African voice newspaper issue 496 by African Voice Newspapers UK

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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ISSUE 496

SINCE 2001

B R I TA I N ’ S N O . 1 A F R I C A N N E W S PA P E R Rivers Float and Afro Beat at Notting Hill Carnival

Ogun State debuts at Notting Hill

SEE PAGE 16

SEE PAGE 23

£1.00

It’s all for show Immigration advisor warns gov’t OFFENDERS TAGGING CONTRACT BOOSTS BRITISH ECONOMY SEE PAGE 25

over playing to the gallery By Alan Oakley

An Oxford University economist who advises the Government on immigration has cautioned the government against engaging in policies which ‘have an element of spectacle’; warning that such policies are ‘not necessarily the most effective’.

Dr Martin Ruhs sits on the independent Migration Advisory Committee which advises the Home Office on immigration matters. Speaking to The Observer, Dr Ruhs said: “In liberal democracies generally we don’t want to do the kinds of things that are commonplace in Singapore or maybe the Middle East. You have to draw the line somewhere. Different people will draw the line in different places over what is acceptable. “Obviously the government has to do something about irregular immigration... Some policies have an element of a spectacle - you want to send a signal, and those policies aren’t necessarily the most effective.” Dr Ruhs was speaking after two eyecatching and controversial Home Office initiatives had made headlines. On 22nd July 2013, the Home Office launched a pilot advertising campaign in six London boroughs (African Voice, Issue 492).

The campaign was nominally aimed at illegal immigrants and advised them to ‘go home or face arrest’. Critics of the campaign, which ran for a week in the six boroughs, said that it was unlikely to persuade illegal migrants to go home, even if their English was good enough to understand the wording on a billboard being driven by at moderate speed on the back of a lorry. Many cynics alleged that the campaign was actually a party political ruse designed by the Conservative Party’s Machiavellian campaign strategist Lynton Crosby and aimed at persuading wavering supporters of the Conservative Party that the government was taking action about illegal immigration so they should continue to vote Conservative rather than defect to UKIP, whose anti-immigration stance was more ‘up-front’ and who had been gaining steady support, perhaps as a consequence. The government has failed to release any figures as to how many people have handed themselves in as a result of the campaign, though it insists that if one person were to do so it would justify the expense of the campaign. That campaign ran until 29th July. On 1st August 2013, the Home Office launched a series of operations at London underground stations aimed at apprehending illegal immigrants (African Voice, Issue 494) .

Continued on page 2

Labour MP Stella Creasy called Home Office stop and search operations a “kind of fishing expedition” and “unacceptable”

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UK public to mark Day of the Disappeared

The Red Cross has launched a social media campaign to commemorate people who have gone missing throughout the world in disasters, as well as situa-tions of violence and armed conflict.

The British Red Cross is asking people to mark this year’s International Day of the Disappeared (on Friday 30 August 2013) by collectively changing their online avatars across social networks to include an empty picture frame that symbolises people who are still missing. Emily Knox, the British Red Cross head of international family tracing, said: “Across the world, Red Cross and Red Crescent national societies are urging people to mark this special day through the Empty Frame campaign. “We are looking to harness the power of social networks and encouraging people to share, tweet and engage in discussions on digital media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other social networks,” she added. Pictures of the Empty Frame are available online on the redcross.org.uk website, where a ‘social media toolkit’ of downloadable avatars for Facebook, Twitter and other social networks can be found.

Publisher and Editor-In-Chief Mike Abiola Editorial Board Adviser Dr Ola Ogunyemi News Editor Peter Olorunnisomo Managing Editor Alan Oakley Sports Editor Abiodun Teriba Assist. Sports Editor Olubunmi Omoogun Arts Editor Golda John Columnists Ryan Holmes Photo Journalist Isaac Adegbite Graphic Designer African Voice UK Legal Adviser Nosa Kings Erhunmwunsee London Office: Unit 7 Holles House Overton Road London SW9 7AP

Tel: 0203 737 3077

Email: africanvoicenews@gmail.com

African Voice is published by African Voice UK.

News Warning app launched to counter Home Office swoops A software developer has created a mobile app to alert users to Home Office stop and search operations, such as those reported on in our Issue 494 lead story. Created by a group that calls itself ImmigrantX, ‘Stop & Search2’ asks users to report stop and search operations, the locations of which are then shared with other users. An explanation of the app on the organisation’s website reads: “As an undocumented immigrant the stop and search poses an inherent risk to you. “This way the alert can help you prepare and assess the danger the stop and search poses to you and by consequence your friends and your loved ones.” The Government has been accused of targeting individuals based solely on their race and appearance. The Equality and Human Rights Commission is now currently investigating Border Force operations, as well as a controversial advertising campaign telling immigrants to “go home”. Immigration Minister Mark Harper denied people are being investigated on the basis of their race, but that officers’ activities were driven by intelligence. Ian Dunt, editor of politics.co.uk writes of the software: “The Immigrant X app is a practical, effective response to the UKBA spot checks which have been taking place in London recently. The operations themselves rest on a questionable interpretation of the Immigration Act 1971, via the 1986 case Singh v Hammond. Whatever else that legal

A screenshot from ImmigrantX’s Stop & Search app precedent does, it probably doesn’t entitle authorities to do fishing expeditions away from borders. The app is therefore a legitimate and law-abiding response to a heavy-handed and potentially illegal Home Office operation. It’s also further proof of the way mobile technology has handed supposedlypowerless communities the kind of ability previously enjoyed only by authorities.” The ImmigrantX website features the following mission statement: This is our manifesto, simple, without a plan, just an ideal for a better future and a statement of our resolve to do our best. We simply want to make the world a better place for all. We will do what we can with what we have to make it possible for immigrants to choose a place to live where they

feel safe, secure and can make a future for themselves and their families. That means to us: 1. Your rights as a world citizen are not defined by your race, religion, place of birth, nationality or lack of. They are afforded to you by your existence. 2. Where ever you live on this earth you have the same rights as all those who live in your community not matter how or why you came to this place. 3. A law that is unjust should be disobeyed through ingenuity and creativity not by violence or hurt those we oppose or seek to help. Demand for the Stop & Search app has exceeded expectations, according to the developer, leading to technical problems that it is working through.

It’s all for show

Continued from front page An eye-witness at one operation at Kensal Green tube station in North West London said that it seemed that police and immigration officers were ‘stopping and questioning every non-white person’. The immigration minister denied allegations that the operations employed ‘racial profiling’ and said ‘we are not carrying out random checks on people in the street and asking people to show their papers. That’s absolutely not what we are doing. We wouldn’t have the lawful authority to do that’. The Home Office reported that 139 suspected illegal immigrants had been arrested. It said that it did not have figures as to how many off these were black or Asian. He further claimed that ‘the operations carried out at two tube stations were based on specific intelligence about concerns that we had about those particular locations’. However the Labour MP for Walthamstow, Stella Creasy, told journalists that at

Dr Martin Ruhs advises the Government on immigration matters

the operation at Walthamstow tube station, “I’ve been told they were only stopping people who looked Asian or African and not anyone who was white. This kind of fishing expedition in public place is entirely unacceptable.”

The UK’s discrimination watchdog the Equality and Human Rights Commission has since written to the Home Office informing ministers that it intends to investigate both the mobile advertising campaign and the raids at London stations.

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News

26,000 new businesses set up by entrepreneurial jobseekers

Levi Roots, inspiring new entrepreneurs

From gourmet chocolate companies to internet games designers, the New Enterprise Allowance has been behind a wide range of new ventures since it was introduced in 2011, with the most recent statistics showing around 2,000 new businesses being set up every month.

The New Enterprise Allowance offers expert mentoring and financial support to jobseekers who want to start up their own business, helping people who have previously been on benefits turn their business ideas into successful enterprises. Today’s figures also show that beneficiaries of the scheme come from all ages, with more than 6,000 businesses started by people aged 50 or over – challenging the idea that entrepreneurial zeal is solely a youthful attribute. Almost 4,000 disabled people were also helped by the scheme to become their own boss. Minister for Employment Mark Hoban said: “The New Enterprise Allowance is a great example of the aspiration nation in action: Government offering support to people with ideas, as well as the ‘can-do’ attitude to turn them into successful enterprises” “Every month, we are successfully supporting around 2,000 jobseekers to get off benefits and start their own business so that they can fulfill their aspiration to look after themselves and their families”. Welcoming the announcement, entrepreneurship ambassador, Levi Roots said: “I am a big fan of the New Enterprise Allowance - it’s a great scheme, which helps people with ideas make the most of their talent. “By offering expert mentoring support and start up funds it sends a message to

those thinking about starting their own business: ‘you’re not alone’. Twenty six year old Luke BoultonMajor set up a martial arts and fitness centre in Bristol through the NEA scheme. Luke spent four years training and studying Taekwondo in South Korea in his early twenties. On his return to the UK he couldn’t find work or anywhere to continue his martial arts training. After being unemployed for six months he took part in the NEA scheme and decided to open up his own gym and martial arts centre in Bristol which is now the biggest purpose-built martial arts centre in the country.. Simon Short, who set up education and training social enterprise, The Intelligence Project, says: “Self-employment is the quickest way for offenders to be employed, if their risk-taking nature and money-oriented traits can be channelled positively. Those entrepreneurial attributes are essential in business.” The Intelligence Project delivers education and training to ex-offenders to help reintroduce them to life outside of prison. Through self-referrals and those from the Government’s Work Programme, Simon and his team assess an individual’s social capital before assigning them with a mentor, who has had similar life experiences. The mentor then helps build a personal development plan, to help that person overcome issues such as housing or mental health, so they can become more selfsufficient. Elizabeth Hazeldine was out of work for a year before she started her business Henley’s Heritage Walks with the help of New Enterprise Allowance (NEA). The 50-year-old, who had previously

worked at the local museum, decided to explore ways to turn her vast knowledge of local history into a living wage. Her Jobcentre Plus adviser referred her to the New Enterprise Allowance scheme to help her launch a local historical business. Elizabeth said: “Losing your job at any time is always upsetting, but losing it when you’re the wrong side of forty is even worse, as most employers think you’re not capable of doing their work. “The NEA really worked for me as it gave me the opportunity to move into self-employment with the backup of a weekly income. This way I have used my knowledge to develop a viable business. I would recommend people take the plunge, as they say - fortune favours the brave”. The business offers guided history walks through Henley-On-Thames and sessions in schools, colleges and retirement homes. One of her very popular tours is a horror walk that details a murder in Henley during Victorian times. Since its launch in June, Elizabeth’s business continues to expand. She has recently held tours for tourists from as far afield as Germany and America

and has even produced her own guide book. The New Enterprise Allowance (NEA), launched in April 2011, aims to help unemployed people who want to start their own business. NEA is available to Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) claimants aged 18 and over. Participants receive access to a volunteer business mentor who will provide them with guidance and support as they develop their business plan and through the first six months of trading. Once participants have demonstrated they have a viable business proposition with the potential for growth in the future, they are able to access financial support. • a weekly allowance worth £1,274 over 26 weeks, paid at £65 a week for the first 13 weeks and £33 a week for a further 13 weeks, and • if they need start-up capital, they may also be able to access a loan up to £1,000 to help with their start-up costs. The total package of support is worth up to £2,274 to each participant who starts their own business.

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News

MoneyGram Foundation Distributes First Grants worth $250,000

MoneyGram Foundation announced that it awarded $250,000 to eight organizations worldwide. These were the first grants distributed through the MoneyGram Foundation.

The Foundation, launched late last year, was established with a mission to help children around the world gain access to educational facilities and learning resources. The MoneyGram Foundation believes that education is at the heart of better economic opportunities, healthier families, and individual freedom and empowerment. Through the Foundation, MoneyGram grants funds to worthy organizations working to give children the best education possible. The MoneyGram Foundation chose eight organizations from hundreds of applicants. The programs span the globe, impacting thousands of children in six different countries and exemplifying the Foundation’s guiding principle of “inspiring minds and improving lives”. Currently, MoneyGram funds the Foundation through a monetary gift and access to in-kind resources. Recognizing the enormous need around the world for access to basic education, the Foundation plans to expand its funding support through contributions from others later this year. The MoneyGram Foundation’s inaugural grants have been awarded to the following organizations: • Developments in Literacy, to fund three schools in Rawalpindi, Pakistan with over 70% female enrollment. These schools serve rural and impoverished regions of a country where nearly 75% of girls are illiterate. • Child Aid’s Reading for Life program, to

World Learning brings together young alumni leaders from the Middle East and North Africa

supply translated reading curriculum books for schools and libraries in Guatemala. These schools currently operate with an average of one translated book per class. • Mumbai Mobile Creches, to provide education for children of migrant workers living temporarily on construction sites around Mumbai, India. Over 50,000 children reside in temporary housing on construction sites in the city of Mumbai with no access to formal education. • Niños en Alegría, to train more than 160 teachers in technology and entrepreneurship student curricula in Guerrero, Mexico. Niños en Alegría currently operates eight schools, employing testing and curriculum standards that surpass public education standards in Mexico.

• The Maharaja Hanwant Singhji Charitable Trust’s Veerni Project, to provide room, board and tuition for girls in Jodhpur, India to attend secondary school. India has one of the largest populations of children without access to education. This project helps ensure the students complete their education. • Grants for Innovative Teaching through the Junior League of Dallas, to fund innovative teaching programs in the Dallas Independent School District. These grants go toward projects in science, technology, engineering, math and literacy that otherwise would not be provided for in school budgets. • Voices For Children Foundation, to purchase school uniforms for abused and ne-

glected children in Miami, Florida. All of the money goes directly to children who have been removed from their homes to buy enough school uniforms, including shoes, for one academic year. • World Learning, to translate and print workbooks and provide teacher training in financial literacy education for orphaned and vulnerable children in Ethiopia. The curriculum is designed to help students save money, plan for the future, and learn skills to become entrepreneurs. The MoneyGram Foundation will distribute a second round of grants later this year. To learn more about the MoneyGram Foundation and the projects it supports, please visit moneygramfoundation.org.

Extending the street triage scheme: new patrols with nurses and the police Five new police forces have been selected to pilot a scheme aimed at improving the way people with mental health problems are treated during emergencies, announced Care and Support Minister Norman Lamb.

The street triage scheme sees mental health nurses accompany officers to incidents where police believe people need immediate mental health support. The aim is to ensure that people get the medical attention they need as quickly as possible. Initial reports from established street triage schemes in Leicestershire and Cleveland show that it can help to keep people out of custodial settings and reduce the demands on valuable police time. As part of the scheme, mental health nurses will: • Support police officers while they are out on patrol; • Assist officers when they are responding to emergency calls; and • Give advice to staff in police control rooms. The five new police forces that the Depart4

Minister of State for Policing and Criminal Justice Damian Green

ment of Health will be working with are: • Metropolitan Police • British Transport Police • West Yorkshire Police • West Midlands Police

• Thames Valley Police In launching these new pilot sites, Care and Support Minister Norman Lamb said: “Making sure people with mental health problems get the right assessment, care

and treatment they need as quickly as possible is really important, especially in emergency situations. “We know that some police forces are already doing an extremely good job of handling circumstances involving mentally ill people but we want this to be the reality everywhere. By providing police forces with the support of health professionals we can give officers the skills they need to treat vulnerable people appropriately in times of crisis. “We have already seen encouraging results from the other pilot sites and I am excited that these five additional police forces are trialling this important scheme.” North Yorkshire, Sussex, Derbyshire and Devon and Cornwall police forces have already been selected as pilot sites for this scheme; they have begun setting up their pilots this summer. Minister of State for Policing and Criminal Justice Damian Green said: “These pilots will help ensure people with serious mental health issues are given the appropriate care and support, while ensuring police officers’ time is freed up to fight crime.

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Patients to benefit from easier access to medication New legislation has come into force, this will mean that physiotherapists and podiatrists in the UK will be the first to be able to independently prescribe medication to their patients, according to Care and Support Minister, Norman Lamb.

The move will mean patients will no longer have to go back to their doctors to get medication after visiting the physiotherapist or podiatrist, freeing up valuable time for GPs and making things more convenient for the patient. Around 15 million people are currently living with a long term condition, which requires trips to hospital or to the GP. Many of these people will benefit from being treated closer to home and in a more timely manner, enabling them to better manage their condition. Advanced practitioners will have to complete a training course approved by the Health and Care Professions Council and will only be able to prescribe medicines relevant to their role. The full impact of these changes will be felt in summer 2014, when practitioners have completed their courses and are starting to prescribe for their patients.

Care and Support Minister, Norman Lamb said: “This change will not only benefit patients by making it more convenient to get treatment but it will also free up valuable GP time. We are showing the world that the NHS is at the forefront of healthcare, paving the way for other countries. “Physiotherapists and podiatrists are highly skilled professionals and these changes will allow them to give better care to the millions of people with acute and long term conditions.” Tuesday’s changes will enable the NHS to: • improve timely access to medicines; • deliver care closer to home, supporting people to remain in and return to work; • enable self-care and self-management of conditions; and • improve treatment results for patients by maximising the benefits of physiotherapy and podiatry. For example podiatrists who treat patients with a wide range of conditions including diabetic foot ulcers and arthritic disorders in the foot and ankle would be able to prescribe medication, more promptly. Physiotherapists would be able to prescribe medicines for symptoms such as

Care and Support Minister, Norman Lamb

pain and inflammation. The opportunity to prescribe pain relief and other medicines would help many patients to respond more quickly to their treatment. Phil Gray, chief executive of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, said: “This is a landmark moment that will lead to patients receiving faster,

More effective treatment for their condition. “Physiotherapists being able to independently prescribe - for the first time anywhere in the world - will remove bureaucracy, free up time for doctors and save money for the NHS.

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Wal-mart makes move to African market

Africa’s recent strong economic growth has not gone unnoticed by the biggest global retailers. The world’s largest, Wal-Mart Stores Inc, acquired South Africa’s Massmart in a $2.4 billion deal in 2011, and is now looking to take a stake of 50 percent plus one share in Kenya’s Naivas supermarket chain, according to its Chairman Simon Mukuha.

Kenya has a predicted growth of about 6 percent this year; up from last year’s ﬁve percent, and is clearly a tempting investment opportunity. Mukuha remained tight-lipped on the matter, saying that both sides had yet to reach agreement on the price, and declining to give further details of the deal’s ﬁnances. Naivas has 28 stores, which is fewer than its rivals, Nakumatt and Uchumi Supermarkets, which has a market capitalization of around $60 million and in

An existing Wal-Mart

May 2013 had 25 stores across East Africa with plans to open 13 more. Mukuha said Naivas, backed by Walmart, aims to open two more outlets by the end of the year, and he recognises that Africa’s economic growth is creat-

ing a growing middle class, who represent a new type of consumer. “Massmart want to come in with a partner, someone who can show them how to navigate this market. On our part, we are looking for an investor to

pump in fresh ideas, fresh blood,” he said. Massmart had no comment on the Naivas stake, but its chief executive Grant Pattison said in a recent email that the company had “met with several important players in that market, building relationships.” However, Nic Norman-Smith, chief investment officer of Lentus Asset Management in Johannesburg, cautioned that Massmart may have to pay a premium to break into Kenya, given the limited number of available retailers that would fit its business model. “There is a lot of demand for these assets, I would be very surprised if they didn’t overpay. If the price that WalMart paid for Massmart is anything to go by, they clearly have an appetite to grow at almost any cost,” he said. In Johannesburg, Massmart Holdings said on Tuesday its first-half earnings rose by as much as 57 percent, lifted by favorable exchange rates

Solar powered laptop launched in Ghana

A solar panel laptop

A London, Ont.-based company is hoping its take on a solar-powered, water-resistant laptop will give Africans a new computing solution.

Launching Tuesday in Accra, Ghana, WeWi Telecommunications Inc.’s laptop is designed to be more rugged and outﬁtted for Africans’ needs. It comes with a set of solar panels that give the user up to 10 hours of battery life after spending two hours under the sun. The panels can be folded away under the laptop when not in use. A higher-end, water-resistant version of the Sol is also coated in a hydrophobic material which protects the laptop from water damage. “We are focusing on Africa, because they have a lot of troubles with their electricity infrastructure,” says David Snir, WeWi’s founder and CEO. WeWi’s co-founders developed the germ of the idea for the Sol about a year and a half ago, during a visit to Ghana. 8

One of the co-founders is originally from that country, and WeWi has a subsidiary there whose primary job is to fulﬁll government contracts. While one of the company’s main tasks is to build cellular towers, Snir says he was struck by how often the power grid would go down in Ghana, with that problem translating to much of the rest of Africa. “While we were there, even in Accra, it has a lot of troubles. Every few days, it would have a power outage throughout the city or through its regions. For us, it was odd that it happened so persistently and nothing was really done about that,” he says. “But then, the more we looked into it, the more we saw that the entire African continent has this issue. It is really a very rapidly growing economy, but at the same time … people have difﬁculty getting electricity to power these computers.”

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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‘I Would Have Married Femi Fani-Kayode’ By Peter Olorunnisomo

One of the news items that has raged in the last week or two on the Nigerian front has been the reactions to the write-up by Femi Fani-Kayode, a former Minister of the Fedral Republic of Nigeria during the Obasanjo regime and an erstwhile aide of the same President.

The brick and spat would also draw blood about romantic sentiments across tribal lines and the issue of manly integrity in the exercise of chivalry. A lot has been said about Femi’s ‘careless whispers’ and the damage it portends for his friends so mentioned. Some people have taken it as a battle line drawn for where his ego would not be bridled in public spectacle. We are not truly as concerned with personal matters as much as saying that people should bridle their tongues as well so that relationships do not degenerate to battle lines drawn between inter tribal romantics. Below is an instructive read from yemojanews as posted by Wale Onifade. Unknown to many people, the former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fanikayode and former beauty queen, Mrs Bianca Onoh were heading for the altar in the late 80’s, but the wheels of their love life was clogged by a sudden event that eventually created a gulf between the two lovebirds. Yemojanews gathered that Bianca Odinaka Olivia Onoh, who is the sixth child of Late Chief Christian Chukwuma Onoh, the second republic governor of the of the old Anambra state, had met Femi Fanikayode while she was studying for her A- levels in Cambridge Tutorial College. The former aviation minister was also attending the University of Cambridge for his Masters Degree programme in law. Informed sources revealed that the statuesque beauty was already a queen before he met the hunky politico. The lively, charming and boisterous Bianca had won the MISS MARTINI, a beauty pageant organized by the beverage company known as Martini Rossi, while schooling at Yorkshire in England. The relationship between the stunner and the six-footer lover boy was described as a ‘red-hot romance’ by Nigerian students then in the U.K social circuit. Even, when Femi, whose father was the second Queen’s Counsel{Senior Advocate of Nigeria} that Nigeria will produced, was ﬁnishing his Masters programme and the gorgeous Bianca was settling down for

Femi Fani Kayode

her combined honours degree in Politics, Economics and Law at the University of Buckingham, the rhythm of their love beats was still playing on melodiously. And as fate continued to smile on them, the lovebirds found each other in Nigeria. While Femi had finished the youth service programme, Bianca had also transferred to the University of Nigeria, Nzukka, where her father had compelled her to study law. Late Chief C.C Onoh, a lawyer and expert in land matters had genuinely and strongly guided his children into reading law. And, they grew to become visible figures in Rockonoh Law Chambers. The duo continued their love affairs in the country. While the current Nigeria’s ambassador to Spain was sweating it out in the university, the lover boy was getting set to join his father’s law chamber. Our investigations revealed that around this time, another very pretty lady, Ms Saratu Attah had equally found a place in Femi’s heart. And, in no time, she was found to be carrying Femi Fani-kayode’s first child. The pregnancy of Saratu Attah, whose father, Alhaji Adamu Attah, was the second republic governor of Kwara state, we gathered, set the relationship between Femi and Bianca on the edge of ruins. Sometime in 1997 at the wedding anniversary of Ide Ahaba, Chief Sonny Odogwu in Asaba, Delta state, Bianca, who was already married and equally expecting her first child then, had told a frontline celebrity journal, when she was asked about his botched marriage plans with Femi Fani-kayode that ‘it [the mar-

riage] was not meant to be… I met FFK in London and we both dreamt of having a beautiful home, but things didn’t work our way. I know that he’s married now,’ the elegant former beauty queen had said. The marriage plans collapsed because Femi had impregnated Saratu, who later gave birth to Folake, the first child of Femi Fani-kayode, who now holds a Masters degree in law. Bianca went on with her law programme and later joined her father, who was then reeling in agony, in his chambers. Chief C.C Onoh, who had lost his first daughter in the EmeneEnugu air crash, shortly before he became the governor of the old Anambra in October 1983, was then hit by another tragedy. His son, Christian Chukwuma Jr had allegedly shot himself after a fierce family feud. In 1988, the former Senior Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan on Diaspora Affairs, participated in another beauty pageant, Most Beautiful Girl In Nigeria [MBGN] and won. The drop-dead stunner thereafter went on to clinch the Miss Africa title in Banjul, Gambia in 1989. And, in the same year, the sexy ambassador was crowned Miss Intercontinental, making her one of the two most successful beauty queens Nigeria has produced. Also, in that year 1989, the late Ikemba of Nnewi, Chief Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu had gone to visit his long standing friend, late Chief Onoh at his Ugwo country home and what confronted him was an angel that couldnt be resisted. Hence, the visits, became regular.

The late former old Anambra governor, oblivious of his friend’s mission was always quick to open his doors. Yemojanews impeccably gathered that before long, the charismatic and enigmatic former warlord had swept Bianca off her feet. So, a new love chapter was opened for the beauty queen. About this time, Femi Fani-kayode had equally cemented a political relationship with the former Biafra leader, Chief Odumegwu Ojukwu. The shrewd and consummate politico hosted Femi to a launch in his Villaska lodge, Ikoyi, Lagos residence, where he agreed to be the patron of the September Club, an hi-tech social-political organization established by some prominent Nigerians. Unknown to Femi, his priceless beau is now the main date of Ikemba. When, Chief C.C Onoh got wind of the affair between his daughter and his friend, which was fully supported by his wife Caroline, all hell was let loose. The late governor severed relationship with his friend and insisted that his daughter will never marry the highly intelligent Oxford trained Biafra warlord. Before the legal luminary could comprehend what has gone amiss, his lovely daughter, Bianca had moved into the comfort arms of Chief Ojukwu. And, the Villaska lodge Lagos home of Ojukwu became her place of abode. And, for four years, Late Chief Odumegwu Ojukwu and Bianca Odinaka Onoh lived together as live-in-lovers. And, despite the 35 year age difference between them and resistance of Chief Onoh, the loving duo took a walk down the aisle on November 12, 1994. The sixth child of C.C Onoh, Bianca and the Ikemba of Nnewi were pronounced husband and wife at Our Lady Queen of Nigerian Church in Abuja. Although, Chief Onoh barred his family members from attending, the ceremony was not devoid of pomp and pageantry, as scores of Alist celebrities came to witness the holy solemnization. Informed sources revealed that ‘some of us are not surprised when FFK wrote a tribute to Chief Chukwuemeka Ojukwu when he died. He surely had a relationship with both Ikemba and his wife. And, I’m very sure that Bianca is one of the very few people he can’t resist. He dare not say no to her’ the source concluded. Sometime in March last year, Chief Fani-kayode had written a tribute to Chief Ojukwu titled ‘ I wish I were born Igbo’ in which he celebrated the life and times of the late statesman. Posted by Wale Onifade Source: yemojanews 9

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Ife celebrates Oranmiyan festival

The ancient city of Ile Ife will be agog Monday as the three day celebration of Oranmiyan, arguably the most deified of the whole Yoruba deities, begins. Oranmiyan is the only Yoruba King that was confirmed to have established other towns, like Oyo and Benin, became their King and later returned to his abode and also became a King before his eventual transformation as denoted in the Oranmiyan Cenotaph. The Oranmiyan Cenotaph is a renowned tourist centre that has drawn million of visitors to Ile-Ife and has continued to do same. Oranmiyan is a religion to many in Yoruba land as it is being worshiped while they visit the Cenotaph to pay homage and reverence to the deity. Speaking ahead of the celebration, Oba Abimbola Akinyele, the Olu of Famia Ife said the celebration is to set the record straight as some people are claiming Oranmiyan as theirs. Oranmiyan was one of the seven sons of Okanbi, the only child of Oduduwa, the progenitor of the Yoruba. The legend, Oranmiyan, despite being the grandson of Oduduwa was the pioneer Alaafin of Oyo. He was famed as a strong enigmatic leader who led his people into a path of greatness that lasted several centuries, leaving a her-

itage that lasts till today. After establishing Oyo, he left and conquered the Benin people and again founded the Benin Kingdom. After several wars and conquests, Oranmiyan returned to Ife, the cradle of the Yoruba and was the 4th Ooni of Ife. The festival which has received the approval of the Ooni of Ife, Alaiyeluwa Oba Okunade Sijuwade, will bring all Ife indigenes and the entire Yoruba at home and in diaspora like Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Cuba, United States of America together. Former minister of Agriculture, Engineer Basheer Awoterebo, at a press conference in Ile Ife weekend said different program have been lined to enrich the festival. According to him, the the platform of the festival which will be used to bring to the fore a unique and binding tradition for the Yoruba people, will future a paper presentation with the theme: What is the name?” to be delivered by a renowned professor of history. He added that there will be quiz competition, traditional procession, and vacant space for traders to display their wares as well as homage would be pay to the Imperial Majesty Oba Okunade Sijuade.. Source: VANGUARD

Cross section of the teeming State of Osun indigenes boarding free train transport organized by the Governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola to mark this year Eil-el-ﬁtr festive in Lagos Terminus, Oyingbo, Lagos State

Photos: Taofeeq Adejare

L-R Sons of the Former Governor of the Old Western Region, Late Oba Adesoji Tadeniawo Aderemi, Prince Aderounmu Aderemi, Governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, his Deputy, Otunba Grace Titi-Laoye Tomori, Prince Kolade Aderemi and Prince Bowofade Aderemi during a royal courtesy visit to the Governor at the State Government Secretariat, Abere, Osogbo

L-R Personal Assistant to the President of Christ Apostolic Church [C.A.C] WorldWide, Pastor Caleb, Deputy Governor, State of Osun, Otunba Grace Titi-laoye Tomori, Governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, President [C.A.C] WorldWide, Pastor Abraham Akinosun and [C.A.C] Araromi, Pastor Michael Ayeitan during a courtesy visit to the Governor at the State Government House, Okeﬁa, Osogbo

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Mexico

Cartel heads roll as Peña Nieto turns up heat

Mario Ramirez Trevino was amongst America’s Most Wanted

For the second time in a month, a drug kingpin has been captured in Mexico, leading to questions about the strategies employed by former president Felipe Calderon.

President Enrique Pena Nieto replaced Felipe Calderon in December. In July, Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, alias Z40, thought to be the ruthless head of the notorious Zetas drug cartel, was arrested by Marines after years of evading capture. Now Mario Armando Ramirez Trevino, also known as El Pelón and X-20, and said to be the head of the cocaine and marijuana-smuggling Gulf cartel, has been apprehended. Security has been stepped in the north of the country to prevent rival gangs ﬁghting to expand their inﬂuence into the void left by the capture. Ex-president Calderon deployed the army across the country and pursued cartel leaders. Many blamed the tactics on

the surge of violence seen in the country since. However, Mr Pena Nieto promised to change the policy by tackling cartels through law enforcement on a local level rather than the capture of big-name targets. The US government was offering a reward of $5m (£3.2m) for information leading to the capture of Ramirez Trevino, while Mexico offered about $3m. Ramirez Trevino is thought to have taken over as leader of the Gulf Cartel after the arrest of Jorge Eduardo Costilla, known as The Coss, last September. Mexican media reported that the drug baron was arrested by a joint Army and Marines operation in Rio Bravo, in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas. The interior ministry confirmed the arrest with the following on Twitter: “This morning, the Mexican Army has captured Mario Armando Ramirez Trevino.” (sic) On Sunday, a government official said there was now a power vacuum in several of the cartels, which could lead to infighting. “The government has reinforced the security strategy with the aim of neutralising any eventual actions by other criminal organisations in this region,” interior ministry spokesman Eduardo Sanchez said. The leader of the Gulf Cartel had been wanted by US authorities since 2006. He is considered “at least as violent” as Miguel Angel Trevino Morales. Analysts say the authorities believed Ramirez Trevino had enough influence to attempt unifying the Gulf and Zeta cartels, which used to be one organisation until its leadership split up in 2010.

India

Indian state outlaws the dark arts

This Hindu tantric enacts the kind of ritual Narendra Dabholkar regarded as “fraudulent and exploitative”

A day after a prominent campaigner was killed, the Indian state of Maharashtra has enacted emergency laws banning black magic and ritual ‘healing’.

Anti-superstition activist Narendra Dabholkar, 71, who campaigned for the law, was shot dead in the city of Pune on Tuesday (August 20) by unidentiﬁed gunmen. Several businesses closed in protest against the killing and chanting demonstrators marched through the city. Dabholkar spent decades campaigning against what he called “fraudulent” practices. Critics accused him of being antireligion in a country where mysticism and spirituality is venerated. But in an interview with the Agence France-Presse news agency two years ago he rejected such charges. “In the whole of the bill, there’s not a single word about God or religion; nothing like that. The Indian constitution allows freedom of worship and nobody can take that away,” he said. “This is about fraudulent and exploitative practices.”

Maharashtra state government has enacted an ordinance to ban rituals, superstition and black magic. However a bill must still be endorsed by the parliament or this legislation will lapse. The bill that Mr Dabholkar was campaigning for had been approved by the cabinet but lapsed before it could be put to a vote - it had been on a waiting list for eight years. After his murder, the government rushed through emergency legislation which, according to local media reports, makes it an offence to exploit people by offering rituals, charms and magical cures, and to practice black magic. Mr Dabholkar and his committee, the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (Committee for the Eradication of Blind Faith), was particularly well-known for openly criticising some of India’s socalled “godmen”, the self-styled Hindu ascetics who claim to perform miracles and are revered by many. He also campaigned against animal sacriﬁces used in certain rituals.

Hot execs ignore bleeding crash victim

Two senior ofﬁcials’ indifference to a woman hit by their government car in Jiyuan, Henan, has sparked public outrage. The ofﬁcials, who are with the city’s justice bureau and were in the car’s back seat at the time of the accident, stayed in the air-conditioned car and refused to assist the victim “due to hot weather”, according to a report in the Dahe Daily. Their driver did get out of the car, helped the injured woman and called for an ambulance, the report added. The accident occurred in the middle of the day, when the justice bureau vehicle knocked down the woman, who was riding an electric bike. A photograph taken by a bystander shows a woman sitting on the ground in front of

the car with blood visible by her legs. “The two senior officials just sat in the car laughing and talking as if nothing had happened and because they were afraid of the heat, they refused to get out of the car and assist,” another witness told the Dahe Daily. A crowd of 40 to 50 bystanders reportedly gathered at the scene and angrily urged the two officials sitting in the back seat of the car to get out and help. After a half-hour standoff with the irate bystanders, one of the officials - a middleaged man wearing a white dress shirt - got out of the car and ran from the scene, according to witnesses. The Jiyuan Municipal Bureau of Justice said the woman was sent to hospital and the accident remains under investigation.

China

This car’s passengers were too hot to leave their air-conditioned luxury to help the bike rider they hit

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Gospel

By Michael Adekoya

RENEW YOUR MIND

“ I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Rom. 12:1-2.

Dear Reader, one truth you must know today is that your mind is similar to a computer. What you program into it dictates how it will function. You can have the most powerful computer in the world, but if you program it with the wrong software or with wrong information, it will never function as the manufacturer intended. Beyond that, there is now a myriad of computer viruses lurking in cyberspace, waiting for an opportunity to destroy your hard drive and the information stored in your computer and contaminate the software. Before long the computer will develop sluggishness; it will malfunction. My friend, if your computer is contaminated, you may not be able to get to the programs you need or retrieve important documents. And all too often, you are likely to unwittingly pass along the virus to a friend, family member, business associate or work-mate, exacerbating the problem by contaminating their system with the same virus that infected yours. Usually these problems occur not because your computer is defective, but because somebody had reprogrammed the software or contaminated good and valuable programs or information within. Similarly, too often we allow negative thoughts, words, disappointments, problems, betrayal, abandonment, anger, bitterness, abuse and other devious viruses to access our minds, subtly changing our software, or corrupting our information and values. We allow what somebody – a spouse, friend, work-mate, church or family member – do to affect us negatively and change the course of

our destiny. My friend, can you identify with this? Is that the position you are now? Listen! You are created in the image of God. Before you were formed, God programmed you to live abundant life (John 10:10) He wants to change your tears to cheers, your misfortunes to miracles. He wants you to be happily married, to be healthy and successful. My friend, God wants to save you and deliver you. God created you to be blessed, fruitful, multiplied and have dominion (Gen 1:28) The Bible says, “Faithful is He who created and called you, and He also will bring it to pass.” 1 Thes. 5:24. But, when your thinking becomes contaminated, it is no longer in line with God’s Word. Yes, we are prone to make serious mistakes and wrong choices. Sometimes, we go through life with low self-esteem, worries, anxiety, fears, feeling of inadequacy and insecurity and to make matter worse, we pass on our negative attitudes to others. Can you identify with this truth? Have you ever been a victim? Listen! When you recognize these things happening, you must reprogram your computer (your mind). You must renew your mind and change your thinking. Paul says to the believers in Philippi, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus” Phil 2:5. No matter what you are going through right now, no matter what is not working in your life, if you look hard enough and keep the right attitude, you can find something good about the experience. My friend, you must make a choice today to renew your mind and keep it in line with God’s Word and His promises for your life, no matter what’s happening around you.

Are you looking for a church?

Not settled in any particular congregation? Perhaps now is the time to pray about it If you are not yet saved try one of the following: Jubilee International Churchmeets at 2,30pm on Sundays at Kings Avenue, school, park hill. London SW4. Part of Jubilee International Churches worldwide. For information, you may call (020)8697 3354 New Wine Christian Church- 11am holds meeting at Ringcross Tennants club, Lough Road, Holloway, N7. a member of the Icthus fellowship

worldwide. For more information call 020 7609 959 or 07957 757 663. Praise Tabernacle- 10:30am holds meetings at 620 Western Avenue (A40), park royal Business centre, opposite Warner Bros. Cinema Complex, W3. part of The Redeemed Christian Church of God. For information you may call 020 8993 3010 New Life Christian Centre 10.30am & 6.00pm. meetings at Cairo New Road, Croydon. The church has

Absolute Gospel

Negative thoughts which represent viruses bombard us from all angles everyday, choose to deal with it and don’t pass it on! My friend, please understand this, you are an original. You are not defective. You are not a spare tyre! God made you and He has programmed you for salvation, liberty in Christ, victory, success, wealth, good health and sound mind. This is one important information and revelation that you need to reinstall or reprogrammed in your mental computer today. Don’t allow somebody’s word or action contaminates your life or change the course of your destiny. God has a plan and purpose for your life. It is not over for you yet. But, until you get your thinking in line with your Creator’s manual, God’s Word, you will never operate to your full potential. Listen! The Bible says, “If God be for you, who dare even be against you?” Rom 8:31. When negative, discouraging or contaminating come, cast them down and immediately choose to dwell a bible school, primary, is involved in extensive mission work in Eastern Europe, Italy and India. For information you may call 020 8680 7671 Ruach Ministries - holds meeting at 9am, 11am and 6pm. For information you may call 020 8678 6888 International Central Gospel church - Battersea chapel, holds meetings on Sundays from 2.00pm. . For information you may call 020 8684 4934 Jesus Arena International- Sunday service at 11.00am at Broadwater farm centre, Adams road N17 The Bible Life Church UK- They meet on Sunday mornings at 2.30pm at St Giles Centre, Camberwell

on what God says about you. For example, a thought might come to you that you’re getting sick or that you are not good or useful. Somebody might disappoint, reject or condemn you with their word or action. My friend, refuse to accept that thought or word and declare God’s Word and God’s promise into your life. When it is getting dark, dreary, and you seem not to see any way out of your situation, reprogram your mind and remind yourself that God will make a way. God is a just God! You should maintain a mindset and attitude of faith. My friend, in this last days’, you must make a choice to keep your mind focused on higher things. You must forget the negative things that somebody has done to you. You must forget the past, forgive and move on with God to the destiny He has ordained for your life. As your mind is like computer, so it is similar to the transmission in a car. You have forward gear and a reverse gear and you can choose which way you want to

Church Street, London SE5 Christ Apostolic church (Full Gospel & Pentecostal) Surrey Docks District 163 Ilderton Rd South Bermondsey London SE16 2UT. Tel. 020 7252 2086. Time of worship: Sunday English service 9- 11.30am. Yoruba service 11.30 -2.30pm. Prophetic counselling: Monday, Tuesday & Thursday 12noon- 5pm, Saturday only 5- 7pm. Holy Cross Church InternationalSunday 10.am- 1 pm at Crown House 71-73 Nathan way London SE28 0BQ Tel: 07904 234 126, 07809 381 886 Times of service:Bible study: Thursdays 8pm. Night Vigil: Friday Forthnightly 12am

go. It doesn’t take any more effort to go forward that it does to stay stagnant or to go backward. It is all in the choice and decision process. If you choose to stay focused on the positive and keep your mindset on the good things of God in any situation, no force of darkness is going to be able to keep you from moving forward and fulfil your destiny. My friend, this is the year of restoration, fruitfulness, greater light and advancement! Don’t dwell on the negative or focus on your problems or impossibilities. If you do, it is similar to putting your car in reverse or stagnation and backing away from the salvation, favour, liberty, victory, blessing, prosperity and success that God has in store for you this year. Don’t allow anything or anybody to re-define you, contaminate you or change the course of your life. And at the same time, don’t contaminate your relationship with someone with the infected viruses in your mind.

Remain blessed!

Sunday Service: Sundays 10am - 1pm Winners Chapel London- part of the Living Faith Church Worldwide, at Unit B1 Galleywall Trading Estate, South Bermondsey, London SE16 3PB meets Sunday 7am & 9am and 11am and Wednesdays at 7pm. For details call 020 7237 7894 CHRIST APOSTOLIC CHURCH GRAVESEND, ST. AIDAIN’S CHURCH, ST. AIDAN’S WAY, GRAVESEND, KENT, DA12 4AG TEL. 01474 355 841, 07956 38 38 70 TIME OF WORSHIP: Wednesday Bible Study: 7:30pm to 9:00pm Friday, Night Vigil: 9pm to 11pm Sunday Worship: 12:30pm to 3:00pm

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Africa Newsround

Mozambique

Threatened boycott won’t delay presidential poll The government of Mozambique has said it plans to stick to a schedule for elections later this year and in 2014 even though the main opposition party warns it will boycott the process.

Afonso Dhlakama refuses to stand in presidential election unless the electoral law is changed

Jose Pacheco, the government’s head of negotiations with the opposition, said on Monday (August 19) that elections will be held whether or not the opposition Renamo group participates. Municipal elections are scheduled for Nov. 20, and presidential and parliamentary elections are to be held on Oct. 15 next year. The governing Frelimo party and Renamo disagree over the composition of the state elections panel amid fears that a two-decade peace between the two sides is fraying. Earlier this year, deadly clashes broke out between Renamo ﬁghters and

Libya

Interior Minister quits over ‘interference’

security forces in central Sofala province. The unrest has unsettled some investors seeking opportunities in the fast-growing economy. After winning independence from Portugal in 1975, Mozambique fell into a devastating war between Frelimo, then a Marxist government, and the Renamo rebels, who were backed by neighbouring South Africa’s apartheid government. In the current dispute, Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama has said he won’t stand in the presidential vote unless the electoral law is changed to address what he alleges is bias against his party. The head of the Renamo delegation, Saimone Macuiana, said his group wants “parity” in membership of electoral bodies as a way of guaranteeing fair elections. The Frelimo-dominated parliament rejected the Renamo demand in

December, and Pacheco, the government negotiator, said the opposition’s proposal is unacceptable. “The elections will go ahead as planned,” said Pacheco, who is also agriculture minister. “Mozambique cannot be mortgaged to citizens who do not want to look at Mozambican reality constructively.” The government wants Renamo’s security force to disarm, but that issue is also in a deadlock. Dhlakama, the Renamo leader, has threatened unrest if the government does not compromise, but Jose Mandra, the deputy interior minister, said security forces are on alert to thwart any disturbances. Some ﬁgures in smaller opposition groups have accused the government and Renamo of excluding other segments of society from their negotiations.

Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone diamond exports up 43 per cent

Sierra Leone exported $102 million worth of diamonds in the ﬁrst half of this year, a substantial rise on the $71 million of exports in the same period last year.

The increase was mostly the result of higher output from the country’s main producer, according to the National Mineral Agency. The government received $5.1 million in taxes from exports, in line with the mining code’s 5 percent tax on exports. “At the end of the ﬁrst half of 2013, exports exceeded those of 2012 by 42.95 percent, an improvement of $30.71 mil-

lion,” Ibrahim Mohmed, who oversees the diamond sector at the NMA, told Reuters. ”The total diamonds exported amounted to 331,471 carats valued at $102,205,588,” he said. Sierra Leone exported 296,334 carats of diamonds in the whole of 2012. A rise in production by Koidu Holdings, Sierra Leone’s only commercial pit mining operation, was behind the rise in the country’s output. Koidu is privatelyowned by Israeli diamond trader Beny Steinmetz’s BSG Resources through its Octea diamond unit.

Mohammed Khalifa al-Sheikh with his supporters after being appointed in May

Libya’s Interior Minister Mohammed Khalifa al-Sheikh submitted his resignation on Sunday over differences with the prime minister, according to an official at the prime minister’s office said. Lawlessness has blighted large areas of Libya following the 2011 war that toppled Muammar Gaddafi and the North African Arab country is still awash with weapons. Al-Sharif al-Wafi, a member of the Libyan General National Congress, told reporters that al-Sheikh submitted his resignation to the cabinet and to parliament in protest against what he said was interference in his work by the government and parliament. “He said that he didn’t have any understanding with the prime minister and that he didn’t have enough mandate to carry out his work,” Wafi said. “He also complained that some members of the congress interfered in his work.”

An official aide of Prime Minister Ali Zeidan confirmed that Sheikh submitted his resignation but declined to give any details. Sheikh, a former Tripoli police colonel, took up his post in May after his predecessor Ashour Shuail resigned. Libya has been gripped by violence since Gaddafi’s downfall. Militia groups have further destabilised the oil-producing country, including in the eastern city of Benghazi, the cradle of the anti-Gaddafi uprising. On Saturday, a bomb blast ripped through the garden wall of the Egyptian consulate in Benghazi, injuring a security guard who needed hospital treatment, witnesses said. US ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed in Benghazi last year after Islamist gunmen attacked the U.S. consulate during a protest by a mob angry over a film they said insulted the Prophet Mohammad.

Diamonds from Koidu Holdings’ Kono mine being graded according to size, colour and purity

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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CRIME

Appeal following Man is sentenced conviction of conman for robbery on kids

Conman Martin Adeniran

Police are appealing for further victims to come forward after an unscrupulous fraudster who targeted vulnerable women was jailed last week. Martin Adeniran, threatened to harm the families of two women unless they took out a number of mobile phone contracts for him. He pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation. Ofﬁcers believe there may be further vic-

tims who were exploited by Adeniran, and they are now being urged to come forward to police. Detective Chief Inspector Pete Thomas said: “Adeniran ruthlessly targeted these two women and made them fear that their lives, or those of their loved ones, would be in serious danger unless they consented to his demands. “His brazen confidence during his dealings with the victims means we strongly suspect that he might have previously defrauded other people. “Anyone who believes they have fallen victim to Adeniran should contact officers on 0208 721 4614. All information received will be treated in the strictest confidence.” Police were contacted by the first victim, aged 20, on 31 January 2013 after she had struck up a friendship with Adeniran having initially met him a couple of years previously. He pressurised women into allowing him to visit their home address. Then he would phone and demand they take out some mobile phone contracts on his behalf, due to his poor credit rating. His threats, included that he would burn the house down and kill both her and her young family.

Steven Harris, robbed two young boys

A 41-year-old man from Ilford who threatened and stole money from two boys has been jailed for 12 months.

Snaresbrook Crown Court heard how Steven Harris, 41 (15.08.1972) of Marston Road, Ilford approached the terriﬁed boys in a park at 17.20 on Sunday 16 June demanding cash and threatening

violence. After stealing £10 cash from the children, Harris made a swift exit from park land close to South Woodford Cricket Club, Highﬁeld Road, Woodford, Essex. Investigations by Ilford Police would lead them to Harris, who was known to police as part of Operation Topple, an MPS initiative targeting ‘most harmful’ criminals. Harris was arrested on 20 June and charged with robbery. He was found guilty on 14 August of one count of robbery and sentenced to 12 months Imprisonment at Snaresbrook Crown Court. Detective Inspector Craig Robinson from Ilford Police said: “Harris is a proliﬁc drug addicted offender, who has rightly been targeted because of his offending. This offence - stealing money from children - shows the lengths that addicts will go to feed their habit and has resulted in this term of imprisonment. I would urge anybody with an addiction, to seek treatment rather than turn to crime”.

Cocaine street gang prosecuted

Cocaine recovered from scene

An organised gang linked to a haul of cocaine with an estimated street value of £2.25 million has been jailed to more than 80 years.

The 17-strong group of 15 men and two women were apprehended by detectives from the Met’s Central Task Force after substantial quantities of the Class A drug was intercepted at addresses across London. The 17 had previously appeared at Isleworth Crown Court where they were convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine and money laundering offences. The court heard how detectives had discovered the large-scale criminal network after seizing a ﬁrearm from an address in 14

April 2012. The weapon, a Baikal 9mm handgun, was discovered at the address of Brian McCarthy (17.6.60), who was later sentenced to four years imprisonment at Snaresbrook Crown Court for possession of the ﬁrearm, a silencer and 11 rounds of ammunition. His arrest led ofﬁcers to one of McCarthy’s associates, Gary Ewen. Ewen had been using his haulage business to ship huge amounts of cocaine into the UK from the continent. Ewen was eventually charged and sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court to eight years imprisonment for conspiracy to supply controlled drugs. Ewen had been concealing the drugs within his lorries before passing to another member of the network called Mark Le-

hane. Lehane had been selling the drugs onto street dealers before being arrested as part of the 17 charged at Isleworth Crown Court this year. In total officers recovered 45 kilogrammes of cocaine and £150,000 in cash. Each arrest connected to the police operation, led officers to an additional member of the gang and covert officers witnessed a number of large-scale drug deals taking place. During one transaction a gang member was seen handing over a holdall containing £93,940 to an associate in exchange for cocaine. Another man was apprehended with 62.4 grams of cocaine hidden in his underpants along with £2,000 in cash and a Rolex watch concealed in a bag. A further member was spotted by covert officers moving blocks of cocaine in the boot of his Audi sports car. When the vehicle was stopped a search revealed 993 grams of cocaine with a street value of £360,000. Just six days later another gang member was stopped transporting boxes of the drug to a new location. Detective Inspector Chris Heerey, of the Central Task Force, East, said: “This was a highly organized gang working to import large amounts of relatively pure cocaine before moving it to various storage locations. Once prepared and cut for street usage it would be handed over to the smaller

scale drug dealers to sell on. Once the main gang members were intercepted my team was able to locate the rest of the group as they tried to move the drugs to alternative locations. They literally fell like dominoes from the main cocaine importers at the top end right down to the street drug dealers.”

Appeal as teenagers stabbed in Tottenham Ofﬁcers are appealing for information and witnesses after two teenage boys were stabbed in Tottenham. Police were called at 0433hrs on Saturday, 17 August, to reports of a stabbing in West Green Road, N15. London Ambulance Service were also called to the scene. Two boys, both aged 17 years, were found with stab wounds. Both were taken by London Ambulance Service to a London hospital. One is in a stable condition, the second remains in a critical condition. At this early stage, ofﬁcers believe a male suspect ran from the scene along West Green Road. He is described as black and wearing a hooded top - no further description available at this stage.

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Sounds of Diaspora People of America

Usher junior back playing again after pool fright

Maxi wants someone to show artistes their bona fides

Eyob Makinnen showed no signs of ill health leading up to his stroke and death

Popular reggae artist Eyob Mekonnen died at the weekend after suffering a stroke earlier in the week. The Ethiopian singer, 37, passed away in a Kenya hospital on Sunday (August 18). A post on Mekonnen’s Facebook.com fan page reads: “He has made such a mark on the Ethiopian music scene, bringing a unique and poetic voice with thoughtful lyrics and a beautiful reggae vibe.” The singer founded reggae group Zion Band but found worldwide acclaim as a solo artist following the release of his debut album Kal in 2010. The following announcement appeared on Mekonnen’s Facebook page on Monday: “Dear family, friends and fans of Eyob It is with a VERY HEAVY HEART that we

share with you the tragic news that Eyob Mekonnen passed away yesterday. We are devastated at the loss of this young, dynamic, humble, caring, gentle and talented human being and artist. He left a tremendous mark on all of us, which we can clearly see from the outpouring of prayer and love from all directions. The reason we did not announce it earlier was out of respect for his family as they had not been informed until this morning. We thank all of you that were with him and his family in prayer. We ask that you continue to pray for strength for his family as they need it now the most. We will announce details of the funeral. May his soul rest in peace. May his family and all of you find strength and peace in coping with this moment.

Maxi Priest

British reggae singer Maxi Priest, who topped the US charts in the 1990s with his Bonafide album, is urging reggae’s new generation to take their destiny into their hands. In an interview with the British media, Priest says reggae artistes should take a page out of American hip-hop stars’ book and manage their affairs aggressively. “America and the hip-hop scene has been massively successful because they have lawyers, accountants, and business people as their peers — they haven’t had to go to

another race of people for information,” said the 52-year-old Priest, who added: “They work with their own brethren who have gone to university to do marketing or law and all the bits and pieces that build a good business, so they can sit down and casually put together a plan as to what they are going to do with their music. When you put all those pieces together you have a solid business and reggae needs much more of that.” Hip hop has benefited from the strategic skills of Russell Simmons, Sean ‘P Diddy’ Combs and recently rappers Kanye West and 50 Cent, who have built multimilliondollar empires. Dancehall music made significant strides sales-wise in the 1990s but never produced an impresario on par with Simmons or Combs. Priest was born in England to Jamaican parents. He made a name on Saxon sound system in London before breaking into recording with songs like In The Springtime and Should I in the late 1980s. Following the moderately successful Intentions, Bonafide was his commercial breakthrough in 1990. It contained the number one hit song Close To You which set the pace for other big US sellers including Housecall with Shabba Ranks. Maxi Priest is promoting his latest song, Easy To Love. His ninth album will be released by VP Records in September.

Stevie celebrates 50 years since Fingertips

Pictured with the already legendary Muhammad Ali, future legend and Motown’s most successful artist Little Stevie Wonder signed for the label aged 11.

The past weekend marked 50 years since Stevie Wonder, or Little Stevie Wonder, as he was then known, first topped the chart in the US. At just 11 years old, Stevie Wonder signed

to Motown’s Tamla Records. The next year, in 1962, he released two albums for the label. One of those albums was The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie, which contained the song “Fingertips”, a three-minute instrumental. The album failed to chart and disappeared, but the song would soon return. Motown used to run “package tours” for their roster of artists called The Motortown Revue. During June of 1962, the revue pulled into the Regal Theatre in Chicago. The tape was running when Wonder recorded a nearly seven-minute version of “Fingertips.” It was released in 1963 on Wonder’s Recorded Live: The 12 Year Old Genius album, which followed up his other 1962 LP,Tribute to Uncle Ray. The song received a positive reaction but singles during the early 1960s were not seven minutes long. Berry Gordy (the Motown CEO who signed him to Tamla) had the idea of dividing the song into two parts, with each part on one side of the release. It was “Fingertips (Pt. II)” that became the hit. It first charted June 22, 1963, and 50 years ago last weekend became the number one song in the United States where it reigned for three weeks. It was the first number one hit of his career. To date, Stevie Wonder has 30 number one hits. “Fingertips (Pt. 2)” may seem raw and a bit antiquated today but it was the beginning of huge commercial success for one of the most successful and respected artists in music history. Congratulations Stevie. 15

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Notting Hill Carnival

Rivers Float and Afro Beat Carniriv, Port Harcourt, Nigeria Carnival will return to Notting Hill Carnival for a second year with a resplendent creative float depicting Rivers culture and its impact on shaping the African Diaspora. Led by Zmirage UK in partnership with the River State Tourism Development Agency (RSTDA), Rivers at Nottinghill 2013 will join People’s World Carnival Band to showcase the best of Carniriv. Current plans include a contingent of 14 masquerades who will join the float in order to give it added cultural value. Last year the float attracted an adhoc crowd of mainly Nigerians and Africans generally. Apart from the nationalistic identity, their attraction to the float was mainly because of Afro Beat music emanating from it The music which has become very popular in the UK was refreshing on the parade route at Notting Hill and has encouraged People’s World this year to accommodate this presence in a more creative and inclusive manner. In developing the collaborations between RSTDA and People’s World, the creative float will be dedicated to Afro Beat music along the route on 26th August. This is a major development born out of the collaborations last year and as a unique offering will form a part of the Rivers at Notting Hill Carnival project. To this end People’s World is inviting indigenes of River State in particular and African generally to join

the band in costume on Monday 26th August in celebration of this unique collaboration especially in the 50th Anniversary year of African Union Also included in the collaboration this year is De CORE, who is currently partners with People’s World. This collaboration has been fuelled by a small grant from the Arts Council that makes it possible for De CORE’s artists to work alongside artists from River State on the designs and construction of the float. As a means of publishing Carniriv to the world, a London bus campaign will be launched across key areas in London on the 19th August. This advertising campaign is an attempt by the RSTDA to lure visitors to Carniriv for ‘7 days of pure fun’ Governor Rotimi Amechi at the Carniriv Port Harcourt Carnival scheduled from 15th – 21st December in Port Harcourt Nigeria. A special reception featuring a performance by the visiting Rivers masquerade is scheduled at the Africa Centre for Friday 23rd August 7pm -11pm. At the reception guest will get an insight into Nigeria’s first Carnival and what to expect over the 7 days of Carniriv. It will also give you an opportunity to register for joining the float at Notting Hill. For further information and how you can get involved in parading with the Rivers float please contact: Email: zmirageuk@ gmail.com Zmirage – 07553 549 599 / 07944 597 530; People’s World Carnival Band = 07710 642 029; De CORE: 07870 724 276

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Friday, 23 August 2013 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Thursday, 29 August 2013

Notting Hill Carnival

at Notting Hill Carnival UK

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African Fashion Travelmusic artist

Eccentric Fashion Sun crazy style

Eccentric is creative work of award winning photographer Daniel Sync. Daniel captures a young ambitious woman and others like her who love fashion for its eccentric, quirky ‘out of the box’ looks more than any. She focuses on unconventional and innovative designs. Eccentric pushes the boundaries of fashion and enjoy switching her swag up at any given chance. Daniel said, “I recently met this babe and I immediately fell in love with her style. I thought it is only fair to share her Eccentrik-sm with you”. Enjoy! African Fashion Week in London is currently in its third year, the glamorous event saw dozens of big names and up-andcoming designers from across the continent descending on the UK capital’s hip district of Shoreditch to unveil their latest stylish creations. The CNN, reported the event extensively, quoting Ronke Ademiluyi, founder of the event to have said, “Our platform is about promoting emerging and established Africa-inspired designers,”

Vibrant colors

The runways featured designs from countries such as Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Kenya and Morocco -- but also from the diaspora, including Britain and the Caribbean. Credit: Daniel Sync/ Sync PHOTOS

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

In association with

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Event

African Showcase Market: Celebrates diversity in Barking An outdoor event with vibrant colours, style and artistic representations from eight participating African countries and the Caribbean took place on Wednesday 14 August at the Market Square, Town Centre of borough of Barking and Dagenham Cllr Hardial Singh Rai, Mayor of Barking and Dagenham alongside dignitaries and top members of the council declared the African Showcase Market open. The market had on display the best of African artifacts, music, food, dance and other cultural memorabilia. The African market attracted people from all walks of life, e.g professional returning from work, families on shopping, and visitors to the borough. There were over 40 market stalls all displaying authentic African products and services. African Showcase is in its tenth year, Ola Mustapha, the event organiser, was so elated that all went very well. She used the opportunity to say a big thank you to the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, Lebara and Arik Air for their sponsorship support. “This is to showcase the inherent beauty of African culture to the Afrophiles who live in the great borough of Barking and Dagenham”.

Cllr Hardial Singh Rai Mayor of Barking and Dagenham and Ola Mustapha (Kiskirine, Event Organisers)

Photos by - Daniel/ Sync PHOTOS

Mike Abiola Publisher, African Voice, Actress Roseline Sanni & Barrister Erhunmwunsee

Events calendar What’s On & When Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Arts

Theatre, Shows and Musicals By Ryan Holmes

Macbeth must keep on killing – first Banquo, his old comrade-in-arms; then, as the atmosphere of guilt and paranoia thickens, anyone who seems to threaten his tyrant’s crown. 21 New Globe Walk, London, Greater London SE1 9DT

The Ladykillers Now- October 25th

Lenny Henry as Troy and Tanya Moodie as Rose

Fences Now- Sept 14th

Troy Maxson was once an extremely gifted athlete who was deprived of his shot at the big time and now struggles within regular society in Pittsburgh. Indignant of a world he believes has denied him chances at every turn, he vents his anger on his loyal wife and sports-obsessed son. Fences, is one of the eminent American dramas of the 20th century, and winner of the New York Drama Critics’ Award, two Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Set between the Korean and Vietnam wars, it is essentially the story of a family trying to claw themselves from despair and what happens when a strong man is robbed of his dreams - a universal story which will strike a chord in everyone of us. The Duchess Theatre, 3-5 Catherine St, London WC2B 5LA

Sound of Music July 25th -Sep 1st

Rachel Kavanaugh gave up her tenure at the helm of the Birmingham Rep last year; now, she’s flipping her attention to directing a new stage version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein Nazis-and-yodelling classic. It’s the Open Air Theatre’s traditional end of season musical blow out, but, surprisingly, this is the first time a Rodgers and Hammerstein-penned show has graced the Regent’s Park stage. Alongside Kavanaugh will be choreographer Alistair David and Olivier award-winning set and costume designer Peter McKintosh. While the acting talent comes from the Olivier nominees Charlotte Wakefield and Michael Xavier who will play Maria Rainer and Captain Von Trapp. Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Inner Circle, Regent’s Park, NW1 4NR

Zoonation:Groove down the road Now-September 1st

After the success of ‘Into the Hoods’ and ‘Some Like it Hip Hop’, Kate Prince’s groundbreaking hip-hop dance theatre company ZooNation delivers another extraordinary show with ‘Groove on Down the Road’. The performance is based on the 1939 film ‘The Wizard of Oz’, but Prince packs it full of contemporary twists and curves – with a subversive message on the importance of creativity in the education system. Queen Elizabeth Hall, South Bank London, SE1 8XX

Sweet Bird of Youth Now-31 Aug 2013

Kim Cattrall stars alongside acclaimed Broadway actor Seth Numrich in Tennessee Williams’ powerful and poetic play, Sweet Bird of Youth, directed by Olivier Award-winner Marianne Elliott. A fading Hollywood legend ravaged by the bitterness of failure and despair. Fleeing the disastrous premiere of her comeback film, Alexandra Del Lago travels incognito as The Princess Kosmonopolis seeking refuge in drink, drugs and the arms of Chance Wayne, an idealistic young dreamer turned gigiolo and hellbent on achieving his own movie stardom. A trip to Chance’s hometown in a bid to win back his childhood sweetheart sees their relationship of convenience unravel The Old Vic. The Cut London SE1 8NB

Macbeth Now- 13th October

When three witches tell Macbeth that he is destined to occupy the throne of Scotland, he and his wife choose to become the instruments of their fate and to kill the first man standing in their path, the virtuous King Duncan. But to maintain his position,

‘The Ladykillers’ is back in town. Now on its third cast of bumbling, murderous crims, it’s as anarchic and free-wheeling as anything you’ll see on a West End stage. Graham Linehan’s script takes the setup of the 1955 Ealing comedy, in which five crooks hole-up in a little old lady’s lopsided house to plan a robbery, and cranks up the contrast. The gags come faster, the killings are crueller and there’s a delicate knowingness to the dialogue that never oversteps the mark. Vaudeville Theatre, Strand, London, WC2R 0NH

The Color Purple Now-September 14th

An unforgettable story of enduring love and triumph over adversity, The Color Purple is a landmark musical from the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Alice Walker. This stirring family chronicle follows the inspirational Celie, as she journeys from childhood through joy and despair, anguish and hope to discover the power of love and life. With a fresh, joyous score of jazz, ragtime, gospel and blues, this European premiere is directed by John Doyle (Road Show at the Menier Chocolate Factory), adapted for the stage by Pulitzer Prize and Tony award winner Marsha Norman, with music and lyrics by Grammy award winners Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray. The Menier Chocolate Factory, 53 Southwark Street, London SE1 1RU .

A Season in the CongoNow-August 24th

BAFTA Award winning director Joe Wright (Anna Karenina, Atonement, Pride & Prejudice) directs Olivier Award winner Chiwetel Ejiofor (BBC2’s Dancing on the Edge, Othello at the Donmar Warehouse, Children of Men, Dirty Pretty Things) in the UK premiere of an epic retelling of a vibrant nation’s turbulent first year of freedom. Even by the prodigiously visual values of the Young Vic, Wright’s production of French polymath Aimé Césaire’s 1966 sort-of-tragedy ‘A Season in the Congo’ is aesthetically pleasing stuff, a rainbow of song and dance, puppets and people, polyrhythms and sub bass, comedy and tragedy that spins and swirls like a tropical storm as it portrays the last years in the life of Congolese politician Patrice Lumumba (Chiwetel Ejiofor) in vividly impressionistic brushstrokes. The Young Vic, 66 The Cut SE1 8LZ

Meschac Gaba: Museum of Contemporary African Art Now- September 22nd

Meschac Gaba’s Museum of Contemporary African Art is an immersive twelve-room installation, a ‘museum within a museum’, which is currently sprawling through Tate Modern Gaba has claimed that the Museum of Contemporary African Art is ‘not a model… it’s only a question.’ It is temporary and mutable, a conceptual space more than a physical one, a provocation to the Western art establishment not only to attend to contemporary African art, but to question why the boundaries existed in the first place. Tate Modern, Bankside, London SE1 9TG

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Arts

Araism Movement returns to Lagos

By Mufu Onifade

After staying away from Lagos for three years and intensifying its exhibition expedition in Abuja, the constantly evolving Araism Movement returns to Lagos with the 11th edition of its exhibition series. Packaged by Ara Studio in partnership with Mydrim Gallery and tagged Araism Movement 11, the show opens by 5pm on Saturday, September 14, 2013 at Mydrim Gallery located at 74B, Norman Williams Street, Ikoyi, Lagos. Led by the inventor of the Araism painting technique and founder of the Araism Movement, Mufu Onifade, the show also features 12 other members including Dotun Popoola, Abiola Mautin Akande, Abolore Awojobi and Oluwanbe Amodu. Other artists are Esther Emmanuel (the first and only exhibiting female member of the Movement), Geroge Egunjobi, Bolarinwa Olowo, Jonathan Imafidor, and Odumbo Adeniran. They are joined by three new members namely Tope Adebayo, Aliu Azeez and Oluwasegun Phillips.

Above: Eko Akete by Awojobi Abolore

Aigbo Agboye by Aliu Azeez This edition of the Movement’s outing in Lagos will showcase 40 paintings and 3 metal sculptures. This new sculptural approach to the technique of Araism is Dotun Popoola’s

dimensional touch to create a new identity for himself while deriving from the limitless possibilities that Araism offers. Araism Movement was established and formally launched at the Harmattan Workshop Gallery, Victoria Island, Lagos on Saturday July 22, 2006 with an exhibition of paintings by Mufu Onifade and five of his disciples: Olaniyi Omojuwa, Tope Oguntuase, Dotun Popoola, Abiola Mautin-Akande and Jonathan Ikpoza. The show was employed to re-launch the phenomenon of ARA (Aesthetically Rich Art) and ara (wonder) to the sensibilities of artists, arts writers, gallery owners, the arts community and the general public. In recent times, every watcher of unfolding events in contemporary Nigeria cannot overlook or undervalue the emergence and prominence of Araism technique – nay the Movement. Araism is a creative force of reckoning while the Movement serves as a platform of projection to the technique and its many exponents. Araism entails a process of cumbersome technicalities deserving of intense experimentation.

Adeori by Bolarinwa Olowo

As a painting technique, it was launched in 1998 with a solo exhibition by its inventor, Mufu Onifade. On the other hand, Araism Movement was born in 2006 with an official grouping of interested students (members) who are today known as disciples – all of them sharing a common fraternity with their teacher. With the emergence of the Movement, we can now reflect on both the technique of, and the styles in, Araism. This is made possible by an array of styles developed by Mufu Onifade and other outstanding members of the Movement. Between July 2006 and October last year, Araism Movement has presented ten exhibition series to its numerous publics – seven in Lagos and three in Lagos. Araism restates its relevant position in contemporary Nigerian Art with its exhibitions series meant to discover and project to the world, new creativity and disciplined artists. Araism Movement 11 slated for Mydrim Gallery is the group’s return to Lagos, but it serves as part of its usual creative restlessness that makes it a most consistent Art Movement in Nigeria.

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Health News

London is tuberculosis capital of Western Europe

Almost 9000 cases of tuberculosis were reported in the UK last year, show new figures issued today, prompting Public Health England (PHE) to urge commissioners to prioritise services to treat and curb spread of the infection.

The figures mean that the UK remains top of the league table for new cases of the infection in Western Europe, despite considerable efforts to improve prevention, treatment and control. In 2012, 8751 cases were reported, which is slightly lower than the 8963 cases reported in 2011, shows PHE’s TB in the UK: 2013 report. Rates of TB have stayed put at around 14 cases per 100,000 since the mid2000s, following the increase in incidence in the previous two decades. London retained pole position for the highest number of cases in 2012, with 3426 reported cases accounting for almost 40% of the UK total, followed by the West Midlands with 12%. Country of origin was recorded in 96% of new TB cases. As in previous years, almost

Newham in London is the worst affected area

three out of four were among people born in countries where TB is more common. Of those born abroad, most cases were from South Asia (60%) and sub-Saharan Africa (22%). In the indigenous population, those most at risk remain people from ethnic minor-

ity groups, the homeless, a history of imprisonment or problem drug and/or alcohol use, and the elderly. Dr Lucy Thomas, head of TB surveillance for PHE, said: “TB is a preventable and treatable condition, but, if left untreated, can be life threatening. Efforts to control

the spread of this infection must remain a public health priority.” She added: “Early diagnosis and appropriate treatment are key to reducing TB levels in the UK and local health service commissioners must prioritise the delivery of appropriate clinical and public health services for TB, especially in areas where TB rates are highest.” She continued: “To reduce the risk of active TB disease in people coming to the UK from high incidence countries, it is essential that new migrants have good access to screening and diagnostic services. Ensuring that NICE recommendations on screening for latent TB infection are implemented in a coordinated manner across the country is therefore very important.” Drug resistance to TB treatment remains a problem, although the proportion of TB cases showing resistance to the first line antibiotic isoniazid fell slightly to 6.8% in 2012. The proportion of multi-drug resistant TB cases remained stable at 1.6% (81), but most of these cases (89%) were in those born outside the UK.

Supporting a loosing team is bad for your health

New evidence shows that supporting a bad team promotes unhealthy habits

The day after a defeat for their local side, fans consume more fatty foods such as pizza, cake and cookies, and more calories overall, than on a normal day, researchers found.

In contrast, people in cities whose team win tend to eat more healthily, while the diets of those whose local team have not played a match remained unchanged. The effects are particularly pronounced in cities with the most passionate supporters, after games between teams of a similar standard, and after an agonisingly close defeat or a convincing victory, the study showed. 22

Fans feel a threat to their identity after a defeat for their team and use comfort eating as a coping mechanism, while victories boost their self-control, the research on American Football supporters suggests. Further experiments on French football fans backed up the findings, but found that the effects on eating habits could be cancelled out if fans consciously put the victory or defeat into context by thinking about other things which were important to them before eating. Dr Yann Cornil and Prof Pierre Chandon of INSEAD Business School, who published their study in the Psychological Science journal, said: “Even if you

are rooting for a perennial loser, there is a solution if you are concerned about healthy eating. “After a defeat, write down what is really important to you in life. In our studies, this simple technique, called ‘self affirmation,’ completely eliminated the effects of defeats.” Previous research had shown that sporting defeats could lead to rises in alcoholrelated crime, traffic deaths, domestic violence and heart attacks among fans. To examine whether people’s eating habits were also affected, the researchers asked 726 people to keep food diaries on Sundays when their local team had an NFL game and on the following

two days, covering a total of 475 games involving 30 teams. On the Monday after a game, those in cities whose team had lost ate on average 16 per cent more saturated fat and gained 10 per cent more calories from their food than on a normal Monday. In contrast, people in cities with a winning team ate nine per cent less saturated fat and five per cent fewer calories than usual. The effects were greater in the eight cities with the most devoted fans, where saturated fat consumption rose by 28 per cent after a defeat and decreased by 16 per cent after a win. Matches between closely matched teams also exaggerated the results, as did a narrow defeat or a convincing victory. However, eating patterns for all fans remained normal on the Sunday of a game – most likely because matches take place in the afternoon or evening after most meals have been eaten – and on the following Tuesday, regardless of the result. A separate study of French football fans found that similar effects happened after participants were asked to write about a game that their team had either won or lost. However, eating patterns reverted to normal when people wrote down a list of things which were truly important to them before eating, in order to put the result into perspective, the researchers found.

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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Culture

Ogun State debuts at Notting Hill By Peter Olorunnisomo

Ogun State of Nigeria is making its debut and corporate presence felt at this year’s Notting Hill Carnival in London come 26th August, 2013. The State is very eager to demonstrate what the world is missing and verily the missing ‘Q’ at the carnival by bringing its brand of freshness and originality to it. The state, which is the endowed with natural and cultural resources, also has an agglomeration of Yoruba clans and diatribes which further enriches what the state can offer in terms of cultural performances. The cultures of the state is replete with traditional values, and history. In effect, what the world is poised to witness at this year’s carnival is significantly an avenue of acculturation, homogeneity, education, and performance. The delegation from the state is led by Commissioner for Tourism, Mrs. Yewande Amusan, and their presence portends the inclusion of many more cultural partcipations to enrich and authenticate the celebration of cultures in festivity of black communities in London. Below are two of the tourist sites that have attracted the world to Ogun State.

Governor of Ogun State Senator Amosun (3rd from right) at a Cultural Festival

of his numerous wives. Later, the Queen of Sheba in her age returned to Oke-Eri where she died and was buried.

Olumo Rock (Tourist Centre) Abeokuta

Olumo Rock is a massive outcrop of granite rocks of primitive formation from which

lic of Nigeria and is 100 kilometres from Lagos. To the North some 70 kilometres away is the city of Ibadan the capital of Oyo State. The climate is hot and humid with an annual rainfall of 47 inches. The Rock is sacred to the Egba of Abeokuta because

Birikisu Sungbo Shrine

Birikisu Sungbo Shrine, a popular tourist centre in Ogun State is located at OkeEri near Ijebu Ode, off the Ijebu-ode/Ibadan road in the Ijebu Ode Local Government area. The Shrine lies, less than 125 Kilometres from Abeokuta the Ogun State capital, 50 kils, from Ibadan the Oyo State capital and some 100 kilos from Lagos. It could be reached by motor vehicle through Motorable roads . There is a sign on the lbadan/ljebu main road which proclaims “Ogun State Tourist Centre Birikisu’”, Here one turns off to reach the shrine. Birikisu Sungbo was otherwise regarded as the Biblical Queen of Sheba. Hear tomb the shrine is fast becoming the “Mecca” of Nigeria. For every year at all Moslem festivals, religious groups, of the Moslem faith converge at the shrine to offer prayers and seek. the favour of the spirit of the devout woman. The great attention that Birikisu still commands derives from the belief that whoever visits her shrine and asks for anything in sober reflection will have his request met. The Birikisu of romance was said to be the biblical Queen of Sheba. She was an Arab. She was said to have met King Solomon with whom she fell in love, and became one 22

The Olumo Rock

Abeokuta (meaning under the rock )the capital of Ogun State derive its name. Abeokuta lies South West of the Repub-

Effigies at Birikisu Sungbo shrine

it was the place where they found refuge from their attackers te the days of internecine wars.

Mrs Yewande Amusan, Ogun State Commissioner for Tourism

By l83O, the main body of the Egba has already settled at the site of the Olumo and the refuge provided by the rock marked the end of their wonderings and struggles for existence. From that time onwards they have regarded Olumo Rock as their protection shrine and so made annual sacrifice to its deity. The importance of Olumo Rock to the Egba is conveyed in the assertion that Abeokuta was the gift of the Olumo, as Egypt was the gift of the Nile. To the Egbas, Olumo Rock stands not only as a monument of faith in unity but also a source of strength and unfailing protection and sustenance from the supreme being who led their ancestors through the perplexities of life safely to Abeokuta. Hence the interpretation of Olumo meaning “Oluwa fi mo” “God has put and end to our wanderings” Officially known as AT3, Olumo Rock is located off Alatise between lkija and Ikereku neighbourhoods of the town. The highest point of Olumo is about 137 metres above sea levels. Looking from the top one would appreciate the wisdom of the first settlers to have chosen such a perfect bulwark against external invasion. The name ‘Olumo, meaning God built if derives from the fact that rock is naturally surrounded by caves. One of which is about twenty feet long and twenty five feet wide. This has slab like stones which appear to serve as seats used by the ancient dwellers. It probably was used as a hall of conference room. Another cave, some twenty metres long and seventy metres wide appears to be actual dwelling place. It has five built in rooms with a long corridor used as sitting room, kitchen and store. At the east end of it is another big cave, Out with mud walls in outer and inner chambers. This is used as a shrine by the devotees of Orise lgun (God of Longevity).

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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News

Korea to set up local agriculture project South Korea is to help establish a $3m agricultural model village project in Uganda’s Mpigi district. Discussions over the ﬁnancing of the project were held at the National Farmers’ Leadership Centre (NFLC) in Kampiringisa, Mpigi. Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries Tress Bucyanayandi held the discussions with the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) president, Kim Yong-Mok. The Model Village Project (MVP) will beneﬁt about 200 households in Mbute village, Kamengo sub-county. “Once approved, we expect KOICA to contribute $2.5m while Uganda will allocate $0.5m towards the project,” said Dr. Francis Byekwaso, the monitoring and evaluation manager at the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) secretariat. He said the three-year project to run up to 2017, will be implemented by the NFLC

in collaboration with Mpigi district local government. NFLC is under construction. “The model village initiative will promote an integrated approach to rural development by empowering poor people to engage in sustainable income generating activities,” explained Byekwaso. He said the beneﬁciary households will have access to safe, clean water, adequate housing and sanitation as well as social services like education, basic health care and environ-

Journalist’s killer executed by ﬁring squad

Journalist Hassan Yusuf Absuge is said to have been killed because he reported on a suicide attack

SOMALIA has executed a man who was convicted of murdering a journalist, the ﬁrst such execution in a country where those who kill media workers often evade justice. Aden Sheikh Abdi was killed by ﬁring squad early Saturday in the capital, Mogadishu, according to Colonel Abdullahi Muse Keyse, a spokesman for Somalia’s military court. “His execution is a new chapter for Somalia,” he said. Last month a Mogadishu military tribunal found Abdi guilty of the murder late last year of reporter Hassan Yusuf Absuge, who worked for Radio Maanta in Mogadishu. During his trial Abdi was accused of belonging to the al-Qaida-linked extremist rebels of al-Shabab, who have staged multiple terrorist attacks across Somalia in a 24

bloody campaign to seize political power. The rebels were pushed out of Mogadishu in August 2011, but they continue to carry out targeted killings there and elsewhere in Somalia. The Abdi case was the ﬁrst to be actively prosecuted by the Somali government, coming after years of condemnations from rights groups who urged Somali authorities to do more to establish the rule of law and end the killings of journalists. The killings of media workers often happen in the government-controlled areas that journalists generally consider safe, and reporters must watch their backs for attacks from extremists and criminals and ﬁght through judicial inaction and even outright hostility from the government. Tom Rhodes, the East Africa consultant for the Committee to Protect Journalists, praised the decision to execute the convict, saying it would help end impunity in the volatile Horn of African nation. “This appears a positive step in ending a long record of impunity in the killing of journalists in Somalia,” he said, adding: “Somalia has routinely ranked high on CPJ’s impunity index for unsolved murders. Let us hope that this case will send a clear message to those who believe silencing journalists through the gun ... that there are consequences.” Somalia is one of the most dangerous places for media workers. At least 18 Somali journalists were killed last year, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. It’s not entirely clear who has been carrying out the killings of journalists. AlShabab militants, warlords, criminals, and even government agents all could have reasons to see journalists killed in Somalia.

mental sustainability. “KOICA has extended support towards Uganda’s development plan and we are committed to continuing with the support because we want it sustained to ensure the country achieves meaningful development,” said Yong-Mok. Bucyanayandi applauded the South Korean Government for funding several agricultural projects like the NFLC and fruit factory in Soroti district. The resident

construction manager, Joon Kim Dong, said the NFLC construction will be completed in December and admissions for the first batch of trainees will start in January 2014. “We have achieved 35%. Most of the structures like classrooms, dormitories, multi-purpose hall and administration blocks have been roofed,” said Dong. He said there will also be provisions for poultry and piggery pens, five green houses for vegetables, flowers, mushrooms and demonstration gardens for other crops. “The institute will also focus on field and practice based education, extension education for agricultural workers or trainers and lifestyle education,” he explained. Dong said the ideology of mindset change has paid incredible dividends to his country whereby in 40 years, South Korea, initially among the poorest countries in the World, has attained a rapid socio-economic development.

Namibia attempts to obscure colonial reminders

Lüderitz will now become !Nami=Nüs

Like much of Africa, the Caprivi Region of Namibia has long carried the imprint of European colonialism. Once in the possession of Germany, many streets, towns and regions carry German names. There are Schultzes and Meinerts among the locals, and German is the mother tongue for a local minority. But now, nearly a century after the end of German colonial rule, the Namibian government has decided to replace many of these German names with those of a more indigenous lineage. Caprivi is now Zambezi, after the river that runs through the region. A tropical strip of land that juts off from the country’s northeast corner, it was named by the Germans after Count Leo von Caprivi, a Franco-German War veteran who succeeded Otto von Bismark as chancellor of imperial Germany. The harbour town of Lüderitz is now !Nami=Nüs, with the symbols indicating two of the four click noises used in the local Khoekhoegowab language. And the 800-inhabitant town of Schuckmannsburg -- named for Bruno von Schuckmann, the former governor of what was then German Southwest Africa -- has reverted back to its old name of Luhonono, which is also the name of a tree native to the area. Though the move was part of larger administrative reforms in the area, it also clearly was meant to build local and national pride by removing reminders of a painful past. Namibia was a German colony from 1884 to 1919, then run by apartheid South

Africa until 1990. In 2004, Germany finally officially apologised for the genocide of the Herero and Namaqua people by starvation and slave labour that took place there from 1904 to 1907. Despite this traumatic history, some residents of former Caprivi are upset about the changed names. A group of !Nami=Nüs residents vowed to protest the move, claiming they were never consulted, The Namibian, a national newspaper, reported on Monday. An SMS campaign called for locals to “mobilise and march from all four directions to the office of the regional councillor to protest against the forced, imposed name change.” Many, however, seemed to favour the name change, with !Nami=Nüs regional councillor Jan Scholtz telling The Namibian the change “has been a long time coming” and insisting that those opposing the move had every chance to do so at the public meetings where the decision was made. “We’re building a nation, therefore, we must be willing to accommodate others,” added Scholtz. In the comments forum attached to the The Namibian article, both sides of the debate seemed well represented. “I am happy that my region has a local name (Zambezi) instead of Caprivi which is so colonial,” wrote one commenter. “I relate better to Zambezi than Caprivi.” “The German colonial period of Namibia is part of its history and so are the names,” countered another. “It is quite likely that there would be no Namibia today without a German South West Africa.”

Friday, 23 August 2013 – Thursday, 29 August 2013

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News

Offenders tagging contract boosts British economy

Justice Secretary Chris Grayling

New satellite technology that will help track the movement of offenders in the community is set to be delivered by two British businesses, it was announced. In

a boost for the economy the hightech equipment is earmarked for manufacturing in a British company based in Nottingham. Once off the production line and

Egypt holidays taking a huge hit

strapped to an offender’s ankle, the kit will mean suspects can easily be identified as having been at the scene of a crime or quickly eliminated from inquiries, delivering swifter justice and saving valuable police time and money. Existing technology only allows monitoring officers to see if a subject is within a short range of a base station installed in their home. With delivery split across four contracts, one of our preferred bidders, Buddi, a family-run British company, could now work alongside three other organisations, including British firm Capita, to develop and manufacture the new technology. Two international companies, Astrium and Telefónica, have also been announced as preferred bidders. All four faced-off strong international competition to deliver the contracts. They are now set to work together to deliver better supervision of offenders at a lower cost than the current contracts. Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said: “Today’s announcement is the start of

a revolution in how we supervise offenders. We are now going to be able to track offenders wherever they go, twenty four hours a day. And we will be able to stop them going to places we don’t want them going to go - like paedophiles hanging around outside schools. All of this is going to be done with world class British technology designed and built by the kind of business we want government to work with more.” With Buddi forming part of today’s announcement it sends an important message to the market – Government is serious about making our contracts accessible to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). While the new contractors are rolling out their monitoring scheme, the current suppliers, G4S and Serco, will continue with their existing contracts for a transitional period to ensure operational continuity. Satellite tags will help us cut crime, create safer communities with fewer victims and ultimately offer greater protection and reassurance to the public.

A Thompson Cruise

Thomson Cruises has cancelled its itineraries in the Red Sea in line with ofﬁcial travel advice to Egypt.

The cruise line is following several others, including Fred. Olsen and MSC, in directing ships away from Egypt while political protests continue. Thomson also said it would not be able to offer its full excursion programme in Cairo and Luxor due to the travel advice. In a statement, the cruise line said: “Thomson Cruises has regretfully taken the decision to cancel the Thomson Majesty Red Sea cruises scheduled for this winter. We understand how disappointing this will

be for our customers and we are currently contacting customers booked on a Red Sea cruise to advise them of these changes.” The violence was also increasing worries that that other Middle Eastern states are set to feel the pain too. In the US, it is understood that a huge number of tourists have abandoned trips to Egypt. According to NBC News, tour operators were also rejecting bookings to the country. Delta Air Lines and EgyptAir have put off air travel from the US to capital Cairo. Other large tour operators such as Gate 1 Travel and cruise ﬁrms including Norwegian Cruise Line have also dropped Egyptian stopovers, according to NBC News. 25

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Special Interview

Fagunwa and the Langbodo Syndrome

By Peter Olorunnisomo

When Daniel Fagunwa died 50 years ago, the Yoruba nation was probably the only ones who felt it the most. Even then it was not sufficient notation befitting of a legend who lived a meteor’s span, it would have been tragic if he would have been remembered without being sung.

I consider Fagunwa, the most influential Yoruba novelist with all the quintessential attributes of one who is endowed and capable of his trade. But most astoundingly was that he wrote in the Yoruba language and captured the artistry, and beyond, of the virtuoso novelist in the English language. But most significantly to me; he proved that the Yoruba language was richer than the English one. I remember growing up a fastidious boy with a major advantage of attending an avaunt-garde private, catholic school in Lagos where the nuns helped us develop a reading culture under the British educational system. The school library was so well stocked that it was no issue keeping us well fed with English, Greek and Roman classics. So steeped was I that the Yoruba language was being eroded from my consciousness. But Fagunwa performed the feat of restoration and regeneration in me. I was compelled to learn and read the Yoruba language through Fagunwa’s epic, Yoruba classics. The adventures were more real than Harry Potter’s, the lessons philosophically true, the characters as real as a culture of over a thousand years can be, and themes transcending every metropolitan culture that ever was. I was proud to be made a Yoruba man. I realised the injustice that history had done to the race. I am talking about such novels as Ogboju

Ogun Omode by Akande Mautin

Late Daniel O. Fagunwa, MBE

Ode ninu Irunmale, Irinkerindo, et al. So culturally virtual, and artistically landscaped was it that it could belong to any creative rendition but with a locus still in Yorubaland. So it that Ogboju Ode ninu Irunmale enlisted the cream of Nigeria’s best to enable a stage translation or enactment titled Langbodo at the World Festival of Arts and Culture, Lagos in 1977 (FESTAC, 77). The rest is history. Fagunwa lived a short life and impacted so much that he single-handedly provided Yoruba literature to acculturise and resensitise generations of Nigerians in their youth with his works through the secondary education school system. I wonder if his impact would have surpassed that of Achebe with Things Fall Apart. But we will never know until more is done about the best works of the Yoruba nation by this novelist. So powerful and

evocative were his works that his death was shrouded in the mystery and suspicions accorded late Chief Hubert Ogunde and Late Chief Duro Ladipo of the ‘Sango, Oba Koso’ fame. Find excerpts of the interview with his wife, Mrs Elizabeth Fagunwa, by Gbenga Salau for the Guardian (Nigeria). Mrs. Elizabeth Adebamke Fagunwa is the wife of the late Yoruba pioneer writer and eminent folklorist, Daniel O. Fagunwa. COULD you tell us the circumstances of your husband’s death because there are conflicting information on it? Fagunwa died on Saturday, December 7, 1963; he traveled to the North to advertise Heinemann’s books because he was the manager. He brought Heinemann to Nigeria. He left Ibadan where we lived on November 15. On the day he died, he wanted to come back early so he had left the hotel he slept in Bida, Niger State, early in the morning of December 7. He woke as early as 5am; this was as his driver told us. There is a river in Bida called River Guya. There was no bridge over it; so people cross the river through what is called Puntu. It carries people and vehicles across the river and it was the issue of ‘first come first serve’. The driver said that they were the first to get there on the day, but while waiting, Fagunwa decided to stroll along the river. Incidentally, he slipped and fell into the river. Unfortunately, there was a canoe there. He fell into the canoe and the canoe capsized sending him down into the river. When he was discovered the third day, he had his reading glasses, shoes and cap on and his dress intact. But for the fact that the canoe capsized and he got sunk, he would have managed himself out of the river because

he was a very good swimmer. But you can imagine that the canoe sent him down into the river unexpectedly. Anyway, he died and the driver sent a mes sage to the family in Ibadan. On the third day, he was found near where he drowned, which means that the canoe would have sent him down, down the river. So he was brought to Ibadan where we lived on Monday, then the following day, Tuesday, he was taken to Oke-Igbo, where a funeral service was arranged for him in his church, St. Luke Anglican Church, Oke-Igbo. The service was conducted by ministers of Anglican sect and he was buried in the church cemetery, very close to the church; that was on December 10, 1963, a Tuesday. When you got news of his death, how did you receive it, how did you feel? Incidentally, that day I travelled to Oke-Igbo. The Vicar in charge of St. Luke Church lost his wife at childbirth. So I went to sympathise with the family of the bereaved because he would not take it kindly if he came back and I told him I had not done anything. I knew that if he was in Ibadan, he would have sent me there, if it was not convenient for him to go personally. I woke up as early as 5am around the time he drowned. On coming back from Oke-Igbo the same day, along our street, there was an elderly man. Everybody around had heard before I came back. So, this elderly man, immediately he saw me from his building, he asked where I had been, that neighbours had been asking after me. And I replied him that nobody had been asking after me. But later, I got to know that he was only trying to cheer me up. I went straight into our house, and sympathisers were in the house. My elder sister was also there and I asked her what she was looking for and she said she came to see me. And I replied that I told her I would be travelling and she said that she just felt that I would have been back by then. Later on, the some people began to come in one after the other. Before then one of my children, Yejide came to me to say, ‘mummy, I was told one big fish fell into the water’. This is because the issue had been discussed before I came and I felt she would not imagine that a human being would get sunk in a river. And I replied her that if a fish fell into the river, then we would eat it when it is seen. Not knowing it was her father and my husband. So these people came into the sitting room to meet me; they came near me, and someone gripped me. And I was informed that Baba Dipo (Fagunwa) is dead. This is somebody I was expecting that Saturday. I howled but I was comforted. And I thought that was the end of the world because of the children he left behind. I was young then also because he was too dear to me, very hum-

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Special Interview not meet him at home’, he said ‘yes’. He said he came because his wife was in the hospital and he needed some cash to pay the hospital bill. I was a teacher so I gave him the money.

No; he could write anywhere. He could stop while driving to write.

When Fagunwa came, I told him about the man and that he was in need of money. He asked what I did and I said I gave him the money; he was very excited. He went into the room immediately and gave me the money back with interest. So, I cannot just describe him; that was why I said I will not remarry after he died. I was still young; I could have remarried. But I felt I already have children, male and female; also he was so kind to me, treated me with every respect one would expect. He would not rain abuses on me whenever I went wrong; he would not scold me. He had a nick name for; he would call me by that name and suggested alternative of it to me when I did things wrongly. So, I felt if I marry another man, I may be inviting unhappiness. Also, I was proud of him and his works, and I did not regret the action.

After I married him, he wrote Adiitu Eledumare. He was writing another one before he died. Unfortunately, we could not trace it.

Where you privy to his writing? Can you tell what inspired him to write?

Gwari by George Egunjobi

ble and loving. I took all those things into consideration and I felt very bad. But thank God, after some years, I got over it, not completely because I still remember him as a very good man, the best man in the world, the best man God ever produced. How did two of you meet to become man and wife? I’m also from Oke-Igbo, his home town, so we met there. He had a younger sister, Mrs. Ojo; it was she who introduced him to me and my parents. After some visits, I agreed to marry him. That was in 1956. I decided to marry him because at that time I would rather have somebody from my home town because in those days people were not really going outside their area to marry and because he came from a very good and religious family background. Was there any personal quality that endeared him to you? Anybody that met him, even for the first time, would see the kindness in him, the humour with which he discusses and the generosity in him. When people visited us, he was never satisfied if he could not offer a drink or food; so all those things made me like him. I was less than 30because I was 31 when he died and the relationship only lasted for about eight years.

He embraced all the people who came to him, irrespective of religious or ethnic background. Meeting fagunwa, you cannot resist liking him. He sponsored some students’ education up to the university, students, whose parents could not afford the bill, he sponsored them. He helped the poor. There was a man whose wife gave birth and he could not foot the hospital bill, and immediately the man ran to our house, the man was a family friend. Unfortunately, Fagunwa was not at home, so when he came, I said ‘sorry, Baba Dipo is not home’. The man lamented, and I said ‘why are you lamenting, this is not the first time you will

He was gifted by God because he was an extraordinary man in thinking. If he was alive and he looked at this hall where we are, he could write a book from it. Whereas you will be thinking, ‘how can I write a page’ but he could write a book. It was a gift. If he was talking about people, praisesinging them, you will wonder. In writing his books, he had inspiration more during the night. He would wake up to write; sometimes, he would drive around town then enter his room to write. Also, if he had visitors and some ideas came to him, he would take permission to write it down and he would tell them why he took the permission. Furthermore, he had a peaceful home and loving children; nobody troubled him. Did he have a special room for reading and writing?

Did you read any of his books before you married him? I was a school teacher and we were using his books in the primary school. So all his books we read them. In his books, the use of superlatives was exceptional. What was it like at home? Did he use them as well? If he chose to read his books, it was to make us laugh; he would put some into songs. And we would just wonder where he found the tune for the song. He would do it to me and the children. He was humourous, generosity, and when you talk about his qualities, good adjectives go with them. When I was sometimes angry, he would sing praises to me. I would just smile and that would be the end. Did he ask for inputs from you when he wrote? He did the writings alone though he could draw descriptions from people and things around, including his home and family members. What has life been for you since his passing 50 years ago? God is our refuge and in God we trusted and He did not let us down because He did not allow us to suffer. He has been awesome and merciful to us. My three children went to university, yet they did not lack anything. I was a teacher earning monthly salary; then there was royalties from his books administered by our lawyer, Babalakin. The children’s school fees were paid but every other thing came from me. The children did not suffer and did not complain and because I had a job, and I was able to take care of them. Would you say staying in Oke-Igbo shaped the way he wrote and painted the scenes in his books? For years, he was away from Oke-Igbo. He was born in 1903, and he attended Saint Andrews College in 1925. After leaving Saint Andrew’s College, he never came back to Oke-Igbo. He started from Oyo Town; then he was transferred around. And like it is often said, experience is the best teacher. So, he might have been shaped by the different experiences he had going around which he put into his writings.

How would you describe those eight years with him? Fantastic! One would be proud of any man who is understanding, kind, humorous, loving, almost kind and generous to a fault.

Which of his five major books did he write after he married you?

Alajobi (Ancestral Lineage) by Mufu Onifade

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Big-mover Mauritania looking forward to first finals

Mauritania football team

When FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter visited Mauritania in February this year, the President of the country’s football association (FFRIM), Ahmed Ould Yahya, said that they wanted to build on solid foundations. “Our national academy will make it possible to produce great players in the future,” Yahya said. “Our goal is for Mauritania to break back into the top 100 of the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking and qualify for a major tournament such as the Africa Cup of Nations.”

Just over six months later, Yahya has witnessed at least a part of his wish come true. A 2-1 aggregate victory against Senegal has seen the Mourabitounes sensationally qualify for the finals of the 2014 African Nations Championship in South Africa, and although the tournament, in which teams exclusively use players from the local league, is not quite as prestigious as the CAF Africa Cup of Nations, it is Mauritania’s first-ever qualification for a continental competition. Yahya’s second goal - that of breaking back into the top 100 - also seems to be on course as the team has climbed 21 places in the rankings in August. Currently they are now 40th in Africa and 151st in the world, which is still a long way to go before they return to their highest ranking of 85th in December 1995, but they are definitely heading in the right direction. Football in Mauritania has benefited greatly from two FIFA initiatives, namely the PERFORMANCE programme and the Goal programme. When President Blatter was in the capital city Nouakchott 30

earlier this year, the new extension of the FFRIM’s headquarters and the association’s technical centre as well as two artificial pitches, including the pitch at the national Olympic Stadium, were inaugurated. These initiatives were financed by the Goal programme. FIFA’s new PERFORMANCE programme, which involves FIFA providing expert support in a wide range of fields, including governance, management, finance, communication, marketing and information technology, has also had an impact on football in the Arab Maghreb country in west Africa. The main focus in Mauritania has been on communication, and in particular audiovisual production. “We now have a TV production unit, one of the first of its kind in Africa,” explained Yahya during President Blatter’s visit. “We’ve signed a contract with the national broadcasting company and we show matches every week. That’s increased the visibility of football and is really changing the image of the game in the country.” Influential support It is, of course, not only football’s organising body that has thrown its weight behind developing the game in Mauritania. In President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, football has an important supporter, who has taken an active role in ensuring that the national team becomes stronger. Some two months after taking over as national team coach in February 2012, Patrice Neveu had a meeting with the head of state. The Frenchman told journalists after the side’s victory against Senegal in July that he had been asked by the President if there was potential to build something, adding that the politician said that he knew it would be

difficult to secure victories. “But he also asked me if I could revive Mauritanian football.” The experienced coach, who previously was in charge of Guinea, Niger and the Democratic Republic of Congo, has obviously managed to do just that, first taking the team past Liberia in the CHAN preliminary rounds before taking on Senegal in the first round. After losing the first leg game in Dakar 1-0, a near capacity crowd, including Aziz and several other cabinet members, packed the Stade Olympique in Nouakchott for the return leg. Moulaye ‘Bessam’ Ahmed made the aggregate score 1-1 in first-half injury time before midfielder Taghyoullah Denne found the much-celebrated winner on the hour mark. The result prompted Neveu to remark: “I think I can say modestly that, yes, my mission is accomplished.” Ironically, the national teams’ success also has a downside to it as several of the players involved in the CHAN qualifying

Fan celebrates in the stands

campaign have been targeted by clubs from other countries, which could see them become ineligible to play in the CHAN finals in South Africa early next year. Neveu has tried to stem the flow. “I’m explaining the situation to them by telling them not to be hasty.” He also said that he knew the hardest part of the development goal was still to come. After the historic victory against Senegal, Aziz held a meeting with the players, technical staff and association officials. This meeting came after an earlier one with only officials at which he promised support if the team’s ranking improves. Following the victory against Senegal, the president promised the team all the resources necessary to keep Mauritania’s flag flying high at the finals. With support such as that, it could well be that the team moves even closer to Yahya’s goal of seeing Mauritania back in the top 100 of the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking.

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Keshi invites 42 for Malawi John Obi Mikel

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi has invited 24 players from the local league and 18 from overseas for next month’s World Cup qualifier against Malawi. Only five of the 24 home boys will eventually join the 18 overseas-based stars for the big game, as well as for a friendly against Burkina Faso in Kaduna on Tuesday, September 10. Usual suspects, goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim, defenders Azubuike Egwuekwe, Solomon Kwambe and Benjamin Francis,

as well as midfielders Sunday Mba and forward Gambo Mohammed headline the home boys’ contingent. Defensive pillar Godfrey Oboabona has been called, but will come in as an overseas-based professional if he is able to conclude his transfer to Rizespor of Turkey in a few days. All 24 home boys are expected at the Bolton White Apartments, Abuja on Sunday, August 24, while the 18 Europe-based stars are expected to arrive unfailingly in Calabar on Monday, September 2. “We are calling up 24 home boys in order to be able to identify new players for the 2014 African Nations Championship, for which we have already qualified,” said Keshi. Goalkeepers Vincent Enyeama and Austin Ejide, defenders Efe Ambrose and Elderson Echiejile, midfielders Mikel Obi, Ogenyi Onazi and Victor Moses and forwards Emmanuel Emenike, Ahmed Musa and Brown Ideye top the list of the Europebased pros. Two-goal hero against South Africa in last week’s Nelson Mandela Challenge, Uche Nwofor retains his slot while Spainbased midfielder Nosa Igiebor returns for the first time since the Africa Cup of Nations finals.

England-based Shola Ameobi and Lokomotiv Moscow’s Obinna Nsofor also return. Nigeria, on nine points, need only avoid defeat against seven-pointer Malawi at the U. J. Esuene Stadium on September 7 to reach the 10-team final elimination round of the African qualifying race for next year’s showpiece event in Brazil. The friendly against the Etalons at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium three days later brings together the two teams who battled for the Africa Cup of Nations trophy in Johannesburg on February 10. Nigeria won 1-0 that day. LIST OF HOME-BASED PROFESSIONALS Goalkeepers: Chigozie Agbim (Enugu Rangers); Daniel Akpeyi (Heartland FC) Defenders: Azubuike Egwuekwe (Warri Wolves); Godfrey Oboabona (Sunshine Stars); Solomon Kwambe (Sunshine Stars); Umar Zango (Kano Pillars); Benjamin Francis (Heartland FC); Kunle Odunlami (Sunshine Stars); Chibuzor Okonkwo (Enugu Rangers); Yinka Adedeji (Sharks FC); Ganiyu Ogungbe (Kwara United) Midfielders: Sunday Mba (Enugu Rangers); Solomon Jabason (Akwa United); Olufemi Oladapo (Shooting Stars); Etebo Oghene (Warri Wolves); Rabiu Ali (Kano

Pillars); Moses Orkuma (Lobi Stars) Forwards: Muhammad Gambo (Kano Pillars); Ifeanyi Edeh (Enyimba FC); Mbah Ezekiel (Akwa United); Barnabas Imenger (Lobi Stars); Izu Azuka (Sunshine Stars); Dimgba Stanley (Kwara United); Osadaiye Joseph (Warri Wolves) LIST OF FOREIGN-BASED PLAYERS Goalkeepers: Vincent Enyeama (Lille FC, France); Austin Ejide (Hapoel Be’er Sheva, Israel) Defenders: Elderson Echiejile (Sporting Braga, Portugal); Efe Ambrose (Celtic FC, Scotland); James Okwuosa (Chippa United, South Africa) Midfielders: John Mikel Obi (Chelsea FC, England); Fegor Ogude (Valerenga FC, Norway); John Ogu (Academica de Coimbra, Portugal); Victor Moses (Chelsea FC, England); Ogenyi Onazi (SS Lazio, Italy); Nnamdi Oduamadi (AC Milan, Italy); Nosa Igiebor (Real Betis, Spain) Forwards: Ahmed Musa (CSKA Moscow, Russia); Brown Ideye (Dynamo Kiev, Ukraine); Shola Ameobi (Newcastle United, England); Emmanuel Emenike (Fenerbahce FC, Turkey); Obinna Nsofor (Lokomotiv Moscow, Russia); Uche Nwofor (VVV Venlo, Netherlands)

Pirates sail on, Ahly beat AC Leopards Petitions to FIFA

Orlando Pirated celebrate victory

South African club Orlando Pirates completed a memorable double over Egyptian giants when they crushed Zamalek 4-1 Saturday in the CAF Champions League.

After a tight opening half that ended 1-1 at Orlando Stadium in Soweto, the Buccaneers ran riot to score three unanswered goals and take a three-point Group A lead. Lennox Bacela, Tlou Segolela, Sifiso Myeni and Daine Klate scored for Pirates and captain Mahmoud ‘Shikabala’ Abdel Razek struck the White Knights’ lone goal.

Pirates overwhelmed title-holders Al-Ahly 3-0 in Egypt two weeks ago and the 1995 African champions are looking good for a semi-finals place after matchday three. Ahly clawed back into contention for a lastfour slot via a 1-0 win over AC Leopards of Congo in Dolisie with Walid Soliman scoring four minutes before half-time. It was difficult to understand how Pirates failed to score in a home draw with Leopards last month as they followed up the destruction of Ahly with another chancepacked performance. Livewire midfielder Klate created the opening goal for recent signing Bacela, who picked up a cross, turned and slammed the ball over goalkeeper Mahmoud Abdul Rahim. But the lead did not last long as ‘Shikabala’ levelled in the 29th minute, finding space among three defenders to fire past goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa. Pirates controlled the second half and Segolela struck in the 51st minute, running on to a pin-point Bacela pass and striking an unstoppable shot across Abdul Rahim into the far corner. Bacela had the ball in the net again, but was correctly ruled offside, before two goals within nine minutes killed off any

hopes five-time champions Zamalek had of snatching a draw. A long, accurate clearance from Meyiwa led to Myeni hammering the ball home from close range and a low Segolela cross was finished off by Klate eight minutes from time. It was the first time Zamalek conceded four goals in a group game, and equalled the heaviest loss after a 3-0 drubbing from ASEC in Côte d’Ivoire. Ahly shocked 2012 CAF Confederation Cup winners Leopards, who beat Zamalek two weeks ago, before Soliman put them ahead. Atoning for failing to convert a penalty against Pirates, he ran on to a Mohamed Abou Trika pass and chipped the ball over the goalkeeper. Congolese midfielder Junior Mouzita proved a constant threat down the wings while coach Joseph Omog introduced twometre Malian striker Arouna Drame without success. Both Group B games are set for Sunday with Sewe San Pedro of Côte d’Ivoire hosting Esperance of Tunisia and Coton Sport of Cameroon at home to Recreativo Libolo of Angola.

over Wanyama’s move to South’ton

Continued from page 32

AFC Leopards on the other hand have put in a claim of in a claim of Sh6million for the one season the player turned out for them. “Our international based lawyers have begun the process to get us the money,” the club’s acting Chief Executive Officer said three weeks ago. JMJ Academy are also expecting to be paid part of the money having given the player his first opportunity to play professional football in Belgium. It is the Academy that sent him to Belgium as a minor and took care of most his expenses before being signed by Germinal Bierschott. The dispute is now new however. One month ago Football Kenya Federation (FKF) was forced to intervene in the matter. Culled from Kenyan (The) Standard 31

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ISSUE 496

Keshi invites 42 for Malawi SEE PAGE 31

Petitions to FIFA over Wanyama’s move to South’ton

Victor Wanyama

By Agency Reporter

The battle to earn millions of shillings from the recent move by Kenyan midfielder Victor Wanyama to English side Southampton has moved to Fifa following disagreements among local clubs.

One of the clubs, Nairobi league side Country Bus has petitioned the world football body to intervene in the matter. The move could delay the pay-out of a Sh80million solidarity fees that is to be paid out to all clubs that Wanyama will have played for until he turns 23. Football Kenya Federation (FKF) chairman Sam Nyamweya has confirmed that

Fifa have contacted the federation over the dispute with a request to avail information that will help resolve it. “Lawyers representing Country Bus contacted Fifa over the matter and we have been made aware. We are in the process of availing the documents demanded by Fifa,” he said. Fifa is requesting player license issued by FKF to all local clubs who are claiming a share of the cash so that they can determine exactly who is to be paid what. Apart from Country Bus, Nairobi City Stars and AFC Leopards are also claiming a share of the millions. An official at City Stars who requested

not to be named said they are disappointed by the turn of events as they were expecting to have been paid by now. “In our assessment, we were expecting that our share of the money would be available at this time. The move to go to Fifa will only delay the release of the cash and at City Stars we badly need money,” said the official. Both Nairobi City Stars and AFC Leopards have handed the matter to their respective lawyers three weeks ago and were expecting to have been paid by now. Wanyama spent one season at City Stars when he played at the club in 2007/2008 season and the club expects to be paid at

least Sh8million the solidarity fees. City Stars remain the only club to have ever received compensation from Wanyama’s move after the club was paid Sh500,000 by Celtic in 2012.

Continued on page 31

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