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The Ekiti State Police Command has declared the Acting Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Mr. Saliu Adeoti, wanted over his alleged involvement in the burning of the Independent National Electoral Commission’s office in Ido/Osi Local Government.Skip to next paragraphPhoto fileMr Saliu Adeoti, Speaker Ekiti StateA statement by the command’s Provost Marshall/Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Sikiru Fatola, said that the police wanted Adeoti to come and prove his innocence over the alleged arson.Fatola, an assistant superintendent of police, said he was acting on behalf of the interim Commissioner of Police in charge of the state command, Mr. Yakubu Alkali.The statement reads, “This is to inform the general public that the Ekiti State Acting Speaker, Mr. Saliu Adeoti, is being declared wanted by the Ekiti State Police Command.“(This is) on a matter not unconnected with the burning of Ido/Osi INEC office on Saturday, April 25, which is widely reported by the dailies.”The statement further urged members of the public with information on the whereabouts of the acting speaker to make such information available to the police.In a telephone interview with our correspondent on Wednesday, Adeoti said the declaration by the police was “abnormal and unwarranted.”He said, “Declaring me wanted will imply that I have once been summoned by the police via a valid warrant. As I’m talking to you (6pm), I have not received any and nobody has told me that I’m needed at the police station.”Adeoti had, during an interview with journalists on Sunday, described the “politically-motivated” report linking him with the attack on INEC office and the allegation that he was on the run as a ruse.Before Wednesday’s statement by the police, a national newspaper had on Friday alleged that Adeoti knocked down a student in Osogbo while fleeing the state, having been then declared wanted by the police.Addressing journalists at his Otun-Ekiti residence, he said that it was part of an alleged plot by the Peoples Democratic Party to ease him out so that he would not exert his influence on the just-concluded rerun election.Although he confirmed that his old BMW car was involved in an accident in Osogbo, Osun State, on Friday, he said it was driven by his younger brother who had been driving the car since 2007.
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Kanu heads for Australia considers move from pompey
SUPER Eagles captain, Nwankwo Kanu and General Wonderboy ! is ready to bring his decade-long English Premier League career to an end by making a lucrative move to Australian side, Perth Glory.
Portsmouth FA Cup final hero Kanu, who scored the winner in the 1-0 Wembley victory over Cardiff last May, has not played enough games to trigger a clause earning him a new one-year deal.
The former Arsenal star’s agent, Samuel Okoronkwo said: “Kanu wants to play football and would consider Australia."
The Nigerian international has netted 21 goals in 91 appearances since joining Pompey on a free transfer from West Brom in the summer of 2006, but has started only two Premier League games this season.
Perth had been lining up a move for Birmingham striker, Kevin Phillips, who is now likely to remain at St Andrews following its promotion to the top flight.
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By Sola Adebayo, Warri
Two persons, including a pastor, have been arrested by men of the Delta State Police Command for raping and murdering an undergraduate of Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State.
The police identified the deceased as Princess Chinoso.
The suspects committed the crime in Abraka, Ethiope East Local Government Area of Delta State.
It was gathered that the suspects had duped the deceased of N155,000 ostensibly to effect the transfer of her degree programme from Igbinedion University to Delta State University, Abraka.
Our correspondent learnt at the headquarters of the police command in Asaba, the state capital, on Tuesday that the suspects, in their desperation to cover up their nefarious action, later lured the deceased to Abraka.
Police sources told our correspondent that the deceased was tricked to the residence of the fake pastor in the Urhobo community under the pretence that they planned to refund her money.
However, it was gathered that the victim, who was apparently unaware of the sinister motives of the suspects, was thereafter raped and murdered.
Her remains were later buried in a shallow grave behind the pastor's residence.
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr. Charles Moka, confirmed the report in a text message to our correspondent on Tuesday.
Moka said the remains of the deceased had since been exhumed for autopsy.
The PPRO added that the matter was being investigated by the Criminal Investigation Department of the state police command.
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Russian billionaire Roman AbramovichTHE STINKIN BILLIONAIRE OTEdola & Dangote see better Bilionaire una dey Fight up and down dey disturb us !lost one of the yachts in his sizeable personal fleet in a game of poker, Russian newspapers reported on Monday, prompting a strong denial from the oligarch.This space is to Shakara your goods and services here on 9jabook !"The story is absolutely, completely, entirely false," Abramovich spokesman John Mann told AFP after three Russian daily newspapers published versions of the story that originated in the Italian press.One of the the Stinking billionaires yachts please give me this Yacht my problems are over !The popular daily Moskovsky Komsomelets said the oligarch lost the 500,000 dollar (375,000 euro) yacht while playing poker in Barcelona, which he was visiting to watch the London football team he owns, Chelsea, in action.The newspaper did not provide the name of the yacht or name the source of its information.Two other mass-cirulation Russian dailies, Izvestia and Trud, also published the story, citing the Italian newspaper La Repubblica as the source of the information.Mann said Abramovich had not been in Barcelona for the Chelsea match and asserted that the entire story was a fabrication."We have instructed our lawyers to examine legal action" over publication of the story, he said.Abramovich's yacht collection, thought to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars, has been dubbed "The Roman Navy" by Britain's press.The Russian newspaper said his poker habit had become a sore point between him and girlfriend Daria Zhukova and that the billionaire, who made his fortune in Russia's sell-off of state assets in the 1990s, had instead turned to gambling online.
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naija's film industry is garnering global attention as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, yesterday declared Nollywood the second world film producer.A global cinema survey conducted by the world body's Institute of Statistics and released at the UN head office in New York and UNESCO office in Paris yesterday, India kept the first position, but naija has edged out the United States from the second position. The US is now number 3 after India and naija, according to an Empowered Newswire report.The survey ranks countries based on the number of films produced in a year, and not on the quality or on the turn-over of the films from those countries.Global attention on Nollywood has been mounting in recent times, especially as naija films have become hot commodity among African-Americans in the US and blacks from the Caribbean countries. Only last month, a daily US government bulletin described Nollywood as a rising star in the world of film production, paying tribute to the acumen of naija actors and film producers.Visits of famous naija actors from naija to the US is often a celebrity event with US-based naijas taking autographs from the Nollywood stars.While the Indian film industry is known as Bollywood, the American industry is known as Hollywood and naija's known as Nollywood. Both India and naija coined their industry appellations from Hollywood.The UNESCO survey which tallied 2006 figures revealed that Bollywood produced 1,091 feature-length films in 2006 compared to 872 productions (in video format) from naija's film industry. The United States produced 485 major films. The report quoted naija, US and India as the three heavyweights in global film production.The report actually spotlighted Nollywood further, noting what the UN statement called "the explosive growth of Nollywood" which is now attracting "considerable attention, especially in developing countries looking for alternatives to the U.S. or European models of film production and distribution, which require considerable investment."Said the report, "To begin with, naija filmmakers rely on video instead of film to reduce production costs," adding that naija has virtually no formal cinemas. About 99 per cent of screenings occur in informal settings, such as "home theatre."The UNESCO survey further reveals "another key element of the naija success story: multilingualism. About 56 per cent of Nollywood films are produced in naija's local languages, namely Yoruba (31per cent), Hausa (24 per cent) and Igbo (1 per cent). English remains a prominent language, accounting for 44 per cent, which may contribute to naija's success in exporting its films."The UNESCO findings were collected through a new international survey launched by the UIS in 2007 with financing from the Government of Québec. Overall, the survey yielded data from 99 countries.After the three 'heavyweights', there were eight other countries that produced more than 100 films: Japan (417), China (330), France (203), Germany (174), Spain (150), Italy (116), South Korea (110) and the United Kingdom (104)."Film and video production are shining examples of how cultural industries - as vehicles of identity, values and meanings - can open the door to dialogue and understanding between peoples, but also to economic growth and development. This conviction underpins the UNESCO Convention on Cultural Diversity," the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, said. "And this new data on film and video production provides yet more proof of the need to rethink the place of culture on the international political agenda," he added.Despite its limited coverage, the survey provides a unique perspective on how different countries and regions are transforming traditional approaches to the art and industry of filmmaking, especially in video and digital formats.The survey also revealed considerable linguistic diversity in film production in Spain and Canada. In Spain, almost 69% of films were produced in Spanish, 12% in Catalan, about 9% in English, 4% in Basque, almost 3% in French and 4% in other languages. In Canada, 67% of films were produced in English and 31% in French in 2006.Despite these results, English remains the dominant language in filmmaking globally. In total, 36% of films produced in 2006 were shot in English, according to the survey.US films continue to dominate admissions globally. Although the survey is not exhaustive, a clear trend seems to have emerged when considering the provenance of the top 10 films viewed in diverse countriesAll of the top 10 films seen in Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, Costa Rica, Namibia, Romania, and Slovenia were made in the U.S., according to the survey. There were however some notable exceptions.Bollywood productions were the obvious favourite in India. In France, seven out of the top 10 films were French. And in Japan and Morocco, domestic productions accounted for five out of the 10 most widely viewed films.
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By Francis Falola
Published: Tuesday, 5 May 2009
Tragedy struck in Minna, the Niger State capital, on Monday when a 58-year-old woman, Mrs. Esther Abubakar, died after waiting for several hours on queue at a filling station.
9ja Petrol Station WHERE THE PETROL IS MADE
Our correspondent gathered that Abubakar, who until her death was a worker with the state’s Ministry of Health was in the queue for about four hours at a filling station at the Western Bye Pass in Minna.
It was learnt that she subsequently left for another filling station to procure fuel meant for her Honda Civic car when she met her death.
According to an eye-witness, “After purchasing the fuel, she stretched her hand from inside the car to pay the dealer and slumped with her seat belt on.”
Passersby who were able to identify the woman, believed to be a younger sister of Dr. Lucas Bahago, a Special Adviser on Health to Governor Babangida Aliyu, went to her residence to inform the family members of the development.
The deceased’s nephew, one Hunpani Bahago, who was the first family member to get to the scene said, “Nobody touched her, as her seat belt was strapped round her when I got there: I called her: Mummy, Mummy, but she couldn’t respond.
“People were just standing around, nobody, probably out of fear or shock get closer to her. So, I had to remove the seat belt from her and with other family members who later joined me and drove her home.”
FINSBURY PARK LONDON PETROL STATION WHERE THE PETROL GOES !
He said the family doctor was immediately invited and after medical examination certified her dead.
Bahago said that the remains of the deceased, who was survived by four children and husband, had been deposited at the mortuary of the Minna General Hospital.
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Emerging from her melodramatic behavior past week, Mrs. Adebayo a.k.a Mama returned to Ado-Ekiti yesterday.Today she swung into action, repeated her macabre dance and imposed Engr. Segun Oni as governor of Ekiti state. Official results obtained by our correspondent in Ado-Ekiti (collation center) shows PDP in both wards. Our checks revealed that in Oye 1, the Action Congress (AC) had 569 votes while People Democratic Party (PDP) tally was 628 votes.In Oye 2, AC scored 261 votes, while PDP registered 611 votes. Thus sum total votes cast for AC is 830, while PDP was 1,239.However, the registered voters in the two wards in Oye Local Government Area is 18,000.The re-run election which commenced at 8am, was held under tight security,and witnessed very low voters turn out. Most polling centers visited by our team at 3.30p.m, had rounded up. However,movement was restricted as Ekiti state remained under curfew till 6pm.But,hours after the elections were concluded at the wards, the INEC office in Ado-Ekiti was besieged by party faithfuls, consequently resulting in a melee that temporarily prevented Mrs. Ayoka Adebayo from officially releasing the result.Nevertheless, when she eventually did, she threw the entire Ekiti state into a sticky situation as she returned the deposed governor Segun Oni.
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The sins of their Fathers are being continued by their sons and our Sons .Their sons are continuing it and we are helping them !
Whilst 9geria is silently burning some irresponsible members of society are organising a Global 9gerian Party from Facebook .I did not take note of the group until i saw the Admins and co collaborators
Mary Obasanjo
Western 9gerian representative
Wole Abiola
9gerian Representative
Mustapha Buhari
Nothern 9gerian representative
Chijindu Adenike Azikiwe (Malaysia)
Malaysia representative
Zainab Yar'Adua
(Singapore)
Vice President & Director of Protocols
(9gerian Global Network is hosting a GLOBAL CONCERT here in the United states (Atlanta) OCTOBER 2nd-4th 2009. We are inviting 9gerians and non-9gerians from around the world. (IS THIS WHAT THE SCIONS OF BIGMEN ARE DOING WITH THE EDUCATION 9gerian MONEY PAID FOR ? A party ? FELA Thank God you are not here to see this today )
We are expecting more than to 20,000 guest , Registration for the event will start in a few weeks.
ITS GOING TO BE THE BIGGEST PARTY OF THE YEAR IN THE UNITED STATES!!!!!!!
JOIN THE GROUP AND INVITE YOUR FRIENDS. .....Be a big part of the new Naija culture (o yes the culture of siddon look !)
The person with the highest number of invited friends will get an all-expense-paid Trip to the United States for the October event ! Imagine this Nonsense No wonder Fela is dead ! all the other so called ignorant artistes are just there to make money .Who wan die ? But people ARE DYING ! DYING !
They call themselves 9gerians but as The supposed change makers due to their hometraining are turning a deaf eye to the plight of 9gerians especially youths but getting them addicted to a Get rich or Die trying Attitude !
)
and realised i had joined part of the 9gerian conspiracy, the divisive propaganda that is being used to hide the deep cavern 9gerian is slowly heading for .With the prices of oil going down and the Projected Budget based on unrealistic amounts per barrel.
When the Nation and its inhabitants and Friends should be focussed on a Joseph and Egypt Save for Seven years for the coming Seven year Famine.
As futher means of replacing Fossil Fuels like Oil and Gas are being worked on tirelessly with President Obama largely spearheading these campaigns .(Remember him the guy who we all "voted" for )
The rest of 9gerian is being
cordoned like Sheep on a prairie by the Enjoyment of the day.Big Stars making Hit music ! The yahooze Phenom keeping everyone at bay. More and more "scam" opportunities being open as 9gerians scammers turn on the 9gerian Mugu Market ! Can you blame them ? Are we not the Mugu and the politicians the Winners ? according to Osuofias Song !Nkem owoh !
There seems to be much more Peace and enjoyment apparently from the amount of Party Events I get on Facebook and Self motivation or should i call Self Preservation Seminars , How many Rallies have we heard of asking for change .How many ? NONE !
Over the past month you must have gone for at least 1 owambe or wedding .when last did you go for a rally to do something about the State of The Nation ?
.Where is the POVERTY you may say ? Until mothers start eating their babies ? or until People are getting murdered in Churches or a massive amount of the Nations young Females have become unknowing Sex Traders !
The Life you are preparing for your young ones will not be a life of young guns but a life young wrongs if we continue to sidon look ! You burn Armed robbers on the roads whilst the real robbers are running scot free around you !
Come on the idea of Democracy is for the people by the people.A revolution without revolutionaries is like a gun with plastic bullets !
Why would these miscreants eager to fleece us of more of the 9gerian peoples money are asking for registration Fees in the tune of 75dollars roughly 11,000naira X 20000 guests 220million Naira .Yahoozeee ! and the insolence of it all
They are declaring their apparent relationships to the Fiends that have turned our nation into what it is today !
And you still they Siddon look ? some self don the LieDown look sef ! If we continue like this the only way forward is to end up in our graves doing what we did all our lives .LOOKING !!!!!!!!!!!
join the 9gerian people online party one way or the other We will get this out to the OPEN and get registered !
join the 9gerian Online political party
http://tinyurl.com/9gerianonlinepoliticalparty
http://www.ask9ja.com
http://www.9jamovies.com/
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MONTREAL – A Canadian woman freed last week after being kidnapped in Nigeria described her abductors on Sunday as “mostly kind at heart,” and said she was well-treated during nearly two weeks of captivity.Looking none the worse after 13 days as a hostage, Julie Ann Mulligan, 45, told reporters that her captors seemed motivated by a need to earn money to improve their desperate economic plight.“The kidnappers were mostly kind at heart,” she said.“The job ... was a business of money that there desperately isn’t enough of for most of the people in Nigeria,” Mulligan said.“They did not hurt me physically and they did not torment me unnecessarily or psychologically,” Mulligan said.She added: “I did live the hard life of many typical Nigerians, though, for 13 days. And believe me, it’s not an easy one.”Mulligan was kidnapped on April 16 while participating in a cultural exchange in northern Kaduna. Shortly after her abduction, Nigerian police indicated that her kidnappers had demanded 136,000 dollars in ransom.Seven people have been arrested by authorities.Mulligan, who was released on Wednesday, was effusive in her praise of the people of northern Nigeria where she was kidnapped.“They’re as warm and hospitable as you could ever imagine. Living in the most populated country in Africa, they are kind and generous in spirit,” she said.“When I found out that there was a candlelight vigil for me attended by over one thousand people, I was stunned.”She noted with regret that other captives — including fellow Canadian Amanda Lindhout, who was snatched in Somalia last August with Australian photographer Nigel Geoffrey Brennan — continue to be held by their kidnappers.“I thank God that I’m the lucky one,” she said.
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I alighted from the heli amid breeziness that seemed eternity. As I walked down the rusty paths of El-Daein, through the barricaded walls of the gallopy ways leading to the base camp, I was choked of a stench oozing from before me. It smelled like a burning flesh. I presumed it was nothing. Yes it was nothing, actually nothing unseen before in the neighbourhood. It has been a regular reccurrence for most of the inhabitants of the small and desolate town. It was indeed human flesh set ablaze by a gang of Ma'alias who had raided the town, raped the old and young women and carted away scores of cows, donkeys and cattle. Vultures were even wickedly denied of a feast. A shame for humanity!As I drove past them, I saw in their eyes the demand for answers why it should happen again. Their robes were soaked in pools of water created of their eyes. Yet they were not bothered. At least, a relief from the scorching heat of the sun was possible. I could see some drinking of the water produced by the anguish and suffering of a people. A people so neglected that they doubt they are worthy humans. Worthy to survive, worthy of life.The story was unfolding, I thought. I believed I had had enough of the horror sights. I needed a change of sight, at least something soothing. I was wrong. The next kid running naked across
the street towards the road was skinny to the ribs. He looked unfed for most of his days alive. He was not bothered, at least I thought. But he was obviously in need of help to survive. He is a victim of a circumstance he knows nothing about. A deliberate attempt at decimation of a people. A people who by nature are endowered with inalienable rights among which are rights to Life, Liberty and pursuit of Happiness. Its is arguably a grand design at the depopulation of a race. A people in black skin amongst a committee of white, yes, white skin African-Arabians in undefined occupation.I arrived the base camp shortly after 1730hrs. Just on time enough to avert a seizure of my person by the GoS Forces. The rule is that I or any other living person in the area must not be seen travelling after 1800hrs. This is for a reason they say is security. If I dared violate the supreme rule, hell will be let loose. My status as a peacekeeper not minded. My welcome is on condition - I must not meddle in the internal politics designed to cut down the demography of the people. The presence of the INGOs did not help much and the numbers were on the rise. But the resources were scarce. A mess!It all went well until a day after my arrival. I had a task! To visit the IDP camps and assure them we were always there to protect them from dangers. Though in reality, we hardly could guarantee our immediate protection. We could not move without robust escort armed to the teeth, we could not walk in singular choice nor could we visit areas without the consent of the local supreme authority. But we had to sell the belief to them. We believed it could help calm them emotionally and psychologically. At times it did, but most times not. The wounds of the past, the present and the future are still hurting!They knew our limitations. They feared for us also. They felt pity for us. But they envied us. We were the only ones who could afford 3 square meals daily, bath at will and drive on cars. The majority of the populace had never ridden on a car. Only the rich could afford transportation by a donkey-driven cart. Only the very rich could afford the luxury of bathing once a week. Only the rich could eat once every day. My story was that of a rich man caged in oblivion.It has become our destiny, one of the locals managed in a poorly constructed grammar. I was awed to hear that. It was the first time in a week I had heard someone not like me speak in English. It was amazing but reassuring. I was thinking - if it was possible to find someone who could muster enough words to make a meaningful sentence in English, in a land so forsaken that corpses litter the streets without attention, then there is hope to find a lasting solution to the depravity the people face.A hope borne out of the belief that Africa is a contingent most deserving of serenity. A continent so deserving because of the catalogue of brains, expertise and minds which abound. A continent where hospitality is a core value. A place where brotherliness is enshrined in our psyche to care and love one another as we do ourselves. A continent where children of diverse socio-politico cum economical background gather at the fall of the sun to sing a fire song. A continent where the old, yound and well fall out of their homes to the village square to relish "Tales by Moonlight". A hope borne of our common history.As I write, children still die of starvation (though a common sight) without attention, fathers not assured of the security of their lives, mothers wary of the streets because they may be raped and the domestic animals all caught up in the quagmire. A state of want where the moon rises at dawn.I ask; how did we get here? How can we move out of this mess? What else can we do to save the people destined to perish? I refuse to roll out tears but my heart is heavy.
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Latest News
Murdered businesswoman and philanthropist, Mrs Patricia Chidiac Hebeed, received several threat calls on a daily basis before she was killed in church last Sunday.
Anyanwu Stanley Emeka, her nephew who had been living with her for years, told pimpmynaija.com sources yesterday at the residence of the late sole importer of Erico Air conditioner at Azare Crescent, off Liverpool Road, Apapa, Lagos, that his aunt expressed fear concerning the several threat calls she was receiving from people she did not know early last year.
“She sometimes asked me to pick such calls and immediately I picked, the caller would just switch off the phone. Some of them would speak in Hausa language and because I don’t understand the language, I would only ask them to speak English, but rather they would just switch off the phone immediately,” he said.
Clearing the air on the purported divorce between his aunt and her husband of 24 years, Anyanwu said there was no divorce but that the man only went back to Lebanon, his home, with their four children after a misunderstanding, adding that her aunt had been frequenting the country since they left.
She was murdered inside Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Apapa, Lagos, on Sunday morning at about 10 o’clock after she was driven to the church in her YXR Bullet Proof Mercedes SUV with registration number BD 22 AKD, Lagos number, by his driver.
She is survived by two boys and two girls. The first-born is 23 years old.
Reverend Father Andrew Sullivan, an Irish priest, who is in charge of the church, told pimpmynaija.com sources he suspected a case of assassination.
The Reverend Father said the gunmen who came on a motorcycle did not rob anyone in the church.
The gunmen were also said to have left behind the deceased’s handbag as they rushed off immediately after the incident.
Hebeed was said to be standing close to the Reverend Father and some worshippers waiting for the second mass to commence when a gunman walked in and shot her.
“She was standing directly behind me when I was entering the church for the mass to commence. The assailant just walked up to her and fired a shot into her stomach. She slumped in a pool of her own blood without shouting or crying. The assailant immediately took to his heels in the middle of the confusion, jumped on top of a motorbike that was waiting outside and zoomed off. It was the gun shot that stopped me,” the Reverend Father said.
“The deceased was rushed to Lagoon Hospital, Liverpool area in Apapa. A few minutes after she was admitted, news came that there was the likelihood that she would survive it. As the mass went one, about ten minutes later news came that she had died. It was shocking to find out that somebody was shot in the church, but it was more devastating to find out that the person who was standing directly behind you that was shot had died,” he said.
Father Sullivan said the late Hebeed started worshipping in the church around January this year.
Although, the Reverend Father said he did not know her personally, parishioners informed him that she started with them this year and she never held any position in the church until her assassination.
He said from the look of things, it was safe to say that the assailant was inside the church before the arrival of the deceased. Sullivan said they had never witnessed such incident before beside the petty theft of mobile handsets and ladies purses since he assumed duties there over three years ago.
Meanwhile, plain-clothe detectives have been posted to keep watch at the premises of churches and mosques in the Lagos metropolis.
A police source told pimpmynaija.com sources that the command had detailed more policemen around churches and mosques to forestall any future occurrence.
Yesterday News
Gunmen stormed the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Apapa on Sunday morning, killing a notable businesswoman, Patricia Obii Chidiak during mass.
The four-man gang whose motive could not be ascertained at press time arrived the Church located on Creek Road, Apapa, while the 10 o’clock mass was going, shot dead Chidiak, an Imo State-born society lady married to a Lebanese, simply identified as M Habib. The husband is believed to have traveled out of Lagos east weekend with the couple’s children.
Until her life was cut short abruptly on Sunday, Patricia Chidiak was engaged in steel import and construction business with her husband, but the couple’s marriage was alleged to have become frosty lately.
pimpmynaijaNews gathered that the gunmen stormed the Church premises for the dastardly act on two motorcycles. They also allegedly were armed with locally made pistols.
Two of the hoodlums went inside the Church premises, while the other two waited on their get-away motorcycles.
The victim who first arrived the Church for the mass, was approached by the gunmen, shot in the ribs region and her handbag was snatched.
In the pandemonium that followed the shooting, the gunmen hurried out of the Church premises, jumped on the bikes and zoomed off.
The deceased’s driver simply identified as Yahaya chased the gunmen using the victim’s Toyota Land Cruiser sport utility vehicle while anti-crime policemen from Apapa also pursued them in a patrol van.
The not chase towards Tin Can Port ended, when tankers parked on the bridge made traffic movement impossible, aiding the escape of the hoodlums.
Yahaya, the victim’s driver told pimpmynaijaNews he was sitting in the SUV outside the Church when he heard gunshots inside the church.
He said while wondering what was amiss, he saw one of the gunmen emerge clutching a hand bag he immediately recognized as belonging to his boss. Yahaya said he suspected she had been shot and decided to chase the men on the bikes.
Also speaking with Daily Sun, the cook who claimed to have swerved the deceased for eight years described her as a very nice woman who loved people without discrimination.It was gathered hat her husband left Nigeria last Friday on a trip believed to be to Lebanon with the couple’s children.
Both the Police Assistant Inspector General (AIG) in charge of zone 2, Mohammed Abubakar and Lagos Commissioner of Police, Marvel Akpoyibo visited the scene of the murder as anti-crime detectives launched an immediate investigation.
Contacted for information, Lagos Police spokesman, Frank Mba described it as a tactical case of murder. Mba said the anti-crime police patrol men who chased the gunmen could not fire at them to avoid killing innocent passersby.
The deceased’s corpse has been deposited in the morgue.
Only recently, the Imo State governor, Ikedi Ohakim set up the Imo Hall of Fame Committee, naming the late Obii Chidiak as member.
Friends and associates who learnt about the society lady’s death yesterday were too shocked, pleading for time to comment on the incident.
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1. All Three are public people (obviously) so are accountable before Men and God2.They are all Christians although Mr ibrahims parents are both Muslims3.Two of them have a lot in common Asiwe & ibrahim (ibrahim publishes asiwes online articles)4.One of them is much more succesful than the other two that have something in common5.One is a Man of God !6.Although no man is perfect Only God is perfect A close friend has had dealings with all three of these men and We came to the conclusion that Just like the otedola/dangote feud This is a case of there is more to it than meets the eye.Or the more you look the less you see !Now read about the latest "SMEAR CAMPAIGN ON PASTOR CHRIS " This is WORTH READING !I sometimes used to think there was substance in their accusations but I saw Saint Azuh's Article and I had a rethink read onAlthough Azuh is a Christ Embassy Acolyte this still makes a bit of sense .Rejoinder:Christ Embassy: Anatomy of Smear Campaign - By Saint AzuhOrdinarily, stories and personal attacks against the activities of Christ Embassy Church in South Africa, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, his family members and everybody that has anything to do with the church would have been ignored or taken as the usual journalistic prying but for the well-established concern that such reports have become episodic and now very irritating.How else would anybody describe the use of words and language in stories that concern Pastor Chris and Christ Embassy Church by just one news website- huhu news, if not to say that it makes a mockery of the very rudiments of journalism?It is very curious that within a very short span of time Huhu and its print collaborator, the National Mirror Newspapers have ran over ten stories on one person and the organization he represents. Haba!As a journalist and media analyst vast on reportage- investigative, development and even mischief, it is very surprising that a media outfit can run stories every week on one particular individual. The only import of this is that such outfit or some of its reporters/editors are on a clearly agreed smear campaign or vendetta for whatever reasons.A look at this vexed issued of the reportage of Chris Oyahkilome and Christ Embassy Church by Huhu and Mirror Newspapers would clearly establish the above allegation.On continuous basis, Huhu had ran over ten reports on one person. Some of the reports: Christ Embassy: Haleluyah or Highway to Hell; South Africans Vow to Sack Christ Embassy; Christ Embassy: Concealed Sex Scandal Exposed Part III and this means that there are parts I and II; Crisis Rocks Christ Embassy South Africa over Scandalous Dealings; South Africa: Christ Embassy’s Night of Bliss Scandal Victims Account.Others are: South Africans Vow to Sack Christ Embassy… As authorities humiliate Chris Oyakhilome at airport; Red Alert: Chris Oyakhilome‘s Christ Embassy Plc Initial Public Offer of N3bn….. Employers Beware; Christ Embassy (South Africa): Pastor offered me R10 000 to sit in a wheelchair.... stand up and walk; South African Authorities Close-In On Christ Embassy; .Six members barred from entering South Africa- .Internal feud deepens, as top pastors struggle with moral woes; and Christ Embassy South Africa: Christian & Kenneth Oyakhilome bribery scandal revealed • Tom Amekhiena unleashes assault and battery on a church member • Open challenge to Chris Oyakhilome.The question is: why this particular interest in Christ Embassy and Pastor Chris? Is Christ Embassy the only church or rather Nigerian church in South Africa ? And why is it that a Nigerian took it upon himself to fight for the coalition of South African churches and South African government against his fellow Nigerian from the same south-south region? These are very curious or rather interesting issues?It is very unfortunate because those of us that have followed Huhu had a very different believe of what Emmanuel Asiwe, the publisher represents and that may have been why some of us joined in the campaign for his immediate release when he was recently arrested by security agents in Nigeria for alleged wrong reporting, misinformation, blackmail, and felony against the government.Interestingly, any experienced reporter would agree that the entire library of stories on Christ Embassy South Africa by Huhu were just rolled out from two story lines. And for whatever reason, Huhu decided to always re-write and re-run the stories with even a spec of new rumour in Soweto main market as an update.Although this is an aside, those of us that joined the campaign for your release from detention were meant to believe that you are operating from one of the western countries. And now we are confused. Is Huhu/Emmanuel Asiwe based in South Africa or in Europe/America?Huhu should be more interested in improving the quality of both its reports and the website rather than embarking on flimsy campaign of calumny to pull down another young Nigeria in his calling. Without bias, Huhu should look at other offshore news websites including Saharareporters, Pointblanknews, Thetimesofnigeria, Gamji, Ngex amongst others and see how it can line up with their mindsets.Nigerians especially those of us at home are really proud of the offshore web-based news media outfits as they have been at the forefront of canvassing issues of national concern and challenging the nation’s leaders to accountability rather market women’s busy-body journalism.Another interesting aspect of the smear campaign against Christ Embassy Church is the now clearly established relationship between Huhu website and National Mirror Newspapers. Is Asiwe a staff or on the payroll of National Mirror Newspaper? And if not, why is it that the newspaper runs all the Huhu Christ Embassy South African stories verbatim on its cover?Even when all the national newspapers published in this country on April 26, 2009 had on their covers stories and issues on the Ekiti re-run election of Saturday April 25, Mirror, a newspaper, had as its lead story on the cover: “Christ Embassy in Crisis” , a story of an alleged event that happened in September 2007 according to the newspaper.This should concern any practicing and credible journalist as it borders heavily on the sense of judgment of what is news by the editors of Mirror. How can any editor lift a stale story wholesale from a website and slam it on the front page as lead?Initially, the smear campaign by National Mirror newspaper was interpreted as a personal vendetta by its former publisher, Emeka Obasi. Now, the ownership has changed but the smear has continued and it couldn’t have been on the instruction or support of the new owner- Jimoh Ibrahim.National Mirror should help Nigerians see it as a newspaper with credibility.. Sometime ago, offensive pornographic pictures were ran on its cover purported to be some wayward female students of the University of Port Harcourt with some expatriates. It was however later confirmed by this writer (an alumnus of Uniport) in the newsroom of the organisation that the pictures were lifted wholesale from a pornographic site on the web and re-captioned.Needless to say that this kind of journalism cannot help the Mirror and its editors especially now that the newspaper is trying to re-brand under its new owner- Jimoh Ibrahim who is “well known” in this country and beyond. A word is enough for a wise. We all know the right thing. Let’s do it.SAINT AZUH (Lords and Kings), CHRIST EMBASSY ABUJA , UTAKO SATELLITE CHURCH (saint_azuh@yahoo.com)Notable controversies now come to light1.Who really is jimoh Ibrahim and how did he make his fortune ?2.Can there be smoke without Fire in the Case of Pastor Chris ?3.Is Asiwe looking for Cheap Publicity ?9jabookers please make your commentsThanks !
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how to make money a simple indepth approach
or should I say the mugus guide to for mugus book on how to make money !
This is a string of articles looking at the different ways to make money !
I have broken them into 5 different categories
1.Luck
2.Talent
3.Services
4.Goods
5.Criminal
Money money must be funny in the rich mans world ! Money makes the world go round ! It drives business or should I say IT drives money ! or Fifty Cent Get rich or die trying !
LUCK
Lets start with Luck or using some popular phrases like Favor (o boy na favor o ), chance (give me a chance) ,circumstances (beyond your control ),destiny (This was his destiny ),fate ,
fortune, hazard, portion ("that is not my portion" used by a lot of Pentecostal Christians)
Basic Wikipedia definition
Luck refers to that which happens to a person beyond that person's control. This view incorporates phenomena that are chance happenings, a person's place of birth for example, but where there is no uncertainty involved, or where the uncertainty is irrelevant. Within this framework one can differentiate between three different types of luck:
Constitutional luck, that is, luck with factors that cannot be changed. Place of birth and genetic constitution are typical examples.
Circumstantial luck - with factors that are haphazardly brought on. Accidents and epidemics are typical examples.
Ignorance luck, that is, luck with factors one does not know about.
Luck as a fallacy
Another view holds that "luck is probability taken personally." A rationalist approach to luck includes the application of the rules of probability, and an avoidance of unscientific beliefs. The rationalist feels the belief in luck is a result of poor reasoning or wishful thinking. To a rationalist, a believer in luck commits the "post hoc, ergo propter hoc" logical fallacy, which argues that because two events are connected sequentially, they are connected causally as well:
This is the most critical money making concept as all the others actually depend on it at one time or the other
You can classify luck into one million things but fact is it is just still ends up as PLAIN LUCK ! just like the Christian Bible puts it unmerited Credit or Debit as the case may be !
Now the good news first or the Bad news ?
BAD LUCK !
Now lets start with Bad Luck ! or Hex or Evil eye or cursed or Remote control or Dem swear for am !
This is the one we are mostly scared of . This one is the no go area and people actually make money from preventing it .It is big busines ! From pastors and imams in our churches(many Nigerian churches I no go name names ! ) (we pay tithes to avoid it ok for those that pay ) ,mosques to astrologers to Shamans (shams) to Olumba Olumbas, Scientology(mr tom cruise)Nation of islam (Malcom X,Micheal /JermaineJackson) , Mormons, Jehovah Witnesses,
Even Oprah Winfrey and all the other so called talk show hosts !
The FBI,CIA ,Red Cross, Doctors,Lawyers,insurance people ! Plumbers too ! The government ! etc All of them are in business because they try to assure us that they can prevent Bad Luck from happening to us !
This article itself is also supposed to teach you how to avoid bad Luck . So in essence bad luck is not such a bad thing as it actually puts food on the table for most people .
A lot of People have actually made millions from selling their bad luck stories !
So dont be scared of it as like the old Hymn says “Give me that old time Bad luck Give me that old time bad luck Because it is good enough for me !” ok I know it was old time religion but heh try to understand na.
Ok how do I avoid this type of luck ?
1. First embrace bad luck make it your friend .look for loopholes in bad luck .A friend of mine said ok I know I am not lucky but I am going to be so good at not being lucky that I will make people to pay me on learning about bad luck ! imagine that !
2. Bad luck in itself is not Bad it just gets bad press that is it .Ok imagine 50 thousand lawyers killed in tsunami , o yes ! Bad luck for them but Good luck for the remaining lawyers ! So Bad Luck gets bad press lets try to give it good press !
3 .Every decision you make might bring bad luck so always look at your decisions and be ready to accept them as bad luck .Risk managers call it the risk factor .If it is high or low always realize that it can always turn out real sour . Relationships are about the riskiest things on earth and cost billions of dollars to repair but most people jump in and out of them at will !
4.The fear of yahooze is the beginning of wisdom ! 419ers actually create bad luck .If it is too good to be true then it is too good to be true ! Nobody is perfect so that means no business deal can be perfect too !
5.Learn to do a risk analysis at every chance you get .Even those that say they have the keys ot wisdom and can foresee bad luck a million miles away .If it is all about the benjamins and the other dead presidents or the nnamdi azikiwes and the very alive presidents .In short Bad luck always walks around with money It is the saying money is the root of all evil in reverse .Bad luck is the root of all evil .
6.
It took all the kings men plus horses and maybe dogs to put humpty dumpty together again .Why ?
Because the bloody fool knowing fully well he had a big head still went and sat on the WALL !
Ok you know your BLQ (Bad luck quotient) is not good yet you play the lottery every day ! And lose every day ! who to blame ? We go like to know !
O I fell in love ! Runggbish jo wich kain talk be dat ! Your history of girlfriends shows you date hotties ! and you want to get married ! hotties are hot bcos guys follow them ! so you are still unmarried at 50 and you dey complain.Like wise hotties ! hot girls like hot boys but hot boys like other hotties ! Hott chic no bobo at age 45 shuo ! na wa o ! you dey work for Fallujah and Taliban blow you up and you dey complain say you get one leg ! whos sand you go Fallujah ? Only fools dare where angels tread !
7.Na soso bad head people you dey hang out with ! Oya Follow d money na where carcass dey naim Vultures dey maintain !
Finally to round up bad luck the only way to avoid Bad luck is to get GOOD LUCK !
Next week we talk about Good luck
Your comments are welcome !
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How fine girl go put herself for this kind yawa because of money o !Britain's Foreign Office has said it was working to ensure lawyers have access to a pregnant Briton who faces death by firing squad in Laos. The Nigerian-born Samantha Orobator, 20, faces execution if she is found guilty at a 'hastily arranged' trial in Laos next week.She was arrested at Wattay Airport in Laos in August last year, allegedly in possession of 600g heroin after a holiday in Thailand and the Netherlands. Foreign Office Minister, Bill Rammell said: "We are also providing consular assistance to Samantha, in particular to help ensure that she has good legal representation. We are paying close attention to her welfare and are in regular contact with the Laotian authorities about her case."Rammell said British embassy officials have visited her six times since her arrest and Australian embassy officials have also visited her 10 times. There is no British embassy in Laos and the nearest is in Thailand. Mr Rammell said he will be raising the case with the Laotian Deputy Prime Minister when they meet in the UK on Thursday.But Reprieve director, Clive Stafford Smith, said "that's not much good. The trial will be over by then." He said her trial had been brought forward by a year in an apparent attempt to stop her seeing a lawyer. The decision to move the trial was announced after arrangements were made for Orobator to see a lawyer on Tuesday."It's pretty shocking that they would do that apparently to avoid her seeing a British lawyer before she has to go to trial," Smith saidHe called for the Government to immediately do everything in its power to have the trial put back. And he questioned how Orobator, who is due to give birth in September, could have become pregnant while in jail. She has been held since her arrest at the notorious Phonthong prison, where inmates have complained of being beaten and abused.Ronke Oseni, 21, a psychology student at Kingston University, said she only found out about her friend's situation on Wednesday.She said, "there is no one there to visit her, nobody to talk to, and she doesn't speak the language. I am really scared for her. I can't even imagine what she's going through. The punishment does not fit the crime. They want to shoot her but what about the baby?"She said her friend had planned to become a medical doctor and was a good student who was not involved in drugs. Miss Orobator, who was born in Nigeria but has lived in London since she was eight years old and is a British citizen, became pregnant in the prison in December.
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Country Man Be careful as these 419ers have become more and more daring ! They now focus on 9gerians even more ! talk about Bringing it back home .I wish they could scam one of our top scammers . The politicians.Talk about Maradona(IBB) getting maradonnad by one small yahoo yahoo boy for ikeja ! .Now that will make my day !
The Reality of 419s the real 419 threat
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American singer Rihanna has been spotted canoodling on the beach in Barbados with her former teenage sweetheart.
The 21-year-old star used to go out with 24-year-old Negus Sealy before she she hit the big time.
Reports suggest the pair could now be rekindling their romance following Rihanna's split from Chris Brown, who allegedly assaulted her.
Back together? Rihanna was seen with her former teenager lover Negus Sealy in Barbados, lapping up the waters on a beach
Sealy is said to be mending the singer's broken heart after her difficult spell and being a shoulder to cry on.
A source told the News of the World: 'Negus was a shoulder to cry on. He's a really smart guy - clever, good looking, very cool.
'All the girls adore him and call him the Love God. He and Rihanna were seeing each other before she hit the big time.'
The pair were spotted lapping up the sun on the island as Rihanna slipped into a sexy black bikini and hat.
She is said to be so smitten with him that she has told friends and family that Brown, 19, is definitely history, according to the newspaper.
The source added: 'Rihanna and Negus both realised there was still a strong sexual attraction between them and became inseparable.
'Whenever Rihanna went to the beach or out partying, Negus was always there.
'They were very careful not to be seen too closely together though as they're trying to keep their relationship a secret.'
Chris Brown appeared in a Los Angeles court last month and denied assault. If convicted her could face a jail term of up to five years.
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As her man lies unconscious on the canvas just yards away, the worry and distress of Ricky Hatton's fiancée Jennifer Dooley is all too plain to see.
Seconds earlier, the former college lecturer let out an ear-piercing scream as the Mancunian boxer was floored for the third and final time by Filipino Manny Pacquiao.
Wearing a close-fitting red dress, Miss Dooley gripped the back of the seat in front of her for support before turning to Miss Coyne with her hand over her mouth in horror as Hatton, nicknamed The Hitman, remained flat on his back on the canvas for three worrying minutes.Miss Dooley, 27, was comforted by Jenna Coyne - the partner of Hatton's younger brother Matthew, who had earlier won a points victory on the undercard at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, after seeing the British world champion knocked out in the second round.
Hatton's mother Carol also looked on concerned as medics helped bring him to his senses.
Pacquiao, known as Pac Man, felled Hatton with a brutally quick left hook to the chin. Referee Kenny Bayless didn't even bother to count before stopping the fight with just a second of the round remaining.Hatton remained flat on his back on the canvas for three worrying minutes while medics rallied around him
Hatton was eventually helped back to his corner before leaving without giving interviews for a precautionary medical check in hospital. He had landed just 18 punches on his opponent, compared to Pacquiao's 73.
Celebrities including Jack Nicholson, Denzel Washington and British boxer Amir Khan were at ringside for the fight, dubbed The Battle of East and West'.
Comedian Russell Brand was seated next to rap mogul P. Diddy at the junior welterweight title match band the unlikely pair were later joined by superstar Jay Z.
33-year-old Brand looked slightly starstruck as he was introduced to the rapper, who attended the fight without his wife Beyonce.
Hatton Senior said his son was 'perfectly all right' after undergoing hospital checks but admitted the boxer's long-term future was now in doubt.
'Obviously we will support him in whatever he does, Ray Hatton said.
'And we'll leave that with him.
'At this moment in time he's probably got a few mixed feelings about it. He'll make that decision whichever way he wants to and the family will support him.
I don't think he would let anybody make that decision for him.'
Miss Dooley left her job as a lecturer at Manchester College of Art and Technology to support Hatton ahead of his only previous defeat, to Floyd Mayweather Junior in December 2007.
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The New York Post reports today that "Michael Jackson last night became a member of the Nation of Islam." Of course, this development takes place in the aftermath of Jackson's being arrested on Nov. 20 in connection with child-molestation charges and now being out on $3 million bail.If this report of his conversion proves to be accurate, it would fit a well-established pattern of African-Americans who, finding their reputation in tatters, turn to the Nation of Islam, which then provides them with solace and help. This phenomenon is most apparent in jails, where blacks since the late 1940s have been converting in large numbers. Famous converts in trouble include:* Tawana Brawley, who converted after her much-publicized claim of being raped by a gang of white men turned out to be a hoax;* Mike Tyson, the heavyweight champion jailed for rape; and* Benjamin Chavis, who converted after his eviction from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, in large part for having paid off a mistress with NAACP funds.* Kenny Gamble, the music producer whose life fell apart as he faced a payola investigation in 1975.Other blacks in disgrace do not make the full step to conversion but become closely affiliated with the NoI, which provides them too with political and moral support. Prominent beneficiaries include:* Alcee Hastings, an impeached Federal judge;* Marion Barry, the mayor of Washington, D.C., convicted for drug-taking;* George Stallings, a Catholic priest accused of child molestation; and* Gus Savage, a U.S. congressman from Illinois charged with sexual harrassment.Finally, some blacks in difficult straits merely dip into Islam, without developing a formal relationship – such as O.J. Simpson, who read the Qur'an while incarcerated. (December 18, 2003)Jan. 31, 2004 update: You don't have to be powerful or famous to turn to the Nation of Islam in times of stress. Here's a story from today's Palm Beach Post on the trial of Lionel Tate, the youngest American sentenced to life in prison without parole (for killing a 6-year-old girl when he was 12). His mother, Kathleen Grossett-Tate, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper, accepted an offer of assistance from the NoI and the result was "a squadron of black men dressed in sleek suits and bow ties" on the fourth floor of the Broward County Courthouse. The leaders "spoke with the teen's attorneys, offering advice on security, and the best means to move Tate and his mother in order to avoid the intense media horde."May 30, 2004 update: James Ujaama, who pleaded guilty of conspiring to provide cash, computers and fighters to the Taliban, fits the pattern too, reports the Sunday Times (London) based on leaks from his grand jury testimony concerning the indictment of Abu Hamza al-Masri. Here is the key passage: Ujaama was for years a role model for blacks in his home town of Seattlebecause of his business acumen and his community work. It was even decreed by one Washington state legislator in 1994 that a day should be dedicated to honouring him because of his contribution to city life. However, Ujaama became frustrated after he failed to sell to Hollywood a book that he had written about his life. In 1997 he converted to Islam. He subsequently travelled to London where he met [Abu] Hamza and was captivated by the cleric's impassioned ideology and his declaration of a jihad on the enemies of Islam.Comment: Ujaama turned to standard Islam, not the Nation of Islam variant, a pattern I predict will become more prevalent in the future.
Nov. 24, 2005 update: Michael Jackson was acquitted of child molestation charges on June 13, 2005, and appears not to have converted to the Nation of Islam, but there is more news about his connection to Islam. He moved to Bahrain in October, where his lawyer said he is "living permanently." Sheik Salman ibn Hamed Khalifa, the crown prince of Bahrain, has invited him to be his houseguest and he is living in a spare palace. Now this (with some typos fixed), concerning his funding a mosque:Michael Jackson, who recently settled down in Manama, has donated a huge amount of money, the figure was not disclosed, for building a state-of-the-art mosque near his luxury palace in the Bahraini capital, according to his spokesman. The proposed mosque would be designated for learning the principles and teachings of Islam as well as teaching of English language, for which high-standard teachers would be brought from United States under his personal supervision, the spokesman said. Jackson did so as a token of appreciation to the Bahraini people, who welcomed him and treated him as if he was one of the citizens of their country. …It is noteworthy that Jermaine Jackson, the brother of Michael, had embraced Islam at the beginning of 1990s; he was one of former Jackson Five band and the solo singer. Jermaine had felt his brother Michael has great interest and study of Islamic books, the tolerance of Islam and his dealing with Arab and Muslim personalities since long years. The most prominent among those figures is Prince Al Waleed bin Talal and the Bahraini royal family.Comment: As noted in the prior update, the pattern is increasingly for American blacks to turn to standard Islam, and that might well turn out to be the case for Michael Jackson, especially if he spends much time in Bahrain.Nov. 29, 2005 update: Internet sources of various stripes are saying that an English-Arabic nasheed that appears to date to 2002, "Gives Thanks to Allah" was sung by Michael Jackson. Here are the lyrics:Give thanks to Allah,For the moon and the starsPrays in all day full,What is and what wasTake hold of your imanDont give in to shaytanOh you who believe please give thanks to Allah.Allahu ghafurAllahu rahimAllahu yuhibbu'l-muhsinin,Wa-khaliqhunaWa-raziqhunaWa-huwa 'ala kull ah-sha'in qadirAllah is GhafurAllah is RahimAllah is the one who loves the muhsinin,He is our creatorHe is our sustainerAnd he is the one who has power over all.Comments: (1) The singer's Arabic pronunciation is letter perfect. (2) Other sources say this was sung by Zain Bikha or even by Yusuf Islam (the former Cat Stevens). (3) If this in fact Michael Jackson, it is hard to imagine he is not a Muslim. (4) What are the chances that Michael Jackson recorded this song three years ago, and in a faultless Arabic accent, without anyone noticing? Pretty meager.Jan. 16, 2006 update: Michael Jackson appears to be settling in in Bahrain. According to a press release issued by AAJ Holdings Ltd., owned by Bahraini businessman Ahmed Abu Bakr Janahi, the 47-year-old Jackson may be hired as a consultant to advise on setting up entertainment businesses. "Stagnant architectural structures need content in the form of entertainment to revive them and that's where Michael Jackson will play an integral role." AAJ has in the past mainly built large urban projects.Mar. 7, 2006 update: I published a column today on this topic, "If the King of Pop Converts to Islam."Jan. 29, 2007 update: "Jermaine Jackson wants Michael to convert to Islam" reads the Reuters headline, which quotes Michael Jackson's brother saying that "Michael, I feel, needs to become a Muslim because I think it's a great protection for him from all the things that he's been attacked with, which are false. There's a strength and protection there." Jermaine (aka Mohammed Abdul Aziz) added that he believed his brother had given conversion "serious thought" during long spells in Bahrain. "I was the reason why he had gone there [Bahrain] because I wanted him to get out of America and just go somewhere it's peaceful and quiet and people pray five times a day which is beautiful."
Feb. 23, 2007 update: Jermaine Jackson goes further in an interview with Ahmed J. Versi in The Muslim News (UK), predicting that Michael will convert to Islam. Jermaine bases this expectation on Michael having shown a lot of interest in Islam. "When I came back from Makkah [Mecca] I got him a lot of books and he asked me lots of things about my religion and I told him that it's peaceful and beautiful. He read everything and he was proud of me that I found something that would give me inner strength and peace. I think it is most probable that Michael will convert to Islam."Dec. 21, 2007 update: Michael Jackson, looking weirder than ever, has turned up with his three children at a late-night visit to a bookstore in Las Vegas, suggesting he has left Bahrain at least temporarily.Nov. 21, 2008 update: Nearly five years after the first such report in 2003, Jackson is again reported to have converted to Islam. This time, it's Neil Syson writing in the London tabloid, The Sun, with a breathless exclusive, "The way you Mecca me feel."Michael Jackson has become a Muslim — and changed his name to Mikaeel. The skint superstar, 50, donned Islamic garb to pledge allegiance to the Koran in a ceremony at a pal's mansion in Los Angeles, The Sun can reveal. Jacko sat on the floor wearing a tiny hat after an Imam was summoned to officiate. … [He] decided to convert as he used a studio at the home of his chum to record a new album.The star — whose hits include The Way You Make Me Feel — was spotted looking "a bit down" by a producer and a songwriter who had both embraced Islam. The source said: "They began talking to him about their beliefs, and how they thought they had become better people after they converted. Michael soon began warming to the idea. An Imam was summoned from the mosque and Michael went through the shahada." …Brit singer Yousef Islam, 60 — who was called Cat Stevens until he famously converted — turned up to help Jacko celebrate. It was his pals David Wharnsby — a Canadian songwriter — and producer Phillip Bubal who counselled Jacko. The pair's new names are Dawud Wharnsby Ali and Idris Phillips. Jacko now prays to Mecca after the ceremony at the Hollywood Hills home of Toto keyboard player Steve Porcaro, 51.
Comment: Is it true this time that Jackson has converted?Mar. 2, 2009 update: Rap singer Snoop Dogg (né Calvin Broadus) has converted to the Nation of Islam, date unknown. One wonders if he did so while in trouble.Mar. 24, 2009 update: Michael Jackson's financial troubles have prompted him to sell much of his memorabilia at an auction in Los Angeles in April. But now, report auctioneers Darren Julien and Martin Nolan in affidavits filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, a representative of Jackson's, James R. Weller, met with them on February 9, 2009, and made a veiled threat that the Nation of Islam would do them harm if they didn't desist from the sale. Swears Julien: "During the meeting, Weller told Martin and me that our lives would be in danger if we did not postpone the auction. Weller said if we refused to postpone it, we would be in danger from "Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam; those people are very protective of Michael. … He told us that Dr. Tohme [R. Tohme, Jackson's manager] and Michael Jackson wanted to give the message to us that "our lives are at stake and there will be bloodshed."
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An invention that could change the internet for ever
Revolutionary new web software could put giants such as Google in the shade when it comes out later this month. Andrew Johnson reports
Sunday, 3 May 2009SHARE PRINT ARTICLE EMAIL ARTICLE TEXT SIZE NORMALLARGEEXTRA LARGE
The biggest internet revolution for a generation will be unveiled this month with the launch of software that will understand questions and give specific, tailored answers in a way that the web has never managed before.The new system, Wolfram Alpha, showcased at Harvard University in the US last week, takes the first step towards what many consider to be the internet's Holy Grail – a global store of information that understands and responds to ordinary language in the same way a person does.
Although the system is still new, it has already produced massive interest and excitement among technology pundits and internet watchers.
Computer experts believe the new search engine will be an evolutionary leap in the development of the internet. Nova Spivack, an internet and computer expert, said that Wolfram Alpha could prove just as important as Google. "It is really impressive and significant," he wrote. "In fact it may be as important for the web (and the world) as Google, but for a different purpose.
Tom Simpson, of the blog Convergenceofeverything.com, said: "What are the wider implications exactly? A new paradigm for using computers and the web? Probably. Emerging artificial intelligence and a step towards a self-organising internet? Possibly... I think this could be big."
Wolfram Alpha will not only give a straight answer to questions such as "how high is Mount Everest?", but it will also produce a neat page of related information – all properly sourced – such as geographical location and nearby towns, and other mountains, complete with graphs and charts.
The real innovation, however, is in its ability to work things out "on the fly", according to its British inventor, Dr Stephen Wolfram. If you ask it to compare the height of Mount Everest to the length of the Golden Gate Bridge, it will tell you. Or ask what the weather was like in London on the day John F Kennedy was assassinated, it will cross-check and provide the answer. Ask it about D sharp major, it will play the scale. Type in "10 flips for four heads" and it will guess that you need to know the probability of coin-tossing. If you want to know when the next solar eclipse over Chicago is, or the exact current location of the International Space Station, it can work it out.
Dr Wolfram, an award-winning physicist who is based in America, added that the information is "curated", meaning it is assessed first by experts. This means that the weaknesses of sites such as Wikipedia, where doubts are cast on the information because anyone can contribute, are taken out. It is based on his best-selling Mathematica software, a standard tool for scientists, engineers and academics for crunching complex maths.
"I've wanted to make the knowledge we've accumulated in our civilisation computable," he said last week. "I was not sure it was possible. I'm a little surprised it worked out so well."
Dr Wolfram, 49, who was educated at Eton and had completed his PhD in particle physics by the time he was 20, added that the launch of Wolfram Alpha later this month would be just the beginning of the project.
"It will understand what you are talking about," he said. "We are just at the beginning. I think we've got a reasonable start on 90 per cent of the shelves in a typical reference library."
The engine, which will be free to use, works by drawing on the knowledge on the internet, as well as private databases. Dr Wolfram said he expected that about 1,000 people would be needed to keep its databases updated with the latest discoveries and information.
He also added that he would not go down the road of storing information on ordinary people, although he was aware that others might use the technology to do so.
Wolfram Alpha has been designed with professionals and academics in mind, so its grasp of popular culture is, at the moment, comparatively poor. The term "50 Cent" caused "absolute horror" in tests, for example, because it confused a discussion on currency with the American rap artist. For this reason alone it is unlikely to provide an immediate threat to Google, which is working on a similar type of search engine, a version of which it launched last week.
"We have a certain amount of popular culture information," Dr Wolfram said. "In some senses popular culture information is much more shallowly computable, so we can find out who's related to who and how tall people are. I fully expect we will have lots of popular culture information. There are linguistic horrors because if you put in books and music a lot of the names clash with other concepts."
He added that to help with that Wolfram Alpha would be using Wikipedia's popularity index to decide what users were likely to be interested in.
With Google now one of the world's top brands, worth $100bn, Wolfram Alpha has the potential to become one of the biggest names on the planet.
Dr Wolfram, however, did not rule out working with Google in the future, as well as Wikipedia. "We're working to partner with all possible organisations that make sense," he said. "Search, narrative, news are complementary to what we have. Hopefully there will be some great synergies."
What the experts say
"For those of us tired of hundreds of pages of results that do not really have a lot to do with what we are trying to find out, Wolfram Alpha may be what we have been waiting for."
Michael W Jones, Tech.blorge.com
"If it is not gobbled up by one of the industry superpowers, his company may well grow to become one of them in a small number of years, with most of us setting our default browser to be Wolfram Alpha."
Doug Lenat, Semanticuniverse.com
"It's like plugging into an electric brain."
Matt Marshall, Venturebeat.com
"This is like a Holy Grail... the ability to look inside data sources that can't easily be crawled and provide answers from them."
Danny Sullivan, editor-in-chief of searchengineland.com
Worldwide network: A brief history of the internet
1969 The internet is created by the US Department of Defense with the networking of computers at UCLA and the Stanford Research Institute.
1979 The British Post Office uses the technology to create the first international computer networks.
1980 Bill Gates's deal to put a Microsoft Operating System on IBM's computers paves the way for almost universal computer ownership.
1984 Apple launches the first successful 'modern' computer interface using graphics to represent files and folders, drop-down menus and, crucially, mouse control.
1989 Tim Berners-Lee creates the world wide web – using browsers, pages and links to make communication on the internet simple.
1996 Google begins as a research project at Stanford University. The company is formally founded two years later by Sergey Brin and Larry Page.
2009 Dr Stephen Wolfram launches Wolfram Alpha.
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