Leicester dumped by four-goal Manchester United

Manchester United got their title quest back on track with a resounding victory over Leicester City at Old Trafford.

Having lost back-to-back Premier League matches Jose Mourinho’s side responded by blowing Leicester away with four first-half goals from Chris Smalling, Juan Mata, Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba.

Smalling, captain in place of the benched Wayne Rooney, headed in Daley Blind’s corner midway through the first half, and three goals in the final eight minutes of the half put the hosts out of sight.

Mata produced a sublime finish on 37 minutes after Jesse Lingard had laid off Pogba’s chipped pass, and two minutes later Rashford scored from close range, after Mata helped on Blind’s quickly-taken corner.

Pogba made it four on 42 minutes, heading another Blind corner past Ron-Robert Zieler and though Demarai Gray, on for Jamie Vardy, reduced the arrears on the hour there was no coming back for the defending champions.

Liverpool hit five past ten-man Hull

James Milner scored two penalties and Adam Lallana, Sadio Mane and Philippe Coutinho were on target as Liverpool beat 10-man Hull City for their third consecutive Premier League win.

Lallana opened the scoring on 17 minutes before Ahmed Elmohamady was sent off for handling the ball on the line on the half-hour. Milner converted the spot-kick.

Sadio Mane made it 3-0 before half-time with a fierce drive.

David Meyler gave Hull hope, scoring from an early second-half corner but, less than a minute later, Coutinho curled in the fourth from 25 yards.

Milner completed the scoring with his second penalty on 71 minutes after Andrew Robertson had fouled Daniel Sturridge.

Terrorists threaten to bomb UI before October 1

There was tension in the University of Ibadan on Friday as a threatening message that purportedly emanated from a group, al-wilayat al-Islamiyya Gharb Afriqiyyah, was circulated among some staff of the institution and on social media platforms.

According to the message, the group threatened to bomb the school before Independence Day on October 1, 2016, saying that students and staff were their targets.

When contacted, The Director of Communication, UI, Olatunji Oladejo, dismissed the threat, saying it was the handiwork of mischievous individuals who wanted to cause commotion in the school.

Our correspondent gathered that while some lecturers got the mail through their institutional e-mail addresses, others were copied through social platforms such as Whatsapp.

In the mail, the group described the university as an embarrassment to Nigeria for bringing western education.

It was observed that security arrangement was strengthened at the school gates with scanning devices deployed while stop and search was conducted on everyone entering the school, leading to a gridlock.

The letter read in part, “You people are an embarrassment to Nigeria and are the people that brought in western education to Nigeria. You doomed this nation and in turn you all are going to be doomed. Most of you are going to die before Independence Day. You will not spend the Independence Day in peace, you and your students.

“Detonation will start going from tomorrow till Independence Day and there is nothing you can do as we are among you. Even your little searches at the gate won’t do anything. By the time we are through with you, your government will be sorry.”

Speaking on the alleged threat, Oladejo said like others, he also received the letter, while saying that it had not affected the peace of the school.

He said, “I also got it. Anyone could instigate such thing. Some people could be mischievous. Our international students are having their carnival on the campus and everywhere is peaceful. I attribute it to the handiwork of mischievous individuals and vehemently deny any commotion.”

Police Public Relations Officer of the state police command, Adekunle Ajisebutu, told our correspondent that the command had received information on the threat to lives and property on the campus and had responded appropriately.

He said, “We have received the information. The state Commissioner of Police, Samuel Adegbuyi, working in concert with the other security agencies, has put in place all necessary security arrangement to forestall such an ugly incident.

“We have deployed our intelligence officers to provide adequate security in the school. As it is, it is still a rumour but we don’t want to take things for granted and because of this, we have provided adequate security, not only for the school, but for the people of the state.

“We enjoin members of the public to go about their lawful businesses and to be law-abiding.”

Ghanaian Apostle : 'I am a virgin. When I pray to God, it goes straight to him & he answers me directly'

Ghanaian Apostle, Job Antwi, the head of all 'virgin pastors' in Ghana called "The 10 Virgin Pastors Association", said since he was born, he hasn't had sexual intercourse with a woman before and is 'purely virgin'. Antwi says that if you want to join his society/group, you will be questioned carefully on whether you've slept with a woman and also swear before man/god and the bible that if you are telling lies, something bad will happen to you. That if a non virgin joins their group, there'll be chaos.

The Virgin Apostle however admitted that he has a fiancee and he kisses her once in a while. Also he wakes up with an erection occasionally and has wet dreams (ejaculates by 4am/5am).

India signs $9 billion deal to buy French fighter jets

India has signed a deal to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets from France for around $8.7bn, the country’s first major acquisition of combat planes in two decades and a boost for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plan to rebuild an ageing fleet.

The first ready-to-fly Rafales are expected to arrive by 2019 and India is set to have all 36 within six years.

French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian signed the agreement with his Indian counterpart, Manohar Parrikar, in New Delhi, on Friday, ending almost 18 months of wrangling over terms between New Delhi and manufacturer Dassault Aviation.

Parrikar said the deal would “significantly improve India’s strike and defence capabilities”.

Air force officials have warned for years of a major capability gap opening up with China and Pakistan without new state-of-the-art planes, as India’s outdated and largely Russian-made fleet retires and production of a locally made plane was delayed.

India had originally awarded Dassault with an order for 126 Rafales in 2012 after the twin-engine fourth-generation fighter beat rivals in a decade-long selection process, but subsequent talks collapsed.

Modi, who has vowed to modernise India’s armed forces with a $150bn spending spree, personally intervened in April 2015 to agree on the smaller order of 36 and give the air force a near-term boost as he weighed options for a more fundamental overhaul.

But an industry expert says the deal does not stand to benefit India.

“I don’t think it’s a good deal,” Bharat Karnad, a research professor in national security studies at the Centre for Policy Reseach, told Al Jazeera.

“The original deal was for 126 aircrafts for a sum of $12-15bn. If you look at 36 being bought for $9bn without any transfer of technology, it ends up being a solution to ensure the health of the aviation sector in France.

“The aircrafts are far too few to have a great operation significance in war.”

Al Jazeera’s Natacha Butler, reporting from Paris, said there was a lot of lobbying that took place behind the scenes to make this deal happen.

“It’s a big deal indeed for France and is expected to create up to 5,000 jobs here,” she said.

“The 36 planes will be built here before being sent to India ready for service. At many stages, it looked as if it wasn’t going to be signed but the French government and President Francois Hollande have been very instrumental and lobbied hard over the years.”

‘Mark of recognition’

Friday’s agreement is a major vote of confidence in the Rafale, which had long struggled to find buyers overseas, despite heavy lobbying efforts by the administration of President Hollande.

Hollande hailed the deal as recognition of France’s aviation industry.

“The agreement … is a mark of the recognition by a major military power of the operational performance, the technical quality and the competitiveness of the French aviation industry,” Hollande said in a statement.

India says its locally made Tejas fighter, which took to the skies in July 33 years after it was cleared for development, will form a major part of its future fleet, but Parrikar has also said that India needed 100 new light combat aircraft by 2020 to replace Russian MiG-21s.

India is the world’s biggest arms importer, and despite Modi’s pledge to build a local manufacturing base, foreign defence firms view India as one of the most lucrative markets as Western states trim defence budgets.

Tensions have flared up between Pakistan and India following the Uri attack last week that killed 17 soldiers in Indian-administered Kashmir.

Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, at his UN General Assembly address on Wednesday, said he did not want an “arms race with India”. But Eenam Gambhir, India’s UN diplomat called the neighbours “a terrorist state”, blaming the neighbouring country of planning the attack in Uri.

Benue govt expresses joy over arrest of Rev. Fr Adeyi’s killers

Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has commended the police in ensuring the arrest of a gang of four who kidnapped and murdered Vicar-General of Otukpo Catholic Diocese and parish priest of St. Bernards parish, Okpoga, Rev. Fr Dr. John Adeyi.

The governor said this following the parade of the four suspects who have already confessed to the crime at the Force
Headquarters in Abuja.

The governor, however, noted that he would only be happy after the four face the full wrath of the law.

Represented by his deputy and chairman of the state’s Amnesty Programme, Benson Abounu, the governor condemned the dastardly act and wondered “why any sane human being could so heartlessly kill a gentleman as kind-hearted as Fr. Adeyi who ran a home for widows, among many other humanitarian activities he was involved in.”

He commended the police in arresting the killers and warned criminals in the state to take heed as the long arm of the law would catch up with them.

Ortom also stressed that with the needed synergy between government, police and other security agencies in the country, there will be no hiding places for criminals.

On the wanted gang leader, Terwase Akwaza, also known as Ghana, the governor called on him to hand himself over to the police and noted that if he had no hands in the killing of this special assistant on Security, Denen Igbana, then, he should come in to clear himself.

The governor disclosed that because the state government has now started using the stick approach in its fight against crime, the rate of criminality in the state has dropped in the past two months.

Enugu Assembly sacks 200 newly-employed teachers

The Enugu State House of Assembly on Thursday sacked the 200 teachers recently employed by the State Universal Basic Education Board.

In a resolution passed by the lawmakers after considering reports on the recruitment, they held that it was conducted in a shoddy manner.

The state government had called for applications from qualified candidates towards recruiting 200 teachers to fill vacancies in its primary education system.

It was learnt that about 21,000 candidates applied for the positions.

However, the lawmakers expressed dissatisfaction that despite the large number of applications, the recruitment was conducted within a week.

They also expressed reservations about the calibre of persons recruited.

The lawmakers had earlier summoned the Chairman of ENSUBEB, Chief Ikeje Asogwa, and the Permanent Secretary, Mrs Rose Chiama, over complaints that greeted the recruitment.

The Permanent Secretary reportedly informed the lawmakers that she knew nothing about the exercise.

She equally said the board was not carried along in the recruitment.

But Asogwa, reportedly, defended the exercise, noting that the state government was aware of the development.

Asogwa also explained the criteria used in employing the chosen candidates.

The lawmakers were not satisfied, and after considering the matter at a plenary on Thursday, passed a resolution, ordering an outright cancellation of the exercise.

They also ordered a fresh one.

The Speaker, Edward Ubosi, who stated the position of the House, said the nullification was with immediate effect.

Ubosi said the board should liaise with stakeholders, including the ministry of education, to conduct the future exercise.

The Speaker added that the fresh exercise should be conducted in the various local government areas in the state.

Jibrin absent as Ethics Committee commences budget padding hearing

The House of Representatives Committee on Ethics and Privileges on Friday  commenced its investigative hearing into the allegations levelled against the former Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Abdulmumin Jibrin.

The Chairman of the Committee, Nicholas Ossai, is presiding over the session, but Jibrin is not present at the hearing.

This comes barely 48 hours after the House mandated the Ethics  committee to probe allegations of misconduct against the former Appropriations Committee chairman.

After 87 days of Marriage, Pastor Dumps Pregnant Wife for Affecting Tithe Payment and Church's Growth

In Nairobi, a Kayole pastor dumped his pregnant wife after accusing her of being the sole reason for declining congregants in his church and little tithe. The wife accused him of being stingy with money and of infidelity.

 

Kiarie and his former wife, Wagitu. Image: Standard.

A wedding between a Kayole Pastor and his pregnant wife ended 87 days after their wedding ceremony in April 2016 and sent her back to her parents in Muranga.

Apostle Kenneth Kiarie, 30, accused his wife, Marion Wagitu, 23, of being the reason his church and congregants were experiencing weird occurrences.

The two initially rushed into marriage because he was a pastor and needed to have a wife and he hurriedly accepted because he was a pastor.

According to the Standard, Kiarie blamed his wife for his KSh 70,000 debt after funding their wedding as well as being the main reason there was little tithe being given in his church.

“He blamed her for the declining congregation numbers because of her odd behaviours in and out of the church,” published the news site on Friday, September 23.

Wagitu told the newspaper that Kiarie often told her that if she left, there were many other beautiful women hanging around him who could become his wife.

“He claimed I threw hot water and a stove at him and attempted to beat him in front of his parents. He often left me with KSh 5 for cooking oil on grounds that I am a villager,” said Wagitu.

Swearing in the name of God, Kiarie refuted the claims saying that his former wife had weird behaviours, often used offensive words and attempted to assault him in front of friends and family.

“It is a false accusation that I was unfaithful. Actually, this is the third time I chased her away and it has now been successful. She wanted to control me but that is not African. I said we’d rather separate than have one of us dead,” said Kiarie.

Despite being the one who rushed them into marriage, Kiarie said he believed Wagitu to be insane and wanted her evaluated if she wanted a life partner some day.

“I did not want to send her away but being a pastor, everybody thought I was the problem. A wife means a lot to a man but she is not worth living with. She will harm me,” added Kiarie.

Their inability to compliment each other could be attributed to the fact that between their first meeting and their wedding was only four months and so, could not know each other well.

“I overlooked Kikuyu traditions to allow the wedding to take place without Kiarie paying bride price. This situation has left us in embarrassed and he has to send an emissary of elders to resolve the matter instead of maligning my daughter’s name,” said Wagitu’s father.

Official: Flood affects 99 local governments in 30 states, kills 29 so far

The Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency, NIHSA, said on Thursday that 99 Local Government Areas in 30 states had been affected by flood, which also killed  29 persons so far.

The Director General of NIHSA, Moses Beckley, made the disclosure at a one-day sensitisation workshop on 2016 flood prediction/prevention and mitigation organised by the Agency at Halims Hotel, Lokoja.

Mr. Beckley said the present flood situation in the country was alarming hence the need for the awareness programme to sensitise the people in the flood prone areas.

“Presently, flood has been recorded in 99 LGAs in 30 out of 34 States earlier predicted with a record of 29 deaths.

“Two LGAs have been badly affected in Kaduna State; 9 in Niger; 4 in Nasarawa; 2 in Benue, and one in Edo, Jigawa, among other states.

“Rivers flooding is expected in Lokoja and its environs due to likely overflow of banks of Rivers Niger and Benue, that is why this we have embarked on sensitisation programme in Kogi.

“Though Kogi is yet to be badly affected by the flood, it is vital that we put the people and all stakeholders on red alert to prevent or mitigate it effects,” he said.

The director general said that the threat of major river flooding occasion by “Red Alert’’ from the Niger Basin Authority (NBS), Niamey, Niger Republic on August 4 has called for concern.

“More recently, on Sept 14 the water level of River Niger at Niamey was 6.20m, which has exceeded the penultimate flood warning level, hence the need to brace up.

“The water level of River Benue is also rising due to high rainfall within the catchment and regulated water releases from Lagdo dam.

“The water level at our monitoring station in Lokoja as at today, Thursday, Sept. 22 is 6.22m comparable to the value of 11.42m recorded at the same station in 2012.

“This shows that the flow is still normal within an acceptable limit but the situation calls for caution in view of high rainfall intensities and oncoming flood waters from upstream countries,” Mr. Beckley stated.

The director, therefore, advised government at all levels to take structural measures of construction of reservoirs, earth dam, detention basins, buffer zones, and clearing of drains.

Other measures include dredging and channelisation of river channels, setting up of flood diversion areas and relocation of people in likely affected areas.

“I urge all the relevant stakeholders to take this sensitisation programme seriously because flood anticipation before they occur allows for precautions and adequate preparation.

“Heeding to early warnings and early actions are imperative towards preventing and mitigating disasters and emergencies,” Beckley advised.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that other stakeholders present at the workshop include Kogi Commissioners for Environment, Water Resources, NEPAD, KOSEMA, among others.

(NAN)

Don’t beg Switzerland for Nigeria’s stolen funds, sue them, Falana advises Buhari

Lagos lawyer, Femi Falana, has said that it was time President Muhammadu Buhari took steps to recover Nigeria’s stolen funds stashed away in foreign banks, instead of continuing to appeal to the conscience of the leaders of the western countries.

Mr. Falana told PREMIUM TIMES, Thursday, that “the federal government should set up a team of local and foreign lawyers to initiate legal proceedings in the appropriate jurisdictions for the recovery and repatriation of the nation’s looted wealth.”

He said western governments won’t readily support repatriation of stolen funds, since their economies were benefiting from such funds.

“In spite of several promises the British government did not return any fund under former Prime Minister David Cameron. In the same vein, the outgoing Barrack Obama administration (in the U.S) will not repatriate a dime to Nigeria.”

Nigeria, Africa’s largest country, has been plundered for several decades by corrupt government officials who prefer hiding stolen funds – billions of dollars – in foreign banks.

President Buhari has made the repatriation of such funds a top priority of his administration.

Mr. Buhari, during the ongoing 71st United Nations General Assembly in New York, United States, met on the sidelines with President Johann Schneider-Ammann of Switzerland, where he (Buhari) asked for the urgent release of Nigeria’s stolen funds hidden in the European nation.

The Swiss government had earlier set conditions to release the money which largely involved official assurance that the money would be judiciously utilised for public good.

The United States Secretary of States, John Kerry, in March, had pledged his country’s commitment to help Nigeria get back its funds hidden in the U.S. banks.

When the then British Prime Minister, David Cameron, was caught on tape, in May, describing Nigeria as a “fantastically corrupt” country, Mr. Buhari famously remarked that he would rather want a return of his country’s stolen assets, instead of an apology from Mr. Cameron.

Why I dumped PDP for APC – Joshua Dariye

A former Plateau State Governor, Joshua Dariye, has explained why he dumped the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the ruling All Progressives Congress.

Mr. Dariye on Thursday left the PDP, on whose platform he was first elected governor and then elected to the National Assembly to represent Plateau Central senatorial district.

He is one of the former governors facing corruption charges, accused of siphoning the state’s ecological fund to the tune of N1.16 billion.

In 2004, Mr. Dariye fled the United Kingdom where he was being tried for money laundering.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission first filed charges against Mr. Dariye in 2007. He pleaded not guilty.

For nine years, his trial was delayed until February 2015 when the Supreme Court affirmed the competence of the Abuja court to try him.

In 2011, he defected from the PDP to Labour Party, where he contested the senatorial election.

When Mr. Dariye returned to the PDP in 2014, he explained that his decision to rejoin the party was because he was a founding member.

He had then assured of his “loyalty” to the PDP at all times.

However, in his latest defection letter to the senate president, he said, “after due consultations with my constituency, I write to notify you of my intention to cross over from the PDP to the APC.

“My decision is informed by the protracted division at the national level of the PDP that led to the massive movement of my supporters to the APC.

“Arising from this, I therefore write to formally inform you of my decision to go along with my supporters. I thank you for your understanding.’”

Fielding questions later from journalists, Mr. Dariye said his decision to dump the PDP was informed by the crack in the party.

He added that most of his constituents had defected to the ruling APC and that he wanted to be with his constituents for effective representation.

“My people in the PDP have moved to the APC and there is no need to remain alone,” he said.

Mr. Dariye, who chairs the Senate Committee on Public Procurement, reiterated his commitment to serve the people of his constituency.

Despite his stated reason, Nigerians on social media have suggested the Senator did cross-carpet on the hope he would be helped to avoid conviction, being a member of the ruling party.

The currency exchange rates for today, September 23, 2016

Federal Government Plans Uninterrupted Power For 40 Universities

The Federal Government has taken measures to provide stable power supply for forty Federal Universities.

The Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu and his counterpart in the Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola who stated this at an interactive session with Vice Chancellors and Directors of Physical Planning of the Universities in Abuja, disclosed that the effort is through the utilisation of off-grid Independent Power Projects, IPPs and Public Private Partnership, PPP structures.

Commending the initiative, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Dr Folashade Yemi-Esan, who represents the Minister, said that the Power, Works and Housing Ministry initiated the Energising Education Programme to provide uninterrupted and dedicated power supply to the universities.

The Minister of State for Power, Works and Housing, Alhaji Mustapha Baba Shehuri, who represented the Minister, said the project would also promote economic growth and sustainable development in the universities.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Power, Damilola Ogunbiyi, said that the productivity and professionalism of the universities would be boosted in the areas of research, teaching and learning and enhances the quality of graduates from the universities.

Mrs Ogunbiyi said that the plants are environmentally friendly with little or no carbon emission in line with global climate change standard.

Source: (Radio Nigeria)

Trump campaign coordinator resigns after blaming Obama for racism

A volunteer coordinator for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in Ohio resigned on Thursday afternoon after the Guardian published a video interview in which she said there was “no racism” until President Obama came into office and that black people who’ve struggled to succeed since the 1960s have no one to blame but themselves.

“If you’re black and you haven’t been successful in the last 50 years, it’s your own fault,” Kathy Miller, chair of the Republican nominee’s campaign in Mahoning County, Ohio, said in the interview. “You’ve had every opportunity, it was given to you.”

“You’ve had the same schools everybody else went to,” Miller continued. “You had benefits to go to college that white kids didn’t have. You had all the advantages and didn’t take advantage of it. It’s not our fault, certainly.”

She added: “I don’t think there was any racism until Obama got elected. We never had problems like this. … Now, with the people with the guns, and shooting up neighborhoods and not being responsible citizens, that’s a big change, and I think that’s the philosophy that Obama has perpetuated on America.”

“My personal comments were inappropriate, and I apologize. I am not a spokesperson for the campaign and was not speaking on its behalf,” she said in a statement. “I have resigned as the volunteer campaign chair in Mahoning County and as an elector to the electoral college to avoid any unnecessary distractions.”

Her resignation comes as Trump continues his attempted outreach to African-American voters in crucial swing states like Ohio.

At a Fox News town hall focused on black issues in Cleveland on Wednesday night, Trump proposed that police departments launch or reinstate controversial “stop and frisk” policies in high-crime cities like Chicago.

Trump gave a grim assessment of black neighborhoods at a rally in North Carolina the night before.

“Our African-American communities are absolutely in the worst shape that they’ve ever been in before, ever, ever, ever,” he said.

Trump began his pitch to Ohio’s black voters last month.

“What the hell do you have to lose?” Trump said at a rally before a predominantly white crowd in Akron on Aug. 22. “Give me a chance. I’ll straighten it out.”

Hillary Clinton and her fellow Democrats have been critical of Trump’s remarks.

“You may have heard Hillary’s opponent in this election say that there’s never been a worse time to be a black person,” Obama said at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation dinner in Washington on Saturday night. “I mean, he missed that whole civics lesson about slavery and Jim Crow.”

“He says we got nothing left to lose,” Obama continued, “so we might as well support somebody who has fought against civil rights and fought against equality, and who has shown no regard for working people for most of his life. Well, we do have challenges, but we’re not stupid.”

Ijaw Youths say EFCC harassing Patience Jonathan, ignoring wives of Abacha, Yar’Adua

Ijaw youths on Thursday accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, of carrying out a planned witch-hunt against former President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Patience.
The EFCC, a few days ago, freezed accounts traced to Patience Jonathan in Skye Bank.
The youths under the aegis of the Ijaw Youth Council, IYC, Worldwide, said that Jonathan’s wife like most former First Ladies made her money from gifts and gratifications, insisting that there was no law against such gestures.
Speaking in Yenagoa, the President of IYC, Mr. Udens Eradiri, stated that: “First Ladies in Nigeria do not do any work. A woman naturally attracts a lot of gifts from men let alone a First Lady who has the power to recommend you for something.
“They receive a lot of thank you and gratifications because most cases they recommend people who come back to thank them. Even when they do not recommend, people go and say good morning with a million dollar. It did not start with Patience Jonathan.
“We know how influential the former First Lady of this country and other First Ladies were. We know how powerful, rich and wealthy they are and the property they acquired as a result of gratification.
“If you say Patience should show how she made her money, you must start with all the First Ladies, otherwise, it is a witch-hunt. Patience Jonathan got her wealth from thank you and there is nowhere in the law that says we should not receive thank you.
“So, EFCC should stop this nonsense. If you have issues, go and follow the due process and don’t begin to use the media to tarnish the image of the former first family”.
“Jonathan should be respected in Nigeria. You heard what happened during the time of late President Yar’Adua, Jonathan did not witch-hunt that family irrespective of the humiliation he suffered despite the position of the law.
“This is a witch-hunt and the EFCC must stop this attitude because very soon, people will begin to resist them. Nigerians will get to the point where they will no longer accept it.
“We support the fight against corruption. All of us know that corruption has eaten deep into our fabric, but this selective fight especially geared towards the region must not be allowed”, Eradir said.
He lamented that despite the corruption traced to the former late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha and his family, the government still approved a university for his wife.
“It is in this country that they talked about Abacha’s loot, yet a university had been approved for Abacha’s wife. In this same country where they said Abacha was corrupt. So, why are you treating one former first family differently and then everybody wants to humiliate Jonathan’s family in the best of their ability.
“The former First Lady, Patience, has no question to answer. The EFCC is destroying Buhari’s anti-graft policy because when your anti-graft is beginning to show it is one-sided, it will lose credibility,” he said.
The IYC boss further asked the EFCC to to return about N23bn, $100million and other assets it seized from the former Governor of the state, late Diepreye Alamieyeseigha.
“Bayelsa State funds are in their hands, they have not returned it. Why are they keeping the funds? Are they meant to keep funds that they recovered. Why is the money not being paid into TSA if EFCC believes they are proceeds of corruption. They should return our money. Those are the issues they should focus on”, he said.

“I thought that the EFCC by now will begin to face squarely its job of ensuring that criminals are brought to book and not the media charade that is usually its modus operandi.
“They have not learnt from the Tompolo incident. Instead of focusing on facts and doing their jobs via due process, they quickly went to the media and that incident led this country to where we are today.”

Economy: CBN Maintains 14% Interest Rate

Folasade Folarin(NAN): Nigeria’s Central Bank has retained the basic interest rates at 14 per cent. Governor Godwin Emefiele in announcing the decision of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Tuesday also urged the Federal Government to evolve robust fiscal policies in reviving the economy from recession.

Emefiele said the committee elected to retain the current policy, which is the Monetary Policy Rate at 14 per cent, Cash Reserve Ratio at 22.5 per cent and Liquidity Ratio at 30 per cent.

The Asymmetric Window was also retained at +200 and -500 point around the Monetary Policy Rate.

Emefiele said that the Committee acknowledged the weak macroeconomic performance and the challenges confronting the economy.

He said that the MPC had consistently called attention to the implications of the absence of robust fiscal policies to complement monetary policies in the past.

“The MPC reiterated the fact that monetary policy alone cannot move the economy out of stagflation.

“The MPC considered the numerous analysis and calls for rates reduction but came to the conclusion that the greatest challenge to the economy today remains incomplete fiscal reforms which raise costs, risks and uncertainty.

“The calls came mainly from the belief that reducing interest rates will spur credit growth, in the private and public sector, which will help provide liquidity to stimulate consumption and investment spending.

“The urgency of a monetary-fiscal policy retreat along with trade and budgetary policy, to design a comprehensive intervention mechanism is long overdue,” he said.

Emefiele said the Bank had since 2009, expanded its balance sheet to bail out the financial system and support growth initiatives in the economy, even though it was the work of the fiscal policy makers to do so.

He said nevertheless, the apex bank would continue to deploy its development finance interventions to complement the overall effort of fiscal policy towards reinvigorating the economy.
“The interest rate decisions of the bank are therefore anchored on sound judgment, fundamentals and compelling arguments for such policy interventions.

“The committee also feels there is the need to continue to encourage the inflow of foreign capital into the economy by continuing to put in place incentives to gain the confidence of players in this segment of the foreign exchange market.

“Consequently the Committee considers that loosening monetary policy now is not advisable as real interest rates are negative, pressure exists on the foreign exchange market while inflation is trending upwards.”

Emefiele said that Members of the committee emphasised that improved fiscal activities, especially the active implementation of the 2016 budget, payment of salaries by states and local governments, would go a long way in contributing to economic recovery.

He said that the committee urged the fiscal authorities to consider tax incentives as stimulus on both supply and demand sides of economic activities.

Emefiele said that based on available data, the committee agreed that the month-on-month inflation which was currently at a record high of 17.6 per cent would soon begin to come down.

He said harvests had started to kick-in for most agricultural produce and should contribute to dampening consumer prices in the months ahead.

He also said that the current stance of monetary policy was expected to continue to help lock-in expectations of inflation which has started to improve with the gradual return of stability in the foreign exchange market.

In July, the committee increased the MPR by 200 basis points from 12.00 to 14 per cent, retained the CRR at 22.50 per cent and the Liquidity Ratio at 30 .00 per cent, among others.

The members said the decision was in recognising that the bank lacked the instruments required to directly jumpstart growth.

The committee was being mindful not to calibrate its instruments in such a manner as to undermine its primary mandate and financial system stability.

AY Makun’s movie, A Trip to Jamaica, set for world premiere

“A Trip to Jamaica”, a movie by award-winning Nigerian stand-up comedian, Ayo Makun, popularly known as AY, will be premiered worldwide on September 25 in Lagos.

AY, who is the principal character in the movie and its executive producer, on Wednesday said that the star-studded movie is a hilarious installment of the Akpos series shot in Lagos, Atlanta and Montego Bay in Jamaica.

He said, “After the success of  30 Days In Atlanta, there were a lot of calls for more. So we decided to do a spin-off to showcase further adventures of Akpos.

“A Trip to Jamaica’ bridges the gap between Nollywood, Gollywood, Hollywood and the Jamaican movie industry.”

He added that artistes cast in the movie were drawn from Nigeria, Ghana, America and Jamaica.

According to AY, the cast include award-winning actress Funke Akindele, Hollywood veteran Eric Roberts and Paul Campbell from Jamaica.

Others include: Nigerian Nse Ikpe-Etim, Ghanaian ‘lover boy’ Chris Attoh, Dan Davies from Hollywood and Rebecca Silvera who was the former Miss Jamaica.

The movie also includes; cameo appearances from Music Stars Cynthia Morgan, Patoranking and Olamide.

The veteran comedian added that the premiere would be preceded by a novelty football match that would feature prominent Jamaica ex-footballers against ex-Nigerian players.

A Trip to Jamaica was created to celebrate the best of our cultures.

He said, “Using a football match which will showcase these great players who have all worn their individual countries national colours at international competitions is a fitting way to herald the release of the movie.

“The football game will be witnessing live comedy and musical performances as a way of celebrating the cultures of these unique countries.”

He said ex-footballers to play in the match include: Kanu Nwankwo, Jay Jay Okocha, Peter Rufai, Joseph Yobo, Mutiu Adepoju, Victor Ikpeba, and Ghanaian’s Stephen Appiah.

Artistes from different countries are expected to grace the premiere.

He added that the movie would be available on cinemas across Nigeria on September 30.

It was co-written by AY and Dianne Diaz and directed by Robert Peters, the US based multiple award winning film maker who also directed ‘30 Days in Atlanta’.

AY had made Box Office records with his 2014 film, “30 Days in Atlanta”, which recently earned a place in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The movie was officially recognised by the 2017 Guinness World Records as one of the films with the highest domestic gross in the territories of Bollywood, Nollywood and Hollywood.

(NAN)

Jigawa floods kill 18, destroy 6,637 houses

 

Jigawa State Management Agency has confirmed that 18 lives were lost to the recent floods that also destroyed 6,637 houses across 19 local governments in the state.

The Executive of the agency, Yusuf Sani, who confirmed this while briefing newsmen on the activities of the agency in Dutse, the Jigawa State capital, said the disaster occurred during the ongoing rainy season.

He listed areas where people had died as including Gwaram, Dutse, Jahaun, Gumel and Ringim local government areas.

According to him, flood destroyed not less than 141 houses in Dutse, 419 in Jahaun, 525 in Hadeja, 417 in Babura, 525 in Ringim, 822 in Gumel, 529 in Malamadori and 122 in Birnin Kudu LGAs, among others.

Also, Sani said, some of the victims died due to building collapse, pointing out that three persons suffered varying degrees of injuries while the floods raged.

Insurgency: GOV. Shettima Moves Office To Bama, Begins Major Reconstruction

Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima on Wednesday temporarily ‎relocated his office to Bama town, an urban centre, severely destroyed by Boko Haram insurgents during their nearly two years occupation before it was liberated by the military late, 2015. Bama town, located 74 kilometers away from Maiduguri, is one of the third most populated local government areas next to Maiduguri Metropolitan Council and Biu in southern part of the State.

Insurgents had attacked the town killing dozens, destroyed ‎more than 80 percent of the thousands of houses in the town, sacked the Emir and took over his palace after declaring it as sovereign territory with set of laws and ‘constitutional’ leader.  The military toppled the insurgents and recovered the area by the end of 2015, months after President Muhammadu Buhari took over affairs.

To fast track major reconstruction works which was flagged off on Wednesday, Governor Kashim Shettima now lives in Bama town with his close aides. The Governor departed Maiduguri at about 12:10pm and arrived Bama at about 2:18 pm and he went straight to supervising inspect reconstruction works on private residential houses, police stations, stores, schools, hospitals, the Emirs palace among others. The Governor had deployed construction equipment and hundreds of trucks of variety of building materials which are already in Bama for the reconstruction works.

“My office is now here. I decided to relocate here to live here and supervise reconstruction works. I will administer Borno State from here. I am fully prepared to be here for days to come, one week, two weeks or even more. I will not leave until we are able to rebuild a good number of private houses, municipal buildings, markets, schools and clinics. I want the reconstruction work to take proper shape before I leave. We cannot wait till forever before we reclaim our destiny. Bama is the one of the worst affected areas and we will move from here to other parts of the State. While I am here, we have a full structure of Government in place operating in Maiduguri so that activities of managing IDP’S, civil service, implementation of Government policies and programmes will continue while I am here. I will be in constant touch with Maiduguri, I came prepared” Shettima said

The Governor also commissioned 500 newly recruited civilian JTF and vigilantes employed from locals in Bama to use community intelligence in working with the military to strengthen security in the area so as to forestall unanticipated attacks.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement, Dr Babagana Umara Zulum announced that the reconstruction activities has created nearly 1000 direct jobs beside stimulating the economy of the State through procurements of different building materials and payment for services.

The Commissioner said with the support his Ministry receives from Governor Kashim Shettima, his men were fully ready to make the Governor proud. He gave the indication that Shettima was bound to see new developments every day he goes out for inspection.