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The World's Most Powerful Women

Posted by 9jabook.com webmadam on August 20, 2009 at 3:44am

Francesca Donner, 08.19.09, 06:00 PM EDT Women are making waves in business, politics and nonprofits around the world. Their influence is growing Forbes' Power Women list isn't about celebrity or popularity; it's about influence. Queen Rania of Jordan (No. 75), for instance, is perhaps the most listened-to woman in the Middle East; her Twitter feed has 600,000 followers. In assembling the list, Forbes looked for women who run countries, big companies or influential nonprofits. Their rankings are a combination of two scores: visibility--by press mentions--and the size of the organization or country these women lead. At No. 1, for the fourth consecutive year, is German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Up for reelection this September, she is leader of the world's fourth-largest economy. She faces a tough year: Germany's GDP is expected to shrink this year despite a small uptick in the second quarter.

FULL TIME HOUSE WIFE VS CAREER WIFE

Posted by 9jabook.com on August 20, 2009 at 12:56am

WHICH DO U PREFER??? Fortunately or Unfortunately its the reality of our time...

FULL TIME HOUSE WIFE VS CAREER WIFE

House Wife: Welcome Dear, how was the office today? Husband : Fine o jare. How are my kids? House Wife: They are asleep already. Change your clothes while I get your bath water ready. (10 minutes later) House Wife: Dinner is ready oooooooo. (She sit down and watch the husband eat, waiting for compliment). House Wife: The landlord was here today. Husband: (stop eating) for what again? I have paid the house rent ke! House Wife: He brought the bills for PHCN, LAWMA, Security, Water and Sanitation. Iya Agba too phoned that she needs money for that medicine we promised her last month. Mama Kemi brought the Ankara material for her father’s burial. Its N5,000 for 6 yards. We don’t seem to have enough foodstuffs again ooooooooo. Husband: (Grunts) House Wife: Ehen, you promised to give me the money for my cream yesterday. Junior’s food is finished oooooooooooo. I want to do my hair tomorrow ooooooooooo to enable me attend Iya Kofo daughter’s naming ceremony. I will need some pocket money as well. Even though I don’t have a shoe that will match the colour of the lace material, I will manage the black one any way. Husband: (begin to cough) House wife: Oh Sorry Dear! (Rushes to get cold water from the fridge). The devil is a liar! Sorry Darling! Let me get you a pack of juice. Husband: I am very tired Dear, I am going to bed. We will talk about this tomorrow. House Wife: Ok, I will join you later. I want to watch this film on TV. Galaxy showed part 1 yesterday, and part 2 will be on soon. Husband: (Staggered to bed full of anxiety, with no idea on how to meet up with these entire financial obligation) CAREER Wife Career Wife: (Gets back from work) Ekaete! Ekaete!!! Ekaete!!! Where is this useless girl self? Ekaete : Yes MADAM! Welcome Ma. I de come. I been de attend to the children. Dem don sleep just now. Career Wife: Ok, get those things from my car for me right away, and get my bath water ready. Set the dinner very snappy. By the way, is Tunde back from work yet? Ekaete : Che Oga? E nefa come back yet oooo. He been phone say na pounded yam im wan chop for dinner and I don prepare am plus the rice wey you wan chop self. But dem junior na egg and yam dem request for. (10 minutes later) Ekaete: Madam, de money you gif me to pay for junior dem school fees, na de receipt be dis. I don go buy the bags of rice, beans, garri, sugar, salt, semo, turkey and fish. I even go to Mile 12 for Ketu to buy the yams, cassava, onion, pepper, vegetable, fruits and meat. Career Wife: Ok. Did Tunde give you the money to pay the bills for PHCN, LAWMA, Security, Water and Sanitation? Ekaete: yes Madam! He even gif me money to pay for the house rent for landlord account. He gif Garba money to buy one drum of diesel for the generator, to service the generator, fill the gas. E don pay my salary and Garba own. (Tunde enters) Husband:Ah! Bridget, you are back already. The Traffic today is disastrous! Career Wife: Is that so? Ekaete: Oga Welcome Sir! Let me get your bath ready while you change your cloth. I don prepare your favourite meal as requested. Husband: Oh that’s great, Ekaete Career wife: OooooPh, I am going to bed. I got to be at the airport early to catch the first flight to Abuja tomorrow. Husband: I will join you later. Got to watch the match between LIVERPOOL AND CHELSEA. Ekaete: Oga, your dinner is set. (She disappeared into the kitchen) Husband: (Eats his dinner alone without a companion). YES, BOTH SITUATIONS HAVE DISADVANTAGES BUT HONESTLY...........WHICH WOULD YOU RATHER LIVE WITH???

REVEALED ! : WORST DEBTORS IN NAIJA !You will be SHOCKED ! Richest Man in Naija among

Posted by Akin Osunlaja WebLagosian on August 18, 2009 at 9:00pm

FULL LIST ! ANalysis by Oluwafolabomi on Aug 19 2009 I would like to note a few interesting facts. 1. Access Bank managing and deputy managing director are owing N16 Billion in a personal capacity while hounding Femi Otedola who owes through a company...pot calling the kettle black. 2. Fola Adeola, founder of Fate Foundation, and a shareholder in this newspaper, on the list from being a director at Omatek. An obvious example of the endemic nature of the lack of corporate governance in Nigeria's publicly listed companies. Isn't a board of directors suppossed to guide the company away from such issues.

3. President Yaradua's, son-in-law (to be), a debtor too through RAHAMANIYYA OIL AND GAS LTD! I guess there is no accounting for taste when taking on new in-laws! Will there be a "Federal" bailout or will Yaradua be aloof to the travails of his new family. 4. "Who watches the Watchmen?". There is no wonder that the NSE doesn't support fighting the problems of insider dealing when it's head, NDI OKEREKE-ONYIUKE, is a director of a a company with several billions in bad debts. Afterall would you ban yourself? It's also interesting to note that both the current, Aliko Dangote, and immediate past presidents of the NSE, Oba Otudeko, are represented here too! 5. That Aliko Dangote's name appears does not surprise me. When you owe as much money as he does,you get to boss your creditors around since you are "too big to fail". 6. ARISEKOLA ALAO & Oba Otudeko owing billions of Naira, while being a major shareholders, gettng dividends, in First Bank. 7. Femi & Nana Otedola, whose lavish expenditure on a boat apparently costing over $12 million is to be noted, obviously live a life that cannot be supported without debt that they have no intention of paying back. Evidently its true that empty barrels really do make the most noise. 8. (Barrister) Jimoh Ibrahim has never been afraid of debt so he was bound to be here in some capacity. But not paying it back, while not a crime, is basically dishonest! Wetin lawyers dey do sef? 9. PRINCE FEDRICK .E. AKINRUTAN is just about to be made an Oba, who will then be dispensing "fatherly" advice to his people. Will that advice include "Go forth and accumulate debt". There is nothing dishonourable in running your business through debt financing. After all the government does it most years. The problem comes when you live a life, that drains the company of its life blood, while putting other peoples and your staff's livelyhoods at stake. That's just plain criminal and shoud be treated as such! ARTICLE READ MORE HERE Pushing on doggedly with its reform of the septic banking environment in the country, the new management team at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) late Tuesday published the list of the country's worst debtors on its website as an "Advertorial." In a prefatory note to the table of debtors that has 205 names, the CBN said, "Following the recent regulatory action of the Central Bank of Nigeria on the five banks, it has become necessary to use this medium to request the following defaulting customers of the affected banks to pay without further delay their indebtedness, failing which the banks will take all appropriate legal actions to ensure repayment. "These are the largest debtors and the CBN will continue to publish the list of defaulters on an on-going basis." A keen reading of the CBN advertorial indicates that the five ailing banks that lost their management team in last Friday's "Bank Massacre", were neck deep in debt reaching the staggering proportions of N740 Billion, a quarter of the nation's annual budget. The CBN Governor, Lamido Sanusi, blamed the intimidating numbers on what he described as the poor risk management, and corporate governance profile of the banks' management. The Central Bank also took the daring step to name the institutional and individual debtors, many who are among the nation's high and mighty, and also warning them to "pay without further delay their indebtedness, failing which the banks will take all appropriate legal actions to ensure repayment." Of the 205 debtors, most of whose indebtedness are in the double digit bracket, three elect for a daring borrowing culture which the CBN derisively characterise as "Non-performing", an euphemism for a poor credit record of not servicing ones debt. These are companies in the Rahmaniyya Group which owe just two of these banks 41 Billion naira; companies headed by Peter Ololo, which owe three of the banks 76 Billion naira; and companies owned by the controversial Transcorp Plc, which owe two of the banks 41 Billion naira. The Rahmaniyya Group is owned by Abdulrahman Bashir, Peter Ololo is the Managing Director of Falcon Securities in Lagos while Transcorp Plc is headed by the Director General of the Nigeria Stock Exhange, Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke.

lagos..Port-Harcourt..Abuja..Kaduna.. Owerri..Edo.. AkwaIbom..Ibadan..Enugu The CBN stated in its advertorial that its action in exposing the debtors draws directly from its mission to restore proper regulatory culture in the industry long characterised by an "anything goes attitude." Some of the banks had attempted to rationalise the huge debt overhang in different ways. The management of Intercontinental bank, one of the five ailing banks, in an open letter to President Umaru Yar'Adua on August 12, blamed its debt on "a plethora of personalities otherwise called the cabal who have deliberately refused to make returns in respect of facilities from which they have benefitted." These could however not save the bank's management from being fired by the CBN. Other banks whose management were sacked are Union Bank, Afribank, Oceanic Bank and Finbank. FULL PAGE LIST ! FULL LIST on CBN WEBSITE SCROLL TO SEE MORE BIG MEN DEBTORS ! http://www.cenbank.org/Out/publications/pressRelease/GOV/2009/ADVERTORIAL2.pd

Nigerian Musicians Begin Hunger Strike August 25 as 1st of September is Declared ‘No Music Day’

Posted by NollywoodMohits on August 17, 2009 at 10:43pm

True to its vow at a world press conference held in Lagos on July 14, the coalition of major associations in the Nigerian music industry has begun the mobilization of stakeholders throughout the country for the commencement of an indefinite mass hunger strike to draw the attention of the world to the intolerable amount of piracy that is devastating the music industry in Nigeria. The mass hunger strike is planned to commence on August 25. As a prelude to the strike, there will be an important rally of stakeholders in the Nigerian music industry at the premises of the National Theatre, Lagos at 10.00am on August 25. The rally will offer an opportunity to artistes and investors across the industry to network and devise strategies to frontally attacking the piracy scourge that is plundering the Nigerian entertainment industry.Further to the hunger strike, the coalition has resolved that a powerful delegation of industry stakeholders will proceed to the National Assembly in Abuja on September 1 to express the frustration of the industry over the lukewarm and ineffective attitude of the government to attacking the piracy cancer that is fast eating away the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of Nigerians and destroying the Nation’s image. The coalition is also requesting all broadcast organizations in the country to show solidarity with the plight of the Nigerian entertainment industry by observing September 1, 2009 as “NO MUSIC DAY”. Consequently, broadcasting stations across Nigeria are requested not to broadcast music between the hours of 6 am and 6 pm on September 1. Artistes across the country are also requested not to engage in any musical performance on “NO MUSIC DAY”It will be recalled that at the Press Conference held at Protea Hotel, Ikeja on July 14, the coalition had called on President Yar’ Adua to declare a State of Emergency with respect to the fight against piracy in Nigeria and to muster the necessary resources to eradicate the monster. The coalition had also called on the President to take the following specific actions:-1. Set up a Governing Board made up of Nigerians of proven commitment and integrity to design and supervise the activities of the Nigerian Copyright Commission in accordance with the Nigerian Copyright Act as the records show that for more than five years, the Nigerian Copyright Commission has only had a Board for a period of a few months in 2005.2. Direct the Nigerian Copyright Commission to immediately put on hold the process of approval of any new copyright collective management organization pending the IMMEDIATE convening of a stake holders conference on Collective Management to ensure that the process receives input from the stakeholders that will earn any organization emerging from the process the support of the industry.3. Direct the Inspector General of Police to serve a warning to the traders at Alaba International Market in Lagos, the world’s biggest hotbed of piracy, that if within a specified period the traders do not clean up the market, the government will shut Alaba market down.At the massively attended Press Conference, the coalition had noted that whatever efforts made so far to fight piracy in Nigeria had failed and rather than piracy being controlled or reduced in Nigeria, it was ravaging an entire generation of creative people. The coalition also warned that in desperation, practitioners in the Nigerian entertainment industry may soon be forced to take the laws into their hands in a desperate attempt to safeguard their investment and this may result in otherwise avoidable bloodshed.The coalition made up of Performing Musicians Employers Association of Nigeria (PMAN), Nigerian Association of Recording Industries (NARI), Performing & Mechanical Rights Society Ltd/Gte (PMRS), Association of Music Business Professionals (AM.B-Pro), Music Label Owners & Recording Industries Association of Nigeria (MORAN), Music Label Owners Association of Nigeria (MULOAN), Gramophone Records & Cassette Dealers (AGRECD), Music Advertisers Association Of Nigeria (MAAN). Audio /Video CD Sellers Association of Nigeria (AVCDSAN) also reminded the government that Nigeria may face sanctions from the international community because of the glaring failure to meet the nation’s obligations under the different conventions and treaties signed by our country to protect intellectual property rights of citizens of other nations which are wantonly infringed upon in Nigeria alongside those of Nigerian nationals.All artistes in music film, comedy, drama, literary works and all friends of the entertainment industry are invited to storm the historic rally at the National Theatre Lagos on Tuesday August 25 at 10 amEfe OmorogbeFor: The Nigerian Music Industry Coalition

War Games :US Army prepared/prepares for Ni.g.eria’s possible break-up

Posted by 9jabook.com on August 17, 2009 at 9:08pm

The United States military had, in May 2008, conducted a war games test called Unified Quest 2008, to ascertain how its military might respond to a war in parts of Africa including ni.ge.ria and Somalia. According to an article written by Director of the African Security Research Project in Washington, DC and Guest Columnist of AllAfrica Global Media, Mr. Daniel Volman, the ni.ge.rian scenario was predicated upon a possible war in 2013. The article observed that it was the first time the African scenarios were included, as part of Pentagon’s plan to create a new military command for Africa: the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM). It also emerged that “the free flow of natural resources from Africa to the global market” was one of the “guiding principles” of AFRICOM, as articulated by Vice Admiral Robert Moeller at an AFRICOM conference held at Fort McNair on February 18, 2008. The 2013 war date, the article said, was a test of how AFRICOM could respond to a crisis in ni.ge.ria in the event that rival factions and rebels fight for control of the oil fields of the Niger Delta and the government was near collapse. Among scenarios examined, Volman said, were the possibility of direct American military intervention involving some 20,000 US troops in order to "secure the oil,” bearing in mind that ni.ge.ria is a major supplier of US oil needs. Also, the question of how to handle possible splits between factions within the ni.ge.rian government was tested. Other options included diplomatic pressure, military action, with or without the aid of European and African nations. One participant, US Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Mark Stanovich, drew up a plan that called for the deployment of thousands of U.S. troops within 60 days, which even he thought was undesirable, Volman stated. "American intervention could send the wrong message: that we are backing a government that we don't intend to," Stanovich said. Other participants suggested that it would be better if the U.S. government sent a request to South Africa or Ghana to send troops into ni.ge.ria instead,” the article stated. According to Major Robert Thornton, an officer with the Joint Center for International Security Force Assistance at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, "it became apparent that it was actually green (the host nation government) which had the initiative, and that any blue [the U.S. government and its allies] actions within the frame were contingent upon what green was willing to tolerate and accommodate.”“As the game progressed, according to former U.S. ambassador David Lyon, it became clear that the government of ni.ge.ria was a large part of the problem. As he put it, ‘we have a circle of elites [the government of ni.ge.ria] who have seized resources and are trying to perpetuate themselves. Their interests are not exactly those of the people,” said the article. “The recommendations which the participants drew up for the Army's Chief of Staff, General George Casey, do not appear to be publicly available, as what the participants finally concluded was not known. But since the war games took place in the midst of the presidential election campaign, General Casey decided to brief both John McCain and Barack Obama on its results,” the article stated. The game ended without military intervention because one of the rival factions executed a successful coup and formed a new government that sought stability. AFRICOM representatives were said to be in communication throughout the test, but non of their officers were part of the event, said Volman. Volman observed that neither the General of AFRICOM William Ward nor Vice Admiral Mueller “were under illusions about the” purpose of the command. “Thus when General Ward appeared before the House Armed Services Committee on March 13, 2008, he cited America’s growing dependence on African oil as a priority issue for AFRICOM and went on to proclaim that combating terrorism would be “AFRICOM’s number one theatre-wide goal.” He barely mentioned development, humanitarian aid, peace-keeping or conflict resolution.” “Since then, as General Ward has demonstrated in an interview with AllAfrica, he has become more adept at sticking to the US government official public position on AFRICOM’s aims and on its escalating military operations on the African continent,” stated the piece. Volman argued that contrary to expectations, President Obama had chosen to increase US military intervention in Africa by providing arms and training to the Transitional Government in Somalia, an attempt to make the continent a central battlefield in the “global war on terrorism.” He further argued that the operations of AFRICOM had been expanded through a proposed budget for financial year 2010, which will provide increased security assistance to repressive regimes in ni.ge.ria, Niger, Chad, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and key US allies such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti, Rwanda and Uganda. The war game test drew various participants from the State Department and other US government agencies, foreign military officers (including military representatives from several NATO countries, Australia and Israel), journalists, academics, and the private military contractors that helped run the war games: the Rand Corporation and Booz-Allen. Another of the four scenarios that were war-gamed was a test of how AFRICOM could respond to a crisis in Somalia — set in 2025 — caused by escalating insurgency and piracy. Unfortunately, no information on the details of the scenario is available. The five-day game was designed to look at what crisis might erupt in different parts of the world in five to 25 years and how the US might respond. Back in 2005, the US had predicted that ni.ge.ria would break-up in 2015. The report was highly criticised by ni.ge.rian leaders.

Peter Edochie has been set fr.e.e

Posted by NollywoodMohits on August 17, 2009 at 9:00pm

Peter Edochie has been set f.r.ee by the kidnappers after an undisclosed amount was paid as ransom, his son Uche Edochie has said.The veteran actor was held by the kidnappers for about 24 hours; from yesterday, Sunday August 16 when he was kidnapped till Monday, 17 August 2009.He was kidnapped while he was being driven from his country home in Enugu in the company of his family members. Armed men stopped the car he was travelling in and Pete Edochie was the only one kidnapped 3 people were allegedly shot dead at the Scene of the kidnapping .

lagos..Port-Harcourt..Abuja..Kaduna.. Owerri..Edo.. AkwaIbom..Ibadan..Enugu

kokomansion winner Bolanle

Posted by NollywoodMohits on August 16, 2009 at 11:00pm

I know she is now into limelight,i will feature her on my blog personally soon,watch out.Surprise Surprise!!! Bolanle Okhiria is the Ideal Kokolette. In an unexpected turn of things Bolanle Okhiria, a 21 year old student of Lagos State University, was selected as the Ideal Kokolette in Dbanj's hit show Koko Mansion. The final 4 contestants, Rita, Shona, Chidinma, and winner Bolanle were voted on in the final show. In Bolanle's words, "I waited for so long for that call, and when it finally came through I was too excited to believe it was real – I had to tell the producers to prove to me that it wasn’t some kind of a joke." Bolanle walks away from the show with a brand new car, 5 million Naira, and a Chris Aire diamond ring. I'm guessing the car will finally make her learn how to driveFan favorite Rita Igbinedion Isoken, came in at a close second in the final poll results, losing to the winner by 1460 votes. Here are the final poll results:# Bolanle wins with 11,933 votes# Rita - 10,473 votes# Shona - 2,292 votes# Chidinma - 918 votesCongratulations to Bolanle, and kudos to all the contestants that were on the show. Koko Mansion definitely spiced up Naija television. So what do you think of the winner, and the show in general?

Weboga Ebiz Analysis :Zenith Visa Prepaid Credit Cards how effective and cheap are they

Posted by 9jabook.com on August 16, 2009 at 10:00pm

99.9percent fraud proof ! hmmm that is one we have to watch carefully The Zenith Bank Visa Prepaid card offers you the recognition of a globally accepted payment card with the convenience of a prepaid card.

Limit the Risk ...because it accommodates low card limit and eliminates overspending. The Visa Prepaid Card A Visa Card Prepaid Account is your solution to securely make your transactions via ATMs, POS, Internet and MO/TO. For just $20 a year(NOT TRUE there are other fees per transaction ) the Visa prepaid is the solution to most of your global payment needs. Simply pay at any Zenith Bank Branch and a Visa Prepaid card will be issued in your name with a limit of your choice. Alternatively, you can pick up a Zenith Buxz non-personalized prepaid card. Visa Prepaid Card Features: Visa Card Brand Not a c.r.e.d.it Card Use on ATMs, POS, Internet and MO/TO Card-to-card transfer Receive SMS/email notification for every transaction No c.r.e.d.it checks required Re-loadable to your desired limit not exceeding $4,000 per quarter after the initial deposit Online access to your account - No statements to be issued The prepaid cards can be personalized or non-personalized Chip and pin functionality for additional security Note: Ensure terms & conditions are clearly understood before obtaining a prepaid card. means READ IT WELL WELL ! EASE : How to Obtain a Prepaid Card: Application forms are available at all Zenith Bank branches Applicant completes application form, read the terms and conditions carefully, signs and submits to Customer Service Applicant makes the applicable cash payment to the Teller using the customized deposit slip (available at Branches) Take copy of your deposit slip to Customer Service for processing. Initial deposit is $120(roughly about15,000naira) ((exclusive of card fees) Card is activated within 24 hours after receipt of card. Activating a Visa Prepaid Card: Allow 24 hours from time of collection card activation to take effect (be prepared to wait ) Re-loading a Visa Prepaid Card: Go to any Zenith Bank branch with your Card Number. Complete fully the Prepaid deposit slip and proceed to the teller point with your cash. Your card will be re-c.r.e.d.ited within 48 hours. (Usually would be less). Charge per re-load is $5. For further enquiries on any of our ebusiness services please contact: Card Services Zenith Bank Plc Plot 84 Ajose Adeogun Street Victoria Island, Lagos. Telephone: +234 01 278 1740, 278 2273. Fax: +234 1 2700438 E-mail: cardservices@zenithbank.com When using the prepaid on an internet Site, the delivery of the goods to your indicated address on the Merchant site is at the Merchant's discretion. You are encouraged to ensure that the mailing address used for this application should be used also as your shipping address when shopping on the internet with your card. My advice is to use it only for services and downloadable goods as most international merchants reject physical goods deliveries to ?Naija ! Also there is news on the gravepine that Zenith might join the Lamido Purge Wagon with Oceanic and Co. Our Rating 6/10 ps if you need a visa prepaid card (purchases between 20- 120pounds only 5,000 naira -26,000naira) email 9jabook's card service visacard@systemini.net for more information

Breaking News: Aliko Dangote, Femi Otedola Reconcile!!!

Posted by 9jabook.com on August 16, 2009 at 9:19am

It has been the most famous duel in Nigerian corporate history, and it is ending with what may be the most famous reconciliation. Bosom enemies; Bitter friends, Huhuonline.com can authoritatively report that Nigeria’s richest duo; Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Chief Femi Otedola have decided to bury the hatchet, untangling the love-hate relationship between the two oligarchs that has brought their financial empires to the brink of total ruin.

The reconciliation, at the instance of Nduka Obaigbena, Editor-in-Chief and Chairman/CEO of This Day newspaper followed months of tortuous negotiations as friends of the two erstwhile billionaires battled desperately to reconcile the two men in the wake of a campaign of vilification and personal destruction waged by their surrogates in the media. Sure, it has been a harrowing storm which left several casualties in its wake. Even President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua could not have been indifferent. In one of several efforts to break the ice, Yar’Adua directed his predecessor; Obasanjo to get the duo involved in a Nigerian delegation to canvass foreign investments in the UK. During the said meeting, the two men refused to shake hands. In appearances before the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Market investigating the AP shares scam, the two men were “forced to shake hands and refer to each other as “my brother” but reconciliation remained elusive. It has taken a lot of water going under the bridge and the unbending resolve of personal friends like Nduka to broker a peace deal between the two men. Now therefore, is no time to discount the dangers that still exist. But opening your mind to optimism can help you seize the opportunities ahead In the darkest hours of the bitter and sometimes acrimonious schism between Dangote and Otedola, Nduka Obaigbena found reason - even if unfounded - for hope that the two erstwhile friends could be reconciled. And he spared no effort working behind the scenes, using personal communication channels to reach out and bridge the gap of animosity between the two men. Yesterday’s breakfast at his Lagos residence was the climax of all his efforts. A source close to Nduka told HuhuonIine.com that “I don't expect all the hard feelings to disappear overnight, nor do I believe that all the wounds and scars will suddenly vanish. But I do believe that if the two men can talk to one another openly and honestly, then perhaps old rifts will start to mend and new partnerships will begin to emerge that will crowd out the destructive forces of zealotry and make room for the healing power of understanding. This is my hope. This is my prayer.” Distrustful of each other's intentions yet longing at some level to reconcile, neither Dangote nor Otedola knows how this story will end. But the least common denominator of the dynamics of this crisis that has made screaming media headlines and caused Otedola his place on the Forbes list of billionaires made reconciliation more than just a compelling commonsense imperative. If anything, it has been a race to the bottom of mutually assured destruction that spell doomed for their business interests and the Nigerian economy. Anatomy of a Schism No one is very certain when the personal war started, but the friendship between the two men came under unusual strain when billionaire industrialist, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, noted for his near monopoly in the sugar and cement business in Nigeria, decided to step into Chief Femi Otedola's equally near monopolistic oil, albeit diesel, turf using a consortium that included his family investment firm, MRS Holdings, managed by his cousin, Sayyu Dantata to outbid Otedola's company to take over Chevron's investment in Texaco’s local and West African downstream operations. MRS reportedly paid $1 billion for Chevron's West Africa division, as against Otedola's $200 million for the Nigerian operations. It is alleged in Otedola's camp that Dangote broke a gentleman's agreement that the duo should not stray into each other's main area of operation. Corlay Global SA, a Panamanian company owned by an African consortium, comprising Dantata's MRS Holdings and Petroci Holdings, won the bid. Otedola's Zenon had over time, mopped up 22% equity of Texaco on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, in preparation to taking control of the oil firm's majority shares. But that was not enough to upstage Dantata, who eventually acquired 60% shares by out-bidding him. Reports had it that a dissatisfied Otedola had to no avail, approached Dangote, as a friend and cousin to Dantata, to intervene in the matter, interpreting MRS' bid as a challenge, especially as Dangote is said to control 80% of its equity. A source alleged that Otedola was piqued that he had been confiding in Dangote of his plans to take over Chevron, not knowing that his friend actually planned to beat him to it through his cousin. He was said to have felt betrayed by Dangote's intent and approached a court to thwart the sale of Chevron's Texaco stakes to MRS. To prove his ability to fight back, the diesel magnate allegedly launched into Dangote's enclaves of cement and sugar business. Otedola got an injunction from a Nigerian court to block the sale, alleging that the new owner would be taking on too much debt and could end up cutting jobs. But Chevron fought back, describing the injunction as political and invalid, being registered and taxed in Bermuda. In February, an appellate judge modified, but still upheld the ban. Further to his move into Dangote's fiefdom, Otedola declared plans to invest $2 billion in sugar and cement production; just a day after Chevron sealed the deal regarding the sale of its Nigerian downstream operations to MRS. In November, the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), Nigeria's securities regulatory agency, froze the assets of African Petroleum (AP), for which Otedola accused Dangote. All of a sudden, the shares of AP started plunging on the floor of the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE), following share movements or what capital market operators call crossing. AP shares lost over 80% value in a space of about eight weeks, prompting the oil firm to place advertorials in several Nigerian mainstream newspapers, accusing companies owned by Dangote and broker, Nova Finance and Securities of share manipulation. AP, in the advertorials signed by its management, accused companies affiliated to Dangote, and Nova of engaging in "certain unwholesome and unethical activities." The management of AP attributed the share value deflation to the ongoing feud between Dangote and its chairman, Otedola. At its peak, AP shares sold for N239, but fell below N60 per share during the period. In February last year, a report by Forbes, which only a few weeks back rated Otedola as the second Nigerian, behind Dangote, on its world billionaires' list, stated that Otedola’s fortune was down to approximately $500 million, from $1.2 billion. The rift also took a toll on Nova, which was suspended and fined by the SEC. The regulatory agency said Nova breached SEC's regulation that precludes dealing members from creating a false market on a specific security to effect a change in its share price. The SEC equally fined AP N300, 000 for the advertorials alleging manipulation of its shares, rather than first reporting the matter to it. Mr. Musa Al-Faki, the Director-General, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) resigned his appointment. But Dangote (who then doubled as NSE vice president) and his associates frowned at the continuing AP advertorials, which came despite the pronouncement by the NSE sanctioning AP for the initial ones and ordering immediate cessation of the publication. The feud came to a head when Otedola petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), accusing Dangote of using his firm, Novas Securities, to crash AP shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. Dangote was reportedly quizzed by the EFCC on account of that petition. Not long after, some advertorials accusing Otedola of manipulating Dangote shares also surfaced. Penultimate week, Prize Communications, a media consultant to Otedola’s business interests was dragged before a Lagos court on a four-count charge of libel, defamation and likely breach of peace, by the police at Dangote’s instance over the Facts Magazine publication. Dangote had complained that the publication damaged his person and businesses. Last week, he similarly instituted a N1billion suit against National LIFE for publishing materials he considered “injurious” to him. A group under the aegis of Committee for the Defense of Justice and Advancement (CODJA), in an advertorial signed by one Bamidele Sanya, expressed concern over the worries of some stakeholders of AP regarding the share value deflation. AP shares were placed on technical suspension, following its public offer for an unusually long period of nine months. During this time, the global economic crisis struck and investors were unable to realize the substantial gains they made as the price was rising. The Committee for the Defense of Justice and Advancement noted that, between January 16 and February 10, AP shares fell from N298.98 to N216.13, a drop of N77.85, representing over 26%. During this period, Nova did not conduct any transactions involving AP shares, insisting that the price fell with no involvement or activity by Nova on the stock. The group further stated that during the period Nova actively traded AP stock, the price fell by a further 33 per cent, from N105.45 to N69.99 and that there were a total of 132 transactions on AP shares during that period, most of which did not involve Nova. It contended that in comparison with the rest of the industry, AP's share price declined by 82% while the average price drop of other oil marketing companies - Chevron (76.6%) Oando (63.9%) and Total (51.5%) - over the same period was 65% against an overall NSE index reduction of 53.2%. It reckoned: "Despite experiencing significantly more volatility than its peers, due to the company's recent equity offering and change in free float, AP's performance from January 2007 to date is fundamentally in line with its peers… It is disingenuous of AP to cry wolf when it feels it is the victim of stock decline, but to feel it is perfectly acceptable for the stocks to rise astronomically.” "In other words, AP shares have performed in line with the market and the alleged manipulation that took place would have been counter-productive in the extreme, if intended to willfully force the fall in AP's share price, the market would have done the job on behalf of the alleged perpetrators, with or without illicit action." It then wondered what the motivation was behind AP's decision to make public the allegations and "to willfully and knowingly violate NSE rules and regulations itself in the process. Has the Management of AP just woken to the realization of its duty to always inform its shareholders about the true position of things relating to the company?" They therefore urged the management of AP to desist from peddling half-truths concerning the decline of its shares value and attributing it to the seeming disagreement between its boss, Otedola, and Dangote. All Roads lead to Otta Seen to share a common belief of reducing poverty in Nigeria through their companies, the rift between the two men could not have been settled without input from Otta, the Ogun State abode of their godfather, Olusegun Obasanjo. During the administration of former President Obasanjo between 1999 and 2007, Dangote, then a commodities trader, secured near-monopolies in cement, sugar and salt supplies, which he used to transform his import-export firm, Dangote Group, into a manufacturing conglomerate. About the same time, Otedola, son of former Lagos State governor, Sir Michael Otedola, who was managing his family's business, launched Zenon Petroleum in 1999 and almost immediately took monopolistic control of the diesel business, allegedly with the tacit backing of Obasanjo. The two had substantial chunk of government-divested interests when the Obasanjo government off-loaded state-owned companies and corporations and were members of the board of a key government-business committee. In 2007, Dangote and Otedola floated a consortium, Blue Star oil Services Limited, with which they bided and finally bought the Port Harcourt and Kaduna Refineries, although it was later alleged that Otedola's name was conspicuously missing in the firm's board of directors. A price war was expected when Zenon products arrive in the markets. Incidentally, Dangote applied the same strategy when he made his entry into the salt, sugar and cement markets. Otedola allegedly pumped huge sums of money into the building of his sugar refinery and cement factories. He became the chairman and chief executive of AP in September 2007 when he acquired 12.5% of its shares. His Zenon bought over most of the 28% Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) stake in the firm. Over the last 10 years, the bond of friendship between Dangote and Otedola was strengthened by a string of business partnerships, some overt, others clandestine, especially in oil deals, with the support of Obasanjo, believed to be their common godfather. In April last year, on the eve of Obasanjo's exit from Aso Rock, the duo formed Blue Star Oil Services consortium to buy 51% controlling shares in the 210,000 bpd capacity Port Harcourt and 110,000 bpd Kaduna refineries for $721million.The sale generated so much public outcry, particularly concerning its alleged undervaluation and circumstances, coming barely a few days to the end of the administration that the new government of Yar'Adua had to cancel the deal two months after assuming office. Dangote and Otedola contributed substantially to the financing of Obasanjo's election in 1999, doling out about N150 million. In return, they were rewarded with juicy deals, especially in the lucrative oil and gas business. From then on, they became not just the country's denominating factors in the economy, but also virtually had their way in any business they cared to dabble into. Some other businessmen saw them as merely being favored by the former President, even against all odds, while others believed they were mere fronts. For Obasanjo's re-election bid, when the funds seemed to be drying up, Dangote and Otedola readily came to the rescue, pumping in billions of naira into the project, realizing its worth. They were visible and donated heavily towards the Obasanjo Presidential Library project in Abeokuta, Ogun State. It is alleged that they even provided financial backing for the infamous Third Term project aimed at extending Obasanjo's tenure beyond 2007. Within the Nigerian business circles, it is alleged that the duo benefited more than anybody else from the Obasanjo administration, especially in the importation of petroleum products and cement, a major component in the building and construction industry. When the federal government's controlling stake in AP came up for grabs in 2006, after it had been taken away from Chief Peter Okocha's Sadiq Enterprises, following the discovery of some hidden liabilities to the NNPC at the point of sale by BPE, billionaire investor and chief executive of Global Fleet Oil and Gas, Chief Jimoh Ibrahim was said to have moved to purchase the stakes by allegedly issuing a cheque for N18.5billion to the NNPC for the purpose. But Obasanjo thwarted this attempt and had it sold to Otedola for about N17billion, N1.5billion less than what Ibrahim offered. Otedola soon increased AP's operations remarkably, just as the firm's stock rose to a peak of N293, making it one of the most priced in the country. But it nose-dived as the personality fight raged. To many Nigerians, the fight of these two elephants was just another bad deal gone sour between two friends. But being two major investors in Nigeria, whose stake in the economy is enormous, the fight between them spelt danger for the Nigerian economy, considering that others have stakes in their companies too.

X FILES naija style : Strange birth in Kano: Owner of mystery goat that gave birth to human-like creature recounts experience

Posted by Choochoo Sports Book on August 16, 2009 at 8:33am

Sauna Kawaji is a backside suburb situated on the road to Hadejia town, in the southern end of the ancient city of Kano. It has a number of tiny roads and interlocking lanes that network across a number of unevenly situated mud, and sometimes, block of residential buildings.The mystery goat and its new babies

advertisementThe compounds host an expanding population of men, women and children.It is normal to see kids playing away in the early morning sun in this neighbourhood. Also, it is normal to see goats loitering or feeding on scattered grains, just as cows are regular feature here. Indeed, human population in this tiny town is intermixed with the population of other domestic species, such as fowls, goats, sheep and cows.However, it could be said that the innocence of the community was figuratively broken on Thursday, August 6, 2009 when a strange “August visitor” came. On that day, a mystery crept into the community and shook it to its very roots. It was the day a she -goat gave birth to a “child” with obvious human features.For the villagers, the story of a she-goat giving birth to a creature with some features of normal human being is incredible. Yet, right before their very eyes, this concrete reality, played out like a script from a horror film.According to a tailor in the community, Alhaji Bashir Haruna, (alias Soldier), 47, that Thursday, like any other day, he woke up with the normal bustling of a new day in a small town. He said that people went about their businesses without constraint or care. The hustling of the day was rather very alive, activated due to the delegate congress of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.He recalled that many people had come home from the city to be part of the congress. Then the news broke: A goat has delivered a semi-human being.Haruna, who resides just a stone throw from the scene of the episode told Saturday Sun that soon after the strange incident, the news to spread like wild fire. And before long, it was everywhere.The owner of the mystery goat, Hajia Amina Mohammed Sauna, confirmed the birth of the creature, which she quickly declared was dead at birth.She said that the unusual creature was delivered at about 12pm on that Thursday, adding that all her life she had never encountered such a strange happening.Being the guardian of the she-goat and the first witness of the rather strange recourse of nature, she recalled that the she-goat, through out her lifespan, had never had such a prolonged labour.She said: “For four days, she was very sick. We all had sleepless nights trying to fend for the goat, to cope with her trouble, night after night. And it was like it would never end. And on the night before that Thursday, it was worst, the tumbling stress of labour was severe on her and at about 12pm the following day, she finally came off it and delivered.“I was nearby at the time she delivered. I was the first to come face to face with the creature. I was shocked and I was shaken. I was afraid. I could not believe my eyes. Here I was, an old woman standing face to face, taking delivery of a human-like goat, a creature I had never imagined was possible in this world. I immediately screamed, partly out of fear and shock and thereafter I said a quick prayer (Muslims recitation) and then dashed out of the house to call for help.“Right before my eyes, I saw a creature with the following features: The face is that of a human being, but the ears are that of a goat. Its eyes were shut because it was lifeless at birth. It has a small tail, like a normal goat and both its two legs and hands have hoofs at the end. But from the chest to the hip, the body of the creature was that of a human being. Interestingly, it does have the usual hairy body of a normal goat, just light hairs in some part of the body.”According to her, when the people gathered, it was agreed that such a strange encounter must be reported to the village head of Sauna/Kawaji, Alhaji Ado Umar. So, she called two other relatives who were around and they took the creature to the village head, who advised that they should immediately report the matter to the Police in the state.Subsequently, they took the creature, accompanied by a mammoth crowd of curious onlookers to the Dakata Police Station, a division of the Police in the state. She revealed that the decision to report the matter to the police was out of the need to avoid a situation where they, the immediate owners of the goat, would be held for the failure to report matter to the police.Incidentally, while the creature was being taken to the police station, the mother goat, which was yet to finally come out of labour, completed her assignment. She delivered yet another set of babies, two of them in all. These additional babies were however, different from the creature that preceded their birth. They looked like the normal goats and had no features of a human being at all.Alhaji Mazzadeen Ibrahim, (alias Officer) said that the mammoth crowd that turned up with the strange creature to the police station, that afternoon, at about 3pm, was overwhelming.Mazzadeenn, who runs a mechanic workshop in front of the Dakata divisional police station, told Saturday Sun that the crowd overwhelmed the station by its size. He recalled that people poured in hundreds from Sauna and neighbouring towns, adding that while some people were inside the police station compound, others scaled the fence.“It was not easy, but I was lucky to have gone inside and I saw it. They brought it in cartoon, wrapped in an old black coat,” he said while confirming the earlier description of the features of the strange creature.He recalled that the creature had a human vagina, a human face and a goat-like hoof and ears. He summed up thus: “All my life, I have never seen anything close to this. The nearest that I have seen was a goat with eight legs at birth and that was five years ago.”The police DPO, it was gathered, was speechless and shocked by what he saw. After due consultation with his superiors at the Bompai headquarters of the command, he referred the matter to a vet clinic in Ugwar Ugwu area of the state.At the vet clinic, the doctor demanded to know the kind of food the goat eats and was told that it feeds by the way side, picking whatever it can. The doctor advised that in future, the goats should be fed with grains.Speaking further on her goat, Sauna said it was born in the village 10 years ago. She said that it grew up in the environment and had given birth to several young goats. Sauna said: “At least, I remember that she had delivered sets of young ones on eight occasions, some sets of twins, some triplets and on a few occasions, quadrates.“The mother goat belongs to my daughter, who resides in Lagos. The goat stays with us here; she sleeps in this house (pointing backwards to the stained-roofed, dilapidated structure that hosts their compound). When it is dawn, we let the goat wander into town in search of food to eat, and in the evening, she comes back home to sleep. At home, we cannot afford to buy her grains of food. As matter of practice, we don’t keep goats at home or restrict the movement of goats in this area. The goats roam to any area of convenience and get to feed themselves,” she declared.Sauna said that the mother goat has since returned to her normal life after the birth of the creature, adding: “Surprisingly, she is not sick and although I am not an a veterinary doctor, I know that she is well.”In his comment, the Kano State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Baba Mohammed, confirmed the incident and said the police had directed that the creature be sent to a vet hospital in the state for their further advice. He observed that, like every other person, policemen were shocked at the birth of a goat with dual features, some of which are human look. He however, concluded that only the experts in the field of animal medicine could explain what happened.The curious part of the story is that some people believe that a man may have violated the mother goat. Those in this school of thought say that since the mother goat wander about anything was possible.However, a veterinary doctor, Salisu Atiku and a senior livestock superintendent in the state, Abbas Ibrahim, who both commented on the development, are of a different views. For them, it is wrong to link the strange occurrence with a sexual relationship between a goat and a human being.

Pete Edochie has been kidnapped ! Okonkwo from Things Fall Apart

Posted by NollywoodMohits on August 16, 2009 at 8:30am

lagos..Port-Harcourt..Abuja..Kaduna.. Owerri..Edo.. AkwaIbom..Ibadan..Enugu

Nollywood actor, Pete Edochie has been kidnapped. The veteran actor was kidnapped less than three hours ago on his way to an event in Anambra State.Speaking in a telephone interview , the actor's son, Uche Edochie confirmed that the actor was being driven from his country home in Enugu in the company of his family members when armed men stopped the car he was travelling in.Only Mr. Edochie was kidnapped.

Uche Edochie disclosed that though the incident was obviously financially-motivated and one of many in a string of recent kidnappings of influential Nigerians, the kidnappers were yet to get in touch with the family, much less demand a ransom.Sounding very upset, the younger Mr. Edochie said; "our family is still in shock, and making attempts to contact the police; there is no handbook on what to do when your father is kidnapped."

EFCC arrests syndicate behind ATM fraud • Reveals how ATM cards are cloned • Banker used cloned card to steal N12m from customer’s account

Posted by Paul "EFCC" Hawk Adams on August 16, 2009 at 8:27am

EFCC arrests syndicate behind ATM fraud • Reveals how ATM cards are cloned • Banker used cloned card to steal N12m from customer’s account THE nightmare being experienced by users of the Automated Teller Machine {ATM} over its high susceptibility to fraud may soon be over with the bursting of a syndicate adept at cloning of ATM cards by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission {EFCC}.

EFCC CHIEF Farida Waziri The trans-state operations carried out by the commission’s operatives which saw them combing states in about three geo-political zones reportedly led to the discovery of the syndicate which specialised in cloning ATM cards which enabled those behind it to access users’ accounts without even knowing the identities of the victims. The syndicate is also suspected to be behind the Interswitch fraud message that is sent to unsuspecting members of the public demanding their secret PIN number for update of their account data, while a banker arrested in the course of the sweeping operations, Ms. Cassandra Olaleye reportedly confessed to using the cloned ATM cards to steal about N12 million from the account of a customer with her bank. Commission’s spokesperson, Mr. Femi Babafemi while speaking on the breakthrough by the commission on ATM fraud stated that “the aggressive campaign by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC against Automated Teller Machine (ATM) fraudsters recorded a major breakthrough last week with the arrest in Lagos, of three powerful members of a crack syndicate whose area of speciality is the cloning of ATM cards using Magnetic Card Reader/Encoder Machine. “The trio, Chris Okeke, Nicholas Egboh and Kelechi Aro were smoked out of the hideout following series of investigations which started from Kano that fingered them as the arrowheads of the deadly gang that had been defrauding depositors of various banks through the ATM. They were arrested on the last floor of a two-storey building in Alaba Suru, a suburb of Lagos. Six laptop computers, the card reader machine, bank documents and several credit cards and ATM cards were recovered from the suspects. Also recovered was a Gulf 3 saloon car. “According to investigation, all the fraudsters needed to have access to the account of any bank depositor are the victim’s ATM and PIN numbers. Once they have that information, they would use card reader machine to print the numbers on any ATM card. Once that is done, they can use the card to withdraw money from the victim’s account without even knowing the account holder’s name. “It is believed that members of this syndicate belong to the group of fraudsters that had been sending scam mails and text messages in the name of Interswitch Nigeria, urging unwary debit card holders to upgrade their ATM cards by filling online forms which require them to disclose their pin numbers. Those who fell prey to this scam lost millions of naira to the fraudsters.

“During interrogation, Chris Okeke the ring leader whose father’s house was being used for the fraudulent group’s activities disclosed that the house belongs to his ailing father who had relocated to his village in Anambra State due to ill health and that all the items found in the house belonged to his accomplices. He further revealed that one Darlington, who is at large, is the owner of the machine and the Gulf car recovered from him. He claimed that he was always staying in his room while Darlington and other members of the syndicate perpetrated the fraud in the living room. “But 34-year-old Nicholas Egboh debunked the claims of his co-traveller in crime. According to Nicholas, Chris knew much about the scam and benefited from the proceeds of the crime. Nicholas said he used to see different people coming to the house everyday and had warned Chris on several occasions that he would run into trouble. He disclosed that he was a trader in Onitsha, Anambra State and that six months ago, his business collapsed and he relocated to Lagos in preparation for a trip to Egypt. He denied being a member of the syndicate, but one of the Laptop computers recovered in the house belonged to him. “The third suspect, Kelechi Aro who wears a dreadlock also exonerated himself from the crime saying that he was a musician and a labourer. He said he relocated to the house of fraud two years ago from Ajegunle, another Lagos suburb. But it was obvious that he was being economical with the truth as operatives caught him sending scam messages with one of the laptop computers when he was arrested. “Interestingly, the report that triggered the arrest of members of this deadly syndicate originated from Kaduna. A resident of that city had lodged a complaint with the Commission’s office in Kano to the effect that some fraudsters had pulled out some money from his account in one of the banks in the city. Investigators were able to trace the fraudsters to Surulere, Lagos through the driver’s licence used by one of them to withdraw money from the said account. Consequently, Remilekun Ojolowo and Sherifat Aderomu, who had been admitted to administrative bail, were arrested. Upon interrogation they claimed to belong to a network of syndicates that specialise in ATM fraud and led operatives to the den of the fraudsters where the startling recoveries were made. “This latest discovery followed a similar one in Port-Harcourt, Rivers state where EFCC operatives unveiled a set of bank officials who duplicate customers’ ATM cards to defraud them of millions of naira. “In the case of the Port Harcourt syndicate, one Ms. Cassandra Olaleye, a banker and her accomplice, Regal Horsefall were arrested by EFCC operatives following the discovery of the ATM fraud. The two suspects had been working as partners since June 2008, withdrawing funds totaling about N12 million from a customer’s account, an account managed by Cassandra. Their journey to the EFCC net started when the customer gave a cheque of N4 million to someone and was told his account was already in the red. He went to the bank to verify and from his account statement, it was discovered that a lot of ATM withdrawals had been done on the account. The customer who was surprised as he had never used his ATM card before protested and the matter was reported to the EFCC Port Harcourt Zonal office. “After a careful study of the bank statement, operatives discovered that the money was drawn from an ATM machine located in the premises of an hotel in Port Harcourt almost on a daily basis since July 2008. They visited the ATM machine to see if it has a camera, but there was none. Luckily for them, the hotel has a CCTV surveillance camera. The footages were rolled back and it was discovered that for almost two months, a particular red Toyota Corolla car brings a lady to the machine to make withdrawals. The number plate of the car was copied and a search for the vehicle began. After about two weeks of searching, the vehicle was discovered in a compound in Elekahia Housing Estate, in Rumuomasi area of Port Harcourt. “Operatives went in and a lady (Regal Horsefall) who they suspected was the culprit from the CCTV footages was sighted. She was approached for questioning, but she said she had never gone to the hotel for any withdrawal. They asked her about the car and she said it belongs to her brother. The operatives then arrested her. She was taken to the EFCC office where a call was put through to the supposed brother who came immediately and said she was not his sister but his girlfriend who goes to the ATM machine located in the hotel. He took the oeratives to her house where she agreed that she made the withdrawals. She was arrested and during interrogation, she said it was Cassandra Olaleye that gave her the ATM card to do the withdrawals for her. It was discovered later that the ATM point in the hotel premises was chosen because the culprits noticed it didn’t have a camera on it. “Operatives contacted Cassandra Olaleye who they discovered had moved from Port Harcourt to Calabar where she currently works with a different bank. She was subsequently arrested and brought to the EFCC Port Harcourt office where she initially denied all the allegations. “To solve the riddle, the two of them were brought together because Regal insisted that Cassandra gave her the card. “With the face-off, what could solve the riddle was a deeper investigation. When eventually Cassandra was confronted with the heap of evidences already gathered by operatives in the course of investigation, she admitted all the allegations”.

Happy 58th birtday Mr President

Posted by 9jabook.com on August 16, 2009 at 3:59am

Wishing President Umaru Musa Yar'adua a happy 58th Birthday and many happy Returns of the Day from us all at 9jabook.com Long life more wisdom and prosperity Mr President .We are going to need it .

free account and global opportunity for all. Join free and spread the word

Posted by ayo on August 15, 2009 at 7:32pm

free account and global opportunity for all. Join free and spread the word

SECRET TO PASSING TOEFL EXAMS(TOEFL EXAMS MADE EASY)

Posted by adebayo on August 15, 2009 at 5:52pm

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YOU ALSO GET INDEPTH SECRET OF SCORING ABOVE 90 IN TOEFL EXAM.THE TOEFL EXAMINATION FEE IS $150(DOLLAR), WE CHARGE YOU JUST $50(DOLLARS) TO COVER PROCESSING FEE BY OUR AGENCY, BANK TRANSFER FEE AND MISCELLENOUS EXPENSES INCURED DURING YOUR REGISTRATION.REGISTER FOR TOEFL EXAMS THROUGHT ELGIGACONSULT LTD FOR A TOTAL COST OF $200 (DOLLARS) OR IT'S NAIRA EQUIVALENT( WHICH IS SUBJECT TO THE PREVALLING DOLLAR PRICE AT THE POINT OF YOUR REGISTRATION).BELOW ARE LISTS SOME OF OUR PAST REGISTERED TOEFL CANDIDATES, WHOM WOULD BE IN A BETTER POSITION TO GIVE TESTIMONY OF OUR PROFESSIONAL SERVICE( WE ARE TESTED AND TRUSTED):NAME: AGOGA ..............HE TOOK HIS TOEFL TEST IN BENIN.HE SCORED 93 AT ONE SITTING(AFTER GOING THROUGH OUR ORIENTATION AND COUNSELLING)YOU CAN REACH HIM ON: 08030782150 (FOR TESTIMONIES ABOUT OUR PROFESSIONAL SERVICE)NAME: BUNMI ...........SHE ALSO TOOK HER TOEFL TEST IN BENINSHE SCORED 96 AT ONE SITTING(AFTER GOING THROUGH OUR ORIENTATION AND COUNSELLING)YOU CAN REACH HER ON: 08033101908 (FOR TESTIMONIES ABOUT OUR PROFESSIONAL/ASSISTANT SERVICE)NAME: BUKOLA............SHE TOOK HER TOEFL TEST IN LAGOS(IKOYI)SHE SCORED 94 AT ONE SITTING(AFTER GOING THROUGH OUR ORIENTATION AND COUNSELLING)YOU CAN REACH HER ON:08023818450 (FOR TESTIMONIES ABOUT OUR PROFESSIONAL SERVICE)NAME: LUTHER............HE RESIDES IN CALARBARHE TOOK TAKE HIS TOEFL TEST IN ABAYOU CAN REACH HIM ON: 08088458334(FOR TESTIMONIES ABOUT OUR PROFESSIONAL SERVICE)THESE VITAL INFORMATION FOR THOSE NIGERIAN OUTSIDE THE COUNTRY, WHOM MIGHT WANT TO TAKE TOEFL EXAMS, ELGIGIGACONSULT CAN ALSO MAKE PROPER ARRANGEMENT YOU TAKE THE TOEFL TEST IN YOUR COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE WITHOUT ANY NEED YOU TRAVEL BACK TO NIGERIA BEFORE YOU TAKE THE TEST.(SAVE COST AND TIME) CALL TO FIND OUT HOW.........FOR MORE ENQUIRIES:EMAIL : elgigaconsult@yahoo.comorcall: 08026480998contact person: Pere anthonybusiness director ; ELGIGACONSULT LTD.TOEFL TEST CENTER AND THE AVAILABLE TEST DATE FOR THE YEAR 2009...WE HAVE 33 ACCREDITED TEST CENTER SPREAD ACROSS THE FOLLOWING CITYS IN NIGERIA;ABA, ABUJA, BENIN CITY, ENUGU, GRA IKEJA(LAGOS), HOPEVILLE UTURU, IBADAN, IKEJA(LAGOS), IKOYI(LAGOS),ISOLO(LAGOS), KADUNA, MAIN LAGOS, MUSHIN(LAGOS), OGBA(LAGOS),OWERRI , PHORT HARCOURT, SURULERE , EFFURUN WARRI, WARRI, YENEGOA.EXAMS DATE AVAILABLE FOR THE SECOND QUARTER OF THE YEAR 2009.AUGUST 29,2009SEPTEMBER 11,2009SEPTEMBER 19,2009SEPTEMBER 25,2009October 10,2009October 17,2009October 23,2009October 24,2009October 31,2009November 07,2009November 13,2009November 20,2009November 21,2009We can register your TOEFL exams for any of the above TEST CENTER.For registration it cost Thirty five thousand naira (35000 naira) . This cost cover your exams fee,TOEFL TRAINING MATERIAL, free test past questions(updated). we can process you registration to any the Test center scattered over nigeria, with refrence to your location and your choice.FOR MORE ENQUIRIES:EMAIL : elgigaconsult@yahoo.comorcall: 08026480998contact person: Pere anthonybusiness director ; ELGIGACONSULT LTD.

The top ten worst scams ever!

Posted by 9jabook.com on August 15, 2009 at 1:46am

Rachel Robson gives the lowdown on ten of the worlds’s most common swindles and rip-offs... Over the years, scammers and fraudsters have come up with more and more inventive ways to swindle us out of our hard-earned cash. And unfortunately, when times get tough, more of us become susceptible to these cunning schemes. So I've decided it's time to give you the run-down on ten of the worst scams to watch out for so that you can avoid being ripped off! 1) Phishing emails The trap: Emails which appear to have been sent from your bank and ask you to reset or confirm your security details by clicking on a link. The reality: More often than not, these links take you to a fake website with the aim of getting hold of your personal or financial details to defraud you. So whatever you do, don't click on these links and delete the email immediately. For more advice, visit the Bank Safe Online website. 2) Bogus holiday clubs The trap: You're approached by a scratchcard tout or receive a phone call telling you you've won a 'free' holiday. All you need to do is to attend a presentation to collect your prize. The reality: At the presentation, you'll be persuaded to sign up to an exclusive club and pay a fee for the privilege. But you'll probably find you've bought little more than access to an internet booking service offering the same service you could find in your local travel agent. Read Avoid this holiday rip-off for more advice. 3) Emails from 'friends in need' The trap: You receive an email from a friend claiming he has lost his wallet and passport abroad and desperately needs money to pay for his hotel bill and his flight home. Often your friend will tell you all phone lines have been disconnected and the only method of contact available is email. He'll then ask you to wire over some money to help him out, making out this will be repaid upon his return. The reality: The email is not from your friend, but from a scammer who will happily run off with your hard-earned cash and perhaps even ask for more. 4) Lotteries The trap: You receive a letter or email to say you've won a large sum of money in a lottery. Hurrah! But when you phone up to claim, you'll be told you need to pay a fee to collect your winnings. The reality: Hand over the fee and you'll never see your money again - or your prize. It is illegal for a real lottery to charge any sort of fee so if you're told you need to pay, steer clear. And remember - if you haven't bought a ticket, how can you have won a prize? 5) Weight loss aids The trap: Advertisements promising you'll be able to lose weight with minimal effort thanks to the wonders of a revolutionary pill, patch or cream. The reality: Usually there's no scientific evidence to back up these claims, and you'll end up spending money on a bogus drug that will make absolutely no difference to your weight. 6) Advance fee fraud (the Nigerian or 419 scam) The trap: You receive an email or letter from what appears to be businessmen or officials from Nigeria or another African country offering to transfer large sums of money into your bank account to get it out of the country. You're told you can keep a large chunk of this cash, but need to pay a fee to cover the transaction costs and legal fees. The reality: These emails/letters are from conmen who will simply disappear with any money you give them. What's more, because you'll have to hand over your personal and bank details, you can expect these crooks to empty your bank account while they're at it. 7) Work at home schemes The trap: You see an advert in the newspaper or on a lamppost offering you a significant income for minimal work - such as envelope stuffing or craft assembly work. The reality: What you won't be told is that you might have to pay up front for supplies to carry out the job or to cover hidden costs. You may also find your 'employer' refuses to pay you, claiming your work isn't up the right standards, or that you only get commission for signing up more people. Read more in Don't get ripped off by this employment scam! 8) Car matching The trap: After placing an advertisement for your car in the newspaper or online, you receive a call from someone promising to match you with a buyer. You're then asked to pay a fee for the match - often around £80-£99. The reality: The call was from a fraudster, there's no buyer and you can kiss goodbye to your cash. 9) Mobile phone insurance The trap: Not long after buying a new mobile phone, you receive a call from the shop you bought it from, and are offered a fantastic insurance deal. The reality: After handing over your bank details you discover your mobile phone isn't insured after all and the person on the phone wasn't who he said he was. By which point, your bank account is looking decidedly less healthy. Read more about this in The big mobile phone insurance scam. 10) Pyramid schemes The trap: You pay a fee to join a scheme but are offered the opportunity to make bags full of money fast by simply recruiting other people into the scheme. The reality: These schemes are illegal and although the people at the top of the 'pyramid' might make money, it won't be much. And as soon as the pyramid stops growing, there's no money to be made. Finally... There are many more rip-offs and swindles out there, but unfortunately I don't have room to list them all. But hopefully the above ten give you some idea of what to look out for. For further tips and advice, you can read this guide from Consumer Direct. And if you come across any scams, you can report them via the Consumer Direct website. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Lagos:Man lies unconscious beside police station for hours, dies

Posted by Akin Osunlaja WebLagosian on August 14, 2009 at 10:53pm

He might as well as laid in front of his grave ! God Help Us ! On Thursday, an unidentified man was found dead along Obalende Road, Lagos Island. He was there since 10 am the previous day breathing erratically, but no help came for him as he was in rags and believed to be insane. Obalende is known for heavy traffic of people and vehicles. Barely 10 metres from him were two police officers directing traffic. When asked why the man was left unattended, a female officer, who refused to give her name, said, "I don't know. He was there when I resumed duty at 4 o'clock." The gate of the Nigeria Police Headquarters annex, Kam Salem House, on Moloney Street, was about 30 metres from the man's unconscious body.

A passer-by, Seth Orok, said the police should have taken the man to a hospital. "Even if he is mad, he is still somebody's relative," he said. "The police are supposed to protect us, including this man. It's bad."

lagos..Port-Harcourt..Abuja..Kaduna.. Owerri..Edo.. AkwaIbom..Ibadan..Enugu

"That is what has become of Nigeria," said Kingsley Abayomi, a bank employee on his way home. "Nobody cares for anybody anymore. If it was before, that man would have been moved many hours ago. I saw him there at 12:30. It's almost six now and he's still there." It's a body again This kind of case is becoming familiar. On January 16, 2009, Kolawole Balogun, a casual worker with Grinaker LTA construction company on Victoria Island, Lagos, slumped and died in front of Kam Salem House. For two hours, his corpse was there. None of the officers on duty offered to help move it. Later, a group of his colleagues had to pay a commercial bus to take the body home.

Richard Mofe Damijo inducted into Nollywood Hall Of Fame

Posted by NollywoodMohits on August 14, 2009 at 10:38pm

Richard Mofe Damijo,actor and Commissioner for Culture and Tourism in Delta State joined actress Patience Ozokwor and Zack Orji, as an inductee of the Nanet Suites Nollywood Hall of Fame.RMD

RMDRMD, as he is better known, became one of the notable names in the Nigerian movie industry that have their portraits adorning the walls of the Nollywood lounge at Nanet Suites. The event which began a little behind schedule had in attendance friends of the Delta State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism.he was decked in a black suit, the star-actor came for the event with his wife, Jumobi. RMD also enjoyed the company of DAAR Communications boss, Raymond Dokpesi, his wife Toyin, his newly wedded son, Raymond Jnr and his wife, Doyin. The venue of the monthly ceremony was jam packed with celebrities including Director General of the National Film and Video Censors Board, Emeka Mba, and Phone Port boss, Femi Sanni.RMD who’s featured in over 30 films according to Nanet Suites Chief Executive Officer, Ini Akpabio, is an Actor’s actor. Akpabio, an advocate of using Nollywood as a marketing tool for tourism, said actors like RMD have earned Nigeria the kind of goodwill only stars of their calibre could.Comedian, Julius Agwu, read RMD’s citation, and then the actor’s portrait was mounted in a conspicuous position in the Hall of Fame. Actor and stand-up comic, Francis Duru, gave a good account as Master of Ceremonies, while comedians Fred Bright, Wahala and Youngest Oldman, added spice to the night humour.He graced T.V screens in the 90’s with the soap opera “Ripples”, then moved on to “Checkmate”, and has ever since been a popular face in Nollywood, enjoying a wide fan base of not just Nigerians, but Africa at large.

CBN Sacks 5 Top Bank CEOS in naija ! Oceanic,Intercontinental Lamido goes tough !

Posted by 9jabook.com on August 14, 2009 at 3:42am

As a crucial meeting between the the governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido, and CEOs of the nation’s banks is ongoing, industry sources have disclosed that the sack of CEOs and management staff of five major Nigerian banks is the “CBN now acting in its full capacity”. “What has happened is that these banks have not kept to the stipulations of corporate governance. There is no bank that is not exposed, but these sacks are likely about gross marginal exposure, to just a few corporate entities and individuals,” disclosed one of our sources, a top executive with a new-generation bank. Another disclosed that police officers are currently on the premises of headquarters of all five banks affected, showing the hard-line stance that the CBN has adopted over reviving the sector; “continued failure of regulation and risk management of the nation’s financial institutions and the effects on banks is at the front-burner of this meeting, which is why no representatives have been allowed.” It was also revealed that CEO of Bank PHB, Francis Atuche, was one of several executives who hurriedly booked flights in and outside of the country to attend the meeting. Advising shareholders not to panic, the bank official said that the Central Bank of Nigeria’s motives were well-intended. “These bankers have most likely been sacked because the government plans to re-inject funds into the banks, and to do so, they will have to oversee its management until the bank is on its feet again. It could have been worse, had the mismanagement been allowed to snowball into the beginnings of a financial crisis quite like that seen in the West.” He added that this situation was not an industry first. “You will recall that Wema bank had management and shareholders’ funds misappropriation issues and the CBN stepped in, put it in receivership temporarily until it stabilised. Why there is an uproar is the calibre of people, and top-tier banks involved. Sadly, anyone sacked will never work in a financial institution; that is the law.” Confirming that calls had been made by concerned bankers and shareholders across the nation’s 23 banks on the need for the CBN to clarify the situation, our source said: “until the CBN makes a categorical and detailed statements explaining its actions and the consequences to the Nigerian public, developments like this can in no way help the stock market. I cannot confirm the actual values right now but shareholder value is decreasing even as we speak.” 5ive down ONE more to Go WHO ? Chemical Ali the boss of all the bosses .

WHAT IS FEAR?

Posted by John Akukwe on August 14, 2009 at 1:57am

Fear is a deadly weapon in the hand of the devil to weaken our faith in God and make us more vulnerable to his schemes, gimmicks and tricks. Fear magnifies a little problem and makes its victim lose sight of God’s omnipotence. It displaces the ever-reliable and comforting promises of the word of God from our mind and replaces them with thoughts and feelings of hopelessness and despair. It also paralyzes one’s spiritual defence mechanisms, such that every negative event or report is given undue priority and excessive consideration over God’s assurances, resulting to discomfort and depressionFear makes someone to believe that worst things will happen. Fear can be stronger than love. The fear of the future is a waste of the present. It is a product of ignorance and imagination.Are you worried about the prevailing economic or financial melt-down? The kingdom of God knows neither recession, down-turn, scarcity, austerity, melt-down nor inflation. The word of God assures us in Psalms 34:10 and 37:25 that “the young lions do lack and suffer hunger but they that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing..”What are you afraid of? Has fear kept you chained down or prevented you from growing as a person? Has fear contributed to an unhealthy life-style for you? You may not realize that you are under the control of fear until you are confronted with certain situations. Fear causes one to “sink” during the storms of life. In today’s world, it is common for people to live in fear. Shall we ever see a world where people can enjoy life without fear? How do you find courage and strength in the face of fear, doubt, worry and anxiety? Are there new behaviours that you need to develop in order to confront and overcome fear?To be continued...

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