2015, adding that the plaintiff lacked the locus-standi to seek for such declarative orders against Jonathan.

Similarly, Jonathan, through his consortium of lawyers led by Chief Ade Okeaya-Inneh, SAN, maintained that the 1999 constitution, as amended, permits him to contest for not more than two terms of 4-years each.

In a15-paragraph counter affidavit that was deposed on his behalf by a lawyer, Mr Osahon Okeaya-Inneh, Jonathan said he was yet to indicate or announce anywhere that he would contest for presidency in 2015, just as he dismissed the suit as an academic exercise.

In the counter affidavit entered against the suit, counsel to Jonathan averred: “I am a counsel in the law firm of Ade Okeaya-Inneh and Co. Counsel to the 1st defendant in this suit, by virtue of which I am conversant with the facts of this case

“I have the consent and authority of the 1stdefendant/respondent to depose to this affidavit

“When my law firm was briefed by the 1stdefendant to represent him in his action, I, together with Mr Mattew Aikhionbare (senior special assistant to the President) and Dr Reuben Abati (special adviser on media and publicity to the President) meticulously went through the 11-paragraph affidavit of the plaintiff in support of his originating summons.

“The 1st defendant is currently doing his first term of 4 years in office as the president of Nigeria as provided by the 1999 constitution as amended. The 1st defendant status and position is formidably backed by the 1999 constitution.

“The constitution of Nigeria only makes provisions for a president to contest for not more than 2 terms of 4 years each. The constitution recognizes the Executive President’s tenure of office to be 4 years.

“I was informed by Dr Reuben Abati on the April 4, 2012 at about 5.30 pm in his office and I verily believe that. ‘The 1stdefendant has not indicated or announced anywhere whether in words or in writing that he will contest for the presidential elections to be conducted in 2015.

“The Late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua contested and won the presidential elections conducted in 2007 for a one term of four years. He was the president from May 29, 2007 until sometime in May 2010 when he passed on. Yar’Adua’s four years was to end in 2011.”

Jonathan further told the court that on May 6, 2010, he was sworn in as the president after the demise of the Late President Yar’Adua thereby completing Yara’Adua’s 12 months of the 4 years tenure, stressing that this is the first time he is coming to power as the president of Nigeria through a conducted election wherein he was voted as the presidential candidate of his party, the PDP.

He said the plaintiff neither attached copies of his recent tax clearance certificate from the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, nor his PDP membership card as proof of who he claimed to be.

Therefore, he beseeched the presidingJustice Mudashiru Onyangi to terminate hearing on the suit he said was meant to make the court labour in futility.

Remarkably, this is the second time the plaintiff, Njoku is dragging President Jonathan to court with a view to thwarting his political ambitions.

It will be recalled that he had in August 2010, attempted to stop the PDP from allowing Jonathan to participate in the PDP presidential primaries of January 2011.

Njoku, from Zuba Ward in Gwagwalada Area Council of Abuja and with PDP registration number 1622735, had previously urged the court to ask the PDP to respect its principle on zoning formula in line with Article 7. 2(c) of the party’s constitution.

He had insisted that the declaration of Jonathan (third defendant) to contest the presidency on the PDP platform was contrary to Article7.2(c) of the 2009 Constitution of the PDP, as amended.

However, the Chief Judge of the FCT High Court, Justice Lawan Gummi dismissed the zoning suit, thus paving way for President Jonathan to emerge as the flag bearer of the party in the last general elections.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/10/presidency-2015-court-determines-jonathans-eligibility-today/

The Original story as reported on NL: Czech Man Lives With No Heart For Six Months

Sad the man has passed away

May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace

[quote author=Jackie_25]Na wa o! Nairaland is so pro-Obama, not a place to get a fair analysis for someone that did not watch the debate.[/quote]True but "majority" of the news media have called this debate for Obama.

Even the snap polls conducted amongst the debate watchers indicates Obama won this second debate.

Just check around. . . . .

globetree: So, I came to Nairaland this afternoon to get my dose of daily news and also to contribute knowledgeably and responsibly to issues only to discover I cannot comment - I was banned. I quickly guessed Mukina2 to be responsible. I checked and I was right. Its understandable Mukina2 has come after me after I called her out on the Moderators thread but banning somebody for 'double id' is senseless and also ridiculous. How can any sane person ban someone for double id?

Please refer to the Nairaland Forum Rules and Regulations thread and take note of point 4 under miscellaneous. It says "The use of multiple accounts without explicit permission of the forum administrator(s) is prohibited".

So in essence, she was right to ban you (MrGlobe2) particularly when you were creating ethnic-bashing/tribalistic threads and generally fermenting trouble with it.

globetree: Can Mukina2 point to any thread on Nairaland where I have claimed another ID or claimed to own so thereof? As far as am concerned Mr. Globe2 is my only ID on Nairaland and I wont take responsibility for another User. I demand that my account is restored immediately. 2013 ke, for double id. ok

A little investigative profile browsing reveals the highlighted to be untrue. Mr Globe2 created a thread titled Why Was Mr. Globe Banned? on September 8 and in it you said and I quote "I have stayed off this site for some days only to log in and see that I can't make post with my other account. What is the cause of the ban please. Why was I banned?".

This is incontrovertible proof that Mr Globe2 is Mr Globe and since you (globetree) have admitted to being Mr Globe2 on this thread, therefore globetree=Mr Globe2=Mr Globe, one and the same person.

Your account won't be unbanned and you will serve out your ban.

globetree: Now the the topic (the reason you are here of course) Yes.. Mukina2 is clearly anti-igbo and he or she has not done a good job at controlling it, since he/she is a moderator. Have y'all noticed that since this expose by Achebe of Awolowo, only pro Awolowo threads make the homepage off course masterminded by Mukina2. They think we dont know. Also Mukina2 is only seen on Yoruba inclined threads hiding and banning comments that don't sit down well with her (emotions) while turning blind to the many Yoruba bigots and their comments roaming the forum like almajiris. He/She has made it a habit of banning igbos on Nairaland for at least a year.

All this is BS.

Just quit with the ethnic bashing/tribalistic threads & posts and you'll enjoy your time on Nairaland. It isn't too hard nah?

globetree: Mukina2 you may now ban this ID for double ID. I own this one.

bye

Done! Enjoy your ban.