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After several months of meetings and negotiations between Google and the Chinese government over the accusation that Chinese government hackers had attacked its search engine to retrieve very relevant information from its users and the United States.

The outcome is that Google's China domain, Google.Cn, would now redirect to a new site google.com.hk, a new uncensored site just constructed by Google for its Chinese visitors according to Business Insider.

The new development now means google no longer censors visits and search results done by Chinese visitors. The initial censorship idea from Google, caused disagreement between Google and China. But it's still uncertain if the Chinese government would embrace this new development or out rightly block the new site.

According to Business Insider, Google explained that they tried to "make good of their promise to stop censoring search on Google.cn"

The company said, "We intend to continue R&D work in China and also to maintain a sales presence there, though the size of the sales team will obviously be partially dependent on the ability of mainland Chinese users to access to google.com.hk" also according to Business Insider.

Google says it has been difficult to grant their promise to stop censoring search by Chinese visitors, but also wanted to provide services to as many people around the world, including the Chinese people. Google believes their latest approach is the most sensible a medium to tackle its present disagreement between Google and china.

Information Minister Dora Akunyili announced the decision by Acting President Goodluck Jonathan at the same time that the state-run broadcaster broke the news to citizens long confused about who remained in charge of the oil-rich nation. Akunyili said Jonathan would issue a statement soon on who will now serve in the Cabinet.

"The acting president gives no reason for the dissolution," Akunyili told reporters Wednesday night. "There is no vacuum in the government as permanent secretaries will take charge."

The Cabinet remained stocked with loyalists of President Umaru Yar'Adua, a Muslim from the country's north. Some cabinet members had begun to shift allegiances from Yar'Adua to Jonathan, a Christian from the country's south, as time passed. Akunyili herself had previously circulated a memo to the cabinet calling on it to install Jonathan as acting president — providing a rare public voice for those uncomfortable with Yar'Adua's long absence from the country.

The move is the first major step by Jonathan, a quiet 52-year-old biologist from the Niger Delta who largely remained quiet as a constitutional crisis gripped the nation over Yar'Adua's absence. Yar'Adua left Nigeria in late November for medical treatment at a Saudi Arabian hospital over what his physician described as serious heart condition.

Though the nation's constitution offers clear steps for president to hand over power in his absence, Yar'Adua chose not to implement them. For months, many wondered how Yar'Adua would rule Africa's most populous nation from abroad.

The National Assembly empowered Jonathan to become acting president in a vote Feb. 9. Two weeks later, Yar'Adua's handlers apparently whisked the ill president back to the presidential palace in an ambulance surrounded by a military convoy. However, Yar'Adua still has not been seen publicly since returning.

Jonathan largely shied away from making major decisions since becoming acting president, though he did move some cabinet ministers loyal to Yar'Adua into new positions. While fears of a coup permeated the country, which has a long history of military dictators, top officials in the armed forces promised not to intervene.

Those forces likely will be kept at bay, even with Jonathan asserting more power, said analyst Charles Dokubo of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs.

"I think the Nigerian people have been so quiet and have been allowing things to unfold in an evolutionary manner," Dokubo told The Associated Press. Yar'Adua supporters "might make noise about it, but I don't think it will lead to any other upheaval or anarchy in the country."

Still Jonathan remains largely unknown in Nigeria, a former deputy state governor who rose to the governor's office after his predecessor was indicted on corruption charges. Now, as Yar'Adua remains ill and unseen, Jonathan finds himself at the helm as the West African country faces endemic corruption, simmering militancy in the oil-rich Niger Delta and long-running religious tensions that have led to hundreds of deaths in recent months.

The northern caucus in the House of Representatives has called on Dora Akunyili, minister of information and communications, to resign.

The members, under the aegis of the Northern Members Caucus, said it was concerned with, "the recent statements credited to the Information minister suggesting systemic undermining of the functioning of the Acting President, regardless of its security implications."

They said since she deplores the views of other members of the cabinet so much, she should resign her appointment.

THe PDP also voiced their strong objections to Mrs Akunyilis statements :

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday moved to douse tension in the land. It specifically told Information and Communications Minister Dora Akunyili and some religious groups alleged to be making statements capable of affecting the unity of the country to shut up.

Akunyili in an interview with some national newspapers had alleged that some cabals were holding President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua hostage, preventing everybody including Acting President Goodluck Jonathan from seeing him.
According to a statement issued by PDP National Publicity Secretary Ahmed Alkali, the party said such “unguided statements” from Akunyili and other religious groups in the country were capable of destabilizing the country.

The statement emerged after the party's National Working Committee (NWC) meeting in Abuja. PDP said it “observed with dismay the preponderance of potentially divisive and destabilizing statements by socio-cultural groups, leading politicians and even senior government officials over issues surrounding the smooth functioning of the government of Nigeria led by the Acting President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan.

“We expect that by now, questions on where the buck stops as far as the running of government is concerned would have been put to rest. We therefore find constant reference to purported power 'cliques' or 'cabals' especially by responsible public officials as unhelpful in our determination to create a conducive atmosphere for the smooth operations of government.”

Referring to the utterances and comments by the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Ohaneze and Afenifere, the party expressed concern that these socio-cultural groups, which “ordinarily should be custodians of our cultural values and rallying points for our people are abandoning their traditional roles and are delving into partisan politics.
“We urge them to refrain from actions that are capable of questioning their motives and neutrality.”

PDP cautioned all politicians, public office holders, clergymen and socio-cultural groups to rise above petty politics and demonstrate the statesmanship “that the current situation requires”.

The Nigeria Unity Group (NUG) has also cautioned the Information minister to be mindful of her utterances as a public officer.
According to the group's National Coordinator Ed Malik, “the truth that is told with intent to harm or to gain cheap popularity or play to the gallery or to exploit public mood, is the dead point in human reasoning.”

He said further, “the Information minister has not added value to the information management process or said anything new to warrant the constant bombardment of our national psyche by her populist attempt at appearing to be the only outspoken or caring public officer in the land at a time of delicate political manoeuvres being witnessed since President Yar'Adua's illness was reported.”

The House of Representatives on Thursday passed an order suspending further drafting of fresh graduates to Plateau State to participate in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme in the state..

This order came in the wake of the devastating violence that claimed hundreds of lives in a neighbourhood of Jos, the state capital, last Sunday.

The legislative resolution, the second in the week after the massacre, also called on the management of the NYSC to re-deploy serving corps members in Plateau to neighbouring states, even as the government attempts to restore peace to the area.

Saving the people

“I am not a pessimist,” said Ekperikpe Ekpo, a member from Akwa Ibom state, who sponsored the resolution. “But we cannot say as of now, total peace has returned to Jos. We have to find a way to save these people in the event of reprisal attacks.”

The resolution will empower calls from Nigerians who have asked that youth corps members be re-assigned from Plateau state.

However, a few members of the House of Representatives, mostly from the affected state, opposed the proposal. They complained that such an order will imply a failure of the government and a total breakdown of law and order in Plateau state.

Leo Dilkon, who represents Pashkin, Kanke and Kanam Local government areas of the state, said the crisis was concentrated around Jos, and it will be undue punishment on the rest of the state if the youths are withdrawn.

Support for motion

But the motion gathered rapid support after the mention of several cases of slain corps members in several parts of the north including Grace Ushang, whose murder in Borno State last year drew international condemnation, and three members of the scheme who died during the December 2008 fighting in Plateau State.

In the aftermath of such deaths, the government has been advised to reconsider the continued relevance of the scheme and the NYSC has been urged to restrict its posting to certain states.

After the killings of last Sunday, the NYSC Director General, Maharazu Tsiga, reportedly announced that his office will reassign serving members from the state pending the restoration of normalcy.

Lawmakers said although they are aware of the decision, they will push for a legislative resolution to compel the director general to act fast.

“I will be surprised if anyone will oppose the fact that the situation in Plateau poses a clear and present danger, said Patrick Obahiagbon, who represents Oredo in Edo state. “Whether there are newspaper reports that they will be redeployed or not, we have to rise up and make it known that this parliament says no. We cannot send our brothers and sisters to go and pay the ultimate price.”

Women in black

Meanwhile, hundreds of Plateau women clad in black dresses and placards showed up at the premises of the National Assembly, where they held hands, singing sombre songs to protest the latest killings.

The women, who said they will seek the intervention of the United Nations (UN) if they fail to get justice from the Nigerian government, called on the acting president, Goodluck Jonathan, to remove the current General Officer Commanding the 3rd Armoured Division of the Nigerian Army, located in Jos, Plateau State, who has been accused of negligence as the crisis erupted.

“We want a change of the security chiefs in Plateau State, they have not guaranteed any security on us, we have lost confidence in them,” the group’s spokesperson and its secretary general, Zipporah Kpamor, said.

The women also accused the Chief of Army Staff, Abdurahman Danbazzau, as well as the Bauchi State government of complicity in the mayhem in Jos.

“If the FG cannot stop the premeditated genocide and ensure peace in the state, then we will be compelled to go to the United Nations (UN) for intervention on the matter,” Ms. Kpamor said.

Nigeria's Acting President Goodluck Jonathan has approved the disbursal of $2 billion from windfall oil savings to the country's 36 states and government agencies, Minister of State for Finance Remi Babalola said on Friday.

"I have just gotten an approval this morning from the acting president for the sharing of $2 billion from the excess crude account," Reuters quoted Mr. Babalola saying after a meeting of the Federal Allocation Committee in the capital Abuja.