The European Union marked the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day on Tuesday hailing women's "crucial role in bringing about change in northern Africa".

"Amidst violence, women have joined the struggle for change," said the two women vice-presidents of the European Commission, foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and justice and rights commissioner Viviane Reding.

"We hope that the key role that women have played so far will be reflected fully in the institutional changes that are already under discussion in the region," they said in a statement. "Women must be at the heart of the discussions over the future order."

In T-shirts and jeans or robes and veils, tens of thousands of women have made their voices heard in the streets, from Tunis to Cairo, from Manama to Sanaa, to demand reform in a region long ruled by autocracies.

Calling for greater investment in education for girls, they said "literacy and numeracy equip women for economic independence, increasing their chances of achieving their full potential".

In a separate statement issued from East Timor, the Commissioner for development Andris Piebalgs commended the country as "a remarkable case" in the developing world regarding the empowerment of women.

Some 30 percent of members of parliament are women in the former Portuguese colony that gained formal independence in 2002 after being occupied by Indonesia, he said.

"There are important legislations in place, for instance against domestic violence," he added.

"There will be no human and economic development without a sound respect of women’s rights and conditions," he added. "This is a fundamental part of the development policy that I wish to champion."

Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu on Tuesday called on the United Nations to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya.

"We join our voice to the voices asking for a no-fly zone in Libya, and we call on the Security Council to do its duty in this regard," Ihsanoglu said at the start of an emergency meeting of the 57-member OIC in Saudi Arabia.

But the OIC chief rejected "any military interference (on the ground) in Libya", where veteran leader Moamer Kadhafi's forces are battling rebels for control of key towns and villages across the north African state.

A British-French resolution demanding a no-fly zone over Libya could go before the UN Security Council as early as this week, diplomats said Monday.

Britain and France have made the most aggressive calls among Western powers for a no-fly zone to hamper Kadhafi's offensive and deny his airforce the freedom to attack the rag-tag rebel elements seeking to overthrow his regime.

Any move toward collective military action of any kind is likely to face tough resistance from China, Russia and other members of the Security Council.

The United States, which would likely bear the main burden of any such operation, has said it is studying the possibility while warning of the major commitment it would entail.

The UN Security Council unanimously passed sanctions against the Kadhafi regime and ordered a crimes against humanity investigation on February 26.

Ihsanoglu also called on the Libyan authorities to "immediately allow the entrance of humanitarian aid" to the country.

The OIC -- which includes Libya -- is meeting in Jeddah to discuss its response to the crisis which has left at least 1,000 people dead.

The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council also released a statement on Monday backing a no-fly zone.

African nations championship in pix

The use of electronic assistance on the goal line at the World Cup 2014 is subjected to conditions defined and required by the President of the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA), Joseph Blatter.

Gathered Saturday at Newport, in Wales, the International Football Association Board (IFAB), the body responsible for defining the rules of the game, has requested further tests on the use of technology to assist referees in deciding whether the ball has crossed or not the goal line. But for the president of FIFA, the adoption of this technology must first be passed to the screens of certain criteria. "We need an answer to the basic principles, accuracy and speed, that is to say an immediate issue with the result, and a system that is not too complicated to implement. We have not got those three things at the moment in our independent laboratory” said clearly Joseph Blatter. He continued: "If no system meets the criteria, we cannot launch it." However, the boss of world football notes that this is not a systematic opposition to the introduction of this advanced technology in football, far from it. "If it works, the board will say yes next year. And if the Board says yes, then it should not be any problem to have in 2014 (the Brazilian World). But I must restrain my natural optimism a bit because the tests have not yet been conclusive, "said Blatter. For all practical purposes, note that the next Board Meeting will be held in London from March 2 to 4 2012.

http://www.goal.com/en-us/news/85/england/2011/03/07/2384490/kuyt-liverpool-have-a-promising-future
Kuyt: Liverpool Have A Promising Future

Dirk Kuyt believes that Liverpool have a promising future due to the arrivals of Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez.

The 30-year-old scored a hat-trick for his side en route to a mammoth victory over Manchester United, whose title chase has been complicated due to suffering two consecutive losses - first against Chelsea, and now the Reds.

The Dutchman has had to play on the wing on several occasions, but manager Kenny Dalglish has restored him to playing as a forward alongside Suarez.

The pair have combined well so far, but the former Feyenoord man remains happy to contribute in any way he can - with Carroll having made just his debut.

"I just want to be important for the club and the team and if the manager wants to play me up front I am more than happy to do it," Kuyt said, according to The Mirror.

"I think it is clicking well with Luis. I gave an assist to him and he gave a couple to me, so it is working out quite well.

"And with Andy coming on for his first couple of minutes it looks very promising for the future.

"The manager has plenty of options up front, and hopefully the three of us can play well together."

Kuyt also thanked his team-mates for contributing to his hat-trick, with a special mention for Suarez as the Uruguay international was in stellar form during the game.

"It was very special to score a hat-trick, but I have to thank my team-mates, and especially Luis, who played brilliantly," he said.

"His influence since he arrived here is really good. He scored in his first game, he was very close to scoring against Wigan and he created a goal against West Ham for Glen Johnson.

"For him to be at his best after just a couple of weeks at the club is impossible. But he has shown the will he has to be a great player for Liverpool and I think there is a lot more to see and expect from him."

I wonder if Liverpool didn't have a bright future before the man u win, I think they (Liverpool) has to raise their game if they want to remain a top flight club, anyway what is your take on these, post your comments below.

Guardiola: Wenger Can Pick Wilshere Because He’s Not Under Pressure To Win Titles At Arsenal

While praising the form of Arsenal wonderkid Jack Wilshere, Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola delivered a sly dig at his opponents on Tuesday night for their lack of success in recent years.

It's been six years since the Gunners picked up a trophy and Guardiola believes Wilshere is able to flourish at the Emirates thanks to a lack of a winning mentality at the club.

The former Barca midfielder added that his reserve team is full of players as talented as Wilshere and that the 19-year-old would struggle to get anywhere near his first-team.

"Wilshere is a top player,” he told reporters. “He is an excellent player, not just Arsenal, but also for the national team.

“[But] he is lucky because we have many players in the second team like him, but he plays because there is no pressure at his club to win titles."

Arsenal go into the Champions League last 16 second leg with Barca ahead after a slender 2-1 victory at the Emirates and Guardiola is impressed by the way Arsene Wenger’s side play and admitted he knew there was a big challenge ahead.

"Arsenal have many alternatives, are very dynamic and can play in different positions,” he admitted.

“Their counter attack is great; we will try to prevent that. This is always a special game in the Champions League and it is a magnificent challenge."

"I keep hearing about the fragility in the minds of the Arsenal players, but I do not agree.

“They are competing with Manchester United for the Premier League, reached the final of the Carling Cup and a few seasons ago were in the final of the Champions League. Arsenal are always in the top, when you compete every season at the top, it is because you are quality."

And Guardiola admitted he was hoping to see a full strength Arsenal side, including Robin van Persie, and didn’t rule out a last minute appearance from Theo Walcott,

"I want all the great players to play,” he continued. “Everyone against everyone and see a great show tomorrow.

“I hope they are all in the team – Van Persie, [Samir] Nasri, Cesc [Fábregas]. I want [Alex] Song to play, because I would like to play the best possible Arsenal. If Van Persie plays, then no problem.”

"Maybe there could be a private flight for [Theo] Walcott to come in at the last minute – you never know."

Ignorance seems to be in abundant supply among today’s English Premier League stars, a personality trait that is spreading like an epidemic among the cash-laden young men that ply their trade in soccer’s toughest competition.

Unfortunately for Kolo Toure, it is not a defense.

Toure, the Manchester City defender, could face a two-year ban from soccer after failing a drug test which was administered after his team’s 2-1 defeat at Manchester United on February 12.

He has, through an advisor and in a conversation with his mentor, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, claimed his positive “A” sample was as a result of taking a dietary supplement given to him by his wife and insisted he had no knowledge that it contained a banned substance. And his words – true though they may be – just don’t wash.
More From Martin Rogers



Manager Roberto Mancini dedicated Man City's 1-0 win over Wigan Saturday to Kolo Toure (above).
(Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Toure’s assertion that he did not try to claim an unfair advantage is easy to believe, but it should not protect him against the full force of the soccer authorities, and a punishment which is likely to be between four and nine months but could be longer.

Soccer players are fully aware of the doping policies that are in effect and are furnished with a full list of everything that is prohibited. Equally, they have extensive knowledge of the potential punishments, which are spelled out in depth by the powers that be.

Even if they can’t be bothered to read the anti-doping handbook, there is the case of Rio Ferdinand to remind them. The England captain was banned for eight months for skipping a drug test, while several other players have served bans for taking prohibited substances.

All Toure had to do before he ingested his wife’s supplement was to read the label and check it against the banned list. If that was too taxing he could have phoned his club’s doctor or any other Manchester City official.

Is it too much to think that at some point, something might have gone off in his brain? After all, players are told to be pedantically stringent on matters like this, to always check first, to not even take a cough drop without making sure it was permitted.

We’re not talking about some kid from the youth team with little experience, though. Toure spent eight years at Arsenal, has played in the Champions League and the World Cup, and is City’s vice captain.

The sad part is that Toure is actually one of the good guys. He is a devout Muslim and leads a quiet life away from soccer, unlike so many current players.

There will be some sympathy for him, but in reality he doesn’t deserve it. Is a paycheck well above $100,000 per week not enough to secure vigilance of this kind?

This saga still has some ways to run. First, the results of Toure’s “B” sample need to be analyzed, and City can be expected to put up a strong legal fight against any lengthy ban.

But all Toure has is an explanation, not an excuse, and has no one to blame but himself if he is restricted to the sidelines for the foreseeable future.

Wow! am sure she has a hot cunt

I E.M.P WILL BE THE WINNER

OF BBA 6

MARK MY WORDS.

what so ever it is



.

WHEN WILL THIS HAPPEN?

WHICH ASPIRANT IS BETTER?

I CAN WAIT TO SEE THIS HAPPEN?

BUT I THINK HE WILL WIN!

AND THAT IS IT!

Buhari has more than one wife.

One of his wives is a born again Christian.



WHY CAN A "BORN AGAIN" CHRISTIN BE POLYGAMIST.

HE IS BACK WITH THIS SHARIA THING

I WONDER WHETHER THE PASTOR HIS RUNNING MATE SUPPORTS HIM

LETS SEE IF HE WILL WIN

BUT AS FAR AS I AM CONCERNED THERE IS NO VACANCY IN ASO ROCK VILLA FOR NOW.


it is .::GOODLUCK::. The signature of GOD.

hhhmmmmm

Tripoli, Libya -- Violent strife in Libya continued Monday as an air strike hit about five kilometers southeast of the rebel-controlled town Ras Lanuf.

Planes flew over the area, and opposition forces fired anti-aircraft guns in their direction. Some families fled the eastern Libyan oil town to get away from the situation.

Meanwhile, the city of Bin Jawad appeared to be controlled by the Libyan army on Monday. The city had been hotly contested over the weekend, with at least five people killed Sunday, medical sources said.

Anti-government protesters are seeking the ouster of Gadhafi after nearly 42 years of ruling the country -- the kind of revolution that was seen in neighboring Tunisia and Egypt. But unlike in those countries, the uprising has turned into warfare.
Libya map
The young and inexperienced go to war
Opposition at work in Benghazi
Thousands trying to leave Libya

With no clear end to the deadly clashes in sight, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appointed a new special envoy to Libya to discuss the crisis with officials in Tripoli, the United Nations said in a statement Monday.

Abdelilah Al-Khatib, a former foreign minister of Jordan, was appointed to "undertake urgent consultations with the authorities in Tripoli and in the region on the immediate humanitarian situation as well as the wider dimensions of the crisis," according to the U.N. statement.

"The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about the fighting in western Libya, which is claiming large numbers of lives and threatens even more carnage in the days ahead," the statement said. "He notes that civilians are bearing the brunt of the violence, and calls for an immediate halt to the Government's disproportionate use of force and indiscriminate attacks on civilian targets."

On Sunday, opposition forces in Libya claimed a major victory, managing to block an onslaught by Gadhafi's troops and maintain control of the key city of Misrata, an eyewitness said.

Using machine guns, sticks and anything else they could find, crowds successfully repelled Gadhafi militias armed with tanks and heavy artillery, the witness said.

"The will and the determination and dedication that people are showing here on the ground, it just makes you speechless," he said.

A doctor at Central Misrata Hospital said 42 people were killed -- 17 from the opposition and 25 from the pro-Gadhafi forces -- and that 85 people were wounded in the fighting, which spilled onto the city's outskirts. The youngest victim, a 3-year-old, was killed by direct fire, the doctor said.

Witnesses and other sources are not being named for their own safety.

Humanitarian and medical aid to Misrata, in central Libya, has been blocked, U.N. emergency relief coordinator Valerie Amos said in a statement Sunday. She urged authorities "to provide access without delay to allow aid workers to help save lives."
Al Qaeda's fear
The next move for the U.S. in Libya
Libya witness: Rockets on the ground
Searching the Gadhafi family tree
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* Ban Ki-moon
* Libya
* War and Conflict

After reports of the opposition successfully fighting off pro-Gadhafi forces in Misrata, Libyan state TV showed a graphic -- in both Arabic and English -- saying that "strict orders have been issued to the armed forces not to enter cities taken by terrorist gangs, who took civilians as human shields and threatened to slaughter the inhabitants of those cities." The report cited "military sources."

Conflicting reports emerged over the weekend about who controlled what cities.

Throngs of Gadhafi supporters filled Tripoli's Green Square on Sunday, with some insisting they were celebrating the government's victory in Misrata. A government official said Gadhafi's regime was victorious in Ras Lanuf and in Zawiya as well -- though rebel fighters appeared in control of Ras Lanuf and said they had prevented pro-government forces from taking Zawiya.

Libyan state TV also claimed that the government had gained control of the eastern port city of Tobruk. But witnesses in Tobruk said the city was still under opposition control.

Throughout the turmoil, which began February 15, witnesses in Tripoli have described the government using all sorts of methods to drum up crowds, including forcibly dragging people to them while keeping anti-Gadhafi demonstrators off the streets.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke with Libyan Foreign Minister Musa Kasa on Sunday, appealing for an end to hostilities. Ban discussed the plight of migrant workers and called for unhindered access humanitarian organizations and suggested the immediate dispatch of a humanitarian assessment team to Tripoli, which Kasa agreed to, according to a statement from the United Nations.

Death toll estimates have ranged from more than 1,000 to as many as 2,000, and the international community has been pondering strategies on how to end the violence and remove the Gadhafi regime.

On Sunday, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said, "We continue to press for Gadhafi to step down, and we will work with the international community to support the legitimate ambitions of the Libyan people."

Benjamin Barber, a fellow at the New York-based Demos think tank who had worked closely with the Gadhafi Foundation, told CNN's Fareed Zakaria that he thought Gadhafi, his son Saif and their supporters would likely "fight to the death" -- meaning a prolonged war, compared to the relatively quick and peaceful political transition that happened in Egypt and Tunisia.

Even if Gadhafi is somehow ousted, Barber predicted the violence could continue as tribes duke it out for supremacy in a nation that has few significant public institutions that could fill a potentially chaotic void.

Gadhafi's government has been reviled across the globe for violence against civilians, and the International Criminal Court has launched an investigation of Gadhafi, some of his sons and other leaders for possible crimes against humanity.

The fierce fighting has sparked the flight of Libyans and foreigners out of Libya, with nations across the globe scrambling to help people leave.

About 200,000 people have fled Libya with nearly equal numbers going to Tunisia and Egypt, the U.N. refugee agency has said.

But not everyone has been able to get out. On Monday, several hundred expatriates from Mali gathered outside Mali's embassy in Tripoli, seeking assistance in getting out of the Libya. Many were migrant workers who said they no longer have any work, though the situation in Tripoli appeared to be calmer in recent days.

Some of the migrant workers tried to cross into Algeria -- which shares a border with Mali -- but were refused by Algerian officials.

Opposition-controlled radio announced over the weekend that the country's only legitimate representative was the National Transitional Council, a group with 31 representatives for most of the regions in Libya. Former Justice Minister Mustafa Abdeljeleel, whom the council said had tried to resign from Gadhafi's government several times, was announced as the council's new leader.

The council also named a representative for military affairs and established a military council to oversee the "liberation" of Libya and reconstruct the armed forces, according to the radio announcement. The council said its main missions are to represent all of Libya internationally, liberate the country, draft a constitution and hold elections.

, Demand state by state, LG by LG detailed analysis

Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) and the National Conscience Party (NCP) have raised the alarm over perceived bogus number of voters’ register as announced by the Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega insinuating that the registration must have been rigged.

The final figures released last week by the INEC chairman, put the total registered voters at 73.5 million. However, the CNPP in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Osita Okechukwu expressed surprise at the sudden jump of figures in some states and then called on Jega to give Nigerians clean Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) National Voters Register; commensurate with the N187 billion expended on the exercise.

The CNPP said it was at a loss how the voters’ register jumped from 67.7 million to 73.5 million. Also reacting in the same vein in a statement signed by its National Chairman, Mr. Femi Falana, the NCP said after Jega’s revelation of multiple registrations, it was expected that the figure would have reduced rather than increase.

“We expected that after the AFIS screening and the display/ verification exercise conducted by the INEC, the figure of 63 million voters would have been pruned down. But to our utter dismay, the final figure has jumped to 73.5 million. As no explanation has been adduced for the increase of eligible voters from 63.9 million to 73.5 million, we call on the INEC leadership to review the register by subjecting it to AFIS scanning without any further delay,” said NCP.

Butressing its claim CNPP noted: “In the jumbo figures released by INEC for example - states like Niger increased by 201 per cent from 721,478 to 2,175, 421; Benue 68 per cent from 1,415,162 to 2,390,884; Bauchi 37.5 per cent from 1,835,562 to 2,523,957; and Bayelsa 25.3 per cent from 472,389 to 591,870.
“We are worried that a rigged voters’ register like the one Prof. Jega released may wittingly or unwittingly confer unwarranted advantage to those who want the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to rule Nigeria for 200 years without commensurate service to the nation.

“We had thought that N187 billion was expended in the voters’ registration to give Nigerians a clean voters’ register. “How on earth can this register be clean; when in a population of about 150 million Nigerians under 18 years account for about 60 per cent, and those above 18 years account for about 40 per cent of the population? It then becomes a big puzzle to have 73 million for those above 18 years.”

CNPP, therefore, challenged INEC to display state by state the analysis of the consolidated pre and post AFIS polling unit report, ward unit report, LGA unit report, “for this will clearly gazette invalid, under age, multiple and valid AFIS report and give Nigerians a clean voters’ register.”


Is this actually outrageous? What is your take on these, post your comments below.

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/features/sportsonthehour/2011/mar/07/sportsbreak-07-03-2011-001.htm
Eagles’ Coach, Samson Siasia, has told players invited for the Nations Cup cracker against Ethiopia to either shape up or be ship out as he is not ready to experiment with the match.

He told the technical committee of the NFF last Friday that he was going to field only players who showed understanding of his game plan and promised to axe any player that defaults in any of his rules. “I won’t take chances in the game against Ethiopia because it will define our will to muscle out Senegal from the first position she now occupies.

The Super Eagles are hard pressed to win against the visiting Ethiopia at the Abuja National Stadium on March 27 to get back on track their campaign to feature at the 2012 Nations Cup. Nigeria is behind group the leader, Guinea, by three points after two rounds of matches with only the overall group winner assured of a ticket to next year’s tournament in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. This will the first competitive game of Siasia in charge of the Eagles and he has promised the technical committee of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) that he will win big in Abuja.

“He told the committee he was not prepared for experiment in the game because he wants a resounding home win for his team,” a top official said Ethiopia was trounced 4-0 by the Eagles the last time she visited Nigeria in 1993. The current Ethiopian team is handled by Iffy Onoura, a Nigerian, who holds a British passport. The team will acclimatise in neighbouring Ghana ahead of the Group B clash.
Siasia also told the technical committee at his Friday briefing in Abuja that there was much room for improvement in the team after its performance against Sierra Leone in a friendly.

PLEASE DO NOT PUT YOUR HOPE HERE.

WHY, -THE PRESIDENT WILL WIN

AND THAT IS IT!

OUR NEXT PRESIDENT IS GOODLUCK JONATHAN

GOODLUCK; THE SIGNATURE OF GOD IS UNBEATEN IN THIS ELECTION.

AND THAT IS IT!!

Societal and economic shifts may put more men in Western countries at risk for depression, scientists worry.

"Western men, particularly those with low education levels, will face a difficult road in the 21st century," write the authors of an editorial in the March issue of The British Journal of Psychiatry. "It may be more difficult, on average, for men to adjust to a domestic role than for women to adjust to a work role."

Currently, women have nearly twice the lifetime risk of suffering from major depression, although it's not fully understood why.

A confluence of trends could change this ratio, they write, including fewer job options for men who no longer outearn their partners. As the job options narrow, men begin to assume a more prominent role as caregivers in the home – a role traditionally associated with women. [ Study: Women Are in Charge at Home ]


Costa Rica Unveils Massive New Marine Park Scientists Urge Broader Expertise in Chemical Safety Evaluations Neurons Lost in Alzheimer's Created Anew from Stem Cells Idea Gets a Toehold: Nails Hold Clue to Lung Cancer Risk The recent economic downturn has been dubbed the "Mancession" for its disproportionate effect on traditional male industries, such as construction and manufacturing. Meanwhile, women are outpacing men in the pursuit of undergraduate and graduate degrees and becoming a larger share of primary household earners.

Men's failure to fulfill the role of breadwinner is associated with greater depression and marital conflict, but if societal expectations are altered, men may experience less distress, write researchers Boadie Dunlop and Tanja Mletzko, both of Emory University School of Medicine.

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If men are innately less suited to care for young children and maintain households, then their increased contribution in this area could lead to lowered self-esteem and more depression. However, if women are better equipped to care for young children simply because they learn to be that way, through socialization — rather than because of biological differences between the sexes — it may be possible to help expectant fathers make this transition, they write. [ Dads Get Postpartum Depression, Too ]

Even so, "men in the changing economy will still face the same risks for depression that women faced in older economies: trapped in a family role from which they cannot escape because of an inability to find employment," the researchers write.

http://www.financialnigeria.com/DEVELOPMENT/developmentreport_category_item_detail.aspx?categoryid=10&item=211

Your Excellency President Obiang N'guema, Your Excellency Heads of Government and Heads of States, your Excellency Mr. Ping Chairman of the AU commission, honourable ministers, special guests, excellencies, ladies and gentle men, I am delighted to be here at this summit with its theme of "Towards Greater Unity and Integration through Shared Values".

One of our shared values is making sure we feed our people. But, as we heard this morning food prices are on the rise again. What is clear to us at the World Bank is that food price volatility is here to stay. And we must find ways to deal with this.

The World Bank food price index which measures food price movements rose by 17%
between August and November 2010 and is now close to its June 2008 levels.

The increase in the aggregate index has been driven primarily by grains - which increased by 21 percent between August and November.

Maize and wheat prices rose by 36% and 11% between August and November primarily due to earlier related production shortfalls in large exporting countries.

The world has learned the hard way - from the 2008 food crisis - just what a terrible toll rising and volatile food prices can exact on people. In 2008, the World Bank estimated that over 12 million more people in Africa were thrown into poverty because of the rise in food prices.

Today as Africans we are fortunate because the impact of this recent increase in food prices has not been as severe. In some of our countries where output has been good, as in Malawi, Kenya, and Ethiopia, prices are stable or actually falling.

Managing Price Hikes
The good news is unlike in 2008, we have been better able as a region to manage the recent increases in prices. Over the last two years, we increased agriculture productivity and production and also increased local production of food staples. Cereal production in Sub-Saharan Africa is estimated to have increased by 5.5 percent in 2010, compared to 2008 for example. This strong domestic production has helped keep prices at reasonable rates.

In the last two years countries like Burkina Faso, Malawi and others have doubled their output and some have moved from being net food importers to being food exporters. These are African success stories which we must celebrate and emulate. More importantly, this proves once and for all as President Murtharika said that Africa can feed itself. But we are not out of the woods yet.

The lesson here is that increased agricultural production and productivity and the ability to move food to where it is needed can make African countries more resilient to global food price spikes.

An Abundance of Land
Opportunities for further increases in output and productivity exist in Africa because we have a chance to raise productivity through better technical and water management and also increase output through better management of cultivated land. Africa has 50 percent of the potential 446 million hectares of uncultivated land in the world.

However this abundance of arable land has to be well managed. With food prices still volatile, large scale land deals are a growing reality on the continent. That's why together with the FAO, IFAD, UNCTAD and WFP we have developed a set of principles for Responsible Agricultural Investment that respect rights, livelihoods and resources of all citizens, small holder farmers, the private sector and the government.

Sustainable Management
Our agriculture must also be managed in a sustainable way. We need to address climate change by addressing emissions from agriculture. Agriculture and livestock account for about 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions. In Africa, two-thirds of greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture.

Agriculture can and has to be part of the solution. With better agriculture, land and water management practices, the sector could sequester 13% of current annual greenhouse gas emissions. There is real scope here for the "triple win" of supporting enhanced food security and productivity, climate resilience and carbon sequestration in agriculture. Therefore, countries need to begin to think of doing agriculture differently.

Promoting value-chain development
An important part of agricultural development now coming to the fore is the need for more integration of the value chain.

The agriculture sector in Africa has been in an enclave for far too long, with the farmer in Africa and the food and retail industry offshore. We must change this. This means that we must help put in place systems to improve the transportation of goods, the flow of information, knowledge and money.

Risk Management tools
In addition to supporting the development of supply chain agriculture, we must also develop risk management tools to help our farmers better manage price volatility.

One way to do this is through the use of weather based insurance mechanisms. Another is the creation of a regional commodity exchange to enable better transparency of prices and quantities for farmers and buyers. Such an exchange can also help farmers secure predictable financing.

What can the international community and other stakeholders do to help our countries attain the above objective?

One of the ways that the international community can help countries seize these opportunities is through the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP).

The G20 under President Obama's leadership in 2008 set up - the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) to help countries develop and implement their long term food security investment programmes.

GAFSP supports country-led approaches by specifically financing gaps identified in a country's investment plan, as developed through the comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program process. This is really about putting countries in the driver's seat. In this regard I want to congratulate all the countries that have developed CAADP plans. This approach is now a model for other regions to emulate.

GAFSP financing can be used to raise agricultural productivity; link farmers to markets; reduce risk and vulnerability; improve non-farm rural livelihoods; fund innovative new approaches to addressing food security and scale up technical assistance, institution building, and capacity development.

In other words, GAFSP can assist countries to work on all the areas mentioned earlier; GAFSP has two windows a public sector window and a private sector window.

While the World Bank Group is trustee of the fund, the AfDB, IFAD and FAO along with the Bank itself are executing agencies, the World Bank Group also acts as home of the Coordination Unit, which manages the public sector projects. IFC, the World Bank's private sector arm, manages the private sector window of GAFSP.

A steering committee overseas the affairs of the fund and Africa is represented on the Committee by two regional policy experts, and one non government organization representative.

Since its launch in April last year, GAFSP has pledges totaling US$925 million from six countries, Australia, Canada, Ireland, South Korea, Spain and the United States and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Since its launch, GAFSP has approved and started disbursing grants totaling $321 million to 8 countries - Rwanda, Togo, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Niger, Bangladesh, Haiti, and Mongolia, of which 6 are African Countries. The 6 African counties have received a total of $223.5 million, or 70 percent of all the funds.

You can say that the GAFSP is more or less an African fund. So far, 28 countries have applied GAFSP including 14 from Africa. And in the last round of applications the GAFSP secretariat received requests totaling almost a billion dollars.

The good news is that we have begun to assist to finally implement their CAADP plans. The bad news is that only 6 of 14 African countries that applied have been assisted given the lag in getting resources.

The G20 pledged $20 billion. We know that the fiscal situation is bad in most countries so we are not pressing now for the full pledge but surely the G20 can support 1/5 of what they pledged by aiming for $5 billion over the next 5 years. That is $1 billion a year.

Action on Food Volatility
President Sarkozy said as G20 chair that he wants to support African agriculture to help limit food price volatility. We applaud him and like he said we do not need another working group to study the problem, we just need to the G20 to act.

We therefore, call on the G20 and other leaders to make good on their promises. This should be one of Africa's asks to the G20. So we need you as heads of states to please raise this issue when you meet with the G20 leaders. We need them to fulfill a pledge they made two years ago.

For our part, the World Bank Group just finished mobilizing additional resources for our 71 poorest countries through IDA, the International Development Association, our fund for the poorest.

With your help we were able to raise a historic 49.3 billion dollars. I must take a moment here to thank all of you who helped by talking to donor countries and making the case on IDA effectiveness and results.

With additional IDA resources we hope to more than double our lending to Africa in agriculture from about $400 million a year to close to a billion.

The World Bank has also reactivated its Global Food crises Response Program (GFRP) to assist countries in need. Set up during the 2008 food price spike, over 40 million people in 40 low income countries are receiving ongoing assistance through this fund, with commitments totaling $1.5 billion. The GFRP has allocated $866 million representing 60 percent of total GFRP commitments to 25 African countries.

Working Together
Presidents, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen; no country has grown in the last two centuries without developing its agriculture sector and improving its food security.

We also know that overall GDP growth originating in agriculture is two to four times more effective in reducing poverty than growth generated outside agriculture.

For Africa to continue to be among the fastest growing regions in the world and contribute as global player to the recovery, we cannot afford to overlook the potential of this sector for job creating and food security.

There's clearly a need for all of us to continue this work together, as a group with shared values, and I want to say the World Bank Group is committed to working with you as well.
To paraphrase Nelson Mandela if we develop this sector: There would be work, break, water and salt for all.

Thank You.

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/features/newsonthehour/2011/mar/03/newsbreak-03-03-2011-001.htm


God has continued to answer the prayers of Ndigbo over Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State has said at the bedside of Ojukwu who is recuperating in a London hospital.

During the visit, Ojukwu’s wife, Bianca introduced the team of doctors, led by Dr Thomas, attending to him to Obi.
Bianca told the doctors that Governor Obi was the person who made the trip to London possible and that he had not relented in his determination to see that the Ezeigbo get the best of treatment available.

Replying, the governor, who expressed happiness that Ojukwu was in high spirits, said everything was made possible, first and foremost, by God. He also thanked President Goodluck Jonathan and the South-east governors for their love and concerns.

Also at the hospital was the former minister of Health, Dr. Tim Menakaya, Senator Ben Obi, Ambassador Dozie Nwanna of the Nigerian High Commission in the UK, as well as Dr. Emeka Nwankwu and Mr. Patty Ubajaka. Dr. Menakaya said he was quite impressed with Ojukwu’s progressive recovery. Exchanging medical views during the visit with Dr. Tim Menakaya, Dr. Thomas, who calls Ojukwu ‘the General’ said he doubted his recovery when he was brought into the UK in December, adding that the rate of his recovery was a miracle to him.

Describing Dim as a very strong man, he said he rarely saw anybody in such condition in his many years of medical practice who recovered as quickly as Ojukwu was doing. Governor Obi who was on his third visit to ensure that everything was ok with Ojukwu urged Ndigbo to continue to pray for him.
Ojukwu, who was in one of the most exclusive hospitals in London, was yesterday taken to another hospital for the last stage in his treatment, after which he would resume full physiotherapy, preparatory to his being discharged.

On the message from Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu to Ndigbo, Obi said he asked him to thank Ndigbo in partucular for him and Nigerians in general.

THIS SHOULD NOT BE TOLERATED

THIS IS A BIG SHAME

HE SHOULD HAVE A CHANGE OF CHARACTER AND ATTITUDE.

AND THAT IS IT!

ISLAMABAD – Assailants purportedly sent by al-Qaida and the Taliban killed the only Christian member of Pakistan's federal Cabinet Wednesday, spraying his car with bullets outside his mother's driveway. It was the second assassination in two months of a high-profile opponent of blasphemy laws that impose the death penalty for insulting Islam.

The killing of Shahbaz Bhatti, a 42-year-old Roman Catholic, further undermines Pakistan's shaky image as a moderate Islamic state and could deepen the political turmoil in this nuclear-armed, U.S.-allied state where militants frequently stage suicide attacks.

The Vatican said the assassination shows that the pope's warnings about the danger to Christians in the region are fully justified.

Bhatti, a campaigner for human rights causes, had apparently been aware of the danger he was in and left a video-taped message with the British Broadcasting Corp. and the Al-Jazeera satellite TV station to be broadcast in the event of his death.

In the farewell statement, Bhatti said he was threatened by the Taliban and al-Qaida, but that this would not deter him from speaking for "oppressed and marginalized persecuted Christians and other minorities" in Pakistan. "I will die to defend their rights," he said on the tape. "These threats and these warnings cannot change my opinions and principles."

Despite the threats, Bhatti, who had been assigned bodyguards, was without protection when he visited his mother in the capital of Islamabad on Wednesday afternoon, police said. The politician had just pulled out of the driveway of the house, where he frequently stayed, when three men standing nearby opened fire, said Gulam Rahim, a witness.

Two of the men opened the door of the car and tried to pull Bhatti out, Rahim said, while a third man fired his Kalashnikov rifle repeatedly into the dark-colored Toyota, shattering the windows. The gunmen then sped away in a white Suzuki Mehran car, said Rahim who took shelter behind a tree. Bhatti was dead on arrival at an area hospital, while his driver was not harmed.

In leaflets left at the scene of the shooting, al-Qaida and the Pakistani Taliban Movement in Punjab province claimed responsibility. They blamed the government for putting Bhatti, an "infidel Christian," in charge of an unspecified committee, apparently referring to one said to be reviewing the blasphemy laws. The government has repeatedly said such a committee does not exist.

"With the blessing of Allah, the mujahedeen will send each of you to hell," said the note, which did not name any other targets.

Government officials condemned the killing, but made no reference to the blasphemy law controversy.

"This is a concerted campaign to slaughter every liberal, progressive and humanist voice in Pakistan," said Farahnaz Ispahani, an aide to President Asif Ali Zardari. "The time has come for the federal government and provincial governments to speak out and to take a strong stand against these murderers to save the very essence of Pakistan."

Bhatti, who was minister for religious minorities, had been given police and paramilitary guards, said Wajid Durrani, a senior police official. He said Bhatti asked his official guards not to travel with him while he stayed with his mother. His father died recently.

Aides and friends confirmed that Bhatti preferred to keep a low profile — without guards — while staying at his mother's. Wasif Ali Khan, a friend, said Bhatti repeatedly requested a bullet-proof car but did not received one.

Bhatti was also nervous about using security guards, Khan said, because it was a bodyguard who in January killed Punjab province Gov. Salman Taseer, another opponent of the blasphemy laws. To the horror of Pakistan's besieged liberals, many ordinary citizens praised the governor's assassin — a sign of the spread of hardline Islamist thought in the country.

With the death of Bhatti, Pakistani Christians lost their most prominent advocate. Christians are the largest religious minority in the country, where roughly 5 percent of 180 million people are not Muslim. They have very little political power and tend to work in lower-level jobs, such as street sweeping.

"We have been orphaned today!" wailed Rehman Masih, a Christian resident of Islamabad. "Now who will fight for our rights? Who will raise a voice for us? Who will help us?"

The assassination drew swift condemnation from Christian leaders elsewhere.

A Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said the slaying is a "new episode of violence of terrible gravity." He said it "demonstrates just how justified are the the insistent statements by the pope regarding violence against Christians and religious freedom." Lombardi noted that Pope Benedict XVI had met with the pope in September.

In Britain, leaders of the Anglican Church expressed shock and sorrow and urged Pakistan's government to do more to protect Christians. The U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan, Cameron Munter, also condemned the assassination, calling Bhatti "a Pakistani patriot."

Several Muslim leaders in Pakistan either offered a tepid condemnation or alleged the assassination was part of foreign-led conspiracy to drive a wedge between Muslims and Christians.

The blasphemy laws are a deeply sensitive subject in Pakistan, where most residents are Sunni Muslims and where austere versions of Islam — more common in the Middle East than South Asia — have been on the rise.

Human rights groups have long warned that the laws are vaguely worded and open to abuse because people often use them to settle rivalries or persecute religious minorities.

But in a sign of how scared the largely secular-leaning ruling party is of Islamist street power, party leaders haven't supported calls for reforming the laws. Instead, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and others have repeatedly insisted they won't touch the statutes.

After the assassination of the Punjab governor, his confessed killer, bodyguard Mumtaz Qadri, was greeted with showers of rose petals from many lawyers who went to watch his initial court hearing.

Weeks afterward, another prominent opponent of the blasphemy laws, National Assembly member Sherry Rehman, dropped her bid to get them changed. The People's Party member said she had to abide by party leaders' decisions. She, too, faces death threats and has been living with heavy security.

No one has been put to death for blasphemy in Pakistan because courts typically throw out cases or commute the sentences. Still, some who are released are later killed by extremists or have to go into hiding. Others accused of blasphemy spend long periods in prison while waiting for their cases to wind through the courts.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Half of men in the general population may be infected with human papillomavirus or HPV, the human wart virus that causes cervical and other cancers, strengthening the case for vaccinating boys against HPV, U.S. researchers said on Monday.

U.S. vaccine advisers have been weighing whether boys and young men should be vaccinated against the human papillomavirus, as they already recommend for girls and young women, but some worry the vaccine is too costly to justify its use.

HPV infection is best known as the primary cause of cervical cancer, the second most common cancer in women worldwide. But various strains of HPV also cause anal, penile, head and neck cancers. Vaccinating men and boys would prevent some of these cancers.

Anna Giuliano of the H Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute in Tampa, Florida, and colleagues studied infection rates among more than 1,100 men aged 18 to 70 in the United States, Brazil and Mexico to get a snapshot of the natural progression of HPV infection in men.

"We found that there is a high proportion of men who have genital HPV infections. At enrollment, it was 50 percent," said Giuliano, whose study appears online in the journal Lancet.

The team also found that the rate at which men acquire new HPV infections is very similar to women.

And they found that about 6 percent of men per year will get a new HPV 16 infection, the strain that is known for causing cervical cancer in women and other cancers in men.

Vaccines made by Merck & Co and GlaxoSmithKline both offer protection against this strain of HPV.

"The biology seems to be very similar (to women)," Giuliano said in a telephone interview.

"What is different is men seem to have high prevalence of genital HPV infections throughout their lifespans."

She said it appears that women are better able to clear an HPV infection, especially as they age, but men do not appear to have this same ability.

Vaccine experts said the study builds momentum for widespread HPV vaccination among boys.

Currently, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends Gardasil vaccinations for girls and women between the ages of 11 and 26. Gardasil had sales of more than $1 billion last year.

And while doctors are free to use the vaccine in boys and men ages 9 through 26, U.S. health officials so far have declined to recommend routine vaccination for males.

"This study highlights the high incidence of HPV infection in men, which emphasizes their role in transmission of HPV to women," Dr. Anne Szarewski of the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine in London said in a statement.

"It must surely strengthen the argument for vaccination of men, both for their own protection, and that of their partners."

In December, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Merck's Gardasil HPV vaccine for prevention of anal cancers in both men and women, based on studies showing Gardasil was effective in men who have sex with men, a group that has a higher incidence of anal cancer.

Anal cancer is one of the less common types of cancer, with an estimated 5,300 new U.S. cases diagnosed each year, but the incidence is increasing.

The White House dropped a statistics-stuffed report compiling reams of federal data about the state of American women today.

None of the information is exactly new, but a number of the graphs featured in the report caught The Lookout's eye--they offer a compelling illustration of the status of women today. For instance, more young women are going to college than their male counterparts for the first time in U.S. history. But, women are much more likely to go into lower-paying fields than men when they graduate--thereby perpetuating the long-standing wage gap between the genders.

And women--especially minority women--are still more likely to live in poverty than men. Check out five of the graphs from the report below.

Women are waiting longer on average to have their first child:

As they delay childbirth, more women are going to college and graduate school. In fact, women just recently passed men in the race to a bachelor's degree, and that gap appears to be widening.

But that increased education hasn't yet resulted in women earning as much as men in the workplace:

Maybe that's in part because women spend more time than men working outside of the labor force. That gap holds even when you compare married working women to married working men. Men spend a greater percentage of their time on leisure activities, while women work on household tasks and caring for other family members:

Women do continue to live longer than men and suffer less frequently from heart disease--yet many chronic diseases afflict women at a higher rate than men. Women are more likely to suffer from depression, mobility problems and arthritis, for example. The chart below shows that women are also more likely to be obese:

Senior Obama White House adviser Valerie Jarrett said on a conference call with reporters that the president will use the data as a "tool" to inform policy initiatives, though she would not name any specific new moves the administration is contemplating in the realm of gender.

"You really have to look at the whole story of a woman's life," Jarrett said. "This report gives us a comprehensive framework to do that."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110302/ap_on_re_af/af_libya;_ylt=AsxjW0vJTaBdNoLe4C5sG4.s0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTM4dGk2Y3VwBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTEwMzAyL2FmX2xpYnlhBGNjb2RlA21vc3Rwb3B1bGFyBGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMgRwdANob21lX2Nva2UEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDcmViZWxzZmlnaHRn


Libya – Forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi battled government opponents for control of a key oil installation and an airstrip Wednesday on the Mediterranean coast in a counter-offensive against the rebel-held eastern half of the country.

The fighting was centered on the oil facilities at Brega, which the opposition has held for days. In the morning, witnesses reported that it was retaken by a large convoy of pro-Gadhafi forces. But hours later, witnesses on the outskirts of Brega said fighting resumed.

They said some of the regime forces were surrounded by rebels. The sound of screaming warplanes and the crackle of heavy gunfire could be heard as the witnesses spoke to The Associated Press by phone. Opposition fighters at checkpoints outside Brega said the opposition had retaken the oil facilities and the airstrip.

Brega lies at the western edge of the swathe of opposition-controlled territory of eastern Libya. At the nearby rebel-held city of Ajdabiya, pick-up trucks full of anti-Gadhafi fighters carrying automatic weapons, along with a tank, sped out toward the oil port, 40 miles away (70 kilometers) away.

At the same time, Ajdabiya's people geared up to defend the city, fearing the pro-Gadhafi forces would move on them next. At the gates of the city, hundreds of residents took up positions on the road from Brega, armed with Kalashnikovs and hunting rifles, along with a few rocket-propelled grenade launchers. They set up two large rocket launchers and an anti-aircraft gun in the road.

Ahmed Dawas, an opposition fighter at a checkpoint outside Brega, said a large force of pro-Gadhafi fighters in about 50 SUVs descended on Brega shortly after sunrise and swept over the facility, taking the airstrip as warplanes struck nearby targets. But later, he said, anti-regime fighters from Ajdabiya and from Brega's residents flooded in and took back it back.

There was no immediate word on casualties.

TH current uprising in the Arabs world is intriguing what is your take on these post your comments below.

Kate Middleton will be a military bride when she walks down the aisle on April 29. Prince William has expressed wishes to see the front lines of war, but is this even possible for a man who will one day be King? BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt looks at the history of the royals and their military service.


"I still have hope and faith and a real determination to go out there," Prince William declared in a recent interview. The focus of his desire is Afghanistan and a role on the front line. If his wish was granted, he'd be following in the footsteps of Prince Harry.

The younger brother served there, in secret, for two-and-a-half months in 2008. The BBC and other British media organizations agreed not to report his deployment to protect his safety. Harry was brought home early after it leaked out that he was in Helmand province and occasionally patrolling close to the Pakistan border.

But will William's dogged desire be realized? The public signs, so far, are not promising. The Chief of the Defence Staff, who is in charge of the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force, has gone on the record to say he didn't think the second-in-line to the throne was sufficiently trained and his feeling was, at present, William should not go.

The doctor charged in Michael Jackson's death is due in court as a judge considers delaying the physician's upcoming trial.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor has ordered Dr. Conrad Murray to appear at Wednesday's hearing.

During two previous sessions, Pastor grilled Murray's defense attorneys about why they haven't turned more information over to prosecutors.

Pastor says he was "extremely distressed" by the lack of disclosure by Murray's attorneys. But he has also requested case law that will support the prosecution's request to delay the trial, scheduled to begin March 24.

Murray has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter and is seeking a speedy trial.

The Houston-based cardiologist's attorneys have said they haven't finalized their defense, and probably won't until after the trial starts

The U.S. military deployed naval and air units near Libya, and the West moved to send its first concrete aid to Libya's rebellion in the east of the country, hoping to give it the momentum to oust Moammar Gadhafi. But the Libyan leader's regime clamped down in its stronghold in the capital and appeared to be maneuvering to strike opposition-held cities.

In Washington, Defense Department spokesman Col. Dave Lapan said the naval and air forces were deployed to have flexibility as Pentagon planners worked on contingency plans, but did not elaborate. The U.S. has a regular military presence in the Mediterranean Sea.

The European Union slapped an arms embargo, visa ban and other sanctions on Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's regime, as British Prime Minister David Cameron told British lawmakers Monday he is working with allies on a plan to establish a military no-fly zone over Libya, since "we do not in any way rule out the use of military assets" to deal with Gadhafi's embattled regime.

In the most direct U.S. demand for Gadhafi to step down, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the Libyan leader must leave power "now, without further violence or delay."

France was sending two planes with humanitarian aid, including medicine and doctors, to Benghazi, the opposition stronghold in eastern Libya, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said. That would be the first direct Western aid to the uprising that has taken control of the entire eastern half of Libya. Fillon said it was the start of a "massive operation of humanitarian support" for the east and that Paris was studying "all solutions" — including military options.

The two sides in Libya's crisis appeared entrenched in their positions, and the direction the uprising takes next could depend on which can hold out longest. Gadhafi is dug in in Tripoli and nearby cities, backed by security forces and militiamen who are generally better armed than the military. His opponents, holding the east and much of the country's oil infrastructure, also have pockets in western Libya near Tripoli. They are backed by mutinous army units, but those forces appear to have limited supplies of ammunition and weapons.

In the two opposition-held cities closest to Tripoli — Zawiya and Misrata — rebel forces were locked in standoffs with Gadhafi loyalists.

An Associated Press reporter saw a large pro-Gadhafi force massed on the western edge of Zawiya, some 30 miles (50 kilometers) west of Tripoli, with about a dozen armored vehicles and tanks and jeeps mounted with anti-aircraft guns. An officer said they were from the elite Khamis Brigade, named after the Gadhafi son who commands it. U.S. diplomats have said the brigade is the best equipped force in Libya.

That the sexy actress cum singer, popularly known as Shebaby, would be officially tying the nuptial knot soon, is no longer a rumour. Surprisingly, some people did not believe the gist when it was broken that Shebaby jetted out to UK to have her first baby.

NFC can now authoritatively reveal that the

Tell Me Why crooner has put to bed in London. With the arrival of Shebaby’s bouncing baby girl, who was delivered on February 23, 2011, plans are said to be in top gear for a grand wedding ceremony. Keep you posted on the date soon. If you recall, it was the pregnancy that facilitated Shebaby’s low-keyed engagement and introduction ceremony held sometime ago in Nigeria.
http://nigeriafilms.com/news/10792/6/it-is-a-baby-girl-for-shebaby.html

She is furious, livid if you like. Actress cum movie prodigy, Stella Damasus wants people to leave her private life alone, and focus on her work. She insists in this interview with Olumide Segun-Oduntan that her relationship with the public is the work she does, and not what happens in her bedroom.

Do you still sing?
Yes I do. I still have my band

Some of your colleagues in the film industry have been releasing albums. Do you intend to toe that line?
Well, it was part of the plan. Some years back, my late husband and I actually had an album for our band, Synergy. Of course when he died a lot of things just slowed down. So I didn’t pursue it so much because I wanted to stabilise some other areas of my life. I’ve about two songs as my own singles but I’m not ready and that’s the truth. I’m not going to rush into it because every other person is doing it. It has to be a choice that I would make because I’m ready to do it. For me, singing for 15 years does not mean that I feel that my voice is perfect enough to go into the studio immediately. So I’m at that phase where I’m still doing a lot of voice training. So before I even say I want to do an album, everything has to be in place because I’m not about to do the album and start looking for who will buy it. I don’t want my music to be like that. I want to have a proper record label on ground that I can see and verify that ‘okay these people are good’. They can take care of your music. They would have people that would do the production for you. They would have people that would get you shows.’ For acting you would hustle then to do music you will come and hustle again.

Obviously you actresses are making a lot of money?
That is the biggest lie ever. That is the biggest lie they have been selling through the media for a long time. There is nobody that would come and tell you ‘oh in the movie industry, I’m extremely well paid. That is a big lie because even the producers don’t even have enough money most of the time to cover their costs let alone being able to pay actors very well. That’s why people are bad-mouthing a lot of us that ‘oh some of you move from set to set’. And my question is why not. A lot of people are not like me. I have other strings of income. A lot of people do only acting. So if you pay them and not that much, how long would they have to use the money before they get another one? Look at all the old actors that are there. They are very broke. Sixty percent of most of our actors that were really popular, they all have one illness or the other. They are begging people to help them. If they have that much money saved up they won’t be in the position they are today.

But actresses like Omotola and Genevieve seem to be rich. Some people are lucky they are married to people that are wealthy. Some people are lucky to get endorsement deals out there. But if you think that whatever we are doing now is based on what we earn from movies, it’s a big lie. I’m lucky that I’ve discovered the other things that I can do and do well. So I’m able to multi-task, if not I can’t maintain a particular standard of living or quality of life. So don’t let anybody deceive you that home video pays so much. That’s a lie.

Give me a figure of what the industry is paying now.
Oh it’s even worse now. I might not want to do that because of my colleagues but before the ban they had some time ago, it was not great, but it was something at least that you can just use to pay off some bills. But now it’s terrible. So a lot of people are doing partnerships, barter deals and other things – use me in your film, I’ll do it for free and when it’s out , we split the proceed or I do film for you and you will do my own because everybody has become producers all of a sudden. That’s how a lot of us survive.

As a celebrity, do you enjoy being famous?
No, because I’m a very simple person. Unfortunately for me, you can’t separate the nature of the job from the glamorous life of a celebrity. Most of the time, I want to be very simple. I want to walk into a place and live a normal life. But I cannot live a normal life because of the nature of my job. It’s not fun. I can’t live a normal life. I wish I could. I miss my life. So when people ask me ‘would you do this again?’ I will but not like this, very differently. I will live my life slightly different from this. Anything that I can do to reduce all the attention, I would because I’m a family person and I like to see myself as a mother who wants to care for her children. You see, in developed parts of the world, you would find that being a celebrity comes with its ups and downs. But most of the time, even with negative publicity, they also celebrate their stars to the point that people would do anything to see them. But here, if you are not friends with the media, if you don’t do something to appease them, you’re nothing. They would want to really mess you up. Everything is controversy. Everything is sensational for them.

But some of the reports are true
No, no, no. If you ask me, it’s only five percent of journalists in this country thatdo investigative journalism. Most of the time they write crap. They don’t know anything about you. They come up with all sorts of things. They don’t even get the true version of anything and they just print it to get a reaction.

But you can always sue such media
Sue a magazine in this country? Let’s be realistic here. Let’s think of the judicial system in our country and see how many years it will take you to sue one paper. And then the others would now pounce on the story of what’s going on. You would now give more credibility to the paper and make it more popular. Then you spending money to battle them in court and they are still making money. So they would keep riding on that story. If our society, our judiciary make sense there are some things you would not tolerate. For me I just move on and do more positive things.
http://nigeriafilms.com/news/10805/2/leave-my-private-life-alone-stella-damasus.html

wew!

which time on earth do i have to watch some other person making his money!