WORLD football governing body, FIFA, may penalise the Royal Dutch Football Association following its U-17 team's unlawful act at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium in Enugu after their 0-1 loss to Iran in the last game of Group C.advertisementThe Guardian learnt that in protest over the way the referee handled the game, a Dutch player with an official of the team went on rampage, breaking one of the windows at the stadium as FIFA officials watched in amazement. The FIFA official eventually called his colleagues to take photographs of the scene for onward report to the centre's FIFA co-ordinator.The official confirmed to The Guardian that violence was been preached against in football, wondering why it should be extended to a youth championship. Though the head of the Netherlands delegation, Piet Hubers, regretted the act, he nonetheless condemned the away the Guatemalan referee handled the match that sent his team out of the competition.Meanwhile, having been eliminated from the championship, the Netherlands officials are in dare need of buyers who would pay for the large quantity of food items they brought for the games. It will be recalled that the Dutch came in with preserved food items such as meat, fish, beverages, tomato pastas, fruits, cartons of indomie, spaghetti, fruit drinks and chocolate cheese, as well as a cook.An official of the team confirmed that they would want to dispose off the food items to recover some of the money they had spent in bringing them to the country. He added that it would make no sense going back to their country with the items.It was further understood that the officials had reached agreement with the management of Nike Lake Resort, Enugu, where the team camped, as well as the officials of the Turkish team, who would be playing their second round match in Enugu tomorrow, for the purchase of the items.An official of the Turkish team told The Guardian at the Nike Lake Resort that the items would be shared between his team and the hotel, stressing that they would require more food items since they did not envisage moving beyond the first round of the championship.
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Super Eagles’ Head Coach, Shaibu Amodu has picked 23 players to represent Nigeria in next weekend’s all –important 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Kenya’s Harambee Stars in Nairobi.advertisementa href="http://www.9jabook.com">On the list are skipper, Nwankwo Kanu, deputy skipper, Joshttp://www.9jabook.com/profiles/blog/neweph Yobo and the other 16 players who made the list for the last qualifier against Mozambique in Abuja, and five others.Nigeria tackles Kenya in a must –win final game of the qualifiers at the Karasani Sports Centre on Saturday, 14 November – the date for the conclusion of the African series for the 2010 FIFA World Cup to be hosted by the Republic of South Africa.Also listed are goalkeepers, Vincent Enyeama and Bamidele Aiyenugba, defenders, Elderson Echiejile and Obinna Nwaneri, midfielders, Yusuf Ayila and Osaze Odemwingie and strikers Obinna Nsofor and Obafemi Martins.The players will start arriving in Nigeria on Monday, November 9 and will depart for Nairobi aboard a chartered flight on the night of Thursday, November 12.
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As part of its efforts to get the support of the spectators for their team, officials of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) bought tickets worth over N750,000 for Ijebu Ode fans to come and watch their Group E match against the United States of America (USA) at the Gateway International Stadium, Ijebu Ode.advertisementThe tickets were distributed to fans at the main entrance of the stadium on Saturday and Sunday, shortly before the kick off of the match that was watched by a large spectators, including the Ogun State governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, and many traditional rulers, among others.Their gesture paid off as they were supported throughout the match, which USA won 1-0, by fans who applauded all their moves.The UAE officials also distributed their country's national flags to the fans who waved this endlessly to show their support. Some of the fans who spoke with Tribunesports expressed appreciation for the tickets, saying they were happy to have benefitted from the largesse.An official of the UAE who spoke to Tribunesports but refused to give out his name, explained that the idea behind buying the tickets was to get support and commended the spectators for supporting them.
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Lagosians have expressed divergent views over the existence of strip clubs in the state, following P.M.News report on their activities last Friday.
P.M.News had reported that the number of strip clubs in the state is increasing by the day with four of them located on the Opebi-Allen axis alone.
Following the report, the Archbishop of Lagos State, Anthony Cardinal Okogie, lamented that evil has completely taken over Lagos and called on Governor Babatunde Fashola to act immediately to correct the situation by shutting them down.
“Evil has taken over in Lagos State. The way things are going, when girls of between the ages of 15 and 25 dance nude and throw caution to the wind with boys and men watching them, then they are sending a wrong signal to the society. It portends danger. We are sitting on a loaded gun,” said Okogie, in a statement signed by the Director of Social Communications, Lagos State, Reverend Gabriel Osu.
Okogie called on Fashola to act now because the strip clubs are on the increase, while those shut earlier have re-opened with impunity and with a change of name.
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I hope this is not making mockery of Lagos as mega-city, Centre of Fxcellence and City of Aquatic Splendour,” he said.
While many Lagosians backed Okogie’s view, others who reacted on our website www.thepmnews.com or granted us interviews, called on the state governor to simply regulate strip clubs as adult fun is allowed in all mega cities of the world.
“Lagos is a mega city and all over the world, there is room for adult fun in mega cities. These strip clubs are not open to everybody but to adults who pay to enter. Nobody forces them to enter. They willingly pay to enter. I agree that some people may not like it but all over the world, some people will never like some things.
“I think, the state government must regulate the strip clubs. There must be some conditions under which they are allowed to operate. Under-aged girls and boys must not be seen within the vicinity and strip clubs must be located far away from residential areas,” said Ayo who claimed he has lived in Nigeria, Europe and America.
Another reader, Madudu, said: “It’s unfortunate that we quickly swallow negative tendencies from the western societies. While positive attributes such as good governance, hard work, honesty, love, and democracy are relegated. I suggest heavy tax by government to keep in check these aberrations.”
According to Toyin A, “Those rich men that are taking advantage of these young girls beware; you shall reap what you sow one day. If your sons do not marry one of these girls, your daughters will end up becoming one of them.”
“It is not only in Lagos. We have it in Port Harcourt, near the St. John Catholic Church. It happens live and open to the public as you drive through the spot. It is a big shame that the government cannot arrest such a dangerous activity. This is not as a result of unemployment. It is just SIN. The police should make arrests including the proprietors of the Clubs and prosecute them,” said Ochai.
According to Uzezi Jerry, “Reading through the comments on this page, I quickly realised that I am in Nigeria: A land of hypocrites and pretenders. For God’s sake, night clubs are not our problem. They are not the ones who looted our national treasury and left us in penury.
“We should channel our energies into fighting corruption in government, ignorance, religious and ethnic intolerance. These are the problems facing us not adults having consensual sex or fun in a night club.
“The nations of the West have night clubs everywhere but they are closer to God in attitude and behaviour than us; that is why they are more developed than us. Let us stop chasing shadows and face reality.”
Another reader who identified himself as Kabikala simply said : “Hypocrites you all! If you don’t like what they are doing, don’t go there. Let those who like it pay for what they like. How is that a problem of any of you?”
According to Shawnvince, “It is a very welcome development. I was in Nigeria recently and believe the experience and atmosphere was really elecrifying. However, they should try to stop live sex in these clubs, it is not good.”
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Posted by 9jabook.com on November 2, 2009 at 11:16pm
MOST of the major highways in Lagos metropolis and other cities on Sunday, recorded an unusually low vehicular traffic, as fuel scarcity bit harder across the country.
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In Lagos, most fillings stations closed their gates to customers with the few selling recording long queues of motorists.
As usual, illegal petrol hawkers have resurfaced at some strategic locations, some close to the filling stations, where miscreants extort as much as N100 from each motorist before allowing them access to buy fuel.
While the illegal hawkers sold the commodity for N1000 for 10 litres, neighbourhood retailers sold a litre for N104.
There was pandemonium at the Total retail outlet at Ogba, about 2 p.m. when some motorists tried to resist some boys at the College Bus-stop gate end, who insisted on the being tipped before allowing the customers into the filling station. They eventually had their way as the customers paid the N100.
However, most motorists expressed frustration over what they described as an artificial scarcity, alleging that many of the outlets had fuel but refused to open to customers for two days running.
There was palpable fear that the scarcity could worsen today, when most workers are expected to resume for duty after the weekend.
Nigerian Tribune observed that only one out of the 10 filling stations on the Isolo-Ikotun Road offered skeletal service to customers, who spent more than two hours on the queue.
Virtually all the filling stations on Oshodi-Apapa expressway as well as from Anthony to Maryland and Bank-Anthony Way did not open to customers.
But it was a rowdy situation at the two stations on Agege Motor Road in Mushin that sold fuel to customers.
The current fuel scarcity was triggered by speculations that the Federal Government would make good its plan to deregulate the oil sector from November 1 (Sunday).
But the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) have tried to ally public fears on the matter, with the latter warning against the ongoing panic buying of fuel.
The spokesman for the Department of Petroleum Resources, Mr. Paul Osu, told the Nigerian Tribune on Saturady that there was no disruption in supply, as there was fuel in most filling stations.
He said, “ I think people are just scared of possible fuel scarcity because of the Federal Government’s former intention to start deregulation tomorrow. People are just involved in panic buying, we are not really foreseeing any scarcity, I think people just want to be prepared in case of possible scarcity.
Investigations by the Nigerian Tribune also revealed that some filling stations around Ikorodu took advantage of the situation to sell petrol at N80 and above per litre, while some hoarded the product in anticipation of scarcity tomorrow.
People also bought the product in various containers in order to store it in their homes to beat the scarcity.
The NNPC said in October that it had enough fuel that could last for six months should marketers refuse to import.
The spokesman for NNPC was not available for comments when one of our correspondents called him on the phone on Saturday.
As tension continues to mount over the planned deregulation of the downstream of the oil industry by the Federal Government which has led the long queue at filling stations in some part of the country, the Speaker of House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, on Sunday described the government’s position as a challenge Nigerians would have to face.
Bankole in a brief interview with airport journalists on arrival from Johannesburg, South Africa, said the challenge posed by the planned deregulation was a bitter pill Nigerians would have to swallow.
His words: “Well, whether we like it or not, there are some challenges in the oil industry we must face. If we do not face it today, we will have to face it in the future. And the challenge is raising revenue for government, which by extension is for the country, to enable government to develop its many projects accordingly.”
The speaker, who condemned the current panic buying by some people, said it would not bring solution to the problem.
He said the National Assembly would continue to work hard to ensure that those that would be adversely affected by the deregulation were looked out for and looked after.
The Speaker declared: “We have to sit with labour, sit with the executive arm of government, the minister of petroleum, and civil servants as well as other stakeholders to work out a plan to make sure that things at least go on well.”
Asked on how he felt in the two years of his leading the nation’s lower house, the Speaker only said; “we thank God for everything,” as he went straight to board the presidential aircraft which took him to Abuja.
Meanwhile, the price of the product has gone up from N65 per litre to between N100 and N150 litre in some filling stations in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
According to the Nigerian Tribune’s investigation, black marketers have taken over the distribution and supply of fuel in some places visited by our corespondent.
While major marketers are still selling their product at N65 per litre in Abuja metropolis, the Nigerian Tribune investigation showed that some independent marketers sell their product at between N100 and N150 per litre.
In all the fuel stations visited by our correspondent, it was apparent that fuel was being hoarded. Instead of them selling fuel from all the selling points, it was observed that fuel was being dispensed in one or two selling points leading to long queues in all the fuel stations.
A motorist, who simply identified himself as Mr. John, said he had been at the Conoil filling station located on the Airport road since his return from church but could not get fuel as of 5.30 p.m. when he spoke with the Nigerian Tribune.
At Kuje, headquarters of Kuje Local Government Area, black marketers and roadside fuel hawkers were having a field day as only one out of the five fuel stations located in the area had fuel to sell to the people.
The manager of the station, Mr. Musa Haruna, told the Nigerian Tribune that the Federal Government had stopped those who used to supply them fuel from fuel importation in anticipation of the proposed deregulation of the downstream oil sector of the economy.
Because of the limited supply from the NNPC, Haruna said there was no way there would not be fuel scarcity as demand for fuel was now higher than supply.
Though the NNPC is yet to make statement on the latest of scarcity, the Nigerian Tribune source, however, accused the fuel marketers of hoarding, adding that the corporation had enough supply to distribute till the end of the year.
Also, hike in the prizes of petroleum products is still biting hard in Enugu the Enugu State capital, investigation by the Nigerian Tribune has revealed.
While a litre of fuel sells for as much as N90, kerosene is sold at N150 per litre depending on the consumer’s place of residence.
It was learnt that while major marketers are selling a litre of fuel for N65, independent marketers were selling for N80 per litre, making motorists to queue up before can purchasing the product at fuel filling stations owned by independent marketers.
Away far from the state capital, the prizes are higher with a litre of fuel selling for between N90 and N100.
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Oh, what a night !The third edition of the Nigerian Music Video Awards held on Sunday, November 1 at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos, was a night of fun, glitz and glamour. Like most Nigerian events, the CallyVision Networks production took off late, starting at 7.45pm, two hours and 45 minutes behind schedule.After some banter and photo sessions on the green carpet (instead of the traditional red), guests, including Nollywood stars and top musicians made for the beautifully decorated hall. The anchors for the night were Nigezie boss, Femi Adebigbe, aka Kwame, Nollywood actress and singer, Bariyah El James, and comedian, Basket Mouth, who stole the show.The event began with a remix of Banky W's "Don't Break My Heart" sung by a cover band, followed by a rendition of a somewhat Lion King soundtrack-inspired national anthem by Eva Ogoro, much to the delight of the audience, before the NMVA theme song was performed by upcoming acts and female reggae sensation, Nyore.After a few jokes by Basket Mouth, the show kicked off with a screening of a Michael Jackson documentary which featured tributes by industry insiders who extolled Jackson's achievements and expertise in music video production. Afterwards, dance groups - Streethood and Pulse - entertained with MJ-inspired dance routines.Highlights of the night included performances by MI, Djinee, Bracket, Waje, Benita, Wande Coal and Dr. Alban with Charly Boy, whose act elicited more laughter than applause. Raymond Dokpesi, the Daar Communications chairman, was also inducted into the NMVA Hall of Fame. Darey won three Annabels (the award's nickname) for Video of the Year, Best Use of Costume and Best R&B Video, making him the biggest winner in the event. The Mo Hits crew went home with the Best Afro Hip-Hop Video for "Ten Ten" while front man, D'banj, won Best Afro-Pop Video for "Gbona Feli Feli". MI's "Safe", featuring Djinee, earned him the Best Mainstream Hip-Hop Video and Best Special Effects awards.Barring a few hitches, the show was well put together and ranks as the best edition since its inception three years ago.
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Oh, how I crave gold stars. One of my worst qualities is my insatiable need for credit; I always want the recognition, the praise, the gold star stuck on my homework. I struggle to master my need for gold stars, because it makes me a resentful score-keeper.
Several of my resolutions are aimed at this desire, like Don’t expect praise or appreciation and "Do it for myself." One of my Twelve Commandments is "No calculation" – it comes from a quotation from St. Therese of Lisieux, who observed, “When one loves, one does not calculate.”
Nevertheless, for all my efforts, I have to admit that I still crave gold stars. Whether or not I should want them, I do. Here are the strategies I use to try to curb my craving:
1. Do it for yourself. For a long time, I self-righteously told myself that I made certain efforts “for the team.” While this sounded generous, it led to a bad result, because I sulked when my husband or whoever didn’t appreciate my efforts. Now, I tell myself, “I’m doing this for myself. This is what I want.” I want to send out Valentine’s cards. I want to organize the cabinets. This sounds selfish, but in fact, it’s less selfish, because it means I’m not waiting for a gold star. No one else even has to notice what I’ve done.
2. Find ways to reward yourself. Maybe other people aren’t giving you credit, but you can give yourself credit. One reason I love my Resolutions Chart is that I get a little jolt of satisfaction when I reward myself with check-mark next to a resolution. I give myself my own gold stars! (True confession: my need for gold stars is so raw that when I started keeping my Resolutions Chart, I considered buying actual gold-star stickers and literally sticking them on. I didn’t go that far.)
3. Tell people you’d like to get a gold star. Once I acknowledged to myself how much I crave gold stars, I was able to explain that to my family – and sometimes even joke about it. Since then, they’ve all been better about doling them out, because they know how important it is to me. Also, it’s easy for people innocently to overlook contributions you’ve made, and if you give a gentle reminder, they might happily load you with gold stars.
4. Express your appreciation for what other people do. One good rule for happiness is that if you wish people would act a certain way toward you, act that way yourself toward others. If you wish people would be freer with praise and appreciation, make sure you’re ladling it out yourself. Also, when you push yourself to feel grateful for what others are doing, you remind yourself of how much they do for you -- and that eases resentment.
5. Remember that being taken for granted is a form of praise. It’s ironic: the more reliable you are, and the less you complain, the more likely you are to be taken for granted. If you always meet deadlines, if you never lose your temper, if you’re always prepared, people overlook your efforts. Really, that’s a compliment.
* Interested in starting your own Happiness Project ? then email me noelene@systemini.net
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Olympic and world sprint champion Usain Bolt on Monday adopted a cheetah cub in Kenya’s Nairobi National Park.
The head of the Kenya Wildlife Service, Julius Kipng’etich, described the event as “the first time in history where the fastest animal and the fastest man will meet.” Mr. Bolt, who had said previously he was scared of cheetahs as they could out-run him, said he changed his mind as he bottle-fed the two-month-old cub over his shoulder.
Cheetahs are some of the world’s fastest and most skilled predators, able to reach speeds of up to 112 km (70 miles) per hour. The Jamaican sprinter’s new cub has been named Lightning Bolt.
Mr. Bolt was accompanied by Welsh hurdler, Colin Jackson, who adopted an eland, and Kenyan Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, who has previously adopted two lions.
Mr. Odinga used the occasion to remind Kenyans that it was their “civic duty” to preserve the country’s diverse wildlife, not just for tourism, but for future generations.
He described the event as a “refreshing” opportunity to talk about sport and wildlife conservation rather than politics, in a country that has faced huge political challenges in recent years.
Mr. Bolt has been touring Kenya since last Friday as a sports ambassador for The Zeitz Foundation of Germany.
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I feel very fortunate that I met the perfect guy for me, but I have to admit that I do get really jealous of my single girlfriends when I hear about their dating adventures (even the bad ones!). Is that weird?
When I was dating, I didn't fully appreciate that nervous energy you get before you meet someone new, and I miss it. Sometimes when my friends are giving me a play-by-play of their dating adventures, I wish I could trade places with them for just one night to experience that rush again.
When I read about my girlfriends going on a date with her husband of eight years and feeling butterflies, I couldn't help but smile. That's the feeling I miss. Maybe I just need to make Ifeoma institute a monthly date night to let me experience that energy again!
Do you ever feel jealous of your single girlfriends when they go on dates? Ever wish you could trade places with them, even for one night? Or are you thrilled that you met "the one" so that you never have to go on another date again?
P.S. Who's your favorite fictional single gal? What's the sweetest thing a guy ever did for you on a first date? And what do you always do on or before a first date?
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Posted by OBAJE AFREECA on November 2, 2009 at 9:09am
By Dr. Maoshing NiSoda, pop, cola, soft drink — whatever you call it, it is one of the worst beverages that you could be drinking for your health. As the debate for whether to put a tax on the sale of soft drinks continues, you should know how they affect your body so that you can make an informed choice on your own.Soft drinks are hard on your healthSoft drinks contain little to no vitamins or other essential nutrients. However, it is what they do contain that is the problem: caffeine, carbonation, simple sugars — or worse, sugar substitutes — and often food additives such as artificial coloring, flavoring, and preservatives.A lot of research has found that consumption of soft drinks in high quantity, especially by children, is responsible for many health problems that include tooth decay, nutritional depletion, obesity, type-2 diabetes, and heart diseaseWhy the sugar in soft drinks isn’t so sweetMost soft drinks contain a high amount of simple sugars. The USDA recommendation of sugar consumption for a 2,000-calorie diet is a daily allotment of 10 teaspoons of added sugars. Many soft drinks contain more than this amount!Just why is too much sugar so unhealthy? Well, to start, let's talk about what happens to you as sugar enters your body. When you drink sodas that are packed with simple sugars, the pancreas is called upon to produce and release insulin, a hormone that empties the sugar in your blood stream into all the tissues and cells for usage. The result of overindulging in simple sugar is raised insulin levels. Raised blood insulin levels beyond the norm can lead to depression of the immune system, which in turn weakens your ability to fight disease.Something else to consider is that most of the excess sugar ends up being stored as fat in your body, which results in weight gain and elevates risk for heart disease and cancer. One study found that when subjects were givenrefined sugar, their white blood cell count decreased significantly for several hours afterwards. Another study discovered that rats fed a high-sugar diet had a substantially elevated rate of breast cancer when compared to rats on a regular diet.The health effects of diet sodaYou may come to the conclusion that diet or sugar-free soda is a better choice. However, one study discovered that drinking one or more soft drinks a day — and it didn’t matter whether it was diet or regular — led to a 30% greater chance of weight gain around the belly.Diet soda is filled with artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, sucralose, or saccharin. These artificial sweeteners pose a threat to your health. Saccharin, for instance, has been found to be carcinogenic, and studies have found that it produced bladder cancer in rats.Aspartame, commonly known as nutrasweet, is a chemical that stimulates the brain to think the food is sweet. It breaks down into acpartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol at a temperature of 86 degrees. (Remember, your stomach is somewhere around 98 degrees.) An article put out by the University of Texas found that aspartame has been linked to obesity. The process of stimulating the brain causes more cravings for sweets and leads to carbohydrate loading.Carbonation depletes calciumBeverages with bubbles contain phosphoric acid, which can severely deplete the blood calcium levels; calcium is a key component of the bone matrix. With less concentration of calcium over a long time, it can lower deposition rates so that bone mass and density suffer. This means that drinking sodas and carbonated water increases your risk of osteoporosis.Add in the caffeine usually present in soft drinks, and you are in for even more trouble. Caffeine can deplete the body’s calcium, in addition to stimulating your central nervous system and contributing to stress, a racing mind, and insomnia.Skip the soda and go for:• Fresh waterWater is a vital beverage for good health. Each and every cell needs water to perform its essential functions. Since studies show that tap water is filled with contaminants, antibiotics, and a number of other unhealthy substances, consider investing in a quality carbon-based filter for your tap water. To find out more about a high-performance filtration system, click here.On the go? Try using a stainless steel thermos or glass bottle, filled with filtered water. Enhance the flavor of your water with a refreshing infusion of basil, mint leaves, and a drop of honey.• Fruit JuiceIf you are a juice drinker, try watering down your juice to cut back on the sugar content. Buy a jar of organic 100% juice, especially cranberry, acai, pomegranate, and then dilute three parts filtered water to one part juice. You will get a subtle sweet taste and the benefit of antioxidants. After a couple of weeks, you will no longer miss the sweetness of sugary concentrated juices.• TeaTea gently lifts your energy and has numerous health benefits. Black, green, white, and oolong teas all contain antioxidant polyphenols. In fact, tea ranks as high or higher than many fruits and vegetables on the ORAC scale, the score that measures antioxidant potential of plant-based foods.Herbal tea does not have the same antioxidant properties, though it is still a great beverage choice with other health benefits, such as inducing calming and relaxing effects.If tea doesn’t satisfy your sweet tooth, try adding cinnamon or a little honey, which has important health benefits that refined sugar lacks. For a selection of healthy teas that promote total body wellness, click here. Drink up!I hope you find the ways and means to avoid soft drinks. I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.May you live long, live strong, and live happy!--Dr. Mao.
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Posted by Jane Okinedo on November 2, 2009 at 3:22am
There are worrying indications that Nigeria’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote is facing a financial tempest that has pushed the Forbes-listed billionaire on the brink of bankruptcy as his financial empire suffocates under the weight of crumbling debt and mismanagement.Forbes magazine reported that Aliko Dangote, whose net worth was estimated at $2.5 billion, is in debt to the tune of over $1.7 billion and facing insolvency as the global financial meltdown hits the Nigerian economy. To weather what appears to be the perfect storm, Huhuonline.com has learnt from close sources that the Dangote group of companies will undertake a massive down-sizing exercise that will involve as many as over 3000 lay-offs.It was unclear when or where the lay-offs will occur, but a senior employee at the Dangote group told Huhuonline.com that the “right-sizing” exercise will cut across the board of companies which include: Dan sugar, Dan salt, Dan Flour, Benue Cement, Chevron Texaco amongst others. The Nigerian cement king was among dozens of to business executives singled out by Nigeria's central bank, in its published list of recalcitrant debtors, who have been told to pay up or face arrest and possible assets seizure. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is also looking into recovering the loans.Loans related to Dangote-owned companies so far appear to have amounted to hundreds of millions of dollars and counting as Dangote continues to expand his cement operations with new plants in Nigeria as well as South Africa, Ethiopia, Senegal and Zambia. The Dangote group recently signed two agreements worth $228 million with the Chinese group Sinoma International Engineering.The first contract involves its subsidiary Dangote Industries Senegal SA and covers construction of a new production plant near Dakar with capacity of 3,000 tonnes per day. The deal is worth $144 million. Under the second contract, for the same amount, Dangote Industries Zambia Ltd will build a similarly sized cement plant in Zambia. Along with the second project, roughly another $324 million will be invested in infrastructure, which will be handled by sub-contractors.Nigerian Central Bank sources told Huhuonline.com that part of this expansion by the Dangote group has been funded with debt financing from Nigerian banks reportedly to the tune of $1 billion and some of these assets may potentially be in trouble. The Dangote group is also interested in mining ore: in particular it has positioned itself to obtain coal mining permits in Nigeria, according to sources.The unsettling revelations about Aliko Dangote’s financial meltdown was predictable after Huhuonline.com reported an unending wave of mass exodus of several top management staff who resigned their positions from the Dangote group amid speculations that Dangote’s black-box like financial empire will explode in a wave of financial mismanagement and accounting scandals.Dangote has enjoyed cozy relations with powerful politicians and was closely linked to former president Olusegun Obasanjo. He sits on various government and quasi-government bodies, including the Nigeria Stock Exchange, (NSE) where he was unanimously elected president through a shoddy process of horse-trading and clunker philandering which also saw Erastus Akingbola, then Group Chief Executive of Intercontinental Bank, elected NSE 1st vice-president.Dangote has been at odds with Akingbola after Intercontinental Bank Plc, petitioned President Yar'adua asking for his intervention to help compel a "debt cabal" led by Dangote to re-pay the loans owed Intercontinental Bank. In the petition sent on its behalf by A.O.S Practice, a firm of legal practitioners, and dated August 5, 2009, Intercontinental described Dangote as a loan defaulter and “rabid debtor” who was being daily serenaded in the media as an affluent Nigerian. A look at the three Dangote companies indebted to Intercontinental Bank as contained in the said petition showed that their cumulative debt profile stood at about N35.8 billion.Intercontinental said: "To proceed to sue these institutions as ordinary legal dictates would suggest, is to get bogged down with the legal technicalities and slow pace of the adversarial practice of our judicial system, which these cabal would engage to wear us down.”Recall that Erastus Akingbola was among the five managers of Nigeria's largest banks -Intercontinental, Oceanic, Afribank, Finbank and Union - who were sacked by CBN Governor Lamido Sanusi, and government bailout funds extended to their banks to keep them solvent .While Erastus Akingbola remains on “health exile” in London, all the bank managers have been arrested and face prosecution for corporate governance malpractices, lax credit administration processes and the absence or non-adherence to credit risk management practices. Only time will tell whether Aliko Dangote will weather the storm and rescue his financial empire from total collapse.
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Posted by EDOFEST 2009 on November 1, 2009 at 8:53pm
TWENTY FOUR years after the then Bendel State hosted the last festival of arts and culture, Edo State government has disclosed that plans were at advanced stage to host the first Edo Festival of Arts and Culture, tagged Edo-FEST 2009, on Private Public Partnership Initiative (PPPI) basis in November 2009. The state Commissioner for Arts, Culture and Tourism, Honorable Vincent Akhere, who stood in for the state governor, Adams Oshiomhole, said the festival would be a prelude to series of programmes aimed at reviving the state’s lost glory in the area of arts and culture. Honorable Akhere said that Comrade Oshiomhole was very desirous of reviving the cultural heritage of Edo people to ensure that the state remained the cultural destination of Nigeria, adding to this end, the state government wants to collaborate with the private sector in the organization of the festival. Would be sponsors of the festival, it was further gathered, would be given incentives and other benefits.Consequent upon this, it was learnt that commercial banks and multinational companies are already rushing to be part of the event. Notable artists from Edo State like Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen, Alex Usifo, Sam Loco Efe, Sir Victor Uwaifo, and others within the country would grace the occasion.
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Posted by 9jabook.com on October 31, 2009 at 9:00am
His ebony skin stood out in sharp contrast to the white crowd pressing to get a better view.
The young African boy bared his teeth at the men and women staring at him through the bars. They were sharpened into dagger-like points, making him appear all the more barbaric to the ignorant hordes.
Above the cage hung a sign proclaiming: 'The Missing Link.' A baby chimp sat disconsolately at the bottom of the enclosure, a single companion to the boy.
Exploited: Pygmy Ota Benga on display with monkeys at Bronx Zoo in 1906
The year was 1906. This was a pygmy, brought to America as a novelty to be put on display in the monkey house.
The New York Times reported: 'There were 40,000 visitors to the park on Sunday. Nearly every man, woman and child of this crowd made for the monkey house to see the star attraction in the park - the wild man from Africa.
'They chased him about the grounds all day, howling, jeering, and yelling. Some of them poked him in the ribs, others tripped him up, all laughed at him.'
Suddenly, the boy turned. Taking the bow and arrow given to him as an ethnic accessory, he shot at the gawpers. His arrow did no harm, but he did scare the life out of the onlookers.
This was Ota Benga, a pygmy, brought from the Congo and put on display in a zoo as an example of what scientists at the time proclaimed to be an evolutionary inferior race.
His story would divide a nation, and is now told for the first time in a new documentary, The Human Zoo.
The programme lifts the lid on a dark period in history, where 'natives' were paraded as exhibits, fuelling the spread of white supremacism and even contributing to the rise of Nazism.
Tragically, Benga became the victim of one of the most awful acts of exploitation ever seen and died a shadow of the proud young tribesman who arrived in America.
So just who was he, and how did this grotesque experiment help shape the 20th century view of race?
A hundred years ago, before television and mass tourism, a handful of enterprising adventurers, anthropologists and businessman decided to bring the far-flung glories of the world to life in one place.
Huge fairs were held in Paris, London and America, exhibiting everything from Italian gondolas to African elephants.
Having promised the world, there was pressure to deliver: people were the next quarry.
In 1904, the showman anthropologist William McGee conceived the idea of a human zoo, to be held in St Louis in the U.S. state of Missouri.
It was designed to be one of the largest scientific experiments ever undertaken and would be spectacular public entertainment.
McGee wanted the tallest people in the world, veritable giants from Patagonia, at the tip of South America. He wanted the Ainu, who lived on an island north of Japan and were supposedly the hairiest humans. He placed an order for 300 Filipinos - there is no record of why he wanted so many.
His grandson, Phillips Verner Bradford, says: 'If you told him that a place was dangerous, he'd say: "I want to go there!" He was that sort of guy.'
Verner took a boat from New York to London, down the European coast and around Africa to the Congo River.
Bradford says: 'He made his way up the Congo River with steamers as far as they would go. Once he arrived at the great waterfalls, he had to hire a crew of natives.'
They encountered crocodiles and hippopotamuses, and deadly whirlpools that could sink a boat.
Eventually, Verner made it into the jungle. He blithely walked into a village of cannibals, and found that they had captured a rival tribe who were being held in cages, ready to be eaten.
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The final proof? Memoirs that may show Hitler DID order the 'final solution' to be published after his right-hand man dies
To his delight, the prisoners were pygmies, or Mbuti - just what he was looking for. He began negotiating. Talking to the pygmies in their native Chiluba, he established that they would rather be taken to America than eaten. He bought six pygmies from their captors for a roll of brass wire and some salt.
One pygmy stood out. He was Ota. Photos of him taken in the Congo show a playful, chubby young man, a broad smile revealing his sharpened teeth, which were filed in his youth.
He looks healthy, spirited and full of life, standing around 4ft 8in tall.
He had never seen a white man before. Verner realised that he had a hugely marketable proposition on his hands, and made the return trip across the Atlantic with his human treasure.
For their part, the pygmies were intrigued by everything they saw and were full of questions: how did the boat work? Was there a cage of hippopotamuses down beneath pedalling it along? Verner showed them how the steam engine functioned.
Docking at New Orleans in June 1904, the Africans caught their first glimpse of America. They were stunned by the tall buildings and wide streets.
The six pygmies were sent to St Louis by rail. There, they became McGee's most important exhibits, the centerpiece of the St Louis World Fair, feted by society and academics alike.
Adverts proclaimed: 'They live in forests, they are extremely shy. They eat the flesh of wild animals killed with poisoned arrows. They are cruel, finding delight in torturing animals.
'They have long heads, long narrow faces and little red eyes, set close together like those of ferrets. Their bodies are exceptionally hairy.
'A pygmy has been known to eat 60 bananas at one meal, in addition to other food, and then ask for more.
'They seem to be controlled by an impulse that makes them delight in wickedness. If caught young, they are said to make excellent servants.'
Scientific racism: Ota Benga's Bronx Zoo captors had an admirer in Hitler
He wanted what he considered the most primitive American Indian tribe, the Cocopah in Mexico. He asked for Eskimos.
But most of all, he wanted the smallest people in the world. He needed pygmies. He had heard that they were very short and very black, and he had to have one.
Explorer Samuel Phillips Verner was dispatched by McGee to the Belgian Congo with a shopping list.
It read: 'One pygmy patriarch or chief. One adult woman, preferably his wife. One adult man, preferably his son. One adult woman, the wife of the last or daughter of the first. One female youth unmarried. Two infants. A priestess and a priest, or medicine doctors, preferably old. All of the above to be pygmies.'
Duly detailed, Verner set off for deepest Africa. He knew that this operation could be the making of him, putting him in the same league as Henry Stanley and Dr David Livingstone.
As the sales pitch shows, the human zoo played into the hands of white supremacists, teaching the public that there was a hierarchy of races, with the white man at the top and all others beneath.
McGee himself, in his book The Trend Of Human Progress, published in 1899, wrote: 'Those who know the races realise that the average white man is stronger of limb, fleeter of foot, clearer of eye, than the average yellow or red or black.'
Bastardising Darwin's theory of evolution, McGee saw each race as a stage in human evolution - with pygmies the least evolved of the species. With his rudimentary Victorian understanding of science, he believed they were the living missing link between apes and humans.
The human zoo was a fantastic success - and widely copied. Dr Sadiah Qureshi, a historian at the University of Cambridge, says: 'Millions of people went to see these shows at their peak. Originally you would get a show in a local theatre. By the late 19th century you would see hundreds, if not a couple of thousand people living on site, eating and on constant display.'
Indeed, some years later, in 1924, King George V and Queen Mary inspected the live exhibits at the British Empire Exhibition, at Wembley. Some Europeans' curiosity knew no bounds, however.
Qureshi says: 'The 1899 exhibition Savage South Africa held at Earl's Court in London caused quite a stir. At one point women were banned from going inside because they had supposedly been touching the natives.' For almost
a year, Ota and the other pygmies lived in America as human exhibits. They were made to build native houses, perform traditional dance ceremonies, live partially naked and cook authentic food.
Ota was described in the press as 'a dwarfy, black specimen of sad-eyed humanity'. With his filed tribal teeth, he was the most celebrated pygmy and dubbed 'Lord of the savage world'. He posed for photographs for 25 cents.
In 1905, after they had been viewed by a total of 20 million people, Verner took the pygmies home to the Congo.
Ota had planned to rejoin his tribe - but discovered that they had been entirely wiped out by Belgian soldiers. He married a girl from the nearby Batwa tribe, and appeared to settle back into life in Africa.
Then his wife was bitten by a poisonous snake and died. The Batwa rejected him, believing he was cursed and responsible for the young woman's death. Ota was cast adrift, a stranger in his own land.
He begged his friend Verner to take him back to America. Verner was reluctant, but eventually acquiesced, taking him to New York.
The pair shared the 3,000-mile sea voyage with crates of live animals, parrots, monkeys, snakes and other exotic booty, which Verner planned to sell in America. On the ship, Ota discovered cigarettes and drink.
Arriving in New York, Verner - who had business to do - bade him farewell, arranging accommodation in a spare room - this time he was not on show - at the American Museum of Natural History. There, he thought Ota would be safe.
Soon, however, he came to the attention of William Hornaday, a conservationist and director of the Bronx Zoo.
Collaborating with one of America's most notorious racists, Madison Grant, he conceived a plan.
Grant wanted to promote 'scientific racism', talking in terms of 'purity of type', and the survival of the white master race.
In 1930, after his work The Passing Of The Great Race was translated into German, Grant received a letter from an aspiring politician, saying 'your book is my bible'.
The man was Adolf Hitler. He would indeed use 'scientific racism' as the foundation for the Third Reich, giving academic grounding to the Holocaust.
Together, Hornaday and Grant offered to take charge of Ota Benga, who initially believed he would be looking after the Bronx Zoo's elephants.
In fact, he was going to be put on public display as a living example of 'racial inferiority'. Immediately, the exhibition prompted criticism. The New York Times reported on September 9, 1906: 'The exhibition was that of a human being in a monkey cage. A human being. In a monkey cage.
'The human being happened to be a Bushman, one of a race that scientists do not rate high in the human scale, but to the average nonscientific person in the crowd of sightseers there was something about the display that was unpleasant.
'It is probably a good thing that Benga doesn't think very deeply. If he did it isn't likely that he was very proud of himself when he woke in the morning and found himself under the same roof with the orang-utans and monkeys, for that is where he really is.'
The exhibition was a sensation. On a single day, 40,000 people arrived to see Ota and his chimp. The show lasted only two weeks, however, due to a public outcry, and human zoos as a phenomenon died out by the Forties.
So what became of Ota Benga? After he was removed from the Bronx Zoo, there was great debate regarding his fate. African-American church ministers insisted he be released - not for his comfort, but because they wanted to convert the pygmy to Christianity.
He was eventually placed in an orphanage for black children, the Howard Colored Orphan Asylum, to be 'civilised'. He was dressed in Western clothes and taught how to eat, talk and behave like an American.
He had his pointed teeth capped and attended a Baptist seminary, where he started to study English.
He was kept out of the public eye for four years. Eventually, he moved from New York to the backwater town of Lynchburg, Virginia, where he became a local curiosity and was known as Otto Bingo.
Forevermore haunted by his time in the monkey cage, he would repeatedly slap his chest, declaring: 'I am a man. I am a man.'
He began to save money to return to the Congo, working in a tobacco factory. With the outbreak of World War I, this became impossible and Ota sunk into depression.
He never did make it home. One evening, he went into a barn behind the village general store. He chipped off the caps hiding his teeth, restoring them to their filed-down glory, lit a small ceremonial campfire, and shot himself in the head, dying ten years after being put on display at the Bronx zoo. He was 32 years old.
His story now bears testament to the ignorance of those who believed themselves superior to him.
He was buried in an unmarked grave, but he left his mark on the world, exposing as moral pygmies the lesser men who would cage a human.
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Nigeria defeats Argentina 2-1, wins Group A, advances to Second RoundAfter going a goal down early against Argentina in their final Group A game in Bauchi, hosts and holders Nigeria stormed back to win 2-1 and book their place in the knockout stages as section winners. Argentina, who went into the game already assured of qualification, will have to settle for second place.Omo Ojabu (r) celebrates with his team mates after scoring team's first goal during the FIFA U-17 World Cup Group A match against Argentina in Bauchi on October 30, 2009.(Photo by Joem Polles - FIFA)advertisementNigeria's first game away from the capital began at a torrid pace. Barely had two minutes ticked off the clock than the Argentine guests - already assured of a place in the knockout rounds and with many changes in the squad - offered their hosts no favours by scoring the opener. After quite a nice build-up, Esteban Orfano took control of the ball, burst into the area and slammed a left-footer home to stunned silence from the home crowd.The Bauchi faithful didn't have long to wait for their beloved Golden Eaglets to draw level when, in the fifth minute, a corner kick was flicked on expertly at the near post by Kenneth Omeruo, for Omoh Ojabu to push home from six yards out.The game began to calm down a bit after the madcap start, with both sides settling into their rhythm. The hosts were hampered when scorer Ojabu injured his knee and needed to be replaced in the in the 31st minute, Sani Emmanuel replacing him. The new man missed a golden chance to score just two minutes after coming on. Damian Martinez spilled a shot from distance, but Emmanuel somehow conspired to chip his rebound from six yards over the bar with the goal at his mercy. Shortly after, the Argentine keeper was at work again when he pushed Ramon Azeez's dangerous snap shot from 30 yards around the post.The Nigerians began the second half hunting a winner and putting Argentina on the back foot. Finally, after multiple waves of attack, they got the breakthrough they needed when Federico Rasmussen hauled down Olarenwaju Kayode in the penalty area. Substitute Emmanuel, of all people, stepped up bravely to make amends for his profligate earlier miss to hammer home a perfect penalty and make it 2-1 for the hosts.With seven points from their three Group A games, Nigeria are through to the knockout stages as first-place in the section. Argentina finish second with six points, while Germany, who beat Honduras in their game in Abuja, will have to wait and see if their four points are enough to see them through as one of the top third-place finishers.
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Posted by 9jabook.com on October 31, 2009 at 6:06am
National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has sealed off a popular fast food outfit, Sweet Sensation Confectioneries, for operating under a condition considered inimical to the health of the public Director General of the agency, Dr. Paul Orhii, who revealed this at a press conference yesterday, said the eatery located at 14, Town Planning way, Ilupeju, Lagos, was operating under very unhygienic conditions.
Speaking on how the closure was carried out, Orhii said a team of NAFDAC inspectors met with officials of the company who conducted them round the entire premises ‘’it was shocking for the inspectors to discover that the source of water of the eatery was a borehole located close to an underground concrete sewage without proper treatment”.
“Not only that, the storage condition of the ready food for eating was inadequate, while the company uses a ceramic bath tub for mixing dough for their pastries.
He also added that the company’s kitchen windows and doors were not netted to protect the premises from pests such as rats, cockroaches and flies.
The general sanitation of the premises was said to be appealing, as plates were said to be stored close to the open drains and exposed to microbial contamination, which could lead to food poisoning leading to stomach-ache, diarrhea and vomiting.
The agency warns that the inspection of food joints in the country continues and any company found wanting would be penalized accordingly.
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resurrected by Tony Award winning director, Bill T. Jones in a manner that makes the legend more accessible to Western audiences. For those who are unacquainted with his music or reputation for being a thorn in the flesh of military rulers and despots in Africa and around the world, this production does a lot to educate while entertaining with memorable beats and the signatory blare of the saxophone.Fela! takes the audience into the legendary nightclub “African Shrine” where the musical icon and political activist played for several years, perfecting his music and criticism of the military junta in his homeland. A biography ensues as Fela takes the crowd through his life story, his relationship with his mother, his rebellion against zombie soldiers and the origin of his style of music, Afro-beat. The performance is quite interactive with the hip-gyrating dancers filing through the theatre and Fela’s insistence of crowd participation. Brooklyn-based Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra, who has been performing Fela’s music since his death in 1997, also does not disappoint.Fela! is an explosive, awe-inspiring show and perhaps the best and most original part of the production is when it explores the relationship between the musician and his accomplished mother with a backdrop of African rituals and egungun spirits. It is not too often that a musical depicting an African character makes it to Broadway and Anikulapo-Kuti comes across as a champion for the rights of his people, music as his weapon, fighting till the very end.-- Osahon Akpata (Monday, Oct. 19, 2009)Fela!, Contains spirituality and brief smoking. In English, Pidgin English and Yoruba with subtitles. At the Eugene O’Neil Theatre in previews with the official opening date set for November 23rd, 2009.
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The Sudanese government has apologised to Nigerians and the Senate President, David Mark, for shutting its airport in Khartoum against him and his entourage on Monday.
The United Nations (UN) and the African Union (AU) have also apologised to the Nigerian government over the incident.
In separate apologies, the Sudanese government and the two international unions said investigation has begun into the circumstances that led to the “mishap.” Ghazi Salahudin Atabani, the majority leader of the Sudanese parliament and the representative of the Sudanese president said: “We apologize for this mishap; the Sudanese government is embarrassed because it was not intended.” The Presidential aircraft conveying Mr. Mark and other senators who were going to visit Nigerian troops on peace mission in the war ravaged Sudan were refused landing at the Khartoum Airport on Monday, forcing the pilot to return to Abuja.
According to Mr. Atabani, “The incident was caused by communication gap, because for some time now, the Khartoum airport runway has been undergoing repairs between 8:00am and 3:00pm. However, the incident is regrettable.”
Mr. Mark, however, said the incident “is totally unacceptable to Nigeria. We feel extremely disappointed over the incident because it was a scheduled visit.” Ibrahim Idah (PDP Katsina State) and chairman senate committee on defence and a member of the delegation said that back, the Sudanese government closed the airport to international flights, with the full knowledge of their visit.
He added that the Sudanese government contacted the presidential pilot conveying the Nigerian envoy through the Chadian airport authorities that they will not be able to land in Khartoum.
“The delegation already entered the Sudanese airspace then.” Mr. Idah explained.
He added that efforts made to reach the Sudanese authorities to clarify their position failed, as the airport authorities bluffed their calls and that even the Nigerian ambassador in Sudan was unaware of the repairs at the airport.
More apologies
The head of the Joint African Union and the United Nations Hybrid Operations in Darfur, Henry Abyidoho, was also part of the fence mending envoy seeking to pacify the Senate president.
However, Mark told him, “I have noted your apology and hoped that the incident will be looked into. We have reported the matter to our Foreign Affairs Ministry. We believe that without peace, there can be no democracy in Africa. We hope that the incident will not mar the relationship between both countries,” the Senate president added.
The Sudanese president Omar B ashir was originally scheduled to visit Nigeria on Thursday before local and international calls for his arrest forced him to cancel the trip. Mr Bashir is wanted by the Inter national Criminal Court for his role in the ge nocide at the Darfur region of Sudan.
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Nigeria's Kachi Ozumba has been named as the winner of the Africa regional prize of the 2009 Commonwealth short story competition. His story, "The One-armed Thief", was adjudged as the best from the region in the yearly competition. Three other Nigerians were named in the "Highly Commended" category. They are Ayobami Adebayo for his story "Dreams"; Akinwumi Akinwale for "LIFO" and Mbofung Carlang for "The Father's blessings".
The overall prize was won by Jennifer Moore from the United Kindom. The Commonwealth Broadcasting Association, the organiser of the competition, describes her winning story "Table Talk" as "a witty and poignant conversation about life and death". Moore's winning story was the best story from the Canada and Europe region before winning the overall prize.
The winners were chosen from about 4000 entries sent in from all Commonwealth countries.
Since its establishment in 1996, the Commonwealth Short Story competition is open to writers from Commonwealth member-countries and continues to promote new voices in creative writing.Read more…
Posted by Politics X on October 29, 2009 at 6:46pm
Oil major, Royal Dutch Shell Plc, said it is cutting 5,000 jobs to deal with the harsh economic environment.The cut is part of a larger "Transition 2009" restructuring programme. It envisages that 10 per cent of the company's 102,500 global workforce will be affected."We continue to focus on improving our competitive cost position, simplifying Shell, and increasing personal accountabilities. The Transition 2009 programme, which I announced earlier this year, is progressing well, and will be completed by the end of 2009. Some 5,000 employees are leaving Shell as a result of these changes. This represents around 10 per cent reduction in employees in the redesigned divisions and corporate functions," Peter Voser, Shell's new chief executive said in a statement on the company's website.Peter Voser Shell's new CEOImpact on Nigerian personnelBut it still remains unclear how much the job cuts will affect Shell Nigeria operations. Shell spokesperson in the country was yet to respond to enquiries about the impact of this on the local workforce as at press time.More than a thousand Shell workers in Nigeria have lost their jobs since the violence orchestrated by militants against the oil industry escalated in 2006. The company is worst hit by the militants' assault. The oil giant's onshore output currently stands at 120,000 barrels per day, down from about 300,000 barrels per day before the violence increased in the Niger Delta.Global operationsThe Anglo-Dutch oil giant reported that its quarterly profit fell sharply, and warns that the outlook remains "very uncertain".The company said profit for the three months to September, fell 73 per cent to $3 billion compared to $8.45 billion in the same period of last year.Shell said its oil and gas production for the third quarter was 2.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, similar to the same quarter last year.Excluding one-off and non-cash items, the result was $2.62 billion, slightly ahead of an average forecast of $2.55 billion according a Reuters poll of eight analysts."We see some indications that energy demand and pricing are improving, but the outlook remains very uncertain, and we are not expecting a quick recovery," Mr. Voser said on Thursday, in a statement.The results and pessimistic outlook contrast with third quarter earnings from London-based international oil company, BP Plc, which smashed forecasts by 50 per cent, lifting sector shares on Tuesday, on hopes the industry would weather the economic slump better than expected.They also follow renewed fears the global economic recovery may be more protracted than some had thought, a factor which weighed on crude prices on Thursday.Shell's London-listed A shares traded down 3.0 per cent at 1,853 pence early Thursday, while Eni's shares dropped 3.1 per cent to 17.02 Euros against a 1.0 per cent drop in the DJ Stoxx European oil and gas sector index.The same for EniItalian oil giant, Eni, also warned of a slow recovery, highlighting weak energy demand and operational challenges, as their profits slumped.The Milan-based Eni predicted European demand for natural gas and fuels will continue to shrink, and said it is cutting its production target for the year.Eni's third-quarter adjusted net profit, which also strips out inventory gains and non-operating items, fell 60.5 per cent to 1.15 billion Euros.
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Posted by 9jabook.com on October 29, 2009 at 6:30pm
"It is vey pathetic that law makers would call for robbers to cease operations whilst the under 17 world cup is going on in Nigeria so that foreigners don't have a bad impression of Nigeria, how ludicrous. People like the Hon member Edward Ayo Odugbesan , represent the decay that is in our nation and has permeated all sphere of socio-political and economic fabric. What utter rubbish. what about the lives of thousands of Nigerians that are lost every year because of armed robbery and a very ineffective government that cannot provide security for its citizen. To even have the temerity to suggest they can continue after is enough grounds for him to lose his seat. What hope is there for our nation if people like this seat as law makers over us ?"
The Ogun State House of Assembly on Wednesday appealed to armed robbers operating in the state and neighbouring ones to suspend their activities in the light of the junior World Cup going on in the country.
The Assembly reminded the robbers that any of their operations during the period of the tournament will give the country a bad name, as several foreign visitors are in the country now. Ogun is one of the states hosting teams in the competition.
The lawmakers agreed to beg the bandits during deliberations on the floor of the House, at their Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta complex. A member, Edward Ayo Odugbesan had raised an alarm that the Isheri bridge, which links Ogun with Lagos State, has become a den of bandits.
Mr. Odugbesan said there is a need for the men of the underworld to suspend their operations in the interim, because of the on-going mundial. The Ijebu-Ode International Stadium is one of the centres being used for the competition.
"I want to appeal to the men of the underworld to suspend their actions and operations in the interim because of our foreign visitors currently in the state," he said. "Then they can resume thereafter, because there is nowhere in the world where robbers and robberies could be stopped from their work." He then called on his colleagues to support his call on the armed bandits to soft-pedal because the situation is becoming worrisome. "If foreigners witness the robbers' attacks at this point, it would send a bad signal to other nations," he said.
Police wake up
Reacting to Mr. Odugbesan's call, the Speaker, Tunji Egbetokun, called on the police leadership to intensify efforts in ensuring that security is maintained in the state. "I want to use the opportunity to call on the police to intensify efforts in checkmating criminals. They should please not relent in the efforts," he said. In a related development, the Assembly ordered the head of the Local Government Administration of Obafemi-Owode to appear before it next Wednesday for clarification on the budget and expenditure of the council.
The local government official was said to have dodged previous invitations over the past three months - a development which the Assembly faulted at its session yesterday. The lawmakers, therefore, directed the Clerk of the House, Demola Badejo, to write the official on the matter and direct him to report before it.
We regret that as at press Time The Chairman of The Robbers Association of Nigeria, Ogun State chapter could not be reached for comments .
O What a Gun filled State ! O GUN !
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