Obafemi Martins has admitted that he still dreams of pulling on the Nigerian jersey, but says it is up to the technical crew.
The striker, who has scored 10 times in 22 games for Seattle Sounders
in the American Major Soccer League, has only been invited twice to the
Super Eagles squad in three years.
“I’m here and I’m Nigerian, so we’ll see if I get picked. I have no control over it,” Martins told Fifa.com.
“Every coach has his favourites. All I can say is that I’m playing good football in Seattle and I’m happy doing it.
“If I’m in the Nigeria team, great, and if I’m not, I wish them all the best. I always want Nigeria to do well.
Martins, 30, also stated that Nigerian players are embraced in every
league in the world, because they are talented and passionate about
football.
“We don’t have the best domestic league system in Nigeria, but we do have some of the best players – too many talented players.
“Go to Germany, Russia, Spain, Italy, wherever, and you’ll find
Nigerians playing there. They might not be the big stars, but they’re
out there showing what Nigerian football is all about.
“Nigerians love to play football and it’s not like here in the States
where there’s American football, baseball, basketball. All we have is
football in Nigeria. And we love it.”
MMartins has played 39 games for Nigeria and scored 18 goals.
Lagos recorded its second case of Ebola on Monday as a doctor who treated the Liberian victim, Patrick Sawyer is said to be down with the virus. Nigeria’s Health Minister, Onyebuchi Chukwu had disclosed.
Sawyer died in Lagos last month after arriving in Lagos via a plane from Liberia.
Ebola has killed 826 people in West Africa since the outbreak began in February, mostly in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
“As of today, one of the doctors that treated the late Mr Sawyer has tested positive to the Ebola virus,” Chukwu told a news conference.
He added that of the 70 people who were under surveillance, eight had been “quarantined at an isolation ward provided by the Lagos state government.”
Ebola is one of the world’s deadliest diseases, with a mortality rate of up to 90 percent of its cases.
The disease starts with headaches and fever, and final-stage symptoms include external and internal bleeding, vomiting and diarrhea. There is no effective treatment and no vaccine to protect against it.
The outbreak began in the forests of remote eastern Guinea in February.
President Goodluck Jonathan on
Friday sacked the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National
Petroleum Corporation, Mr. Andrew Yakubu.
The President, in a statement by his
Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, named Dr.
Joseph Dawha as Yakubu’s replacement.
Abati
also announced the appointment of Mr. Anthony Ugonna Muoneke as the new
Managing Director of the Nigeria Petroleum Development Corporation.
Further shake-up in the NNPC as approved
by the President , according to the statement, saw Ms. Aisha Mata
Abdurrahman reassigned as the corporation’s Group Executive Director,
Commercial and Investment; while Dr. Attahiru B. Yusuf was named the
Group Executive Director, Business Development.
All the appointments take immediate effect.
The new GMD of the NNPC hails from Borno state.
He has served previously as the Group
Executive Director, Exploration and Production, NNPC and Managing
Director, Integrated Data Services Ltd, a subsidiary of the NNPC.
Muoneke, the new MD of the NPDC, hails from Anambra state.
Called to the Nigerian Bar in 1985, he
has over 29 years’ experience at both local and international levels in
the oil and gas as well as the energy and power sectors, including
serving as Executive Director, Finance and Administration, Niger Delta
Power Holding Company Limited.
Delegates at the National
Conference are planning not to sign the final report of the conference
unless they are given copies to read before they would append their
signatures on it.
Investigations by our correspondent in
Abuja on Wednesday showed that the delegates felt that they needed to
see the details of the reports.
Already,
some of the delegates were said to have agreed that this condition must
be met before they would append their signature to the conference’s
final report.
It was leant that the promoters of this
demand might have been influenced by some delegates who were not happy
with some of the decisions arrived at during the debates on the reports
of the 20 committees of the conference.
Some of the delegates were afraid that
some contentious issues that were not agreed on or not favourable to
them, could be inserted in the final report.
One of such decisions was the issue of
derivation, which spilt the delegates during the plenary, as those from
the northern part of the country said they would not support its
increment from 13 to 18 per cent.
The northern delegates were asking that
five per cent from the Federation Account be also set aside as National
Intervention Fund for the reconstruction of the northern part of the
country, which they said had been destroyed by the activities of
terrorists.
While the northern delegates insisted
that the fund must be enjoyed by the three zones in the region, which
are North-East, North-West and North-Central, the southern delegates
were of the opinion that the fund must be made available to all the
zones in the country.
They also said the administration of the
fund must start with the North-East, a proposal that was not favourably
disposed to by the southern delegates.
This division made the Chairman of the
conference, Justice Idris Kutigi, to announce on the day the plenary
closed, that the issue of derivation and the intervention fund would be
left for the Federal Government to determine.
“Conference therefore recommends that
government should set up a technical committee to determine appropriate
percentage for the three issues and advised government accordingly,”
Kutigi had said.
It was issues like this that made the
northern delegates to say that they would insist that the complete
report must be made available for them before they would agree to sign
it.
The spokesperson for the delegates, Dr.
Junaid Mohammed, who spoke with our correspondent in Abuja on Wednesday,
said there was no way the delegates would be forced to sign.
He said, “Up till now, they have not
told us how the report would be. They just asked us to report, like
school children, on August 4. The leadership is so disorganised and may
not know what to do.
“There are issues we did not agree on
apart from the issue of derivation, and I’m saying that nobody can force
us to sign what we have not read or go through or issues we even
disagreed on substantially.
“Neither Kutigi nor Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi can force us to do that. We are waiting for them to bring their joker.”
A delegate from the South-South region,
Mr. Paul Enebeli, also said that the delegates were yet to be briefed on
the way the report would be presented.
But he said the delegates might demand
for the records of proceedings at the plenary to enable them to study
issues that were discusse and were agreed on or rejected.
“We need sufficient time to go through
the reports. But we have requested for verbatim reports of the
proceedings during the plenary,” he added.
Another delegate, who is a former
President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Mr. Lanre Arogundade,
said it would be wrong for the northern delegates to insist on the five
cent intervention fund.
He said the money for the reconstruction
of the zone was the one the Federal Government had asked the Gen.
Theophilus Danjuma committee on Victims Support Fund to raise.
He also added that the intervention fund
been demanded by the delegates from the North could also make their
counterparts from other parts of the country to make similar demand.
Arogundade said, “What do they want to
do with that again? The N30bn that the Danjuma Committee has been
charged to raise is enough. We should not encourage all these kinds of
issues to be coming up. Why did you think our brothers from the eastern
part of the country are also asking for money to be paid for the victims
of civil war?”
President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday met behind closed-doors
with Speaker of Nasarawa State House of Assembly, Musa Mohammed, some
key leaders of the House and the Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP), Uche Secondus.
The meeting which held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja followed the
impeachment notice served on Governor Tanko Al-Makura of the All
Progressives Congress (APC).
The
Assembly on Wednesday ordered the state’s Chief Judge, Justice Umaru
Dikko, to set up a seven-member committee to investigate the governor of
alleged misconduct.
Youths in the state have since taken to the streets in protest over
the impeachment move, insisting the governor must serve out his two
terms. Al-Makura is the second APC governor to face impeachment charges.
Former governor of Adamawa State, Admiral Murtala Nyako, was last week
removed by the House.
Cornered by State House correspondents after meeting with the
President to divulge what transpired, the Speaker, accompanied by some
principal officers of the House, declined comments.
“It is a private visit. I don’t have the mandate of the Assembly to
brief the press. Chairman of the House Committee on Information has the
mandate to speak to the press on anything concerning impeachment”, he
said.
Secondus, who emerged a few minutes after the lawmakers, also declined to state what the meeting was all about.
He said: “It’s consultation. I can’t say whatever transpired now. We are consulting”, as he hurriedly left the Villa.”
The plenary session of the National Conference drew to a close
on Monday following completion of debate and adoption of resolutions
arising from reports of 20 committees that considered critical issues
arising from the convocation of the Conference.
Conference Chairman and former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice
Idris Kutigi, said the next plenary session would be on August 4, 2014
when delegates would reassemble to consider and approve the final
reports of the Conference for presentation to the Federal Government.
Specifically
on Monday, Conference formally adopted the Report of the Committee on
Devolution of Power but without conclusive decision on the vital issue
of derivation principle and what percentage should be paid mineral
producing areas.
After days of fruitless discussion by leaders of geo-political zones
at the Conference, Justice Kutigi and other principal officers of the
Conference met with selected leaders of delegations to the Conference;
co-chairmen, chairmen and deputy chairmen of all the Standing Committees
to decide on the matter.
The first meeting scheduled for Friday last week did not hold as most
of the selected delegates scheduled had already concluded their travel
plans in view of the imminent closure of Abuja airport that Friday
afternoon for maintenance work on the runway.
As soon as the Conference resumed on Monday, Justice Kutigi said:
“I’m still of the view that the Committee that is handling the matter of
coming to a compromise will still do their job.
“We couldn’t have the meeting on Friday. So, I am proposing that we
give them two hours to meet with us.” He then invited the “Fifty Wise
Men, Committees Co-chairmen, Chairmen and Deputy Chairmen to meet now in
our usual place.”
After five hours of close-door deliberation with the leadership of
the Conference, both the southern and the northern delegates refused to
agree on some of the issues thrown up in the initial meetings of some
regional leaders.
From the presentations of the leaders, three issues were raised
during their discussions. The issues were: 18 per cent derivation for
mineral producing area, five per cent for the development of solid
minerals and five per cent for the reconstruction of states in the
northern region ravaged by insurgency and internal conflicts. The last
seemed to have been the point of controversy as some of the leaders
insisted that the intervention fund should be for the entire country
where such was required.
The issue split the delegates along the north/south divide, but
during meeting between the selected delegates and principal officers, it
was suggested that since there are other areas that funds are being
allocated from the Federation Account outside the issues being
considered, it would be proper to have a technical committee to take a
global look at the revenue allocation framework and determine the
appropriate percentages on the three issues under consideration and
advise government accordingly.
But before endorsing that decision, the meeting had critically
examined the issues in contention and recognized the need to review the
percentage of revenue allocation to oil producing states including those
producing other resources; to reconstruct and rehabilitate areas
affected by problems of insurgency and internal conflicts; and the
diversification of the economy by fast tracking the development of solid
minerals.
Conference chairman, Justice Idris Kutigi then conveyed the decision
of the leaders to delegates at resumption of plenary. Although some
delegates kicked against the decision lamenting the irreconcilable
positions of the delegates from both sides, majority of them agreed that
the decision was not just a compromise position but a reasonable one in
view of the technical nature of the revenue allocation infrastructure.
As delegates started re-opening debate on the issue, the chairman
declared, in line with the Rules of Procedure that having adopted the
report of the Committee, “this effectively brings us to the end of this
debate.”
The Resolution reached at the meeting of the leaders and principal officers of the Conference reads thus:
Having critically examined the issues in contention, Conference recognizes the need to:
a) Review the percentage of revenue to states producing oil (and other resources)
b) Reconstruct and rehabilitate areas affected by problems of insurgency and internal conflicts; and
c) Diversify the Nigerian economy by fast tracking the development of the solid minerals sector;
The Conference also notes that assigning percentages for the increase
in derivation principle, and setting up Special Intervention funds to
address issues of reconstruction and rehabilitation of areas ravaged by
insurgency and internal conflicts as well as solid minerals development,
require some technical details and considerations.
Conference therefore recommends that Government should set up
Technical Committee to determine the appropriate percentages on the
three issues and advise government accordingly.
SIGNED
AKPANDEM JAMES
ASSISTANT SECRETARY, MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS
The United States has stated that its surveillance flights
could not locate the whereabouts of the over 200 girls kidnapped by the
Boko Haram sect on April 14.
According to the US, some of its surveillance activities have been
withdrawn since other countries like France and Britain have joined in
the search. The US says the withdrawal will not affect the original plan
aimed at rescuing the kidnapped girls.
“We
don’t have any better idea today than we did before about where these
girls are, but there’s been no letup of the effort itself,” Pentagon
spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters, according to Reuters.
According to Reuters, a US defence official who would not want his
name in print said American flights had been reduced only after a body
of intelligence had been gathered. Meanwhile, the British and the French
have joined the team.
However,Pentagon spokesman, Rear Admiral John Kirby said the US
flights over Nigeria had been reduced to accommodate increased US
surveillance over Iraq, where Washington is flying unmanned and manned
aircraft to gather intelligence about Sunni insurgents.
He explained that, some of the resources that were being used in
Nigeria had been diverted from other missions in Africa and could now be
used elsewhere on the continent.
Officials declined to say how long heightened U.S. surveillance over Nigeria had lasted.
Asked whether it was just a week or two, the defence official said,
“No. We were building this baseline for a good period of time.”
US surveillance flights over Nigeria were now intermittent, the source said.
The defence official said surveillance alone would not lead to a
resolution. “It will take the Nigerian piece of the equation with their
own sources and human intelligence coupled with the other forms to
really understand the picture.” He said.
Stephen Keshi is expected to welcome back Victor Moses to Nigeria’s staring line-up, when they face France on Monday evening.
The Chelsea forward has missed the last two games for the Super
Eagles with a muscle strain, after he was replaced in the first match
against Iran.
With Michael Babatunde ruled out with a broken arm, Moses is in line to take his place against Didier Deschamps’ men.
That means Osaze Odemwingie will likely be drafted into the advanced
midfield role Babatunde played before his injury, while Moses and Ahmed
Musa will occupy the flanks.
Godfrey Oboabona is also fit, but it remains to be seen if 100-cap chasing Joseph Yobo has done enough to impress Keshi.
The Secretary-General, Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic
Affairs, NSCIA, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, has kicked against the notion that
all Muslims are terrorists.
Oloyede who stated this while delivering a keynote address at the 9th
Ramadan Lecture of Muslim Media Professionals of Nigeria (MMPN) in
Abuja called on the federal government to stand strongly against the
security challenges in the country.
According
to him, “Muslims are not responsible for the violence in the country.
Muslims are for peace. If there is any problem, it is a failure of the
system.”
The Muslim cleric who gave a keynote address on “Peace and
Leadership: The Missing Link” added that there “cannot be peace without
justice. Our appeal is that the Federal Government should be just to all
segments of the society.”
Speaking on the theme of the lecture, the guest speaker, Prof. Musa
Abdur-Raheem said that for peace to reign, there must be justice.
“Boko Haram are not representing Islam, Muslims are for peace and
most of the victims of Boko Haram attacks are Muslims,” he said.
He called on leaders in the country to live up to expectations by urgently addressing the nation’s security challenges.
Declaring the event open, a representative of Gov. Babangida Aliyu of
Niger, Alhaji Hamidu Kadi-kuta, called on Muslim faithful to use the
Ramadan period to pray for peace and unity of the country.
Earlier, Chairman of the Association, Abdurrahman Balogun, urged
politicians in the country to play politics according to the rules of
the game.
“As 2015 general elections approaches, politicians should play the game according to the rules.
“They shoulf fear Allah in all their dealings and remember that
everyone will account for all deeds in the hereafter,” Balogun added.
Football’s governing body, FIFA, has agreed to allow the
Nigeria Football Supporters Club to bring in its musical instruments
into the stadium in Brazil, provided there is a back-up letter from
Nigeria Football Association (NFA).
Rafiu Oladipo, the President-General of the club, said at a news
conference in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Saturday that the club had
consequently forwarded a letter to NFA requesting for the letter.
Oladipo said that the letter must reach FIFA 24 hours ahead of the Nigeria/France second round match on Monday.
He added that the letter would also cover Nigeria for other matches in case the Super Eagles qualify for the quarter finals.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that FIFA said it had not
officially denied the club the right of singing, drumming and trumpeting
during Nigeria’s matches but that the club had never requested
officially.
NAN reports that the club had been denied the use of musical
instruments in various stadia where the Super Eagles played their Group F
preliminary matches, a development the players disliked.
FIFA had insinuated that members of club were likely to use the musical instruments as weapons during Eagles matches.
During Nigeria’s first round matches in Curitiba, Cuiaba and Porto
Alegrie, the supporters’ musical instruments were seized at stadium
gates but released after each match.
Oladipo said that members of the club were never known for violence
and pledged not to allow them use the instruments as weapons during
Nigeria’s matches.
He expressed confidence that Super Eagles would defeat France in the next round as Nigeria had beaten France before.
He, however, continued to solicit the support of Nigerians at home
for the team, saying it was their prayers that had helped the team
progress in the competition. (NAN)
The Catholic Diocese of Enugu, on Sunday, banned women from attending church services with hand-bags.
The ban followed recent incursion of the Boko Haram insurgents into
the South-East, especially the foiled bomb attack at the Winners’ Church
in Owerri, Imo State.
The
development, according to the church, is aimed at nipping in the bud
any possible attack on places of worship in the Diocese.
According to the Bishop of the Diocese, Rt. Rev. (Dr) Calistus Onaga,
who directed all parish priests within the Diocese to make the official
announcement during Sunday services, he appealed to the faithful to
cooperate with the church in that regard.
He said the exercise was not meant to embarrass the women or any
body, but was born out of the present disturbing insecurity challenges
facing the nation.
The cleric however, assured that it will be done with human face, and
in a civilised manner, adding that the church, do not want to take
chances.
A worshipper who do not want his name in print said, “I must tell
you, the Bishop and entire Catholic faithful in Enugu, are apprehensive
with the rumour of the insurgents infiltrating the east, especially the
alleged recent escape of two buses conveying Boko Haram members in Abia
state, during a security check.
“I support the development that henceforth, women will no longer be
allowed to enter Catholic churches during masses with hand bags, apart
from their purses, which will also be subjected to thorough scrutiny by
church workers.
“Before today’s announcement was made, our Bishop had already briefed
all the parish priests under the Diocese, so that they can take the
message down to their various parishes.
“Though, we known that if God did not guard a city, guard men will be
guarding in vein; but there is also need for us as human beings to play
our own part, while God plays his own part”.
Meanwhile, Bishop Onaga, has urged members of the Catholic community
in the Diocese and elsewhere, to always be security conscious, stressing
that the present insecurity challenges confronting Nigeria, had
remained a serious source of concern to the church.
The hand bag prohibition, according to the Bishop, will affect every woman, both young and old.
“There will be no sacred cow in its implementation”, a church source said.
Brazil coach Luis Felipe Scolari, has accused referees of singling out his team for special treatment.
During their round of 16 clash against Chile, Neymar was on the
receiving end of some heavy tackles, but referee Howard Webb failed to
award a free-kick most times.
“I
remember when I was Portugal coach and, in the fifth minute of the
game, Netherlands defender Khalid Boulahrouz broke Cristiano Ronaldo in
half and he had to go off 10 minutes later,” he said.
“When I saw Neymar after the game today I remembered that. Some
people say Neymar falls too easily. He fell three times. There were 15
fouls on [Alexis] Sanchez and after 12 he went down.
“We have four or five days to get Neymar in shape for the next match. It is a big problem, his thigh is swollen.”
After their opening day 3-1 win over Croatia, there was talk about
the hosts benefitting from preferential treatment from officials, but
Scolari does not think so.
He added: “Everything that is wrong is with Brazil. We always see how
things happen and how hesitant referees are when it comes to Brazil.
“If we are going to be champions it can’t be like this, it has to be the same for everyone. We’re starting to doubt that.”
Mavin Records First Lady, Tiwa Savage has once again engaged in a public brawl.
Recall that few months ago, she had an encounter with a policeman and
removed his beret from his head for allegedly disrespecting her.
The singer repeated a similar act at the Murtala Mohammed
International Airport last Monday by allegedly descending on a member of
staff of the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO) whom she said
was “rude” to her.
Tiwa and some other Nigerian artistes were on their way to Mauritius on board an Emirate flight when the incident occurred.
Tiwa Savage who is currently in Mauritius and billed to perform at
the BET experience Live this weekend was seen arguing and quarrelling
with the NAHCO staff and her action drew a little crow, Punch reports.
Unfazed by Tiwa’s fame, The NAHCO lady insisted that she wasn’t rude to her.
“I was not rude to her. I only told her to go and board since she had
checked in her luggage. I wonder how that could mean that I was rude to
her,” the NAHCO staff said.
Tiwa eventually entered the boarding gate alongside her colleagues.
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) –
A U.N. expert panel has concluded that a shipment of rockets and other
weapons that was seized by Israel came from Iran and represents a
violation of the U.N. arms embargo on Tehran, according to a
confidential report obtained by Reuters on Friday.
The finding comes just days
ahead of the next round of negotiations in Vienna between Iran and six
world powers aimed at securing a deal that would gradually lift
international sanctions on Tehran — including the arms embargo — in
exchange for curbs on the controversial Iranian nuclear program.
Despite
Israel’s public statements that the seized arms were destined for Gaza —
an allegation that Gaza’s governing Islamist militant group Hamas
dismissed as a fabrication — the experts said the weapons were being
sent to Sudan.
The experts do not speculate in
the report about why the arms were being sent to Sudan, a country which
Western diplomatic and intelligence sources have told Reuters has in the
past been a conduit for Iranian arms shipments to other locations in
Africa, as well as the Gaza Strip.
The experts said the Israeli U.N. mission wrote to the U.N. Iran
Sanctions Committee on March 13 about “the transfer of rockets, mortars
and related materiel from Iran to Sudan.”
The 14-page report on the incident by the U.N. Security Council’s
Panel of Experts on Iran makes no mention of the Gaza Strip as a
possible destination for the arms, which were concealed in 20 containers
on the Panamanian-flagged vessel Klos C. The weaponry was seized by
Israeli authorities in March.
The U.N. experts reached their conclusion after investigating the
case and inspecting the seized cargo and documentation related to the
shipment, which traveled from the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas to the
Iraqi port of Umm Qasr, and from there in the direction of Port Sudan.
The vessel was intercepted by the Israeli navy in the Red Sea before it reached Sudan.
“The Panel finds that the manner of concealment in this case is
consistent with several other cases reported to the (Security Council’s
Iran Sanctions) Committee and investigated by the Panel,” the experts
said.
“The Panel concludes that the
shipment of arms and related materiel found aboard the Klos C is a
violation of Iran’s obligations under paragraph 5 of resolution 1747,”
they added, referring to the U.N. arms embargo on Tehran.
Despite Iranian denials, the
experts said official seals from Iranian customs authorities on
containers that held some of the arms “substantiates the Iranian origin
of those containers.” Further evidence on the Iranian origin came from
the Iranian bill of lading, cargo manifest and the container stowage
plan.
Iran’s U.N. mission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
NO PROOF OF SYRIAN ORIGIN
The report includes details on
the arms, which were concealed in a shipment of cement: 40 M302 rockets
and fuses, including four different variations of the rockets; 181 120
mm mortar shells; roughly 400,000 pieces of 7.62 caliber ammunition.
The experts could not confirm the Israeli allegation that some of the weapons were made in Syria.
“According to Israeli officials,
the rockets were produced in Syria by the Syrian Scientific Studies and
Research Center (SSRC),” they said. “No markings were identified on the
rockets during the Panel’s inspection that would have allowed
confirmation of the Syrian origin of the rockets.”
“One expert notes that the
Syrian origin of the rockets cannot be independently established and
neither can the movement of the rockets from Syria to Iran,” the report
added.
It was not clear from the report
what, if any, role Iraq could have played in the smuggling of weaponry.
The 20 containers that held the illicit arms were part of the
100-container shipment loaded onto the Klos C at Bandar Abbas, Iran.
The 50 containers of cement
loaded onto the ship at Umm Qasr in Iraq did not contain weapons, the
report said, citing information the experts had received from Israeli
authorities.
The experts said the concealment
techniques were similar to other cases of alleged sanctions violations
by Iran they have investigated — in Nigeria, arms were shipped amid
crates of marble; in other cases reported by Israel arms were hidden in
containers with polyethylene pellets, lentils and cotton.
In another case of reported by Italy, Iran allegedly shipped dried explosives among bags of powdered milk, the report said.
At the time that the arms were seized, Israel said the case showed
Iran was not negotiating in good faith with the six powers – the United
States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China.
“At the same time that it is
talking to world powers, at the same time that Iran is smiling and
saying all kinds of honeyed words, that same Iran is sending lethal
weaponry to terrorist organizations and it is doing so in a complex web
of covert, worldwide operations,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
said.
The circulation of the Panel of
Experts’ report to the Iran Sanctions Committee just ahead of a deadline
for Iran and the six powers to reach an agreement in the Vienna nuclear
talks clearly irritated Russia.
Earlier this week Russia’s U.N.
ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, complained that “any information not backed
up by concrete facts … could have a negative impact on the conduct of
negotiations of the group of six and Iran.”
But Russia was in the minority
in its complaints. Other Security Council members, including the chair
of the Iran sanctions committee, Australian Ambassador Gary Quinlan,
praised the investigative work of the Panel of Experts.
France’s deputy U.N. envoy
Alexis Lamek said the experts annual report submitted to the sanctions
committee last month was a “precise source of information on Iran’s
illicit programs and its methods of circumventing sanctions.”
The panel’s annual report said
that Tehran’s illicit procurement appeared to have slowed during its
negotiations with the six powers, though Iranians continued to attempt
to bypass sanctions on a regular basis.
Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Orji, during the eight
Abuja Housing Show Awards emerged as the Housing Governor of the Year.
Governor Orji, while receiving the award at the Nicon Luxury Hotel,
Abuja, dedicated it to the victims of the bomb blasts that rocked Emab
Plaza in Wuse 2 which left over 20 people dead and many others injured.
The
Governor, who was represented by the Commissioner for Housing, Prince
K. O. Mgbeahuru, at the ceremony organized by FESadeb Communications
Limited, said the blasts that killed innocent Nigerians who were mainly
traders forced him to boycott the award ceremony at the last minute.
He expressed joy at the honour bestowed on him and promised to complete the legacy projects started by his government.
Orji also pledged not to relent in the delivery of democracy dividends to Abians.
The Programme Coordinator, Mr. Festus Adebayo, said the award to Abia
State Governor, Chief Theodore Orji was in recognition of the
governor’s laudable achievement in the housing sector.
According to him, the award is targeted at rewarding excellence in the housing and construction sectors of the economy.
Dignitaries from all walks of life, including hundreds of Abians attended the ceremony.
Sixteen other personalities and organizations also received awards at the well-attended event.
Mr. Ayo Fayose, Governor-elect, has promised to chase the opposition party, the All Progressives Congress out of the South-West.
Mr. Fayose spoke after receiving his certificate of return at the
Independent National Electoral Commission’s office in Ado Ekiti, on
Thursday. He said he will use his position as the new leader of the
Peoples Democratic Party in the South-West to achieve his aim.
He
received the certificate alongside Dr. Olusola Eleka, his deputy, amid
cheers from his supporters and well-wishers within and outside the
state.
“God has today, by this certificate turned me to a leader in the
South-West. I will go from here to begin to energise our people from one
state to another until we take back our inheritance,” he
said in his speech.
“When you are running a race of life, you don’t look right or left.
You must go for the goal and attain it. I am going for the goal like
Awolowo. My target is the common people while I will respect the elite.”
Fayose disclosed that he would patronize politicians in his administration and not technocrats of no political background.
He said, “There are many technocrats in the PDP. I won’t bring any
technocrat from anywhere. If you are technocrat come back and do
politics with us. Suffer like us, when we don’t sleep, you don’t
sleep, don’t go and stay somewhere and say because you are a doctor, you
are a professor, we should come and give the post of politicians to
you.”
Nollywood actress Yvonne Nelson, cannot forget her ex-boyfriend
Iyanya, as she uses his name to chant some incantations in a movie. Ghanaian Nollywood actress, Yvonne Nelson, is still not finding it easy to forget her ex-squeeze, nigerian born hip hop singer, Iyanya Mbuk, the Kukere master.
The actress who obviously is still bitter over their acrimonious break-up after all had thought their relationship was heading for the altar, seizes every opportunity to diss on her ex Waist hunting boyfriend.
In a new movie directed by Frank Rajah, Yvonne plays the wife of a
man who cannot perform in bed and she has to carry out a ritual on him
and while she is doing so, she chants Iyanya’s name repeatedly.
She later posted the video of the incantation scene on her Twitter handle. Remember she has on many occasions castigated Iyanya, calling him bad names and at a point, said no good thing would ever come his way.
Is it not time she moves on?
A 27-year-old Mr. Ogbonna Chukwudi has been arrested by the Abia state police force for selling his Son for N500, 000.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Adamu Ibrahim, confirmed the
incident saying, Ogbonna arranged with a nurse, Amarachi Chiamaka, to
sell the baby just hours after he was born.
“Luck however, ran out on them when the wife woke up and sought to
see her baby. She was told by the husband that the baby was dead and had
been buried. An argument began as the wife insisted on seeing the dead
baby. A neighbour who overheard the argument, alerted the Police who
intervened and later arrested the man and the accomplice-nurse.” the
commissioner said.
He further revealed that investigations were still on to recover the baby.
Owing up to his crime, Ogbonna blamed it on poverty, adding that his
friend who sold the son for him short-changed him, saying he was only
paid N140,000 out of the N500,000 original price.
Ukraine, EU sign historic trade and economic pact amid worries about Moscow’s reaction
BRUSSELS (AP) — Ukraine’s new
president signed a trade and economic pact with the European Union on
Friday, pushing his troubled country closer into a European orbit and
angering Russia, which warned of unspecified consequences.
A beaming President Petro Poroshenko called it “maybe the most
important day for my country” since independence from the Soviet Union
in 1991.
His
pro-Moscow predecessor, Viktor Yanukovych, backed out of signing the
agreement in November and the bloody protests that followed toppled his
government, sparking an insurgency in the east and Russia’s annexation
of the mainly Russian-speaking Crimean Peninsula.
Agreements signed Friday let
businesses in former Soviet republics of Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia
trade freely in any of the EU’s 28 member nations without tariffs or
restrictions, as long as their goods and practices meet EU standards.
Likewise, goods and services from the EU will be sold more easily and
cheaply in the three countries.
Closer ties between Ukraine and
the EU have long been overshadowed by Russian opposition. Moscow is
loath to see its historic influence wane in its strategic neighbor,
which it considers the birthplace of Russian statehood and of Russian
Orthodox Christianity.
“There will undoubtedly be serious consequences for Ukraine and
Moldova’s signing,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin
said.
Georgia has already lost chunks of its territory and Black Sea coast
to rebels backed by Russia after a brief war with Russia in 2008.
Russian President Vladimir Putin
did not immediately comment on the trade pact, but in recent days has
signaled that he wants to de-escalate the conflict ahead of talks later
Friday by the EU’s heads of state and government on whether to ramp up
sanctions against Russia over its conduct toward Ukraine.
“The most important thing is to
guarantee a long-term cease-fire as a precondition for meaningful talks
between the Kiev authorities and representatives of the southeast (of
Ukraine),” Putin said Friday.
A second round of talks was
being held Friday in eastern Ukraine between representatives of the
mutinous regions and the Kiev government, also involving envoys from
Russia and the EU, Russian news agencies quoted rebel leader Andrei
Purgin as saying.
View gallery
A pro-Russian separatist guards a road checkpoint outside the town of Lysychansk in the Luhansk regi …
Poroshenko’s office confirmed
that a weeklong cease-fire, which both sides have accused each other of
violating, was set to expire at 10 p.m. local time.
Interior Minister Arsen Avakov
told Ukraine’s Fifth Channel that at least 20 servicemen had been killed
since the rebels agreed to the cease-fire, although he did not
elaborate. He said the government would respond “harshly and adequately”
to all rebels who did not put down their arms by Friday evening.
An overnight battle for a National Guard base in the eastern city of
Donetsk left rebels in control early Friday. All servicemen were set
free but the commander was taken captive, according to the National
Guard’s website.
In Brussels, Poroshenko made no mention of the cease-fire as he triumphantly signed the agreement.
“What a great day!” he said. “Maybe the most important day for my country after independence day.”
A rally was scheduled to be held at Kiev’s Independence Square, the
site of the protests that toppled Yanukovych, but the mood was still
subdued Friday after Poroshenko’s signing. A trickle of people filed by
votive candles and portraits of the so-called “Heavenly Hundred,” the
protesters killed — many by snipers — near the square in February.
Andrei Berezov, a 30-year-old driver who lives in a Kiev suburb, said
he favored Poroshenko’s decision to bring Ukraine closer to Europe.
“I have lived and worked in Madrid, there’s no comparison, it’s black
and white,” he said. “There’s no corruption, paying a policeman 50
hryvnias, it wouldn’t happen there.”
Svetlana Kosenko, an 18-year-old student from Ukraine’s western
regions, said she didn’t believe the country would change overnight.
“I think it will take a long time,” she said. “As they say, hope dies last, and for now we hope things will be good.”
The U.N. said Friday that 110,000 Ukrainians had fled to Russia this
year and another 54,000 fled their homes but stayed in Ukraine as the
government fought with separatists in the mostly Russian-speaking east.
Long lines of cars stuffed with belongings backed up at the border
heading into Russia this week.
European Commission experts
estimate the deal will boost Ukraine’s national income by 1.2 billion
euros ($1.6 billion) a year. Ukraine won a 15-year transition period
during which it can use tariffs to support its domestic auto industry
from competition. Moldova will gradually eliminate protections for its
dairy, pork, poultry and wine producers over 10 years, while the EU
placed limits on imports of chicken from both countries.
Perhaps more important than the trade clauses is an accompanying
10-year plan for Ukraine to adopt EU product regulations. Such rules
ease the way for international trade beyond Europe.
The trade deal also demands that Ukraine change the way it does
business. Adopting EU rules on government contracts, competition policy
and copyright for ideas and inventions should improve Ukraine’s economy
by reducing widespread corruption and making it more investor-friendly.
Amanda Paul, a policy analyst at
the Brussels-based think tank European Policy Center, said Russia has
levers to inflict serious economic pain on Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia
through trade restrictions, cuts in energy supplies or the deportation
of migrant workers from those countries.
In Brussels, Poroshenko reminded
EU leaders of the Ukrainians who died opposing Yanukovych’s government
and in the ongoing battle against the pro-Russian insurgency in the
country’s east. He said Ukraine “paid the highest possible price to make
her European dreams come true.”
He asked EU leaders to take a further step and formally pledge that one day Ukraine can join the EU as a full-fledged member.
That “would cost the European Union nothing,” he said, “but would mean the world to my country.”
___
AP correspondents Laura Mills in Moscow and David McHugh in Kiev contributed.
Argentina legend Diego Maradona, has criticized the four-month
ban FIFA has slapped on Uruguay striker Luis Suarez, labelling it “a
disgrace”.
Suarez has been handed a nine-game suspension from international
football and banned from all anything related to football for four
months, for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini on the shoulder.
It
is the third time the striker will be punished for biting another
player, but Maradona says he has been treated like someone who committed
murder.
“This decision is a disgrace,” he said on TV show, De Zurda. “I can’t
understand this. Who did Suarez kill to get this kind of ban. Why don’t
[Fifa] handcuff him and send him to Guantanamo [Bay]?
“A player works hard the whole year to be able to play at the World
Cup, and Luis scored 29 goals and they kick him out of the World Cup
like this. It’s unbelievable.
“Remember [Zinedine] Zidane and what he did in that [2006] World Cup final? Fifa then gave him the Golden Ball.”
Researchers Michelle Jeanfreau, Anthony Jurich, and Michael Mong conducted case studies
on four women aged 24 to 51 who cheated on their spouses and whose
marriages subsequently ended in divorce. Through in-depth analysis,
researchers discovered three common risk factors that contributed to the
infidelity. 1. Lack of quality time.
According to the study, all four women expressed a desire to spend
more time with their husbands but were often denied, making them feel
like a second or third priority to their husbands’ jobs or social lives.
Bella, 48, began her affair three years into her marriage and said
she often felt anger toward her husband for leaving her constantly.
‘‘After we had our first child, he’d come in from work, take his bath. I
had supper ready, [he'd take] a little nap, get up and go out partying
all the time and leave me home with the kids.’’
Similarly, 36-year-old Kate, who cheated on her husband after five
years of marriage, said their lack of together time led to constant
fighting. “He started coming in late at night, and he would leave early
in the mornings and it’s like we never saw each other,” she explained to
researchers. “We would always argue. I wanted him to spend more time
with me and he would always make other plans … do his own thing.”
The women, as the researchers explained, felt their husbands were not
reciprocating the same level of desire to maintain a strong connection
in the marriage, which made them susceptible to finding that connection
elsewhere. 2. Inability to resolve conflict.
An inability to communicate often leads to relationship conflicts
going unresolved. In these particular cases, the lack of resolution or
change in future behavior left the women feeling frustrated, and many
voiced a concern that while problems were recognized, no progress was
made to fix them.
‘‘We would try and he would say, you know, I’m (going) to do better….and he never would,” said Kate.
Linda, 51, who divorced after 21 years of marriage but started
cheating just six years in, said she and her ex simply failed to address
the root of their conflicts. ‘‘I’d usually just leave until he cooled
off and then I’d come back and pout and not say nothing to him.’’
The researchers concluded that a lack of communication was a
precursor to cheating: “In each case, the attraction to marital
infidelity began to grow for the women because the unresolved issues
continued to be a source of conflict in the marital relationship, pushing
the women further away from their spouses.” 3. Lack of attention.
Through the study, it became clear that all the women craved more
intimacy in their marriages. This void was eventually filled by an
affair partner.
Bella began thinking about an affair when “somebody started showing
me the affection that I needed….the touching and feeling and being
wanted.’’
Zoie, 24, who began cheating just seven months into her marriage,
said that her husband wouldn’t give her even five minutes of attention,
whereas her affair partner would talk to her about anything and
everything.
Linda, however, summed up the women’s desires best. “I want somebody
in my life that would love me for me. That would just show attention to
me for me…And you know made me feel like I was worthwhile. It was just
somebody there to have attention with, show me attention…make me feel
better about myself,” she said. What does it all mean?
According to the researchers, none of the women actively sought out
affairs. As time went on, however, they grew more frustrated in their
marriages and the partner they cheated with became more desirable. When
the opportunity arose, there was less hesitation to stray.
Of course, every marriage is different, but the authors of the study
note that these specific insights into cheating could help people and
professionals identify early warning signs in relationships and work
toward fixing them.
Super Eagles coach has said that Lionel Messi “is from Jupiter”, after the forward scored twice in Argentina’s 3-2 win over Nigeria at the ongoing World Cup in Brazil.
The 27-year-old opened scoring in the 2nd minute with a half-volley and restored his side’s lead shortly before half time, with a fine free-kick that sailed into Vincent Enyeama’s net.
“Messi is one of heck of a player. He’s blessed. You can’t take it away from him,” Keshi said.
“There are good calibre players in the team but Messi is from Jupiter.”
Despite losing to the South Americans, Keshi became the first African manager to lead his team to the World Cup round of 16.
He said: “I feel honoured and happy it’s going our way, I want to thank the players and the fans and some of the media.”
Messi, who is now the joint top scorer at the competition with four goals, alongside Brazil’s Neymar, paid tribute to the African champions after the match.
“We played against a team that wanted to play,” Messi said. “I think we saw a good Argentina. We need to continue on this path.”
The National Conference Chairman, Justice Idris Kutigi (rtd) on Wednesday sent journalists covering the conference out over discussions he said bothered on national security.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that about an hour into the plenary to debate the report of its Committee on National Security, security operatives, on Kutigi’s orders, chased journalists away from the conference.
The chairman hinged his decision on the sensitive issues contained in the report of the committee presented by its Deputy Chairman, Chief Albert Horsefall.
“Can the pressmen clear yourselves; the pressmen should disappear, please. Pressmen disappear.
“Shut your cameras; shut everything and get out. Disappear, please. Pressmen disappear from the hall,’’ Kutigi ordered.
At this point, security operatives came up to the gallery where journalists were seated and chased them out while those inside the hall were also chased out.
The security operatives prevented some journalists from packing their belongings and working gadgets.
As the journalists were being walked out, some delegates threatened to stage a walkout in solidarity with the journalists.
The delegates were those representing the Media, Civil Society Organisations and the Labour Unions.
They included former Presidents of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Messrs Lanre Ogundipe and Sani Zoro, Damien Dodo (SAN), Sen. Florence Ita-Giwa, and Femi Falana (SAN).
Others were Chief Raymond Dokpesi, owner of Daar Communications, a representative of NAWOJ, Mrs Brenda Akpan, and Mrs Joe Okei-Odumakin, among others.
They contended that the chairman could have addressed the journalists decently and politely while asking them to excuse the conference.
They, however, appealed to journalists not to allow the incident to dampen their reportage of the conference to the public, whom they were constitutionally obliged to serve.
Meanwhile, Mr James Akpandem, the Assistant Secretary, Media and Communications to the conference, told newsmen that efforts were being made to sort out the matter.
“You have to understand that people have different ways of presenting issues and you must please accommodate the chairman the way he speaks because he is from the judiciary.
“He (Kutigi) is different from the public relations man but he did not mean any harm at all,’’ he said. (NAN)
