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Heartless....Man slaughters two nieces

Posted by SaintOkocha on September 23, 2010 at 9:00pm

I wanted to sell their heads for N2m’

From JUDEX OKORO, Calabar

• Udo Mbakara

You might not believe this, but it’s true. In a desperate bid to become rich, a young man in Calabar, popularly known as Udo Mbakara, has sliced off the heads of two young girls who are his nieces.

Mbakara, 28, told police detectives in the Cross River State capital that he beheaded his two young nieces so that he could sell the heads. Each of the head, he said, was to be sold for one million naira.

The suspect lives with his mother, his younger brother and two nieces at 65, Edim Otop in Calabar. His elder sister and mother of his nieces is said to live in Lagos. The sister only comes from time to time to visit.

Narrating the incident at the police station where he is being detained pending his arraignment, Mbakara said: “On that fateful Saturday morning at about 9 am, Princess, aged nine and Rachel, aged six, were all at home when I offered to cook rice for them. But unknown to the children, I had drugged the food and did not allow my own younger brother to eat the food.

“After consuming the food, they fell asleep. Then I carried them to the inner room where I started hacking off their heads. I was offered the sum of one million naira for the head of a virgin. I was to be paid two million naira for the two heads.”
Investigations by Daily Sun revealed that Mbakara, who has since refused to disclose the proposed buyer of the sliced heads, might not be a first offender. Many people believe he has for long been in the business of selling human heads to ritualists within the Calabar metropolis.

“It is even rumoured that he’s behind the sudden disappearances of most of the missing children in the town, and that he has been fronting for those in the business. It was also gathered that his elder brother is serving a jail term in the Afokang Prison for rape,” a resident told Daily Sun. Police sources said that in the last three months, the command has received reports of missing children and has even gone on air to announce the particulars of some of them.

A family source confided in this newspaper that it was Udo Mbakara’s younger brother that raised the alarm on what the suspect was doing inside the room. According the source, who pleaded anonymity “due to family considerations,” the younger Udo claimed that he heard the children screaming inside. The source continued: “So he went and peeped and saw his elder brother mopping blood on the floor.

His entire body was also very bloody. At the gory sight, he rushed out and informed neighbours that there was something going on in the house and the girls were screaming. At that moment, some neighbours went in to see what was going on. They then alerted men of the Airport Police Station who responded promptly and arrested Udo Mbakara.”
The slaughtered kids were pupils of Holy Family Nursery and Primary School, 34, Otu Ansa Street in Calabar.

At the children’s school, the headmistress, Mrs. Rosa Samuel Edo, described them as very brilliant, saying it was a pity that the school has lost them. According to her, it was as if the unlucky children had known that something would go wrong, noting that they both developed fever on Thursday and Friday. Princess’ class teacher, who would not disclose his name, was crying profusely when Daily Sun sought to speak with him. He said he was close to the girl who he described as “very brilliant.”

Mbakara, who is presently being interrogated at the homicide department of the state police Command, Diamond Hill in Calabar, would soon be charged to court.

Man accused of killing pastor for raping his daughter

Posted by Paul "EFCC" Hawk Adams on September 23, 2010 at 7:25am

jpeg&STREAMOID=kfK5XKmGk3ZjtCLTV8gWrS6SYeqqxXXqBcOgKOfTXxSihxxWis4gX__mt_3sgpPnwLkdkNm4NaK1iliY4aRX7GEabxkeoo57KN3LcI4Be79xyJSXHeyn6i9C8rc3E0xoX_kuXYWCUJRqviwH8FNPwULIcdFM9zupuYHBJc2ySZk- A 56-year-old man,/ John Oromoro, is in police custody for allegedly killing his pastor, Ben Ojinaka.

The incident happened on Sunday, September 19th at Jakande Estate, Ajangbadi. Mr Oromoro said the pastor of Jesus Power Ministry, Benjamin Ojinaka, 45, allegedly raped his 15-year-old daughter in July this year. He said he went to confront the pastor on the allegation that it was his daughter that lured him to have sex with him when a fight ensued between them that led to the pastor’s death. “I be tanker driver,” he said. “The thing wey happen na since more than one month ago. My daughter, wen be the last born of my fourteen children get marine spirit. Pastor Ben come say him fit deliver her. Na me and pastor na we form the church together, so na so pastor come dey carry her go for deliverance.”

Scandal and death

Mr Oromoro stated that his daughter was eventually delivered of the ‘spirits’ but he noticed she kept going back to church after the deliverance. “Later my daughter come refused to go church; after I ask her many times, she come confessed say pastor Ben rape her for inside my house one day during deliverance,” he said. “I come vex, go meet pastor. Him come tell me make I forgive am say na devil work, I vex but I come forgive pastor.” He said he then heard rumours of the pastor claiming that his daughter lured him to have sex with him. “When I hear say pastor dey tell people say na my daughter rape am, I come go him house on Sunday go ask am say why him dey spoil my daughter name,” he said. “Him tell me to get out from him house , I come vex, we come dey fight. Na so people for the compound come separate us. As pastor dey run go tell police, na so him fall down.”.

According to the wife of the deceased, Mr Ojinaka slumped after the fight and was rushed to a private hospital. “As him fall down, we pour water for him body but him no wake up,” said Mrs Ojinaka. “We carry am go private hospital and them refer us to General hospital for Badagry. When the doctor seem am for general hospital, them say pastor don die make we carry am go mortuary.” His corpse was subsequently taken to the mortuary at the General hospital, Isolo, Lagos.

Police officers from the Ilemba Hausa Police Station arrested Mr Oromoro and the case has been transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department at Panti, Yaba. Homicide detectives at Panti said investigation into the case has began. Frank Mba, the Lagos Police Command Spokesperson, advised resident to shun violence and embrace peace.

Horrorcore Rapper Pleads Guilty To Killing Girlfriend And Her Family

Posted by Dan WebNutritionist/Motivator on September 23, 2010 at 6:09am

FARMVILLE, Va. – An aspiring rapper who embraced a style of music known as “horrorcore” pleaded guilty Monday to killing his 16-year-old girlfriend, her parents and her friend.

Richard “Sam” McCroskey was sentenced to life in prison Monday as part of his agreement to plead guilty to two counts of capital murder and two counts of first-degree murder.

His attorney, Cary Bowen, said after the hearing that the prospect of the death penalty was a major factor.

“Four bodies are pretty compelling evidence,” Bowen said. “This is the kind of stuff that citizens any place in this country are terrified it could happen to them. This is the kind of case death penalties arise from.”

McCroskey, from Castro Valley, Calif., arrived at the Prince Edward County Circuit Court shackled and heavily guarded. He showed little emotion during the hearing and offered simple “yes” and “no” answers to questions from the judge.

McCroskey pleaded guilty to killing his girlfriend, 16-year-old Emma Niederbrock; her parents, Presbyterian minister Mark Niederbrock and Longwood University professor Debra Kelley; and Emma’s 18-year-old friend, Melanie Wells of Inwood, W.Va.

Family members of the victims sobbed softly during the hearing. They left without speaking to reporters, but issued a written statement: “We have endured a tragedy of unspeakable proportions. We are relieved that justice has been done.”

Prosecutor James R. Ennis revealed that the women were bludgeoned with a wood-splitting tool while they slept on Sept. 18, 2009. Mark Niederbrock was killed with the tool when he came to check on them. Ennis declined to speculate on a motive.

McCroskey and Emma Niederbrock shared an interest in “horrorcore” music, which sets lyrics about rape, murder and mutilation to hip-hop beats. Bowen said the music had nothing to do with the killings.

McCroskey, a Web site designer and music promoter, had been rapping under the name “Syko Sam.” He flew to Virginia to visit Emma, and her parents drove them and Wells to a horrorcore music festival in Michigan Sept. 12. Police found their bodies six days later after Wells’ parents became worried that she didn’t return home.

( Extracted from NewsOne Post by Associated Press in Nation )

Pidgin To Become A Formal Language

Posted by 9jabook.com on September 23, 2010 at 4:11am

Brimming with life, playful and illustrative, Nigerian Pidgin English lends itself well to creativity, evolving quickly and readily borrowing from current events. A World Cup blunder by Nigerian player Sani Kaita briefly spawned the word "Kaitalistic" to mean catastrophic and the frequent acts of kidnapping in Nigeria has popularized the term "Colombia people" to describe the perpetrators on Nigeria's first pidgin station Wazobia 95.1 FM. "American Presido say time don reach to comot im troop for Iraq," announced the newscaster on a recent lunchtime bulletin, after U.S. President Barack Obama announced a formal end to the U.S. military's combat mission in Iraq last month. Nigerian Afrobeat music pioneer Fela Kuti was a major proponent of Pidgin, further popularizing its use with albums like "Why Black Man Dey Suffer" and "I Go Shout Plenty". "Good English (could) not convey the message of African music," he was quoted as saying in one of his biographies. Despite the popularity of Pidgin, the Akademi faces an uphill struggle convincing all Nigerians, many of whom see it as a by-product of the country's falling education standards. "Pidgin looks like a bastardization of the English language," said Reuben Abati, chairman of the editorial board for Nigeria's Guardian newspapers and a respected columnist. "The West African elite, who see it as the language of commoners, like to dissociate themselves from Pidgin. They want their children to sound like Upper Class Britons. That attitude is wrong because it has to do with identity. As second users of the language, we must promote varieties of Englis

'No Tithe, No Wedding' - Did Pastor Adeboye say this ?

Posted by 9jabook.com webmadam on September 23, 2010 at 4:06am

Members of the fastest growing church in Africa, The Redeemed Christian Church of God are in shock as their respected General Overseer, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has decreed that defaulters in the payment of tithe would no longer enjoy their marriage being blessed by the church. It was gathered that during the last Holy Ghost convention that held between August 9 -15, 2010, at the Redeemed camp,

Pastor Adeboye had a private meeting with his senior pastors where he told them to inform their parish members that henceforth, anybody who does not pay his or her tithe is not faithful and as such will not get any assistance from the church. Furthermore, he stated that it will be a major criterion for ordaining pastors. If you want to be ordained as a pastor and you default in this area you will be disqualified. This includes deacons and deaconesses. Also if you want to get married in the church, your tithe record will be the deciding factor. Parish members were informed that from their head assemblies, they will send their tithe envelopes for upward review at the headquarters. Pastor Adeboye said this new rule will show the members obedience to the church and to God.

presently this report is an internet rumour but then this is Lagos !

PDP suspends congresses, primaries

Posted by SaintOkocha on September 23, 2010 at 1:00am

ABUJA—NATIONAL leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, suspended all Congresses and Primaries earlier scheduled to commence this week till further notice.

In a statement signed by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Professor Rufai Ahmed Alkali, the party said that sale and return of Expression of Interest Forms and Nomination Forms would continue as earlier announced, adding that new dates for all PDP Primaries and Congresses shall be communicated to party members in due course.

The statement said: “The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has directed the suspension of all Congresses and Primaries scheduled to commence this weekend till further notice.

“Rising from its meeting held on Wednesday, September 22, 2010, the NWC said this action has become necessary in view of the joint decision by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and all Political Parties at their meeting yesterday.

“Nigerians will recall that INEC and the parties agreed to a shift of the earlier advertised dates for electioneering activities.

However, the sale and return of Expression of Interest Forms and Nomination Forms shall continue as earlier announced. New dates for all PDP Primaries and Congresses shall be communicated in due course.”

BY- Henry Umoru

LASU Students Storm Fashola's Alausa

Posted by Paul "EFCC" Hawk Adams on September 22, 2010 at 11:09pm

Yesterday, hundreds of students of the Lagos Stte University (LASU), protested at the governor’s office in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria.

Several efforts to calm the nerves of agitating students, who barricaded the entire area including the state House of Assembly with the vehicles that conveyed them to Alausa that afternoon proved futile as they warned the security operatives within the vicinity not to carry out any action that would further provoke them.

The students maintained that the government had not done anything to address the problems facing them in their various campuses.

The students carried placards with several inscriptions like ‘Fashola, Remember We Voted For You,’ ‘We Are Tired of Staying At Home, Please Save Our Souls,’ What Have We Done Wrong As Students of A State-Owned University? Ask Fashola.’ They said they were fighting on behalf of the entire students and their lecturers who would be embarking on an indefinite strike on 30 September, 2010.

They also complained that they have been forced to come out and tell the people the unbearable conditions under which they have continued to attend classes.

While some of them told P.M.NEWS that they are forced by the lukewarm attitude of the state government to continue using obsolete materials in the school, others said they do not have enough classrooms as thousands of them always stand during lectures because the institution does not have enough seats for them despite the fact that they pay their school fees promptly.

Osineye Adebowale, former SUG President of the school, who led the students told P.M.NEWS that “we are trying to tell the Lagos State Governor to implement the agreement reached on salary between the Federal Government and Academic Staff Union of Universities.

“We observed that some states have begun the implementation. Nassarawa and Edo have done that.

“When the negotiation was been made, he was there. Come 30, this month all lecturers of the state institutions would be embarking on strike and the consequence is that the students would be idle and engage in social vices including thuggery while the female students would be forced into prostitution. We believe in intellectual struggle and we are here to demonstrate our concern.”

He said the various unions had sent messages to the governor which the latter had rebuffed.

Adebowale also said the claim by the government that education is the cornerstone of the current administration was fallacious and hasty because the 26 per cent of the annual budget declared by UNESCO as the average for education is yet to be met.

“Go to our school and you would discover 1, 000 students standing while 500 are seating receiving lectures,” he said.

Another student who gave his name as Goriola Grillo said; “it is actually obvious to the blind and audible to the deaf that the Lagos State and Federal governments have been toying with our future. The fact that education is not seen as a right in Nigeria does not mean we should not get better education.

“You will also agree with me that for a long time now, we have been having problems with our education. Their children are schooling abroad while we are here suffering. Come to LASU and see the learning condition.

“We are only hopeful that the government can do something about the yearnings of the students. The state government is promoting a mega city but have you asked them if they can have a mega city without a mega institution producing mega students?”

A Geology student, who did not want his name mentioned lamented that he had spent seven years in the institution just because of challenges not related to his failure in the examination.

He said: “They should stop treating us as if we do not belong to this country. Most of us have spent beyond the actual number of years we were supposed to spend not because we failed, but because of government’s insensitivity to our plight.

“I have spent seven years in the school instead of the normal four years. I have not failed in my examinations before so why should I remain a perpetual student?”

Addressing the students, the state Chief of Staff, Adesegun Ogunlewe, said the state government was meeting with the union members in an effort to fashion out ways to solve the salary problems.

Atiku: Lets debate ! Please where dis man come get brain now ?

Posted by Paul "EFCC" Hawk Adams on September 22, 2010 at 11:03pm

A Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has called for a debate, on the economy, among all the presidential aspirants on the economy.Photo Atiku ? this man looks like a Hitman sha

Abubakar, a former vice-President, made the call after submitting his nomination form at the PDP national secretariat on Tuesday in Abuja.

The Adamawa State- born politician said the economy should be the main issue in the 2011 election campaigns.

“The issue of economic recovery for Nigeria cannot be a matter of wishful thinking nor of rhetoric. It is a subject for rigorous analyses and provision of well-thought, viable, practicable and sustainable strategy,” he said.

Abubakar said that all aspirants must be able to tell Nigerians how they intended to confront the challenges of the economy and reposition it for the benefit of all at the shortest possible time.

He said, “Of all the aspirants that have declared interest in the presidential election, I consider myself the most qualified to address the daunting economic challenges facing the country.

“I am the only one who has successfully managed a business and you need extensive knowledge of the private sector to combine its potential with the authority of the public sector to address this challenge.”

The former vice-president said his approach to resolving the economic crisis in the country was contained in a 47-page Policy Document he presented on August 15, 2010 while announcing his intention to contest the 2011 presidential poll.

He said, “We are faced with a job crisis of monumental proportions. Unless we evolve strategies to dealing with the teeming population of young people churned out almost on a daily basis, we may risk the destruction of the next generation.

“If we fail to channel the energies of this huge population, they could be a potent force for instability and social unrest.”

Abubakar, however, stunned journalists when he said that he was not aware that the President had declared his intention to vie for the PDP ticket.

“I didn’t see it (declaration). Honestly, I didn’t watch it,” he said.

Twenty seven out of the 28 PDP governors were among thousands of people that attended Jonathan’s presidential declaration at the Eagle Square on Saturday in Abuja. The event was shown live by some public and private television stations nationwide.

On the reported move by some politicians to produce a consensus presidential candidate among the Northern aspirants, Abubakar said, “There is a process for the emergence of a consensus candidate in the North. It shows that North is even more united if “they” agree to bring out a consensus candidate.”

He also said he was not aware of the support that Jonathan was getting from the northern states.

Reacting to the challenge, the Presidential Adviser to Jonathan on National Assembly Matters, Senator Mohammed Abba-Aji, said the President was ready for such a debate.

“We are ready for it (debate) anytime. The President has talked about all the aspects of the economy when he declared. If they want more, we are ready for them,” he said.

Another aspirant, who is also the Kwara State Governor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, also expressed readiness for the debate.

“We are ready for the debate. That is what we have been calling for. Without such an issue-based debate, we will not be able to get the best candidate. Saraki is ready for it,” one of the governor’s aides, Mr. Billy Adedamola, said.

Try Grasscutter Farming if you are out of a job !

Posted by 9jabook.com webmadam on September 22, 2010 at 10:59pm

Grasscutter rearing can make you become gainfully employed. The farming can be started with as low as N45,000 according to Mr. Arinze Onebunne, an expert in grasscutter rearing.

Onebunne owns Jovana Farms whose speciality is training, setting up grasscutter farms and sales. Grasscutter farming is one of the new attractive areas in job creation in Nigeria today. It is a great money-spinning business that can provide job opportunities for the young and old, the educated or uneducated. If you want to be your own boss and you are ready to work hard and get rich, grasscutter farming is for you” he advised.

He emphasized that “if all hands are on deck, over a million jobs can be created in grasscutter sector alone but Nigerians preference for white collar jobs led to the neglect of this lucrative agricultural enterprise.”

I started rearing grasscutter 15 years ago. The business does not require millions of naira to execute. It can be started with just one family of grasscutter normally called a colony which is sold for N40,000. A colony comprises one male and four females. They are reared in a cage which can be constructed at a cost of N5,000 by any roadside carpenter. Therefore, with N45,000, you are already in good business. It is advisable to buy them when they are four months old, which is the breeding stage. Grasscutter is odourless unlike fowls, rabbits, etc. Therefore, the cage can be placed anywhere in the compound or even in the kitchen. In terms of feeding, it is not like fish farming or poultry farming, because grasscutter feed on grass.

In terms of yield, he explained, one female grasscutter can give birth to as many as five to eight litters (babies) at once. I have even witness 12 at once on my farm. So instead of remaining unemployed, even an undergraduate can take a soft loan from a bank, friend or family member and in a few months be able to pay back the loan and still remain in business. For instance, if you start rearing now, in about four months, they will start having litters because they mature for birth at eight months.

And if you do not have enough space for expansion, you can sell the babies, at the end of the day the four females give you five litters each, you have 20 litters. Invariably, you only have to be patient for about eight months. And if they carry their babies for about five months, you can start cross-breeding them for stronger breeds and in eight months, you start making profit. Grasscutter as meat is also high in demand. It already comes to mind when people think of bush meat. Though for now, the price maybe on the high side, the nutritional value is enormous. It is white meat and has low or no cholesterols and doctors highly recommend it for people with heart problems.

“Regrettably, one major challenge in grasscutter rearing is the technicalities involved. This is why we organize seminars and workshops all around the nation. We recommend that people come for proper training before going into the business. This is necessary because I have witnessed instances where people start without proper training, only to shut down when faced with technical challenges. But with proper training these challenges can be avoided. With some training and adequate guidance, it can turn money spinner,” he explained.

Onebunne said, when he started grasscutter business 15 years ago, he went as far as Gabon to get the initial stock. Today people do not need to look that far. Grasscutters are readily available for supply now. “In addition, we have developed special breeds through research. We have also developed them according to their species and complied their data. All these we teach in our seminars and workshops,” he added.

Boko Haram Militants Strike Again

Posted by SaintOkocha on September 22, 2010 at 8:00pm

They reportedly killed two people, one of them a local chief, yesterday.

A police source said the latest attack by the gunmen on motorbikes must have been carried out by the sect that launched an uprising last year.

The killings occurred in an area of the city of Maiduguri where the sect had its headquarters before a brutal assault put down the uprising and destroyed the enclave last year, the officer said on condition of anonymity.

“Two people were killed in the Gwaidomari neighbourhood, and one of them turned out to be a local chief,” the officer said.

“From eyewitness accounts, the modus operandi of the attackers was similar to that applied in previous attacks. The fact that the assailants came on a motorbike, opened fire on their victims and sped away gives rise to some suspicion that the attackers were Boko Haram members.”

A series of such attacks have occurred in Nigeria’s mainly Muslim north in recent months, with authorities saying they suspected the Islamist sect known as Boko Haram, which means “Western education is sin” in local Hausa dialect.

Suspected sect members also used machine guns and homemade bombs to attack a prison in Bauchi this month, freeing more than 700 prisoners.

Around 100 alleged Boko Haram members were among those who escaped.

Last year’s uprising began with attacks on police posts, and police have been among the victims of the recent killings by motorcycle-riding gunmen in northern Nigeria.

The attacks come ahead of presidential elections next year and have been an ominous sign in a country where ballots have often been tainted by violence.

Life without Okada

Posted by SaintOkocha on September 22, 2010 at 8:00pm

There's hardly anything that works in Nigeria because of our state of living Standard.

Our leaders most atimes make laws to us because they saw it work elsewhere not knowing what they did before it started working for them. Hence, make life so difficult and miserable especially for the less previledged because there are no provisions to save them.

Many people Or families are very poor and most live hand to mouth.

Coming to the issue of banning Okada in 9ja, I think there should be xceptions.

An Okada man is not supposed to carry more than one person, Woman with three or two children, Pregnant Women.

For Business purposes, Okada is not supposed to be Banned outrightly.

DEMOLA

Since the restriction on Okada on the Island, those of us who work and commute with Okada on the Island, has been finding it hard to meet up with some of our appointment,i don't know if i am the only feeling this heat oh.
It 's not so easy to drive on the Island especially during working hours.If you intend to meet up with appointment.i beg let us appeal to LASG , to reconsider it's position oh.

PRICELESS

my guy i dey tellllllllll you, i don trek nonsense comot for my bodi o, these days i have to trek from Falomo to where i work
ah e too much oooo. Abeg LASG make a reverse o

Arsenalojo

i nearly fainted :

:

inside a bus yesterday Embarrassed

::

9JABOOKERS, WHAT DO YOU SAY?

Miss 9jabook 2010 Competition

Posted by 9jabook.com webmadam on September 22, 2010 at 4:00am

First The News Of the Day :

Female Face of 9jabook competition .9jabook is doing a

female face of 9jabook.ten beautifull African princesses shall be shortlisted

and from these ten all members of 9jabook will vote for

the female face of 9jabook. the website is at
Photo 1 .Seyi Komolafe aka Cella Miss 9jabook 2009 Photo2 Miss 9jabook 2008 Princess Anyamele AChike Now married guess what she found her husband on 9jabook.com ! ! !

http://www.9jabook.com/group/femalefaceofnaijabook

join this group and upload your picture there

we resolve to keep you entertained !

No holds barred Contest as usual

Even More Perks/Prizes !

Our 9jabook Facebook/Twitter Queen

Auditions now OPEN ! Ten shortlisted Candidates after voting

Chosen by Democratic Vote !

enroll now

email 9jabook@gmail.com with brief personal profile & facial photo

View Polls for 2009 ! http://bit.ly/Miss9jabook2009

Cella miss 9jabook 2009 http://www.9jabook.com/profile/seyikomolafe

Sponsors wanted email 9jabook@gmail.com or Miss9jabook@systemini.net

Last Year Last 8 contestants !

miss 9jabook 2009 FemaleFaceof9jabook 2009 Last 8 contestants (Poll Closed)

"JOKE OF THE MONTH" OBJ's Wisdom Revealed ! i gaurantee laughs

Posted by 9jabook.com on September 21, 2010 at 11:42pm

Hi Folks,

This is surely going to make you laugh, just read to the end! Just for fun; don't attach strings please.

Your mother has a child, and your father has a child. This child is not your brother and is not your sister. Who is he?"

Once upon a time, when Baba (Obasanjo) was in office as the president, he got an invitation from the Queen to come for a visit to England. After all the banquets and carriage rides and what not, Baba finally got the quiet moment he had craved all day in order to have a one on one chat with her majesty. After the usual small talk, Baba quickly popped the question. He asked her what the secret to her success was. You know Nigerians, we think everything is a secret…the President’s health status is a secret, his whereabouts is a secret, reports of the various panels of enquiry set up by govt to investigate the causes of different crises around the country are kept secret, we even have secret registries in every government agency in d country. Maybe we are a secretive people, we love secrets.

Anyway, back to our story. So Baba asked for the SECRET to the Queens’s success and she told him that she relies on her people a lot and therefore she makes certain that only the intelligent get to positions of authority.

She decided to show him exactly what she meant and so she phoned Tony Blair. "Now listen carefully, Mr. Obasanjo. I'm going to ask Mr. Blair a question to determine his intelligence.”

Queen: "Hello Mr. Blair, I have a question for you: your mother has a child, and your father has a child. This child is not your brother and is not your sister. Who is he?"

Tony Blair replied instantly, "It's ME Your Majesty!"

Queen: "Correct! Thank you and goodbye"

"You see Mr. Obasanjo?" said the Queen.

"Yes”, he replied “and thanks a lot, I'll definitely be using that!"

Once back in Nigeria, he decided that he had doubts about Mantu’s level of intelligence and he decided to test him. He arranged a meeting with him and asked him:

"Mantu, I have a question for you; your mother and father have a child. The child is not your brother and is not your sister, who is he?."

Mantu thinks...... and thinks………and thinks, and finally says, "Em, Mr. President, you must give me more time to think about it."

And Mr. Obasanjo gave him 2 weeks to come up with an answer. That afternoon, Mantu called a meeting of all his aides, advisers and assistants to discuss the question, but NOBODY knew the answer. So he decided to take it to the floor of the Senate. After a heated debate the Senate President thought it wise to clear out the gallery and go into a closed session as he believed the revelations that might result could be damaging to the family and reputation of the distinguished Senator Mantu.

After about two hours of deliberations, the house decided to set up an ad hoc committee to look into the matter and report back to it in ten days. The committee was given the following terms of reference:

1. To come up with a complete family tree of the entire Mantu clan
2. To pay a courtesy call to the traditional ruler of Mantu’s village and the State Governor
3. To interview all living relatives of Senator Mantu
4. To determine if Sen. Mantu’s dad had any extramarital affairs
5. To determine the DNA composition of Sen. Mantu (in Germany of course or Saudi)

On completion of its assignment, the committee was to submit its report to the Senate which would then pass it on to the Senate committee on special duties. This committee would then review the report of the ad hoc committee and come up with a draft “white paper” (whatever that means). This draft “white paper” would then be brought back to the Senate and on approval would be passed on to the President through Senator Mantu.

The Ad-hoc committee then submitted its budget which, of course, was kept SECRET, but included funds for;

a) The immediate purchase of Land Cruiser jeeps for each of the 12 members of the committee. The jeeps would be used to travel to Mantu’s village because, as you know, Nigerian roads are bad and Mantu’s village is remote.
b) Air tickets (first class of course) and hotel accommodation in Jos for committee members and their numerous aides. They’d stay at the Hill-station hotel and drive to Mantu’s village in the morning.
c) Air tickets (again first class) to Germany and back, and hotel accommodation (five star) for everybody.
d) Estacodes and hazard allowances
e) Logistics
f) Miscellaneous

Even though the budget was kept secret, you can easily come up with the figure by taking the actual estimate of the above list and multiply by ten. You’ll only run into problems when you get to the final two items (logistics & miscellaneous) , as these are usually added to cover for all the people that need to be “settled” in order to ensure that everything goes smoothly. Therefore the figures have the tendency of varying widely and so it can’t really be predicted.

Anyway, the money was released and the committee started its assignment in earnest. They finished within the time frame that was stipulated in their terms of reference and they prepared a voluminous report which was to be presented at the senate at plenary. But on the d-day when the chairman of the committee was about to make the presentation, a distinguished senator from the Southern part of the country raised a “point of order”. He argued that the committee was illegal because its composition was lopsided in favor of a certain region in the country. He pointed out that of the 12 members; seven were from the North and only five from the South. Not to be outdone, another senator, this time from the North, raised a “point of order” on the “point of order” that was raised by the senator from the South. He argued that since the committee’s assignment was primarily to investigate the lineage of Senator Mantu (who was from the North), they needed
senators who knew the terrain, who understood the culture of the people and their language.

More points of order followed and after a while the Senate President decided to put a stop to it by subjecting it to a voice vote.

And thus he announced, “All those in favor of the committee being considered legal and thus go ahead to present its report say “AYE””. And the house responded accordingly.

And then he asked again, “All those not in favor of the committee being considered legal and thus should not go ahead to present its report say “NAY””. And the house responded accordingly.

Unfortunately for Mantu, the “NAYs had it” and thus the report was never presented. Now Mantu had a really big problem, because the President was waiting for an answer and he had run out of time. So in one last effort, he decided to phone his very good friend Jerry Rawlings who had always sounded intelligent to Mantu and thus might have the answer to this really difficult question.
"Jerry, your mother and father have a child. The child is not your brother and is not your sister, who is he?."

Jerry answered immediately. "Hey, Mantu, It's me of course, you dumb Nigerian!"
Mantu couldn’t believe his luck and so he rushed to Aso Rock Villa, his motorcade of five cars moving at top speed with sirens blaring. Ordinary Nigerians going about their normal businesses scampered out of the way. When they finally arrived their destination, Mantu literarily ran all the way to the President's office.

"Mr. President, Mr. President”, he called out, breathing heavily. “I know who he is.”
Obasanjo: “Good, so tell me”
Mantu: “It’s Jerry Rawlings Sir! In fact, when he revealed the SECRET to me, I started to see the resemblance between us"

Obasanjo: "Jerry Rawlings ko, Jerry Gana ni. You are such a stupid senator. Olodo rakpata! I'll make sure you don’t return to office after this term. Stupid man, the correct answer is TONY BLAIR!"

And that’s how Mantu never returned to the Senate even though he supported the President’s third term agenda.

Airline that kills without crashing:Another corpse found aboard Arik Air

Posted by Paul "EFCC" Hawk Adams on September 21, 2010 at 10:07pm

A corpse was allegedly discovered in an Arik aircraft last night, sources told P.M.NEWS today.

Our sources said that the deceased passenger was a man. However, no one is sure if he was a genuine or illegal passenger.

Details about the tragic incident or the deceased were sketchy at the

time of filing this report.

The media officer of Arik Air, Mr. Adebanji Ola told our correspondent

that it was a security issue and did not go into details.

He said: “It’s a security issue beyond the airline’s control.Photo: Passengers praying they survive the flight The

airport security operatives will be in a better position to give

details.”

The Media officer to the Director General of NCAA, Mr. Sam Adurogboye,

sent our correspondent back to Arik when he was asked to comment about the incident.

“Talk to Arik,” he said.

The incident comes weeks after a similar incident happened on an Arik

flight to the United States.

Photo right:One of such wings of crashless death

How landlady’s son chopped off tenant’s right hand in Lagos Metro

Posted by arimah patrick ifeanyi on September 21, 2010 at 9:30pm

For Koya Arowosegbe, life will never be the same again, owing to the loss of his right hand during an attack by his landlady’s son at their Agboro, Iyana-Ipaja abode, last Thursday.The father of two and motor mechanic, who currently lies ill on the hospital bed in Agege area, Lagos with his right hand still in bandage, still finds it unbelievable that one of his hands had gone. He till hopes and prays that he would wake up to discover that his present condition is just a dream.The incident that led to his being confined to the hospital bed, started last Thursday, following his attempt to stop his landlady’s son from disconnecting another tenant’s electric wire from the pole.Crime Alert gathered that the landlady of number 10, Olayinka street, engaged one of her tenants who owns a container shop in an argument over the latter’s failure to pay the balance of N100 for Power Holdings Company of Nigeria Plc bills. When the son of the landlady arrived later, she complained bitterly to him, leading to his attempt to disconnect the shop owner’s wire from the pole.As soon as the landlady’s son identified as Ganiu Azeez, climbed the ladder to carry out his threat, Koya reportedly rushed out of his one-room apartment to complain that the disconnection had resulted in the fluctuation of power in his apartment. But his complaint was waved aside, apparently owing to a cold war which Crime Alert gathered, had been existing between the tenant and the landlady.This reportedly resulted in a fight between him and Ganiu, before they were separated. Unknown to Koya, that was not the end of the fight, as Ganiu reportedly dashed into the room to get a cutlass and in Koya’s attempt to defend himself, the instrument landed on his right hand cutting it off instantly, to the astonishment of all who were apparently amused by the fight.Rejected At Government HospitalsKoya, an indegene of Arigidi local government area of Ondo, who was bleeding profusely from his injured hand, was said to have been rushed to three different government hospitals that night, where he was rejected owing to the on-going strike. Unable to hold on any longer, he slumped owing to loss of blood, before he arrived Mayfair hospital, a private hospital in Agege, where doctors battled till the next day before he regained consciousness.He Attacked Me FirstHowever, in this interview with Crime Alert, Ganiu who reportedly went into hiding immediately the incident occurred but was later arrested, claimed 28-old Koya first attacked him.On what led to the fight, 30-year-old Ganiu explained, “when I got home that night, my mum told me that the saloon woman refused to pay her balance of N100 from PHCN bill. We gave her bill of N700 but she told my mum she would only pay N600 instead of N700. This led to a fight between Iya Mutiya (shop owner) and my mum.Immediately I dashed out of the house and climbed the pole to disconnect Iya Mutiya’s wire, just then , Mr Koya Arowosegbe rushed out of his room and started fighting me, saying the disconnection had affected the boiling ring they were using and that the wires in his room also got burnt.Not yet done, he went and took a wood and landed it on me. He picked the cutlass to cut me but I dodged it with a wood he initially hit me with and the cutlass fell down. Then I ran to pick the cutlass. As he was coming close to me again, I hit him with the cutlass in the hand.I only used the cutlass to defend myself and did not mean to cut off his hand. It was not until people started shouting that his hand was cut off , that I realized what I have done. Out of fear, I ran to the next compound to hide till the following morning when policemen came and arrested me. It was a mistake, said the Owu, Abeokuta, Ogun state- born father of a three months old baby.He Lied— victim’s wifeCountering his claim, Mrs. Mayowa Arowosegbe said her husband never used any object on Ganiu. Rather,the pregnant woman explained, “ My husband never attacked him as he claimed. After they were separated, my husband started going to our apartment. Just as he was about entering into the room, he noticed Ganiu was running towards him with something in his hand.As Ganiu wanted to hit him with the object, my husband raised his hand to prevent the object from hitting him on the head, only for the object to land on his hand. Before my eyes, my husband’s hand started dangling. That was when we discovered it was a cutlass he used. Had my husband known it was a cutlass, he would have run into the room and lock himself up. We have been living in that compound for two years now without any problem.My PainsTell me, where does my husband, a mechanic begin from ? We were managing to feed when he had two hands. Now tell me, what will he do with just one hand? And to think that it is the right hand is so painful”, cried Mrs. Mayowa Arowosegbe. Another thing that pained me was that after Ganui had done the deed, his mother collected the cutlass from him and stood right beside my husband who was on the floor, nodding her head as if she had been expecting that all along.I am Not The CauseOn her part, the shop owner Kola went to defend, Mrs. Adia Ahmed, denied being the centre of controversy in the incident. Rather, she claimed she was not around when the incident occurred, let alone instigating Kola against Ganiu as wildly claimed by residents of the area.Hear her, “ I rented the shop about three years ago. Then my PHCN bill was just N200. Later it was increased to N500 and then N700. Recently, I realized I was not paying same amount with other tenants and when I approached my landlady, she said it was because of my drier and refrigerator .So, when this last bill of N700 was given to me , I paid N500 first and then N600. I concluded within myself that I was only going to pay N600 since that was what other tenants pay. But that Thursday when my landlady came to my shop to demand fo the balance, I promised her I was going to pay and even pleaded with her to give me time because customers were not coming as expected.That day, I closed around 6.30pm. It was when I came back the next day that I learnt somebody’s hand was chopped off the previous night and everyone was saying I was the cause. How am I the cause?The State’s Commissioner of Police, Mr. Marvel Akpoyibo, according to the command’s spokesman, Mr. Frank Mba, had directed that no stone should be left unturned in ensuring that justice was done promptly.

Aba vs Mexico City:Gunmen Kill Doctor returning from sisters burial after collecting 30million Ransom

Posted by 9jabook.com on September 21, 2010 at 9:30pm

Unknown gunmen, suspected to be hired assassins, on Sunday, killed a medical doctor, Stanley Uche, the proprietor of Victory Christian Hospital, Aba, Abia State.

The medical doctor, who had earlier been abducted by his assailants, was allegedly killed after his abductors had collected N30 million ransom from his wife. The deceased, a gynaecologist, who hails from Mbano in Imo State, was said to be travelling home with his wife on Friday for the burial of his younger sister when they were ambushed by their abductors who had trailed them from Aba.

The News Agency of Nigeria gathered that the slain medical doctor's wife was released later and ordered to source for N50 million to facilitate her husband's freedom. It was also gathered that the young lady only succeeded in delivering N30 million to the abductors on Monday morning at the agreed location.

Sources said that the lady, unaware that her husband had already been killed, had pleaded with the abductors to be allowed to see him, only to be taken to a spot where his corpse was dumped, which she was ordered to take away immediately.

There are speculations within the community that the medical doctor must have been a victim of hired assassins. The Abia State Police Public Relations Officer, Godfrey Ogbonna, told NAN that the command had received a report on the incident from the Osisioma Police Division. He said a team of crack police detectives had been deployed to the area to investigate the incident..

Crime in Mexico City

Crime is among the most urgent concerns facing Mexico, as Mexican drug trafficking rings play a major role in the flow of cocaine, heroin, and marijuana transiting between Latin America and the United States. Drug trafficking has led to corruption, which has had a deleterious effect on Mexico's democracy. Drug trafficking and organized crime have also been a major source of violent crime in Mexico.

Mexico has experienced increasingly high crime rates, especially in major urban centers. The country's great economic polarization has stimulated criminal activity in the lower socioeconomic strata, which include the majority of the country's population. Crime continues at high levels, and is repeatedly marked by violence, especially in Mexico City, Tijuana, Ciudad Juárez, Nuevo Laredo, Michoacan, and the state ofSinaloa. Other metropolitan areas have lower, yet still serious, levels of crime. Low apprehension and conviction rates contribute to the high crime rate.

The high incidence of crime in Mexico has also poured across the border and influenced crime in the United States, aggravating problems including drugs, illegal immigration, and gangs. There is some data that indicates crime rates along the U.S. border have decreased and that any perceived notion that crime rate in the United States is not related to the crime rate in Mexico. Over the past several years the United States has seen a significant decrease in its crime rate, especially the violent crime rate. However, that has not stopped the United States from beefing up it's border security to combat this increasing perception and cross-border cooperation has increased between law enforcement agencies in the United States and Mexico in recent years.

source: wikipedia.

Top Murder Countries in the World Nigeria is not on the list but dont be too smug about this maybe the police are not giving the right statistics !

Murders (per capita) (most recent) by country

Rank	Countries	Amount
# 1	Colombia:	0.617847 per 1,000 people
# 2	South Africa:	0.496008 per 1,000 people
# 3	Jamaica:	0.324196 per 1,000 people
# 4	Venezuela:	0.316138 per 1,000 people
# 5	Russia:	0.201534 per 1,000 people
# 6	Mexico:	0.130213 per 1,000 people
# 7	Estonia:	0.107277 per 1,000 people
# 8	Latvia:	0.10393 per 1,000 people
# 9	Lithuania:	0.102863 per 1,000 people
# 10	Belarus:	0.0983495 per 1,000 people
# 11	Ukraine:	0.094006 per 1,000 people
# 12	Papua New Guinea:	0.0838593 per 1,000 people
# 13	Kyrgyzstan:	0.0802565 per 1,000 people
# 14	Thailand:	0.0800798 per 1,000 people
# 15	Moldova:	0.0781145 per 1,000 people
# 16	Zimbabwe:	0.0749938 per 1,000 people
# 17	Seychelles:	0.0739025 per 1,000 people
# 18	Zambia:	0.070769 per 1,000 people
# 19	Costa Rica:	0.061006 per 1,000 people
# 20	Poland:	0.0562789 per 1,000 people
# 21	Georgia:	0.0511011 per 1,000 people
# 22	Uruguay:	0.045082 per 1,000 people
# 23	Bulgaria:	0.0445638 per 1,000 people
# 24	United States:	0.042802 per 1,000 people
# 25	Armenia:	0.0425746 per 1,000 people
# 26	India:	0.0344083 per 1,000 people
# 27	Yemen:	0.0336276 per 1,000 people
# 28	Dominica:	0.0289733 per 1,000 people
# 29	Azerbaijan:	0.0285642 per 1,000 people
# 30	Finland:	0.0283362 per 1,000 people
# 31	Slovakia:	0.0263303 per 1,000 people
# 32	Romania:	0.0250784 per 1,000 people
# 33	Portugal:	0.0233769 per 1,000 people
# 34	Malaysia:	0.0230034 per 1,000 people
# 35	Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of:	0.0229829 per 1,000 people
# 36	Mauritius:	0.021121 per 1,000 people
# 37	Hungary:	0.0204857 per 1,000 people
# 38	Korea, South:	0.0196336 per 1,000 people
# 39	Slovenia:	0.0179015 per 1,000 people
# 40	France:	0.0173272 per 1,000 people
# 41	Czech Republic:	0.0169905 per 1,000 people
# 42	Iceland:	0.0168499 per 1,000 people
# 43	Australia:	0.0150324 per 1,000 people
# 44	Canada:	0.0149063 per 1,000 people
# 45	Chile:	0.014705 per 1,000 people
# 46	United Kingdom:	0.0140633 per 1,000 people
# 47	Italy:	0.0128393 per 1,000 people
# 48	Spain:	0.0122456 per 1,000 people
# 49	Germany:	0.0116461 per 1,000 people
# 50	Tunisia:	0.0112159 per 1,000 people
# 51	Netherlands:	0.0111538 per 1,000 people
# 52	New Zealand:	0.0111524 per 1,000 people
# 53	Denmark:	0.0106775 per 1,000 people
# 54	Norway:	0.0106684 per 1,000 people
# 55	Ireland:	0.00946215 per 1,000 people
# 56	Switzerland:	0.00921351 per 1,000 people
# 57	Indonesia:	0.00910842 per 1,000 people
# 58	Greece:	0.0075928 per 1,000 people
# 59	Hong Kong:	0.00550804 per 1,000 people
# 60	Japan:	0.00499933 per 1,000 people
# 61	Saudi Arabia:	0.00397456 per 1,000 people
# 62	Qatar:	0.00115868 per 1,000 people

Shina Peters US show closed by Police

Posted by NollywoodMohits on September 21, 2010 at 4:45am

Afro Juju creator, Sir Shina Peters was close to tears over the weekend as Prince Georges County police officers shut down his show at the Royal Prestige Hall, Largo in the state of Maryland, USA.

Trouble started at around 2am, an hour after he had started performing, when large numbers of PG police officers stormed the venue requesting from the organizers the liquor license for the event.

The organizers who had already started selling alcoholic beverages at the time could not produce the license claiming they didn’t know they needed one.

Following the inability to produce the liquor license, the police said they had no option other than to shut down the venue..

They dispersed everyone in the Hall, and within minutes the hall became empty. SSP's fans were outraged at the turn of events threatening to sue the organizers of the show.

However, Sir shina Peters is expected to stage more shows before he departs the state of Maryland. African Examiner gathered that the show that was shut down was a sold out.

Virginity Test or Pregnancy Test ? Church cancels wedding after Bride tested 1month pregnant.Image Advisory pls

Posted by 9jabook.com webmadam on September 21, 2010 at 3:52am

Why Pregnancy Test why not Virginity Test ? What do you think ? And what about the Men how do you test them if they are virgins ?

I attend the"Largest Church in Nigeria " (name witheld) here in lagos. I was surprised when I heard on friday that my friend's wedding
has been canceled and has been moved to another church to take place.

It was reported that a pregnancy test was run and that they figured out his wife to be was already 1 month pregnant which
was the main reason for the cancelation of the wedding to take place in the church.

Now thinking about the whole thing, I would say this is totally wrong, because if indeed this issue has to be judged biblically, I would say
it is only written in the bible that one must not have intimacy until you are married which automatically means both parties must still be virgins.

So if thats the case, the general test that needs to be run is virginity test, not pregnancy test, because alot of people have gotten married
with their virginity lost prior wedding day. I just dont understand what this is all about. I feel the church didnt do well on this, please someone
shed a light on this issue and lets see if they did they right thing or not.

What is good for Adam is what Eve got too !

Olu Jacobs Interview:, A True Igwe at heart talks about life,Pete Edochie with wisdom and sincerity

Posted by NollywoodMohits on September 21, 2010 at 3:38am

I am Faithful to Joke my wife

He’s a renowned and consummate actor who plays all kinds of roles effortlessly and with finesse within and outside the shores of Nigeria. In the 80s, he featured in the hilarious sitcom Mind your language. It was a distinctive statement of his acumen and stagecraft. Jacobs’ passion for acting started quite a long time ago.

In the days of Hubert Ogunde. There’s another side to Olu Jacobs which is noted by all and sundry. It’s his devotion to his family which has survived all kinds of situations through the immense capacity of both him and his wife to love. Jacobs, indisputably is a good husband and father.

He doesn’t have any scandals haunting or trailing him for instance. In this interview with Samuel Olatunji, Jacobs lays it all bare revealing how he handles female fans who sometimes call him when he’s in bed with his wife.Excerpts:

You seem to maintain your ‘evergreeness’. What’s the secret?
I’m what I have always been. I enjoy the company of people. I like to make people feel welcome . It’s much more enjoyable to be honest with your feelings about people. That’s why, when I’m angry, people know it easily but when I’m happy they know as well and for me, that is what life is all about. You can’t hang on being miserable all the time or trying to hide your feelings.

What’s it like when Uncle Olu is angry?
Watch some of the parts I’ve played.

What is it with you and the masterpiece of acting?
Well, thank you for putting it that way. All our lives, we were told that men should not shed tears and that is usually why men should not shed tears in public. Nobody can say that men don’t shed tears in private. So, that’s what the public sees. When they are outside dealing with people, they are strong. They are different from what they play in the movies. They feel very strong but at the same time, they do not show their emotions in public but we get it mixed up when we’re watching them in movies.

We assume that we are watching them in public, but we are not watching them in public at all. So, a man can allow himself to feel like any other human being and that’s why it is easier when you understand that they can go through whatever the script says very well. I believe in total commitment. I don’t like to do things half way. Once I understand what a play is about, because I hardly read a play twice, I read it once and I do some work on it and then fine-tuning continues until it is recorded.

I enjoy the work, I find it interesting. There are some that are quite obvious and you don’t need to do any research, because they are too obvious, but there are intricate ones that you have to research . You have to dig for them , because they really put the icing on the cake. I try as much as possible to put new experience in every play and also try not to underestimate any play.

Even at this stage, with all the plays you’ve done?
I know they say that the reputation of an actor makes his performance almost automatic. The more you do something, the better you become. That is why some things are automatically understood. Once I see them, I can understand them, but there are intricacies to each part .

You must respect that , if you want to get the truth in that play and I try as much as possible not to lie to my audience. I don’t cheat, not with a role. I go as honestly as possible with the role to portray what has to be portrayed. If it’s something I think I won’t be able to espouse, then I will tell the producer I can’t take the part. But once I take a part, I read it and it’s what I want, then I’ll do it.

But people are saying that Uncle Olu appears in almost every movie and perhaps, you want to make all the money?
(Laughs) How much money is he making that he wants to make all the money now? I don’t know who these people are. I don’t know their reason for saying that. If they want to know, let them go and ask the producer how much they are paying and they’ll know whether I am collecting all the money. No, it’s not that. It is the job that we have in hand and I always try as much as possible to give it the best shot within the circumstances that I find myself.

I don’t pretend to be doing what I am not doing. When a part is given to me, I look at it honestly and scrutinize it thoroughly so that when I come out, I know what I am feeling for the role. I know where the character is coming from and where he wants to land. Now, how he lands there, for the two of us may be something different. You may think he lands this way, while I’m thinking he lands that way. It doesn’t matter, he’s still going to land.

So we must be professional enough to look at our different opinions. If they just assume and do things the way they want, then I don’t have time for them. I don’t have time for anyone who does that or thinks that way or say that about me. Without boasting, I think I am the best manipulator of words as far as this industry is concerned. I believe strongly that each line must mean something; each word must mean something; each paragraph must mean something; each theme must mean something. So, until I find out what the entire play means, I may not proceed and I think I am the best at that.

I honestly and sincerely believe that this doesn’t stop me from working harder. When it comes to manipulating words, analyzing situations, I still think that most people are not getting it right. For most people, their experience is limited. Some on the other hand are lazy, while some cheat. I try not to cheat when it comes to looking at a character, looking at the play, looking at what he’s saying and why he’s saying what he’s saying and with whom. All these things I put together when I get a script and I do it for every single production that comes my way.

What has kept you in this game that you seem to be the only one left to play the Igwe, head of family or an elder’s role despite the fact that some of your colleagues that you started with are not seen anywhere near the screen anymore. What’s your staying power?
Hmmm, well, this is something I find very difficult sometimes. After all these years, I suppose I’m calm enough to understand why you are asking these questions but before I go further to answer this question, I would like to let you know that there’s always a character for the father, mother, brother, uncle, and a cousin. They are there and they will always be there.

They have to be filled. Do we get them filled by the young stars or do we get them filled by people of the right age. I have noticed in some productions that they use somebody who’s hardly thirty (30) playing an old man of sixty (60).That should not be allowed professionally . There are enough roles for husbands, for uncles, for brothers and sisters and friends to play; for men and women without having to play the role of fathers when they are still young. Though, they can play young parents but they want to add the grandfather role and thereby getting it all mixed up. I think that’s ridiculous, that’s not natural.

If God wants it that way, He would have created it that way. A father is father and that’s what we are and that’s what we must remain and we have to be seen as such. When you say father, you must respect a father, believe a father. I get calls all the time. People are saying, Uncle Olu, you are like my daddy, some will say, I want you to be my daddy. All these things are involved in the play that one is doing and they think, one should become their biological father. It’s very moving when you hear them talking about such issue.

A young man and I wanted to act and I was lucky that somebody like Hubert Ogunde was alive then. I saw him at the Olonde in Kano. I was born in Kano actually and I was excited to see the singing and the dancing at that event and I went home with so much joy . Ogunde was organizing a concert party, so I told my mother that my brother and I wanted to go there and act.

She said she would think about it. She gave us some work to do and we finished everything so they had to take us to the concert. When we got there, it was wonderful. The atmosphere was absolutely electrifying. To see a hall meant for a thousand people or thereabouts jam-packed with over three thousand people was amazing and people were sweating.

The show had not even started. But they didn’t mind, they wanted to sweat. Then, the curtain was lifted and Ogunde showed up and they sang and people were crying. Somehow, I was able to get away from the crowd and I was watching them from outside and I saw the total joy of these people. By now, I was in tears and I said to myself at that time, that’s the job that I am going to do.

Has acting put food on your table?
Well, we thank God. It’s not easy. It’s been hard. You have to get to a certain stage. For example in England, every city has its own theater subsidized by the UK government. So, you can imagine how many theaters they have. They all have shows every night. So, they employ electricians, actors, stage men, cameramen and so on. So, you can’t compare that with Nigeria.

We don’t have that here. It’s about communicating, bringing children together, talking to them at a very tender age, going to schools, creating awareness within the school where the children can understand, use and learn from all these things so that they can have a wider experience of life instead of one-line thoughts. So, for me, I don’t see it any other way.

When I saw what was happening in England, it got to a stage where I was only attending interviews, not auditions per se and I was not given anything challenging. All I was asked to do was to support a white actor who may not be as good as expected. So, I said well, I can do better here and there is much to be done. If at the end of the day I leave the stage and I am able to help people build structure and make them stars, then it will be worth it.

Is it true that you must be from a particular tribe before you can play a character from that tribe in a movie?
No. As long as you can do it well, there’s no problem and don’t forget that there is a director and a producer and it’s their decision regarding who plays what role. At any point, they can always change the person if they think they have made a mistake.

So, I don’t think you have to be a Yoruba man before you can play the role of Oba in a movie, as long as you can interpret and play the role as expected, I don’t think there is anything wrong with it at all. I have played Emir and other roles in other tribes, but I am a Yoruba man. I am from Abeokuta.

Pete Edochie once said you destroy the Igbo culture the way you act the Igwe in movies?
I’m surprised Peter can say that. Olu Jacobs is an actor; he’s a fine actor, he’s the best analyzer of character and the best manipulator of words. If some people, for whatever reason, say that the hundreds or thousands of fans who phone and come to applaud me everyday don’t not know what they are saying, that they don’t know what they are doing… I’m talking about real Igwes who meet me, not in their palaces but at airports, outside and they call me to tell me how much they appreciate what I am doing.

This happens everyday, even today. Do you want to tell me that those people don’t know what they are doing? Do you want to tell me that it’s only Pete who knows what he’s saying? What about the producers who commissioned this story, do they not know whom they want for what role? Is he saying that those producers don’t know what they are doing? Whatever he says about me, he must say about them because I didn’t write the script myself, it wasn’t my film. I want to end this topic by saying, I, Olu Jacobs respect and admire our way of life and I will do anything to propagate it, honestly and sincerely.

Our children watch us, what we present to them, what they thought they never had. Our children thought they didn’t have a past, we are the ones letting them know that we had a glorious past. We may have our hiccups at the moment but our present is as good, if not better than our past. We don’t live on trees. We live where every normal human lives and we shall continue to work hard. I want to tell you that Pete is my younger brotherbrother, forget the red cap.

If we meet outside he must show respect. He can think whatever he likes, he has every right to his own opinion but I don’t have to agree with him. In this case, I totally disagree with him. I believe that in this case, he should have re-educated himself well enough before making any comments. I don’t know what’s behind what he has said, but I know he’s not being honest.

When you use extreme words like destroy, it’s a sign of desperation. Is there anything that Peter is desperate about that we don’t know? I don’t know why he should go to such length to talk about me. When he went to play Oduduwa, did it sell, did they make their money back? What did they achieve there, nothing. The story of Oduduwa, we all know.

Someone said there is a feud between two of you. Is this true?

As far as I am concerned, I don’t have anything against Peter. His two children are my children and we’ve being working together. We both have a working relationship. He called me some three weeks ago; somebody wanted an interview and he wanted me to grant the interview and I did. I don’t have anything to hide and I see no reason why I should . I would rather advice that his questions be directed to the marketers who bought and commissioned the play.

Some even said, perhaps it’s because you get the Igwe role more than he does?
(Chuckles) I think that question should be directed to the owners of the movie. I don’t know what’s at the back of their mind. All I know is that, I get called to do movies , I do them to my best. Maybe Peter knows something I don’t know.

Why are marriages breaking down these days?
Our country has been through a lot and so have our children. Our children did not get the kind of support they should have gotten because we parents don’t even have the support, the confidence that a child needs. So, what you discover is a few families that are doing business and have succeeded. They were trying to show off, they wanted to use their money to buy what they could have been able to by themselves. You’ll find that a lot of poor people who got married are still happily married but majority of the rich people who got married are no longer married.

Are you saying that money is a culprit sir?
Of course. They were using money to cover those areas they should have touched by themselves . They could have educated, guided and loved their children. Instead, they spent that time trying to amass wealth. The driver was the person who knew where they needed to go to. The housemaid knew everything else. If there were three housemaids, the children knew what to do. The mentality of a child at that age will be the mentality of a housemaid or a driver. Even when you speak to your children, they’ll seek approval from the housemaid before they could say yes to anything you say. Then, you should know you’ve lost it.

So, the reason why we have broken marriages is because most of these children were raised by housemaids?
Yes, because we tried to buy them with our money but they were not brought up with that money. Later, you’ll hear the father sobbing and saying, “after all I have done, after all I have worked for”. What have you worked for? Nothing! Nothing to do with the children, it’s all about you. You were trying to justify yourself. That is what our problem is.

So, what has kept your marriage intact?
Well, to God be the glory. I have been married for about twenty-five years now and I am married to this girl, Joke. (Laughs). She’s so troublesome, she’s so wonderful, ah that girl, she’s my best friend and you know that when you have a friend like her, you talk, you play and if you need to quarrel, you quarrel a bit and that is the same way we have brought up our children too.

We are very close to them. As a matter of fact, our youngest boy just started to live in boarding school. Joke and I were very lonely at home. We were learning that we have to release them and they must get used to being released so they can be on their own. Not relying on us all the time; but when they look back, we are always there. Even without looking back, they should be able to say we are there and that is the kind of life that we are trying to have with them. It’s not easy but we thank God.

Is it hard for men to ever be faithful, especially when they are famous?
Well it is true, believe you me it is true. Recently at 2:00 am , I got a call like I always do but this one was from a female I have never met in my life, who wants to talk to me, who needs my help. It’s true one tries as much as possible, like I said they call you anytime they are watching a film anytime from 11:00, 12:00, 1:00, 3:00, 4:00. They are watching your film, they want to be with you, they want to know you. You should know them, you will find them very interesting, you will find them very attractive, they are beautiful. .

Well at my age, what I try to do is I don’t dump them, I don’t scold them. That ability to show interest must not be killed because they are going to need it for the rest of their lives. What they have done to me is wrong, knowing that I am married. I say to them “ do you know me and my family are in bed right now?....Sorry, thank you it’s all right, I appreciate this thing you are doing, you calling, thank you. Please don’t ring this late, ring early, when you and I can talk, easy without being aggressive, what am I being aggressive for…, gbogbo wa ko la sewo ni?.

But they say, if you don’t go after men, they will still go after women.That’s their nature. What’s your take on that?
That is the law of nature. It is normal. Men are hunters and polygamous by nature. Apart from anything else, that’s why our forefathers married so many. Eyokan o to. We are changing our thinking, we are trying to reduce all these things; we are doing them because we have a society we have to relate to and we are trying our darn best to relate to them . Otherwise I will say it will be very difficult. Going back to the question you asked before, it’s one of the reasons why marriages fail. Some men don’t know how to cope with it , because when they get to that point, they need someone else. Their wives at home is perfectly alright, there’s nothing wrong but they need someone else.
But for a man, something doesn’t need to be wrong with the woman at all.

Let me put you on the spot sir. For 25 years, have you been totally faithful?
Yes. Once you are married, you are together. We learnt a lot together, then I traveled. I didn’t travel for long, three weeks, two weeks, ba se n travel ni yen (that’s the way we’ve been traveling)

But some men will be men whether in or out?
I didn’t marry young , so I didn’t experience that.

Tell us when things weren’t so easy
That one plenty. (both laughed). When we were down, with very little to eat, we explained to our children. This is what we have and this is what we are going to eat, and they ate and they were so exited because it tasted nice. But if we had not told them, we would have felt guilty that we were keeping things away from them. So, it was good, everybody was open and we ate what we had. I never thought that we were the kind of people that should be keeping things away from our children.

People say these days marriages fail , because women are demanding more independence. Is that true?
What I don’t understand is the mentality of men. We had a situation where men went out, the women stayed at home and looked after the children. The scenario now is that men and women go out to work and you have to employ somebody to look after the children and you still want the wife to play a subservient role in the house. So what does she go out to do?

Why does she need to go out at all? The idea of her going out is for the family to get enough funds to look after the children, to look after the family together. If the husband earns enough, he would have been able to convince his wife to stay at home or to stay as close to home as possible but obviously he doesn’t. So, if she has to come in, she is earning something and whatever she is earning is helping the family. So, if that’s the case, you expect her to get home at 9:00pm and go straight into the kitchen and the husband who is coming home around the same time, what right has he got to expect that? She has probably worked more than the man at work.

The mindset of men is the major problem?
No . The mindset of the family. It’s the mindset of the family. If you like, the husband’s family but some of the wife’s family too. They are equally guilty. You know they have forgotten that their children went out to work to sustain the family. I mean we all know, when the grand ma is coming lati wa ba won to omo (to take care of the children) she was going to be there may be for six months, may be for three months. Ewa lo ma je o ma ba won wa, isu, oma ba won wa, elubo, o ma ba won wa, eja gbigbe lo ma je, o ma ba won wa. Epo, ororo, everything oma ba won wa. So that family will not need to worry about anything to ba je area ounje…..

That is no longer there, because these family ties viz the mother, the aunties, they are not usually wanted anymore because they are thought to be poke-nosing into the affairs that don’t concern them. What do we want to do? Do we really want a nuclear family or we really want to import our own family? The ones we are going to pay for… the housemaid, the houseboy, drivers… is that the ones that we want, is that what we want?

So, it’s not because women are demanding more freedom?
They are not demanding freedom, they are demanding equality. They are saying they can make us be at ease, that we don’t have to struggle as much as they are doing.

You know men cannot accept that they are equal with women?
It makes it easier for us to enjoy working hard. We enjoy working hard; it makes us enjoy even better when we know that our wives are not right on top of us. They even appreciate us now more than ever before.

But how can men accept that things have changed?
They should open their eyes and their minds and realize that our wives are now with us and that they have a mind, a mind that is as chilled as our own and that we have a job to do and if they are able to do it, why do we deny them? We have to think and justify why we should deny somebody who is capable. Why? Is it because of our ego?

Night Driving: Tanker drivers caught at night to be fined N100, 000

Posted by 9jabook.com webmadam on September 21, 2010 at 3:27am

The Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) has imposed N100, 000 fine on any driver found driving tankers at night.

The Executive Secretary of NARTO, Emmanuel Gowon, told the News Agency of Nigeria, in Lagos, on Saturday, that the fine would be paid by the guilty driver to the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD). “Driving at night attracts N100, 000 as fine,” he said..

Mr Gowon said that a written code was brought up by PTD members to NARTO, that no tanker should be seen driven after 6.00 pm. According to him, the policy came up about a month ago nationwide as it was observed that most accidents involving tankers usually happened at night and on roads with potholes.

“A driver may not identify all the numerous potholes on the roads at night,” he said. “No owner likes accidents to happen. We advise drivers to stop driving at night. A tanker owner loses N30 million as the cost of a tanker with all its accessories and components, and over N2 million as cost of 33,000 litres of petroleum products. No owner would want to lose close to N33 million in just a few minutes due to avoidable circumstances.”

Murders (per capita) (most recent) by country

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