Courtney Dike, a 19-year-old who plays for the Super Falconettes, Nigeria’s Under 20 female football team has rejected the $7,000 paid to her by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) for participating in the 2014 U-20 Women’s World Cup, Nigerian Watch reports.

She is said to have refused to accept the money because she felt that playing for Nigeria was enough reward.

The US-born athlete also plays for the Oklahoma State Football team.

“When we called her mother to confirm the delivery of the allowances, she declined it and insisted that the opportunity of playing for Nigeria was all the reward the family needed,” said Sanusi Mohammed, the NFF’s head of competitions.

Reacting to the news, Dilichukwu Onyedinma, head of the Nigeria Women League board, said “She is a star and patriotic Nigerian who put service to her fatherland above money. The minister is aware and we will push the act before the NFF so it can inspire many others. Doing this with the backing of her parents, Courtney Dike should be applauded and perhaps celebrated.”

Courtney’s brother, Bright, reportedly plays for the Super Eagles.
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A human-sized iPhone statue featuring a screen that displays a photo and video tribute to Apple Inc founder, Steve Jobs, which was erected in St Petersburg, Russia in 2013, was dismantled by the people who put it up, a day after Apple CEO, Tim Cook, came out as gay.

The Russian group of companies that erected the monument released a statement today saying it was taken down on Friday Oct. 31st, because they needed to abide by 'a law combating gay propaganda".

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Former VP Atiku Abubakar who is from Adamawa state, one of the worst hit by Boko Haram, held a press conference today November 3rd at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja where he addressed the attacks of the sect members on Mubi and other towns in northern Nigeria. Atiku described the current situation as grave and appealed to the international community to come to Nigeria's aid.
Gentlemen of the Press:
It is with deep regret that I came to learn that Mubi, which is one the largest towns in Adamawa State of northeast Nigeria, has been taken by the terrorist group commonly known as Boko Haram. As you may know, in recent weeks and months, Mubi has been a town to which displaced persons from further north have fled for safety after their communities fell to Boko Haram. As I speak, the inhabitants of Mubi, together with those who went there for safety, find themselves at the mercy of this terrorist group.
I am Nigerian. I believe in the integrity of Nigeria as a whole, and every part of this country matters to me. But I was born and bred in the northeast. So, please, excuse me if I should say a few words about the part of the country where I am from, about what the people from the northeast of Nigeria have had to suffer for far, far too long.
Things should never have got to this stage. Thousands of Nigerians have had to flee their homes. Their houses and farms have been destroyed. They do not know where to go or how to restart their lives. That is the degree to which we have come in this country. I say this with reluctance and with shame. The situation in which we find ourselves today is grave. Much of Borno, and the north of Adamawa and Yobe states is already at the mercy of the terrorists. It started a few months ago with Bama, which is nearly 400 kilometres from Yola, capital of Adamawa State.
The next major town to be taken by terrorists was Gwoza, where a terrorist caliphate flag has long been hoisted. Smaller towns near Gwoza such as Pulka and Limankra are equally not free. Next was Madagali. The town is still being occupied. Then fell Gulak. Next was Michika, then Bazza. Next was the twin town of Uba which is half Adamawa and half Bornu. Its neighboring town of Lassa was also overrun. Uba was the latest town captured before the terrorists trampled on Mubi. People from these troubled areas are now pouring into Yola for safety.
As somebody who hails from Adamawa State, you can appreciate why I feel such emotion at the fate of my people. For whatever reason, our defence forces are unable to cope and unable to defend. My sympathies go out to the soldiers who find themselves in a situation not of their making. This is a crisis of leadership.
We were told that the budget for security was going to be enlarged so that the security agencies and military would be in a better position to tackle the insurgency. How is it possible that a great nation like Nigeria should find itself in a situation where a handful of terrorists is able to invade a town as large as Mubi with a population of about 300,000? How were the insurgents able to so easily take a town of this size, and the people find themselves defenseless and undefended? How is it that the people have been made to suffer as they have?
I have previously spoken about the deteriorating security situation in this country on a number of occasions. On those occasions I deliberately restrained myself from speaking in a manner that might be construed as distracting the government and the security forces as they grappled with the dire security situation. But the scale of injustice the people of Nigeria are suffering has reached a stage where I am obliged to amplify my concerns.
Many of our citizens, unable to come to terms with why a so-called “Africa’s best army” has been unable to confront this horrendous situation, are increasingly assuming that this whole thing is about electoral politics. They suspect that the seeming inability of the government to end the crisis is a ploy to weaken some parts of the country ahead of the 2015 elections. Can we, in all honesty, blame them for having those suspicions?
I call upon the international community to help us. I am making a special appeal to countries with sufficient knowhow and experience in tackling terrorism to increase their assistance to us.
The relief agencies that are already working here should please double their efforts. And all people of goodwill should help in any way they can and to do more than they have been doing to alleviate the pain and suffering that we Nigerians face through this insurgency. At a time when we are constantly bombarded with horror stories of ugly events elsewhere in the world – here in West Africa, we are faced with the Ebola epidemic and other trouble spots – I draw your attention to a humanitarian crisis which is also a matter of international security.
This Boko Haram insurgency has been with us now for several years but has, in these last few days, taken a step further towards being a disaster of unimaginable proportions. Hundreds of thousands of people are at risk. Nigeria needs the world’s support. The world must not abandon Nigerians in our time of need.
Thank you.
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Tonto Dikeh plays a preacher in her new movie.

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Why the eyaaaaah it's normal to be evicted...people must go for the show to continue ...so don't pity anybody

Namibian representative in the ongoing BBHotshots, Luis has been evicted from the Big Brother Africa house. The ousting of Luis, along with two others, happened in the fourth eviction night. With his eviction coming up in the 4th week of eviction, the actor cum model now has the opportunity to hook up with his Mozambican sweetheart, Mira, who couldn’t have enough of the Namibian while they were both in the house. Luis was evicted alongside Ghanaian poet and writer, Kacey Moore and Rwandan actor, Arthur today, November 2, 2014 as the ship of the Big Brother moves on nonetheless....
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South Africans today turned out in huge numbers in Durban for the funeral of national football captain and goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa, who was murdered last weekend.

Meyiwa, who had just turned 27, was gunned down by an intruder while at his girlfriend’s home.

Family and friends were joined by government members and top names in South African football among a crowd of 30,000 at the funeral ceremony which took place at Moses Mabhida Stadium this afternoon. It is indeed a great loss and knowing his death didn't come naturally, is even more heart-breaking.
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Am happy my Oga Seun I hit the front page today...God bless...Long Live Nairaland..Long Live OluwaSeun Osewa Long Live The Federal Republic of Nigeria...For more Informations check out my blog www.kingsleyamaechi..com

An Abuja-based woman, Mrs Adenike Kolawole, (pictured above) who was barren for 27 years, has reportedly given birth to a baby boy after carrying a 5-year pregnancy. Is that even possible?

According to PM News, Mrs Adenike gave birth on Sunday October 26th at Evangelical Church of Cherubim and Seraphim located at Pipeline Road, Mafon area, Ejigbo, Lagos during the church's Sunday service.
Narrating her story to PM news, Mrs Kolawole said she suffered miscarriage in the early period of her marriage and afterwards found it difficult to conceive again. She said she had sought medical help both spiritual and orthodox but none provided any remedy. She said she finally took in five years ago but even in her pregnant state, she was still having her menstrual cycle. She said all through the years she was pregnant with her baby boy, herself and her husband (pictured above) suffered rejection from family and friends
“I was rejected by my relations, my husband’s family who did not give me the chance of bearing a child. My only consolation was my faith in God,” she said
She said on the day she gave birth to her son, she was in church for their Sunday service when she noticed her water broke and within minutes, her baby was out.
Her excited husband, Kayode said he did not believe his wife was pregnant all these years because he had waited in vain. He said he was grateful to God for what he had done and thanked the well wishers for their support.
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21 year old Francisca Ordega is a Super Falcons player and was part of the team that won the 2014 African Women's Championship this past Saturday. She is from Benue state and plays for Pitea club in Sweden where she currently resides.
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Multiple award winning Nollywood producer and director Elvis Chuks just acquired this Range Rover Supercharged. He said it's 2015 and he got it just this afternoon. Big congrats to him.
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38 year old Emery James Jenkins (pictured above) has been arrested after he allegedly bit and beat his own son to death...because he wouldn't stop crying...and blamed it on a neighbour's dog.

From NY Daily News
A Minnesota man who allegedly bit and beat his infant son to death two weeks ago because he apparently wouldn’t stop crying blamed the attack on the neighbor’s dog but police aren’t buying it and he is now being charged with second degree murder.
Emery James Jenkins, 38, of Deer River told police that he had accidentally dropped his 3-month-old son on his head while in the bathtub and that the neighbor’s dog had attacked the boy while he was in a car seat wearing a monkey suit, according to CBS Minnesota.
The medical examiner’s office, however, tells a different story.
They said in the report that the baby suffered a skull fracture, blunt force trauma to the body, and cutting or biting injuries to the chest, hands, fingers, feet and toes.
The boy’s mother claims that Jenkins made up the story before eventually calling 911.
Jenkins, who has reportedly received numerous assault charges in the past including a felony domestic assault conviction in 2010 apparently didn’t want to bring his son to the doctor because the blood had soaked through the baby’s clothes. The child died in the hospital two days later and police recovered baby clothes and pillow cases with dried blood stains, according to the report.
Ex-girlfriends of Jenkins who were cited in the criminal complaint in the report said that he has a history of violence and drug use including methamphetamine. In one instance described by a girlfriend in the complaint, Jenkins allegedly slammed a different son’s head into a car door. He had also reportedly made verbal threats about hurting children.
If convicted, Jenkins faces up to 40 years in prison.
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Policemen attached to Oando Filling Station were seen around noon today beating a customer at Oando filling station Ikate, Lekki Road. Passersby,one of them didn't know what he did to warrant the assault but took photos and shared
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Four Nigerians taking refuge in a village in the far north of Cameroon have been killed by members of Boko Haram in an attack that took place on Friday October 24th.

According to a statement made available today to AFP, the Cameroonian Ministry of Defence said the sect members attacked "the village of Glawi, killing four Nigerian refugees and wounding one Camerounian, before being pushed back by defence forces which pursued them”.


The ministry also said two groups of Boko Haram members had also tried to enter another border village with Nigeria but they were “immediately intercepted and neutralised by our defence forces who destroyed three 4×4 vehicles equipped with machine guns, killing 27 assailants,”.

39 members of the sect were confirmed dead after the various attacks
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Governor Rotimi Amaechi took his obnoxious willingness to denigrate the highest office in the land in a reckless bid to advance his selfish political interests to a new level of irresponsible and rascally behaviour yesterday in Port Harcourt with his totally false and baseless vituperations against President Jonathan, the First Lady and the Federal Government.
It appears from the Governor’s completely unfounded and off-the-mark allegations that he had totally lost all sense of propriety, decorum and responsible political behaviour and resorted to unacceptable demagoguery, libel, blackmail and incitement of public disorder.
Unless his unbridled ambition and desire for self- promotion have completely befuddled his mental faculties and caused him to totally lose touch with reality, Governor Amaechi must know that his claims and allegations are untrue.
We can only assume therefore that he is deliberately spewing malicious falsehood in a desperate effort to incite the people of Rivers State and Nigeria against his assumed political foes.
We warn him that there are legal, constitutional and moral limits to political rascality beyond which he will not be allowed to go without repercussions.
The immunity which he currently enjoys notwithstanding, Governor Amaechi should be under no illusions: A day of reckoning will surely come when he will answer for all his actions and false allegations against President Jonathan, the First Lady and the Federal Government.
He should also know that Nigerians are aware of the truth and will never be fooled or swayed by his arrant opportunism and anti-Jonathan rantings.
Nigerians know that while Mr. Amaechi falsely accuses others of corruption, he cannot show or explain to the people of Rivers State what he has done with the billions of Naira that has accrued to the state under his tenure.
They also know that while Amaechi continues to falsely accuse the Jonathan Administration of having done nothing for Rivers State, he has recklessly squandered huge state resources on dubious, vain-glorious projects or self aggrandizement.
Nigerians will know too that while he falsely alleges that Rivers and other states have not received funds due to them from the Federation account, the only outstanding allocation was for September, which was released to all states well over a week ago.
The Governor should stop trying to make President Jonathan the scapegoat for his woeful performance in Rivers State and look to his own very apparent failings and incompetencies.
He should also stop blackmailing the First Lady who has demanded nothing from him other than good governance, justice, equity, fairness, real development and progress in Rivers State.
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If you're a mother of a 17 year old would you be okay with her dressing like this? I don't particularly see anything wrong with it but people have been bashing Kris Jenner for allowing her youngest daughter Kylie to continue dressing older than her age. Photo credit: X17online.com
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Check out these adorable pic of celebrity photographer and singer TY Bello's twin boys, Christian and Christopher. She welcomed the boys on October 10th in the US. They are so adorable.
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Kim Kardashian turned 34 recently and they threw her a birthday party last night at TAO Nightclub in Las Vegas. She showed off massive side boobs in a white plunging wrap dress as she partied with her husband Kanye, sister Khloe and friends.

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Governor of Rivers state, Rotimi Amaechi says the major reason he and the first lady, Dame Patience Jonathan fell out was because he refused to share the state money with her. Gov Amaechi said this yesterday October 24th at the graduation ceremony of the Pioneer graduands of the Ignatus Ajuru University of Education held at Rumuolumeni in Rivers state. He said
"Remember, when I became governor, I fought militancy. Right there where you built a new house used to be a hole where they pass into the river nd escape. The security report reached me and I came here and chased the militants away. I asked them to fence the school premises and block the hole. I have to protect you because it is my responsibility. Some of the militants went to Lagos, Ivory Coast, Ghana etc. Today, they are back because the wife of the President bought them back to protest against me." Continue...
I refused to give them money in Abuja because if I do that, I won't be able to carry out any developmental projects or finish the road from Rumuolumeni to Rumuepirikom. The quarel between me and the wife of the Preseident is because she said I should bring your money, Rivers peoples money and share with her" Governor Amaechi alleges
Governor Amaechi is also quoted to have told the graduands that should they vote for President Jonathan back into power in next year's general elections, rivers state's economy would crumble
"Now that you are graduates, you are eligible voters that can use your voters card to change society. Ask yourself this question that I have always asked Rivers people. What have we (Rivers people) done to President Jonathan that he has refused to bring any project to Rivers state. We had to fight them before they could do the East-West road. I had to abuse the federal government and they abused me back before they could do the work you now see on that road. Our President, from the South-South, has taken oil wells from Soku in Rivers state to Bayelsa state. What about the 41 oil wells in Etche that was given to Abia state? Is the President or his wife from Abia? Why do they want us to suffer? If President Jonathan comes back to power in 2015, Rivers state economy will crash" he said
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Carmen Electra was ambushed by her ex-husband Dennis Rodman at a Halloween party in Florida last night ... and extra security was called in to keep her safe ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Carmen was co-hosting a private "Fright Night" party in Boca Raton with Jonathan Cheban ... and was surprised when she saw Dennis waiting on the red carpet for her.

We spoke with multiple witnesses who tell us Dennis was NOT invited to the shindig (put on by The Law Offices of Berman and Berman) -- and Carmen was so shocked when she noticed him, that she waited in her limo for roughly 25 minutes while extra security was called in to watch her back.

Once she left the limo, we're told Dennis made a beeline for her ... and professed his love.
One source tells us Dennis even asked her to marry him again -- but she artfully dodged the question and laughed it off. We're told Dennis was kicked out of the party but kept sneaking back in.

We're told the interaction only lasted a few minutes -- but it was super awkward ... especially since Carmen just appeared on Oprah Winfrey's network and spilled her guts about their failed marriage.

In fact, she told O that her union with Rodman was super volatile -- "When it was good, it was amazing. And when it was bad, it was the worst."

Of course, Dennis and Carmen were married in 1998 ... but divorced a very short time later following a domestic violence incident in which they were both arrested.

We reached out to Dennis for comment -- so far, no word back.
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Lagos State Governorship Aspirant Mr Akinwumi Ambode (second right) flanked by All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain Alhaji Safiriyu Abiodun Sunmola (third right) and others during Ambode declaration for Governor of Lagos at Onikan Stadium on Friday

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Alternative Soul Star Bez Idakula recently returned from a 7-day Rwandan tour that saw him perform in arenas across the scenic African country.

As part of his tour, Bez and his band performed at the ‘Kigali Up’ Festival. They also performed at ‘Get in The Ring Africa’ and ‘The Concert for Peace’ at Rugunbara. Bez was also the special surprise performer at a wedding reception on the beautiful Lake Kivu in Gisenyi, Rwanda.

Bez was also hosted at the Nigerian High Commission in Kigali where he met with the Nigerian Ambassador Peter Ogidi-Oke. The tour also included visits to the Genocide Memorial and to top radio and TV stations in Rwanda.
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0930-isna-football-player-knees-3
The largest Muslim organization in North America says it's offering "sensitivity training" to the NFL after a Muslim player was penalized for striking a Muslim prayer pose during Monday Night Football.

TMZ Sports spoke with a rep for Islamic Society of North America who tells us they were shocked when Kansas City Chiefs player Husain Abdullah was flagged after dropping to his knees following a pick 6 in the 4th quarter.

The NFL has since issued a statement admitting the ref botched the call -- and ISNA says it "appreciates the NFL in backtracking and making the right call."

ISNA says it originally believed the penalty was a "double standard" -- especially with Tim Tebow's famous kneeling celebration in the past going unflagged.

"Husain is a big hero in the Muslim American community ... we thought it was unfortunate."

But ISNA says they want to work WITH the NFL to make sure it doesn't happen again -- saying, "We are happy to educate the NFL with competency or sensitivity training."

As for Husain, the ISNA says it's very proud of the 29-year-old ... adding, "It's good to see a Muslim American player have success in the NFL."

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The 11th Abuja International Film festival opened yesterday with world premier and launch of Five Nollywood movies on Invasion 1897 and four others on Biofortication at the Silverbird Cinema, Abuja.
The Invasion 1897, a Lancelott Oduwa Imausuen film is a 100 minutes genre shot in Nigeria, that tells the story of British invasion of the Binin Empire in 1897.
The four other movies on Vitamin A Cassava: The Yellow Cassava – a Zeb Ejiro film; Dada Oni Paki – a Fidelis Duker film; Ebiyemi – a Chico Ejiro film and Sakani – an Obi Osotule film came in four major languages of English, Igbo, Yoruba and Hausa.
The Vitamin A Cassava movie is an advocacy film and a joint effort of Smile Africa Network limited and HarvestPlus Nigeria and produced by Zeb Ejiro, aimed at creating adequate awareness on the federal government’s new policy on cassava flour to Nigerian populace and to fight malnutrition among children under age five.
The annual event credited to be the largest in the AngloAfrica drew top Nollywood stars to network and share ideas on how to make the industry globally competitive.
The founder of Abuja International Film Festival, Fidelis Duker, said the successful running of the event in unbroken period of eleven years has made the event a pivotal moment in the history of Cinema in Nigeria.
He said the Abuja International Film festival is the first completely international film festival in Nigeria to have had eleven uninterrupted and successive edition in Nigeria and Anglophone West Africa.
According to him, about 200 films were submitted this year for the festival, which for him is a pointer to the growth and global acceptance of the films festival.
Of the 200 films submitted, he explained that 55 cutting edge films were screened and 34 were up for the awards this year, which has added two new categories for music score and student films for aspiring filmmakers in film schools.
‘‘My observation in the last 11 years of running the Abuja international film festival is that what we believe to be true in our society can perhaps be a myth in another and vice versa. We will see that Nigeria is a part of the world and the world a part of Nigeria.
‘‘It may teach us that there is fulfillment in emptiness and emptiness within fulfillment. It is then that we see that our neighbor is not our enemy but a friend, a companion in our journey of life and that patience is essential.
This outlook on life is a necessity for a society that is going through a trying time of insurgent attacks and terrorism. The films of this festival contain the key to making that change,’’ he said.
He urged all the Hollywood stars to join hands with him in making the event worthwhile.
The producer of Invasion 1897, Mr. Lancelott Imasuen said his major challenge in producing the film came from funding but noted that he was able to sale through by sheer of commitment and hardwork.
He expressed delight for the success attained with the launch in both Nigeria and abroad and urged the government and private sector to create the enabling environment for the industry to thrive.
‘‘At the beginning of producing this movie, funding became a challenge to me but today, I give God all the glory that the dream has finally become a reality.
I am happy the world has started seeing it. I was actually worries about what my colleagues and people would say but their reactions today have boosted my morale.
This is the first time it is showing in Nigeria, it has shown in UK and some other parts of the world few days back. I am so overwhelmed by the turn out of people.
‘‘The film was a four year journey with lots of challenges in the process but the good news is that we overcame our problems. I think, what my colleagues must do is to ensure that their work meet international standards because that was what guided me in this production.
But for us to succeed, government and the private sector must appreciate the contribution of this industry and create the enabling environment for us to grow the industry to where it should be,’’ said Lancelott.
Highlight of the event would be award presentation to deserving Nollywood Stars and other movie producers.
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The Nigerian Senate on Wednesday at plenary passed the first reading of a bill to control the use of tobacco. The bill is now set for second reading.
The bill is titled: An act to provide for the regulation and control of production, manufacturing, sale advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco products in Nigeria and for other related matters 2014.
The bill seeks to provide a legal framework for the regulation of manufacture, sales, advertising and production of tobacco products in Nigeria. It also seeks to monitor and control the usage of tobacco in the country.
The bill was sponsored by Ifeanyi Okowa representing Delta North of Delta State.
The Senate President, David Mark, said the purpose of the bill was to point out the dangers in smoking. He said there would be public hearings which would determine if tobacco would be banned totally.
“The bill seeks to tell you the dangers inherent in smoking.
“When we go to the public hearing, we would hear the public opinions on that,” Mr. Mark said.
Mr. Okowa in his speech said tobacco is a problem all over the world and called for a quick response.
“It is recognised that the spread of the tobacco epidemic is a global problem with serious consequences on public health that calls for the widest possible international cooperation and participation of all countries in an effective, appropriate and comprehensive response.
“I wish to state that there is no new agency or department being established by this legislation.
“There is already a desk unit in the federal ministry of health dealing with tobacco control.
“There is therefore no financial implication accompanying this bill,” he said.
There was a debate on whether the bill should be passed for second reading. Some lawmakers supported the outright ban of tobacco while some were against it.
Some of the lawmakers who supported the bill were Victor Ndoma-Egba, the Senate leader; James Manager, representing Delta South; and Ita Enang representing Akwa-Ibom North-East.
Mr. Ndoma-Egba said the bill had both the health and economic components.
Mr. Enang said Nigeria should take the bold step to ban tobacco totally for the safety of citizens.
After the votes of the lawmakers, the bill was passed for second reading.
The anti-tobacco bill is divided into thirty-seven sections and two schedules.
The first reading of the bill took place on October 3, 2012.
Treaties
A motion was also passed on the non-submission of treaties, conventions, agreements or protocols by the Executive to the National Assembly for ratification.
The motion was sponsored by Ita Inang and co-sponsored by nine senators including Abdul Ningi, Victor Ndoma-Egba and others.
There have been sixty-nine treaties, conventions and protocols not forwarded to the National Assembly for ratification since August 2013.
Some of the treaties include Instrument of ratification of the amendment to the convention on the physical protection of nuclear material, Instrument of ratification of the convention on the protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expression, Instrument on adherence to the international union for conservation of
nature and natural resources World Conservation Union, WCN.
A committee was set up and Mr. Mark urged the committee to work with foreign affairs ministry.
He also said there was no need to worry about the delay as there could be reasons the treaties were signed and not ratified.
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How Nigerian govt. bungled Edwin Clark-led fresh negotiation to free Chibok girls
The missing Chibok schoolgirls held captive by Boko Haram
Why did the high level negotiations between the Nigerian government team and Boko Haram insurgents, led by a former Minister of Information, Edwin Clark, to secure the release of 220 Chibok girls, crumble shortly before the Muslim Sallah holidays in Yola last July?
Knowledgeable sources to the negotiations, speaking to PREMIUM TIMES in Abuja, Yola, and Geneva, have offered rare insights into talks that have come closest yet to secure freedom for the abducted girls, and relieve President Goodluck Jonathan of perhaps the worst nightmares of his administration.
But the government bungled the process with its unnecessary exuberant display of enthusiasm and excessive show of force, insiders in the talks say.
Parties to the talks have refrained thus far from sharing thoughts on their negotiations because as some of them told this newspaper, “we all agreed to maintain a code of silence as a way of helping push the difficult process to a fruitful resolution and helping this country heal from the pains of this insurgency.”
It was the story of a 30-day intense and often dramatic negotiations that could have changed the history of the nation, involving two notable Nigerian civil rights leaders, Fred Eno, and Shehu Sani, along with Maiduguri-based lawyer, Mustapha Zanna, and PDP chieftain, Kaka Bolori, along with three top officials of the International Red Cross headquarters office in Geneva which served as the “interface” negotiators, and two field captains of the Boko Haram sect.
In terse responses to PREMIUM TIMES reporting on their negotiations, however, some of our sources have responded to confirm or deny aspects of questions posed to them, although it appears there is unanimity in their perception as to why the Clark Talks finally failed.
“It boils down, basically, to three key issues: inflexibility and lack of realism on the part of the insurgent forces; lack of support for a negotiated settlement to the insurgency on the part of security forces; and what appears to be government’s acceptance that the security forces were right,” highly placed officials close to the negotiation told PREMIUM TIMES.

Yola: The Elusive Prize:
There also appears to be agreement among most of the parties to the negotiation that the “Yola debacle” was the decisive point of failure in the talks.
After weeks of tough negotiations, the two sides finally accepted to what famously came to be dubbed the “prisoner swap” of the Chibok girls with some commanders of the Boko Haram fighting forces.
Insiders to the talk paid homage to Mr. Edwin Clark’s wisdom and staying power, saying he was deft at keeping sometimes difficult claims in perspective as the meetings wobbled on and on between contentious positions of both sides.
On prisoner swap for instance, our sources say, the insurgents were “initially modest in their demands, asking for just 10 of their field captains who appear to have a holding grip on the imagination of the fighting forces.” At this time, this was against the whole abducted girls.
While the security forces were combing detention centres,shopping for the 10 detainees, our sources say something strange happened, suggesting internal struggles in the camp of the insurgency forces. Our sources understood the “happening” to be a factional disagreement on the ethnic composition of the 10 names tabled for the swap. “They were all of Kanuri nationality and it appeared the Hausa/Fulani faction protested this.”
The result of this disagreement was about one week delay in the negotiations after which a “new list of 15 was tabled, and then it was increased to 16”.
The ICRC was then working with security forces to identify the names on the list. In this period, it wasn’t clear if security forces had all the names in demand, a situation that triggered a new frustration in the talks, according to our sources. Were they never captured or were they killed in battle or extra-judicially?
This development, according to one of our sources, led discussions along a frozen path. “We almost lost ten days again to this but after a meeting at the Kuje prisons, near Abuja, where Mustapha Umar, one of the commanders on the list was held, the government team saw a new ray of hope.”
However, distrust was now building and the team of two Boko Haram negotiators switched the terms of demand from 16 sect commanders for all the girls, to only 30 girls.
But Mr. Clark, according to our sources, told them there was no realism in their demands and that if they so cherished their compatriots, the smartest deal for them was to release all the girls. At any rate, Mr. Clark reportedly argued that such a deal would put President Jonathan at the butt of a new wave of criticism and provide fodder for the opposition. So this was not acceptable, he reportedly insisted.
“Swap is not our idea but the idea of the government,“ the Boko Haram negotiators initially argued, trying to insist on the high road, but they later deferred to the age of Mr. Clark, according to our sources.
> At this point also, the ICRC team clarified the terms of their engagement, insisting that before the swaps, they would need clear commitments from the abducted girls and the detained fighters. “Prisoners and the girls must offer consent before the deal can be closed” ICRC insisted. To get the consent of the girls the ICRC said they were prepared to risk going into the enclave of the insurgency.
The Boko Haram negotiators reportedly said they were comfortable with this, and that it will also help “dispel the claims that the girls were being maltreated or that they have been forced into marriage which will shock many people when the girls return.”
With the Abuja negotiations sealed, Yola, the Adamawa state capital, was agreed as the point of swap. Government negotiators favoured a discreet arrangement where they would sneak into Yola, the Red Cross would take custody of the girls, and in turn yield the Boko Haram detainees to them and conclude the swap.
The management of the Yola episode, according to our sources, put paid to the whole arrangement. The government, in an exuberant show of enthusiasm chartered a Boeing 737 jet to convey the girls to Abuja from Yola. What was thought to be a discreet arrangement turned into a fantasia and loud orchestra show. Moreover, “when we arrived Yola, half of the airport was covered with security forces” noted one of the insiders to the deal.
“Then they moved negotiators to the presidential lounge for a two-hour wait…then 48 hours in the hotel…but Yola had been infiltrated by these people and the security presence sent a wrong signal…clearly these people didn’t trust the arrangement and they never showed up.”
When contacted Wednesday, some of the principal actors in the collapsed negotiation declined to provide details, saying it’s still premature to divulge “sensitive details”.
“The whole thing is unfortunate, but hopefully we can revive the negotiations,” one of the negotiators, Fred Eno, told PREMIUM TIMES. “The president desperately wanted the girls released, but politics of positioning stood in the way of progress.”
The President of the Kaduna-based Civil Rights Congress, Shehu Sani, insisted he was not comfortable discussing the matter at this time, suggesting that it was irrelevant talking about what worked and what didn’t work at least until the girls are rescued.
Mr. Clark did not answer or return calls made to his telephone on Thursday morning. He also did not respond to a text message sent to him.
Benoit Matsha-Carpentier, the Senior Media Officer for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, was also unavailable Thursday morning. He is yet to return calls made to him.
Spokespersons for the Nigerian presidency were also unavailable to provide insight regarding why the administration acted the way it did in the final minutes of the negotiation. Reuben Abati, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, as well as Doyin Okupe, the senior special assistant on Public Affairs, didn’t answer or return calls Thursday morning.
The over 200 girls, mostly teenagers, were kidnapped from their secondary school in Chibok, Borno State, on April 14
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