Afrikan Post June 2019 Issue

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Vol 11 Issue 6

June 2019

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From the Editor

O u r G r ea tes t G lor y is n o t in n ever f allin g b u t in r is in g ever y time we f a ll .

We ar e co mmittted to br in g in g th e commu n ity th e bes t in N ews f r o m Af r ica a n d th e D ia s por a . Yo u ju n e a ls o vis it o u r web s ite a t www.af r ikan po s t.com f o r d aily n ews u p d ates o n Af r ica .

D is claimer : Th e o p in ion s ex pr es s ed in ar ticles a n d s tor ies in th is N ews pap er ar e th o s e o f th e a u th o r s an d do n o t n eces s ar ily r ef lect th e views o f Af r ika n Pos t . All commen ts a n d s u gges tion s ar e welco me.

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Designer Afua Sam of Studio Dmaxsi honoured With Washington DC Hall of Fame Award.

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CULTURE & ENTERTAINMENT

Nathan Pryce & The Dreams at 2019 Embassy Chef Challenge Pg. 8

8yr-old Nicholas Buamah charms Embassy of Ghana in DC, takes over Ambassadorship, now plans Accra trip Pg. 9 Abedi Pele Voted 5th Greatest African Footballer In History Page 16

HER PAGE

You Have No Idea Pg. 11

200 African Americans To Get Ghanaian Citizenship Pg. 12

UPDATE

Bronx Intersection Renamed For Hero

Soldier Who Died Saving Family From FireBronx Intersection

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DC Fashion Week’s Opening Night which took place on Friday, February 22, 2019 at the newly renovated Washington Court Hotel located on Capitol Hill showcased the very best of DC-based design talent. The participating honorees are prior fashion week alumni who have continued to contribute to DC’s creative economy. The met gala theme event delighted the hearts of fashionistas and attendees.

“We are happy to announce the designer roster for our Hall of Fame Fashion Awards for DC Fashion Week’s 30th season. This is the first event of its kind in DC and we are happy to recognize the incredible fashion design talent that Washington DC/Maryland and Virginia has to offer. We are truly impressed by the participating designers and know that it will go up in history as an epic showcase” says The Dc Fashion Week Executive Producer, Mr Ean Williams.

A partnership of independent fashion designers, producers, and models, DCFASHIONWEEK was created to increase economic development in the area of fashion design, clothing merchandising and modeling, and to enhance the visibility of the nation’s capital as a center of international fashion.

With multiple awards, international projects and celebrity stylings under her belt, Afua Sam says of the newly added feather to her already colourful cap – “It was such an amazing night to see all-star designers in one room. I thank my Father God for the gift of Fashion.

STUDIO D’MAXSI is a fashion design house by Ghanaian born, Afua Sam, a multiple award winning, highly sought after and celebrated fashion designer.

Born to a family of six, remarkably self-taught, Afua draws her creative artistic inspiration from her late

father who was a touring musician. She also attributes her rich Ghanaian culture as one of her many inspirations for the creation of her designs.The innovative, sophisticated and edgy women’s wear line is intentionally designed for the modern woman. D’MAXSI, creates masterpieces for the chic, bold and funky modern woman.

STUDIO D’MAXSI has been featured in various fashion shows including New York Fashion Week, Divas Of Colour London, Ubiquitous Expo,Maryland Fashion Week, DC Fashion Week ,Crystal Couture , Runway Liberial International, ,George Town Fashion, Full Bloom Fashion Show, Golden Scissors Awards and more. Charitable fashion events like IHeart Health Expo,Fashion For PAWS,Steps to the Cure, Pink For Africa, Rise Against cancer ,The Steve Smith Family Foundation,America Breast Cancer Foundation, Tiger Lilly Foundation, Fashion Fusion, Fashion for World Peace, Pink Jams, Beyond Words Fashion Show For The ‘Lollipop Kids Foundation’,Etc.

STUDIO D’MAXSI’s brand of elegant yet edgy collections has gained her a diverse clientele from everyday people to celebrities for major events such as the Oscars, Grammys, DayTime Emmys, BET Honors; Ebony 100 Most Influential, IMAGE awards music videos and TV Shows just to name a few. Numerous TV appearances, WUSA9 news FOX5DC news, Good Day Baltimore,ABC7 News, FOX45 Baltimore etc. In the midst of distinctive accomplishment of having her gowns worn in Hollywood and across the globe, Afua has a gentle spirit and remains true to her values. Studio D’Maxsi specializes in: Red carpet looks, party dresses, casual chic wedding dresses, prom dresses, suits -for all events.

https://www.chubmagazine.com Faustina Anyanwu

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Dr. Alexander Anim-Mensah Among Some of the Ghanaians in the US Making Great Strides

Also read: Using Apple’s iPhone To Explain The Difference Between Invention And Innovation.

In 2017 Dr. Alexander Anim-Mensah got inducted into the Illinois Tool Works (ITW) Patent Society as a Fellow. About two years on he was recognized as a Distinguished Fellow of the same society in June 2019, for his involvement in inventions generating exceptional levels of commercial and technical successes. It appears this Ghanaian inventor knows no stop as he keeps amassing patents and realizing ways to make lives better.

Dr. Anim-Mensah was recognized for his contributions on the inventions relating to “Flow through Chemical Sensor” used for both qualitative and quantitative chemical sensing and monitoring i.e. for detecting the presence and absence of different chemicals as well as for the different chemical concentrations used on some commercially available products.

This invention led to several patents in the USA and key parts of the world including the European Union, Canada, China, and Mexico.

PHOTO CAPTION: Alexander Anim-Mensah (Ph.D.) in a pose with one of his inventions in hand. To his right is the Distinguished Patent Fellow Award he received in June 2019 in Chicago IL at the ITW headquarters. File photo TheAfricanDream.net caught up with Dr. Alexander Anim-Mensah after he was recognized with a Distinguished Patent Fellow award for his innovative ideas. This encounter was to learn from him and share his thoughts to inspire youths all over, specifically those in developing countries.

We also wanted his thoughts on how policymakers, governments, and generally people in key positions in developing worlds especially African countries could be encouraged to reconsider innovation, invention, and patents to secure their economies for now and the future generations.

There are huge benefits in innovation, inventions, and patents if pursued very well and diligently, Dr. AnimMensah said. This is an area not well developed in Africa; hence, people lack the understanding and oftentimes terminologies are vaguely used.

On several occasions without a proper invention search, some Africans assemble or make things that already exist that they unknowingly claim as inventions while that creation might already exist in a preceding invention protected by a patent in respective jurisdictions.

Mensah explained.

Being innovative affords one to stumble on an invention which is securable by a patent. A patent gives the inventor(s) the exclusive right for some number of years to commercialize an invention to reap the benefits without competition.

In simple terms, innovation is where business and technical perspectives meet to give birth to new valuable and lasting opportunities to solve problems that make life easier, generally bring about improvements, with associated monetary gains, and/or securing a better future.

For an ordinary person in a developing country, “filing for a patent could be expensive, however, any country that wishes to pursue this area could have an institution that thoroughly assesses and screens the various inventions to show its business and technical benefits while making them accessible to attract local and/or foreign investors to take them to the next level.

This could lead to commercialization which creates positives like new businesses and solving local problems among others. Generally, inventions geared towards solving existing community, societal or global issues goes a long way to improve its business viability and interest. For countries that wish to develop a strong innovation, invention and Some inventions lack the right technical and business patent system are necessary,” said the Doctor. backing to pursue commercial gains. For an invention to be patentable it should be novel, useful and non-obvious. For an invention to be novel it must be substantial- It has always been the vision of TheAfricanDream.net to ly different else known to the public i.e. something new. serve as a conduit to promote Africa’s development by tapping into key information and transferring them from both sides of the oceans to inspire the youth to make a differAn invention can be defined as the creation of someence. thing distinctively new with potential value through a

utility such as product, process or service Dr. AnimMensah said to TheAfricanDream.net. “Before creating something new one will need to assess its value and feasibility. On the other hand, innovation occurs if someone improves on or makes a significant contribution to an existing product, process or service i.e. something new and uniquely useful,” — Dr. Alexander Anim-

Through this process, we help the youth carve their visions and have role models. Owing to this we have followed Dr. Alexander Anim- Mensah’s work over the years and see him as a rising star among some of the US-based Ghanaians making great strides.

ITW employs over 65,000 people and is a $14.8B US revenue global manufacturer of diversified products and is well-placed on the Fortune 500 list of companies in the USA. It is ranked 4th among its peers of industrial equipment manufacturers.

Dr. Anim-Mensah is results-driven with a track record of delivering sustainable technical, business and management results through award-winning performances. He has a Ph.D., an MS and a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati – Ohio, North Carolina A&T State University – North Carolina, and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology – Ghana, respectively.

Among his numerous specializations is Technology, Operation, and Value Chain Management from the MIT Sloan School of Management – Cambridge, Massachusetts, Business Strategy from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville Virginia. He also gained an Intellectual Property Law and Policy education from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Before University education in Ghana, he attended the Ghana Secondary Technical School.

He is presently involved with over thirty (30) inventions, and US/world patents in areas spanning from improved chemical & water use efficiencies, sensing, energy management, cleaning, refrigeration & heat pumps, optimization, process improvements, performance monitoring, waste minimization, and environmental impacts reduction.

Dr. Alexander Anim-Mensah is the co-author of 2 books, 2 books chapters and several technical papers in the area of membrane science and technology, and biomedical applications. Some of his leisurely activities include writing secular articles, engaging in mentorship and mobilizing fellow diaspora-based Ghanaians to give back in Ghana. He is also a key player in Ghana-affiliated associations and organizations based in North America.

TheAfricanDream.net believes Dr. Anim-Mensah is on track to enter the innovation hall-of-fame, which is why we will continue to keep an eye on him. For now, please find him on LinkedIn and don’t forget to comment on and share this piece or point us to people like Dr. Anim-Mensah you feel that Africa and the world must know about.

Written by Oral Ofori

Sibongiseni Dhlomo and his journey from a village boy to a soldier and now Doctor June

education. Sibongiseni’s mother was actually a domestic worker at the Dhlomo family house at Umbumbulu until his stepmother died after which she was asked to marry his father and she agreed to the marriage.

The life skills which Sibongiseni is proud of having today were imbued in his person by his mother. In his book ‘My Journey to Robben Island launched in April this year at Emoyeni Conference Centre, Johannesburg Sibongiseni detailed his mother’s daily routine carefully. His mother’s day started at 5AM in the fields and she took all her children to the farm. The person who was left behind at home had to prepare breakfast and boil water for bathing and coffee. At 7AM the kids were released to go home, bath, have a quick breakfast and rush to school while Ma Pauline MaNdimande remains in the field.

Dr (Brig Gen) Sibongiseni Maxwell Dhlomo It is not often that a child of a bus driver and a domestic worker gets to become a medical doctor and a brigadier general in the army. This is the story of Sibongiseni Maxwell Dhlomo, the tenth child of Anthony Khonjwayo and Pauline MaNdimande. Sibongiseni Maxwell Dhlomo was born in Mbumbulu, rural KwaZulu Natal on December 10, 1959, He speaks English, Afrikaans, and Zulu.

His academic qualifications span Medicine, Public Health, Tropical Medicine, HIV Management, Project Management, Palliative Care, Business Management and Forensic Pathology. At an early age, he possessed the tunnel of wanting to be a medical doctor even though it was a tough decision and his parents could not afford to pay for medical school. By taking such a decision Sibongiseni rocked the apple cart because none of his many older siblings had ventured beyond teaching careers. By so doing, Sibongiseni created a dilemma for his parents who brought nineteen children into the world.

Sibongiseni’s story is one of adversity, patience, triumph, hard work and fortitude. His father Anthony Khonjwayo married his first wife long before he married Sibongiseni’s mum Pauline MaNdimande in 1958. Anthony’s first wife was named Pauline Hawukile MaMajozi and she died a few months after the birth of her eight children who were born prematurely.

The death of a wife, and mother of eight children and having to deal with a premature baby left Sibongiseni’s father who was a bus driver with Standard Three education devastated. Sibongiseni’s father had a special prayer stemming from the incident ( loss of his first wife Pauline Ma Mamajozi) what he experienced left him with no choice, except to turn to God; the creator of everything. On Sibongiseni’s graduation his father had this to say; When my wife died in 1957, I just never imagined that my son, Thembinkosi would survive growing up in a bottle”, I thanked the doctors and wished that one of my children would become a doctor, to explain to me how this miracle happened”. Sibongiseni was glad to have been an answer to his father’s prayers. He never understood that during his careers training he was already fulfilling his father’s prayer.

Sibongiseni was his father’s tenth child and the second child of his own mother Pauline Hawukile Ma MaNdimande. His mother had lost her first child, a boy in 1958. Sibongiseni’s father had nineteen children between his two wives. Sibongiseni’s mother completed Standard Six, the highest grade in primary school but had to look for work, at that time there were no girls who continued school beyond primary

At 12 noon MaNdimande returns home to have her breakfast then prepares the evening meal and then goes back to the field. Once the kids return from school they join Ma Ndimande in the fields (all of them except two) those who remain at home split chores. One child fetches water from the river and completes the evening meal while the other looks after cattle until just before sunset. As a result of all these activities, Sibongiseni was well-grounded in terms of skills learned at home, such as cattle rearing, cooking, cleaning the house, washing, and ironing of clothes.

The Dhlomo family was not at all well-off and in the first few years of schooling Sibongiseni and his siblings never wore shoes as part of their uniform. The mode of paying school fees was based on selling cattle to cover fees, uniform, and other school needs. At any point in time at least five or six of the Dhlomo children were in different schools. The Dhlomo model apparently, however, could not help Sibongiseni when he chose to study medicine because the fees were simply way too high and at a time when he was at Dlazengwa High the family could not afford his transport costs to return home to Umbumbulu. The challenge of not being able to return home like some children from far way Johannesburg was addressed in a creative manner by Sibongiseni who chose to rely on his life skills by ironing clothes for his peers at 5 cents each.

Sibongiseni’s book is about his history and experience of an ordinary boy from Mbumbulu, South of Durban in Kwazulu Natal, South Africa. Arrested on Christmas Day 1985 and sentenced to 10 years on Robben Island on April 26, 1987. Sibongiseni did not serve the full ten years as he was released on a historic date in South Africa’s history on March 21, 1991, after almost four years on Robben Island. The date of his release coincided with Human Rights Day. On March 21, 1969 people were killed in Sharpeville after protesting against the carrying of passes and the apartheid regime replied with live ammunition against defenseless peaceful marches.

Before his incarceration on Robben Island Sibongiseni had proven to be an outstanding scholar and also served with the military wing of the ANC known as Umkhonto Wesizwe. He was the first and only doctor in his family and in memory of his parents he has begun to breed cattle about forty plus in number as a lesson to his kids that cattle can be family wealth and can educate a nation. Sibongiseni is also passionate about educating

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the girl child so that they can be independent economically and to deal with the problem of gender inequality.

According to Sibongiseni, uneducated women are more prone to die from pregnancy-related complications than educated women. Sibongiseni enrolled at medical school as early as age 20. In the dedication of his book My Journey to Robben Island he wrote in the first paragraph that ‘the poorest family can indeed produce a doctor”.

His contribution to the emancipation of the people of South Africa saw him join the military of the then banned ANC, Umkhonto Wesizwe. On his return from prison, he served the people of Newcastle both as a Juneor and general practitioner. He worked also at the University of Kwazulu Natal lecturing in Public Health. Sibongiseni completed his Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB) degree in record time (six years) notwithstanding that he was preoccupied with his underground operations. He is a member of the executive council of KwaZulu Natal for Health in Kwazulu Natal. He is married with three children.

Source: This article was written by Adetunji Omotola in Johannesburg. Adetunji is the Founder of Global African Connection which seeks to connect Africans to the globe.

He is also an Africa Analyst and a Public Speaker. He blogs at winelawandpolitics.wordpress.com seen to be threatened by extinction.

Written by Oral Ofori

New York Man Graduates With Nursing Degree From University Where He Worked As A Janitor June

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A 29 year old man graduated from New York University’s Langone Tisch Hospital with a degree in nursing, the same University were he started out as a janitor.

After Frank Baez moved from the Dominican Republic to New York City with his mother at the age of 15, he stepped up to help his family financially, becoming a janitor at New York University’s Langone Tisch Hospital.

Frank Baez always watched the nurses with patients as they cared for them while he was working as a janitor and was inspired to become a nurse too. The 29 year old graduate now plans to be a critical care nurse in an intensive care unit.

Speaking with Good Morning America, Baez said:

“I could barely speak English at the time when I started working at NYU. Now I reflect on it and I feel very proud of how much I accomplished.”

He said he eventually left his job as a janitor to complete his bachelor’s degree at Hunter College then returned to NYU and completed the accelerated program at the Rory Meyers College of Nursing in 15 months. Baez is the first person in his family to graduate from college.

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He said: “There were times I doubted myself, but then I felt that I wanted to do something more for myself, that I deserved better, that I wanted to continue to move forward and grow and go on with my life. What I did was, I never gave up.”

Source: https://howafrica.com

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8yr-old Nicholas Buamah charms Embassy of Ghana in DC, takes over Ambassadorship, now plans Accra trip June

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Oral Ofori

Nicholas, his books and philanthropy and other engagements.

Also, watch out for volume two of his book, ‘Kayla & Kyle The Walking Dictionaries: A Puppy Surprise‘ due for release October 1, 2019.

Written by Oral Ofori

Image Caption: L-R: Kofi Tonto, H.E. the Ambassador, Danielle (mother) with Master Buamah in front of her, Mr. CNN, and Dominic (father) in photo courtesy Oral Ofori of TheAfricanDream.net “You can even sit in my chair at my desk,” said His Excellency (H.E.) Dr. Barfour Adjei-Barwuah, Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States to the 8yr-old-child-author Nicholas Buamah who was accompanied by his parents to pay a courtesy call on the Ambassador on Friday, June 7, 2019. They flew in from Snellville, Georgia (GA).

Nicholas’s eyes beamed upon hearing the Ambassador’s offer, yet the 8yr-old author of the book ‘Kayla & Kyle The Walking Dictionaries: Election Day‘, had his wits about him and showed with humility. So, he gently but confidently walks around the corner of the huge desk in the office, softly pins himself in the seat of power, lifts his head up, and smiles.

Then he quickly glanced up at H.E. Dr. Adjei-Barwuah before moving his gaze onto his parents, it was so picturesque to watch him beam and infect the entire room with his smile. And that was how Nicholas became an Ambassador himself, for all of an entire minute or so, with the blessings of H.E. Dr. AdjeiBarwuah.

Nicholas Buamah becomes Ambassador of the day And why not, the young Master Buamah has paid his dues by being a budding author, a Honor Roll student in Snellville, a bestselling author on Amazon, and had his book accepted into the Library of Congress among other cool things like being honored with a proclamation from the Juneor and city council of the City of Snellville, getting to sign the visitors book at the embassy of Ghana — Washington, DC — in which he left this simple message — “I was here.”

It was such a sight to behold, and all who beheld it were simply proud and happy about this young boy’s achievements. “I will go and examine what I have in my pocket [and] I will put all of it on your book — that’s a promise,” said H.E. Dr. AdjeiBarwuah as he assured Master Buamah that he was not only going to buy as many of his book as possible but will also collaborate on sending all the 555 copies that Steve Harvey bought from Nicholas on ‘The Steve Harvey Show‘ to Ghana for distribution to libraries and schools.

H.E. Dr. Adjei-Barwuah also congratulated Nicholas, who wants to attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology to study

to become a mechanical engineer when he said: “you have done very well and I wish other people will follow in your footsteps.” As an advice, the Ambassador hoped that when Nicholas was older, he too will place himself in a position to assist young and enterprising kids like himself.

Also read: 7-Yr-Old Future Astronaut and Diplomat Havana Chapman-Edwards Fights for Girls Education in Ghana

“Medaasi” — was the response Nicholas gave to the Ambassador — which is an expression in the Ghanaian language of Twi or Akan that means “thank you.“

We want him to also enjoy childhood — parents Dominic and Danielle, parents of Nicholas Buamah were very pleased by the comments of the Ambassador. The young author also looked excited to make his trip to Ghana with a quest to help children there expand their vocabulary through the experiences and adventures of Kayla and Kyle — the prime characters in his book which were created by him and his mother.

It is very important for mom and dad that Nicholas continue to enjoy his childhood and not let all the attention become a distraction that makes him miss the joys of growing up.

They told TheAfricanDream.net that his schoolmates don’t dwell so much on their son’s achievements, “he still has time to hang out with friends, play basketball and tennis and be a normal child,” they said.

While at the embassy Nicholas also met with Head of Consular Affairs Joseph Ngiminibaye, Trade attache Stella Akosua Ansah, Akosua Okyere-Badoo who is Head of Chancery, and Kofi Tonto Head Of Information and Public Affairs. Nicholas easily lit up the entire embassy with not just his smile, but his control of the English language as it gave credence to his nickname ‘the walking dictionary.‘

Everyone that day wanted a photo with him including the legendary Ghanaian photographer Charles Nimo Ntiamoah, aka Mr. CNN of 3G Media and reporter Jeremy Amponsah.

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The first black professional footballer in the world was born in Ghana in 1865

June

Wharton was born in Jamestown, Gold Coast (now Ghana) on October 28, 1865, to Henry Wharton, a very well-known Methodist Missionary from Grenada and Annie Florence Egyriba, a royal of the Fante tribe in Ghana.

From a very affluent family, Wharton was sent to England at the age of 19 to study to become a Missionary but ditched it to pursue his passion in sports, to be specific football, rugby, cricket and sprinting. Note that he equalled the Amateur Athletics Association (AAA) 100-yard sprint record of 60 seconds in 1886.

He began his footballing career as an amateur Goalkeeper for Darlington in 1885 where he performed exceedingly well. This caught the attention of Preston North End who subsequently signed him in 1886 and was part of the squad that reached the FA Cup semi-finals in 1888 – 1887.

Wharton, however, took a brief break from foot-

ball to pursue a career in running but returned after a year to sign for Rotherham Town F.C. where he remained till 1894. He then moved to Sheffield United for a short stint and then subsequently to Stalybridge Rovers in 1895. A row with the team management saw him packing bag and baggage to Ashton North End where he played between 1897 and 1899. He returned to Stalybridge Rovers after Ashton North End went bankrupt in 1899. In 1901, Wharton joined Stockport County where he played till his retirement at the age of 36 in 1902.

Wharton, unfortunately, died poor in 1930 and was buried in an unmarked grave in Edlington Cemetery. This remained so till 1997 when a memorial stone was mounted on his grave thanks to a campaign by anti-racism football organization Football Unites, Racism Divides (FURD). https://howafrica.com

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Abebe Bikila, the First African to Win Gold at the Olympics in 1960 After Running Barefoot

On August 7, 1932, Ethiopian athlete and double Olympic gold medalist, Abebe Bikila, was born. He made history after running barefoot and winning the marathon during the 1960 Summer Olympic Games in Rome, Italy. His decision to run barefoot was as a result of the new running shoes he bought in Rome which did not fit and gave him blisters.

The story of football trailblazer Arthur Wharton is a very fascinating one. Though his legacy and impact was for a very long time buried and relegated to the background, he certainly became a symbol of inspiration for young black footballers who wanted to be professionals in an era when that was almost always impossible.

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1973, after suffering from a cerebral haemorrhage complication due to his earlier accident.

Before gaining world recognition, Abebe was locally known as a good horse rider, swimmer and Gena-hockey player. He was born in a small village called Jato and joined For winning the gold medal, the Ethiopian athlete’s the military at the age of 17. He rose through name entered the Guinness Book of World Records the ranks and became a Captain in the as the fastest marathon run in bare feet. Abebe ran the guards of the Emperor. race in 2 hr, 15 min, 16.2 sec, on September 10, 1960. He also made history as the first Ethiopian and He was honoured with a military burial and sub-Saharan African to win an Olympic medal.

Emperor Haile Selassie declared the day as a Abebe’s world recognition did not end in 1960. In national day of mourning. The Abebe Bikila 1964, the legendary athlete competed in the marathon Stadium in Addis Ababa and other landduring the 1964 Olympic world games in Tokyo marks were named after him. where he broke his record by winning the race. The win made him the first athlete in the world to win an Even though long dead, his name and legacy Olympic gold medal in the marathon simultaneously still lives on in the memory of many and the first to break the world record again.

Africans and athletes around the world.

Abebe was a pioneer in long-distance running in Ethiopia setting the standard for many more Ethiopian and African athletes to make Africa proud during world marathon and sporting events.

Abebe enjoyed fame by joining campaigns, going on special visits and making money from endorsements.

Unfortunately for him on March 22, 1969, he was involved in a severe car accident while driving his Beatle. The accident left the athlete paralysed.

Through therapy, he was able to regain control over his upper body but was confined to a wheelchair until he died.

The paralysed record-breaking gold medalist played table tennis and archery and competed in the 1970 Stoke Mandeville Games in London while receiving treatment. In 1971, he won the cross-country sleighriding event in Norway during a competition for the disabled.

Abebe passed away at the age of 41 on October 25,

https://howafrica.com

You Have No Idea

H

Dr. Miriam C. Gyimah

ave you noticed that sometimes (actually most of the time) when you pray, you have so much on your prayer list that by the time you finish, you haven’t prayed for anyone else outside yourself and your immediate family? I have. We can get so wrapped up in ourselves and our needs that we forget to consider the needs of our friends, church family, community and our world at large. We fail to intercede for each other. One of the important lessons we learn from Jesus is that even while facing persecution and His pending crucifixion, He considered and prayed for his disciples. We have to keep this in mind so that we fulfill a crucial part of being imitators of Christ, interceding for each other.

A critical area where we need to intercede for each other is our safety and well-being. I think we should continue to pray for our own personal safety, but praying for everyone’s well-being is key in protecting ourselves. When we intercede for each other, we close all gaps, all opportunities for the enemy to take a strong hold in our lives. We strengthen our core as well as our borders. It has become more and more necessary that we become cognizant of our responsibility to each other, for what affects one person affects us all. If anything, we must realize that if someone is not safe, then our safety too is not secured.

I am moved to write on this subject because of the many accounts of senseless cruelty, violent crimes and deaths surrounding us. Each day, we are confronted with news from various communication sources citing grievous incidents. The information presented to us confirms that our world is only getting worse. We become disturbed and disheartened, but these are the signs of the times as the Bible has already warned us that we “will hear of wars and rumors of wars” (Matt. 24:6-7) and that because “iniquity will abound, the love of many shall wax cold” (Matt. 24:12).

Unfortunately, these events are not removed from us, but very close. We are living in dangerous times and we are all vulnerable to premeditated or random violence.

The news we hear is not the tale of someone else. The news is about us, not only because it is about mankind, but also because just as it happens to another person, it can easily happen to us. These narratives from the media are about our safety, our chances, and our tragedies. We can be hit hard with senseless violence and preventable tragedies. Even worse, our children are more vulnerable and there is almost no safe harbor for them. These days we can’t rest assured that they will be safe in their schools, the Boy Scouts or even in the church. There is someone always preying on them, pedophiles, child abusers of the emotional and physical kind, cruel and psychologically disturbed people. They can emotionally and spiritually impact our kids in a very harmful way.

I don’t enjoy being the bearer of bad news, neither do I want to incite fear in anyone, but I think that as much as we might want to distance ourselves from such fearful thoughts and acts, we have to at least bear some reality in mind and then take the necessary steps to combat becoming victimized. As Christians, we are in the midst of warfare and must be vigilant and wise as the Bible advises. What do I mean by warfare?

I mean that even as we go about innocently minding our business and living our lives as law-abiding and practicing Christians, danger is lurking somewhere, someplace. We have to understand that negative spiritual forces are at work against the lives of all people, even if one is a child of God. For instance, there are some accounts of individuals who walked close with God and had no idea that they were in warfare. The Apostle Peter walked closely with Jesus. If there was an inner circle within the twelve apostles and Jesus, Peter was certainly in that circle. He loved Jesus and Jesus loved him. Peter was passionate and even aggressive for the Lord, but Jesus knew that with all his passion and with all his good intentions for the ministry, Peter was like everyone else. He was a prey for the devil and the devil had set his sights on him. Peter was clearly unaware of this as Jesus revealed to him that “Satan had desired to sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you….” (Luke 22:31).

Just as he wanted with Peter, the enemy has a desire to destroy us, to render us useful for his kingdom or useless for God’s. But Christ’s revelation to Peter is one to us also. It warns us that we are not entirely safe and we shouldn’t take comfort in our ignorance. Although we can take comfort in knowing that Christ is watching over and praying for us, we also have to be aware that our adversary, the devil, is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (1st Peter 5:8).

Knowing this, we are left with one important duty, to pray for each other.

Christ’s example with Peter teaches us how we should relate to each other as

Christians. I think it even teaches us how we should relate to all people. We ought to intercede for each other. We ought to have foresight, empathy and compassion. Our compassion should not be activated after one has been sifted as wheat or completely destroyed. It should be constantly within us and expressed outwardly.

A genuine expression of compassion is to remember each other in prayer.

I remember that when I was younger, it puzzled me so much when someone would feel for another person whom they did not really know and they would cry or weep terribly for that person. My mother used to do that. I recall that when I was in high school, she received news on the death of an acquaintance’s daughter. I remember she cried and cried on the phone while talking with the family and then when she was done talking, with the phone still in her hand and her back against the yellow kitchen wall, she slowly slid down to the floor and cried even more. I looked at her as if something was wrong with her. I had heard parts of the conversation and deduced that a young girl had passed. Even still, I didn’t really understand why she was crying so terribly. I said directly and insensitively to her “why are you crying? You don’t even know the girl.” With tear tracks down her face, and tears still welling in her eyes, my mom quietly looked at me and said nothing.

Quite a few years later and as life now counts me as a mother, I now understand what my mother felt. I will say that ever since I became a mother, I sense in me a pain and empathy I had never really felt for others before. I could be doing one thing or another and upon hearing of a particular tragedy that has occurred to another’s son, daughter, irrespective of the age, I become so disturbed that my eyes begin to well up with tears that I have to control myself by forcefully shutting down the tears that might want to make their way out of my eyes. I would force myself to endure the pain internally, especially when people were around just so that I wouldn’t appear as an emotional nutcase, a woman without any control of her feelings.

There was one situation that I just couldn’t shut my heart and emotions down enough to restrain the flooding of the tears. A little five year old girl was raped and strangled. It turned out that her own mother had sold her into prostitution for a few dollars worth of drugs. The story resonated with me because I have a five year old niece; I also have a four year old daughter as well as help with children from infancy to five years old at my church. I know how I adore them and can only imagine how other mothers and families could easily adore their little princesses. There was no shutting down of the tears that time. I wept out loud in my home. I wept for the tragic loss of that girl’s life.

After we have heard so many terrible accounts of such events, what are we doing about them beyond shaking our heads in disbelief? How are we expressing our compassion?

How are we also working to prevent such a thing from happening to those near us and even

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ourselves? This girl’s situation reminds me of what Jesus said to Peter. He tells him that Satan had desired to sift him like wheat.

Satan hasn’t changed and Peter is not the only intended victim. All the evil in the world is orchestrated by Satan’s dark forces and it is these forces that move human beings to become so destructive and murderous that they would harm little children. But aside from that particular news event, what of all the others like the adoptive mother in the state of Maryland who emotionally, psychologically, and physically abused, murdered and kept the bodies of two of her adopted daughters in a freezer? How could something like this happen? How could the domestic landscape become so tumultuous that a husband would intentionally set his wife on fire?

While we hear these horrific stories, we have to remember that this is what Christ was talking about to Peter. We have to know that like Peter, we have no idea what the enemy is plotting against us, how he is ready to use someone to bring pain and heartache to our lives whether it will come by harming us directly or indirectly by harming a loved one. We have no idea. The great Job also had no idea that the devil had gone to God seeking permission to harm him. Consider all the destruction of his wealth, the death of all his children and what he physically suffered. Although Job was a righteous man, he didn’t know that he was in warfare and he certainly didn’t know that the enemy had intentions of destroying him, sifting him like wheat.

So what are we to do, be nervous, insecure and intimidated by life? No, but we ought to recall the actions and words of Christ so that we will pray not only for ourselves but for each other. There is power in compassion, empathy and most importantly, prayer. There is power in interceding for each other. We ought to pray for our family, our church members, our neighbors, our children’s friends and acquaintances. We ought to pray for as many people as we can on a regular basis, so that we could spiritually thwart any physical manifestation of harm that the enemy of righteousness is plotting against lives. That is the action we should take. That is the advice inherent in Jesus’ words to Peter.

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200 African Americans To Get Ghanaian Citizenship

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considering the revenue it would generate when given the needed attention.

He expressed the GCGL’s readiness and commitment to support the celebration to make it a success but urged the management of GTA to “leave their doors open” to allow free flow of information for publication.

“Give us the needed information when we come knocking at your door, so that we can work together to drive the audience,” he said.

The Director of News at the GCGL, Mrs Mavis Kitcher, said the role of the company was to support the developmental agenda of the government and so such programmes fell within that mandate.

She also underscored the need for information to be forthcoming to ensure that the objective of the cooperation was achieved.

Look at hotel prices

Mr Ato Afful (head of table), MD, GCGL, addressing the GTA delegation when it paid a courtesy call on him at the GCGL Head Office in Accra

The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, will grant Ghanaian citizenship to more than 200 members of the African-American-Caribbean Diaspora community residing in the country.

The conferment of citizenship will take place next month.

The Director of Diasporan Affairs at the Office of the President, Mr Akwesi Awua-Ababio, who is also the Chairman of the Year of Return Steering Committee, made this known in an interview with the Daily Graphic when the leadership of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) paid a courtesy call on the Managing Director of the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL), Mr Ato Afful, and other management members of the company.

A similar conferment took place in 2016 when 34 Diasporans were given Ghanaian citizenship under the then President John Dramani Mahama.

Mr Awua-Ababio explained that it was the prerogative of the President to confer citizenship on persons who were not citizens by birth, as enshrined in the Constitution.

According to him, the decision to grant citizenship to the African-American-Caribbean community formed part of the celebration of the Year of Return.

He said the celebration was very dear to the President because it had the potential to place Ghana high on the international map.

The meeting was to dialogue and deliberate on how to strengthen the partnership between the two bodies to promote the Year of Return and sensitise Ghanaians to the celebration.

President Nana Akufo-Addo, in September 2018, declared 2019 ‘The Year of Return’, a celebration of African resilience and to commemorate 400 years since the first Black slave reached the shores of the new world, United States of America.

The celebration is also to reach out to the descendants of those Africans who were forcibly removed from their

homeland and taken into slavery.

Low publicity

At the meeting, the Chief Executive Officer of the GTA, Mr Akwasi Agyeman, indicated that the celebration had been well publicised on the international front, attracting a number of Diasporans.

However, he said, the same could not be said about the publicity of the celebration in the country, as there had been little publicity to educate the local populace to be abreast of the celebration.

While the celebration would attract more foreigners into the country, he said, more publicity on it would convince the business community to align itself with the activities planned for the celebration.

Mr Agyeman further indicated that as part of the celebration a number of activities, including PANAFEST, had been outlined to take place from next month until the end of the year to climax the celebration.

To promote the activities and position Ghana well on the international front, he said, the GTA needed to collaborate with the media to broadcast the event to the public.

He, therefore, called on the GCGL to support the GTA to make the celebration of the Year of Return a success, as well as promote the tourism industry in general.

While expressing gratitude to the GCGL for its immense support to the tourism industry, Mr Agyeman said more needed to be done to enhance the country’s tourism sector.

We are ready to support

Mr Ato Afful, for his part, said tourism was very critical to the economic development of the country,

Mrs Kitcher, however, expressed concern about the high prices of hotels in the country, especially the four and five-Star hotels, saying: “You are asking people to visit the country but the prices of these hotels are very expensive and need to be looked at.”

The Director of Marketing of the GCGL, Mr Franklin Sowa, recalled how the company was already working to promote tourism in the country.

He said its platforms had the potential to draw the audiences needed to participate in the various activities, saying both Graphic Showbiz and The Mirror were already promoting the sector in their publications.

He said domestic tourism had a lot of potential that could be promoted to generate high returns for the government and added that the GCGL was using its Junior Graphic platform to introduce vacation tours for students to visit the various tourist sites.

Reacting to the high hotel prices, Mr Agyeman said the management of the various hotels were paying about 22 different taxes at a go, hence the high prices.

However, he said, the authority was working with Parliament to see how to reduce the tax incidence on hotels to drive down prices.

Source: Daily Graphic

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This 26-year-old Nigerian is now the highest paid robotics engineer in the world

A 26-year-old Nigerian, credited for building the world’s first gaming robot, has just become the highest paid in the field of Robotic engineering.

Silas Adekunle achieved this feat after signing a new deal with the world’s reputable software manufacturers, Apple Inc.

The robotics engineer was also named as “Someone to Watch in 2018” by the Black Hedge Fund Group, according to reports by thebossnewspapers.com.

Adekunle is currently the founder and CEO of Reach Robotics, a company developing the world’s first gaming robots.

He also recently graduated with a 1st class degree and has four years’ background in robotics.

Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Adekunle studied in Nigeria before relocating to the UK as a teenager.

After completing his secondary school education, he proceeded to the University of the West of England where he graduated with a first class graduate in Robotics.

In 2013, he founded Reach Robotics and developed a lot of experience on robotics within a space of four years.

Adekunle was also a team leader of Robotics In Schools programme, a programme which encourages and pays attention to students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

The programme encouraged him to develop robotics to make education more entertaining for STEM students.

In 2017, MekaMon, he released the world’s first gaming robot, with the special ability to customise the gaming bot to perform personalised functions.

The initial launch of Mekamon sold 500 bots, generating $7.5 million, according to The Guardian.

Following this feat, Adekunle received support from various organisations including London Venture Partners ($10 million) and in the same year, his company, Reach Robotics signed a deal with Apple securing exclusive sales in Apple stores.

“Impressed by the quality of his robots and their ability to show emotion with subtly-calibrated movements, Apple priced his four-legged “battlebots” at $300 and has put them in nearly all of its stores in the United States and Britain.

“Early customers skew towards male techies but a growing number of parents are buying the robots for their children to get them interested in STEM, Adekunle told Forbes in an interview this year.

The young entrepreneur who once indicated that the secrets to his success are “balance, shared ideas, time management and being oneself”, was recently listed in the 2018 Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe: Technology.

Adekunle, who has taken over the world with his inventiveness, is currently located at the Bristol Robotics Lab which is said to be the best robotics research centre in the UK.

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Twenty-Five-Year-Old Kenyan Engineer And Innovator, Roy Allela, Has Created A Set Of Gloves That Translate Sign Languages To Sound.

Twenty-five-year-old Kenyan engineer and innovator, Roy Allela, has created a set of gloves that translate sign languages to sound. The Sign-IO gloves essentially translate signed hand movements into audible speech via Bluetooth and a smartphone app.

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South Sudan’s first female pilot takes the captain’s seat at Delta Air Lines

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African Nigeria born Philip Emeagwali invented the internet June

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South Sudan’s first female pilot Aluel Bol Aluenge has risen to the position of captain with major American airline company Delta Air Lines after working with Ethiopian Airlines and FlyDubai.

34-year-old Aluel Bol was celebrated in 2011 after completing an aviation training in the United States with the support of the South Sudanese government.

“I feel extremely delighted especially at the mere thought of achieving my dream. As a child growing up, I always wanted to be a pilot and my late dad made sure that he did all what it takes to make me succeed,” said Bol seven years ago.

She is being celebrated again for rising up the ladder to become a captain at one of the leading airline companies in the world.

Local news media widely reported her success and friends and family congratulated her on social media. “#SouthSudan first woman pilot Aluel Bol becomes a captain at @Delta Airlines.

Congratulations Capt. Aluel!” says Twitter user Sisi Majok.

Aluel Bol is from South Sudan’s Lakes State and is the daughter of late Justice James Bol. She was a refugee in Kenya during her country’s ethnic and political conflict.

BY ISMAIL AKWEI

If you are reading this on your phone, tablet or computer – each other as early as the 1950s.” ~ Time Magazine Akure, Nigeria born Philip Emeagwali made that possible.

Which, in my opinion, minimizes the credit he deserves Philip Emeagwali figured out how to combine multiple for his hard work on something that absolutely changed computers into what we now know as the internet. It’s just the world. that simple.

Because those computers could not all talk to each other Time Magazine, in an article back 2007 (link is a few simultaneously. Philip Emeagwali’s formula made that paragraphs below), admits that Emeagwali alone came up possible. This is the “internet”. with the formula to allow many computers to communicate to each other at the same time. Which is basically the He even coined the name internet and explains why he internet as we know it. called it so. ~ http://www.emeagwali.com/biography/Ph… “The Internet as we know it today did not cross my mind,” Emeagwali told TIME. “I was hypothesizing a planetary- But Time magazine did go on to say: sized supercomputer and, broadly speaking, my focus was on how the present creates the future and how our image “…the Web owes much of its existence to Philip of the future inspires the present.” ~ from the Time article Emeagwali, a math whiz who came up with the formula for allowing a large number of computers to communicate As you read this article and research further, you will see at once.” ~ Time Magazine that this Igbo (Hebrew) from Biafra Nigeria arrived at his place in history, at least in part, on his study of nature, Read the entire Time Magazine article here http://conspecifically bees. Emeagwali saw an inherent efficiency in tent.time.com/time/specials… the way bees construct and work with honeycomb and determined computers that emulate this process could be For earning a spot in the history of computing, the the most efficient and powerful. In 1989, emulating the Nigerian postal service has issued a commemorative set bees’ honeycomb construction, Emeagwali used 65,000 of stamps in 50-naira (US$0.39) and 150-naira (US$1.17) processors to invent the world’s fastest computer, which denominations. Both stamps went on sale on January 18, performs computations at 3.1 billion calculations per sec- 2006, at the dedication and the “First Day of Issue” cereond. ~ http://www.black-inventor.com/dr-phil… mony in Abuja, Nigeria .

Many sites will try very hard to down play him, but when Do your own research, but as for the internet…and how you look at the sources and facts… it is pretty clear. you will most likely do your research….he did that!

Just as when crediting Thomas Edison for inventing the light bulb, nobody says “well Ben Franklin invented electricity..”, it is just that simple when you read up on Emeagwali and his invention of the internet.

So it is incorrect to begin an article on Emeagwali and the internet by saying “…computers were sending signals to

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Swaziland record producer G.R takes to skies with new 'Fallen Star' track

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According to Swaziland-based G.R, the new song which is titled ‘Fallen Star‘ is by DJ Pencil and features Krugga as well, who is from South Africa. “I jumped onto the ‘Fallen Star’ track because after I saw the project, it felt timeless, and had the potential to cut across a different spectrum which in my opinion was really cool,” G.R revealed to TheAfricanDream.net in a phone interview.

“I always say that the music that I hear within me I can not hear it out there so I will have to do it myself, this was what led me into sound production and record making and I have not looked back since 2013 when I first ventured into that circle,” G.R said to TheAfricanDream.net as he encouraged people to check out the new track.

‘Fallen Star‘ is a combination of house music and trance and it has hip hop elements in it as well, making it a deep and easy listen with danceable vibes to it.

Originally born in and from Nhlanganoorn in Swaziland, this record producer dabbles a lot of genres including deep house, hip hop, trance and ballad R&B with a bit of electric sound that makes him a uniquely eclectic artist with a peculiar voice. “My voice has also been my major strength and the one thing that has made me receive attention from people, especially musicians,” G.R explained to TheAfricanDream.net.

During the phone interview G.R outlined the inspiration behind ‘Fallen Star‘, stating it is about life and the fact that “we all have an end to our respective journeys so fallen star is a poetic attempt to recount living life to show how some people celebrate with you when things are glamorous and how on the reverse side only a few will stick with you to the end,” G.R and his friends hope the song makes listeners meditate on these facts and question the people

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Legendary Ghanaian footballer and arguably the best ever player from the West African country Abedi Pele Ayew has been voted the fifth greatest African footballer by French Football.

G.R with Krugga and DJ Pencil in their 'Fallen Star' promo picture Bhekisisa Mavuso, a young rapper from the Southern African nation of Swaziland has been featured in a new song by DJ Pencil and Krugga. Mavuso who goes by the stage name G.R personally produced this new song which is raking in airplay, with support from DJ Pencil.

Abedi Pele Voted 5th Greatest African Footballer In History

By France Football Magazine June

around them sometimes.

His music is all about life and its experiences, how they inspire him personally and spiritually to churn out music that speaks to hearts and souls and of course make people dance. “I have worked with Liz Harries a young upcoming artist and producer who I have featured on some of my songs, I’m currently working with DJ Pencil and Krugga but looking forward to working with other great people here in Southern Africa and beyond to make great records that are globally appealing.“

The most difficult part in the music career of G.R was production, he happened to have started learning how to produce around the same time that he wanted to go professional. The most frustration came for him when: “I try to bring everything together, however, love and passion for music and the motivation from people around me is what kept me going and at this point, I feel I can work with anyone and on any stage,” G.R said about how he has matured.

Find the record producer who is also a pharmacy technician that holds a certificate grade 8 in piano with basic music theory, on Facebook as @LordG.R, he’s on Twitter as @GR88917836. ‘Fallen Star’ received its first play on a major radio station in South Africa in early June 2019 on ‘The Afternoon Drive‘ with an estimated 8 million listeners via Ukhozi FM. Listen to it in this link https://audiomack.com/song/gr-19/fallen-star and share, do let us know what you think of it as well.

Written by Oral Ofori

French Football magazine picked a list of 30 African football greats to be voted for by 42 renowned journalists and the former Marseille star was named the fifth best.

Abedi Ayew made his name in France after guiding Olympique Marseille to UEFA Champions League glory in 1993, and went on to win that year's African Footballer of the year award.

The 54-year old was three times African Footballer of the Year and also won the Nations Cup with the Black Stars of Ghana in 1982, as a teenager.

Father of two of Black Stars players, Andre and Jorday Ayew was only behind Ivorian legend Dedier Drogba who came fourth.

In third place is Cameroonian Roger Milla, with compatriot and former Barcelona superstar Samuel Eto'o coming in second place.

President of Liberia and Africa's only Ballon D'or winner George Weah was voted the greatest African footballer of all time.

Michael Essien, the other Ghanaian in the list placed 26th ahead of Tarak Diab, Emmanuel Adebayor, Seydou Keita and Rashid Yekini.

Source: GHANAsoccernet.com

June 2019

www.esthershairwigbeautyshops.com

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African Takes Toronto Why thousands of Africans go on a pilgrimRaptors to Historic NBA age to Senegal to visit the black Virgin Mary Victory Afrikan

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Cape Town — The Toronto Raptors have made history by winning the first NBA championship in their 24-year history, beating the Golden State Warriors, 114-110, in Game 6 of the finals on Thursday night, the Guardian reports.

The team's president, Masai Ujiri, keeps himself out of the limelight but is one of the shrewdest front-office minds in the business of basketball, according to sports site The Undefeated.

The site reports that Ujiri became the first NBA general manager to grow up in Africa when he was hired to run the Denver Nuggets' basketball operations department in 2010.

He was born in Bournemouth, England, but the family moved back to Nigeria when Masai was two. Wikipedia says that Ujiri's father, a hospital administrator and nursing educator, was an Isoko from Aviara in Delta state in Nigeria, while his mother, a doctor, is Kenyan, of the Kamba people from Machakos.

By age 13, he had fallen in love with basketball and left Nigeria for Seattle to play at a prep school while staying with a Nigerian family, according to The Undefeated.

After playing basketball for various teams, he worked as an unpaid scout for the Orlando Magic. In 2003 he was hired as an international scout for the Denver Nuggets. He was later promoted to the Nuggets' director of international scouting, and later moved to the Raptors.

Now, CBS Sports reports that the Washington Wizards are "preparing" a massive $10 million per year offer for Ujiri and are expected to seek permission from Toronto to speak to him about their vacancy.

Source: https://allafrica.com

June 2019

Pilgrimages aren’t so much of a conventional Christian activity as it is for Islam but one thing is common among all these forms of pilgrimages – the numbers are unavoidably huge.

In Senegal, on an annual basis, tens of thousands of faithbelieving people, mostly Catholics, embark on this unassuming journey to a village in the Cap Vert-Thies region of the country called Popenguine.

Being an annual event that has a rich historical blend of resilience and superstition, the place has become so significant that it has even attracted people from across the borders of Senegal, even so, many Muslims.

But then, what is so unique about the Basilique Notre-Dame de la Délivrance beyond the obvious fact that it houses one of the many hundreds of Black Madonnas (statues of the Most Holy Virgin Mary that are black)?

Well, it is believed to possess some superficial powers that can heal people of their ailments in a way that is celebrated on a national scale in this West African country.

Called a Shrine, this Popenguine location has suffered many setbacks and threats of death – literally. First built in the 1800s by a Catholic priest, Bishop Mathurin Picarda, following his love of the village of Popenguine after his first visit there, the shrine would go on to experience many closures and setbacks during the next century.

In that period, there has been the building’s collapse, epidemics of yellow fever and sleeping sickness, the Great War, and a shipwreck that took the lives of a bishop and 16 missionaries.

The area remained primarily a Muslim community thereafter but the Catholic faith and devotion to the Our Lady of Deliverance figure persisted.

By 1998, a new church was built and dedicated to the Immaculate Conception of the Most Holy Virgin Mary and proclaimed a minor basilica in 1991 at the request of Cardinal Hyacinthe Thiamdoum, a native of Popenguine. This began a new birth for the church and for the community.

In 1992, the head of the Catholic church at the time, Pope John Paul II visited the shrine and crowned the statue of Our Lady of Deliverance on February 20, 1992.

Things spiraled from there, with tens of thousands of pilgrims,

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many of them organized groups of young people, and many inspired by rumours of Marian apparitions appearing there, repeatedly go to Popenguine for the annual celebration on Pentecost Monday, the day dedicated to celebrate the feast of the Black Madonna.

During this ceremony, a solemn mass and then a procession from the church to a nearby grotto shrine of Our Lady of Deliverance in a cliff overlooking the sea is held.

Undoubtedly, religion in Africa is as big as the numbers of people the continent boasts of. And with the spread of many different doctrines of the Christian faith across it, the Catholic church still maintains a strong place on the continent.

In fact, statistics from the Vatican show how the future of Catholicism will be in Africa. In 2009, when Pope Benedict XVI visited Africa, the estimated number of Catholics was at 158 million while it is expected that by 2025, one-sixth (230 million) of the world’s Catholics will be Africans.

And all these are owed to the fact that the numbers of these Bible believing faithfuls keep rising on the continent.

Source:https://face2faceafrica.com

US based Deliverance FM and Foundation Support the Needy In Ghana

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US Based Deliverance FM has continued its tradition of giving to the needy and supporting orphaned Children In Ghana.

In June 2019, Rev. Harry and Rev. Mrs. Bertha Domfeh with a team from Various Parts of the World visited the Cherub Children’s Home at Apire near Santasi in Kumasi to encourage the children, pray for them, presented funds to support their education, and provided toiletries for the maintenance of the orphanage. The team also feted the children with some food and goodies from the United States.

Speaking to the Afrikan Post Rev. Harry Domfeh said it is their heartfelt wish that they could extend this gesture to every part of Ghana. He went on to say that it has always been the vision of deliverance FM USA to support the needy and making provision for orphanages is an integral part of their ministry. Rev. Mrs. Bertha on her part said “Anyone who takes care of orphans receives unmerited favor of the Lord. We come to Ghana every year to do this because of the compassion we have for the underprivileged children. It is a blessing to give than to receive”. She appealed to everyone to come to the aid of the needy with whatever they are blessed with.

Deliverance FM is a USA based radio station dedicated to prayer and deliverance. Rev. Harry Domfeh and his wife Rev. Bertha established the station about 6 years ago in Cleveland Ohio. Many Ghanaian orphanages have benefited immensely from their benevolence. They have over the years organized deliverance crusades in various cities in the United States where testimonies abound.

They have extended their outreach program to Ghana with the establishment of a Deliverance Prayer Center at Anwiankwanta – Abenkyim off the Kumasi to Obuasi Highway. The couple and their team have built a huge facility which they plan to extend to a residential camp in the coming years.

The couple presented several bags of rice and cooking oil to widows at the Deliverance FM Prayer Camp. Hundreds of people benefited from this gesture.

Deliverance FM has set a great example and could not have done it without the support of its partners. They would like to extend their appreciation to all patrons, ministers, friends, and members of the ministry through whose efforts this trip has made a difference.

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Meet The Female Teacher Who Uses Her Break Hours To Patch Up Pupils Torn Uniforms

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South Africa Is The Most Unequal Country In The World

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make ends meet.

South Africa’s richest households are almost 10 times wealthier than poor households, according to World Bank estimates.

“If you look at the number of people who sleep on an empty stomach, these numbers are quite shocking,” adds Ndlovu.

But while democracy has delivered freedom for all South Africans, not enough has changed for those living in the country’s vast townships.

Miss Naomi Awomeh busy sewing the uniforms during her break time

A teacher at Kubease, a village in the Ashanti region, by name Naomi Awomeh, has won the love of many people.

The story of how she’s touching the lives of young pupils in the school she teaches gained attention when it was shared on social media.

‘Change Starts; Wherever You Are! One of my daughters in the Lord Awomeh Naomi teaches at Kubease near Ejisu. She learnt dressmaking during her vacations while in College. She, in turn, teaches her Pupils needlework and she patches their worn out Uniforms during breaks??#ChangeMakers.’‘

The community seamstress spends her lunch break at school patching up damaged uniforms Beyond being selfless, Naomi’s extraordinary humane work is helping the deprived of her students. pupils.

She also teaches the pupils needlework.

Naomi’s story first gained attention on social Source: Ghpage.com media when Emmanuel Kobea, a young man who was touched by Naomi’s initiative in the school she teaches, shared a photo of her with a caption which read.

In fact, despite 25 years of democracy, South Africa remains the most economically unequal country in the world, according to the World Bank. If anything, the rainbow nation is even more divided now than it was in 1994.

In many ways, the legacy of apartheid endures.

Previously disadvantaged South Africans hold fewer assets, have fewer skills, earn lower wages, and are still more likely to be unemployed, a 2018 World Bank report on poverty and inequality in South Africa found.

Poverty levels are highest among the black population, followed by South Africa’s “coloured” population — the accepted term for mixed-race people in the country.

In South Africa, the white population makes up the majority of the elite — or top 5% — explained Murray Leibbrandt, economics professor at the University of Cape Town.

Part of Leibbrandt’s work has involved tracking the social progress of 30,000 South Africans from 2008 to 2017.

“The best signifier of a country that’s really on its way isn’t a society with no inequality,” he said. “It’s a society with declining inequality and a growing middle class.”

And, at the other end of the spectrum, an elite, mainly white minority continues to thrive.

By Leibbrandt’s estimates, South Africa’s middle class is small and sluggish, and comprises approximately one in five South Africans.

The gap between rich and poor is wider in South Africa than in any other country where comparable data exist, the World Bank found.

“The picture that we pick up in our statistics is that we haven’t been successful in breathing transformation through the country. And it fractures the country.”

It’s not just income inequality that is cause for concern, he adds, but also unequal access to opportunities and essential public services.

“It’s a very embedded phenomenon that doesn’t change very quickly, because it’s the result of the way the whole society coheres,” Leibbrandt said.

While the African National Congress (ANC) is While the middle class has hardly grown since expected to win again in Wednesday’s national 2008, the black percentage of the middle class elections, it may be facing an increasingly disilluhas increased from 47% to 64%, he says. sioned electorate.

Mthandazo Ndlovu, Oxfam South Africa’s democracy and governance manager, say inequali- Levels of inequality in South Africa appear to be passed down from generation to generaty has been exacerbated as a result of “systemic tion. failures at a government level.”

“One would have assumed that 25 years into democracy we would have had better access to land, better access to health care, we would not have children falling into pit latrines due to failures in the provision of ablution facilities,” he said.

The way forward, he suggested, starts with South Africans recognizing the situation as it is right now.

“The point is that this inequality and these livelihoods of people, that is their daily life.

And so if we are going to try and flourish This is not to say the government hasn’t made significant strides in leveling the playing field, he together … then we do need to try and underadded. Access to basic services such as electricity, stand that.” water, education and health care has improved considerably since the ANC came into power, according to the World Bank report.

Source: https://howafrica.com

But a fraction of the population still enjoys the lion’s share of the spoils while the rest struggle to

Female Chief Comes To Power, Annuls 850 Child Marriages And Sends Girls Back To School

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“kusasa fumbi,” which means cleansing, but is actually a place for sexual initiation. These are places that train girls as young as 7 to perform sex acts to please their future husbands.

Kahindamoto took a hard-line stance against everyone involved in these practices, threatening to dismiss any chief that sanctioned it.

African countries will no longer spend billions to import SIM, ATM cards, thanks to this Nigerian innovator June

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When parents protested Kachindamoto’s actions, she didn’t back down. Knowing that she could not change the mentality of the parents, she changed the law instead.

She got her 50 sub-chiefs to sign an agreement to abolish early marriage and annul any existing unions in her area.

Kachindamoto is the youngest of 12 children descended from village chiefs in Malawi’s Monkey Bay. When it finally came time for her to take her place as senior chief – after spending 27 years as a secretary at a city college – she dedicated herself fully to ending the practice of child marriage among her people.

Kachindamoto never expected to become chief since she lived in a different town, had so many older siblings, and had 5 of her own children to care for. But her reputation as “good with people” led to her surprise election and her people told her she would have the job “whether I liked it or not”, she recalled.

While child marriage is a culturally accepted practice in the area and often the result of financial need, it’s also illegal as of 2015, though that did not put a stop to the practice since children could still be married with parental consent.

But Kachindamoto decided that she would no longer stand for a tradition that robbed young girls of their childhoods by turning them into wives and mothers long before they were 18.

While touring Monkey Bay to meet the people she would govern, she met girls as young as 12 with husbands and children.

“I told them: ‘Whether you like it or not, I want these marriages to be terminated.'”

During her time as chief of more than 900,000 people, she annulled 850 child marriages and sent all of the girls to school.

Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world and a 2012 United Nations survey found that over half of the country’s girls were married before the age of 18.

Of course, that didn’t stop some people.

In order to show just how serious she was, she fired 4 male chiefs in areas where the practice of child marriage was still occurring until they agreed to abide by the law, annul the marriages, Nigerian innovator and technology market leader, Kofo Akinkugbe, is the and send the girls to school. first woman whose ATM company is the first in Sub-Saharan Africa to be Verve, Visa and MasterCard certified.

Despite receiving death threats, Kachindamoto was undeterred.

“I don’t care, I don’t mind. I’ve said whatever, we can talk, but these girls will go back to school,” she said.

Kachindamoto also finds ways to pay for the schooling of girls whose parents cannot afford the fees.

And she is not one to sit back and assume all is well. She’s even hired a network of “secret mothers and secret fathers” in the villages to make sure parents aren’t pulling their daughters out of school.

As for those who still balk at their chief’s new law? She’s unconcerned.

“I’m chief until I die,” she said, laughing.

Scroll down to see an interview with this heroic woman.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

There are organizations around Malawi that work to warn parents about the dangers of early marriage and childbirth, but parents are often so poor that they can’t afford to house Source: https://relieved.co/ and feed their daughters, so they feel like they have no choice but to marry them off.

But child marriage and pregnancy is a horrifying practice that often results in complications in childbirth because little girls’ bodies are simply too small to give birth safely.

On top of that, girls are often sent away to camps for

Her company, SecureID, is a world-class manufacturing facility with the only smart card production plant in West Africa, and one of only six on the continent. The company serves 21 countries in Africa, including her home country, Nigeria.

SecureID, which produces 200 million cards, has been recognized as setting the standard for innovation and creativity in the SmartCard sector in sub-Saharan Africa, helping save a country such as Nigeria, billions in imports for SIM and ATM cards from China.

As part of her contributions as well, Kofo is recognized globally as a leading African woman entrepreneur, who has founded a world-class manufacturing company competing successfully in a global market.

The company, built in 2015, was inaugurated in December 2016, as west Africa’s first smart-card plant.

Kofo, one of Africa’s thought leaders in the subjects of entrepreneurship and innovation in the technology sector, has once also won the Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship Mature Business Award.

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Sudan kicked out of the African Union until democracy is restored

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The AU, on Monday, condemned the violence, calling for investigations. The body had earlier warned of suspension if Sudan’s military did not hand over power, but extended the deadline after the earlier one was ignored.

Years of economic struggle, dictatorship, police and military brutality and the stifling of dissent in Sudan by the Omar alBashir government were cut short in April after four months of protest yielded results.

Bashir, who is being sought by international prosecutors for alleged war crimes in the country’s western Darfur region, had earlier refused to step down and said his opponents should seek power through the ballot box.

After his removal, the military indicated that it would prosecute Bashir, but would not extradite him.

The military dissolved the government and said it will oversee a two-year transitional period followed by elections, but this was met with protests on the streets. The AU subsequently gave Sudan’s military three months to transfer power to civilian rule.

Days after deadly military strikes in Sudan that killed dozens of people, the African Union (AU) has suspended the country’s membership “with immediate effect.”

The AU’s Peace and Security Department said in a post on Twitter on Thursday that Sudan’s participation in all AU activities would be suspended with immediate effect, “until the effective establishment of a civilian-led transitional authority as the only way to allow the Sudan to exit from the current crisis.”

The decision was made unanimously by members at an emergency meeting of the 55-member state union in Addis Ababa that lasted more than five hours, BBC reports.

Security forces in Sudan, on Monday morning, attacked a protest camp in the country’s capital, Khartoum. The attack on the pro-democracy protest at the camp has been described as the worst violence since the overthrow of the president, Omar al-Bashir in April and been condemned by many, including the European Union and the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors, a group which is close to the protesters.

Footage of the crackdown showed people fleeing through the streets amidst gunfire and ammunition while medics say that scores of people have been injured. Opposition groups claim that at least 108 people have been killed and more than 500 wounded, but authorities say only 46 people have lost their lives in the attack.

Witnesses reported that the security personnel involved in the attack belonged to the Rapid

Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary force that was heavily armed by the former president, alBashir.

Sudan has been governed by a Transitional Military Council (TMC) since President al-Bashir was overthrown in April. The main protest group has accused the ruling military council of trying to break up the camp, which has been the main protest site, but the council said the security forces had only targeted unruly groups in an adjacent area.

The leaders of the protest movement, who want a civilian government to take over the running of the country, said they were stopping all contact with the military and called a general strike.

Negotiations have been held for weeks over who should govern a transitional period after Bashir’s overthrow, but the talks have not yielded positive results.

Monday’s crackdown sparked unrest around Khartoum, as hundreds of protesters blocked roads with stones while burning tyres in Omdurman, the twin city neighbouring the Sudanese capital, according to a report by The Guardian.

In response, the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), the group that launched nationwide protests in December, asked Sudanese people to take part in “total civil disobedience” to topple the military council and to protest on the streets.

Demonstrators have since been occupying the square in front of the military headquarters. In June, organisers and the ruling generals said they had agreed on the structure of a new administration and a three-year transition period to civilian rule.

But, according to the BBC, they still need to decide on the make-up of what has been called the sovereign council, which will be the highest decision-making body in the transition period. They are yet to agree on whether civilians or the military should have the majority of positions.

Source: https://howafrica.com

Ghana Embassy Events

On Saturday June 8, , H.E. Dr. Barfuor Adjei-Barwuah invited six young professionals in the DMV area to his residence for lunch.

Their discussions focused on how young professionals in the US can help in the nation building process.

This initiative is part of his strategy to engage young Ghanaians in the United States.

Plans are underway to expand these engagements to include more young professionals.

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Ranson Ib Middle School Students Off To Africa For A Special Assignment

By Dedrick Russell CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - Ten students from Charlotte Mecklenburg School’s (CMS) Ranson IB Middle School are going on an assignment of a lifetime. They will be traveling to Portugal and Ghana and will retrace the path of African slaves. The students are making the journey 400 years after the first African slaves came to America in 1619.

"Ghana has dubbed it the year of return," Ranson IB Middle School Teacher Justin Clark said. "They are welcoming back everybody."

Clark says one of the goals of the trip is to encourage students to be world travelers. Last year students traveled to Puerto Rico to help with Hurricane Maria cleanup. Teachers say that experience was memorable and caused to students to become more vocal and develop leadership skills. They believe exposure can make the difference. Clark explains how the next trip was decided.

“Black Panther had just came out,” Clark said. “And the committee kind of looked at each other - we said let’s go to Wakanda - from there we researched different countries in Africa and we ended up in Ghana.”

Before the trip, students learned about the culture so they could be prepared for what to expect. For some this will be their first time out of the state of North Carolina and on a plane. Students remember the reaction of their parents when they told them about the trip.

"They were really excited," Ranson IB Middle Student Tiera Patterson said. "My dad was skeptical because he was like - it's all the way on the other side. He said it would be great for you to learn new things about a different country other than the United States."

Patterson says preparing for the trip made her more focused and love learning a little bit more.

National Spelling Bee Champion, Master Kwabena Adu Darko-Asare, paid a visit to the Ambassador to say goodbye.

H.E. Dr. Barfuor Adjei-Barwuah expressed his highest gratitude to Kwabena for his service to the nation, and encouraged him to maintain the passion he has for Ghana.

Source: Ghana Embassy -Washington DC

"It taught me how to be like responsible," Patterson said. "And do a lot of stuff that I've never done before."

Students believe when tracing the steps of slaves it will be humbling. Rising 9th grader Micah Eddings says he will be more appreciative for what he has and never forget what has happened in history.

"I am actually going to be nervous though," Ranson IB Middle School student Micah Eddings said.

"Because we are going to go to some of the prisons that they were in. It's going to be kind of sad to see kind of conditions they were in and stuff like that. Some of them had diseases and stuff like that and died in the chambers which was sad. It's going to be an emotional experience to see exactly what they went through."

The trip cost about $20,000. The 10 students chipped in $500 per student and the school raised the rest of the $15,000. Students are leaving June 9th. They will ride a bus to New York to help cut down on expenses. Teachers hope this trip will be memorable and will allow students to see how Ghana has evolved and put to rest myths students may have had about Africa.

"The stereotypes I hate about Africa is everyone living in a hut or chasing lions and things like that," Clark said. "We want them to see the skyline. We want them to see commerce. We want them to see the business center."

Students and teachers will be gone for ten days. Ranson IB Middle School is the first CMS middle school to travel to Africa for an educational trip.

Source: https://www.wbtv.com

Dr. Cindy Trimm empowers 7th annual Woman of Character Conference

The 7th annual 2-day Woman of Character Conference (WOCC) came to an end on June 8, 2019, after it kicked off at the Freedom High School in Woodbridge, Virginia (VA) in the United States (US). This year’s conference themed The Chayil Woman, started on the morning of June 7.

Longtime participant and 2019 co-host Pastor John Sarsah encouraged conference attendees to visit the vendor boots which had some quality women’s products including; cosmetics (Mary Kay products by Ms. Danika Hughes), Women’s jewelry by Ms. Nicole Brown of Nikki B Jewels and women’s clothing. Other items on the vendor list were accessories by Ms. Bola Surakat from House of Beulah.

Woman of Character Ministries, organizer of the annual WOCC event which was first held in June 2013 at Stafford, VA in the US disclosed that this year’s conference was hugely successful owing to the fact that it was attended by over 150 women from across States There was also individual advisory for businesses, like Maryland (MD), VA, and the US Capitol Washington, DC. finances, and travel among others. “But one of the most spiritually blissful aspects of the 2019 conference was This life-changing event for Christian women was highlighted by the amazing talks and great networking opportunities for special guest speaker and renowned speaker Dr. Cindy Trimm who all plus amazing books authored by Dr. Trimm,” Pastor made appearances on the second day of the event, Dr. Trimm is a Sarsah exclaimed to TheAfricanDream.net. highly respected empowerment specialist. During her interaction with the women, she took them through revolutionary ways of “It is vital to understand that women play an impeccable thinking that will change them into transformational leaders. role on the earth. As daughters created in His image, we

Dr. Trimm is Founder and CEO of Trimm Ministries International, a bestselling author, and a multi-award winning personality. She is also a life coach, a humanitarian and a deliverer of the message of the kingdom through her Kingdom School Ministry.

Other preachers that joined Dr. Trimm to impact WOCC with spiritual insights included host Tina Sarsah of Woman of Character Ministries in Woodbridge, VA, Pastor Yeromitou Grier of Grace Church in Dumfries, VA and Dr. Patricia Grace MacGodman of Prayer Strategist in Edgewood, MD.

Woman of Character Conference IMAGE: Tina Sarsah in a pink top with Pastor John Sarsah kneeling in front of her. To their left is Pastor Yeromitou Grier, they are surrounded by WOCC attendees in photo courtesy Oral Ofori Conference founder Tina Sarsah who shed some light on WOCC theme for this year said “The Chayil Woman as envisioned by Woman of Character Conference is clearly defined in Proverbs 31:25 which says, ‘She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future’. We wanted to help women come out of their shells and face the future with confidence,” Tina said.

Also read: Nigerian saxophone-duo Twinsax invades Ghana with Gospel Jazz Festival

have been uniquely created to reflect our Father’s heart and carry His virtues with us wherever we go,” Tina Sarsah told TheAfrianDream.net in a post-event interview during which she expressed special thanks to Almighty God.

Tina also specially thanked the International Central Gospel Church (ICGC), Restoration Temple of Woodbridge in VA, the Woman of Character Conference Planning Committee, Thoronka Law Firm, and all the Special Guests including attendees who helped make WOCC a success.

Sisters Marilyn Tagoe and Ernestina Opoku led the praise team to give an uplifting praise and worship experience that lifted the women and some of the men present to their feet as they danced to the glory of the Lord. For photos, videos, and info about this year’s WOCC visit www.womanofcharacterva.org.

Source: Oral Ofori-TheAfricanDream.net

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Veteran actor Kanayo O. Kanayo bags degree in law

Veteran Nollywood actor, Kanayo O. Kanayo is the latest degree holder in town - The 57-year-old actor shared photos of himself as he bagged a degree in law from University of Abuja - Kanayo also congratulated his coursemate, Elizabeth Ayua, who graduated with a First Class from the same degree Veteran actor Kanayo O. Kanayo has made himself and his fans proud after bagging a degree from University of Abuja. The 57-year-old actor announced his latest feat on social media by sharing a clip of himself and some of his coursemates at their convocation ceremony. Kanayo who has been a stellar actor of his time bagged a degree in law. As he relished his proud moment, he also congratulated his coursemate, Elizabeth Ayua, who he revealed graduated with a first class from the same department and faculty.

Kanayo began his acting career in 1992 when he made his debut appearance in a movie titled The Bondage. Over two decades later and he is still making boss moves. He is currently a United Nations ambassador and bears the title of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) Did you know?

NAIJ.com (naija.ng) is now-> Legit.ng We have updated to serve you better. In like manner, a young lady identified as Victory Onya Njah has made herself and many Nigerians proud after graduating from the University of Jos (UniJos) with a first class. Social activist, Kayode Ogundamisi shared the news on Twitter where he revealed the most impressive detail about Victory's feat. According to him, the economics department since its inception in UniJos had never produced any first class candidate but Njah broke the record.

Source: https://www.legit.ng/1243742-veteran-actor-kanayo-okanayo-bags-degree-

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10 African proverbs to help you live your best life this New Year

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1. A bird that flies off the earth and lands on an anthill is still on the ground. — Igbo proverb 2. He that beats the drum for the mad man to dance is no better than the mad manhimself. — African proverb 3. Where water is the boss there the land must obey. — African proverb 4. No matter how beautiful and well crafted a coffin might look, it will not make anyone wish for death. — African proverb 5. When the shepherd comes home in peace, the milk is sweet. — Ethiopian proverb 6. A spider’s cobweb isn’t only its sleeping spring but also its food trap. — African proverb 7. If you do not have patience you cannot make beer. — Ovambo proverb

8. He who runs after good fortune runs away from peace. — African proverb 9. Teeth do not see poverty. — Masai proverb 10. You have little power over what’s not yours. — Zimbabwean proverb 11. If you pick up one end of the stick you also pick up the other. — Ethiopian proverb 12. Better little than too little. — Cameroonian proverb 13. You must attend to your business with the vendor in the market, and not to the noise of the market. — Beninese proverb 14. When you befriend a chief remember that he sits on a rope. — Ugandan proverb 15. The night has ears. — Masai proverb 16. The child you sired hasn’t sired you. — Somali proverb 17. A doctor who invoked a storm on his people cannot prevent his house from destruction. — Nigerian proverb 18. An intelligent enemy is better than a stupid friend. — Senegalese proverb 19. The young bird does not crow until it hears the old ones. — Tswana proverb 20. If you carry the egg basket do not dance. — Ambede proverb 21. The food which is prepared has no master. — Malagasy proverb 22. The worlds of the elders do not lock all the doors; they leave the right door open. — Zambian proverb 23. Even the best cooking pot will not produce food. — African proverb 24. The child of a rat is a rat. — Malagasy proverb 25. Where you will sit when you are old shows where you stood in youth. — Yoruba proverb

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MOBA USA Holds Ground Breaking Annual Conference

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Ghanaians no longer need visa to go to Jamaica

Seated: L2R Emmanual Dadson – (MOBA USA Vice President), Kojo Odoom – (MOBA Ontario President), James Morgan – Effective July 1, Ghanaians and Jamaicans can travel to and (MOBA National Secretary), Paul Forjoe – (MOBA National Head also known as Ebusuapanyin), Kodwo Ghartey-Tagoe – (President from each other's country without a visa. of Duke Energy, South Carolina), and Pratt Abrokwa – (MOBA USA President).

This was agreed to after presidents of the two countries held When a group of old boys of Mfantsipim fund. with us from Ghana.“ bilateral discussions in Kingston, Jamaica, on Saturday.

Kodwo Ghartey-Tagoe, JD, State president School domiciled in the United States (MOBA-USA) gathers for the third year of Duke Energy in South Carolina who was Other notable MOBA old boys that The meeting was part of President Akufo-Addo’s two-day running to raise funds for their school, Chairman of the event said contributing to official visit to the Caribbean country. graced the 3-day occasion included over $50,000 in cash becomes an achiev- the MOBA-USA endowment fund will Emmanuel Dadson, (MOBA USA able amount geared towards their project- enable the school to maintain its high-quali- Vice President), Kojo Odoom (MOBA Stressing the importance of Ghana-Jamaica relations, the ed $100,000 MOBA-USA endowment President said the two nations have an excellent opportunity ty brand by allowing “the school to continOntario President) from Canada and fund. Martins Crosswinds in Greenbelt to building on their strong ties, imposed by culture and hisue to provide the top quality products that James Morgan (MOBA National again hosted the fundraiser in the State of serve not only our home nation Ghana, but tory, so as to derive maximum economic value for their Secretary). Isaac Abraham (MOBA Maryland. respective populations. the world…”

Ontario Vice President). Others were Over this past Memorial Day weekend Effective July 1, Ghanaians and Jamaicans can travel to and There are over 60 classrooms, science labs, Simons Acquah, James Awukuholiday in the US an additional $18,000 from each other's country without a visa. and workshops that need to be equipped Kwatia, Kwabena Adjei, Yaw Fosu, in cash was realized and added to the with the necessary materials to render them Caius Kubah-Taylor, Adolf Brown $6000 raised in 2017 and the $29,000 in This was agreed to after presidents of the two countries held functional for students use. An estimated and Emmanuel Eguakun, all respeccash raised in 2018 respectively to arrive bilateral discussions in Kingston, Jamaica, on Saturday. amount of $100,000 is needed to carry out tively MOBA-USA executives for at $53,000 US dollars total cash today as these projects according to Speaker Dr. 2018-2020. revealed by a Source close to MOBAThe meeting was part of President Akufo-Addo’s two-day Kwasi A. Debra (MBA). “Approximately USA to TheAfricanDream.net. official visit to the Caribbean country.

Pratt Abrokwa, President of MOBA-USA in his address during the fundraiser dinner maintained that the main emphasis was “the generation of support for the MOBAUSA Endowment Fund, Educational Development Workshops for both teachers and students, E-Learning Launch, and the establishment of an IT Hub at Mfantsipim, courtesy of Abdul Rashid of DRW.com.” This event was themed ‘Elearning launch at Mfantsipim School, a game changer in second cycle institutions.‘

Mr. Abrokwa also stated that MOBAUSA is pursuing avenues to establish bilateral relationships between Mfantsipim School and colleges in the US, stressing that “we are also seeking avenues to establish relationships between Mfantsipim old boys at various universities in Ghana, and with universities in the United States.” In his closing remarks, the president earnestly asked all who made pledges totaling over $100,000 over the years to redeem to add to the endowment

100,000 will be required for a full rollout” and development of the Mfantsipim e-learning project, for instance,” said Dr. Debra.

Gracing the night as a very special guest was Ghana’s Ambassador to the US, His Excellency Dr. Barfour Adjei-Barwuah. The Ambassador asked all in attendance to support the school because “the school made you what you are today, at least it gave you the basis and taught you to learn to love to learn,” he appealed to all old Mfantsipim boys who are now on their feet to continue to develop the world and “hold your country up.”

MOBA-USA Organizer Dominic Osei Agyepong told TheAfricanDream.net that this year’s event was very well attended.

Mr. Agyepong relayed that “though Mr. Manfred Barton Oduro — current headmaster of Mfantsipim School couldn’t attend in person, his goodwill message was well received and his spirit strongly felt, we also felt privileged to have had MOBA National head (Ebusua Panyin) Captain Paul Forjoe

On the sideline of the fundraiser dinner was a raffle for the night and the winner took home an Ethiopian Airlines US-Africa ticket. The lucky winner was Dr. Kwesi Kyei Darkwah.

The previous day before the dinner was a mingle and networking bash at Sign of the Whale, DC on May 24.

May 26 witnessed the inaugural MOBA-USA Intercollegiate Memorial Day Reunion. It was all fun and games that featured elite Ghanaian schools like Adisadel College and Saint Augustines.

Ghanaian celebrity actress and humanitarian Joselyn Dumas, was present to co-host the fundraiser with the host for three years in a row Dr. Yaw Berko. Music was provided by DJ Fisho based in the Washington DC area. Visit mobausa.org to connect with, contribute, and find out more about this nonprofit alumni.

Written by Oral Ofori

Stressing the importance of Ghana-Jamaica relations, the President said the two nations have an excellent opportunity to building on their strong ties, imposed by culture and history, so as to derive maximum economic value for their respective populations.

Source: ghanaweb.com

Ethiopian Woman Gives Birth And Sits Exams 30 Minutes Later

A woman in Ethiopia has taken her exams in a hospital bed just 30 minutes after giving birth.

Almaz Derese, 21, who is from Metu in western Ethiopia, had hoped to sit the tests before her baby was born, but the secondary school exams were postponed because of Ramadan.

She went into labour on Monday shortly before the first exam was due to start.

Hired as an Airplane Cleaning Agent, Mohammed Abubakar Became Captain 24 Years Later June 2019

A man who was hired 24 years ago as a plane cleaning agent in an airline worked hard and gradually climbed the ladder to become a captain in the aviation industry.

Mohammed Abubakar was hired 24 years ago as a plane cleaning agent at Air Azman in Nigeria, and after braving the obstacles, he climbed the ladder to become captain.

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“That’s because my salary at Kabo Air was $ 48 and what I paid at Aero Contractors was $ 477, so I could not believe it,” he said.

He decided to save and invest a lot of money to improve his skills. “I signed up for a meeting with my colleagues, and when it was my turn to receive Ms Almaz said studying while pregnant was not a problem and she did not When Mohammed Abubakar joined Azman Air Services the contributions, it was a considerable amount of want to wait until next year to graduate.

Limited, the Nigerian national airline based in Kano 24 years money. So I went to see the general manager and asked him for advice on my dream of pilot trainago, he never imagined it would be so high.

She took her English, Amharic and maths secondary school exams in hospi- However, his hard work and determination paid off after he ing. He was so happy and supported me.That’s tal on Monday and will sit her remaining tests at the exam centre over the received his fourth medal, making him a captain. The story of how I managed to pay for the training to get a next two days.

Mohammed Abubakar went viral when one of his colleagues pilot license in Canada and I became an airplane "Because I was rushing to sit the exam, my labour wasn't difficult at all," pilot. “ shared photos of him on Twitter.

Ms Almaz told BBC Afaan Oromoo.

“He joined the aviation industry almost 25 years ago as an air- Abubakar says the trip to realize his dream has Her husband, Tadese Tulu, said he had to persuade the school to allow her often been difficult and he even considered giving craft cleaning agent. Today, he gets his fourth medal to to take the exams at the hospital. up. “But I managed to overcome his difficulties, become CAPTAIN. Congratulations Mohammed Abubakar and here we are today.” @AirAzman “.

In Ethiopia, it is common for girls to drop out of secondary school and return later on to complete their studies.

After graduating from high school, Mohammed Abubakar got a casual job as a plane cleaning agent at Kabo Air in Kaduna.

Ms Almaz now wants to take a two-year course that will prepare her for “It was during the Hajj, and I earned $ 0.56 a day, although Source: https://howafrica.com university. many thought I would not do it because of the meager salary.

Later, I was promoted to ground staff with the airline in She said she was pleased with how the exams went and her baby son is Maiduguri. During my service in the company, I worked in doing well. almost all units except security. It helped me a lot in the aviation sector, “recalls Abubakar.

https://www.bbc.com

Over time, he was hired as a member of the cabin crew after a good performance during an interview in Kaduna, where he served Kabo Air for 8 years, with a salary of $ 48 a month.

He then joined Aero Contractors, in the oil and gas section of the company as a flight attendant, where he worked with their charter services, as the company was not in scheduled flight services at that time. He gave some advice, which allowed the Assistant General Manager of the company to take note and both have developed a good professional relationship.

Abubakar remembers his first salary at Aero Contractors that he wanted to give because he did not expect a similar amount.

Afrikan

Post

YES, It’s A RED HOT MARKET TO SELL or BUY

TIPS FOR SELLING YOUR HOUSE Inspection, Appraisal, etc….

CLOSING COSTs; Fees paid at the day of closing by both sellers and buyers. These fees can cover lender expenses, taxes and insurance.

INSPECTION: Examination of the home for its condition. Handled by the licensed professional of your choosing.

It is always a pleasure to ink an article to you. Home Buying is an awesome investment to pursue; within that it is a process and time sensitive venture. Below are some key words or language you will hear from your realtor whether buying or selling a property. It is important to familiarize yourself with these terms.

TITLE: The bundle of rights for a property which will be handed to you by the Title Company to accept.

I hope you enjoyed reading this article and it has provided helpful information in making your decision to home ownership a smooth one.

For more information about your real estate needs (buying, selling, leasing/renting a house) call me at 571-229-6694 and I will help you get started. Thank you.

OFFER: An agreement between a buyer and a seller to purchase real estate. Also referred Anita A. Bediako- REALTOR® to as the sales contract.

Samson Properties EARNEST MONEY: A deposit that accom- Licensed Real Estate Agent in Virginia and panies an offer to show the seller good faith. Maryland This deposit is held safely in escrow and put Licensed Life and Health Insurance CONTACT 571-229-6694 towards the mortgage.

Email: borderlessrealestate@gmail.com Website: borderlessrealestate.com CONTINGENCY: After an offer has been accepted, finalization of the closing can be contingent on certain terms example: Home

June

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Encourage Yourself

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"I struggled academically throughout elementary school yet became the best Neurosurgeon in the World in 1987" - Dr. Ben Carson!

I was raped at the age of 9 yet I am one of the most influential women in the World" - Oprah Winfrey!"

I didn't even complete my university education but became the World's richest man" - Bill Gates!"

I was sexually, mentally, emotionally and verbally abused by my father as far back as I can remember, until I left home at the age of eighteen, yet I am one of the most influential preachers in the World" - Joyce Meyer!"

I told my father that we would be very rich but he couldn't believe me. I made it a reality" - Christiano Ronaldo!"

I used to serve tea at a shop to support my football training and still became one of the World's best footballers" - Lionel Messi!"

I used to sleep on the floor in my friends' rooms, returning Coke bottles for food, money, and getting weekly free meals at a local temple, I later on founded Apple Company" - Steve Jobs!"

My teachers used to call me a failure, but I became a Prime Minister" - Former British PM, Tony Blair!"

I started Living Faith Church from A Lawn Tennis Court with three members only & Preach prosperity. Many of my friends criticised me, but today we have the largest church auditorium in the World & two world-class universities"Bishop David Oyedepo!"

I was in prison for 27 years and still became president."- Nelson Mandela!"

I drove a taxi to finance my university education but today I'm a billionaire" Mike Adenuga!

I was on the verge of suicide when an Idea of opening a restaurant hit me after I retired as a cook in the Navy. Harland Sanders, Founder of KFC I worked for my uncle since I was a small boy, people looked down on me. I later on took a loan from my uncle to open a tiny shop. I worked hard to make ends meet. Now I am the Word's Richest Man of African Decent (Richest Man in Africa). Aliko Dangote (was 23rd World's richest man on Forbes 2014 list)

I am a son of a black immigrant from Kenya, I graduated from Harvard and later on became a Senator in Chicago. I was also the President of the Most Powerful Nation on Earth.US President Barack Hussein Obama

I traveled to America in search of financial independency when I was 15yrs old. I became the World's Strongest Man 7 times and Mr Universe. I then got my Economics degree, then I became one of Hollywood's best actors before I was voted twice as governor of California (the world's 6th richest state after France and Britain). Former Governor of California Arnold Swarzzenegger_Failures or limitations of the past have no control over the greatness in you.

To him that believes, all things are possible.Don't wait for everybody to believe in your ability and dreams...Never design your life like a Garden where anyone can walk in and out......Design it like the Sky where everyone aspires to reach!Success is not obtained overnight. It comes in installments; you get a little bit today, a little bit tomorrow until the whole package is given out. The day you PROCRASTINATE, you lose that day's benefits.THINK ABOUT IT

Top cocoa producers Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire halt global sales until farmers get fair price

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plus beans and increase spending on marketing in an effort to boost consumption of the chocolate ingredient in their own region and in other emerging markets,” Bloomberg reported last year.

So far, their efforts have not yielded great results. Although the two countries tried to collaborate on price in 2017, they ended up going their separate ways. The countries have found it difficult to predict and control cocoa bean output. Moreover, stockpiling is costly and difficult especially in the hot and humid climate of West Africa. Nature also takes its course each year on tree production, unlike oil.

Issues like child labor, illegal planting in forests, smuggling, and diseases affecting cocoa trees all compound the effectiveness of government intervention in this area.

Although cooperation between the two countries on cocoa production, processing, and marketing and sales strategy won’t be easy, it is well worth the effort. Bloomberg reported in 2018 that cocoa was the best performing commodity, and as chocolate demand booms in emerging markets like India and China, and the middle class in Africa grows and begins to demand richer chocolate products, it behoves Cote d’Ivoire and Ivory Coast to continue to try to improve their standing in this market. https://face2faceafrica.com/

The world’s top producers of cocoa, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire have jointly suspended the global sale of cocoa beans until farmers get a fair price.

This was announced in Accra by the two countries to a gathering of about 300 stakeholders in the cocoa value chain, comprising, traders, processors and chocolate manufacturers, reports Graphic online.

This gesture is the first of its kind by the world’s top two cocoa growers and meant to put pressure on stakeholders to adopt a floor price for the soft crop.

Currently, the producer price of cocoa stands at US$1,808 per tonne in the face of the free fall of the commodity in the international market.

The decision is as a result of the fact that the international market price is a few dollars lower than what is being given to cocoa farmers, forcing the governments of these countries to resort to borrowing in order to settle local farmers.

Also, this forms part of efforts by the two countries, which supply more than 65 per cent of global cocoa figures, to get stakeholders in the value chain to give farmers a fair price that reflects their contribution to the sustenance of the cocoa industry.

Under the arrangement for a floor price, the two countries have agreed that none of them will sell their produce in the international market below the agreed minimum price.

In recent times, the price of cocoa at the international level has depreciated by some 40 per cent, resulting in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) calling on Ghana to also reduce the producer price paid to its farmers.

Last year, Bloomberg reported that these farmers

make “only about 5.5 per cent of a global supply chain worth more than $100 billion”. This is even less than the 15% governments take as value-added tax on the sale of chocolate products in Western countries where chocolate is most consumed.

So why do Africans who work so hard make so little from their efforts?

At a basic level, most of chocolate’s value is added from its processing and marketing. This means that cocoa processing companies like Nestle take the bulk of the industry profits, reports Face2Face Africa in 2018.

Moreover, cocoa traders, processors, exporters and manufacturers all demand a share of the revenue. As CNN explains, “cocoa bean farmers are at the bottom of a global supply chain that stands ‘firmly against [them].’ Because the traders, processors, exporters and manufacturers all sit above farmers on that chain and demand a profit margin, farmers have little bargaining power and receive the bare minimum for their product”.

The price of cocoa is indeed fixed by the governments of these two respective countries. To get to the world market, their prices must be competitive, and as one farmer, Francis, in Cote d’Ivoire says, the “price is too low; the trees are old and diseased; [and he and his cooperative] can’t get finance to invest for the future”.

Cognizant of these issues, Cote d’Ivoire and Ivory Coast said they would want to do more:

“To regulate global supply and grab more of the profit from the chocolate-making value chain, Ghana and Ivory Coast say they’ll coordinate production levels, bring their sales policies closer together and make sure that more of the crop is processed locally before it’s shipped out. They’ll also build warehouses to hold sur-

U.S. border town seeks African dialect speakers as hundreds of Africans cross from Mexico San Antonio has been forced to open a second migrant resource facility to host the migrants who are also being supported by local churches and nonprofits.

The surge in African migrants crossing the U.S. border from Mexico was noticed last month when U.S. border authorities were overwhelmed by a group of 116 illegal migrants from Africa who were caught on the night of June 30 near the border crossing in Del Rio, Texas.

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Kenyan Law Students Beat Harvard in International Contest

This was the first time border officials have seen a large group of migrants from Africa taking advantage of the large-group tactic Central American migrants have learned to abuse, an official told the Washington Times.

The Texas city of San Antonio is bracing itself as hundreds of African migrants crossing from Mexico are set to be released into the city following their arrest near the border crossing in Del Rio.

The city officials have announced the search for speakers of the widely spoken Central African language Lingala, French and Portuguese to help break the language barrier and help the migrants who are mainly from the Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola.

We didn’t get a heads up. When we called Border Patrol to confirm, they said, ‘yea another 200 to 300 from the Congo and Angola will be coming to San Antonio,’” the Interim Assistant City Manager Dr. Collen Bridger told local CBS affiliate KENS on Thursday.

“If you speak primarily French and can come spend 6,7,8 hours, that would be really helpful,” he said, adding that the migrants began arriving in the city last Tuesday and had come with a group that went through Ecuador to the U.S. southern border to seek asylum.

“If you speak Lingala, you’d be very, very welcomed and very, very needed,” San Antonio immigration liaison Tino Gallegos told local ABC affiliate KSAT.

The Customs and Border Protection agency said the group included migrants from Angola, Cameroon and Congo and it was the first time such a single large group from Africa has been encountered.

They comprised of children and families who were attempting to use the loophole discovered by Central Americans to enter the country illegally and escape deportation, reports WT. Instead of presenting themselves at the port of entry, the migrants jumped the border, reports stated. Surveillance video released by the authorities showed the migrants crossing the Rio Grande as adults carried little children in water that us up to their waist while pulling other children alongside.

The authorities could not say the routes the African migrants used but they marked the 182nd large group since October 1 and the first African group to cross the border. All of them were declared healthy after screening.

Photo: ELSA The winning team from Strathmore University who won an international competition, from left, Mishael Wambua, Maleehah Khandwalla and Catherine Penda.

By Amina Wako

Strathmore University has become the first African team to win the John H. Jackson Moot Court competition on WTO law that was held in Geneva, Switzerland at the weekend.

The Kenyan university was up against Harvard School of Law as they represented Africa for the first time at the finals.

The three Strathmore University students, Mishael Wambua, Khandwalla Maleehah and Catherine Penda, Across all the U.S. borders, 4,500 people are caught every day, all pursuing Bachelor of Laws, beat teams from said Homeland Secretary Kevin McAleenan.

Ethiopia, Malawi, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Lesotho, Tunisia, Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Uganda to represent African at the competition's 17th edition. https://face2faceafrica.com/

The team has been awarded special scholarships, internships, and traineeships, giving them an opportunity to gain legal knowledge at the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development, the African Union Commission, and the World Trade Institute.

The John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition on WTO Law is a student-run moot court competition organized annually by the European Law Students' Association (ELSA) in co-operation with the World Trade Organization (WTO).

It is a simulation of WTO Panel dispute settlement proceedings.

It builds awareness of the WTO dispute settlement system and provides students around the world with legal knowledge and skill, while building global legal capacity.

Source: https://allafrica.com

Afrikan

Mr. CNN Celebrate 50th Birthday In Style, Overflow Of Guests June

Post

Jomo( Freelance Media Partner), George Kwasi Bright(Afrikan Post) and Frederick Kofi AmeyawHead of Information-Ghana’s Permanent Mission to the UN Mr. CNN, the CEO of 3G Media, a US-based Media/Showbiz entity has lately been dubbed "The Don" in recognition of his ever-widening entertainment management empire.

The title he loves most and celebrated was "Mr Humility."

All seats were taken at the Grand American Ballroom, Bronx, NY with several in the street threatening a police presence. In attendance were leaders in showbiz, business, community, church, and politics.

They included Nii Quartey I, Nana Nkrumah Adasa 111, Dr. & Mrs Kofi Boateng (Kofi ROPAA), Nana Tieku Acheampong, NY Asantefuohene, and Nana Amakye. From showbiz, there were Lady Talata, Vivian Achor, Salinko, Counsellor Lutterodt, Celestine Donkor, and Kwame Adinkra.

Others included lawyer Ohene Gyan, Sam Pyne, and lawyer Okyere-Darko.

The Consular General Prof. Dr. Samuel Amoako was present.

Most importantly Mr. CNN's wife, Rosemond and their three daughters; Kendra, Emmanuella, and Angel did

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Freinds of Mr. CNN

not miss celebrating daddy's mighty 50th. The Chairman of the occasion was Mr. Kofi Twumasi.

Mr. CNN gives thanks to his family for their support through the years and many trials.

He most assuredly is grateful to the Lord for pulling him through those moments of tribulations that have included health crises. Through it all, the Lord has given him the strength to make the New York City-Philadelphia treks to cover many events and support many a community event and people.

Special Guests including Professor AmoakoConsular General of the Ghana Mission In New York

He has done these visits to New York so often that most believe he resides in New York City and not Philadelphia.

The celebrant and his guests danced deep into the early morning and spared no food nor drink. All had fun and applauded Mr. CNN dropping to kiss the floor in appreciation to God, family, and friends. He expresses his thanks to all who were able to celebrate with him and sent well wishes.

Nii Quartey I and Nana Nkrumah Adasa 111

Dr. Kofi A. Boateng( Kofi ROPAA) and Wife

He is grateful to the media houses who were present namely, BAK TV, Adinkra TV, HRE TV, and Highlife Radio.

Rev. and Mrs. Adu Gyamfi

The Chairman of the occasion Mr. Kofi Twumasi and some special guests

Rev. Eric Kofi Owusu of Holy Fire Ministries in New York and Wife

Eddie Somuah of Prestige Travel and Tours, his Wife and Counsellor Lutterodt

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Identical Twins Leave London Teenage Gang Life In The Past To Become Multi-Millionaires Worth £41m After Their Cryptocurrency Rockets In Value expert and studied a GNVQ in Advanced Business at Crofton Comprehensive School in Lewisham.

Sam excelled at computer programming at the same school's sixth form.

After leaving school, the brothers started various businesses such as Tramp, a lifestyle and concierge magazine, and researched financial markets and data, before they decided to move into the lucrative world of cryptocurrency.

They worked solidly for four years to build the blockchain code for their tokens on their mum's kitchen table in Brockley and were shocked by the huge success when Steve put the Populous (PPT) token on the market in June 2017.

They originally thought it might raise a few thousand pounds, but 24 hours later they had assets worth £1.85million in Ethereum digital currency.

Two identical twins and former gang members are now worth £41million and friends with the rich and famous after launching their own cryptocurrency just last year.

Sam and Steve Nico Williams, 38, from Brockley, south-east London, have revealed how they turned their lives around, moved into finance and made their fortune.

Last year Steve launched the cryptocurrency, Populous (PPT) which is the 52nd most valuable cryptocurrency token in the world, worth £96.5million.

Populous is an invoice discounting platform that helps small and medium-sized businesses with cash flow problems to raise finance against invoices from the crypto community.

Their other investments include a stake in the Michelin-starred Restaurant Story in London Bridge, and a London estate agency chain.

The brothers have previously met a string of celebrities including rapper 50 Cent and former world boxing champion Floyd Juneweather.

Steve, the older brother by one minute, said: 'I have always been fascinated with the world of finance. We have gone through a lot together as brothers and it is great that all our hard work has paid off.'

Sam and Steve both attended Crofton Comprehensive in Lewisham, now renamed Prendergast Ladywell School, where 22 per cent of pupils get free school meals and exam passes are well below the national average.

Their mother, a chef, and their father, an accountant, moved to the UK from Nigeria and worked long hours to provide for their sons.

But Steve fell into the wrong crowd for a while, and 12 years ago was convicted of obtaining money by deception.

He said: 'It was a major wake-up call and I had plenty of time to think about what I was going to do with my life. I made a big mistake and I paid for it.

'I knew I had to turn my life around and work hard to achieve a good life for me and my family. I also want to give back by helping youths on the streets and those involved in street crime and I hope to inspire and create positive opportunities for them.'

Steve, described as 'the brains' behind Populous, is a commercial data

Sam said: 'The success Populous has exceeded all expectations - we thought it would do well but this has been phenomenal.

'We had been involved on the fringes of gangs as teenagers when we were growing up in South London - but it's fair to say that our lifestyles has changed completely in the past year.'

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Major banks are now getting involved in trading cryptocurrencies and Goldman Sachs launched a Crypto trading desk in June this year to capitalise on the huge growth of this market.

The Williams brothers are not the only identical twins who have made it big in crypto currencies.

American investors Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, whose story was featured in the movie The Social Network, have been hailed as the world's first bitcoin billionaires.

When the twins were awarded $65 million in cash and Facebook stock after a lengthy legal dispute with Mark Zuckerberg, they used their windfall to back Bitcoin and the decision paid off.

At the start of this year, their holding was worth more than $1 billion.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk

The brothers have released 37million PPT tokens to have funds to develop the coin further and retained 16 million PPT tokens which are currently trading at $3.42 which makes their current net worth £41.76 million, according to the CoinMarketCap table of the world's leading cryptocurrencies.

The value of cryptocurrencies changes daily, but all of Populous' early investors have made a fortune.

At the peak of the crypto market back in March 2018, the brothers were worth up to £1billion when the coin peaked at $68.91 but there has been a steep market change downwards since then.

Even now, with the market at its lowest ebb, they are still sitting on a fortune worth tens of millions.

Steve and Sam (left to right as children, right today) grew up in a deprived area of south-east London and have turned their lives around after a tough star

Sam has now launched two crypto tokens, Zloadr, a due diligence token which can assess the profitability and liquidity of businesses, and DocTailor, a token for legal professionals to offer their services to the tech community.

Steve has launched a new business intelligence token 'PXT' alongside his latest venture, Populous World's XBRL platform.

The Williams brothers' business operations are located in Junefair's exclusive Berkeley Square they also own a stake in Tom Sellers' critically acclaimed Michelin-starred Restaurant Story in London - famous for its 10-course set menu.

Speculation in cryptocurrencies has shot up in the past 18 months and the biggest and best known currency, Bitcoin, reached a value of $20,000 earlier this year, though it has since slumped back to just over $6,400.

Steve and Sam, pictured with rapper 50Cent, have made much of their fortune in the past year after launching a cryptocurrency

Bronx Intersection Renamed For Hero Soldier Who Died Saving Family From Fire

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NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – A Bronx intersection was renamed Friday morning for a National Guardsman who lost his life rescuing people from the city’s deadliest fire in 25 years.

Emmanuel Mensah, 28, was among 13 people killed when a five-story apartment building went up in flames on Dec. 28, 2017 in the Belmont section.

Mensah was credited with saving a family of six, including four young children, before firefighters arrived.

A new street sign was revealed Friday in the heart of a close-knit community, and a special Ghanaian ceremony marked the bittersweet morning.

The corner of East 187th Street and Prospect Avenue is now called “Private First Class Emmanuel Mensah Way” in his memory.

“It is my honor to rename Belmont Street for our hometown hero, Emmanuel Mensah. His is a name, a legacy that will never be forgotten,” said City Councilman Ritchie Torres.

“I am forever grateful that I had a real-life hero that I can now call my brother,” one loved one said during Friday’s ceremony. “His soul and his spirit still lives on.”

The 28-year-old immigrant from Ghana was home for the holidays and staying with friends when the fire broke out. It was his first trip back since joining the Army the year before.

“We miss him, we hope that he was here with us today, but I know he’s here in spirit with us,” Ruben Martinez, of the National Guard, said.

Mensah’s father still lives in the neighborhood and said he will feel a sense of pride every time he walks by the sign, remembering his son died a hero.

“For him to do what he did, and then what the city is doing for him, as well as the family and the neighborhood – I think it’s an honor,” said Kwabena Mensah. “I think he would be happy.”

The Army Private 1st Class posthumously received two medals of valor from Fordham University.

Fire officials said the deadly blaze was sparked by a 3-year-old boy playing with burners on a stove.

Source: https://newyork.cbslocal.com

Late Private First Class Emmanuel Mensah

The new street sign

The US National Guard

A Portrait of Late Emmanuel Mensah being presented to his father

.

Family, Friends, Community leaders and local Chiefs

City Councilman Ritchie Torres.

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