Leadership by LEADERSHIP Newspaper

SATURDAY No. 438

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Boy, 13, Discovers IED-laden Car Near Kano Mosque

Ramadan Begins Today â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Sultan

NEWS, PAGE 4

Chibok Diary

DAY 75

My Silence Over Chibok Girls Is For Their Safety - Jonathan PAGE 2

PAGE 6

28.06.14

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These cameras, just metres from the latest Abuja bomb blast scene, could have provided clues CCTVs were dead on arrival

CCTV cameras along Aminu Kano Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja, just metres from Emab Plaza.

PHOTO BY PATRICK EBI-AMANAMA

chibok diary 75

DAY

Leadership weeKeNd Saturday, June 28, 2014

#BringBackOurGirls campaigners chanting solidarity songs during their sit out in Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO BY OYEDELE OMOKAGBO

My Silence Over Chibok Girls Is For Their Safety– Jonathan BY GEOrGE AGBA, Abuja

President Goodluck Jonathan said yesterday that the reason he had chosen to keep mum on ongoing efforts by security operatives to rescue the schoolgirls abducted in Chibok, Borno State, by the Boko Haram was deliberate in order not to compromise details of ongoing security operations that have to do with their safety. In a piece published yesterday in the Washington Post which went viral in the social media, Jonathan regretted that his silence on the bid to rescue the girls was being misconstrued by critics to mean he is weak and inactive. He said the federal government had spared no resources in its bid to rescue the girls and bring them back alive, adding that government would not rest until the girls were back and safe with their families. Jonathan said: “I have had to remain quiet about the continuing efforts by Nigeria’s military, police and investigators to find the girls kidnapped in April from the town of Chibok by the terrorist group

Boko Haram. I am deeply concerned, however, that my silence as we work to accomplish the task at hand is being misused by partisan critics to suggest inaction or even weakness. “My silence has been necessary to avoid compromising the details of our investigation. But let me state this unequivocally: My government and our security and intelligence services have spared no resources, have not stopped and will not stop until the girls are returned home and the thugs who took them are brought to justice. On my orders, our forces have aggressively sought these killers in the forests of northern Borno State where they are based. “They are fully committed to defending the integrity of their country. My heart aches for the missing children and their families. I am a parent myself, and I know how awfully this must hurt. Nothing is more important to me than finding and rescuing our girls.” The president, who noted that since 2010 thousands of people had been killed, injured, abducted or forced by

Boko Haram with the aim of overwhelming the country and imposing its ideology on all Nigerians assured, however, that his government “is determined to make that impossible”. “We will not succumb to the will of terrorists”, he declared. “The abduction of our children cannot be seen as an isolated event.” Jonathan said, “Terrorism knows no borders. This month, Nigeria, Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Britain and the United States established an external intelligence response unit to share security information on such threats in West Africa. I propose that we build on this step to establish an enduring, worldwide commitment to destroying terrorism and those who finance or give safe haven to the terrorists. “In September, I will urge the UN General Assembly to establish a UN-coordinated system for sharing intelligence and, if necessary, special forces and law enforcement to confront terrorism wherever it occurs. “In Nigeria, there are political, religious and ethnic cleavages to over-

come if we are to defeat Boko Haram. We need greater understanding and outreach between Muslims and Christians.” He continued: “We also know that, as it seeks to recruit the gullible, Boko Haram exploits the economic disparities that remain a problem in our country. We are addressing these challenges through such steps as bringing stakeholders together and creating a safe schools initiative, a victims’ support fund and a presidential economic recovery programme for northeastern Nigeria. We are also committed to ridding our country of corruption and safeguarding human and civil rights and the rule of law.” “Something positive can come out of the situation in Nigeria: most important, the return of the Chibok girls, but also new international cooperation to deny havens to terrorists and destroy their organizations wherever they are — whether in the forests of Nigeria, on the streets of New York or sanctuaries in Iraq or Pakistan. Those who value humanity, civilization and the innocence of children can do no less.”

Chibok Parents: ‘We Can’t Confirm Using snakes To Fight Boko Haram’ BY KArEEM HArunA, Maiduguri

Some parents of the abducted Chibok schoolgirls have said they may not be responsible for the ‘so-called’ spiritual snakes that are reported to be biting and killing Boko Haram terrorists in Sambisa Forest, LEADERSHIP Weekend reports. On Wednesday, there were media reports indicating that some Boko Haram terrorists were fleeing the Sambisa forest as a result of some mysterious snakes that had been haunting them there. It was reported that two members of the Boko Haram group were on Wednesday arrested at a spot near the University of Maiduguri by members of the vigilante group, Civilian JTF to whom they confessed that they were being forced to flee

Sambisa forest because of some mysterious snake bites. One of the arrested insurgents said to be named, Kolo Mustapha revealed that the snakes that do attack them were not ordinary. “Most of us are fleeing because there are too many snakes now in the forest and once they bite, they disappear and the victims do not survive 24 hours. We were told that the people of Chibok local government are the ones turning into snakes and attacking us in the forest.” The Boko Haram suspect was also said to have revealed that even some of their leaders had to escape to Cameroon, but some of them that have their homes in Maiduguri had to return back to the city. The two arrested suspects who pleaded

for mercy had also confessed to killing innocent people during many of their raids, but denied participating in the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls. Umar Abor, the second arrested Boko Haram member, was quoted to have confessed that “we have fought together as Boko Haram since 2010; we have fought in Marte, Bama, Buni Yadima and Gwoza. We were not in Chibok, we have not seen the girls but we heard about it. Our leaders have been talking about it and we have been following all news from the radio”. “We decided to flee when almost all our comrades were leaving Sambisa because of constant attacks by snakes, which we were told was as a result of the Chibok girls abducted. They (our leaders) told us

that it was the people of Chibok that were haunting us through diabolical means in the form of snakes. We were in the forest in 2010 and 2011 and we left and came back last year but we have never experienced snakes as we do this year and that is the reason why they believe the Chibok people are using “juju” to pursue us because of their children said to have been taken by our leader,” he said. Ali Musa, leaders of the Civilian JTF at Bama road, who arrested the sect members told journalists that many of them have been fleeing Sambisa forest since last two weeks and most of them are being arrested and taken to the authorities except in a situation where they attempt to resist arrest that, they are left with no option but to “waste them”.

our stand Saturday, June 28, 2014

For Peace At Ramadan

he Holy Month of Ramadan is here again. It is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar; the new moon was expected to be sighted either yesterday or today. After the sighting of the moon, more than one billion Muslims around the world will embark on a spiritual journey marked with fasting, prayers and piety throughout the duration of the month. As one of the pillars of Islam, fasting during the month of Ramadan is compulsory for all Muslims who have attained the age of puberty. Only those who are sick or women observing their menstrual cycle are exempted. The Ramadan is a period of self-purification when Muslims are enjoined to strictly follow the commandment of God and to ask for God’s mercy, forgiveness and blessing. It is also a time of self-examination, sacrifice, love and consideration for others. Above all, it is a time of devotion and service to humanity. As Muslims all over Nigeria faithfully observe this religious

obligation, it is also a time of reflection and contemplation on the current situation in Nigeria. Within the last three years, Nigeria has been under siege by the activities of Boko Haram members who have unleashed an orgy of death, destruction and violence never seen before in the history of this nation since the civil war. On a daily basis, innocent people are killed by either bomb blasts or attacks along the highways or in an otherwise peaceful rural community. One of the worst cases has been the abduction of over 200 schoolgirls from Government Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, which has drawn the world’s attention to Nigeria. These girls have been held hostage

Ag. Editor Catherine Agbo Editorial Board Safiya M. Adamu, Chairman Standards Aniebo Nwamu, Director ’Lara Olugbemi, Assistant Director

for more than 70 days with no hope for them in sight. Since the Boko Haram insurgents claim to be Muslims, they should, in the spirit of this holy month, sheathe their swords, release the girls and cease fire forever in order to bring a respite to Nigerians who have been living in fear. We also appeal to the federal government to be humane, sincere and sympathetic to the suffering of the common man. At the same time, the federal government should redouble its efforts in finding a lasting solution to the issue of terrorism. As the Muslim faithful observe this holy month, we appeal to Muslim clerics to preach messages of brotherhood and unity among all the religions in Nigeria. We equally ask them to pray for this country to ensure that God intervenes in the issue of terrorism and the other ills that have befallen this country. We urge our Muslim brothers to observe this holy month by following all the tenets of Islam. We wish them well. Marhaban ya Ramadan.

Founder Sam Nda-Isaiah Chairman Hajiya Ireti Kingibe Group Managing Director Azubuike Ishiekwene Group Executive Directors Michael Okpere Dr Kazeem Durodoye Company Secretary/ Legal Adviser Julianne Omofuma Divisional Directors Abdulmumin Balogun Salisu Alhassan Bichi Iyobosa Uwugiaren Ademola Oladosu General Managers Joy Adekanye Aminu Abubakar Sule Zipporah D. Tanko

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LEADERSHIP is a national paper symbolically embedded in the nation’s capital. We shall stand up for good governance. We shall defend the interest of Nigerian people even against their rulers, and we shall raise our pen at all times in defence of what is right. These are the values by which we intend to be assessed. We shall never, ever for any reason forget the noble reason of our coming into being: For God and country!

4 news across the states

Archaeologists Hold Annual Conference The 21st annual conference of the Archaeological Association of Nigeria (AAN) will hold between Monday, June 30 and Thursday, July, 3 2014. Venue is the Twin Lecture Theatre of the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai Niger state. According to a statement by National President, AAN, Dr. Zacharys A. Gundu, this year’s conference theme is “The State of Archaeology in Nigeria: The Journey So Far”. It will see several academic papers delivered by archaeologists from around the country and abroad on a variety of sub-themes covering burning issues in Archaeology, including a roundtable discussion on “Nigerian Archaeology and External Partnership.”

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Boy, 13, Discovers IED-laden Car Near Kano Mosque By Abubakar Salihi, Kano

Kano would have witnessed human carnage on Friday, if a little child had not discovered a massive assemblage of improvised explosive devices (IED) left at the Jumaat mosque ground in Sauna-Fafunga of Kano metropolis, Kano State, right before the commencement of the Friday

prayers. Briefing newsmen at the Bompai police headquarters, the state commissioner of police, Alhaji Aderele Shinaba, said that they were informed about a suspicious vehicle abandoned at the Jumaat ground by unknown persons. Shinaba said the police antibomb squad quickly arrived at the scene and discovered that

the vehicle contained IEDs that are of high magnitude. “We discovered cylinders of high-calibre improvised devices that, when exploded, could have ruined the whole vicinity or the entire village. The vehicle contained two big cylinders, 13 IEDs and ammunition,” he stated. The commissioner of police said that while detonating

short news L-R Deputy National Chairman (North), All Progressives Congress (APC), Lawal Shuaibu, National Chairman, APC, John Oyegun and National Secretary, Mai Mala Buni, at the party’s National Working Committee meeting in Abuja, yesterday.

Charleyboy Confronts Okorocha At Father’s Burial The burial of the late Supreme court justice, Chukwudifu Oputa, was turned dramatic yesterday as the son of the late judge, Charles Oputa popularly known as Charleyboy humiliated the governor of Imo state, Rochas Okorocha during the memorial service at the Sacred heart catholic church, Oguta. In fact Charleyboy almost fought the governor for attempting to make his speech at the occasion. The self-acclaimed “area fada” seemed ready to explode all through the event and Okorocha was unfortunate to be the first person to draw the musician’s ire as Charleyboy jumped up from his seat to snatch the microphone from the governor when he attempted to make his speech. Even pleas by Rev-Fr Mathew Kukah, who officiated at the service, to Charleyboy to allow the governor make his speech fell on on deaf ears. It would be recalled that Charleyboy walked out on the governor during the Imo State organized Day of Tribute in honour of the late Justice, when Okorochas climbed the podium to make his speech. Angered by the musician’s antics, the governor Okorocha also stormed out of the church in the company of his commissioners and security aides. Immediately after that, the crowd began to disperse for apparent fear of possible breakdown of law and order as security men battled to bring the situation under control. Earlier in his sermon, Kukah lauded the virtues of the late justice of the Supreme Court, stressing that it might have taken a measure of greatness by the late Oputa to tolerate his son while alive. He stated that the late Oputa was greatly concerned with the concept of justice and equity during his life time. By Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri

the explosives at a safe location, the vibration and sounds alone shook the area and left a crack on a nearby house, adding that this alone tells how big the explosive was. The police commissioner commended the general public for their vigilance and urged them to continue being part of the security arrangement in the state.

PHOTO BY ADEFEMI ADEWUYI

short news ‘Gov’t Must Provide Affordable Housing To Nigerians’ Managing director/ chief executive officer, Fesadeb Communications Ltd, Festus Adebayo, has called on government at all levels to provide affordable homes for Nigerians. Speaking at the 2014 Abuja Housing Show Award and Dinner, Adebayo noted that it is the right of all citizens to live in affordable shelters provided by government. He lamented that many Nigerians cannot afford decent accomodation , stressing that something must be done urgently by government to assist majority of the populace to own their houses. But Chairman, Subcommittee on Low income Housing, NyaEtok Ezekiel noted that there were improvements by the present administration in the country on the provision of social housing in the country. By David AdugeAni, Abuja

Tambuwal Was Harassed By DSS Operatives, Not Soldiers – Investigation By Bayo Oladeji, Abuja

It was the security operatives attached to the Department of the State Security (DSS) that conducted a search on the official car of the Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal and not soldiers after all. The Speaker’s alleged harassment took place in Kaduna on Monday while his motorcade was driving into Hotel 17, the venue of an international conference on security in West and Central Africa, organised by the Office of the National Security Adviser. Soldiers had reportedly stopped the motorcade and insisted on searching the Speaker’s official car, ignoring protests by Tambuwal’s

security aides. The Speaker later stormed out of the car in anger and opted to trek to the venue, abandoning the vehicle for the soldiers. “In spite of recognising the Speaker, the soldiers insisted on searching his official car. This was an affront on the office of the sSpeaker, the number four citizen of this country and the institution of the legislature”, Tambuwal’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Imam Imam, reportedly reacted. The National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd) has formally apologised to the Speaker over the alleged harassment. However, checks conducted within the security agencies have revealed that the soldiers were not in charge of the stop and search at the venue of the

conference but the SSS operatives. “There was no way any soldier could have harassed the Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon Tambuwal because it was not the responsibility of the Army to conduct the stop and search at the venue of that programme. “Those who claimed it was soldiers who allegedly harassed him did not get the story right,” a top military officer who was at the event explained. According to him, “it is true soldiers are the roads that lead to the venue but only the DSS operatives were assigned the responsibility to search all vehicles entering into the hotel and not the soldiers and I challenge anybody to produce the footages of the incident for us to see.”

Troops Raid Boko Haram Hideout In Borno, Kill 50 By BAYO OLADEJI, Abuja

The Defence Headquarters on Friday stated that no fewer than 50 suspected terrorists died during a raid on a makeshift camp used by terrorists in Miyanti and Bulungu, Borno. According to a statement posted on its website, the Defence Headquarters said 53 terrorists died in the encounter, while the troops lost two of their men and five others received injuries. The statement said that a fuel dump used for storing fuel, vehicles, including Toyota Hilux trucks, and seven motorcycles were destroyed

in the raid. It also disclosed that 15 rifles, 11 machine guns and ammunitions were captured by the troops. ``In a separate encounter around Duguri, near the Nigeria–Niger border, troops of the Multinational Joint Task Force stormed a terrorists’ hideout in a raid. ``The troops recovered 18 rifles, five general purpose machine guns, 25 hand grenades and IED making materials.’’ The statement said a suspected gun runner was apprehended and was being interrogated in connection with the seizures.

It said that the suspect was arrested during a cordon and search operation by troops. The statement said that 15 other suspects were being detained in Abuja after a raid that led to the recovery of seven rifles, pistols, swords and other weapons. It said that military operations to track armed gangs would be sustained in various locations. On Wednesday’s explosion in Abuja, the statement said more explosives were seized from two suspects believed to have coordinated the bombing of Emab Shopping Plaza in Wuse.

6 Die In LagosIbadan Highway Crash A ghastly motor accident which occurred Friday at the Ogun State axis of the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway killed six people instantly, while four others sustained varying degrees of injury. The ghastly motor accident that occurred around Kara Village, off OPIC Plaza, was reportedly caused by a collision between a moving truck and a faulty truck, which was parked on the expressway. Other vehicles involved in the accident included a “mini-truck carrying labourers to a building site”, an eyewitness said. According to the eyewitness, a tanker had broken down along the expressway road inward Ibafo without any caution sign placed before it to warn other motorists. He added that the driver of another truck approaching the broken down vehicle only discovered it after getting very close. The witness further explained that it was in the process of trying to avert the accident that the driver of the truck swerved to the other side and rammed into another vehicle while other oncoming vehicles also rammed into others, causing a multiple crashes. A female survivor pulled out from under a truck, was rushed to a hospital near 7up. By George Okojie, Lagos

NEWS 5

Saturday, June 28, 2014

LIVING TO BE 100

One health tip daily Make Fitness Fun

Plenty of people engage in stop-and-start exercising they begin an activity and then lose ineterst. But the key to benefiting from exercise is consistency. It’s essential to find an activity you enjoy. This sounds like common sense, but I find many people wasting their money paying for a gym membership when they obviously dislike going there. Shop around until you find physical activities you like, whether dancing, rollerblading, jumping on a trampoline, golfing, or riding your bike. When you like what you do day after day, you’ll have fun exercising.

2015: Dark Horse May Be APC’s Presidential Candidate As Tinubu, Atiku, Kwankwaso battle for control of party By Bayo Oladeji, Abuja

The dust raised by the just concluded national convention of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is yet to settle, but the party is set for another showdown: the camps of General Muhammadu Buhari and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso and former Vice-president Atiku Abubakar may clash over the party’s presidential ticket. Although only the posters of Atiku and those of the founder of LEADERSHIP Group, Sam Nda-Isaiah, were sighted during the party’s maiden convention, sources say that a surprise candidate stands a very good chance of clinching the presidential ticket. Because of the intense tussle for the ticket among known leaders of the party and the mutual distrust such is breeding, said a source, the different interested groups within the party may settle for a fresh face that would be acceptable to all. This, the source added, may be the final solution so that the unity of the party may be conserved and enhanced. “The ambitions of our leaders such as General Buhari, Asiwaju Tinubu, Governor Kwankwaso and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar are threatening the unity of the APC as we have witnessed during the convention, but some people are seriously considering searching for a dark horse like Sam NdaIsaiah who would be acceptable to all the divides that make up the country,” the source stated. “That was the strategy adopted by the

defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN) when it adopted Alhaji Shehu Shagari as its presidential candidate at the expense of the like of Mallam Adamu Ciroma, Alhaji Maitama Sule and Alhaji Abubakar Saraki, which gave them victory over the celebrated politicians such as Dr Nnamdi Azikwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Alhaji Aminu Kano and Alhaji Ibrahim Waziri.” With some in the APC still smarting from the outcome of the convention, not a few pundits agree that it is no longer at ease for the party rated as the biggest threat ever to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) since 1999. Although some of its chieftains are still aggrieved over the convention which seemed to have been tilted in favour of one of the five main groups that make up the party, the new leadership seems to have made up its mind to leave that behind and face the 2015 presidential election primaries. Those who are not happy with the outcome of the convention include Chief Tom Ikimi, Chief Sam Jaja, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, and Governor Rotimi Amaechi who have all expressed reservations publicly. This has further buttressed the fact that a dark horse may benefit from the outcome of the convention. It was Chief John Odigie Oyegun who was declared the consensus candidate and eventually declared the winner at the expense of former governor of Bayelsa State Timpreye Sylva and Ikimi. Oyegun was sponsored by the duo of Buhari and Tinubu; Sylva was backed by most of the APC governors, while Ikimi had the ➔ CONTINUES ON PAGE 6

These cameras, just metres from the latest Abuja bomb blast scene, could have provided clues By CATHERINE AGBO, AGBOPAUL AUGUSTINE, Chika Otuchikere, Reuben Buhari, Ejike Ejike,Patience Ihejirika, Winifred Ogbebo and Victor Okeke, Abuja

Where are the closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras that purportedly gulped $470 million in the Federal Capital Territory? Questions about their existence and effectiveness within Abuja are being asked, as bombing of the capital city at will by Boko Haram insurgents has not abated. Security experts and residents have at different times tagged the project dead on arrival and expressed doubts that the cameras ever worked. In several reports done by LEADERSHIP, the federal government had been called to question over the functionality of the cameras. A Federal High Court in Abuja had recently granted an exparte application, seeking an order of mandamus to compel the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe the controversial contract awarded to Chinese company, ZTE Corporation by the federal government. It was also reported recently that the presidency following the failure of the CCTVs to contribute in the fight against insurgency had turned down a request by the Ministry of Police Affairs to pay additional N3billion to the contractor handling the project. LEADERSHIP findings following the blast that rocked the EMAB Plaza in Wuse II on Wednesday afternoon, which left at least 24 people dead, show that if truly the CCTVs existed around the busy shopping complex, the suspected bombers would have been identified by now. A senior police officer who spoke under condition of anonymity told LEADERSHIP weekend that only a few of the CCTV cameras are currently working. The reason for the breakdown of the cameras, according to him, includes lack of maintenance as well as power failure. “The truth is that some of them are not working. Definitely, not all of them can work. Some were faulty from day one. Others may suffer power failure. Moreover, not all parts of Abuja, even within the metropolis, are covered,” the source said. The officer also pointed out that the terrorists always try to avoid areas where there are visible CCTVs. “Terrorists are very intelligent crooks. When they want to select their target, they select places where the eyes of the camera will not come. That’s where you hear things like CCTV cameras serving as deterrent. If they want to strike in Abuja I’m sure they will select their target away from the

IGP Abubakar CCTVs,” the officer said. Also, the coordinator of the National Information Centre, Mr Mike Omeri, while giving an update on the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls and the fight against insurgency, collaborated LEADERSHIP findings when he revealed that the FCT lacked adequate CCTV to monitor activities in the metropolis and called on private organisations and public-spirited individuals to install the CCTV in their premises. “The minister of FCT has said they are working. He said they are working on improving them. CCTV is not everywhere in the city; that is why we are calling on citizens to install CCTV and that is one way they can contribute to the fight against terrorism,” Omeri said. The coordinator, who is also the director-general of the National Orientation Agency, NOA, said the situation in the country demanded that everyone cooperate with the security agencies to rid the country of insurgents. He said though the CCTV cameras within the city are working, they are not in some parts of the city. Experts express doubts over the functionality of Abuja CCTV Meanwhile, security experts have expressed doubts over the operations of the several CCTV cameras installed in Abuja. Some of them who spoke to LEADERSHIP Weekend yesterday doubted the functionality of the CCTV in the capital city. A former director of State Security Service (SSS), Mr Mike Ejiofor, was of the view that most of those installed in Abuja are not functioning. “From what we have seen, I doubt if the installed cameras are really working. We had up to three bombings now and we have not been told of any outcome from investigations from the cameras. When incidents like this happens, the cameras are supposed to pick up people who are involved in the crime but, so far, I don’t know whether we have that facility or the existing ones are really functioning,” he said.

Also, a former commissioner of police in the FCT, Mr Lawrence Alobi, while responding to LEADERSHIP Weekend, said the importance of CCTV camera cannot be overemphasised in combating crimes. The ex-police boss questioned the sincerity of those who handled the installation of CCTV in Abuja. “The CCTV in Abuja, how functional are they? Who awarded the contracts? Are they functioning? Where are they located? How effective are they? What has been achieved from them and when were they installed? Are they CCTVs being maintained? These are the questions we should be asking,” he said. He also urged the federal government to come up with a policy of making all offices, businesses both public and private install CCTV cameras to check crimes in the country. He reminded all that the terrorists who bombed Boston in the United Stated were apprehended through a CCTV installed in a private restaurant. “If it can be replicated in Nigeria, it will go a long way in helping us to checkmate insurgency in Nigeria,” Alobi said. FCT minister challenged to produce CCTV footage of bomber Security expert Chief Gilbert Nwoko, who spoke with LEADERSHIP on the CCTVs in the FCT challenged the FCT minister, Sen. Balla Mohammed, to produce the footage of the EMAB Plaza bombing images if truly the FCT has functional CCTV. Another security analyst, Otunba Bamidele Shodeinde, queried why the FCT minister would claim that CCTV cameras were working when the Boko Haram insurgents have successfully carried out several attacks on the FCT without leaving any trace behind. “Nigerians are no longer fools; we have advanced very far. It is only our leaders who don’t want to advance and so they are always thinking that the people are as backward as them, if not even more backward. “Everybody is asking the government how they spent billions of taxpayers’ money installing CCTV cameras which are not working and cannot help in the fight to eradicate terrorism in the country. “The Nyanya bombing happened the first time and they told us that the CCTVs were not in the suburbs. Now it has happened in the metropolis and it is apparent that the CCTVs in the metropolis are not working. “Nigerians want the government to prove that the CCTVs are ➔ CONTINUES ON PAGE 6

6 NEWS

Saturday, June 28, 2014

These cameras, just metres from the latest Abuja bomb blast scene, could have provided clues ➔ FROM PAGE 5

working and capable of helping to identifying the terrorists and bringing them to book,” he said. 2 more victims die in hospital Two more victims of the Wednesday bomb blast who were undergoing treatment have died at the National Hospital. The minister of health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, stated this yesterday in Abuja when he visited the surviving victims of the bomb blast at the various hospitals in Abuja. He said that “one of the two victims that died at the hospital had 90 per cent burns which pose a great challenge in management”. However, the minister who was referring to the Senegalese who died at the National Hospital Wednesday night said that “the second person apart from the burns had multiple organ injuries and was operated upon on arrival at the hospital but he couldn’t make it”. He also said that one other of the victims is in critical condition and, as such, he has been kept under the Intensive Care Unit. As at the time of the Minister’s visit to the National Hospital, there were six patients there. He also visited the Maitama District Hospital where a majority of the victims were initially taken to. Chukwu said that only 13 of the victims remained in the hospital as most of them have either been discharged or referred to other hospitals. He said that the level of healthcare delivery for the victims at the National Hospital is very satisfactory and that most major cases are brought to the hospital because of its facilities. He said that “the two people that were lost could have been lost anywhere in the world as their conditions were extremely difficult to treat”.

Meanwhile, survivors of the bomb blast currently receiving treatment at the hospitals have continued to pour out their heart to government to continue supporting them in their condition. Eyewitness accounts dispute police arrest claim After Wednesday’s deadly bomb blast at EMAB Plaza, Wuse II, Abuja, and the widely circulated claim by security agents of arrest of a suspect and killing of another fleeing the scene, accounts from some eyewitnesses who spoke to LEADERSHIP Weekend indicated that the claims might not be entirely true. The eyewitness who does not want his name mentioned in print said that after the bomb went up, a few minutes before 4pm, exactly when Muslims’ call for prayers was on, “there was pandemonium everywhere as people were lying on the ground; some were dead, wounded and trapped in cars”. “I saw others running as a far as their legs could carry them as thick smoke filled the skies; suddenly cars started exploding as more fire engulfed the area with people still inside some of the cars; I was confused as to what to do as I stayed flat on the floor. At that moment, all I could hear and see were wailing for the first five minutes as emergency people from National Emergency management Agency (NEMA) were the first to show up. There was no policeman five to 10 minutes after the blast and so how come they were able to identify the bomber and arrest him in the first few minutes after the blast when there was total confusion all over the place?” the witness said. Another eyewitness also told LEADERSHIP Weekend that policemen attached to some of the banks around Emab Plaza took

to their heels as the bomb went off, questioning the credibility of the said arrest. “Maybe they did that to show Nigerians that they are working, as I do not see any truth in the claims by the security personnel,” he stated. “When did the military arrive the scene? The focus of everyone after the blast was to first save one’s head before looking for survivors; many cars were pushed from burning flames by spirited individuals who defied all odds to save people as well as cars from burning as the people from the fire service came 40 minutes after the blast. “I didn’t see the police arresting anyone on bike moments after the blast. The police that arrived minutes later… how come they were able to identify the bomber and arrest him or did they scan the CCTV camera before arriving at the scene of the blast? “Let us see the footage recorded from the CCTV camera mounted around the place to be able to ascertain the claims of arrest by the police. I don’t believe in this kind of public relations gimmicks of the police.” In a related development, indications emerged yesterday that despite having found the part of the engine bearing the engine number as well as the number plate of the vehicle used for the second Nyanya bomb blast, security authorities are yet to link it to the owner of the vehicle. When the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) was contacted for information on whether the owner of the car used for the Nyanya bomb blast had been traced, a source in the commission’s public enlightenment unit asked LEADERSHIP to provide him the number plate of the car and “if it is a new number plate, the FRSC has the capacity to trace the owner”.

Badeh

Omeri

On the Emab Plaza attack, he also said it was too early to comment on the issue or know who the owner of the alleged motorbike used by the bomber was, as investigation was still ongoing and the commission was yet to get information on the incident. Meanwhile, workers and business owners in Wuse II, Abuja, especially those on Aminu Kano Crescent where the bomb blast occurred, are yet to recover from the shock of the incident. When LEADERSHIP visited the area yesterday, many shops in neighbouring plazas were still locked just as there were a few of hawkers around the usual points on the crescent where they used to stay to do their business. At Omega Centre, a shopping plaza on Aminu Kano Crescent, it was observed that following the Emab Plaza bomb attack, the management had barred cars from going into the premises. The situation caused traffic snarl in the area as vehicles parked along the street. A guard at the plaza told LEADERSHIP that it was closed for two days after the Emab incident and was only reopened yesterday but only a few shop owners were out for business. The situation was however

different at neighbouring K-City Plaza. Though vehicles were allowed into the premises, they were subjected to thorough search by the guards. However, the plaza was devoid of its usual bustle as it witnessed a low influx of shop owners and customers. FCTA orders arrest of illegal users of power bikes Meanwhile, as part of efforts to stem the menace of terrorism and other crimes, the FCT Minister, Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed has directed the FCT Police Commissioner to promptly arrest and prosecute any person illegally using Power Bikes and Motorcycles in the Federal Capital City, Abuja. This directive, which was conveyed to the FCT Police Commissioner via a letter dated June 27, 2014 and signed by the FCT Permanent Secretary, Engr. John Chukwu, reminded him that the ban on the use of power bikes and motorcycles in the FCC was still in force. Muhammad Sule, Chief Press Secretary to the FCT Minister, who stated this through a press statement said the reminder is underscored by the fact that one of the suspects in the recent bombing at the EMAB Plaza, Wuse II District, Abuja was seen on a Power Bike by Security Agents.

2015: Dark Horse May Be APC’s Presidential Candidate ➔ FROM PAGE 5

support of Atiku. Speaking with our correspondent, another informed party source disclosed that the new leadership of the party is trying to heal the wounds of the convention before that of the presidential primaries comes in. He said: “It is unfortunate that some of our founding leaders are still angry over our last convention. People like Chief Ikimi, Sheriff and Governor Amaechi have even publicly criticised the outcome. This is not good enough

Ramadan Begins Today – Sultan

because there is internal mechanism to address whatever problems anyone could be having. “You heard Oyegun saying that a good member of the party would not go to the media and the court to seek redress. Whatever the new leadership could do to appease them would be done as we approach the 2015 presidential primaries.” Speaking further, he explained that the crises that characterized the convention had to do with the presidential poll, especially over who would be the APC candidate among the leading aspirants. BY ANKELI EMMANUEL, Sokoto

The Sultan of Sokoto and President General, Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III yesterday urged the Muslim Ummah in Nigeria to commence their fast today, Satur-

He continued: “APC parades big names in Nigeria who could easily overrun whoever the ruling PDP presents, possibly President Jonathan. All we need is the unity of purpose and we would become the ruling party. “Those who are interested in the race are General Buhari, Governor Kwankwaso, Atiku Abubakar, Bola Tinubu, your former chairman Sam Nda-Isaiah, Governor Rochas Okorocha, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and a few others who are yet to come out,” while those interested in being the running mates are Tinubu, Okoro-

cha, Governor Amaechi, Governor Adams Oshiomhole and Governor Kayode Fayemi. “Again, who among them could you ask to step down and he would do so willingly? We have a lot of work ahead of us,” he said. LEADERSHIP checks show that some people who feel threatened with the presence of Atiku in the party are planning to use his PDP connection to stop him the way they did against Ikimi. As for Kwankwaso, “Their plan is to outsmart the APC governors who may want to use their machinery to impose him on the par-

day, June 28, 2014, following the sighting of the moon in various parts of Nigeria. The Sultan who assured earlier that a formal announcement would be made immediately the moon is sighted, spoke through the Chairman, Advisory Committee on Religious Affairs of

the Sultanate Council, Prof. Junaidu Sambo. According to him, the moon was sighted in Kebbi, Sokoto and other parts of the country. “There was delay in the confirmation because we were waiting and doing analysis to collate all our sources information. The

ty. Since they have the delegates, the plan is to adopt our candidate before the convention as it was done during the last convention; the fear is that this could tear the party apart before the general election.” The APC governors too are not watching doing nothing, having lost their bid to have Sylva as the chairman: they are believed to be making use of the national secretary who is their own candidate through the governor of Yobe State, Ibrahim Geidam; “he would be their eyes on whatever plot being made against the governors.” moon was sighted in Kebbi, Sokoto, Katsina and other parts of the country and therefore, the Sultanate Council is hereby calling on all Muslim faithful in Nigeria to commence fasting today being Saturday as the first day of Ramadan,” the Sultan explained.

news across the states 7

Saturday, June 28, 2014

short news Nasarawa Police Arrest 41 For Robbery, Rape The Nasarawa State police command yesterday paraded 41 suspects arrested for various crimes like armed robbery, kidnapping, rape and cattle rustling. Addressing newsmen at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) premises in Lafia, the state commissioner of Police, Ibrahim K. Idris, said in its effort to combat the scourge of armed robbery and other criminalities in the state, the command has formed a Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). Idris noted that in the past one month 12 cases of armed robbery, four unlawful possession of firearms, one attempted culpable homicide, one kidnapping incident and a case of cattle rustling were recorded. By Donatus Nadi, Lafia

Malnourished Children Get Treatment in Jigawa About 129,396 children below the age of five with various degrees of malnutrition problems have been treated in Jigawa State in the last five years. The state commissioner of health, Tafida Abubakar, revealed this during an advocacy visit paid to the state ministry by UNICEF officials. He said the treatment of the children was done under Community-based Management of Acute Malnutrition, (CMAM) programme funded by the state in collaboration with UNICEF, ACF and other donor agencies. He explained that reports have revealed that about 20% of the children below five years are underweight in the state and the entire northwest. Dr Tafida added that the malnutrition crisis was also one of the major contributing factors to the high rate of child mortality. By Muh’d Zangina Kura, Jigawa

Niger Moves To Curb Public Preaching By Abu Nmodu, Minna

The Niger State government is set to regulate religious preaching and establishment of worship centres, as the public hearing on the executive bill sent to the state House of Assembly begins. At the public hearing yesterday in Minna, speaker of the House, Adamu Usman, said that the bill would aid the allinclusive style of the PDP- led administration in the state. Usman stated that when the bill was finally passed and assented to by the governor, each lo-

cal government area in the state would have a religious preaching and places of worship regulation committee. He also stated that the committee would issue preaching permits to visiting preachers and report any infringement of the law to the appropriate authorities, among other duties. He described the bill as unique and a demonstration of the government’s efforts towards ensuring a peaceful and harmonious co-existence in the state. He explained that under the proposed law, it is an offence to use offensive language or litera-

ture while preaching as thes can incite the people. According to him, it is also an offence if a preacher maligns or ridicules the person or teachings of any of the prophets, their compatriots and disciples, or establishes, leads or conducts Juma’at prayer, Church services or prayers at religious praying grounds or convention centres established or created without a permit. Usman said the proposed law seeks to decentralise the regulation of religious preaching, hence the establishment of committees in the local government

Navy Nabs Motorcycle Thieves BY OKECHUKWU OBETA, Awka

Luck has run out on some suspected criminals who specialise in snatching motorcycles from their unsuspecting owners in Onitsha, Anambra State, as some men of the Nigerian navy on Thursday swooped on them. The suspects were also alleged to have duped many people in the town of large sums of money before they were arrested by naval officers at about 12 noon along Atani road while they were trying to es-

cape with a snatched motorcycle. Parading the suspects in Onitsha, Navy Capt. Mike Oamen, commanding officer of the naval out-post in Onitsha, told newsmen that the navy would continue to flush out criminals in the town. Oamen noted that the navy would bring relief to residents of Anambra, especially those who live along the River Niger and its adjoining communities. ``We would intensify our hunt for criminals, both on the River Niger as well as communities along

Lack of ‘Stomach Infrastructure’ Responsible for Fayemi’s Defeat – Reps

the river to ensure that our people are safe,’’ he said. He urged the residents not to shield any dubious or nefarious characters around them. ``We need prompt information to continue to make Onitsha safe for all as well as check people with wicked intentions,’’ he noted. One of the suspects, Chigbo Daniel, said he had been into crime for a long. Daniel disclosed that he sold the motorcycles for “N5,000 and above.”

Military Bars Pilgrims From Boarding Saudi-bound Plane By our correspondent

Unconfirmed report from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital said there was tension on friday over allegation that the Military barred 278 Umrah pilgrims from their inaugural flight to Saudi Arabia. The military also yesterday, barred a serving Senator, representing Borno South Senatorial District, Mohammed Ali Ndume alongside a serving member of House of Representatives, representing Gwoza, Chibok, Damboa Federal Constituency of Borno State from boarding an aircraft chartered by the Borno State after an 8-seater aircraft arrived Maiduguri with some Government officials it conveyed from Abuja.

A max airline chartered by a Hajj and Umrah operator, Skynet International Limited, had arrived Maiduguri yesterday to convey 278 intending pilgrims that had undergone all security checks and were waiting to be boarded into the plane when the military allegedly issued what many regard as strange orders, directing the plane to take-off empty while insisting that the hundreds of pilgrims travel five hours by road to Kano. The military, citing ‘orders from above’ according to the report, said their action was for security reasons. Explanations by officials of Borno State Government, including Governor Shettima that pilgrims carrying pocket money and moving to Kano by road from Maiduguri could be at risk given past instances of attacks

areas. He urged participants to be guided by their sense of reasoning and respect for each others views in order to produce a law that would stand the test of time. He said that the sustainable peace and security being enjoyed in the state was as a result of Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu’s style of inclusive governance. Usman assured that the state legislature would continue to support and cooperate with the executive, with a view to ensuring peace among diverse groups in the state.

along Maiduguri-Damaturu-Potiskum route, were turned down by the military. The management of Skynet explained that it had written letters to the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria and military authorities including the Brigade command, the police headquarters and the air force authorities and it was duly authorised to go on with the operations given the fact previous exercises took place in 2011, 2012 and 2013 at the peak of the Boko Haram insurgency in Maiduguri and yet, flights landed and took off to Saudi Arabia hitch free. Efforts made to confirm the reports from military authorities were however unsuccessful at the time of going to press.

As political pundits continue to xray some of the factors responsible for the defeat of the incumbent governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, by the PDP candidate, Ayodele Fayose, Minority leader, federal House of Representatives, Samson Osagie, yesterday expressed shock at the voting attitude of the people and wondered why the APC lost out despite providing infrastructure in the state. In a reaction to the Ekiti election results, Osagie also commended Governor Fayemi for conceding defeat to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). His words: “I commend him for being the first Nigerian seating governor to have congratulated his opponent after he lost to him. The fairness and free nature of the election is as stated by those who witnessed it. “I have never underrated his (Fayose) capacity and indeed the moment he became PDP’s candidate I knew our own brother Gov. Fayemi was in trouble. From inquiries, Governor Fayemi lost not because he failed to govern well; he indeed delivered on critical infrastructure, but he was said to have failed in providing ‘stomach infrastructure’. By Patrick Ochoga, Benin City

Next Generation Cockpit Design FROM BACK PAGE

While loss of attitude awareness is linked to lack of visibility and requires a dynamic environment to simulate, loss of energy-state awareness can happen in perfect weather with the aircraft in a 1g environment, as occurred in the Asiana 214 crash at San Francisco. Therefore, NASA and contractors will initially study the issue in Langley’s research flight deck full-motion simulator in Hampton Roads, Va., using pilot crews for realistic interaction. The simulator is modeled on the Boeing 787 flight deck, with four 15.1-in.displays in landscape layout and Rockwell Collins head-up guidance systems for both pilots. The flight deck is equipped with five cameras per side that track the eyes, mouth and nostrils to determine where a pilot is looking inside and outside the cockpit.

Ultimately, researchers want to couple all of the physiological sensors for converging metrics. “Eye tracking is telling us where the pilots are allocating their attention, and we can infer things from that,” says Ellis. “But bring in EEG, heart rate and other measures … and you can combine where you are looking with [your] psycho-physiological state when you’re looking at those things. That brings a lot more insight into the actual state of the pilot and the ability to handle situations.” Researchers will begin collecting data this summer, Ellis says, most likely using volunteer general aviation pilots with commercial licenses to develop the initial system. Key to success in part for Langley will be quantifying the impact of channelized attention on a pilot’s response to spatial disorientation and loss of energy-state awareness, says researcher Stephens. “When pilots are doing their job and then something unexpected happens – for example, if the au-

tomation disconnects – nine out of 10 times the pilots will turn automation back on and move on,” says Stephens. “But sometimes they get hyper-focused on what was the cause of that, and they’ll lose track of responsibilities, specifically monitoring.” The goal will be to quantify the behavior in the simulator and from in-aircraft testing, then transfer that knowledge into specific best practices for designing or evaluating existing or future avionics, systems or training to steer pilots away from channelized attention. “We want to identify it in research and supply data that the designers can reference when they’re coming up with a new display or even one part of a display,” Stephens says. “If it’s causing too much attention to be focused on that one moving part of the display, it’s probably a bad design.” Source: AW&ST, April 2014

Saturday, June 28, 2014

10 news across the states

Saturday, June 28, 2014

2015: Youths Attack PDP Campaign Team Over Kaduna Killings By MIDAT JOSEPH, Kaduna

Angry over the recent killings of about 100 people in some parts of Sanga local government area of Kaduna State, youths in Southern Kaduna yesterday disrupted a political meeting organised by members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to garner support ahead of the 2015 general elections. A group of PDP campaign members led by a former principal private secretary (PPS) to late Governor Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, Yohanna Allahmagani, yesterday organised what it called an “interactive session” to canvas support for PDP support ahead of the 2015 governorship election. But the youths who stormed the venue of the meeting holding at St. John Catholic Church Kachia, described the organisers as unpatriotic people who were staying in comfortable zones while villagers are been killed and ignored

short news LASU TO Refund N69M To Students The Lagos State University is on the verge of refunding over N69 million, arising from the decision of the state government to reduce school fees of all students who have paid for the 2013/ 2014 academic session. This was disclosed on Friday in a statement by the public relations officer of the school, Kayode Sutton. The university’s governing council had directed that all payments in excess of the new school fees regime should be refunded to students. Sutton stated, “In compliance with this directive, the bursary department has been charged to commence the compilation of the list of affected students, the amount involved and to proffer an appropriate mode of refund.

By Taiwo Ogunmola Omilani, Lagos

by the government. As the youth protested, soldiers and mobile policemen were drafted to the venue, keeping the situation from escalating. When confronted by the angry youth, the organiser, Allahmagani said they were not in Kachia just to campaign but to strategise on how to put the government to task. “We cannot allow unpatriotic people to continue to deceive our people. Just this week, on Monday and Tuesday, over 130 people have been killed in our area and instead of condemning the act and consoling the affected families, the shameless people are here holding political meetings,” one of the protesters, Timothy Ishaku said. “If not that security agents have been drafted here, we would have lynched them. They may not have this kind of opportunity next time if the security situation in our area is not addressed,” another protester, Benjamin Bala said.

NGO Lauds FG Over Amnesty Programme With some former Niger Delta militants now trained as full commercial pilots, the federal government has been commended for the achievements that the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) has recorded. A non-governmental organization (NGO), Centre for Reform Education Initiative (CREI), made the commendation in a statement issued by its Executive Director, Chinwe Ugwu, who said that it was a thing of joy that the amnesty programme has defied the skepticism of critics. As many as 127 ex-militants are known to have been trained as professionals in the aviation industry with 29 qualifying as pilots with Private Pilot License (PPL) and Commercial Pilot License (CPL) while several others were trained as maintenance engineers in other aspects of aviation. At one of the graduation ceremonies held at the Afrika Union Aviation Academy (AUAA) in Mafikeng, South Africa, the Director of the Academy, Captain Allan Roebuck, had said that the ex-militants travelled “a long road to success (with) a lot of hard work, discipline, focus and punctuality”. By Agbo Augustine, Abuja

short news Aspirant Vows To Restore Peace In Plateau A governorship aspirant in Plateau State, under the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Engr. Jimmy Cheto, has vowed to restore peace and unity in the state if voted into office come the 2015 general elections. In an interview with LEADERSHIP Weekend in Abuja yesterday, Cheto promised to reunite the various ethnic nationalities in Plateau State as well as create more job opportunities for youths through local wealth generation. He called for caution among party members in the state, adding that only a free, fair and speedy handling of the suspension of Dr Haruna Dabin as the state chairman of the party could put the party back on track ahead of the general elections.

By David Aduge-Ani, Abuja

L-R President Goodluck Jonathan, Chief Medical Director, Maitama General Hospital, Dr. Adetoun Osotimehin and others during the president’s visit to the victims of the Emab Plaza bomb blast in Abuja, yesterday. Photo By REMI AKUNLEYAN

Defection: Court Orders Substituted Service On 5 Governors By Kunle Olasanmi, Abuja

A federal high court in Abuja has granted the request of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to serve the five defected governors, through substituted means by publishing the suit against them in either ThisDay or The Guardian newspapers. Justice Gabriel Kolawole granted the order following an application filed on 26th of June 2014 by Dr Alex Izinyon (SAN) on

behalf of the party. The application was brought pursuant to order 6 rule 5 (c) of the federal high court, with one prayer for substituted service of the summons on the defected governors who left PDP for All Progressives Party (APC) last year. He had argued the ex-parte application based on seven grounds that were supported by a 12 paragraph affidavit deposed to by Friday Izinyon.

In his ruling, Justice Kolawole said, “I am satisfied that the plaintiff/ applicant has disclosed good reasons to warrant the granting of this application and it is hereby granted as prayed.” “The applicant shall within 7 days publish the suit in one insertion in ThisDay Newspapers or Guardian Newspapers. They (respondents) would be entitled to 30 days to respond. The case is adjourned to 22nd Sept, 2014 for mention.”

Supreme Court Dismisses Northern States’ N7.3bn suit By Kunle Olasanmi, Abuja

The Supreme Court yesterday dismissed a suit filed by 16 northern states, seeking a court order to compel the federal government to refund the sum of N7.3 billion, being outstanding value of the assets of the defunct Northern States Marketing Board (NSMB) forcefully took over by the federal government. The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mariam Mukhtar, who led six other justices of the court in deciding the suit, held that the case was statute-barred having being filed outside the time limit allowed by the Limitation Act for the recovery of such debt.

The court, in a judgment read by Justice Mary Peter-Odili, said the cause of action arose in 1983, precisely July 27th, when the Federal Government acknowledged the debt. Justice Peter-Odili held that the suit filed by the 16 states on February 22, 2011, “was an action in futility the cause of action having expired after six years of its accrual computed from July 27, 1983.” According to her, the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to hear the suit has been effectively ousted by operation of section 7(1) (e) Limitation Act Cap 522 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990.

The court upheld the objection of the federal government as argued by Mr Ade-Okeaya Inneh, SAN, who had urged the court to dismiss the suit because it had become statute barred. 16 of the 19 states in the north had invoked the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court vide an originating summons asking the apex court to compel the federal government to pay them N7billion as outstanding value of the assets of the defunct NSMB. The board was said to have been taken over by the federal government in 1977 from the then North-Western, NorthCentral, Kano, North-Eastern and Central-Western states.

CBN Deputy Governor Seeks New Varsity Curricula By Taiwo Ogunmola Omilani, Abuja

Deputy governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Sarah Alade, has said for higher institutions in Nigeria to play their role in national transformation, there is an urgent need to redesign their curricula in order to realign them with the developmental needs of the country. She disclosed this yesterday while delivering the keynote address at the 9th convocation ceremony of Covenant University with

the theme: ‘Rethinking the Concept of National Transformation: Roles of Higher Education Institutions.’ She stated: “Although, the establishment of centres for entrepreneurial development in all federal universities was the right step in the right direction, there is the need for an innovative incorporation of entrepreneurship and other relevant subjects into education curriculum. Alade also said relying on government alone to singlehandedly

finance higher education was not sustainable, noting that tertiary institutions needed to seek funds and grants from other sources, particularly the private sector. “The importance of national transformation in Nigeria cannot be overemphasised. Its success, however, depends on the implementation, which is centred on the tenacious belief that the transformation and its corresponding reforms must be participatory and inclusive,” she said.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Border Towns: Living In The Shadows Of Terror Nigerians living in border communities in some parts of the North have had more than their fair share of terrorist attacks. Despite the daily danger they face, MUAZU ELAZEH (Katsina) and MOHAMMED ISMAIL (Adamawa) write that life goes on, somewhat, in these troubled areas

A border town checkpoint

ne apt way to describe Katsina State is that it has one of the largest borders with neighbouring Niger Republic, a border that stretches across six council areas, namely Baure, Maidua, Mashi, Daura, Kaita, Jibiya. Indeed, because of its proximity to Niger Republic, Katsina state has one of the highest numbers of border posts in the country, with towns and villages like Birnin Kuka, Jibiya, Kongolam, Babban Mutum, Dankama and Sassanbiri lying in the fringes of the country and Niger Republic. While some of these border towns have large security posts, others, because of their size, house small border posts of security personnel comprising

officers and men of Nigeria Customs Service, Immigration and plain-clothe security men. Life in these villages is both intriguing and fascinating. Some of the borders with large security posts are in Jibiya and Kongolam in Jibiya and Maiadua council areas of the state. The Jibiya border post has the repute of being one of the most vibrant and commercially active border posts in Nigeria due to the volume of goods that get into the country through it. Perhaps it was in appreciation of this fact that the Nigeria Customs Service built a stateof-the-art goods inspection bay at this border post. Like the Jibiya Border post, the Kongolam Border post is fairly large and has been

fairing relatively well in terms of the inflow of goods and other commercial activities carried out between Nigerians and their neighbours in Niger Republic. Additionally, these border posts are relatively more organised compared to others that scattered across the council areas that shares border with Niger Republic. But what it is it like to live in these life border areas? According to local lore, the Kongolam village got its name from a well dug to provide water by one of its founders and early settlers. Although it is less than an hour drive from the ancient city of Daura, a traveller to this village is bound to go through no fewer than six checkpoints mounted at different intervals by soldiers, police, customs,

immigration and joint border patrol security team. First time visitors to Kongolam would find it both fascinating and intriguing. One only needs to take a casual walk to find himself in Niger Republic. There is a never ending game of wit between stern-looking security personnel and would-be illegal immigrants bent on entering Nigeria. At Kongolam, a Nigerian can sit comfortably sit in his house and hear or better still, see what is happening in the residence of his Niger Republic Nneighbour. The village also plays host to Nigerians of different ethnic backgrounds even as nationals of neighbouring Niger Republic trooped in on a daily basis to CONTINUED ON PAGE 69

There is a never ending game of wit between stern-looking security personnel and wouldbe illegal immigrants bent on entering Nigeria

Saturday June 28, 2014 ISSUE 80

Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Health

Thwarting Back Pain WOMEN:

Health Beauty Fitness

Managing Excessive Menstrual Bleeding

Ayurvedic Medicine: Apple

Why You Should Drink More Water

June 28, 2014

KIDS- HEALTH

R’S EDITO

NOTE

What Happens During An Asthma Flare-Up?

What You Need To Know About Diet Pills It’s Saturday again and I am glad to welcome to yet another edition of your no1 health delight. Do you know that, most diet pills are bad for you? Even though some might not be harmful to your health, supplements and over-the-counter weight-loss remedies that tout a quick fix usually don’t work, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Many over-the-counter diet pills are intended for obese adults and are not recommended for anyone under 18. Among the many reasons why diet pills aren’t a good idea are the unpleasant side effects, which include gas (farting), oily discharge, and diarrhea just to name a few. On the other end of the diet-pill spectrum are herbs and supplements. What separates these diet pills from the rest is that they are not regulated and are not held to the same standards as prescription and over-the-counter medicines. These products may claim you can shed pounds without diet or exercise, but the bottom line is that their effectiveness is questionable at best, and side effects can be as serious as those seen with prescription and over-the-counter drugs, ranging from bloating and diarrhea to serious heart problems. If you think you’re overweight, talk to your doctor about safe and effective ways to lose weight. The best way to attack a weight problem is through lifestyle changes like choosing healthy foods, eating smaller portions, and getting off the couch and starting an exercise routine.

eople who have certain kinds of allergies are more likely to have asthma. Do you have allergies that affect your nose and eyes, causing stuff like a runny nose or red, itchy eyes? If so, you’re more likely to have asthma, too. Whatever causes the allergic reaction, such as pollen or dust, can also trigger asthma symptoms. But not everyone who has allergies gets asthma, and not all asthma happens because of allergies. Huh? Allergies and asthma can be a little confusing, so let’s find out more. Most kids are exposed to allergy, in which some asthma symptoms that are triggered by an allergy to something (called an allergen). In these people, the symptoms of asthma like wheezing, coughing, or trouble breathing are often brought on by being around allergens. Allergies have a lot to do with your immune system. Most of the time your immune system fights germs and bacteria

to help you stay healthy. But in a kid with allergies, the immune system treats allergens (such as pollen) as if they’re invading the body, like a bad germ. When the immune system reacts to an invading allergen, the body releases substances that cause allergy symptoms, such as a runny nose or red, itchy eyes. Some kids can also get asthma symptoms, like coughing, wheezing, or a tight feeling in the chest. If you have asthma, it is a good idea to find out whether allergies may be causing your asthma symptoms. To figure out what they’re allergic to, sometimes kids will visit a special doctor called an allergist. If the allergist finds out that you are allergic to certain things, the best way to prevent allergic reactions (and to help stop asthma symptoms from bugging you) is to avoid being around those allergens. The doctor also may prescribe medicine for your allergies if you can’t completely avoid what’s causing them.

Have a great weekend! E-mail: miminaija@yahoo.com 08075300560(text only)

EDITOR: Raliat Ahmed-Yusuf Ag. GM CREATIVE DESIGNS: Chukwudi J. Nwabueze AG. EDITOR: Catherine Agbo

FOUNDER: Sam Nda-Isaiah Chairman: Hajiya Ireti Heebah Kingibe GROUP MANAGING DIRECTOR: Azubuike Ishiekwene GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Michael Okpere Dr. Kazeem Durodoye

The more you eat, the less flavor; the less you eat, the more flavor… Chinese Proverb

June 28, 2014

Why You Should Drink More Water Scientifically speaking, water is the basis of life, but beyond being essential to your very existence, water serves all sorts of purposes that help you to feel your absolute best. We all as individuals pack our bodies with so much chemicals, sugars, sweeteners and fatty high sodium foods likewise, we are oblivious to how toxic our bodies have become until it completely malfunctions. The benefits of drinking water are numerous as drinking water most especially first thing in the morning aids in detoxifying your body daily, although most people never see the full benefits of doing this because they get a few days in and go back to the traditional poor habits. Hence, to be fit and avert swallowing a cocktail of pills, practice drinking water more often. TUNDE OGUNTOLA writes.

Did you know?

rinking water goes beyond using it as a contrivance to quench thirst or as an expedient for curing dehydration, drinking water can save you from myriad of dangerous diseases as water basically helps to flush the digestive tract and intestines of impurities stuck to the inner linings, it is popular in Japan today to drink water immediately after waking up, also scientist have proven its value. Frequent headaches, chronic fatigue, joint pains, irregular bowel movements, indigestion, low energy, low sex drive and adult acne are all early warning signs of serious diseases and illnesses; Water safeguards your heart, so when speaking of essential for life, drinking a good amount of water could lower your risk of a heart attack. Research shows that, people who drink more than five glasses of water a day are 41 per cent less likely to die from a heart attack than those who drink less than two glasses a day. However, staying hydrated can reduce risk of colon cancer by

Every day, your heart beats about 100,000 times, sending 2,000 gallons of blood surging through your body. Although it’s no bigger than your fist, your heart has the mighty job of keeping blood flowing through the 60,000 miles of blood

45 per cent, bladder cancer by 50 per cent, and possibly reduce breast cancer risk too. Ultimately, while just a mild dehydration will slow down your metabolism by as much as 3 per cent, water will basically boosts your metabolism. So when trying to lose weight, drinking water can boost your body’s ability to burn fat. A new study asserted that drinking water (about 17oz) increases the body metabolic rate by 30 per cent in healthy men and women which boost occurred within 10 minutes but reached a maximum 30-40 minutes after drinking, also the studies suggest that drinking one or two glasses of water before a meal can fill you up so you naturally eat less. More so, your brain needs a lot of oxygen to function at optimum levels, so drinking plenty of water ensure that it’s getting all it needs. In fact, drinking 7 to 8 cups of water per day can improve your levels of cognitive performance by as much as 30 per cent. Research shows that a dehydration level of just 1 per cent of your

vessels that feed your organs and tissues. Any damage to the heart or its valves can reduce that pumping power, forcing the heart to work harder just to keep up with the body’s demand for blood. So how do you make sure

your heart is in tip-top shape? “Keeping your body in good health helps keep the heart a more efficient organ,” expert advises. In other words, eat healthy, well-balanced meals and don’t skimp on the exercise.

body weight reduces thinking functions, so staying well-hydrated is super important for your mental performance. Furthermore, one of the most debilitating paraphernalia such as migraines can be averted by drinking water; Scientists recruited migraine sufferers and divided them into two groups: one took a placebo, the others were told to drink 1.5 liters of water (about six cups) in addition to their usual daily intake. At the end of two weeks, the water group had experienced 21 fewer hours of pain than those in the placebo group, as well as a decrease in pain intensity. Dehydration is the single most common cause of daytime fatigue, so if your afternoon slump is more like a desperate need for an afternoon nap, guzzle a glass of water. It can also make you better at your job, or at least prevent you from being bad at at-just a two percent dehydration level can trigger short-term memory problems and difficulty focusing on a computer screen or printed page.

WOMEN Fitness Beauty Wellness

June 28, 2014

Simple Steps To Healthy Living

RALIAT AHMED YUSUF

Managing Excessive Menstrual Bleeding Pure water Don’t have soft drinks or energy drinks while you’re exercising. Stay properly hydrated by drinking enough water during your workout (just don’t overdo things, as drinking too much water can also be dangerous). While you might need energy drinks for long-distance running, in shorter exercise sessions in the gym, your body will burn the glucose from the soft drink first, before starting to burn body fat. Same goes for eating sweets.

This occurrence of heavy menstrual bleeding can lead to anemia due to excessive blood loss and interference in the normal activities of a person.

The secret of stretching When you stretch, ease your body into position until you feel the stretch and hold it for about 25 seconds. Breathe deeply to help your body move oxygen-rich blood to those sore muscles. Don’t bounce or force yourself into an uncomfortable position.

xcessive menstrual bleeding is known by the term menorrhagia. The symptoms of this problem are frequently changing of sanitary pads even at nights, excretion of big blood clots at the time of menstruation and the duration of period is longer than five days. This occurrence of heavy menstrual bleeding can lead to anemia due to excessive blood loss and interference in the normal activities of a person. But why this problem occurs? Here are some of the home remedies that can be used to treat menorrhagia. • Cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice that is used in dishes to add flavor and aroma. However, the spice is also beneficial in treating Menorrhagia in women. Taking one teaspoons of cinnamon powder with cold water three times during the day can ease loss of blood. Drinking cinnamon tea is also a good option. Prepare the tea by boiling one teaspoon of cinnamon powder in one cup of water. You can add honey to the tea for taste. Drink this herbal concoction four times a day to get relief from continuous bleeding. • Ginger Ginger is called as “Grandma Ginger” not only because it is an ancient method of treating but also due to the fact that it provides relief in almost every problem. Take some ginger. Pound it well. Put it in a vessel filled with water and boil it. If you think that this solution tastes bitter, you can sweeten the solution by adding some honey. Do not add sugar or milk to the tea, Strain the concoction and allow it to come down to warm temperature before drinking it. Do not let the tea cool; warm it

a bit before drinking. • Mustard Seeds Take some mustard seeds. Ground them and make them into fine powder. Mix this powder with hot milk and have it on regular basis during your menstrual time. You can also start having this some days before you get your periods. • Change your Lifestyle If you can change and control your lifestyle, then definitely it will help you improve your hormones. Drink lot of water. Avoid exercise or any other strenuous kind of job when you have your periods. Stay away from hot and spicy food. Eat food that is rich in iron content. Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, sugar, sweets etc. Drink lot of gooseberry juice on regular basis. You can also take some ice in a cloth and place it on your stomach to provide cold compress. This helps in maintaining hormonal balance. It is always recommended to pay a visit to the doctor to get you checked. Sometimes what we consider normal bleeding might turn out to be the symptom of some other disease. Hence always have the correct information before you leap into anything. • Rosehip Tea Rosehip is an herb that is mainly known for its essential oil. You can get rosehip powder from any health food store. Even rosehip herbal tea is available at local food stores. Start with the rosehip herbal tea treatment three days prior to your periods and continue drinking two cups daily for as long as the periods last. Drink at least three cups of the herbal tea for effectively treating Menorrhagia. Rosehip is an excellent source of vitamin C and vitamin C is required by the body to better absorb the iron from the foods. Sufficient quantity of iron in the body helps the body replace the lost blood quicker and also prevents anemia as a result of Menorrhagia.

Understand hormones Recent research suggests that short-term (less than five years) use of HRT is not associated with an increase in the risk of breast cancer, but that using it for more than ten years might be. Breast cancer is detected earlier in women using HRT, as they are more alert to the disease than other women. Asthma-friendly sports Swimming is the most asthmafriendly sport of all, but cycling, canoeing, fishing, sailing and walking are also good, according to the experts. Asthma need not hinder peak performance in sport. 11 percent of the US Olympic team were asthmatics – and between them they won 41 medals. Deep heat Sun rays can burn even through thick glass, and under water. Up to 35 percent of UVB rays and 85 percent of UVA rays penetrate thick glass, while 50 percent of UVB rays and 77 percent of UVA rays penetrate a meter of water and wet cotton clothing. Which means you’ll need sunscreen while driving your car on holiday, and water resistant block if you’re swimming.

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

Solomon Nda–Isaiah Entertainment Ricochet

08116759802

nda_is@yahoo.co.uk

Ginika Tor @40

’m dedicating this piece to my very good friend and professional colleague, Ambassador Mrs Ginika Tor, who celebrated her 40th birthday in grand style some days ago. They say a friend in need is a friend indeed. Anyone that has in one way or the other come across Amb Ginika will attest to the fact that she is a very friendly and caring person who usually carries other people's problems and issues like her own, sometimes going to great lengths to get those problems solved. It is in recognition of her contributions to the development of the society that she has been bestowed with prestigious awards by different bodies and organisations at different times. These awards include: UPWF Heart of Gold 2009; Jubilee Publisher of the Year 2010; UPWF Media Company of the Year 2011; Heritage Style Award 2011; United Nations Ambassador for peace 2011; African Descent Award for Best Female Publisher 2012; Success Most Outstanding Publisher of the Year 2013; Face of Democracy Special Recognition Award 2013; Adadi Ora Nma 1 of Amoli (honorary chieftaincy title), among numerous others. When she sent me an invitation to attend her 40th birthday which took place at Sheraton Hotel Abuja, last Sunday, I was totally surprised that the powerful Ginika was just clocking 40. I said to myself ‘this woman is indeed a woman of substance to have achieved so much at this age, when many prominent women in the society are 60 and above and are still trying to achieve even half of what Ginika has already achieved. The elegant Chief Ginika has always attributed her success to God and her vision is to build a world class media empire with His support. Her birthday was colourful and well attended, attracting top personalities and government officials. It was fun-packed, with a live band, rib-cracking comedians as well as DJ Alex of Ray Power FM adding spice to the event. For Ginika, the highlight of the night was walking into the hall to

meet her friends and loved ones. Some of our favourite celebs such as Oge Okoye, Bruno Iwuoha, Denrele Edun as well as the wife of Rochas Okorocha and former Bayelsa State governor, Timipre Silva, attended the occassion. The ravishing CEO wore a sleek floating red dress with silver jewellery completing the graceful look. She was ushered into the venue by her friends, with the popular song "Doro" by the Mavin Records crew playing. As a child, Ginika desired to be a TV personality, so she could impact lives through the instrumentality of TV programming to tell stories and connect with people who came to limelight by dint of hard work, commitment to cherished ideals and God's favour. She once starred in the now rested program Crossroads on Muri International. In spite of all the attendant challenges of growing a business in our society, she never allowed her dreams to fizzle out but continued to explore her potentials in the media world through her flagship publication-Exclusive Accolade International Magazine (EAIM) which has 19 editions so far. Barely three years after starting EAIM, she boldly unveiled her Accolade Lifestyle of men and women of accomplishments. Today, no doubt Ginika Tor is indeed a TV personality and she sits atop her media company as Chief Executive Officer. Hers indeed is a story of grace to grass. This dynamic young woman has contributed significantly to the betterment of the society through her purpose-driven initiatives and sits on the boards of many companies such as Accolade Media Company Ltd, Primefield Associates Nig Limited and Ginetz Business Venture Ltd, to mention just a few. You have really achieved a lot in your first quarter on earth and better days are ahead of you; what you have achieved now is just the tip of an iceberg of many notable achievements that await you later in life. I wish you happy birthday and many more blessed and fulfilling years. More grease to you elbow. Ride on sister! Cheerio!

Celebrant, Ginika (r), flanked by her hubby and children

A Female Lecturer Asked Me Out- Ruth Kadiri By SOLOMON NDA-ISAIAH, Abuja

Gone are the days when all female students got in school are lesson notes, coursework, partying, learning some disciplines, a few guys and male lecturers asking them out; add to that female lecturers trying to date them, if in doubt ask fast-rising actress, Ruth Kadiri. The Nollywood actress and scriptwriter, who studied business administration and mass communication at the Yaba College of Technology and University of Lagos (UNILAG), respectively, revealed in an exclusive interview with www.icampusng.com that a female lecturer asked her out while she was studying in UNILAG. According to her, although the lecturer (whose name is withheld) was not extreme about it, she made it clear what she wanted. When asked how she managed

Ruth

to cope with the lecturer wooing her, the sexy actress said, ‘’I became friends with her daughter and that was the way out for me.’’ Ruth, who condemned lesbianism, said she cannot imagine dating a fellow woman as it immoral and ungodly. When asked who her ideal man

is and if she can date a poor guy, Ruth replied, ‘‘I have dated a poor guy before, even when I myself was broke. Money is not a factor; a guy who has certain qualities should be able to feed his family.’’ Speaking further on the kind of guy she could date she said, ‘‘There was a time I broke up with a guy and he thought I broke up with him because he was broke. But I broke up with him because he couldn’t handle being broke; that’s another factor that breaks up marriages and people don’t understand. When you see a guy who has money, he is a jolly good fellow, he meets all your needs; but have you thought about how the guy will handle being broke? Have you thought about how the person manages financial maturity? We need to know that when there is no money, you cannot die from being broke.’’

Omoni Oboli Becomes Director By SOLOMON NDA-ISAIAH

For Omoni Oboli, life has always been one notable step after the other; she started out as an actress but moved on to the phase where she had to abandon all to attend to her kids and family, after she got married. When she got to the stage where the children were old enough, she returned to Nollywood but not as quietly as she left, her return was announced emphatically in the highly publicised movie, An-

Omoni

chor Baby. After that she began to clinch an array of supporting roles and lead roles in several movies. At a point, she was the most endorsed actress by corporate organisations.

Now moving on from that phase, Omoni Oboli has added the ‘director’ toga to her repertoire. She has in the past few months directed three movies and just like her big bang return to Nollywood, her debut movie, Being Mrs Elliot also made an emphatic debut in far away Paris, where it opened a major festival, Nollywood Week in Paris. Speaking on the development, the mother of three said, “I was very happy when I was informed that BME would open the festival in Paris."

Helen Paul Signs Globacom Deal By SAMUEL ABULUDE, Lagos

Versatile entertainer and comedienne, Helen Paul has joined the league of ambassadors of telecom giant, Globacom. She signed the mouth-watering endorsement deal worth several millions of naira in May but it was officially made public earlier this week. Helen, who is

Helen

known as Tatafo on radio, also

signed an endorsement deal with GoTV, a cable TV station also in May, according to Bayo Adetu, her publicist. The actress, singer, playwright and stand-up comedienne, known for quirky nature and spontaneity, and blessed with a voice range that holds her audience spell bound, is an emerging big brand in the entertainment industry.

EE Crowns Mike Adenuga Entertainment Pillar By SAMUEL ABULUDEA, Lagos

As entertainment news tabloid, Entertainment Express and Sunday Express celebrates three years of eventful reporting, the management are set to honour Globacom founder and CEO, Otunba Mike Adenuga for his immense contribution to the showbiz world as Nigeria's Entertainment Pillar of the Decade. The event, tagged ‘Express Star Awards’ hold on Sunday

Adenuga

July 27, 2014 at the upscale Niteshift Colliseum and it promises to be a glamorous night as some entertainers and showbiz moguls will be honoured. Names of the honourees will be unveiled soon. Interested partners and sponsors for the event are welcome and urged to reach the company at their corporate office located at 3, Alhaji Adenekan Street, Okota Road, Isolo Lagos.

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

AFRIFF Is Opportunity For Nigerian Filmmakers To Showcase Themselves –Shiri Keith Shiri, an international film curator and advisor to the London Film Festival, is the Artistic Director of the Nigeria-domiciled Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF). The Zimbabwean, in a chat with journalists at the just concluded Cannes International Film Festival in France, talks about preparations for the fourth edition of the fastrising festival, taking place in Calabar, Cross River State, in November. SOLOMON NDA-ISAIAH was there As a programmer for the Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF), there is no doubt that you are a spokesperson for the festival here. So, what really is AFRIFF set to achieve?

AFRIFF emerged from ION, a travelling film festival and Chioma Ude, the CEO of AFRIFF adopted it and said it had to remain in Nigeria and that was how people like us came in, determined to give it the best support and ensure that we have a truly international film festival coming out of Nigeria. However, the idea is not just to celebrate Nigerian output but that of the entire continent and Nigeria, I must say, has got the means.

I am trying to see how Nigeria can begin to define its film policy such that it will create a platform where coproduction treaties can happen. South Africa, for example has got coproduction treaties with the UK and Germany

What would you say are the challenges of a nascent film festival like the AFRIFF and how are they being surmounted?

I know the challenges of the African man but at the end of the day, how we handle them says much about how we define ourselves. AFRIFF has done exceedingly well in the last four years. All over the continent, there are possibilities and I have always looked at Nigeria, for example, as a country to look up to. This, for me, began back in the days when I read novels like ‘Things Fall Apart’ by Chinua Achebe and all the collections of a man like Wole Soyinka. They

From last year when you took over as the programmer for AFRIFF, what would you say is the level of success so far?

The feedback has been positive. I was encouraged by the fact that from the outside, people started noticing that this thing is really possible. For instance, the governor and people of Cross River State provided us with the support that I never expected would happen- the filmmakers all came. Generally, I just feel we have to do it again. We have to do it better than last year’s. Don’t forget that some of the big film festivals have existed for so long but for AFRIFF, this is just the 4th edition. So, to have achieved that kind of network, people should applaud themselves particularly the team of AFRIFF. They are an amazing kind of people. The festival is few months away. How prepared are you personally?

How far have you gone with plans for the next edition of the festival?

As you can see, I’m here to do the work of AFRIFF and one of the things I am impressed with is how well Timbuktu, a film by Abderrahmane Sissako is doing here. Not only is this film one of the best from Africa in Cannes this year, it is the best film being given so much press attention. I am negotiating with the sales agent for our AFRIFF possible screening. As a continent, I think we also need the support mechanism because this film can be claimed by any of the African countries as our own. This is a way to say this is our brand and this is what we can do in our continent.

festival but an African film festival. But of course, the home brands have to benefit than the others because people have the opportunity of seeing more filmmakers from Nigeria. Besides, it is also an opportunity for Nigerians to show the world what they have got.

Shiri

have always been a point of reference. Looking at the possibilities in Nigeria, I see the country as a power house and with its huge population, it should be able to take a leading position. You can see a country like Burkina Faso struggling to do what is called the biggest festival in Africa called FESPACO (Festival of Pan African Cinema). In that country, people commit themselves to the ideals of cinema. But then, of course, it is a model, which is part of the Francophone idea-nevertheless, it is there. What is the routine like for you in Cannes on a daily basis?

I meet with filmmakers from Africa and other parts of the world. The platform also gives me the opportunity to see some great feature films, documentaries and short films. I also share our concern for the AFRIFF projects and the possibility to network with international people. I remember talking to Ben Gibson, the director of the London Film School to come to Nigeria. I made him understand our challenges. This is because one of the things I would

like to suggest to AFRIFF is that rather than just showcase films, it should find a way where we can bring people from the outside world and explore the opportunities that we can gain from them. Getting somebody like Gibson will give us an idea of how the British film policy operates. On the other hand, I am trying to see how Nigeria can begin to define its film policy such that it will create a platform where coproduction treaties can happen. South Africa for example has got co-production treaties with the UK and Germany and this can just serve as an incubator where things grow. It’s a place where we come to celebrate every year and people can begin to engage with Nigerian filmmakers. Also, content-wise, we invite filmmakers from all over the continent for competition and provide the panorama programme. That way, we can choose to have a film from Mexico or Brazil or Indonesia. In the same vein, African filmmakers are able to see what others are doing from the rest of the world. That’s why it is international. It is not a Nigerian film

I have been watching films from the beginning of this year so I know what my opening and closing films are going to be like. I’m still doing all that I need to do, meeting the people I should meet, just to seal deals. The next time I will be meeting the AFRIFF team, we will have at least, a skeleton of the programme that we will start working on. I am still on the road but Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) will be my very last for this year before I really go back to Nigeria for the final preparation for AFRIFF which will be happening in November. Would you want to disclose the names of your opening and closing films now?

No! I won’t because we are going to have a proper press conference at some point where we will also unveil the programmes for AFRIFF 2014. I need to keep all that under wraps. The earliest you will hear from me on the programme will be August, because I would have gone to DIFF and back. I’m sure you don’t want to announce a film and then cancel it, as was the case with ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ that was supposed to open the festival last year…

Yes! Last year, we had full commitment from everyone before we decided to announce the films. But for reasons only known to them, they decided to pull out. That’s not going to happen this time. I am going to ensure it will never happen again. And I must say we are being careful this time around.

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

Bayelsa To Host African Fashion Reception Week By SOLOMON NDA-ISAIAH

The Federal Ministry of Culture and Tourism has selected Nigeria's leading tourism and entertainment destination, Bayelsa State, as host for the Africa Fashion Reception Week scheduled for 3-5th July. Minister of Culture and Tourism, Chief Edem Duke, while announcing the choice of the oil rich state as host for the prestigious event at a media briefing in Abuja, said Bayelsa had an enviable record of successfully hosting international events. The African Fashion Reception Week is jointly organised by Banzuk Gold Entertainment, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the Bayelsa State Tourism Agency and Legendary Gold Limited. Top fashion brands from over 50 countries are expected at the event, which is one of the five events lined up at the World Fashion Week taking place in Paris in October. Duke, while describing Bayelsa as a state that recognised the economic significance of tourism, said that aside from hosting the event, the state government has expressed commitment to partnering with organisers of

the show and the World Fashion Organisation towards building the proposed fashion university in the state. Also speaking at the media parley, director-general of the Bayelsa State Tourism Development Agency (BSTDA), Ebizi Ndiomu–Brown, said her state accepted to host the African Fashion Week as the event will avail talented youths and women with the many opportunities in the fashion industry. She said that the state government has also started moves to make Bayelsa the educational hub of the creative industry through the building of its tourism institute, a music school and a film village as well as the aforementioned fashion university. She opined that the university will be beneficial to Bayelsans and Nigerian youths interested in fashion entrepreneurship. Ndiomu-Brown assured participants that Bayelsa State was safe for tourists and investors, just as she added that her agency and all other relevant agencies in the state were prepared to host a successful event. "In Bayelsa we have a visionary leader in the person of Governor

Dickson

Seriake Dickson who is committed to diversifying the state's economy through collaborations with the private sector in areas such as tourism and agriculture. These two sectors are known for boosting job creation for women and youths. This is why Bayelsa has hosted several entertainment and tourism events to connect the youths with established names in these sectors and to expose them to tangible skills these experts posses. For the 3-day event, all hands are on deck with various agencies of government working in harmony to package an unforgettable event and to ensure the comfort of our guests. We have also mobilised our people. So, I can assure you of full participation all through the Africa Fashion Week," she said.

Movie Make Up Can Be Better- Beauty Expert By SOLOMON NDA-ISAIAH, Abuja

Professional makeup artiste (MUA) and beauty expert, Vanessa Odofin has said that make up in most Nollywood movies do not portray the characters suitably enough for the roles they play. According to her, makeup artistes in the movie industry need to be professionally trained in order to deliver world class services that will better portray characters. Vanessa Odofin, a Nigerian-based makeup and beauty expert who has trained over 1000 makeup artists in Nigeria and abroad,

believes that a touch of professionalism would go a long way in upgrading the standard of our makeup artists and in turn impact the movie industry positively. “The makeup jobs done in Nollywood can be so much better than what is obtainable now. There is need for professionalism and improvement in the industry. It is the job of a makeup artist to convey believability, for instance, in the transition of a teenager to an adult in a movie, without changing the Vanessa character and this I believe our Nollywood practitioners there are some exceptions to are not doing enough, though the rule,” she stated.

2face Idibia’s Let Somebody Love You features Bridget Kelly ByANTHONY ADA ABRAHAM, Abuja

Nigerian iconic musician, Innocent Idibia aka 2face returns with the visuals to his lead single, Let Somebody Love You featuring Bridget Kelly, off his Ascension album. Kelly is an American singersongwriter from New York City, who has written songs for fellow American singers

such as Kelly Clarkson. In 2008 she secured a recording contract with American rapper and hip-hop mogul, Jay-Z's record label, Roc Nation. The video, which delivers the complete experience that the audio alone was not able to tap into emotionally, shows how the artistes have evolved over the years. We anticipate 2baba’s album and we are surely going to

2face

keep you posted.

GEJ, Obasanjo, Others To Receive Democracy Heroes Awards By SOLOMON NDA-ISAIAH , Abuja

As the countdown begins for the 2014 Democracy Heroes Award, the organisers have staged a press briefing to inform the public on the level of preparation, the vision of the project and other related issues. The award was birthed to shower accolades on men and women, who through their persistent commitment, tenacity of purpose and passion, have contributed meaningfully to strengthening Nigeria’s nascent democracy. Speaking to newsmen, Alex Nwankwo, the head of events and promotion, Face Of Democracy Organisation, said the award becomes necessary in order to magnify and immortalise men and women who have left democratic footprints on the sands of time in the history of Nigeria and the world, and present them to the upcoming generation as icons of change and role models to be emulated. He further stressed that the awards also aim to celebrate the dividends of democracy, create awareness among Nigerian youths and women on the activities of good governance and efforts of the government of the day to ensure democratic consolidation, among others. The team leader, Alexandra Ajagbonna asserted that President Jonathan is recognised as a Democracy Legendary Leader with regards to his dramatic ascension to the highest political position in the land, after occupying the governorship position in Bayelsa State as well as vice president of the country. Ajagbonna added that ex – president, Olusegun Obasanjo, will be honoured with the Pillar of Democracy, award while the late M.K.O. Abiola will be remembered with the True

Abiola

Hero of Democracy award and General Abdusalami Abubakar will receive the Great Initiator of democracy award. While he made it clear to the press that no government or organisation is sponsoring the project, Fajag, as he is popularly known used the opportunity to unveil the new Face Of Democracy Queen, Miss Miriam Onwuzuruigbo, explaining that she was crowned because of the unavailability of the Kevwe Ikpuri, who relinquished her crown due to her demanding academic schedule. He expressed dissatisfaction over the comments about Kevwe's replacement on online media, stating it was never intended to attack her personality or rubbish her image. According to Fajag, “I like Kevwe Ikpuri as a person and would have loved to keep working with her. But it’s unfortunate that she is not disposed to carry on with the responsibilities of crown.” The Democracy Heroes Awards, which was initially slated to hold on 29th of May has been rescheduled to 4th October, 2014 due to the Chibok kidnap saga. Over 25 recipients have been nominated for the award through public opinion poll, online voting and assessment committee.

Kefee's Burial Committe Inaugurated BySAMUEL ABULUDE, Lagos

Burial Plans have begun in earnest for departed gospel singer, Kefee Obareki DonMomoh, who died more than two weeks ago in a Las Vegas hospital in the United States Even as her family awaits her body, a burial committee has been inaugurated to supervise the burial plans and liaise with the family on the different event for a proper burial and celebration of the gospel music icon. The members of the burial committee include Sammy Okposo, Tosin Martins, Aity Inyang and Chilly Agunana, her ex-publicist. The burial date is uncertain since her body still remains in the US

Kefee

despite earlier reports that the Branama crooner's body had arrived Nigeria last week. The lively musician died of lung failure after enduring 15 days in a coma. She was married to Star FM's OAP, Teddy Don Momoh.

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

Faking It On Air Presenters on Nigerian radio and television stations are fond of ‘tongue twisting’ or speaking in unnatural, fake accents even though some of them have never left the shores of Nigeria. ANTHONY ADA ABRAHAM writes on this trend and why it would continue, with reactions from some presenters.

ove FM, ITV and now Star Time channel 331 TV presenter, Emma Bricks Oko, in an interview said that fake accents are put on by people with complex issues. Bricks is one of the best presenters in the country even though he has never considered faking his accent. “I’m a TV presenter; I don’t fake an accent and I have never dreamt of it. I don’t know what may come up in the future while in the profession that will make me do it, but to be honest with you, some people are born with foreign accents without travelling outside the country,” he said. But how can someone be born with an accent without travelling outside his country? He further added that “all professions have a way of making people outstanding if you are innovative. So if anyone who is practising or delving into the profession feels that’s the only way he/she can be noticed, then it must not be until he/she flies out of the country before he/she can get an accent. Moreover, TV is make-believe and sometimes it’s good you add an additional effort that is expected from you as a presenter. Why not ask a musician who wears all manners of clothes while shooting videos and cannot wear it in day to day life.” he asked. But former entertainment host and presenter with ITV and now CEO of Boss Entertainment, Popular with Jeff, says one has to be real in presentation. “Television presentation is all about being yourself and acting who you are,” he said. Whenever you turn on the radio, with the exception of Wazobia FM , all other radio stations have presenters who are in the habit of using fake accents or as Mathew Abu said, ‘them go just dey scatter fone dey go. Naija artistes too sef dey scatter the thing. I just tire. Like I know people wey never cross Cotonou enter Benin Republic for their life wey dey blow yankee accent pass the people wey dem born for obodo oyibo. What is really up with the fake accents for

real? It’s pretty damn annoying especially when you know it’s forced. What is wrong with your regular Nigerian accent? Is it too local for you? Abi you dey form chasis person? I mean “warra heck man… I need some poraroes and some warer mehn.” “Seems like the folks outside Nigeria are the ones that are trying hard to speak pidgin and keep it down to earth and some (not all) folks in Nigeria are blowing the fone by force. No be by force to have foreign accent. ‘Just because you went to Yankee on vacation for 2-months, or you went to Dubai to go and shop doesn’t mean you should come back and be blowing fone like say tomorrow no dey.’ He added, “I do understand situations where someone has lived abroad for years, maybe for school or grew up there, and came back to Naija and is just used to pronouncing certain words in an accent. Those folks are excused, but those of you that went to Accra and came back and claim to be abroad, please spare that nonsense gist for someone that cares,” he concluded. Paul I. Adujie, a lawyer, asked, “Have Nigerians accepted an inferior status already?” “Why would Nigerians born and raised in Nigeria, who then emigrated from Nigeria to other lands, as adults, with legal education from Nigeria, suddenly assume foreign accents, in derogation to Nigerian accents? Why the preference for non-Nigerian accents? Well, some have said that, being identified as Nigerian in America and Europe has become burdensome for them, but what is the right thing to do? Be in denial? I have recounted the above to make the following points: I strongly believe that everyone has an accent worldwide, and that Nigerians should not be ashamed of or embarrassed about our distinctive Nigerian tongue and accents, as our accents, our colour, culture and country are why we are unique. These are no accidents or products of scientific mutations! ’He advised. Americans and Europeans and everybody else have ac-

Denrele

cents, and they do not engage in tongue-twisting imitations of Nigerian accents or any other accents, apart from theirs, not even when they are on Nigerian soil for business or pleasure, for a day or twenty-years! Are we running away from ourselves? The late Bob Nesta Marley said, “liberate thyself from mental-slavery.” While some Nigerians are rushing to give birth to their children in America and Europe, as an artificial insurance for their children, probably not realising that there are Americans and Europeans, born and raised in America and Europe that are poorer and more illiterate than the guy from my hometown and yours? Back to the Nigerians with fake foreign accents, some DJs and presenters talk with foreign accents, while presenting foreign music all day, every day, helping foreign musicians and companies popularise their culture, their music and business. Nigerian radio stations have essentially become the mouthpiece of foreign things. Selling and promoting Nigerian music is good business, why sell other people’s music? Mr Adujie, also emphasised that in New York City last year, where he is based, theatrical musicians went on strike, and city government reported a loss of tax of more than $10 million dollars; the strike was short-lived. This means, when we promote foreign mu-

sic, we are not helping to develop ours, we are not putting money in our musicians’ pockets and we are not helping our government’s tax base. I have heard it all by way of adulterated Nigerian accents! Some Nigerians living in America are more Americans than the Americans themselves. Sometimes, especially when these educated middleclass Nigerians resort to imitating the lowly slang of the streets, it can be ridiculous! As they substitute improper words and improper pronunciations for common English words, for example ‘want’ becomes “wanno” or “wanrrow”; “twenty” becomes “twenny” or “twenree” or “twenrry”; party becomes ”parry” or “parree” and ‘later’, becomes “lay-rah.” Some Nigerian commentators have written on similar subjects of de-Nigerianisation, such as corrupting or abbreviating Nigerian names to suit American and Europeans ears and tongues? Derenle Edun is a Channel O Television presenter and once said his father tongue can never be changed even though he was born outside the country and is only half Nigerian. The TV host is natural and represents Nigeria very well. Whenever you sit with some of these presenters they are more local than the locals and blend very well. But when on air, why do they twist their tongues to fake accents like someone who ate hot pepper?

It’s pretty damn annoying especially when you know it’s forced. What is wrong with your regular Nigerian accent?

SPORTS

ELATING

PAGES

28.06.2014

JUSTICE SERVED?

CHILD PROSTITUTION

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

WHO IS IN THE NEWS? P22

FOOTBALL GUIDE P24 & 49

COMMENT, P52

Besides the goals, cards, protests, Suarez's bite has attracted a four-month total football ban, the and ...erhh biting, there is a dark side to Brazil 2014; child prostitution longest in history

Find out how all 32 teams at this year's World Cup came about their nicknames

NIGERIA V FRANCE

MONEy ROW WILL NOT AFFECT PREPARATIONS – yOBO PAGE 23

Brazil v Chile: My Worry Is The Referee — Sanchez Chile's Alexis Sanchez has caused a stir ahead of their FIFA World Cup last-16 match with Brazil, claiming he is worried about the referee. The Barcelona forward is preparing to face club team-mates Neymar and Dani Alves, however, Sanchez made his concerns public about how the game would be refereed - with the implications

being favouritism to the hosts may be a factor. Brazil were awarded a soft penalty in the tournament opener against Croatia with the score at 1-1 heading towards the final 20 minutes. English referee Howard Webb has been appointed to the fixture in Belo Horizonte today, but prior to the

distribution of refs for the last 16, Sanchez said he doubted whether Chile would get a fair go. "I think Brazil is the team with the best defence," Sanchez said. "They've got great quality in their squad, and I'm really happy we are going to play against Brazil and Neymar. "My worry is the referee, but we'll see."

22 SPORTS/POURRI

Saturday, June 28, 2014

QUOTES OF THE WEEK

I’m trying to figure out when this [press conference] is going to end. I’m really losing focus up here. The longer these interviews go... Maybe that’s why at Wimbledon they have them long. This is getting... The questions change from tennis to Novak and then Rafa. It’s no longer about the match. Is this the last question? Serena Williams was clearly not in the best of moods despite racing into the third round at Wimbledon

If every player starts showing the injuries he suffers and they open inquiries for them everything will be way too complicated in the future

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

A hilarious blunder at a company producing World Cup merchandise has seen Barack Obama mistaken for England defender Chris Smalling on a set of World Cup mugs

SPORTING RECALL Anthony Le Tallec Liverpool’s answer to Ronaldo. Le Tallec was signed from Le Havre in 2001 by Gérard Houllier after impressive performances for the French national youth team in the UEFA European Under 16 Championships and the FIFA Under 17 World Cup, where the player was awarded the 'Silver Ball' as the second best player, as the national team emerged champions. After just 17 games for the Reds he was loaned to various different clubs including Sunderland. At 28, he now plays his football for Valenciennes FC in Ligue 1.

But the behaviour, I just seriously think that he needs help Everton manager Roberto Martinez the latest to have his say on Luis Suarez's bite at the World Cup

Denilson Denilson broke into a fantastic Brazil side aged just 19 in 1996, and played in every game of the 1998 World Cup. He then became the world’s most expensive player when Real Betis signed him for £21.5 million after the tournament. However, Denilson scored just 13 goals in 186 appearances (his step-over count was much higher) and he ended playing in Saudi Arabia, the MLS, Vietnam and Greece before retiring. David Bentley

TRANSFER SNIPPETS

Luis Suarez's lawyer Alejandro Balbi claims his client is the victim of a European conspiracy. Hmm...

Debuchy

Frank Lampard, 36, who left Chelsea at the end of last season, is set to join Manchester City's franchise club New York City in the

MLS. Manchester United are preparing to test Juventus' resolve over Arturo Vidal, 27, by launching a £30m bid for the Chile midfielder. Sevilla claim Liverpool's pursuit of left-back Alberto Moreno, 21, is all but over after the clubs failed to agree a fee with the Spanish side wanting £20m. Italy striker Mario Balotelli will not be returning to the Premier League with Arsenal after AC Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani told

WHO IS IN THE NEWS? SPORTS

GROUP SPORTS EDITOR Ishaku Kigbu REPORTERS Samuel Malik, Salifu Usman DESIGN & LAYOUT Paul Benjamin ACTING EDITOR Catherine Agbo

group FOUNDER Sam Nda-Isaiah CHAIRMAN Hajiya Ireti Kingibe GROUP MANAGING DIRECTOR Azubuike Ishiekwene GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS Michael Okpere, Dr Kazeem Durodoye

Footballers who never fulfilled their potentials Bentley was thought to be England’s natural replacement for David Beckham on the right hand side of midfield. Starting his career at Arsenal, he went via Blackburn to north London rivals Tottenham for a fee of £15 million still at only 24 years of age. Having spent loan spells with Birmingham, West Ham and FC Rostov in Russia, he retired at 29. Bruno Cheyrou Dubbed ‘the next Zidane’ – Bruno Cheyrou hardly lived up to expectations. Another

Milan's website that the 23-year-old will remain with the club. Arsenal are considering a £21m bid for Bayern Leverkusen midfielder Lars Bender after having a £15m offer for the 25-year-old rejected last summer. Arsenal have turned their attention to Newcastle United defender Mathieu Debuchy, 28. New West Brom boss Alan Irvine is ready to make a fresh £1.75m bid for Dundee United left-back Andrew Robertson, 20.

dodgy Gerard Houllier signing, Cheyrou joined Liverpool for £4.5 million, but four years and 31 dreadful performances later he left Anfield. Cheyrou, not surprisingly, is currently without a club. Gianluigi Lentini Lentini was once the world’s most expensive player when he moved from Torino to AC Milan for £13 million in 1992. After a semisuccessful four years at the San Siro, Lentini was moved on - and on - bouncing his way down Italian leagues as he went.

French club Lille's 19-year-old Belgium international forward Divock Origi is set to complete a move to Liverpool for £10m. Liverpool are close to agreeing a deal for Bayern Munich's 22-year-old Switzerland midfielder Xheridan Shaqiri. Porto defender Eliaquim Mangala says he has not yet decided about his future after Manchester City announced they will increase their efforts to recruit the 23-year-old French international.

Luis Suarez, Liverpool/Uruguay

What Did He Do?

Was He Right Or Wrong?

Should He Be Punished?

Uruguay striker Luis Suarez has been suspended from all football-related activity for four months for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini. The Liverpool player, 27, has also been banned for nine international matches, ruling him out of the rest of the 2014 Fifa World Cup. At the time the referee failed to spot the incident, but FIFA got involved and after investigation, banned the striker. Under the terms of the ban, Suarez cannot train with Liverpool and is prohibited from entering the confines of any stadium during the period of his suspension.

Less than a year after completing a 10-match ban for biting Branislav Ivanovic, he is in the news again for the same shameful act. He had previously been banned for a similar conduct while playing for Ajax in the Netherlands. Suarez was quick to downplay the incidence, saying, "There are things that happen on the pitch and you should not make such a big deal out of them." However, officials were also quick to condemn him. Jim Boyce, FIFA vice president, said, "There is no doubt that Fifa must investigate this incident very seriously, and take whatever action is deemed necessary."

Absolutely. The ban came as no surprise, as many felt if FIFA did not come down hard on him, he might not learn. A commentator, Riath Al-Samarrai, summarised what should be done before the ban: “It's a difficult one, because the disciplinary precedents for this involve the same man. This man. This strange, gifted man. By using what has been ruled before, it needs to be more than 10 games. “And this is a repeat offender. He clearly needs more effective psychological help than he has so far received. But with it should come a significant action - a sixmonth ban from competitive football at any level. A Hannibal Lecter mask might also help.”

/ SPORTS 23

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Nigeria v France: Money Row Will Not Affect Preparations – Yobo Super Eagles captain, Joseph Yobo, has assured that the apparent row over pay will not get in the way of the team's preparations for Monday’s round of 16 clash with France. It has been suggested that the squad missed training on Thursday after

Super Eagles

demanding payment for advancing to the second round of the World Cup. Stephen Keshi's men sealed their qualification despite a 3-2 defeat to Argentina on Wednesday, as the African nation finished second in Group F behind Alejandro Sabella's side, which set

up a tie with France in the knockout stages. But Yobo, in a reaction, told KickOffNigeria.com, "We are here to play for our country." "I can tell you as team captain that the team will travel to Brasilia and we will train, and play against France.

Musa Earns Rave Reviews, Tipped For EPL

By SAMUEL MALIK, Abuja

Ahmed Musa’s swashbuckling display in the 3-2 defeat against Argentina has continued to earn admiration, this time coming from Daily Mail, which has tipped the pacy forward for success in the English Premier League should he decide to ply his trade there. Having conceded one of the earliest goals in the tournament to a Messi rebound, Nigeria quickly levelled things with a superb counter that culminated in

Musa taking on Pablo Zabaleta to curl a beauty past Sergio Romero. Soon after the break, the CSKA Moscow man was again on the score sheet, showing great poise to score past Romero to make the score 2-2, after Messi had scored a cracking free-kick at the end of the first-half. Daily Mail said of Musa after the match: “The Nigerian striker excelled against Argentina, demonstrating composure and quality in scoring two goals. The first goal, beautifully curled past

Sergio Romero, was only usurped by the brilliance of Lionel Messi.” Valued at £8.5million, Musa is regarded as one of five players at the World Cup that people would love to see in the Premier League, alongside Enner Valencia of Ecuador, Guillermo Ochoa of Mexico, Chile’s Marcelo Diaz, and Dalye Blind of Holland. He has been linked in the past with a move to Tottenham Hotspur while Everton may also be keen, with Gerard Deulofeu Musa going back to Barcelona.

Super Eagles Will Be Tough – Deschamps France coach, Didier Deschamps has insisted that his side will not have an easy time when they meet Nigeria's Super Eagles on Monday for the round of 16 clash at the ongoing 2014 FIFA World Cup finals in Brazil. The African champions go head to head against Les Blues on Monday at Estádio Beira-Rio, Porto Alegre, with bookmakers seemingly unanimous that the French would be too strong for Coach Stephen Keshi's men. Deschamps, a World Cup winner in 1998, however, does not share that opinion and does not think a win over the Super Eagles will be an easy one for his team. "Some people thought we were the kings of the world after beating

Deschamps

Switzerland 5-2 but Ecuador showed they have qualities, and Argentina had a difficult match against Nigeria. "Nigeria are a strong, fast team who have great qualities and it is going to be a really difficult match and we will have to fight," Deschamps said.

Toure Slams ´Naive´ Ivory Coast

Toure

Ivory Coast defender Kolo Toure has blamed naivety for his country's dramatic FIFA World Cup exit. The African national were set to progress to the knockout stages for the first time in their history,

with the closing Group C match against Greece all square at 1-1 in stoppage time. But Georgios Samaras kept his cool to net a last-gasp penalty after the Celtic forward was adjudged to have been fouled by Giovanni Sio. Coach Sabri Lamouchi subsequently handed in his resignation after becoming the latest boss to fail to make a talented squad fire effectively on the world stage. "Still I am very disappointed," Liverpool defender Toure told Linfodrome.it. "I think we could manage our game, but we we very naive collectively. We were not smart and we all are sinking. "I think I could have done better, the team could have done better, but we were very naive." On Lamouchi's departure, Toure added: "I do not want to comment on the resignation of Sabri Lamouchi.

Cote d'Ivoire Goalie Caught Eating Grass At the World Cup so far, we’ve seen players taking bites out of other players, and now, players taking bites out of the pitch. Ivory Coast goalkeeper Boubacar Barry apparently likes chewing on some turf during matches, after being spotted eating grass during the clash with Greece. The African side eventually lost the match 2-1 but cameras panned towards goalie Barry when Swansea striker Wilfried Bony scored. He celebrated with a mad jump in from of the camera behind his goal, before opening his mouth to scream to the viewers at home.

Eto’o Apologises To Fans

Halilhodzic Proud Of History-making Algeria Vahid Halilhodzic was proud of Algeria as they advanced to the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup for the first time in their history. Needing a draw against Russia to progress from Group H, barring a heavy victory for South Korea against Belgium, Halilhodzic watched on as his side drew 1-1 with Russia to qualify in second place. Algeria famously exited the finals 32 years ago in Spain when West Germany and Austria played out a mutually beneficial 1-0 scoreline, but there were scenes of jubilant celebration this time as Islam Slimani's header cancelled out Aleksandr Kokorin's early opener in Curitiba. And an emotional Halilhodzic was understandably delighted after the final whistle, with Algeria now set for a last-16 showdown with Germany in Porto Alegre on Monday. "I am very proud, we

WORLD CUP BRIEFs

played a heroic match and we deserved to qualify," he said. "We're very, very proud. We've progressed so much over the past three years and this is a real gift for us.

Four time African player of the year and Cameroonian captain, Samuel Eto’o, has shown his softer side after saying sorry for Cameroon’s dismal World Cup performances – by giving an emotional hug to a young fan. Eto’o looks set to retire from international football following Cameroon’s early elimination at Brazil 2014, in which the team lost all three matches. As the forward was leaving the World Cup hotel for the last time, he spotted a sad young fan standing near the team bus, who had been disappointed by the team’s performance. So, Eto’o decided to stop and give the lad a hug, personally saying sorry for the poor performances in the competition.

Algeria Fans Riot In Marseille

Halilhodzic

Algeria's historic progression to the last-16 of the World Cup was somewhat marred on Thursday night, as riots broke out on the streets of Marseille. Vahid Halilhodzic's side went up against Russia in what was effectively a knockout game from Group H, and a 1-1 draw secured their passage to the second round for the first time in their history. Russia had taken the lead through a sixth-minute Alexander Kokorin header, but the African side wrestled their way back into the match, equalising on the hour through Islam Slimani. Unfortunately, the it led to the rather unsavoury scenes in the French city, which has a huge Algerian population.

24 SPORTS/FOOTBALL GUIDE

FOOTBALL GUIDE /SPORTS 49

Saturday, June 28, 2014

2014 FIFA World Cup

WORLD CUP BRIEFS

WORLD CUP STATS 2 - This is the first time that two countries from Africa have progressed beyond the First Round at the same World Cup finals. History

TOP GOALSCORERS BRAZIL v CHILE

Boateng

Benaglio Counts On Brazilian Support Diego Benaglio is counting on the support of the Brazilian nation when Switzerland face Argentina in the second round of the FIFA World Cup. The Swiss advanced to the last 16 courtesy of a 3-0 win over Honduras on Wednesday, which featured a hat-trick for Xherdan Shaqiri. That victory saw Ottmar Hitzfeld's side set up a clash with Argentina in Sao Paulo on Tuesday. And Benaglio is hoping Argentina's fierce rivalry with tournament hosts Brazil will work in Switzerland's favour. "We will have the support of the Brazilian fans in the stadium," he said in a press conference on Friday. "One can feel the rivalry between Brazil and Argentina. "It would be nice if it were a Swiss home game." Argentina's talisman and captain, Lionel Messi, has played a crucial role in his team's progress thus far, scoring four times in three matches to top the goalscoring charts along with Brazil's Neymar and Thomas Muller of Germany. And Benaglio concedes it is difficult to anticipate what a player of Messi's quality will do before a game. "We're preparing for him as we would any other player," he said. "But it is also clear that it will be difficult to take Messi out of the game completely. "You can watch as many videos of Messi but when he makes something surprising at the crucial moment, it will have been to no avail." TOMORROW'S MATCHES June 29 Netherlands vs Mexico June 29 Costa Rica vs Greece

COLUMBIA v URUGUAY TODAY: 5:00PM Brazil will target Chile's lack of height at setpieces when the two sides meet in the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup in Belo Horizonte. The host nation will enter Saturday's clash as favourites but will be wary of underestimating Chile, who impressed when qualifying from Group B as runners-up. Brazil's progression was relatively straightforward, with wins over Croatia and Cameroon meaning a goalless draw against Mexico did not prevent them from claiming top spot in Group A. They scored seven goals in the process, with Neymar netting four in an ominous sign for Chile. Brazil have appeared suspect in defence at times, but the brilliance of the Barcelona forward means they are always likely to carry a significant goal threat. Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari will hope David Luiz – who stands 1.89m tall – is fit after he reportedly hurt his back in training. Chile finished second in their pool after they followed a 3-1 win over Australia with an excellent 2-0 triumph against Spain – a result that eliminated the defending world champions.

TODAY: 9:00PM Following an overwhelmingly positive beginning to the FIFA World Cup in Brazil, the finals were somewhat overshadowed on Tuesday by the actions of Uruguay's star man, Luis Suarez. Approaching the last 10 minutes of the final Group D clash with Italy, Suarez sunk his teeth into the shoulder of opposing defender Giorgio Chiellini, an action missed by the match officials but picked up by various television cameras. Uruguay's Diego Godin scored the winning goal shortly afterwards to send his side through to the second round, but it was Suarez's retrospective punishment that dominated the news. Drawn in Group C along with Japan, Ivory Coast and Greece, Colombia were impressive in qualifying, winning all three matches and scoring nine goals in the process. Monaco playmaker James Rodriguez has made a name for himself as one of the stars of the tournament so far, and was outstanding as a second-half substitute in the 4-1 win over Japan on Tuesday, creating two goals for Jackson Martinez as well as adding an impudent finish himself in the final minute.

T. Müller L. Messi Neymar A. Robben R. v. Persie K. Benzema J. Rodríguez E. Valencia X. Shaqiri T. Cahill

4 4 4 3 3 3 3 3 3 2

Germany Argentina Brazil Netherlands Netherlands France Colombia Ecuador Switzerland Australia

26 - Only Lionel Messi (30) and Alexis Sanches (28) attempted more dribbles than Emmanuel Emenike (26) in the #WC2014. Daring.

World Cup Group Stages Best XI

2 – The two hat-tricks scored at the #WorldCup so far have been netted by Bayern Munich players (Thomas Müller & Xherdan Shaqiri). Treble.

Child Prostitution: The Brazil World Cup's Dark Side Amid the events surrounding the 2014 World Cup showcasing Brazil's dynamic culture, food and other assets, and the memorable plays on the soccer field, with perhaps the best so far being Robin Van Persie's masterful header against Spain on the second day of play, there's a dark side: deeprooted problems simmering just below the surface in South America's largest country with child prostitution an especially grim reminder that all is not football and Carnival. In the first decade of the 21st century, Brazil emerged as one of the world's economic powerhouses, only to see its ambitions undermined by the ravages of the global financial meltdown. Now the country is struggling to come to terms with divisive inequality, a burgeoning slum problem and the civil unrest that often accompany such woes. One of the saddest reminders

can be seen at night on streets within walking distance of the country's World Cup stadiums: child prostitutes looking to sell their bodies to tourists, often for little more than just a few dollars. It's not easy to talk about, nor is it simple to stop, but child sex workers are unfortunately a part of life in Brazil, as they are in many other places around the globe. And during the World Cup, awareness of them has spread as people are appalled at stories of exploitation coming out of cities like Recife and Rio de Janeiro. Recife is known as a ground zero for child prostitution and sex trafficking in Brazil. Located on the South American nation's northeast coast, its streets serve as a base for literally thousands of child sex workers as young as 10, an investigation by the U.K.'s Mirror newspaper indicates. Children and teens have flooded

the city -- often forced to do so by pimps who ply them with crack cocaine, toxic glue and other drugs -- where they sell sex for as little as $2 or a pack of cigarettes, Time reported. Lorrisa, a 13-year-old prostitute in Recife, told the Mirror she sniffs glue to deal with her dangerous life. “Sniffing the glue makes me feel dizzy and numb and it stops me feeling hungry so I don’t need to eat," she said. "It helps me cope with the ¬violence and danger on the streets.” Rampant poverty provides pimps with a constant supply of young, desperate kids looking for a way out of the favelas and into economic prosperity. But instead they find themselves forced into having sex with as many as eight men a night, and struggling to fight against the diseases and pregnancies that come with such a life. In Brazil, adults over the age of 18 can legally sell their bodies,

6 - Asamoah Gyan #Ghana has passed Roger Milla’s record for most #WorldCup goals by an African player (6). Gunner.

but prostitution by younger teens and children is illegal. Still, CBS News reports authorities and experts anticipate a 30 to 40 percent increase in child prostitution during the World Cup, which will bring hundreds of thousands of people to Brazil in the next month. This World Cup is the most expensive in history at more than $11 billion, has exposed. A Brazilian pimp and sex trafficker identified as Thiago told Time magazine he bought girls away from their parents for $5,000 to $10,000 each. “I sought the girls in Recife because there is so much poverty there," he said. “It makes it way easier to convince the girls to come down and prostitute themselves.” Brazilian authorities attempted to crack down on prostitution in the months leading up to the World Cup kickoff, generating controversy when some prostitutes allege

police arrested, robbed and perhaps even raped about 100 prostitutes on the streets of Niterói in May, Citylab reported. But prostitution, often referred to as "the oldest profession" will likely remain a fixture of life in Brazil as long as the favelas are filled with destitute children with few options for survival. And the World Cup only exacerbates the problem, A 20-year-old prostitute in Rio de Janeiro told the Mirror she "became a prostitute three weeks ago" to capitalize on the influx of Britons and other foreigners for the tournament. "I know there will be a lot more customers for the World Cup. I use the money to support my family, pay the rent, the bills," she said. "We are waiting for the English, I cannot speak their language, but I will communicate with the way I know best.” Source: ibtimes.com

13.8% Cameroon also posted the worst shooting accuracy so far at #WorldCup2014 with just four of 29 shots hitting the target. Duck 221 Nigeria have gone 221 minutes without conceding a World Cup goal. Unit.

1 - Ahmed Musa is the 1st player to score a brace for #NGA at the World Cup. Event.

ODD BALL A Brazilian TV network broadcast footage of Ghana's $3m appearance money being transported in a huge convoy of police cars to the team hotel.

ISSUE 139, jUnE 28, 2014.

MoHAMMed ArZiKA

Indefatigable public official

deAdliest snAKes wHAt's up

is Al-MAliKi tHe MAn to sAve irAq?

>30

Luis suarez

The world bites back

The punishment received by the Uruguayan striker for his unruly behaviour is considered to be the most severe ever handed out during a FIFA World Cup.

trended R.Kelly in denial over his daughter's transgender

despots And dictAtors Paraguay's Alfredo Stroessner

stuff Five things your mechanic doesn't want you to know

Auctioned World's most expensive piece of ham sold for $2,940

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Know-all

THAT'S inSide THiS iSSue

BELIEVE THIS!

35 lIfE–sTylED

Fast food giant, McDonald’s, feeds 1% of the entire world’s population on a daily basis.

29 TOp TEN 30 whAT's up? 33

sTuff

34 ARTICulATE

STarTIng BLockS 27 PROUdlY niGeRia

• Mohammed Arzika: Indefatigable public servant • Anthony Manzo: Accredited diplomat

28 tRended

• R.Kelly in denial over his daughter's transgender

28 stRanGe

• Passenger sues BA after flying him to Grenada instead of Granada

STuFF

THE BIg STorY

31 desPOts and diCtatORs • Paraguay's Alfredo Stroessner

32 tiCklinG

• 5 things your mechanic doesn't want you to know

33 FORbidden knOWledGe • Count cards at a casino

34 aRtiCUlate

• Leading cement producers

• Costa Rican 'Mole Man' spends 10 years digging large underground Home by hand

• Is Al-Maliki the man to save Iraq?

• The dog eating celebration in China

29 tOP ten

30 WHat's UP

35 liFe–stYled

37 deadliest snakes • • • •

• • • • •

Hook-nosed Sea snake Fierce Taipan snake Tenacious Russell’s viper Temperamental Eastern brown snake. Predatory Rattlesnake Carnivorous Death Adder Spitting Philippine Cobra Fast Black Mamba Cowardly Common Krait

38 aFRiCa's MOst danGeROUs snakes

• • • •

Puff Adder Gaboon Viper Egyptian Cobra Saw-Scaled Viper or Carpet Viper

DEsIRAblEs

AuCTIONED

THE rEguLarS

BoXED

• Believe this • Fact Box, Do You Remember When? Strictly For JJCs 48 CUltURed! • Shocking Foodfacts • Etiquettewise, Superstitions, • Psychology Ideas, Useless Proverbs, Excusez moi Information, Business 49 desiRables Blunder, Quick Quiz, 50 MindFUl • Espionage, Discovered • Crossword, WordSearch, • Sounding Clever, Sudoku, Homework, Sounding Great, Spotlights, Bookshelf • Know Why, 51 a la CaRte • Celeb Info, Teeny • Crazy Tricks, Gentleman's • Fascinating Facts, Words, Laugh-Out-Loud • Keepsakes, 52 bOnUs PaCk • Just Unbelievable, Fast • Seen & Overhead, English Forward Phrases, Keepsakes

47 teCHliFe

• Click Click,

Buzzstop KFC says it is investigating a report that the family of a 3-year-old girl who said she was asked to leave one of its restaurants because her scars from a vicious pit bull attack were frightening other customers, made up the story to get sympathy — and donations. According to a report by the Laurel Leader-Call, the story, first posted on Facebook by Victoria Wilcher’s grandmother, was ‘generated out of whole cloth and resulted in the family bilking the public and professionals for more than $135,000 in cash, as well as gifts and free surgeries.’ A NASA probe that’s expected to leave the solar system after it finishes its mission at Pluto and beyond will carry a message intended for any alien life-form that comes across it in the far future. When NASA’s New Horizons mission completes its study of Pluto in the summer of 2015, data from Earth will stream to the spacecraft to create a digital record that it will carry

with it beyond the solar system. The record echoes the Golden Record carried by NASA’s Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft in the 1970s and the plaques onboard the Pioneer spacecraft. Scientists have identified what is possibly the coldest white dwarf ever detected. In fact, this dim stellar corpse is so cold that its carbon has crystallized, effectively forming a diamond the size of Earth, astronomers said. Astronomers believe that the dim white dwarf star PSR J2222-0137 is composed of crystallized carbon, effectively making it a giant diamond. The BBC on Wednesday apologised after a weather bulletin warned festival-goers heading to Glastonbury to ‘prepare for rape’. The blunder appeared in a subtitle on a forecast broadcast live on BBC One after the news. Stunned viewers were warned to ‘prepare for rape’

rather than to ‘prepare for rain’ as experts predicted stormy weather would hit the UK. A Texas woman who seriously injured her son by tearing his scrotum and then tried to repair the injury with superglue pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years in prison. She admitted to yanking her 6-year-old son’s genitals out of anger and the sudden pull tore a 1.6-inch laceration in the boy’s scrotum. Utah’s appeal court strikes down same-sex marriage ban in major ruling thus creating greater political and legal momentum for the Supreme Court to decide whether gays and lesbians have a constitutional right to wed. It happened on Wednesday in Utah, where a panel ruled 2-1 against the prohibition, saying that any couple, regardless of sexual orientation, has the right to marry. Life is way too short for bad vibes.

Content Victoria Usman, Abisola Alawode, Love Adeyemi, elizabeth Martin DeSIGn/LAYoUt Luke Utomi ACTING EDITOR Catherine Agbo

group

FoUnDeR Sam nda-Isaiah CHAIRMAn Hajiya Ireti kingibe GRoUP MAnAGInG DIReCtoR Azubuike Ishiekwene GRoUP eXeCUtIVe DIReCtoRS Michael okpere, Dr kazeem Durodoye FeeDbACk AnD MAILS Cognoscenti is published as an insert in LEADERSHIP Weekend. A number of the articles in this pullout are sourced from diverse sources. Please do send your feedback and enquiries to cognoscenti@leadership.ng or send us a tweet @LeCognoscenti

Saturday, June 28, 2014

StartingBlocks AfricanFacts

Côte d’ivoire overtook Ghana to become the world’s largest producer of cocoa beans in 1978.

THE PACESETTING PAGES

In 2013, Johannesburg, South Africa overtook Cairo, Egypt to become the most visited city in Africa due to Egypt’s insecurity.

Anthony Manzo

Accredited diplomat

Proudly Nigeria Mohammed Arzika

Indefatigable public official Mr Arzika’s time as Nigeria’s Minister of communication is often recalled with nostalgia as he spearheaded the ‘regeneration’ of Nigeria’s communication sector. Alhaji Mohammed Arzika who was born in Sokoto state showed early signs of ingenuity and industrialism from childhood. This made his parents strive to get him the best education there was. Arzika grew into a brilliant young man determined to impact Nigeria and this led him to a career in politics. His passion to make his mark in the Nigerian society not only led him to join politics but a decision to leave his own footprint in the sands of time. Arzika was the Chairman of the People’s Solidarity Party (PSP), one of the political parties that applied for registration when General Ibrahim Babangida started preparing for a transition to democracy in 1991, later merging into the Social Democratic Party (SDP). After the failure of the Nigerian Third Republic with the assumption of power by General Sani Abacha, he became a member of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) formed in May 1994. Seen as a good candidate to steer the communication sector, Mohammed Arzika was appointed Nigerian Minister of Communication from June 1999 to June 2001 in the cabinet of President Olusegun Obasanjo. As minister, he published a formal telecommunication policy in May 2000. Prior to the official policy release, Arzika said the changes would help Nigeria add two million fixed and 1.2 million mobile lines over the next two years. At the time, Nigeria had about 500,000 connected lines for a

Arzika

population of over 108 million. True to his words, the policy essentially remained in force for the next ten years. The telecommunication environment then was dominated by the stateowned Nigerian Telecommunication (NITEL). Although Private Telecom Operators (PTO) were allowed to provide service, typically using wireless links, the PTOs complained that NITEL denied them access to the network, or failed to provide sufficient access lines, and charged excessively for connections. With the positive influence of Arzika already circulating and influencing the telecoms world, the NITEL Managing Director, Emmanuel Ojeba promised that NITEL would address those problems, and plans were made to expand network capacity by about one million lines per year. Arzika promised to provide telephone service in all the local government areas. At the opening

session of the second Africa Internet Summit in September 2000, Arzika said the Nigerian government had identified access to telecommunication as a critical factor in the development of all aspects of the nation’s economy. Arzika pushed to liberalize the telecommunication sector. Just as he envisaged it, in early 2001, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) auctioned licenses for GSM mobile carriers. NITEL obtained a licence, and well as ECONET and MTN. Arzika also made a strong case for expanding NITEL to transform it into a ‘viable, reliable and technologically sound company to enable it meet the demands of government’s deregulation and privatization policies’. In December 2000, Arzika said that plans to privatize NITEL had received a favourable reaction both within and outside the country. In January 2001 President Obasanjo approved a merger of NITEL and the state-owned mobile carrier M-Tel. In March 2001, Arzika visited the People’s Republic of China accompanied by the NITEL Managing Director and there they met with Mr Wu Jichuan, where they discussed approaches both countries were taking to ensure rapid telecom growth. This can be said to be the beginning of the evolution of Nigeria’s telecom industry. In June 2001, Arzika resigned from the cabinet and was replaced by Mohammed Bello.

STRICTLY FOR JJCs

Beware of fancy job opportunities Scammers are preying on the vulnerable as they look for work or try to solve money problems. The difficult economic times have been tough for many people but con artists have found a way to thrive and fraudsters are now targeting the most vulnerable people. These people are being dealt a double blow by losing their job and then losing money while trying to find a new one. Opportunistic con artists are targeting people who have

fallen on hard times with offers of phoney jobs, training and debt scams. These rogues are cashing in on people’s innocence and making lots of money for themselves. These criminals can also offer to help with loans which carry an upfront fee but the loan never materialises. Almost half of us are targeted by scams with millions falling victim to cons costing individuals to lose money every year.

The scams often involve training and job ploys where con-artists get their victims to pay for a nonexistent training course with the false promise of a job or working on a commission basis only to find the firm is a fake and they don’t make any money. People are being warned to look out for key signs that something is a scam like being contacted out of the blue, requests for money in advance or telling you to keep it a secret.

Manzo was born in 1958. He possesses many medical certifications like the MBBS and FRCS, a great feat in the medical industry making him a certified and established medical practitioner. Not tied down by his medical degrees however, he moved on to become an emissary. During the second term of the Obasanjo presidency, he was Ambassador of Nigeria to Israel. From his experience in Israel, he concluded that the strength of democratic institutions was more important than that of individual officeholders. In January 2005, he was again appointed High Commissioner of Nigeria to Cyprus. Anthony Manzo was then elected Senator for the Taraba North constituency of Taraba State, Nigeria, taking office on 29 May 2007. After assuming his seat in the senate in 2007, Manzo was appointed to head committees on Police Affairs, Information and Media, Health, Foreign Affairs and Air Force. In a mid-term evaluation of senators in May 2009, it was noted that he had sponsored bills for amendment of the Nigeria Christian Pilgrims Commission Act, Nation Security Enhancement, and amendment of the Psychiatric Hospital Management Board Act. In October 2008, Manzo was the sponsor of a motion titled ‘Global Credit Crisis and its Impact on Nigeria’ which was co-sponsored by nineteen other senators. The motion criticized the bank consolidations under CBN governor Chukwuma Soludo, recommended improvements to bank regulations and supervision, and called on the Federal Government to pay debts owed local contractors and pensioners in order to reduce the credit crunch, among other things. In an article published in This Day in November 2008, Manzo made the case that projects to develop Nigeria were of no value unless the people of the country could return to basic principles of honesty and integrity. Without these, the country could never become great. In August 2009, Manzo defended cross-carpeting, saying it would be undemocratic to prohibit politicians from changing parties.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

StartingBlocks

49,000,000

350,000,000

242,325,638. Population of Indonesia as at 2011.

Number of Cadbury Daily Milk bars sold every year. The Buzzworthy stuff ONLINE

Trended R. Kelly in denial over his daughter’s transgender Well it’s no longer news that R&B legend R Kelly has a transgender daughter with ex-wife and star of Hollywood exes, Andrea Kelly. 14 year old Jaya Kelly who now goes by the name Jay after she revealed she/he has identified as male since she/he was 7 years old. She’s dumped her female clothes and strictly wears male clothes and even cut her hair. Jay admitted that her father recently found out about her transition to a boy even though her mum and sister have known for a while and are supportive. R.Kelly who has now gotten wind of his daughter’s new status is finding it very difficult to come to terms with it. When asked about it during an interview at the WCGI Summer Jam, R.Kelly shut the reporter up with his response when he referred to Jaya as his son.

Leonardo DiCaprio’s name linked to a suicide

Andrew Stern, 40, the entrepreneur husband of model Katie Cleary, 32, shot himself in the head at a shooting range. The husband allegedly shot himself after his model wife was pictured cozying up to Leonardo DiCaprio. He was ‘devastated’ when his marriage to the ‘love of his life’ fell apart, a friend has revealed. Katie Cleary was pictured cuddling up to DiCaprio and Entourage star Adrian Grenier last month in Cannes. Mr Stern had filed court papers to end the couple’s less-than-four-year marriage just weeks before the images emerged, according to court documents, and Cleary and Stern were still in the process of dividing up their assets when he took his life. A friend told MailOnline that he was already on a dark descent when he realized he couldn’t hold on to his ‘dream girl’. ‘I’m not saying Katie did anything. If she did, I didn’t know about it. But he couldn’t really have her like he wanted her. Like his fantasy of her. He would talk about her in ideal terms. He idolized her and wanted her to himself, maybe a little too much.

Apptitude Take charge of your day with Tasker Whether you’re looking to keep your phone screen on while you’re reading an e-book or you want it to ring louder at the office so you don’t miss an important call, Tasker is ready to do your bidding. Take advantage of this clever app’s multiple triggers, such as time, day and location, to save you time and make your smartphone smarter.

Buzz Launcher lets you personalize your device Sick of the way your phone’s interface looks and wish you could change more than just the wallpaper? From app drawers and calendar widgets to home-screen layouts, Buzz Launcher lets you change the look of the interface so it feels like you’re using a completely different device. Choose from one of more than 200,000 beautiful user-created designs, or create your own. You can even build your own widget to truly personalize your phone.

Panic, turns your power button into an alarm Political activists living under oppressive regimes, and journalists reporting from the front line, are among those who fear being kidnapped and tortured. And while little can be done to abolish this threat entirely, Panic turns an ordinary smartphone into a discreet panic button. The Panic app is designed to give people defending human rights in dire situations urgent help from their own network if they are attacked or kidnapped. It alerts fellow activists about the danger their colleague faces so that they can get help faster. It is designed for Android smartphones and is available to download from Google’s Playstore.

Viral

Buddy the dog shows sevenmonth-old baby girl how to crawl in adorable home video

A heart-warming new video shows a dog teaching a struggling baby how to crawl. Valerie Stevens-Scott from Atlanta, Georgia, filmed the family pet, Buddy, giving her seven-month-old daughter, Allie, an impromptu how-to session after he spotted her frustratingly waving her arms and legs around on the floor. In the clip, the concerned Jack Russell Terrier gets by the infant’s side and shows how he niftily moves forward by hiking his front paws in front of him. His back legs then

drag behind as he gathers speed. Allie appears to be mesmerized by Buddy as he swiftly moves past her. The 26-second-long video has been watched more than 480,000 times since it was uploaded, with many viewers deeming it ‘cute’ and ‘adorable’. Many also praised Buddy for being an excellent teacher. Ms Stevens-Scott titled the comical footage Buddy’s Baby Crawling School. She says that Buddy was a rescue dog and now it appears, he is enjoying giving back to others.

Strange

Passenger sues BA after flying him to Grenada instead of Granada

An American dentist visiting Europe has sued BA. This he did after the airline refused to reimburse him for two first class tickets after flying him and his wife to Grenada in the Caribbean which is 4,000 miles away from Granada in Spain where he originally intended to travel. Mr Edward Gamson, who said he hadn’t taken a holiday in two years and had always wanted to visit the

historic Spanish city and its famous Alhambra Palace, said he only noticed the mistake once he was on board the flight from London. The booking mistake was allegedly made by BA’s agents in Florida and Mr Gamson claims the electronic tickets did not show the airport code, flight duration or destination country, only showing the name Grenada. Mr Gamson told The Independent on Sunday: ‘I have a lifelong interest in Islamic art. I’m also of Spanish Jewish heritage so it was something I had always wanted to do... I made it absolutely clear to the booking agent that I wanted to go to Granada in Spain. Why on earth would I want to go to Grenada in the Caribbean if I was flying back to America from Lisbon? ‘It’s just so sad. A trip we had been really looking forward to was ruined and ... BA won’t do the decent thing.’

Saturday, June 28, 2014

StartingBlocks DUMBLAWs

In California, anyone caught selling a ‘smoothie’ that has lumps is breaking the law.

The punishment for masturbation in Indonesia is death by decapitation.

OF EVERYTHING THAT'S WORTH ITS SALT

HIgHEST groSSIng CoMIC book AdAPTATIonS

Marvel's The Avengers

The Dark Knight

Ethnic groups – Singapore

Iron Man 3

S/n name

Lifetime gross

open date

Marvel's The Avengers

$623,357,910

5/4/12

The Dark Knight

$534,858,444

7/18/08

The Dark Knight Rises

$448,139,099

7/20/12

Iron Man 3

$409,013,994

5/3/13

Spider-Man

$403,706,375

5/3/02

Spider-Man 2

$373,585,825

6/30/04

Spider-Man 3

$336,530,303

5/4/07

Iron Man

$318,412,101

5/2/08

Iron Man 2

$312,433,331

5/7/10

Man of Steel

$291,045,518

6/14/13

LEAdIng CEMEnT ProduCErS

India

USA

S/n Country 1

China

Annual production (metric tons) 1,388,380

India

177,000

USA

87,610

Japan

62,810

South Korea

53,900

Russia

53,000

Brazil

51,8865

Turkey

51,432

Mexico

47,609

Iran

44,400

SHoCKing

FooDFActs

In Burma, it is against the law to access the Internet. Anyone doing so faces prison.

1. The Chinese – Hokkiens The majority (74 per cent) of Singaporeans are ethnic Chinese. Of these, 41 per cent are the Hokkien dialect group from China’s southern Fujian province - the earliest Chinese immigrants. 2. The Chinese – Teochews and other dialect groups Other Chinese groups include the Teochews and Cantonese, from China’s Guangdong province, who make up 21 and 15 per cent of the Chinese community. Their cultural contributions include cuisine and opera. 3. The Malays Though Singapore’s native inhabitants, Malays today are a minority comprising 13 per cent of the population. The term ‘Malay’ should not be confused with ‘Malaysian’: Malay is a race; Malaysian is the nationality of Singapore’s northern neighbours. 4. The Peranakans A Peranakan is a person born in colonial Southeast Asia to a Chinese father and non- Chinese mother. Fluency in many languages and cultures made them locally prominent. 5. The Indians – Hindus Indians came to Singapore in the early 19th century. Many were businessmen who contributed to Singapore’s progress. Indians (mostly Hindus) make up 9 per cent of the population.

China

Garlic is a strong immune stimulator and can also inhibit the growth of cancer.

6. The Indians – Sikhs Originating from the Indian state of Punjab, the Sikhs are a small yet visible group. Their reputation

The Chinese – Hokkiens

for bravery inspired the British to employ Sikhs for security work. 7. The South Asians – Muslims Muslims comprise a quarter of the Indian population. Most are Tamils from southern India and northern Sri Lanka. Tamil is one of the official languages of Singapore, along with Mala Mandarin and English. 8. The Eurasians In colonial times, marriages between Europeans and locals created mixedheritage families who developed their own traditions. Though man locals are Eurasian by race, their heritage is dying out. 9. The Arabs Singapore’s Arab community’ is small but influential. Most came from Hadramaut in Yemen, heading trading firms and undertaking philanthropic projects, such as building schools. 10. The Expatriates Almost 20 per cent of the population are nonresident workers. Most are from the Philippines, Indonesia and Bangladesh, but white-collar workers tend to come from China, India and, to a lesser extent, North America, Australia, and Europe.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

StartingBlocks BY THE NUMBERS

Data world

CELEBINFO

BOXOFFICESTATS

Actor/Comedian Jim Carrey dropped out of school when he was 16 - after that, he worked as a janitor.

As at 22 June 2014, Kevin Hart’s comedy movie Think Like A Man Too has made over $30m in America.

2.9 MILLION

WHAT'S UP

375Megabytes

Is Al-Maliki the man to save Iraq?

Number of emails sent every second.

Data consumed by households each day.

IN-THE-NOW happeningS around us

Mr Maliki has said he will not bow to international pressure on forming a national unity government to tackle the Sunni rebellion in Northern Iraq, calling the idea a ‘coup’ against the constitution.

20 hours

Video uploaded to YouTube every minute.

24 Petabytes Data processed by day by Google

217

Number of users the mobile web receives every day.

347

Users of WordPress (a website for bloggers) publish 347 new blog posts every day.

3600

Number of new photos Instagram users share every day.

50 MILLION

Number of tweets sent per day.

700 BILLION

Total minutes spent on Facebook each month.

Number of products ordered on Amazon per second.

$272,000 Amount in American dollars consumers spend online every minute.

It’s not often that the White House and Tehran are on the same page, but when it comes to Iraq, U.S. President Barack Obama and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani are practically on the same paragraph. As disgruntled Sunni fighters aligned with al-Qaeda’s offshoot, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), take town after town in Iraq’s Sunni heartland, both countries are pushing Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for a solution. Rouhani has urged al-Maliki to work with Iraqi Sunnis and Kurds to defeat the extremists, while Obama has conditioned American assistance on al-Maliki’s willingness to include all of Iraq’s religious and ethnic groups in governmental policymaking. ‘I want to make sure that everybody understands this message,’ said Obama in a July 13 address. ‘The United States is not simply going to involve itself in a military action in the absence of a political plan by the Iraqis that gives us some assurance that they’re prepared But so far al-Maliki, a Shi‘ite, has resisted reaching out to his political opponents, focusing instead on directing a military response and recruiting young Shi‘ites for sectarian defence militias. ‘Obama and Rouhani should know better,’ says Iraqi political scientist Saad Jawad, who is now a  senior visiting fellow at the London

School of Economics’ Middle East Centre. Al-Maliki ‘can’t be the mediator. He is the problem.’ ISIS’s rapid advance in Iraq’s Sunni areas has as much to do with resentment over al-Maliki’s Shi‘ite-centric policies as with military might. ISIS, whose fighters only number in the low thousands according to most estimates, has been joined by other radical Sunni groups, as well as disgruntled tribal leaders and former members of Saddam Hussein’s ousted regime. Many of them reject ISIS’s Islamist agenda, but they hate al-Maliki even more. In the eight years he has been in power, al-Maliki has failed to win over Iraq’s Sunnis, which make up about 35% of the population and who flourished under Saddam’s rule. If Iraq is to survive the militant threat, al-Maliki must do everything possible to win back Sunni trust, former Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih told TIME via email. But it may be too late, says Jawad. AlMaliki’s heavy-handed crackdowns on Sunni protests over the past few years have alienated many, and his refusal to grant economic concessions to the semiautonomous Kurdish area has raised additional hackles. ‘He can’t reach out to any of these groups, because no one will believe him anymore. He is inflexible, and he has created problems with all the different groups — the

Sunnis, the Kurds, other political parties — that he is unable to solve,’ says Jawad. Its unclear why, exactly, al-Maliki has been so slow to reach out. Particularly if his two greatest backers, the U.S. and Iran, are insisting that he make amends. His party’s recent win in April’s elections earned him a third term, but he didn’t have enough support to form a government. Instead he has cobbled together a coalition of extreme Shi‘ite parties that have made the Sunni, Kurdish and secular parties even more wary. Jawad argues that power has gone to al-Maliki’s head and that he will do anything to maintain it, even at the risk of losing the country in the process. The only thing that will save Iraq now is a political reconciliation that spans the country’s ethno sectarian divide, says Feisal Amin Rasoul Istrabadi, Iraq’s former envoy to the U.N. and now the director of Indiana University’s Centre for the Study of the Middle East. The Sunnis have been disenfranchised, and the Shi‘ites, if they want to govern a united Iraq, will need a new leadership that understands this. One that is willing to broker the political compromises and engage in genuine power sharing. The question now is whether or not al-Maliki can be that leader. Culled from TIME Magazine

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Stuff

p32

knowing your car

cruellest festival

p35

It's amazing to know the things we could do ourselves with our cars.

p36

Dogs are killed in China to celebreate the longest day of the year.

Victoria Beckham From singer to fashion designer, Victoria is changing the lives of women.

that will tickle your fancy

ECONOMIC IDEAS

despots and dictators

Paraguay’s Alfredo Stroessner

Such was the economic development of Paraguay under the stewardship of ‘El Gran Lider,’ Alfredo Stroessner, that dirt roads fringed the presidential palace. Under Stroessner, communists were dropped from planes to feed the piranhas or dismembered by chain saw. The face of ‘El Gran Lider’ was posted everywhere and radio stations began the day with the Don Alfredo Polka, followed by the message, ‘The constitutional president of the republic, General Alfredo Stroessner, salutes the Paraguayan people and wishes them a prosperous day.’ Stroessner-governed Paraguay was a ‘throwaway country that nobody gives a rat’s ass about,’ according to a US State Department official. Stroessner’s sons were Freddy, who had

snorted so much coke and drunk so much alcohol that he was a cirrhosing vegetable –a drooling zombie who was in and out of institutions – and Gustavo, a ruthless homosexual degenerate. Stroessner’s Paraguay was a seething swirl of contraband and corruption, including Brazilian baby smuggling, where ‘pyragues’ (hairy soles), the government spies, were ubiquitous and the prison conditions were subhuman – they’ve been described as the worst dungeons in the world, where prisoners broke stones twelve hours a day, Sundays and public holidays included; lived in huts where they slept and ate on the floor, surviving on starvation diets; and where, in addition to other torture methods, one favourite was submerging until near drowning in baths of human excrement. Upon escorting a foreign dignitary to the airport, Stroessner unzipped the fly of his trousers, and urinated on the wheel of the airplane –a colonel smartly jumped to attention, nudged the dignitary, and exclaimed ‘What a democrat, our president!’ When Stroessner’s procurers were not scouring the countryside for eight-to-twelve-year-old girls, ‘The Tyrannosaur’ – Stroessner’s whispered nickname – cruised the streets of Asuncion himself, in search of muchachitas – nymphets; they were his elixir, a tonic for his old age. Aides would abduct a schoolgirl of his choosing and offer a bribe to her parents; if they refused, the girl was kidnapped; if she did not cooperate, she was drugged; if she got pregnant, she was treated by the finest doctors at the best hospital. One of Stroessner’s conquests was the I5-year-old daughter of the director of the national cement company. As part of the seduction, she and her brother got a trip to Disney World. When the muchachitas grew up, he lost interest in them and gave them to his lieutenants.

Belgium's Leopold 11 (1835-1909) King of Belgium whose brutal policies in the colony of the Congo reduced its population of 20 million by half in a two decade period. Personifying imperialism at its worst, Leopold hired the famous explorer H. M. Stanley (UDr. Livingstone, I presume?”) to carve out treaties with Congolese chiefs in order to legitimize a massive land grab in central Africa. Next he declared all unoccupied territories and their resources property of the Belgian-controlled state, subjugating the entire native population to a life of forced labor on the rubber plantations. Floggings and amputations by machete were common methods of maintaining discipline among the work crews comprised by the indigenous populace. Punitive patrols were dispatched by the imperialist masters if rubber production quotas weren’t met. Anti-exploitation literature including Red Rubber and Congo/and: A Story of Wrongdoing heralded a storm of protest over Leopold’s Mrican policies and, under the pressure of international condemnation, Leopold annexed the Congo a year before his death.

Answer:

Who sent the first domestic chair into space?

In 2004, artiste Simon Faithfull (UK) sent a domestic chair 30km into the air as part of the Artiste’s Airshow exhibition.

QUICKQUIZ

Central banks and interest rates Central banks steer economies away from booms and busts

The big four 1. The Federal Reserve (US) Its chief decision- making body is the Federal Open Market Committee. Chaired by the Fed Chairman, this 12- member group, with representatives from regional reserve banks and federal appointees, decides interest rates in the world’s biggest economy. 2. The European Central Bank (Europe) Its rates are decided by the governing council of 21 members, though in effect, the ECB’s president takes the final decision. 3. Bank of Japan This sets interest rates in the world’s second-largest economy. Although it has been independent since the Second World War, some economists suspect it is more swayed by political forces than other centre banks. 4. Bank of England Although this is the second oldest central bank, it was among the last to become independent of politicians, following Chancellor Gordon Brown’s decision in 1997 to free it from government control. Rates are decided by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of nine men and women. The Bank is nicknamed the ‘Old Lady of Threadneedle Street’, referring to the street in the city of London where it is situated.

USELESS INFORMATION

We all make mistakes During the chariot scene in Ben-Hur, a small red car can be seen in the distance. In the film Star Trek: First Contact, when Picard shows Lilly she is orbiting earth, Australia and Papua New Guinea are clearly visible … but New Zealand is missing. In the movie Now and Then, when the girls are talking to the hippie and they get up to leave, Teeny puts out her cigarette twice. If you pause Saturday Night Fever at the ‘How Deep is Your Love’ rehearsal scene, you will see the camera crew reflected in the dance hall mirror.

Stuff

Saturday, June 28, 2014 that will tickle your fancy

HISTORIFIC

SCIENTIFIC

The royal Canadian mounted police or “Mounties” were founded in 1875, with 300 riders to patrol the wilderness.

The low frequency call of the humpback whale is the loudest noise made by a living creature.

5 things your mechanic doesn’t want you to know Not all professional mechanics and repair centre operators are created equal. It’s very easy for your mechanic to be misleading, or downright dishonest with you about your vehicle’s repair needs. After all, they’re the experts you’re entrusting one of your most expensive, and least understood possessions to. With a charming smile, a personable attitude, and a sense of friendship, they can, and will take advantage of your confidence. The ‘code of silence’ that exists in the field of mechanical repair is broken. Here are five things your mechanic doesn’t want you to know. 1. Mechanics make you believe that your vehicle should be brought in for every repair This is something the entire industry is focused on. As it stands currently, the automotive repair industry in America alone is worth $150 bn. A rather large piece of that is the maintenance and minor repair section. For professional mechanics with even just a few years of experience, that part of the industry is an easy money maker. It’s the driving force behind the reason you receive an estimate to flush all of your vehicle’s fluids every time you visit the oil change shop. Even regular repair shops are guilty of doing this. The industry doesn’t want you to know that you can do a lot of these things on your own. With minimal tools, and some helpful online videos, you can go from $750 worth of needed maintenance and minor repairs, to about $150 worth of parts, or possibly even less, depending on what you’re trying to do. 2. Not all causes of the ‘check engine’ light need to be repaired Almost everyone that drives a vehicle has had an issue with the dreaded check engine light. It doesn’t give you any clues about why you need to check the engine. When the check engine light comes on, there is always at least one DTC (Diagnostic Trouble Code), which gets recorded. Your mechanic will look at the DTC and give you a repair estimate based on that. Even

if they tell you what the name of the DTC is, it’s very likely it won’t mean anything to you. There is a little known fact that the entire automotive repair industry doesn’t want you to know: you don’t need to have costly repairs done every time the check engine light comes on. There are a decent number of these DTCs that don’t require any repairs. That system has detected a failure, but it’s not going to cause you any problems to keep operating your vehicle. You won’t damage any of the systems, and you won’t lose any fuel mileage. The only one to lose is the repair industry. There are several websites that can help with this, such as mycheckenginelight.net. This website includes help tips in determining what repairs you actually need to carry out. 3. Certifications don’t mean what the industry has led you to believe Most independent repair shops, and a fair number of dealerships as well, make a big deal about the certifications of their mechanics. They make a convincing argument to earn your business, when they tell you about all of the certifications their mechanics possess. There’s one part they don’t ever dwell on though, when it comes to the certifications: they don’t really mean anything. When a mechanic gets certified through ASE (Automotive Service Excellence), it literally means that person passed a written test for one area of mechanical repair. There is a huge push in the industry to have certified mechanics simply because it gives more credibility to the shop that has certified mechanics, over the shop that doesn’t. There aren’t any classes that teach how to fix the cars, just a test. Once the test is passed, the mechanic is certified. Almost anyone can become a certified master technician, with two years’ work or school experience. All you have to do is pass the tests. 4. Mechanics guess way more than you think they do Have you ever taken your vehicle in for repairs, authorized an expensive estimate, and then had this call from your mechanic:

‘Well it’s a little better, all we need now is ………… to complete the repairs’? Even better, you’ve authorized an estimate, paid your bill in full, taken delivery of your vehicle, and then headed back to the shop as soon as possible, because the problem came right back? There is no such thing as ‘a little better.’ The sad truth is, it’s much quicker for your mechanic to guess, than it is to perform the lengthy steps needed to effect an accurate first time diagnosis. It’s much simpler to sell you the most common repair for your particular concern, and then deal with the problem further if needed. That’s when you’ll get the ‘it’s a little better’ conversation. If you receive an estimate for every part of the system that’s been worked on, you need to seek a second opinion to ensure your mechanic is not just guessing. 5. There is a labour guide that states the correct labour to charge for each repair In some countries, there are several books published each year detailing the exact number of labour hours to be charged for each repair. Your mechanic doesn’t want you to know this because it’s a common practice to charge what they feel is appropriate, instead of what the accepted standard is. Ask for a breakdown of the labour hours you’re being charged for, then ask to see the labour hours in the guide. If they don’t want to show you, or start making excuses to explain a discrepancy, or if the hours don’t match, it’s time to take your business elsewhere. These are all things your mechanic, and the automotive repair industry in general don’t want you to know. They don’t want you to understand how much profit your vehicle represents to them, in so many different ways. There are some very good, honest mechanics out there. They’ll tell you the things discussed here, and help you keep your vehicle in top running condition, in a cost effective manner. Until you’re able to find one, use these few tips to help you steer clear of an un-manageable repair bill.

questions you'll never ask

WORLD OF ESPIONAGE

Hidden spy software found in Chinese-made smartphones A popular brand of Chinese-made smartphones, which are sold internationally by several major retailers, have been found to contain pre-installed monitoring software, according to a German security firm. The revelation was made recently by G Data Software, which is based in Bochum, Germany, and has a subsidiary in the United States. The firm, which was founded in 1985, said it discovered the spy software hidden deep inside the proprietary software found on the Chinesemade Star N9500. The product in question is a cheap smartphone based on the popular Samsung Galaxy S4, and can be purchased from numerous Internet retailers, including online outlets such as Amazon.com. A G Data spokesperson, Thorsten Urbanski, told reporters in Germany that his company purchased several Star N9500 telephones from an online retailer after receiving multiple messages from users of the telephone in Germany, who said the device’s

Car repairs

operating system appeared to contain malicious software. The security firm said the Star N9500’s operating system contains hidden software applications that could allow a third party to access and steal the telephone user’s personal information. There are also secret applications that could permit a hacker to place calls from the telephone, or utilize the device’s microphone and camera without the consent of its owner. What’s more? The stolen data was sent to a server based in China. G Data investigators added that their team of experts sought for ‘over a week’ to track down the manufacturer of the Star N9500 but were unable to do so. German media reported that journalists from The Associated Press also tried to locate the manufacturer of the smartphone, by contacting several companies located in China’s southern province of Shenzhen, known as the centre of the country’s telecommunications industry.

What is a cold sore? Cold sores, also known as herpes or fever blisters, are caused by the herpes simplex virus. They look like small blisters that appear on the lips, inside the mouth, and adjacent to the mouth. Cold sores usually persist for 10 to 14 days. When a cold sore appears, the area will first become tingly and sensitive to touch. A person will be able to feel, but not see, a small hard spot. Usually by day three, tiny blisters have formed. These blisters sometime fill with fluid before splitting and becoming painful and raw. Eventually, the area will begin to scab over and heal itself. Cold sores are very common and are contagious. A person with an active cold sore should avoid kissing, sharing a glass or utensils, and touching the cold sore then touching someone else. And no matter what, a person with a cold sore should never pick at it. Doing so will slow down the healing process and increase the chance of spreading the virus. Once someone has been infected with the herpes virus, he or she has it forever; cold sores can’t be cured. At random times throughout the person’s life, a cold sore may simply recur spontaneously.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

BRANDED

Until 1989, Diesel fashion brand only sold menswear. It now targets women and children as well.

SoundingClever PARLOUS Fraught with danger. Gangster Al Capone’s health was always in a parlous state due to his refusal to receive injections.

SPORTFACT

‘Soccer’ comes from the abbreviation for ‘association’ or ‘assoc,’ as in Football Association. According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, it began as ‘socca,’ then morphed into ‘socker,’ and finally into ‘soccer’.

FORBIDDEN KNOWLEDGE

THINGS not everyone should know how to do

Count cards at a casino

EDICT An order from someone in office from the Latin edicere, from e:- out, and dicere: to say, tell. ‘Drink to me, drink to my health – you know I can’t drink any more’ was the last edict uttered by Pablo Picasso to his friends before he died. OBTUSE Annoying slow to grasp (something) from the Latin obtusus, past participle of obtundere: to beat against. Doctors must allow themselves to be overly affected by human suffering: perhaps this is why they can appear obtuse to some patients. VAPID Dull, un-stimulating from the Latin vapidus: flat. The piped music played in areoplanes awaiting take-off invariably vapid.

SOUNDING GREAT

Dissipate

To drive away; disperse. 2. To spend, use or engage in intemperately or foolishly. I believe it is the duty of every learned person to be a force for expanding endlessly the spirit of openness, love and acceptance that dissipates ill will, finds common ground within difference, and advances cooperation.

Stuff

that will tickle your fancy

August 1977 spotlights

FILM The Iron-Fisted Monk

The Husker has a heart of gold although he is full of tricks. When he is a trainee at Shaolin Temple, he cuts so many corners and devises so many.

Card counting is the only way you can statistically improve your chances of winning at the blackjack table, but then only by a few per cent. In the film Rain Man, Dustin Hoffman’s character memorises an eight deck shoe, but in real life, you don’t have to be an autistic savant with a photographic memory to use a card counting system, of which there are hundreds, but we will discuss the most common. Golden rule: don’t get caught Counting cards isn’t illegal, so long as you use your brain and not an electronic device. However, that doesn’t mean that a casino will tolerate you if they suspect you of counting. Many casinos are private property, so they can throw you out without giving a reason and charge you with trespassing if you return. In some joints, the dealers count too, and shuffle the pack when the odds swing in your favour. Many casinos use eight deck shoes and prohibit mid-shoe entry, which means that you can’t just join when the decks are looking good. When you play blackjack, certain cards favour the dealer and other cards favour the player. Very simply, the more high cards left in the shoe, the better the player’s chances of winning, because a dealer must hit if he has less than 17. But you don’t have to remember every single card that has been played; you just need to keep a running tally

of hi versus 10 cards. The HI/LO system As each card is dealt, add or subtract 1 from your running total. The higher the total, the better your odds and the more you bet; zero means it’s 50-50; and a negative number means the dealer has the advantage. So, if the deal is A, 8, 5, 2, 9, K, J, then the running total will be -1, -1, 0, +1, +1, 0, -1. However, you also have to divide the running total by the number of decks of cards still in the shoe to get a true count. Bet spread This means betting high when your chances are good and low when they are not. For instance, you may bet $80 on good hands and $10 on low. However, in light of the golden rule, if you make the bet spread (the difference between your big and small bets) too obvious (i.e., more than 8 to 1), you may get invited to a backroom beating. Be patient and try to look like a tourist or a loser gambler bum rather than a card-counting newbie. Counting cards will not make you a millionaire overnight. The glory days of card counting are long gone anyway, because the casinos have made the game more difficult to beat by increasing the number of decks, limiting bet spreads, and capping bets. You could make more money by getting yourself an evening job in a 7-11 or pumping gas.

MUSIC Kasey Cisyk

You Light Up My Life is a ballad written by Joe Brooks, and originally recorded by Kasey Cisyk for the soundtrack to the film of the same name.

TELEVISION A House Is Not a Home

At some point in Hong Kong, the construction industry was booming, but hidden dangers, due to corruption often jeopardised the public’s safety.

EVENT Technological invention

The Tandy Corporation TRS-80 Model I computer was announced at a press conference on the 3rd.

BIRTHDAY Kenny Rogers

Kenny Rogers, the white-bearded country singer who has sold more than one hundred million albums over the course of his career celebrated his 39th birthday on the 21st.

DEATH Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley, the ‘king of rock and roll’, dies in his home in Graceland on the 16th, at age 42.

Stuff

that will tickle your fancy

ARTICULATE

Costa Rican ‘Mole Man’ spends 10 years digging large underground Home by hand Manuel Barrantes, fondly known as ‘El Hombre Topo’ or ‘The Mole Man’, has spent the last 10 years building himself a unique underground home. The 62-year-old Costa Rican did it all by hand, using only picks and shovels for tools. He now uses the large tunnel as a residence and a museum, welcoming tourists and teaching children about archaeology and geography. The underground dwelling is located in Perez Zeledon, a canton of San José Province in Costa Rica. Popularly known as ‘Topolandia’, the unique dwelling features over 400 square meters of tunnels. The walls and corridors of the caves are adorned with a variety of hand-carved sculptures of turtles, dinosaurs and even TV characters like the Flintstones. The largest tunnel inside the house is at least 16 meters deep, with a comfortable lounge to welcome visitors. The idea for this unique home came to him during his many travels across Europe and South America. Barrantes visited a total of 18 countries as a backpacker, working as a miner and learning various digging techniques. He witnessed people living caves and caverns, protected from harsh weather, and that’s how he was inspired.

KNOW WHY...

…our faces contort when we’re in pain? People in pain typically have lowered eyebrows, raised cheeks, tightened eyelids, an open mouth, and closed eyes. One reason is to escape from the cause of the pain. Tensing up your muscles and screwing up your face scarily might do that. Another reason is to let others know you are in pain, because you may need help. Among sociable species like humans it is important that we can read each other’s states of mind.

5.9 metres

Saturday, June 28, 2014 5.9 metres. Length of Asha Mandela’s hair which currently holds the record for ‘World’s Longest Dreadlocks’.

352

Number of people James Bond has killed in films.

Does taking pictures help us remember things? Sometimes, but it can also do the opposite. Photography can spoil our memories if we rely on having pictures to take home instead of enjoying life as it happens. Tourists who hold their phones or cameras up all day cannot look properly at the sights, let alone engage deeply with people and emotions. A specific ‘photo-taking-impairment effect’ was recently discovered when students photographed 15 objects in a museum and just looked at 15 others. They remembered less detail of the photographed items. However, the effect was fragile. If they zoomed in on specified areas of the objects, they recalled more details not fewer, even recalling details that were not in the photos. Indeed, photographs can help memory in other ways. Concentrating while choosing a shot requires attention which in turn aids memory. And looking at photos later helps us remember more about the context and the events we chose to record.

Do animals get hiccups? Lots of species, other than humans, get hiccups too. This annoying experience happens when something irritates the diaphragm into a sudden contraction, pushing air up into the lungs so quickly that the epiglottis in the throat shuts. Almost any animal with this kind of breathing system can suffer the same result, including all mammals. Kittens often get hiccups although they don’t make much noise, while adult cats and dogs sometimes do if they eat too fast. Horses get loud hiccups and all sorts of animals have been filmed hiccupping including squirrels, otters and even porcupines.

Is love more likely to bloom in hot weather? It may flourish when the sun shines. In a recent french experiment, five 20-yearold men set out to ask for women’s phone numbers, approaching those walking alone in the street who appeared to be aged 18-25. When the sun was shining, 22 per cent of the women gave out their phone numbers, compared with 14 per cent on cloudy days. Bright sunshine lowers levels of melatonin (the sleep hormone) and increases levels of serotonin in the brain, leading to a better mood. So probably both the men and women felt more cheerful and more inclined to take a chance. The temperature was about the same on the different days so it was likely the sun, not the heat that did the trick.

Is the great wall of china really visible from space?

No. Even from low earth orbit the great wall of china is extremely hard to spot with the naked eye. It’s a very thin line, almost the same colour as the landscape. Lots of other things are visible though, including cities, airports and dams. From the moon, no manmade structure is visible.

How do polar bears stay warm? They are incredibly well insulated with a layer of blubber that can be up to 10cm thick covered with another 15cm of fur. Polar bears lose so little heat to their environment that they are almost invisible to thermal imaging cameras. But a recent study at the university of buffalo found that polar bears have also evolved genes that produce more nitric oxide than other bear species. Nitric oxide is a signalling molecule and one of the mechanisms it controls is whether cells use their available nutrients to produce metabolic energy, or simply convert it into body heat.

Polar bears seem to be able to divert more of their body’s resources into generating heat. This relies on them getting enough fuel for this process and adult polar bears have a high calorie diet; they mostly eat seal blubber.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Stuff

life–styled

The dog eating celebration in China The mass killing of dogs in China is perhaps the most brutal thing ever done to animals. Animal rights activist argue that this festival is an infringement on animal rights because they are entitled to possession of their own lives.

For many bygone civilizations, the summer solstice—the longest day of the year—was endowed with great significance. People celebrated this special day, which falls in June in the northern hemisphere and is also known as midsummer, with festivals, celebrations and other observances, some of which still survive or have experienced a revival in modern times. The ancient Chinese participated in a ceremony on the summer solstice to honour the earth, femininity and the force known as yin. It complemented the winter solstice ritual, which was devoted to the heavens, masculinity and yang. Ancient Northern and Central European tribes, as well as many Germanic, Slavic and Celtic pagans welcomed summer with bonfires, a tradition that is still enjoyed in Germany, Austria, Estonia and other countries. Some ancient tribes practiced a ritual in which couples would jump through the flames to predict how high that year’s crops would grow. Some modern Chinese however have towed a different path to celebrate the solstice. Some residents of the southern Chinese city of Yulin began gathering early in June and began eating dog meat and lychees to celebrate the longest day of the year, ahead of solstice. These residents chose to advance the summer solstice dogeating celebrations to avoid protests from those now against it. Residents began killing and eating dogs early in celebration of the summer solstice in a bid to avoid protests

"Under the Yulin tradition, eating dog and lychee and drinking liquor on the solstice is supposed to make people stay healthy during winter." by animal rights campaigners. The locals wanted to avoid protests which have in recent years seen the festival, slaughterhouses and markets that sell dogs targeted as part of a social media campaign and ongoing online petition against the practice. The public uproar reflects the increasing affluence of ordinary Chinese, who keep pets, travel overseas and are changing attitudes toward traditions they may not have questioned before. Photos that emerged showed groups of Yulin city residents tucking into plates of meat and vegetables around dining tables strewn with lychees. Other photos, which circulated widely on Chinese microblogs, were of skinned, cooked dogs hanging from hooks at street stalls or piled on tables. Under the Yulin tradition, eating dog and lychee and drinking liquor on the solstice is supposed to make people stay healthy during winter. It is unclear if the supposed health

benefits diminish if the feast occurs before the actual solstice. Animal rights activists say the event is a public health risk because the dogs undergo no quarantine to ensure they are free of disease, and that they are strays grabbed off streets around the country, as well as allegedly stolen from pet owners. The dogs are often poisoned with toxic chemicals that could be harmful to humans, they say. Deng Yidan, an activist with Animals Asia, said the public backlash hurts the image of Yulin and China. ‘Negative coverage is growing — dog theft, criminal activities, food hygiene issues, and rabies fears — not to mention the division in society between those for and against the festival — together these have brought significantly more negative publicity to Yulin than economic benefits,’ Deng said in a statement. The Yulin government has sought to distance itself from the feasting, saying it is not officially endorsed. State media reports say the government told restaurants to remove references to dog meat from their menus and signboards — though it did not ban the sale and consumption of the meat, which is not illegal in China. The government has denied the formal existence of such a festival, saying it is a culinary habit practiced only by some businesses and people. Public pressure stopped another dog meat festival, in eastern Zhejiang province, which was cancelled in 2011 despite dating back hundreds of years.

that will tickle your fancy

TEENY How to pack a beach bag Yay!!! It is summer time and time to head to the beach for those in cold regions, and also a good time for those in hot regions to unwind at the beach. Don’t know how to pack a beach bag? Fret not, just read on Buy your beach bag. Large department stores, specialist bag stores or even the thrift store are ideal bag purchasing locations. The beach bags in those stores will be big enough to fit all your items. Make sure your beach bag is durable and sturdy. Get beach supplies. Hit another section of the store to find a beach towel to sit on, a beach towel to dry yourself, a beach umbrella (if it’s too sunny) and you may want to buy beach chairs to sit on. Go to the grocery store. If you’re planning to stay for a long time, get sandwich supplies and pack sandwiches. Also get salads. If you have a bag that cools and keeps food hot, then you can take almost any food you want. Get water bottles in case it gets too hot. If you have the cooler bag, you can pack some cans of juice or soda. Get a big lunchbox to pack all these things. Get things to keep you cool Gather together the things that will help to keep you cool and sun safe. Get sunscreen and sunglasses. Buy a hat if you’d like - hats provide excellent coverage. Buy things to keep you satisfied at the beach. Get surfboards if you know how to ride them, but don’t get one if you don’t know how to ride them, get a volleyball (some beaches have volleyball nets). If you are bringing along kids then bring floats, pail and shovel, and other beach toys. Bring magazines and books, and bring your iPod or CD Walkman with a couple of CD’s. Make sure you have your cell phone if you have one. Start packing your beach bag Begin by placing your towels at the bottom. Then you can put the extra things that are little that you want to bring, such as sunscreen, toys, purse, lip gloss, etc. and then place the food inside the hot and cold bag, and then put the hot and cold bag in the lunch box. Place the lunch box in the beach bag. Place big books and magazines in your beach bag. Then, you can place leftover ‘little’ things in a little bag if you have room. Get your bathing suit Buy one if you don’t already have. Put comfortable clothes (cotton t-shirts and shorts) over your bathing suit (unless you have a tank with the shorts or the 1-piece with the skirt/ short over. If you have a bikini with shorts/skirt you’re fine) Use walking shoes to get out of the parking lot into the beach. Take the flip flops out and put them on.

CognosCenti

THe worlD biTeS back

p38-42

Suarez parodied as Jaws, Dracula and Hannibal as jokes go viral

Snakes are probably one of the scariest and scheming animals around. There are different types of snakes, some more dangerous than others. This is a list of some of the deadliest snakes in the world based on an experiment with the median lethal dose (LD50) which uses a snake’s venom to kill mice. The lower the dose needed, the deadlier the snake is.

Monster: Luis Suarez is portrayed as Jaws on a poster from the 1975 thriller after the Uruguay striker’s extraordinary attack on Giorgio Chiellini during his team’s World Cup match against Italy. Suarez biting Chiellini

The Italian defender whose shoulder he sank his teeth into probably still doesn’t see the funny side. But one mock-up that proved popular around the world had Suarez as Hannibal Lecter, the cannibal criminal from the 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs. The Uruguay striker was also pictured as Dracula and even as the shark from the Hollywood film Jaws – the theme of a headline employed recently by Daily Mail. Suarez’s sponsors, who include Adidas, do not see the player’s third biting outrage as a laughing matter however. The sportswear firm’s executives met in Rio de Janeiro recently to discuss the incident. A spokesman said: ‘Adidas is aware of the issue involving Luis Suarez. We await FIFA’s full investigation into this matter and will respond accordingly.’ Adidas took the unusual step of issuing a statement condemning Suarez’s ‘unacceptable’ actions when he bit Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic during a Premier League game last year. Poker brand 888, which also has a deal with the player, said it would not tolerate unsporting behaviour and was seriously reviewing its relationship with the star. Liverpool fans are anxiously awaiting the outcome

of the investigation by FIFA. The global governing body has the power to ban Suarez from club football as well as from international games. The Uruguayan, who scored the two goals that effectively ended England’s World Cup hopes, was watched by millions of TV viewers plunging his mouth towards Chiellini’s shoulder on the night of Tuesday 24th June 2014. The Italian player pulled down his shirt to reveal a red bite mark, but the referee took no action and Suarez was allowed to continue playing. Uruguay then scored to go through to the tournament’s knock-out stages at Italy’s expense. Suarez’s lawyer claimed that European football chiefs were trying to have the striker banned. Alejandro Balbi told Uruguayan radio: ‘we don’t have any doubts that this has happened because it’s Suarez and secondly because Italy was eliminated. There’s a lot of pressure from

THE BIG STORY

deadliest snakes

Suarez has been mocked up as Dracula from the silent era - but his sponsors do not see his third biting incident as a laughing matter.

Ones for the album: Online jokers have turned Luis Suarez into Hannibal Lecter, the cannibal criminal from the Silence of the Lambs.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Under control: One mock-up proving popular is Suarez as a dog in a neck cone.

England and Italy.’ The lawyer, who is a board member of Uruguay’s football association, also suggested Suarez was being targeted because he threatened other nations’ chances of winning the World Cup, including those of hosts Brazil. Suarez, a married father of two, was suspended for seven games for biting PSV Eindhoven’s Otman Bakkal on the shoulder while playing for Dutch club Ajax in 2010. He also received a tengame ban in England for biting Ivanovic. However on Thursday, 26 June 14, Luis Suarez was banned for nine international matches and suspended for four months from any football activity by FIFA. The Liverpool striker is also set to miss a large chunk of the English Premier season and is ‘banned from any football related activity.’ The ban is the most severe ever handed out during a World Cup but the striker does have the right to appeal.

Suarez receiving the award for best bite of the year

Suarez wearing a mouth guard

Saturday, June 28, 2014

DEADLIEST SNAKES

Fierce Taipan snake The Taipan is also referred to as the fierce snake because of the fierceness of its venom. Contrary to its alternate name, the Taipan is actually reclusive and shy. The Taipan is a pale creamy colour on the head. The body is light brown, dark brown, copper or olive in colour. The Taipan has excellent senses of smell and eyesight. It quickly moves in on its prey, strikes fast, draws back and waits for the poison to work. As soon as the poison has worked, the snake eats the prey. Their diets consist primarily of small mammals, especially rats and bandicoots. It is recorded as the world’s most venomous land snake. The Taipan is normally found in Australia. While anti-venom has been invented, the recovery period from a Taipan’s snakebite can still be painful and slow. Its venom’s toxicity can range from an LD50 of 0.03 to as low as 0.01. The venom in a Taipan is strong enough to kill up to 12,000 guinea pigs. The venom clots the victim’s

blood, blocking arteries or veins. It is also highly neurotoxic. Before the advent of an antivenin, there were no known survivors of a Taipan bite, and death typically occurs within an hour. Even with successful administration of antivenin, most victims will have an extensive stay in intensive care. It has been likened to the African Black Mamba in morphology, ecology and behaviour. The female Taipan lays 10-20 eggs after mating. Taipans are the most intelligent, nervous and alert of the Australian venomous snakes. They generally stay away from humans, escaping before they are noticed. However, the Taipan will defend itself fiercely if it is cornered or threatened, often delivering several bites. Taipans are ‘milked’ of their venom by getting them to inject venom into a jar through a rubber cover. The venom is used to make medicine to help save people who are bitten by a Taipan. Like all snakes, the Taipan has its place in the environment.

Tenacious Russell’s viper The Russell’s viper is another deadly snake to avoid. What makes it more dangerous than the other types of snakes is that it thrives in open fields and bushy areas, or the places where people live because of its strong attraction to rodents. Some of the common victims of the Russell’s viper would be outdoor workers. This snake is commonly found in India, Thailand, and Burma. In Burma alone, it accounts for 90% of snakebite deaths. Some effects of its snakebite include extensive bleeding, necrosis, swelling, pain, and vomiting. It can kill you through cardiac, respiratory, or kidney failure. Unfortunately, there is no anti-venom for its snakebite as its venom’s properties are different, depending on the area where the snake is found. It has deadly venom toxicity with an LD50 of 0.03. This snake can grow to a maximum total length (body + tail) of 166 cm (1.6 m) and averages about 120 cm (1.2 m) on mainland Asian populations, although island populations do not attain this size. It is more willowy built than most other vipers. The head is flattened, triangular and distinct from the neck. The snout is blunt, rounded and raised.

The nostrils are large, each in the middle of a large, single nasal scale. The lower edge of the nasal touches the nasorostral. The supranasal has a strong crescent shape and separates the nasal

from the nasorostral anteriorly. The rostral is as broad as it is high. The body is stout, the crosssection of which is rounded to circular. The dorsal scales are strongly keeled; only the lowest row is smooth. Mid-body, the dorsal scales number 27– 33. The ventral scales number 153–180. The anal plate is not divided. The tail is short — about 14% of the total length — with the paired sub caudals numbering 41–68.Dorsally, the colour pattern consists of a deep yellow, tan, or brown ground colour, with three series of dark brown spots that run the length of the body. Each of these spots has a black ring around it, the outer border of which is intensified with a rim of white or yellow. The dorsal spots, which usually number 23–30, may grow together, while the side spots may break apart. The head has a pair of distinct dark patches; one on each temple, together with a pinkish, salmon, or brownish V or X marking that forms an apex towards the snout. Behind the eye, there is a dark streak, outlined in white, pink, or buff. The venter is white, whitish, yellowish or pinkish, often with an irregular scattering of dark spots.

OTHER DEADLY SNAKES The Tiger snake

The Tiger snake is striped like real tigers. There are several varieties of this snake that can be found in different places but it is predominantly present in Australia, north western Mexico and south western United States. Some of its favourite spots are coastal areas and creeks. The median lethal dose for the tiger snake varies from an LD50 of 0.4 for the Chappell Island tiger snake variety and it can go as low as 0.12 for the peninsular tiger snake. A Tiger snakebite that remains untreated can rapidly cause problems in breathing, paralysis, and even death 60% of the time; its neurotoxic venom is very potent. It is touted to have the highest toxicity among all rattlesnakes. Any tiger snake bite should be considered as a critical emergency.

The Desert Horned viper

The Desert Horned viper is characterized by its little horns over each eye that makes

it easy to recognize. It is known for its sidewinding move. It presses its weight on the sand to enable it to move across the sand’s loose surface. The desert horned viper is commonly found across North Africa and the Middle East. Scientists have different opinions on the desert horned viper’s venom toxicity that varies from an LD50 range of 0.4 to 0.1. They have a reasonably placid temperament, but if threatened, they may assume a C-shaped posture and rapidly rub their coils together. Because they have strongly keeled scales, this rubbing produces a rasping noise, similar to the sound produced by snakes of the genus Echis.

The Boomslang

The Boomslang is a small, beautiful, and brightly coloured snake. Its venom is released through its fangs at the rear of its jaw rather than at the front. The effect of the snakebite will normally be felt after

several hours. It can cause internal and external bleeding since the blood clotting process is disabled. The Boomslang is normally found in Africa. It is not as aggressive as other types of snake as it would prefer to retreat than to attack. While deaths caused by a boomslang’s bite are relatively rare, it still remains dangerous with a high venom toxicity of 0.07 LD50.

is normally uniformly coloured, although it can occasionally be marked with a dark V-shape. It may be found under short trees with thick shade if the outside temperature is greater than 45° Celsius.

Coral snakes

Coral snakes are small, vibrantly coloured, highly poisonous snakes found in Asia and in America. They have the secondLebetine viper strongest venom of any snake (the black This is a large snake, with females reaching mamba has the most deadly venom), but 150 cm (59.1 in) in total length (body + tail) they are generally considered less danand males a little less. The head is broad, gerous than Rattlesnakes. This is because triangular, and distinct from the neck. The Coral snakes have a less effective poisonsnout is rounded and blunt when viewed delivery system than their rattling cousins. from above, which is why it is also called Their bright colouring serves a warning to the blunt-nosed viper. The nasal and predators, but if they are provoked, these nasorostral scales are almost completely snakes will bury their heads in their coiled fused into a single plate, although some bodies and raise their tails which look variation occurs. The colour pattern is less quite similar to their heads. The cloaca varied than one might expect from a spe- is basically the snake’s sphincter, so the cies that is so widely distributed. The head sound it makes is essentially a fart.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

DEADLIEST SNAKES

Temperamental Eastern brown snake of Australia. The Brown snake is fast moving, can be aggressive under certain circumstances and has been known to chase aggressors and repeatedly strike at them. Even juveniles can kill a human. The venom contains both neurotoxins and blood coagulants. Fortunately for humans, less than half of bites contain venom and they prefer not to bite if at all possible. They react only to movement, so stand very still if you ever encounter one in the wild. Adult Eastern brown snakes are highly variable in colour. Whilst usually a uniform shade of brown, they can have various patterns including speckles and bands, and range from a very pale fawn colour through to black, including orange, silver, yellow and grey. Juveniles can be banded and have a black head, with a lighter band behind, a black nape, and numerous red-brown spots on the belly.

The Eastern brown snake is another deadly variety of snake. Its venom contains blood coagulants and neurotoxins. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commonly found in Australia. The snake occupies a varied range of habitats from dry sclerophyll forests (Eucalypt forests) and heaths of coastal ranges, through to savannah woodlands, inner grasslands and arid scrublands and farmland. It is not found in rainforests or other wet areas, nor is it found in very dry deserts with little or no cover. There are different reports on the toxicity of the venom of the eastern brown snake. Its LD50 ranges from 0.05 to 0.03. Do not let the innocuous name of this snake fool you. 1/14,000 of an ounce of its venom is enough to kill an adult human. Coming in a variety of species, the Eastern Brown snake is the most venomous of its kind. Unfortunately, its preferred habitat is also along the major population centres

Predatory Rattlesnake Rattlesnake is easily identifiable by the telltale rattle on the end of its tail. They are actually a part of the Pit Viper family, and are capable of striking at up to 2/3rd their body length. Rattlesnakes are predators that live in a wide array of habitats, hunting small animals such as birds and rodents. They kill their prey with a venomous bite, rather than by constricting. All Rattlesnakes possess a set of fangs with which they inject large quantities of hemotoxic venom. Surprisingly, the juveniles are considered more dangerous than the adults, due to their inability to control the amount of venom injected. The venom travels through the bloodstream, destroying tissue and causing swelling, internal bleeding, and intense pain. Some species, such as the Tiger Rattlesnake and the Mojave Rattlesnake, additionally possess a neurotoxic component in their venom that causes paralysis and other nervous symptoms. Most species of Rattlesnakes have hemotoxic

venom, destroying tissues, degenerating organs and causing coagulopathy (disrupted blood clotting). Some degree of permanent scarring

is very likely in the event of a venomous bite, even with prompt, effective treatment and can lead to the loss of a limb or death. Difficulty in breathing, paralysis, drooling and massive haemorrhaging are also common symptoms. Thus, a Rattlesnake bite is always a potentially fatal injury. Untreated Rattlesnake bites, especially from larger species, are very often fatal. However, antivenin, when applied in time, reduces the death rate to less than 4%. The threat of envenomation, advertised by the loud shaking of the titular noisemaker (â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;rattleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;) at the end of their tail, deters many of its predators. However, rattlesnakes still fall prey to hawks, weasels, king snakes, and a variety of other species. Rattlesnakes are heavily preyed upon as neonates while they are still weak and mentally immature. Very large numbers of rattlesnakes are killed by humans. Rattlesnake populations in many areas are severely threatened by habitat destruction, poaching, and extermination campaigns.

NON-VENOMOUS SNAKES Anaconda

Anacondas are one of the biggest snakes in the world. Their average size is 6m long and 148 kg (300 pounds). Although the name applies to a group of snakes, it is often used to refer only to one species in particular, the common or green anaconda. Anacondas make their home in the Amazon Jungles of South America. Generally they live in rivers and swamps. When confronted with danger they prefer to escape through the water than attacking. They prey on animals like frogs and toads, fish, birds, ducks and turtles. Their style of hunting is similar to that of a Python.

all at once. Pythons have been known to kill and eat animals as large as pigs and cats. Pythons are also kept as pets, but some incidents suggest it unsafe. These cold blooded killers are found in Asia, Australia and sub-Saharan Africa. Most members of this family are ambush predators, in that they typically remain motionless in a camouflaged position and then strike suddenly at passing prey. They will generally not attack humans unless startled or provoked, although females protecting their eggs can be aggressive. Reports of attacks on human beings were common in South and Southeast Asia, but are now quite rare.

Python

Eastern Ribbon Snake

Pythons are large muscular snakes which grow up to 10m and weigh as much as 150 kg. Pythons are well known for the way they kill their prey by squeezing them to death and then swallowing them

These snakes usually live near aquatic areas like lakes or swamps. These snakes can grow up to 1m long. They feed on salamanders, frogs, small fish and occasionally insects. Some aspects

of the Eastern Ribbon snake make it different from its close relative, the Grater snake. The Eastern Ribbon snake has a much thinner body than a garter snake. This snake stays active all year around. However, in colder months, the snake may be forced to hibernate, typically in ant mounds, vole tunnels, crayfish burrows, muskrat lodges, and bank burrows. Ribbon snakes rarely bite when handled, but they do produce a foul musk from their anal glands when they feel threatened.

Eastern Garter Snake

This specie is found in diversity of grassy habitats that are usually wet but not necessarily near aquatic areas. It can grow up-to a maximum length of 1m. It is distinguished from all the other Georgia species other than the ribbon snake. This species give birth to live young, sometimes having more than 50 babies.

Garter snakes have complex systems of pheromonal communication. They can find other snakes by following their pheromone-scented trails. Male and female skin pheromones are so different as to be immediately distinguishable. However, male Garter snakes sometimes produce both male and female pheromones. During mating season, this ability fools other males into attempting to mate with them.

Rough Green Snake

This specie is found in densely vegetated areas having vines, bushes and shrubs. They are often spotted along the edges of rivers and lakes. They can climb trees and vines in search of prey. They feed on spiders, grasshoppers, and other invertebrates. Adults are very slender and seldom reach lengths of more than 1m. They are inoffensive and do not bite.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

DEADLIEST SNAKES

Hook-nosed Sea snake This Sea snake is an aggressive hooknosed type of snake. Most Sea snakes are completely aquatic and have adapted to their environments in many ways. They are found in warm coastal waters from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific. All have paddle-like tails and many have laterally compressed bodies that give them an eel-like appearance. Unlike fish, they do not have gills and must surface regularly to breathe. They are among the most completely aquatic of all airbreathing vertebrates. Observations suggest Sea snakes are active both day and night. In the morning, and sometimes late in the afternoon, they can be seen at the surface basking in the sunlight. When disturbed, they dive below. They are very dangerous with allegedly eight times more toxicity

than the cobraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s venom. Its toxicity depends on the type of Sea snake involved, ranging from an LD50 of 0.04 for the Dubois reef Sea snake to as low as 0.01 for the Belcherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sea snake. It is the most venomous snake known in the world. A few milligrams is strong enough to kill 1000 people! Less than 1/4 of bites will contain venom, and they are relatively docile. Fishermen are usually the victims of these bites, as they encounter the species when they pull nets from the ocean. Found throughout waters off South East Asia and Northern Australia, the Sea snakes, also known as Coral Reef snakes are a subfamily of venomous elapid snakes. Among this group are species with some of the most potent venoms of all snakes. Some have gentle dispositions and bite only

when provoked, but others are much more aggressive. When they are taken out of the water, their movements become very erratic. They crawl awkwardly in these situations and can become quite aggressive, striking wildly at anything that moves. Currently, 17 genera are described as Sea snakes, comprising 62 species. The majority of adult Sea snake species grow to between 120 and 150 cm (1.1 and 1.4 m.) in length, with the largest, Sea snake, reaching a maximum of 3 metres (9.8 ft.). Their eyes are relatively small with a round pupil and most have nostrils that are located dorsally. The skulls do not differ significantly from terrestrial elapids, although the dentition is relatively primitive with short fangs and as many as 18 smaller teeth behind them on the maxilla.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

DEADLIEST SNAKES

Carnivorous Death Adder The appropriately named Death Adder is found in Australia and New Guinea. They actually hunt and kill other snakes, including some on this list, usually via ambush. Death Adders look quite similar to vipers, in that they have triangular shaped heads and short, squat bodies. Common Death Adders eat small mammals and birds as a primary diet. Unlike other snakes, the common Death Adder lies in wait for its prey (often for many days) until a meal passes. It covers itself with leaves, making itself inconspicuous and lies coiled in ambush, twitching its grub-like tail close to its head as a lure. When an animal approaches to investigate the movement, the Death adder quickly strikes, injecting its venom and then waits for the victim to die before eating it. The Death adder is not aggressive and less of a threat to humans. They typically inject around 40-100mg of venom with an LD of

0.4mg-0.5mg/kg. An untreated Death Adder bite however is one of the most dangerous in the world. The venom is a neurotoxin. A bite causes paralysis and can cause death within 6 hours, due to respiratory failure. Symptoms generally peak within 24-48 hours. Antivenin is very successful in treating a bite from a Death Adder, particularly due to the relatively slow progression of symptoms, but before its development, a Death Adder bite had a fatality rate of 50%. With the quickest strike in the world, a Death Adder can go from strike position to striking and back again within 0.13 of a second. Common Death adders are found in forests, woodlands, grasslands and heaths of the eastern coast of Australia. The Death adder is a master of camouflage due to its band stripes, hiding beneath loose leaf litter and debris in woodland, shrub land and grassland.

Spitting Philippine Cobra Most species of Cobra would not make this list; however the Philippine Cobra is the exception. Drop for drop, its venom is the most deadly of all the Cobra species, and they are capable of spitting it up to 3 metres. The venom is a neurotoxin which affects cardiac and respiratory function, and can cause neurotoxicity, respiratory paralysis and death in thirty minutes. The bite causes only minimal tissue damage. The Philippine cobra is a stocky snake of medium length with long cervical ribs capable of expanding, so when threatened, a hood can be formed. The average length of this species is 1.0 metres. The species can grow to lengths of 1.6 metres. However, subpopulations of the species, particularly specimens from Mindoro Island, are said to attain lengths of 2 metres, but these are unconfirmed claims. If true, however, 2 metres would

be very rare and would be considered the absolute maximum for this species. The head is elliptical, depressed, and slightly distinct from the neck with a short, rounded snout and large nostrils. The eyes are moderate in size with dark brown and round pupils, typical of other cobra species and similar to other elapids in general. It has a fairly stocky build for an elapid, and adult snakes are uniformly light to medium brown, while the juveniles tend to be a darker brown in colour. They have 23-27 scale rows around the neck and 21 just above the middle part of the body; 182-193 ventrals, 36-49 subcaudals, and basal pairs are sometimes undivided. The neurotoxins interrupt the transmission of nerve signals by binding to the neuro-muscular junctions near the muscles. The symptoms might include headache, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, dizziness, collapse and convulsions.

AFRICA’S MOST DANGEROUS SNAKES Puff Adder

The Puff Adder is considered to be Africa’s deadliest snake because it is responsible for the most human fatalities. Puff Adders reach an average length of around 1 metre, and they’re solidly built with a wide breadth. Colour patterns vary depending on where they live, their habitats extend throughout Africa except for dense rain forests and deserts. The Puff Adder has large fangs and its venom is powerful enough to kill a grown man with a single bite. Puff Adders rely on camouflage for protection and lie still if approached. Because of this, people tend to step on them and get bitten. Many fatalities occur because bites are not treated correctly, leading to infection and gangrene.

Gaboon Viper

The Gaboon Viper has the longest fangs and the highest venom yield of any venomous snake in the world. Gaboon

Vipers can be found in West, Central and parts of East Africa, as they prefer forested areas. Adults reach an average length of around 1.5 metres. While the Gaboon Viper delivers a huge dose of venom, the venom is not as toxic as some of the other snakes on this list. A single bite could kill a man however. Gaboon Vipers are very interesting looking snakes with a huge triangular shaped head and pretty black, brown and pink markings. Gaboon Vipers are quite passive and rarely bite unless provoked or stepped on (even then they don’t always bite).

Egyptian Cobra

The Egyptian Cobra (Naja haje) is a deadly venomous snake most commonly found in Egypt but also in other parts of North Africa. The Egyptian Cobra has glands located behind its eyes which produce a deadly neurotoxic venom that’s released through its large fangs. The venom of an

Egyptian Cobra is so deadly it can kill a full grown Indian Elephant in 3 hours. In humans its venom causes paralysis and death due to respiratory failure. The adult’s average length is about 2m and they are usually yellowish to dark brown with brown cross bands. Egyptian Cobras are aggressive snakes that live in dry to moist savanna and semi-desert regions. It is thought that Cleopatra used an Egyptian Cobra to commit suicide.

Saw-Scaled Viper or Carpet Viper

The Saw-Scaled or Carpet Vipers are small, bad tempered, highly venomous snakes found north of the equator in Africa. Adult vipers reach an average length of just 20-30 inches. Their venom is hemotoxic and very virulent. This means the venom causes spontaneous internal bleeding, sometimes days after the bite has occurred. The SawScaled viper is named for the sound it makes as its scales rub together producing

a warning sound similar to a ‘sizzle’. These venomous vipers are active after dark and that’s when most of their victims are bitten.

Cape Cobra

The Cape Cobra has powerful venom and is one of the deadliest snakes in Southern Africa. Cape Cobras grow to an average of around 1.2 metres. Cape Cobras are particularly dangerous because they tend to be nervous and aggressive. Without treatment, the mortality rate in humans is 60% and death normally occurs 2-5 hours after being bitten, usually as a result of respiratory failure due to the onset of paralysis. The Cape Cobra is a beautiful looking snake some are yellow, some copper or mahogany coloured and some are purplish black. The Cape Cobra loves to hunt for rodents and can climb trees to raid weaver bird colonies. The Cape Cobra is common throughout dry regions in Southern Africa.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

DEADLIEST SNAKES

Fast Black Mamba excessive salivation (including foaming of the mouth and nose) and pronounced ataxia (lack of muscle control). If the victim does not receive medical attention, symptoms rapidly progress to severe abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, pallor, shock, nephrotoxicity, cardio toxicity and paralysis. Eventually, the victim experiences convulsions, respiratory arrest, coma and then death. Without antivenin, the mortality rate is nearly 100%, among the highest of all venomous snakes. Depending on the nature of the bite, death can result at any time between 15 minutes and 3 hours. The black mamba is a big, black, long, quick, and deadly type of snake. Fortunately, anti-venom has already been created to prevent deaths from the black mamba’s snakebite. Its venom has a 0.05 LD50.

The feared Black Mamba is found throughout many parts of the African continent. They are known to be highly aggressive, and strike with deadly precision. They are also the fastest land snakes in the world, capable of reaching speeds of up to 20km/h. These fearsome snakes can strike up to 12 times in a row. A single bite is capable of killing anywhere from 10-25 adults. The venom is a fast acting neurotoxin. Its bite delivers about 100–120 mg of venom, on average; however, it can deliver up to 400 mg. If the venom reaches a vein, 0.25 mg/kg is sufficient to kill a human in 50% of cases. The initial symptom of the bite is a local pain in the bite area, although not as severe as snakes with hemotoxins. The victim then experiences a tingling sensation in the mouth and extremities, double vision, tunnel vision, severe confusion, fever,

Cowardly Common Krait more aggressive under the cover of darkness. However, overall they are quite timid and will often attempt to hide rather than fight. The venom is a neurotoxin, 16 times more potent than that of a Cobra. It quickly induces muscle paralysis by preventing the ability of nerve endings to properly release the chemical that sends the message to the next nerve. This is followed by a period of massive over excitation (cramps, tremors, spasms), which finally tails off to paralysis. Fortunately, bites from Kraits are rare due to their nocturnal nature. Before the development of antivenin, the fatality rate was a whopping 85%. Even with the recent antivenin, one is not assured of survival. Death usually occurs within 6-12 hours of a Krait’s bite. Even if patients make it to a hospital, permanent coma and even brain death from hypoxia may occur, given potentially long transport times to get medical care.

The Common krait usually feeds on lizards, small mammals, and other snakes. What makes this snake very dangerous is that it often attacks you in your sleep. You might not even realize that a snake bit you because its bite is painless. You may think that you were only bitten by a mosquito or an ant. The Common Krait’s venom takes several hours to take effect but it can be fatal through respiratory failure. This snake is commonly found in India. It is one of the species that causes the most number of snakebite cases in South Asia. The Common Krait has an LD50 of 0.09. The Malayan or Blue Krait is, by far, the most deadly of this species. Found throughout South East Asia and Indonesia, 50% of bites from the deadly Blue Krait are fatal, even with the administration of antivenin. Kraits hunt and kill other snakes, even cannibalizing other Kraits. They are a nocturnal breed, and are

AFRICA’S MOST DANGEROUS SNAKES Eastern Green Mamba

The Eastern Green Mamba is a venomous snake related to the highly dangerous Black Mamba. The Green Mamba is less aggressive and smaller than the Black Mamba, they average around 1.8 metres. The Green Mamba’s venom is also significantly less toxic; however a single bite could certainly be fatal to a human. Green mambas are highly arboreal and almost never touch the ground. They are generally found in south-eastern Africa. Like their name, Green Mambas are a lovely grass green colour, but yellow when born.

Rhinoceros viper

A large heavy bodied viper with a prominent nasal horn that inhabits the forests of equatorial Africa. Its beautiful colour and pattern is as striking as that of any snake, but in its environment the colour and pattern are disruptive and render these vipers essentially invisible on

the forest floor. It is found from Guinea to Ghana in West Africa, and in Central Africa in the Central African Republic, southern Sudan, Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, DR Congo, Angola, Rwanda, Uganda and western Kenya. It is found from Guinea to Ghana in West Africa, and in Central Africa in the Central African Republic, southern Sudan, Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, DR Congo, Angola, Rwanda, Uganda and western Kenya.

Rhombic Night Adder

As the name indicates, this is a nocturnal snake, which rests up under logs and in termitaria during the day. The head has a snout that is relatively blunt on the sides of which the nostrils are positioned. It has poor eyesight and hunts mainly by smell. Although this snake is poisonous, its venom is not very potent and causes mainly pain and swelling. The colour pattern consists of a ground colour that

is usually some shade of brown (possibly pinkish or greyish-brown), but occasionally olive green. This is overlaid with a pattern of 20-30 rhombic blotches that have pale edges, as well as a sprinkling of black scales and oblique black bars on the sides. There are no recorded deaths caused by this snake.

Black Spitting Cobra

The black spitting cobra has an extreme geographic range within Africa. The morph it maintains and breed is the black, red bellied with a skin texture of a silky matt finish similar to that of a Boelen’s python. It should be understood that these snakes rarely spit. They have the capability of atomizing venom accurately to a distance of up to 6 metres. Be advised that these snakes for the most part, exhibit a shy character, however they will bite unpredictably with grave tissue destructive with neuro effect and in many

cases the bite of this animal will require amputation of a limb or death.

Black Tree Cobra

These two large and primarily arboreal species are found in the forests of tropical Africa. They have a reputation for being particularly ill-tempered and have an extremely toxic venom. Despite its large size, it is a highly agile snake. It is equally comfortable on trees, on ground and in the water. It can move quickly and gracefully through trees with the aid of its spiky tail. It is also a very secretive snake which is rarely seen by people. However, it is one of the few snakes that are considered aggressive. When threatened, it rears up and spreads a typical cobra hood. If it is further provoked, the snake may attempt to bite. Though it cannot spit its venom, its bite is very potent and potentially lethal. It is reputedly illtempered.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

GAMETROPIC

GADGETED

Over 120,000 people are employed in the video game industry across 34 states in the U.S.A.

If you are an artist, Adobe Ink and Slide makes sketching and drawing on your tablet easier.

TechLife

#WhenFacebookWasDown: Widespread outage reported Those early birds who start their day with a visit to Facebook were met on Thursday 19th June 2014, with a rare error message: The social media giant appeared to be down. News of the widespread outage spread on Twitter and lasted for about 30 minutes. The outage impacted both Facebook’s website and its mobile apps. ‘Sorry, something went wrong,’ read the error message, which appeared when users tried to access Facebook. ‘We’re working on getting this fixed as soon as we can.’ It was a rare blip for the world’s most popular social platform, which co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, has famously vowed would never crash. ‘Earlier this morning, we experienced an issue that prevented people from posting to Facebook for a brief period of time,’ Facebook spokesman Iain Waterman told CNN. ‘We resolved the issue quickly, and we are now

Zuckerberg

back to 100%. We’re sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.’ So what happened to Facebook’s 1.2 billion users when the network was down? Some of them flocked to Twitter of course. Analytics site Topsy showed that tweets with the words ‘Facebook’ and ‘down,’ usually barely a blip on the screen, rocketed to over 70,000 in Thursday’s early hours. While some

users bemoaned their inability to access Facebook, many took a lighter look at the issue.# ‘Either Facebook is down or Mark Zuckerberg just set everything to PRIVATE,’ humour site 9GAG posted. They followed up minutes later: ‘Facebook users are now roaming the streets in tears, showing photos of themselves in people’s faces & screaming ‘DO YOU LIKE THIS? DO YOU?’ A fate worse than social-media death, to be sure. ‘A moment of silence for all of those who had to interact face to face #facebookdown,’added user @topsupstore. But what of the vital information Facebook provides? ‘Facebook went down and I momentarily had no idea what someone I worked with in 2005’s dog had been doing this morning,’ someone tweeted under the handle @cluedont.

Despite Mayer, Yahoo’s leadership is overwhelmingly male But many of the women are in the lower-paying non-technical and nonleadership positions. The company said 85% of its technology staff is male, as is 77% of its leadership. Marissa Mayer has been CEO of Yahoo for nearly two years, and she is the second woman to lead the company. Carol Bartz served as CEO for nearly three years before she was fired in September 2011. Yahoo also had a woman president, Sue Decker, for nearly two years before she left in 2009. The report also shows that 50% of Yahoo’s U.S. employees are white and 39% are Asian. Only 6% are either black or Hispanic. The company also said that 57% of tech workers are white and 35% Asian, while 78% of leadership is white and 17% is Asian. The company’s founder and long-

Mayer

Yahoo, one of the most prominent Silicon Valley companies with a female CEO, still has an overwhelmingly male work force and leadership. The company released its first diversity report recently and it showed that 62% of its global work force is male.

Click! Click!!

time CEO, Jerry Yang, is TaiwaneseAmerican. Yahoo had previously reported that as of the end of last year it had 12,200 full-time employees and fixed-term contractors. ‘These statistics are only a part of the story. Yahoo works to ensure that our existing employees feel welcome and supported during their time at the company,’ said the company’s statement that accompanied the report. There has been renewed focus on the relative lack of diversity at companies in Silicon Valley. Civil Rights activist Jesse Jackson has appeared at several annual meetings of tech companies this spring, including Google and Facebook, to urge them to do more to recruit African American and Hispanic workers.

for the upwardly mobile

Smart mug brews coffee anywhere you want and keeps it at the perfect temperature Bleary-eyed workers up and down the world know the power of a freshlybrewed cup of coffee to get them through the start of the week. Now, to prevent queues of drowsy people lining coffee shop pavements, a group of Atlanta-based entrepreneurs have developed a device that can brew coffee on the go. Not only that, but the system prepares the coffee to exactly the right temperature helping to prevent accidental burns as exhausted workers rush to get their caffeine fix. This 408g ‘Hey Joe’ device makes the coffee using small pods that are placed into a tray at the bottom of the mug.

‘Kill Switch’ coming to Google and Microsoft phones Google and Microsoft will include a socalled kill switch in the next version of their smartphone operating systems, relevant authorities announced recently. The technology allows for a stolen Google Android and Microsoft Windows Phonepowered Nokia device to be disabled, making it useless to the thief. With Google and Microsoft on board, kill switches will be available for 97% of the smartphone market, said New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who made the announcement.

Twitter wants to be your TV companion Twitter is extending its push into ‘social TV.’ The company announced recently that it’s buying Snappy TV, a San Franciscobased start-up that makes software for quick edits of live video and television into short clips. Snappy TV’s technology is already used by a number of brands and media companies to post videos on Twitter, including news clips and sports highlights. ‘As Twitter has grown as the companion to live events and broadcast media, Snappy TV will help partners and brands bring the best videos into the conversation,’ Baljeet Singh, Twitter’s director of product management, said in a blog post.

5 things we’d like to see from the Apple smartwatch

Rumoured for years, the long-awaited smart watch from Apple may finally become reality in a few months. The Wall Street Journal and Reuters are both reporting that the iWatch, if that is in fact its name, will be released this fall, likely in October. So, with the countdown likely begun, we take a look at five features we’d like to see on Apple’s smart watch. Really be ‘smart’ The dirty little secret of smart watches, at least so far? They aren’t really smart in the same way that a smartphone is. So far, the offerings from Samsung, Sony, LG and the like have operated as extensions of a smartphone, linking up via bluetooth

or wireless to, for the most part, serve you notifications that you could have seen by pulling your phone out of your pocket. Apple may do something along those lines as well and could still make a successful product. But with their close ties with app developers, we’d love to see Apple make the first smartwatch that lets you leave your phone behind. Wireless charging If you live in a household where at least a couple of people are competing for socket space to keep their smartphones, tablets, e-readers and the like charged up, things are probably already a tangled mess. Does anybody want one more device to fit in there?

Whether it’s a wireless charging pad or some new tech whipped up by Apple especially for its smartwatch, we’d love to be able to just set the watch down on the nightstand and have it powered up and ready to go the next morning. Battery life Nobody wants a watch that they have to charge up as often as they do their phone. At least for now, these things are nice extras, not essential communication tools, and if they become more trouble than they’re worth, the love affair won’t last long for even the most dedicated fan boys and fan girls. Connectivity Apple’s smartwatch is no doubt going to link up with your iPhone, and prob-

ably an iPad. But like a lot of other major tech companies, Apple wants to edge its way into a lot of other areas of your life, and it sure would be cool to be able to sync those other products with your watch. Affordable price This is Apple. So, there’s no reason to think it will depart from a model that’s always worked for them. But we hope this one is different. Nobody needs a digital watch and there’s a decent chance that it won’t even work unless you already own another, presumably pricey, Apple device. We’d like to see it priced as an affordable accessory for your iPhone in an effort to pull in customers who want, not need, one.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Cultured!

CULTURE

for the uninformed & clueless

SHOCK

In a village called Kaningara, the residents believe the crocodile to be their ancestor. To establish contact with the crocodile, they spend months secluded in mountain-top ‘spirit houses’, and are then later cut in thousand places by an elder using a razor blade.

Superstitions

Dresssense

Kendall Jenner’s hip bone exposing Fausto Puglisi dress Forget the thigh-high split. Forget the hip-high split. Kendall Jenner has trumped them all with the split to beat all others: the Over-The-HipHigh (OTHH) double split in this Fausto Puglisi dress. It’s one of those eyebrowraising heights nobody has ever attempted. Not even strippers. And with good reason. Because quite honestly, it’s not only difficult to walk in without a whole lot of double-sided tape, it’s also rather unflattering. Pelvic

bones ... the new breasts? I’m not sure if that will take off. But we understand her desire to go further and really shock the public on the red carpet. It results in some muchneeded attention. She’s half Kardashian, after all, and we all know how spotlightstarved the Kardashian clan is. So you can’t blame a girl for wanting to steal the limelight when, you know, she’s never even been on a Vogue cover. What was she going to do? It was either a

double split dress or wear a giant hoop earring in her nose. Oh. Wait. She did that at Coachella a month ago. It was so revealing, she later joked to Ellen Degeneres that someone had to run out for a razor when she put it on. Did she start the pelvic-bones-are-the-newbreasts trend? Probably. We imagine her gloating behind her organic kale smoothie as we speak, sharpening those pelvic bones for another outing.

Auctioned

Proverbs The greatest love is a mother’s, then a dog’s, then a sweetheart’s. –Polish proverb God gives every bird his worm, but he does not throw it into the nest. –Swedish proverb Good management is better than good income. –Portuguese proverb

Excusez-moi

World’s most expensive piece of ham sold for $2,940

For women visiting Bulgaria Although Bulgaria law gives women the same rights as men, discrimination is common. On average, women earn less than men in similar jobs. They also shoulder most domestic duties, even if they work outside the home. Bulgarians accept foreign businesswomen. A foreign woman may have difficulty inviting an older Bulgarian man to a business dinner; however, he may accept an invitation for a business lunch, although he may insist on paying. Women who want to pay should make arrangements with the wait staff beforehand Bulgarian men are courtly (pull out chairs for women, open doors for them, and so on). Women should gracefully accept this behaviour; however a wedding ring may deflect unwanted attention, as will saying ‘I’m married.’ In general, women should prepare to attract attention if dining alone in restaurants.

If you are a ham lover, this is a must read for you. The most expensive piece of ham was sold and you would like to read about this for sure. The ham sold off for a whooping price tag of $2,940 and if you are wondering as to what made it this exclusive to sell at this cost, you would be in for a bit of surprise. Lots of care and effort went into production of this piece of ham. Pig farmer and ham expert, as he is known, Manuel Maldonaout made special effort for producing this exclusive piece of ham and cared for it from breeding to curing. Fifty chosen pigs from the farm were fed roots and acorns so that the ham had a distinct flavour of its own. The ham was therefore left of curing for over three years. The final product was for everyone to see and a 7 kilogram Oberco ham leg with an authenticated DNA certification came up. No doubt, it sold for a premium ending up as the costliest ham piece to be ever sold.

Uncommon history of common things Like so many other rituals, the origins of the handshake are obscure. In ancient Babylonia, a ruler would take the hand of a sacred statue to symbolize the transfer of divine power to human hands. However, the modern purpose of the handshake is quite clear: it’s meant to convey open, safe greetings between two people. Actually, make that ‘between two men.’ We do know that handshaking was used several hundred years ago in England to demonstrate that no arms were being carried. Women rarely carried (or were

In Nigeria, a man hit with a broom becomes impotent unless he retaliates seven times with the same broom.

allowed to carry) weapons, and that’s probably why the handshake was not a common greeting for women until recently. The handshake establishes trust and equality through direct contact. At one time left hands were shaken, because left sleeves often contained concealed weapons, but over time this shifted to right hands, because these were really ‘wristclasps’ that at some point evolved into handclasps. While today a handshake conveys respect, it was not always so. George Washington believed handshaking

Shaking hands

was for common folk and instead preferred to greet people with a bow. Different cultures around the world now use the handshake as greeting, especially in business situations, but

there are variations. The Japanese shake hands frequently, often bowing as well. In some European countries, even if friends know each other well, they shake hands upon meeting. In Kuwait, men never shake hands with women. In some places, like India, a person will grasp your hand in both of theirs as a handshake. Contemporary Americans have a number of new greetings, including the ‘dap’ or fist-bump. However, these trendy gestures will probably not supplant the simple gesture of shaking someone else’s hand.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

TRAVELOGUE

Fair Isle, Scotland is the most isolated inhabited island in Britain. It is home to only about 70 people, but hundreds of thousands of birds reside here as well. If you are interested in bird watching, this is the perfect place for you.

DESIRABLeS

THE MUSTREADS AND LINGER-ONS

Tax dodger Hitler stashed $6.1bn in Swiss banks Adolf Hitler was a tax dodger who hid a vast fortune across several Swiss bank accounts, historians have discovered. Documents have emerged showing the dictator amassed hundreds of millions of dollars in today’s money, which he concealed from the German people. It appeared to vanish completely after his death, along with his substantial art collection. But historians have now managed to trace the money through tax documents and bank statements. They believe he was worth around 1.1billion Reich marks, the equivalent of $6.1bn today. During his lifetime, the Nazi leader insisted his public speeches only made him a small amount of money and that he did not even have a bank account. But a documentary titledThe Hunt for Hitler’s Missing Millions, set to be aired on Britain’s Channel 5 will explore how he secretly gained a huge fortune. He refused to pay taxes, dodging $2.9m before passing a law that

made him exempt. The book he wrote in prison, Mein Kampf, generated one million Reichs-marks-per-year after Hitler decreed that a copy be given to every married couple, paid for by the government. Experts also claim the dictator wrote a secret will on the morning of his death, hoping to trick the German people into believing his humble claims. HITLER - The secret millionaire Hitler was leader of the Third Reich in Nazi Germany and orchestrated the execution of more than 6,000,000 Jews during the Holocaust. His aggressive foreign policy is believed to be the primary cause of the Second World War. He invaded Poland in September 1939, and it led to France and England declaring war. But he was finally defeated by the Allies in 1945,

following which he ended his life. Hitler was a dictator. And his radical ideology sought to create an Aryan race of superior beings and he was responsible for mass genocide in his concentration camps. He killed himself on April 30 1945 to avoid capture, after giving his deputies strict instructions on what to do with his body so it wouldn’t be found and humiliated by his enemies. And he also told them what he wanted done with his various assets, some of which still remains a mystery. In it he dedicated five pages to a political and bitter verbal attack against the Jews and just three to his personal will. He presented himself as almost penniless, writing: ‘What I own belongs, as so far as it is of any value at all, to the party.’ There was no further mention of his wealth, only that his relatives should

be given enough ‘to sustain a simple middle-class life’. It was to be administered by Hitler’s private secretary and fellow Nazi, Martin Bormann, who was witness to the will and named as Hitler’s sole executive. However, Bormann was shot dead not long after Hitler committed suicide. The will was intercepted by Allied forces as a suspected Nazi tried to smuggle it out of the country, hidden in the shoulder pad of his jacket. The Nazi leader also copyrighted his image, meaning he even earned royalties every time a postage stamp with his face on it was sold. Herman Rothman, a retired British Intelligence Officer was among those to discover and translate the will. He said: ‘We were absolutely shocked by what we found. I think the private will was also for consumption by the German people. He wanted to show in his private will he had very little.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

MiNDFUL

RANDOM

for the LeISUreLY-MINDeD & thoUGhtfUL

FACTS

LAST WEEK'S

CROSSWORD

1. Gallantry (7) 5. Subsequently (5) 8. Extreme happiness (5) 9. Considered unlikely (7) 10. Pills (7) 11. Paragon (5) 12. Gaped (6) 14. Concurs (6) 17. Proverb (5) 19. Recite (7) 22. Feed (7) 23. Water lily (5) 24. Frock (5) 25. Use again after processing (7)

Bears cage clowns elephant fire hoops horses Jugglers lion tamer lions net peanuts popcorn Ringmaster stilts tigers tightrope trapeze unicycle

SUDOKU CLASSIC Put each of the numbers 1-9 once in every row, column and 3x3 box

WORDLADDER Can you climb the ladder and find the missing numbers? ? 291 ? 60 68

SUDOKUCLASSIC

17 24 8 14 7 See solution below

HOMEWORK FOR GROWN-UPS 1 Which sport shoe company does Michael Jordan famously promote? a) Nike b) Reebok c) Adidas 2. Activist Steve Biko is from which country? a) South Africa b) Lesotho c) Democratic Republic of Congo 3. Which cartoon character says ‘What’s up, Doc’? a) Bugs Malone b) Daffy Duck c) Bugs Bunny 4. What is the capital of American state of Ohio? a) Charlestown b) Charlotte c) Columbus

5. Both father and daughter of the Bhutto family have been prime minister of which country? a) India b) Pakistan c) Sri Lanka 6. The longest carrot ever grown was measured to be how long? a) 17 feet long b) 19 feet long c) 18 feet long 7. Scissors were invented by whom? a) Isaac Newton b) Albert Einstein c) Leonardo Da Vinci 8. Fidel Castro led a communist revolution where? a) Iran b) Cuba Answers c) Peru

WORDLADDER SOLUTION

HOMEWORK

a) Nike a) South Africa c) Bugs Bunny c) Columbus b) Pakistan a) 17 feet long c) Leonardo Da Vinci b) Cuba

WORDSEARCH

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

1. Established custom (5) 2. Arc of refracted light (7) 3. Publish (5) 4. Humble (6) 5. Risible (7) 6. Heading (5) 7. Conundrums (7) 12. Hankered (7) 13. Foes (7) 15. Flexible (7) 16. Fix firmly (6) 18. Angle less than 90 degrees (5) 20. Something that has survived the past (5) 21. Follow (5)

SOLUTIONS

ACROSS

7(x2)=14(-6)=8(x3)=24(7)=17(x4)=68(-8)=60(x5)=300(9)=291(x6)=1746

DOWN

Karaoke means ‘empty orchestra’ in Japanese.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

a la carte

80%

Percentage of earth’s natural forests that have been destroyed.

gRaffiti

THE LOTS TO CHEW ON AND REGURGITATE

70%

Percentage of American college students that have lied on a resume to get a job.

lady'S WORdS When a lady, as hostess of a party, realizes that one of her guests has had too much to drink. She does not say: “Finish that drink while I make a pot of coffee.” “Don’t leave until I can find somebody to follow you.” “Honey, if you don’t realize how drunk you are, you’ve got a real problem.” But she does say: “Carla, you’ve had plenty to drink, and I’m concerned about your safety. Just to be safe, give me your keys; we’re going to get you a cab home.” A lady does not attempt to reason with a friend who has been over served. Instead, the lady takes charge, accepts no arguments to the contrary,

and makes sure her friend gets home safely. (Sending another partygoer to tail the drunk driver accomplishes absolutely nothing.) The friend might protest and even become confrontational. But in the morning, or at least by the next afternoon, he or she will be grateful. Better yet, the friend will still be alive. When a lady has no choice but to take an important phone call while entertaining friends or conducting a business meeting. She does not say: “You folks don’t mind if I take this call, do you?” “Keep yourselves entertained. I’d better catch this one.” “Don’t listen to this. Just talk among yourselves.” “I know this is rude, but I’m gonna do it anyway.”

But she does say: “Excuse me, please. I need to take this call. I’ll try to make it quick.” On rare occasions there may be emergencies or heat-of-the-moment business calls that require a lady’s immediate attention, but those are the only times she is justified in abandoning her friends or business associates in order to talk on the phone. If a lady knows the interrupting call is a possibility before the gathering gets under way, she alerts her guests to that possibility. In all cases, if she must take this sort of call, she does so in another room. That way, the gathering can continue in her absence.

What it feelS like tO ...

… die – Cassandra M Usgrave, Spiritual Consultant I was water skiing and I fell, and the rope twisted around my left arm, dragging me under. It was like falling under an incredible waterfall where you could not possibly stand up. It’s funny the thoughts that come - I actually thought, ‘If I die, my mother’s going to be so mad at me ...’ Soon, I felt my spirit floating out of my body and saw my body being dragged behind the boat - I was above my body, looking down. I didn’t feel concerned. Then my spirit was moving through a dark tunnel about 5 or 6 feet wide. It didn’t seem scary, but I was alone and felt like I was being

pulled very rapidly toward another dimension. Coming out of the tunnel, there were incredible colours and flowers like we don’t see on Earth. They were different hues and different colours that are impossible to describe because they don’t exist here. And then I found myself in another place and it felt very beautiful and very normal, like I’d been there before. I was out in the heavens. I saw stars and galaxies and it felt like I was on something solid but I never really looked down so I was probably just floating around out there. It felt like I was me, but me without a physical

body. I wasn’t concerned that I didn’t have a body- I was enraptured by this wonderful place. Then this being appeared to me - it was Melchizedek, a high priest from the Bible. I wasn’t raised with any conscious awareness of him, but I recognized him - like if you saw your long-lost grandmother, you’d know her. It was warm, wonderful, and comforting there, and he was tall and beautiful with robes and velvet and things. And he asked, ‘Are you ready to come?’ Then he showed me things that would help me to make that decision.

laugh–Out–lOud

The rich and the foolish A tightwad was convinced by a friend to buy a couple of tickets in the state lottery. But after he won the big prize, he didn’t seem happy. ‘What’s wrong?’ the friend asked. ‘You just became a millionaire!’ ‘I know,’ he groaned. ‘But I can’t imagine why I bought that second ticket!’ Selling at an auction was halted when the auctioneer announced, ‘Someone in the

room has just lost his wallet containing $250 for its immediate return.’ After a moment of silence, there was a call from the back of the room, ‘$255.’ A 70-year-old millionaire had just married a beautiful 20-year-old. ‘You crafty old codger,’ said his friend. ‘How did you get such a lovely young wife?’ ‘Easy,’ the millionaire replied. ‘I told her I was 95.’

The miserly millionaire called a family conference. ‘I’m placing a box of money in the attic,’ he said. ‘When I die, I intend to grab it on my way up to heaven. See to it that no one touches it until it’s my time to go.’ The family respected his wishes. After his death the millionaire’s wife looked in the attic. The box was still there. ‘The fool!’ she said. ‘I told him he should have put it in the basement.’

Saturday, June 28, 2014

BONUSPACK $495 241 billion kmh

THE TAKE-AWAYS THIS WEEK

KEEPSAKES

FASTFORWARD The fastest m

SecReT TRAveL LOcATIOnS In euROPe location

country

olomouc

czech republic

cabo de Gata

Spain

Kazimierz, Kraków

Poland

Bozcaada

turkey

cromane Peninsula

ireland

il Frantoio farmhouse, ostuni

italy

Dihovo

Macedonia

lazio

italy

Sammlung Boros, Berlin

Germany

10. Burg Satzvey castle, Mechernich

Germany

11. lošinj

croatia

12. Milia

crete

13. Vila do Bispo

Portugal

SEEN & OVERHEARD

Life It’s important for us to explain to our nation that life is important. It’s not only life of babies, but it’s life of children living in, you know, the dark dungeons of the internet. GEORGE W. BUSH In the book of life, the answers aren’t in the back. CHARLIE BROWN

16. amiens

France

17. luxembourg city

luxembourg

18. ‘Mediterranean Steps’, Gibraltar

iberian Peninsula

19. Belgrade

Serbia

20. Haarlem

the netherlands

21. nocelle

italy

22. reykjavík

iceland

23. tartu

Estonia

24. rural andalucía

Spain

25. Kjerringøy

norway

26. the Kinmel arms, conwy

Wales

27. Konoba Ćatovića Mlini restaurant, Montenegro Morinj 28. ithac

Greece

29. Marubi Permanent Photo Exhibition, Shkodra

albania

30. Wilton›s Music Hall, london

England

31. Pripyatsky national Park

Belarus

32. Secret cafés, Prague

czech republic

33. South cotswolds

England

34. Potetkjelleren restaurant, Bergen norway 35. lavaux

Switzerland

36. Hidden Hot Springs, nordurfjordur iceland 37. Sybillini Mountains

italy

38. the Hidden Hotel, Paris

France

39. upper Danube Valley nature reserve, Beuron

Germany

40. Kakheti province

Georgia

41. Zagreb’s Street art Museum, Zagreb croatia 42. romagne-sous-Montfaucon

France

43. Sala del consiglio dei Dieci, Venice italy 44. cluanie

Scotland

45. Bharma, Barcelona

Spain

46. Dublin

ireland

47. the lakeland

Finland

48. Hot birch sauna, Sigulda

latvia

49. Schreierstoren (Weeping tower) amsterdam

the netherlands

50. Battle

England

please cut along this line and keep

russia

ENGLISH PHRASES One

14. courtyard gardens of Palais royal, France Paris 15. Kvartira, Kaliningrad

JUST UNBELIEVABLE Amount spent on advertisement globally in 2012.

If life gives you a lemon, make lemonade. However – if life gives you a pickle, you might as well give up because pickleade is disgusting. CLIFTON J GRAY

Beliefs You never believe anything. You’re one of them septics. ARCHIE BUNKER He just can’t believe what’s not happening to him. DAVID COLEMAN My only criticism of David Icke is that he doesn’t go far enough. STEPHEN FRY

Astrology and superstition I’m a peripheral visionary. I can see into the future but just way off to the side. STEVEN WRIGHT And now, Russell Grant is bringing us the future before it happens... MIKE MORRIS I went to the tarot card reader and I said, ‘It’s my birthday today, can you tell me what the cards say?’ She said, ‘Sure: To Tim, Happy Birthday, love from Granny.’ TIM VINE

Punctuality He’s a guy who gets up at six in the morning regardless of what time it is. LOU DUVA You have to get up early if you want to get out of bed. GROUCHO MARX The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese ANON

Be all one (to somebody) To be a matter of indifference (to somebody). One is used in the sense ‘the same, not different’, and the phrase therefore corresponds closely to all the same. ‘It will never do. We set out a great deal too late. We had much better put it off till another day, and turn round.’ ‘It is all one to me: replied Thorpe rather angrily; and instantly turning his horse, they were on their way back to Bath. Get something in one Informal to find the right answer or solution at the first attempt: with allusion to scoring a hole in one in golf. We were in a small courtyard into which had been crammed half a dozen hutches and garden-shed- type constructions. There was also a tenfoot square pen of some sort like a small corral, made out of odd bits of timber, and in one corner, a pile of what was unmistakably manure. ‘It’s a frigging zoo: I said. ‘Got it in one: said Prentice smugly. One to/on one Involving two parties, or groups, coming into direct contact or opposition: an extension of the use in team sports to denote the balance of attacking and defending players. I wanted to meet Peruvians and speak to them one on one. One-stop Involving a single action, approach, etc.: originally with reference to a shop that provides all a customer’s needs in a particular line of goods. The one that got away Something desirable but elusive. The reference is proverbial excuse made by a fisherman for failure to return home with a better catch: was indeed a sizeable fish, which proved large and swift to land. It may appear paradoxical but the compulsive gambIer may get the biggest adrenalin surge from biggest loss and, like the proverbial fisherman, boast of the’ one that got away’. You are a one A teasing way of calling a person unusual, oddly mannered, mildly impertinent, etc. ‘Your master’s got hurt,’ he said. ‘Eh, dear, what a one he is! There’s not five minutes of peace, I’ll be hanged if there is! His thumb’s nearly better, and now – ‘.

50 SPORTS/other sports SPORTS BRIEFS formula 1

Hamilton Hopeful Of Home Success Lewis Hamilton would be happy to lift a CocaCola can above his head at next month’s British Grand Prix providing it is engraved with the word ‘First’. After collecting an unusual runner-up trophy after Sunday’s Austrian Grand Prix, in a more light-hearted moment post race at the Red Bull Ring, Hamilton bemoaned the bizarre designs of current Formula One silverware But in turning his attention to his home race at Silverstone on July 6, a race he is naturally desperate to win for a variety of reasons, all Hamilton cares about is he is on the top step of the podium.

34 Weeks Pregnant Montano Runs 800m Alysia Montano ran the 800 metres at the US Track and Field Championships on Thursday, despite being 34 weeks pregnant. The five-time national champion finished in 2 minutes, 32.13 seconds in the qualifying rounds, only seven weeks before she’s scheduled to give birth to her first child. That the 28-year-old former University of California star finished last in her heat didn’t matter one bit to the crowd

Williams Aiming High

boxing

Burns: I Needed To Freshen Things Up

Ricky Burns insists switching trainers was the right thing to do after losing his world title, but admits Friday might be too soon to see any improvement. Burns will be trying to convince his doubters that he is not finished when he takes on unbeaten Montenegrin Dejan Zlaticanin at the Braehead Arena in Glasgow. Burns, 31, took drastic action after losing the WBO world lightweight title to American Terence Crawford in his last fight three months ago. Crawford dominated and the convincing defeat came after Burns was fortunate to cling on to his title with a controversial draw against Mexican Raymundo Beltran last year.

gathered at Hornet Stadium. Trailing the lead pack by more than 120 meters for most of the race, Montano received a rousing ovation as she finished her first lap and the cheering grew louder when she finally crossed the finish line. ‘I’ve been running throughout my pregnancy and I felt really, really good during the whole process,’ Montano said. ‘I just didn’t want to get lapped and be the first person to get lapped in the 800.’

Montano

Nadal: I’m Back To My Best

formula 1

Claire Williams is convinced her team is heading back to the top of Formula One. After the worst season in Williams’ history last year, the tide has turned on the back of the new regulations introduced this campaign, and an active recruitment programme. Along with a number of other behind-the-scenes appointments, the pool of talent at Williams is now considerable and has propelled the team forward. Asked about the return to form, deputy team principal Williams told Press Association Sport: “It’s been a combination of factors.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Nadal

World number one Rafael Nadal feels he is back to his best on grass after battling out of deep trouble to gain revenge over his 2012 Wimbledon conqueror Lukas Rosol. Nadal, crowned king at Roland Garros last month, was a set down and 5-3 behind in a second-set tie-break, but recovered to win 4-6 7-6 (8/6) 6-4 6-4 on Centre Court. For an hour or so on Thursday afternoon a repeat looked was possible, with Nadal on the back foot against the big-serving Czech. However the second seed produced

a high-quality response to level the match and force early breaks in sets three and four, with Rosol’s brave challenge was finally ended after two hours and 44 minutes. “It is a very important victory for me. To be in the third round here again after three years is very positive news and I think I finished the match playing at a very high level,” Nadal said. “Is the best level I played on grass since a long time ago, the last three sets, and that is very important news for me.

Renault Admit To Poor Results One of Renault’s top bosses has expressed his own dissatisfaction with its on-track performance this season, but has vowed to continue the fight to improve. Following the introduction of the new powertrain regulations, Renault suffered a woeful preseason blighted by a litany of issues. Fixes have slowly been implemented but still problems have occurred, with Vettel suffering most as was again the case during the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday.

Vettel lost all drive to his car early in the race, and although he managed to get going again, he was ultimately forced to retire. It was the third time in eight races Vettel has retired this season, as many as he has suffered in the previous three years combined. Rob White, Renault Sport’s deputy technical managing director, fully appreciates Horner’s sentiments “Christian has been extremely clear in his expressions to Renault at every level, and I am sure we know and understand exactly what is required of us,” said White. White

Wiggins Left Out By Team Sky

Wiggins

Sir Bradley Wiggins will not ride for Team Sky in this year’s Tour de France, team principal Sir David Brailsford has confirmed. The 2012 champion had long since indicated that he would not be included in a squad built around Chris Froome, who last year succeeded him as yellow jersey winner. Froome will be supported by his trusted lieutenant Richie Porte in a team also featuring Wiggins’ fellow Great Britain Olympian Geraint Thomas.

Mikel Nieve, Bernhard Eisel, Vasil Kiryienka, David Lopez, Danny Pate and Xabier Zandio complete the line-up. The Tour starts with the Grand Depart in Yorkshire next Saturday and continues until the traditional Champs Elysees climax on July 27. Brailsford said: “Team Sky returns to the Tour de France with the reigning champion and we are looking to win the yellow jersey for the third time in three years and a second consecutive time for Chris Froome.

REPORTS/SPORTS 51

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Shaw Seals Man United Move Luke Shaw has completed his £30m move from Southampton to the Premier League giants, having completed his medical and agreed personal terms with the Old Trafford club Shaw has attracted admiring glances from many, including boyhood club Chelsea, but Press Association Sport understands it is United that have won the race for his signature. The left-back underwent a medical at the club's Carrington training ground on Thursday evening ahead of a move worth

£27million plus add-ons - a lofty price tag comes thanks to his fine performances for club and now country. Despite not turning 19 until July 12, Shaw has already racked up 60 appearances in the Barclays Premier League and three England caps. The full-back made his Three Lions debut in the friendly against Denmark in March and usurped idol Ashley Cole in Roy Hodgson's pecking order, leading the experienced left-back to call time on his international career.

world cup BrIEFS Door Open For Balotelli Exit

Shaw

Moyes Offered Galatasaray Job David Moyes has been offered a four million euro a year deal to replace Roberto Mancini as Galatasaray's new boss. Moyes could be set for a swift return to management after heading to Istanbul for talks over the vacant manager’s position. Former Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini was sacked by the Turkish club earlier this month and now they are looking to the Glaswegian to fill the role. It is understood the naturally cautious Moyes remains firmly

Moyes

undecided as to whether it is the right move for him but he knows a club with a rich European history certainly represents an interesting challenge. The Scot is having discussions with Galatasaray chiefs and is giving serious consideration to making a move to Turkey as he looks to rebuild his reputation after the traumatic time he encountered at Old Trafford. That said, he also knows his next job needs to be the right one after his brutal sacking at the Theatre of Dreams.

Barcelona Remain Keen On Suarez

Barcelona remain keen to sign Uruguay’s Luis Suarez despite his four-month ban for biting Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini during a World Cup match. The Liverpool striker, 27, cannot take part in any football-related activity until the end of October. He is not allowed to train with his club or enter a football stadium. Yet the La Liga club, who already have Brazil playmaker Neymar and Argentina forward Lionel Messi, would consider signing Suarez for the right price. Liverpool bought Suarez from Ajax for £25m

in January 2011. He missed the start of last season after being handed a 10-match ban for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic in April 2013, but returned to score 31 Premier League goals as the Reds finished second in the table. His performances also earned him the Professional Footballers’ Association and Football Writers’ player of the year awards. Suarez was found guilty of biting Chiellini on the left shoulder during Tuesday’s World Cup group match, which Uruguay won 1-0 to qualify for the last 16 of the tournament in Brazil.

Maradona Backs Suarez

Maradona

Diego Maradona has criticised the “FIFA mafia” following the decision by the game’s global governing body to impose a four-month ban on Luis Suarez for biting an opponent during

the World Cup. Maradona, who was handed a 15-month ban from football during the 1994 World Cup for testing positive for the banned stimulant ephedrine, declared his unconditional support for the controversial Uruguayan on his television show ‘De Zurda’ on Thursday. Suarez bit defender Giorgio Chiellini during Uruguay’s 1-0 win over Italy on Tuesday. The Uruguayan federation (AUF) is preparing an appeal against the punishment, which also bars him from playing in his country’s next nine competitive internationals. “The FIFA sanction is shameful, they have no sensitivity towards the fans, they might as well handcuff him and throw him in Guantanamo,” said Maradona, who during the programme wore a T-shirt bearing the message ‘Luis, we are with you’.

Suarez

... Striker Loses Sponsorship Online gambling firm 888poker said it had “decided to terminate its relationship” with “immediate effect”. The Liverpool player, 27, was handed a four-month ban by governing body Fifa after being found guilty of biting Chiellini during a World Cup match. Liverpool are seeking legal advice as Suarez cannot play for either club or country until the end of October. He misses the rest of the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil. Uruguay will play Colombia in the last 16 on Saturday after qualifying from

Group D behind Costa Rica. Suarez joined 888poker as a worldwide ambassador shortly before the World Cup, and produced several video diaries for the website during the tournament, including one after his two goals in the 2-1 victory over England. Suarez’s boot deal with Adidas could also be in jeopardy after the sportswear manufacturer announced on Thursday it would consider its partnership with the player.

Arsenal may be the team to benefit from Italy's early exit from the World Cup with under-fire Mario Balotelli prepared to consider a move away from AC Milan, according to his agent. While AC Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani has defended the 23-year-old striker for his performances in Brazil, another club vice-president Barbara Berlusconi hinted at the possibility of a Balotelli transfer this summer by saying he is "replaceable". Balotelli, who still has four years left on his contract with the Rossoneri, has been linked with a return to the Premier League with Arsenal reportedly keen to acquire his services.

Liverpool Taking Advice Over Suarez Liverpool are taking legal advice as they face up to another nightmare scenario with Luis Suarez after their star striker departed the World Cup in disgrace with a four-month ban from all football imposed for biting an opponent. FIFA's independent disciplinary committee imposed a World Cup record ban on the 27-yearold of nine international matches as well as the fourmonth-long total ban that will devastate Liverpool's plans for the new season. It would keep him out for at least 12 club games - nine Premier League matches plus three Champions League games, and potentially a League Cup match too - before a return at the end of October.

FIFA Lifts Beckenbauer Ban Fifa has lifted the 90-day suspension on football activity imposed on German legend Franz Beckenbauer. Beckenbauer, a World Cup winner as coach and captain, was told on Friday the ban had been lifted with immediate effect, his manager Marcus Hoefl said. The 68-year-old was banned for failing to help an inquiry into alleged corruption in the 2018 (Russia) and 2022 (Qatar) World Cup bids. He was part of the Fifa executive committee that made the awards. Beckenbauer lifted the World Cup as both a player (1974) and a manager (1990).

52 SPORTS/COMMENT

Saturday, June 28, 2014

W/Cup 2014: How The Teams GOT Their Nicknames

s the finest footballing nations on earth pit their strengths against each other in pursuit of international soccer's ultimate prize, nicknames are being used by commentators and fans almost as frequently as the participating teams' actual

names. Fact is, behind each of these monikers is a story, ranging from the remarkably simple to the very complex. Hosts Brazil possess almost as many nicknames as they do world titles. The flamboyant Brazilians are known, among others, as the Pentacampeoes (highlighting their being fivetime world champions), the Verde-Amarela/Auriverdes or the Canarinhos (the Green-and-Yellow/Greens-and-Gold or the Canaries, in recognition of the team's strips), A Selecao (Portuguese for 'The Selection'), and the Samba Kings, acknowledging a popular dance in the South American country and the national team's patented brand of easy-onthe-eye football. Interestingly, a significant fraction of the countries to be represented at the World Cup have picked their own nicknames for reasons quite identical to Brazil's. For one, the rather simple-sounding 'The Selection' translates into La Seleccione and La Sele for Spain and Costa Rica respectively. Portugal, former colonial lords of Brazil, are also A Seleccao but do qualify their version of the name with the phrase 'das Quinas' ('of the Shields'), signifying the five escutcheons found on the country's flag and coat of arms. Again, like Brazil, others have based their nicknames on what colours are prominent in their regular kits which, as a general rule, reflect heavily in the country's flag. Take neighbouring Argentina and Uruguay as examples. The former's blue and white stripes, evident in its jerseys and flag, gives the team its 'Albiceleste' (to wit, 'White and Sky-Blue' in Spanish) name, while Uruguay, for very much the same reasons, call themselves the 'Celeste': Sky-Blue. Actually, the colour was first worn by the national side some 103 years ago, as a tribute to FC River Plate, a Uruguayan club outfit once thriving but now defunct. Staying with the tradition of blue hues, Greece are the Galanolefki - the 'SkyBlue and White' - and France, in their deep blue shirts, are Les Bleus (The Blues). Ecuador, also a continental sibling of Brazil's, call themselves the Amarillos by virtue of their own yellow uniforms. Following the same criteria, green-kitted Mexico, from north America, are referred to as La Verde (The Green One). On occasions when the fans are a little less pleased with their displays, as in the manner that saw them labour towards a playoff berth against New Zealand, the Mexican team is referred to as Los Ratones Verdes, the Green Mice. Colours and peculiar features of flags also serve other countries very well. The American banner, easily one of the world's most recognizable symbols, is designed with several Stars and Stripes, from which Team USA derive their most frequently used nickname. In a similar vein, Ghana's flag, with a bold, black five-pointed star emblazoned in the yellow horizontal space that separates the red (top) and green (bottom) sections, is the reason why the country's national team is famously known as the Black Stars. The star itself was adopted as a national symbol by Ghana's first post-independence leader Kwame Nkrumah, in memory of Pan-Africanist Marcus Garvey's shipping line, the Black Star Line. South Korea, the Taeguk Warriors, have the first part of their moniker paying homage to the 'taeguk', the yinyang symbol found in the middle of the otherwise mostly white space that is the country's flag. For countries like Mexico, Ecuador, and Honduras, the fascination with flags differs slightly, whereby the number of prominent colours in there induce the nickname. With three each, Mexico and Ecuador are known as El Tricolore/El Tri, while Honduras, with one less, are La Bicolor. Honduras are also hailed, rather cutely, as La H; 'H' being the first letter in the country's name. With respect to flags corresponding to a country's preferred jersey and its nickname, there are a few exceptions, notably Italy, the Netherlands, and Japan. In each case, the back-story is steeped in history. In the case of Italy, the most successful nation at Fifa World Cup level after Brazil, the name Azzuri and the jet-blue

Brazil, Argentina and France fans at South Africa 2010

shirts it has inspired over the years can be traced to the 19th century when Victor Emmanuel II, who sought to unify a fragmented peninsula, became Italy's first king in 1861. The new ruler was a member of the House of Savoy, the official colours of which was blue, hence its adoption for national use by a country whose flag features only red, white, and green. Similarly, the Dutch national team, runners-up at the last World Cup, parade, not in the red, white and blue that make up their national flag, but in bright orange - thus the name Oranje - because the country's royal family belongs to the House of Orange-Nassau whose livery is...yes, orange! England's Three Lions nickname also has regal origins, with the design of the three lions passant guardant adorning the English FA crest the national team proudly bears each matchday being based on the Royal Arms of England. The colours of the Japanese national football team have alternated over the years, mainly between red-and-white (which would only be natural due to the obvious ties with the country's flag) and blue-and-white. Needless to say, it is the latter that has survived, but only largely due to an age-old superstition - or so it is believed. In its first major appearance at an international competition, the 1936 Summer Olympics, Japan used a blue kit against Sweden and won 3-2. Since then, there has hardly been any doubt over what ought to be the country's primary footballing colours, and thus the 'Blue' is deservedly credited in the team's nickname. The other half, 'Samurai', is a testament to the brave, fear-inspiring warriors of feudal Japan whose all-conquering spirit perhaps the modern nation hopes to invoke on the football pitch whenever they turn out to do 'battle'. Others have seemingly made a fetish out of the colour red, among them Spain (La Furia Roja -the Red Fury), South Korea (the Reds), and Chile (La Roja - the Red One). Red, among other things, denotes heat and fiery intensity and, in this regard, Croatia, the Vatreni (Blazers), find themselves in good company, ready to devour any prospective opponents with the sort of fire with which they razed Iceland down in the playoffs via which they qualified for next year's Mundial. Belgium do belong to the category of 'reds', being touted as the Red Devils, yet for entirely different reasons, they'd rather be paired with Switzerland. Both countries, being strategically placed in European and global affairs, are multicultural melting pots, and that very fact is seen in their respective epithets which are rendered in a number of languages. Belgium's national side are also called the Rote Teufel (German), Rode Duivels (Dutch), and Diables Rouges (French), while Switzerland's goes by Schweizer Nati, La

Nati, or Squadra Nazionale, depending on whether they are being referred to by German-, French- or Italian-speaking Swiss respectively. Many nicknames also reflect national symbols or identities indigenous to a particular people. Colombia, for instance, are Los Cafeteros (The Coffee-growers), a name chosen in celebration of the country's world-famous coffeegrowing reputation, while the Portuguese's and the Greeks' adventurous sea-faring history earns them the titles Os Navegadores (The Navigators) and Piratiko (Pirates) respectively. World Cup debutants Bosnia and Herzegovina are known as the Zlatni Ljiljani (the Golden Lilies), a species of lily that is native to the country. When Bosnians wish to describe their team in terms that might sound somewhat more threatening and which certainly belies their status as underdogs, they call them the Zmajevi (the Dragons) yet, of course, even that would put few opponents off. Australia, home of the lovable marsupials, have married the name of arguably the most popular of them all - the kangaroo - with the word 'soccer' to coin the national side's creative alias, the 'Socceroos'. Speaking of dragons and kangaroos, the African teams also bring something unique to the table. Africa, a world with its past thoroughly washed in animism, attributes great reverence to wildlife. Consequently, four of the five sides representing the continent are named after beasts of the field (and of the skies) famed for their strength, might, and predatory instincts. Cameroon are the Indomitable Lions, the lion being the proverbial king of the jungle in many an African folktale; Cote d'Ivoire, Les Elephants, have always been a hub for the gigantic, lumbering animal whose ivory tusks give the west African nation half of its official name; Algeria, the Desert Foxes/Les Fennecs, are proud to associate themselves with the wily, large-eared nocturnal creature that is their national animal; while Nigeria, formerly known as the Red Devils, adopted the Green Eagles (green being the colour of the team's first-choice kits and more dominant in the country's flag) nickname after attaining independence, before adding the 'Super' sobriquet when they won the 1994 Nations Cup. Other sides have opted for more modest and less imaginative names. Iran, Russia and Germany are Team Melli, Sbornaya and Die Nationalmannschaft respectively, all three terms simply meaning 'National Team'. 'Ethniki', yet another of Greece's nicknames, loosely translates as 'National'. Source: Goal.com

behind each moniker is a story, ranging from the remarkably simple to the very complex Agree or disagree? We want to know what you think . You can have your say by emailing weekendsports@leadership.ng or tweeting @sportsmetronome

potpourri 53

Saturday, June 28, 2014 Patrick Ebi-AmAnAmA saintpatrick1996@gmail.com

bAcKground: the story behind the picture

#bringbackourgirls Many of our world problems today, from inner city crimes to large scale wars, global terrorism and our crowded prisons, highlight the fact that children have had their childhoods stolen from them. The magic, the wonder and the mystery of a child’s heart are the seeds of creativity that heal the world. What we need to learn from children is not childish; being with them connects us to the deep wisdom of life. In this photo is a beautiful northern girl waiting for us to give her audience, attention and to show her love. What we give is what we will get in return. Love is an expression, not possession. In recent times our great nation has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. The kidnapping of girls from Chibok in the North East of Nigeria brought the world’s scrutiny on the country. The #BringBackOurGirls protests are

things You only Know When You’re Single amarachi Aibangbe Feedback: amaflysky@yahoo.com amaflysky@yahoo.com

Knowing Your Love Language!

love language is a way of communication between lovers but unfortunately some people do not know their individual love language or that of their partners. For a better and working relationship, it is always better to be very familiar with each other’s love language. Understanding your love language in any relationship is always the best way to go because things become easy for both partners. Experts say love languages bring couples closer and create much fun among couples. Love languages can fall under various groups such as: act of service, words of affirmation, gifts, quality time, physical touch and so on. Many people like the way they think they should love and do not show love the way their partners desire to be loved and vice versa and this happens majorly because partners do not discuss their love language with one another. It is okay for one person to have one or more love languages but what is more important is for your partner to be aware of them. Shade Haruna, 26, says her

relationship only got better when she decided to talk to her partner about their love language and its importance to their relationship. “I had for a long time known my love language, which is sharing of gifts and quality time together, but I guess I was too shy to address it. All my efforts to make my fiancé realise these failed until I chose to speak to him about it. He also told me his and since then, we have been a happier couple,” she said. Sharing a similar experience, Musa Garuba, 35, says he believes discussing each other’s love language is good for any relationship. “I only realised my girlfriend’s love language involved acts of service after we discussed our love language with each other and truly, I would not have guessed because anytime I did something really nice for her, it just didn’t feel like I had done enough. But she told me how much the little things I did really meant to her. I also told her my love language which is physical touch and since then, we have been better lovers,” he said.

Dear Amarachi, My name is Alice and I’m writing from Bida, Niger State where I currently work. I am a regular reader of ‘Things You Only Know When You Are Single’ and I must commend you for your brilliant write ups. I have been with my boyfriend for four years and the relationship is very serious. I have met basically everyone in his family and they all approve of me. They are really a nice family and I would more than love to be a part of them someday. However my major problem is with my man; he keeps cheating on me! I have caught him 5 times and each time he pleads with me and reassures me that it is me he wants to spend the rest of his life with. I recently caught him again and this time his entire family is begging me to forgive him and accept him back. I am so confused because I love him so much and I respect his family but I don’t want to keep hurting like this if we eventually get married. Please what should I do?

Dear Alice, Thanks for being a regular reader of ‘Things You Only Know When You Are Single’. I believe deep down within your heart you know exactly what you want for yourself. Your boyfriend seems to be taking you for granted and doesn’t seem to have much respect for you. Five times, is a lot of times to cheat on someone you claim to love. I suggest you politely explain to his family and run for your dear life because he won’t stop cheating unless he encounters Christ.

everywhere; people are screaming, crowds gathering, protesters are protesting, yet we don’t seem to know what is going on. The girls’ kidnappers are basking in the popularity the above have given them, yet we have one of the strongest and most experienced hands in our military; a military known for bringing peace to war torn countries, example, Liberia. So in a nation with a very strong military, issues like the kidnap of the girls occur? Something is wrong somewhere and no one is saying anything tangible. The irony of it all is that, the places where we have heavy military presence are the places where we are experiencing calamities. It is our duty to protect our young ones. The children of today are the leaders of tomorrow. Let’s stop the hide and seek and to the government, please bring back our girls!

Faces in the crowd BY AMARACHI AIBAngBe, Abuja

Debby Oshisanwo Event Manager What would you not do on a first date and why?

I am a very religious and traditional lady so I would never kiss on a first date. I believe in high morals, especially as a lady.

Udoka Offor Entrepreneur If you were to have cosmetic surgery what would you change or adjust and why?

To be honest, I would not change anything about myself because I appreciate the way God created me. Changing anything would be faulting God. John Micheal Student If you had to relocate, what city or place would you consider and why?

I live in Abuja and sincerely I love it here but with the security threats present today, I just want to relocate to a peaceful country.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

The Beautiful Art Of ‘Henna’

enna’ is an art form that has been transformed from traditional adornment to fit into the current fashion trend; it is made from herbs, which means it is all natural. The powder is extracted from a ‘henna’ plant, where the leaves are dried and grounded into a fine powder. This powder would then be mixed with water, eucalyptus oil, tea, coffee, and lime and then applied on the body. ‘Henna’ is used to create temporary tattoos mainly on the hands and feet of a woman. People usually choose areas that are visible - the palm, arm, feet, wrist or around the navel. There are different designs and patterns that can be intricately displayed on a woman's hand. It is also used for naturally dying the hair. ‘Henna’ at Weddings and the Meaning Behind It Applying the ‘henna’ art form is an important part of wedding ceremonies especially in the core northern states of Nigeria. This application usually lasts for at least one to two weeks. ‘Henna’ is a symbol of love between husband and wife. The common belief is that it brings good luck. With ‘henna’ on the bride’s hands, she doesn't have to do any household work-she is pampered and cared for as a new bride in the family.

With ‘henna’ on the bride’s hands, she doesn't have to do any household work-she is pampered and cared for as a new bride in the family

For Hair Dye ‘Henna’ is a transparent dye that coats the hair shaft, binding with the keratin. It conditions the hair giving it shine and body, in addition to a rich red colour. Because it is a natural dye, it will not change the colour of your hair but instead give it a beautiful and lustrous look. The colour ranges from black to red to brown. ‘Henna’ has to be mixed in the right proportion with the right ingredients to get the desired colour and effect; it works by coating the hair strands. The best part of using it on the hair is that it acts like a protein treatment and stops your hair from falling, itchy as well as prevents dandruff. Five Steps To Long Lasting ‘Henna’ • Wash the area to be designed, avoid lotions and oils. • Wax and manicure prior to the ‘henna’ application. • Leave the ‘henna’ paste on for up to seven to eight hours. The colour depends on each individual's body chemistry. ‘Henna’ darkens from orange to burgundy over a period of 48

•

hours. For my wedding, I left it on overnight and the colour came out very dark. Peel or scrape off the dry ‘henna’ paste with a spoon or butter knife. Avoid using water to remove and wash off immediately. Apply a mixture of lem-

on and sugar to the dry area every few hours. This method significantly makes the colour and design come out dark and distinct. Certain Drawbacks of Using ‘Henna’ When shopping for ‘henna,’

do not buy the pre-made mixed ‘henna.’ Any ‘henna’ paste advertising "instant" results probably contains chemical dyes such as PPD, also known as black ‘henna.’ Black ‘henna’ contains a chemical which can burn and scar the skin. By Chalya Dul, Abuja

STYLE 55

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Traditional Flair The Northern man is up in his game and his fashion sense gives you his real look as he recreates and makes a fashion

statement. Now, you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t just have to rely on the usual looks but create something stylish, classy, unique and outstanding to give you that classic event-ready look.

Abdulrahman Mijinyawa

Bala Malagwi

BY chalya dul, Abuja

Shamsudeen Bala Mohammed

Nura Salisu Mohamed

Sanusi Umar

Sadiq Jumare

Uzee Usman

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Pastor T. O. Banso Faith 08155744752

I He will give you new people. You don’t own the church or the ministry

n this series, in the last two editions of this column, I wrote about authority abuse as a manifestation of church abuse. I didn’t finish last week. But before I rounded off, I said God’s will for any minister is not to call down fire on former pastors or former members. The minister’s only fire in this circumstance is to repay evil with good thereby heaping coals of fire on the head of those who have done him evil. (Rom 12:20-21) I’ll continue from where I stopped. Look at this: “Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, ‘Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?’ But He turned and rebuked them, and said, ‘You do not

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Church Abuse (9)

know what manner of spirit you are of. 56 For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.’ And they went to another village.” (Luke 9:51-56 NKJV) Did you see that? Jesus said don’t call down fire; let’s go to another place. Sir (Ma), don’t call down fire; God will give you new leaders; He will give you new people. You don’t own the church or the ministry. God owns the church Jesus says, “I will build my church and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.” (Matt 16:18 NLT) So the church is his. A pastor who doesn’t understand this will abuse his God-given authority over the church. Leaders must see themselves not as masters but as servants of the people though they are first servants of God. “All we say about ourselves is that we are your servants because of what Jesus has done for us.” (2 Cor 4:5 NLT) The leaders must not lord it over the church as it is done in the world. Jesus told his disciples, “You know that in this world kings are tyrants, and officials lord

it over the people beneath them. But among you it should be quite different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant.” (Matt 20:25-27 NLT) Jesus said a similar thing in Mark 10:42-43. Peter echoed the same thing. “Don’t lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your good example.” (1 Peter 5:3 NLT) Ministry is service to God’s people. The leadership of the church must therefore serve all the composite groups in an assembly – children and adults, young and old, singles and married, divorced and separated, educated and uneducated etc. This is how Paul puts it: “This means I am not bound to obey people just because they pay me, yet I have become a servant of everyone so that I can bring them to Christ. When I am with the Jews, I become one of them so that I can bring them to Christ. When I am with those who follow the Jewish laws, I do the same, even though I am not subject to the law, so that I can bring them to Christ. When I am with the Gentiles who do not have the Jewish law, I fit

in with them as much as I can. In this way, I gain their confidence and bring them to Christ. But I do not discard the law of God; I obey the law of Christ.” (1 Cor. 9:19-21 NLT) The shepherd in God’s vineyard must feed the lamb, tend the sheep and feed the sheep. (John 21:15-17) The church is comprised of holy priests, and members must be taught to grow up to operate in this holy office. “And now God is building you, as living stones, into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are God’s holy priests, who offer the spiritual sacrifices that please him because of Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:5 NLT) Verse 9 says, “For you are a chosen people. You are a kingdom of priests, God’s holy nation, his very own possession. This is so you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.” (NLT) Believers should not be comfortable just sitting down being ministered to now and then; each one must take his or her place to also serve as ministers in the temple of God. TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK

Friday Ebinyi Impactful View impactfulview@gmail.com

Tel: 08150741383 (text only)

The Potter’s Workshop

Pottery is an age-long trade of converting clay into profitable, attractive and fund-generating ventures. Archaeologists describe pottery as the number one most popular discovery of ancient world study. While clay in its natural state is unfit for use until several stages of processing which include softening, mixing with water, sifting to remove all stones and pebbles and once refined, the potter places the refined material on a clean floor, walking on it back and forth several times until all the air pockets are expelled and then formed into desirable structure. It is obvious that the potter exhibits unique responsibility and absolute control over the clay. The clay is however stagnant, lifeless and helpless. The clay in whatever form does not possess its own power, neither can it challenge or question the authority of the potter, talk less of any ability to alter the plan and aspiration of

the potter or reply in any way possible as reflected in the Holy Writ: “Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonor?” In God’s characteristic way of teaching, He too prophet Jeremiah to the Potter’s house/ workshop in Jeremiah 18:1-6 to drive home his supremacy of all flesh and His ability to mould and re-mould lives. For human nature like the clay to be in a form acceptable for God’s adoption and consequent responsibility, it must be transformed into a state conformable with God’s standard. This analogy is a reflection of the state of natural man, who is worthless, helpless and fit for destruction. But God can take such and pass him through the crucible of conviction and total transformation. However, in the course of preparation, the potter uses some materials to

achieve his laudable objective. These include a shovel, the mallet, the wheel, and the hand depicting the picture of God allowing every man to experience calamities, afflictions and life challenges termed as light afflictions, because without this, quality of a man as an instrument in the hand of God may not be sustainable. “For our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” Similarly, situations sometimes appear confused, burdened and conflicting with our comfort. However, there is need to remember that all things work together for them that love God. In reality, God is the Potter, while we are the clay. Although, God is absolute, he needs the cooperation of every man to work out the best in him. However, the clay may not enjoy the pounding of the instruments of the potter, if the reaction of the clay dictates

the finished work of the potter; the clay will surely not attain the optimum of the dream of the potter. Likewise, God is the perfect Potter. Joseph had to pass through the house of Potiphar, where the wife could serve as his examiner, through the prison, where his knowledge of security had to be sound before ascending to the most prestigious throne of Egypt. In the affirmative, as the potter clearly defines his intension, God‘s thought about man plays a significant role in his intension for all mankind. God as a POTTER begins a process of changing that vile product into a vessel that will be useful for his honour and glory. As a vessel displaying reluctance to absolutely yield, there is no better opportunity than now. The night is far spent; the day is at hand, let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK

For our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory

June 28, 2014

MEN’S HEALTH

Know Your Risk factors In Controlling Stroke

It can stem from a disease or medical condition, such as arthritis, fibromyalgia, or spinal stenosis (a narrowing of the spinal canal through which the spinal cord runs)

Thwarting Back Pain TUNDE OGUNTOLA

enerally speaking, the lower back is subject to a lot of mechanical stress and strain, the reason is the weight of the upper body, which always puts loads on the lower back. However, back pain takes various forms, from a persistent dull ache to sudden sharp pain, and has many causes. Sometimes it results from a sprain, fracture, or other accidental injury. It can stem from a disease or medical condition, such as arthritis, fibromyalgia, or spinal stenosis (a narrowing of the spinal canal through which the spinal cord runs). Many people develop back pain in part because they’re overweight or sedentary. Although, most lower back pain usually gets better within a few days or weeks, and surgery is rarely necessary. What’s more, simple self-help strategies such as these can be surprisingly effective at preventing back pain and keeping it from returning: Get more exercise If your back is hurting, you may think the best way to get relief is to limit exercise and to rest. A day or two of rest may help, but more than that may not help the pain. Experts now know that regular physical activity can help ease inflammation and muscle tension. Watch your weight Extra pounds, especially in your midsection, can make back pain worse by shifting your center of gravity and putting strain on your lower back. Staying within 10 pounds of your ideal weight may help control back pain. If you smoke, stop Smoking restricts the flow of nutrient-containing blood to spinal discs, so smokers are especially vulnerable to back pain. Sleeping position If you’re prone to back pain, talk with your doctor about the best sleeping position. Sleeping on your side with your knees pulled up slightly toward your chest is

sometimes suggested. Prefer to sleep on your back? Put one pillow under your knees and another under your lower back. Sleeping on your stomach can be especially hard on your back. If you can’t sleep any other way, place a pillow under your hips. Lighten your wallet Most men are used using heavy wallet in the back pocket, sitting on an overstuffed wallet may cause discomfort and back pain. If you’re going to be sitting for a prolonged period -- while driving, for example, take your wallet out of your back pocket. Pay attention to your posture The best chair for preventing back pain is one with a straight back or low-back support. Keep your knees a bit higher than your hips while seated. Prop your feet on a stool if you need to. If you must stand for a prolonged period, keep your head up and your stomach pulled in. If possible, rest one foot on a stool -- and switch feet every five to 15 minutes. Be careful how you lift Don’t bend over from the waist to lift heavy objects. Bend your knees and squat, pulling in your stomach muscles and holding the object close to your body as you stand up. Don’t twist your body while lifting. If you can, push rather than pull heavy objects. Pushing is easier on the back. Pick the right handbag or briefcase Buy a bag or briefcase with a wide, adjustable strap that’s long enough to reach over your head. A messenger bag (like the ones bike messengers wear) is made to wear this way. Having the strap on the opposite shoulder of the bag distributes the weight more evenly and helps keep your shoulders even and your back pain-free. When carrying a heavy bag or case without straps, switch hands frequently to avoid putting all the stress on one side of the body. To lighten the load, periodically purge bags, cases, backpacks, and other carriers of things you don’t need.

Prevent The Top Threats •Don’t smoke: If you smoke or use other tobacco products, asks your doctor to help you quit. It’s also important to avoid exposure to secondhand smoke, air pollution and exposure to chemicals (such as in the workplace). •Eat a healthy diet: Choose vegetables, fruits, whole grains, high-fiber foods and lean sources of protein, such as fish. Limit foods high in saturated fat and sodium. •Maintain a healthy weight: Losing excess pounds — and keeping them off — can lower your risk of heart disease as well as various types of cancer. • Get moving: Include physical activity in your daily routine. You know exercise can help you control your weight and lower your risk of heart disease and stroke. But did you know that it may also lower your risk of certain types of cancer? Choose sports or other activities you enjoy, from basketball to brisk walking. •Limit alcohol: If you choose to drink alcohol, do so only in moderation. For men, that means up to two drinks a day for men age 65 and younger and one drink a day for men older than age 65. The risk of various types of cancer, such as liver cancer, appears to increase with the amount of alcohol you drink and the length of time you’ve been drinking regularly. Too much alcohol can also raise your blood pressure. •Manage stress: If you feel constantly on edge or under assault, your lifestyle habits may suffer, and so might your immune system. Take steps to reduce stress — or learn to deal with stress in healthy ways. •Stop avoiding the doctor: Don’t wait to visit the doctor until something is seriously wrong. Your doctor can be your best ally for preventing health problems. Be sure to follow your doctor’s treatment.

June 28, 2014

Ayurvedic Medicine: Apple

Malus species, including Malus pumila

The highest benefits can be derived from freshly pressed apple juice, but ready-made juice is also good for the body. The apple has many uses in traditional medicine, and the old adage “To eat an apple going to bed will make the physician beg his bread” has been justified by its many health-giving properties. Research shows that apples are excellent detoxifiers, and apple juice - even store bought - can destroy viruses in the body. Properties • Cleans teeth and strengthens gums Lowers cholesterol levels • Antiviral action • Detoxifies • Protects from pollution, binding to toxins in the body and carrying them out • Neutralizes indigestion Prevents constipation Soothing and antiseptic Uses Eat raw apples regularly, as a detoxificant, for gout and rheumatism. Apples have long been known to be

beneficial to health and should be eaten regularly. The highest benefits can be derived from freshly pressed apple juice, but ready-made juice is also good for the body. Data file • To prevent viruses from settling in, and to reduce their duration, eat an apple (or drink a glass of apple juice) three times a day. • Raw, peeled, and grated apples can be used as a poultice for sprains. • For indigestion, heartburn, and other digestive disorders, eat an apple with meals. • Use an apple poultice for treating rheumatic and weak eyes. • Two apples a day can reduce cholesterol levels by up to 10 percent. • As a treatment for intestinal infections, hoarseness, rheumatism, and fatigue, increase your daily intake to as much as 21b. (1 kg.) • For curative purposes, as an alternative to eating the whole fruit, drink 1 pt. (500ml.) of naturally sweet apple juice a day. • Grated apple, mixed with live yogurt, may be helpful in cases of diarrhea. Caution apple seeds can be toxic when taken in large amounts.

Herbal Clinic With Buki Fagbenle

Tel: (SMS only) +234-705-983-1992; Email: buki.fagbenle@leadership.ng

Natural Treatment Of Hypertension Part 3 Herbal Medicine

This week we shall discuss the importance of herbal antispasmodic, vasodilators, diuretics and cardio tonic in managing hypertension. I shall also briefly mention some environmental factors contributing to elevated blood pressure. Herbal antispasmodics can help through relaxing the muscles and opening the peripheral blood circulation. Dioscorea villosa (Wild yam - not the Nigerian staple), Viburnum opulus (Cramp bark) and Tilia x europea (Linden flower) are particularly effective. We all know that stress and anxiety play a great part in high blood pressure so it is important to try and incorporate relaxation into one’s daily routine. Meditation, yoga and exercise, as advised last week, can work wonders. Herbs such as Scutellaria lateriflora (Skullcap), Passiflora incarnata (Passion flower) - the Nigerian one is called Passiflora foetida, Stinking Passion flower (nine-nine, Ahe enyi) and Valeriana officianalis (Valerian) can also be very effective in relaxing the nervous system, especially when combined with the antispasmodics. Crataegus monogyna - Hawthorn (flowers, leaves and berries) known as a “food for the heart”, is traditionally used in Europe as a cardiovascular tonic (tones the heart) and as a vasodilator (it dilates the blood vessels) - because of these actions, it is specific for hypertension as well as being a potent antioxidant. It has the amazing ability of enabling the heart to beat more strongly and steadily in the presence of less oxygen, making it useful where the coronary arteries are compromised in any way. There is a wealth of scientific information to support this. For example a study in Japan looked at the effects of hawthorn on 80 patients suffering from mild congestive heart disease due to ischaemia (restriction of blood flow, and thus oxygen, to a muscle

LIVING HEALTHY AT 70 AND ABOVE

Lower Stress Brisk walking burns off the effects of stress hormones and triggers a much-needed relaxation response-a Post exercise glow that brightens even the glummest days. Add some stretching to completely unravel tension. Aim to accumulate 20 to 30 minutes of 2- to 3-point activity and stretching. Your Stress-Busting Day At A Glance Total Fitness Points: 50-55 Points Wake up spend 3 minutes gently stretching (3 points). 10:30 am or 3:30 pm Take a

brisk 10-minute walk around the building (120 points). At home with kids? Add a stroller but keep up the pace (125 points). At noon hit the stairwell for four flights or run up and down your stairs at home 4 times before lunch (14 points). 5:30 pm do a 10-minute bodyweight workout (10 push-ups, 10 crunches, 10 squats, 10 lunges, 10 back extensions). An alternative: Take a brisk 10-minute walk before dinner 120 (points). BEDTIME Do 3 minutes of easy stretching (13 points).

Quickie 30-Point Stress-Reduction Workout Frazzled? Settle your nerves in under 20 minutes with this super simple walk. Warm up with easy walking for 5 minutes (15 points). Walk at a brisk pace for 4 minutes (18 points) Go very fast for 2 minutes (16 points). Go back to brisk for 3 minutes (16 points). Cool down for 3 minutes 13 points). Stretch for 2 minutes 12 points).

- in this case the heart muscle) or hypertension. Those receiving 180 mg/ day of 5:1 hawthorn extract showed a significant improvement. (Iwamoto M, Ishizaki Tand Sato T: Planta Med 1981; 42(1) 1-16). Hence, it can sometimes be helpful to reduce blood pressure by lowering the total volume of fluid circulating in the body by using diuretics. Taraxacum officinale - Dandelion (leaves) have the useful property of producing gentle diuresis whilst supplying high levels of potassium. We do have this plant in Nigeria but I am unaware of its local names. As well as guarding against potassium loss through diuresis (a potential problem with diuretics) high levels of potassium can be useful for the treatment of elevated systolic pressure in the elderly. Herbal Peripheral vasodilators are also useful. Achillea millefolium (Yarrow, yaro in Nigeria) as well as encouraging the peripheral circulation, Yarrow helps to support the integrity of the blood vessels, helping to guard against stroke and stasis of the blood in the lower limbs. Environmental factors There is some evidence that some hypertension is linked to long-term lead exposure so try and avoid leaded crystal or improperly glazed ceramic dishes for eating or drinking; check that your supplements are free from lead; don’t use paints containing lead in your home; filter your water before drinking and run your tap water for at least a minute before using; and supplement your diet with calcium since it takes preference over lead when the metals are absorbed into the body. Good sources of calcium includes organic milk, cheese, dairy foods, green leafy vegetables, such as cabbage, broccoli and okra (but not spinach), nuts, soya drinks with added calcium, sardines and pilchards as long as you eat their bones.

June 28, 2014

Live Well Tips

Live well tips are NOT medical advice. Please consult your doctor before taking medicine or supplement, changing diet or exercise. • Gum disease is a chronic bacterial infection and has been linked to tooth loss, heart disease, stroke and diabetes complication • Dark chocolate boost circulation in your brain and reduces clotting, and it is a great boost for the whole body. • It is a good idea to get Hepatitis A and B vaccination, especially if you travel overseas, please ask your doctor about them. • Oysters are rich in iron and zinc, both of which are essential to keep your brain sharp and your life in high gear. • Fish is brain food, especially fatty fish like sardine. The Omega-3 from fish ends up right in your brain. • Eggs may have cholesterol but the yolk also contains chlorine, which builds better brains. Eggs are good for growing children. • An apple a day provides flavonoids like quercetin that protect the brain from oxidation and also stop Parkinson’s or Alzheimer.

PHOBIA PteromerhanophobiaFear of flying Pteromerhanophobia is an unwarranted, irrational and extreme fear of flying and is closely related to aviophobia or the extreme fear of flying on an air plane or flying. A single traumatic incident might have caused a highly stressful or frightening real event at which, instantaneously this phobia is created. This single traumatic incident caused an intense fear and the person associates this incident with fear to help him avoid such situations in future. The initial fear may have nothing to do with flying and the problem might have started at a time when they were under extreme stress for something completely unrelated, but the mind somehow associated the negative feelings to flying anyway. Some individuals

might have not directly experienced the fear but may associate with someone who does, may it be a real situation, or maybe just watching a movie or dreaming about a horrifying plane crash. Pteromerhanophobia causes great distress to a person when he or she is forced to travel by air. They can manifest as full blown panic attacks or other symptoms of stress such as palpitations, nausea, trembling. In extreme cases, a panic attack can be triggered by the mere sight of an aircraft or the thought or mention of air travel. Treatment includes education of people with pteromerhanophobia about the safety measures that airlines take, and maybe by learning how an aircraft flies. Some airline and travel companies run courses to help people get over the fear of flying.

Your Sexual Health Questions Answered! Why does my urine stink? Normally, urine doesn’t have much of a smell to it. If you’re dehydrated and your urine becomes overly concentrated, it can have a stronger-than-usual scent. Vitamins and certain foods (asparagus, for example) can give urine an unusual smell. Infection can cause the urine to smell unpleasant. Uncommon, but more serious, causes of urine odor include: • Rare diseases, in which certain chemicals build up in the urine (for example, ketonuria, maple sugar urine disease [an inherited metabolic disorder that’s characterized by urine that smells similar to maple syrup], and phenylketonuria). • An abnormal connection between the rectum and the bladder (rectal fistula). • Liver failure. Sometimes it can be difficult to tell where the smell is coming from: at times, women think that their urine has an unpleasant odor, when actually the source is their vagina. The common vaginal infection trichomoniasis can cause a strong, foul, fishy smell. Another vaginal infection, gardnerella, can also cause an offensive odor. Both of these infections are easily treated with antibiotics. In most cases, a sexual partner of an infected woman will require treatment with antibiotics also, and condoms need to be used until the full schedule of antibiotics is finished. A urinary tract infection (UTI) usually causes people to urinate more frequently, and can cause burning and pain while peeing. It’s a good idea for you to visit your health care provider to try to find out the source of this new, unpleasant odor. The solution may be as simple as a course of antibiotics. Hope this helps!

June 28, 2014

Think Yourself Thin With Zahra Bakari - Imam

08183666800 (text only) thinkyourselfthin@yahoo.com, twitter@thinkurselfthin

FIRST AID

Fat Burning Foods

Spinal Injury The danger of any spinal injury is that the spinal cord may be affected. The spinal cord is delicate and, if damaged, loss of power or sensation can occur in parts of the body below the injured area. Temporary damage can be caused if the cord or nerve roots are pinched by displaced or dislocated discs or bone fragments; permanent damage results if the cord is partly or completely severed. Dangers of spinal fracture Although the spinal cord may be injured without any damage to the bones, spinal fracture vastly increases the risk. Such fractures can be caused by both direct and indirect force. The most vulnerable parts of the spine are the bones in the neck and in the lower back. Recognition When only the bones DJ the spinal column are damaged, there may be: •Pain in the neck or the back at the level of the injury; this may be masked by other, more painful injuries. • A step, irregularity, or twist in the normal curve of the spine. • Tenderness on gently feeling the spine.

When the spinal cord is also damaged, there may be: • Loss of control over limbs; movement may be weak or absent. • Loss of sensation. • Abnormal sensations, for example burning or tingling. The casualty may say that limbs feel “stiff”, “heavy”, or “clumsy”. • Breathing difficulties. Some Causes Of Spinal Injury • Falling from a height. • Falling awkwardly while doing gymnastics or trampolining. • Diving into a shallow pool and hitting the bottom. w • A heavy object falling across the back. • Injury to the head or the face. What causes spinal injury? Always suspect spinal injury when unusual or abnormal forces have been exerted on the back or neck, and particularly if the casualty complains of any disturbance of feeling or movement. The history of the injury is the most important indicator. If the accident involved a violent forward bending, a backward bending, or a twisting of the spine, you must treat as for a fractured spine.

JOKES At one point during a game, the coach called one of his 7-year-old baseball players aside and asked, “Do you understand what cooperation is? Do you know what a team is?” The little boy nodded in the affirmative. “Do you understand that what matters is whether win or lose together as a team?” The little boy nodded yes. “So,” the coach continued, “I’m sure you know, when an out is called, you shouldn’t argue with or curse at the umpire, or

call him names. Do you understand all that?” Again the little boy nodded. The coach continued, “And when I take you out of the game so another boy gets a chance to play, it’s not good sportsmanship to call your coach names, is it?” Again the little boy nodded. “Good,” said the coach. “Now go over there and explain all that to your parents.”

ating the best fat burning foods that speed up metabolism can make it much easier for you to reach and maintain your ideal

weight. But you can’t just add the best fat burning foods to your diet and still lose weight. Research shows it’s not just fat burning foods that speed up metabolism. Metabolism is also influenced by the size and timing of your meals. So you’ll need to include all the ways to speed up metabolism naturally. And eating fat burning foods, combined with all other ways to speed up metabolism, helps you burn more calories while you’re just sitting at the computer, watching TV or even getting a good night’s sleep. How to Speed up Metabolism Naturally in 7 Steps Here are all 7 ways to boost metabolism by shifting your daily routines and eating the best fat burning foods that speed up metabolism naturally. 1. Eat more often. Begin with breakfast and eat at least 4, preferably 5 or 6, meals a day. Every time you eat it revs up your metabolism. On the other hand, skipping or going for long periods of time without eating causes your metabolism to slow down. 2. Have small mini-meals. Eating small, frequent meals keeps your blood sugar stable, fuels your metabolism and gives you sustained energy. If possible, taper calories to fit your daily energy output – breakfast would be your biggest meal (but not too big). And your last meal of the day, at least 4 hours before bedtime, would be your lightest meal. 3. Choose maxi-metabolism foods. Focus on whole food high fiber carbohydrates for fat burning energy. And countless studies show that good quality protein helps you build lean muscle and lose fat,

so include enough protein at every meal. Also make sure you take nutritional health supplements to get sufficient vitamins, minerals and nutrients. 4. Spice up your dishes. Hot and spicy seasonings, such as chilies, mustard and curry have been found to raise metabolism by up to 40% for two or three hours. Just make sure your spicy dish is not a high calorie meal or you’ll undo the fat burning advantage. 5. Drink ice-cold water. Water makes up 70 to 80% of your blood and brain, so it’s essential to good health. And now new information by German researchers have found dieters can increase their metabolic rate by as much as 30% by drinking 17 ounces of cold water. Actually, just being cold increases your metabolism. Your body has to burn about 100 calories to get warmed back up to normal temperature. Plus, thirst is often mistaken for hunger; so staying hydrated can help keep you from overeating too. 6. Switch to green tea. Studies show green tea may speed up metabolism and help burn fat. So consider exchanging your morning cup of java for a mug of green tea – especially since it’s also been shown to be a good source of antioxidants. 7. Get an optimum level of good fats. According to fish oil and weight loss research, certain specific omega 3 fatty acids are important for their fat conversion abilities. Essential fatty acids are also necessary to keep your thyroid and other hormonal glands working optimally. All these fat burning ways and best fat burning foods that speed up your metabolism naturally can make getting and staying fit much easier. You may also want to learn more about how to build muscle to lose fat. And now you know how to speed up metabolism naturally, it’s time to get started with fat burning exercises and the top 10 best fat burning foods.

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

Heal The World By Hannatu Musawa

There's a place in your heart/ And i know that it is love/ And this place could /Be much /Brighter than tomorrow/ And if you really try/ You'll find there's no need/ To cry/ in this place you'll feel/ There's no hurt or sorrow/ There are ways/ To get there/If you care enough for the living/Make a little space/ Make a better place...

n the song, Heal the World, that place in our hearts which the song urges us to seek is one that has the power to widen our individual perspectives to include the wellbeing of the whole world and its future generations through each of our thoughts and actions. Heal the World is a song from Michael Jackson’s hit album, Dangerous, which was released in 1991. It speaks of peace and compels each and every individual to contribute their quota in order to change the world for the better; a change that marshals in a renewed dedication to widespread moral values, which puts an end to disagreements peacefully, through discourse instead of violence; a change that upholds human dignity and human responsibility and promotes empathy and kindness. Of all his songs, Michael Jackson said, “Heal the World” was the song that he was most proud to have written. As I recall the message of love and peace that he gave the world through his music and the stories of unity, understanding and patience that he told through his work, I am comforted by the fact that the loss of Michael is one that will never be forgotten. Five years on since that dreadful day of June 25th, 2009 when the world woke to the shocking news that the King of Pop had passed away, the sadness that those of us who adored Michael and appreciated his philanthropy, music and message feel is still there. Every year, since his death, on the anniversary of his loss, I have written a tribute to Michael. This year, amidst all the turmoil and conflict that is raging all over the world, I felt it would be fitting to reflect on the message of peace that Michael was so desperate to spread in his most cherished creation, Heal the world. In some of his past interviews, Michael referred to the song as being about man's inhumanity to his fellow man, a development that we are all too aware of as we watch in disbelief as human beings maim, slaughter, rape, massacre, abduct, bomb and commit the most horrific crimes against other fellow human beings. All the horrors that are presently taking place world-

wide are avoidable if we each take the responsibility upon ourselves and embrace the message of peace and change or heal the world from what it has become. When one focuses on their mortality, one finds that there are much more important things than politics or government, money or material possessions, desire and ambition, there is right and wrong, good and bad, salvation and humanity. When each of us was born, we each came with the traits necessary for man’s being. We each were naturally provided with the ability to be kind, to nurture and care for each other. While, not everybody in human creation has these qualities in equal measures, the fact still remains that every human being created has the capacity to possess such positive qualities. If each of us strived to maintain and develop our positive qualities and advance our human values, our differences of religious faith, race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, literacy or economic divide would be of no negative consequence. If we, as human beings, each concentrate on encouraging good human relations between our different identities, we have the power to heal the world. All the turmoil that is playing out all over the world is created, orchestrated and developed with us and it is only from within that we can stop the world from bleeding. Often times it is much easier for us to push the responsibilities for working for peace on our leaders, but in reality, the duty lies with each of us. For peace to have a chance in the world, then the search for peace must start within each one of us and within a sincere effort to take responsibility for each other. When we are kind to others, we naturally develop inner peace and when we resolve to search for and practice peace; it is inevitable for us to be at peace with those around us. And if within our communities, we live in a state of peace, the communities next to us benefit from that peace. While it may be the norm for Michael’s message of peace to be seen as unrealistic, almost as if he speaks of some kind of utopia found only in Children’s bed time stories, if one really thinks of some of his messages, they are not

Michael Jackson

really all that farfetched. In Heal the world, he appeals for people to show love, care and need to the children who are suffering and people who are victims of wars and poverty. When any of us are facing challenges in our lives, we regularly look towards others who maybe people we know or maybe strangers for assistance or support. There is not one person in this world who has not had to unconditionally rely on another for help throughout their adulthood. There are times when each of us have had to rely on the help of another person whom we have no common identity or connection to. When circumstances arise where we have had to seek assistance from another, we do not stop to know who people are before we ask for help. And in the instances where we each have helped others, we do not ask their identity before we offer them help. We each have helped others because they are human beings like us and others have helped us for exactly the same reason. As human beings with a stake in this world and a stake in preserving this world in a state where our children and generations after them can live in peace, the discrimination against and persecution of persons of different tribes, races, religion, gender and weaker sections of society should change and a universal principle of humanity must take precedence. There is no community in this world that can survive as an island. The world has become such a global village that none of us can afford to be concerned only for our communities, families or countries. As part of the human family, we must all be involved with the survival of one another and feel a responsibility for all individuals, communities and peoples. We must have compassion for those in this world who suffer and for each other. It is so heartbreaking and devastating to watch the madness

going on in the world where man’s wickedness against man is seen in the form of the daily senseless bloodletting. Headlines of families being slaughtered, communities being massacred are just too unbelievable for the human senses. From the perspective of the oneness of humanity, and from a profound understanding of the deeply interconnected nature of today's world, none of the atrocities taking place in the world can view these events in isolation. Eventually their repercussions are felt by all of us around the world. Our world is increasingly interdependent, but I wonder if we truly understand that our interdependent human community has to be compassionate; compassionate in our choice of goals, compassionate in our means of cooperation and our pursuit of these goals. It is my firm belief that dialogue and a willingness to look at ourselves with humanity can and will lead us to a viable solution for world peace. Five years after Michael Jackson’s death, his message of peace lives on. His moving song, Heal the World and the way he performed it made it inspiring. As we mark the anniversary of his passing, hopefully the power of peace conveyed through songs such as Heal the World will last for long. In the quest for world peace, Michael said it best in his song when he sang: “Heal The World Make It A Better Place For You And For Me And The Entire Human Race There Are People Dying If You Care Enough For The Living Make A Better Place For You And For Me..” I invite you to: Follow me on Twitter- @ hanneymusawa Visit my Website- www. hannatumusawa.com Like my Facebook- www.facebook. com/hannatu.musawa

Five years after Michael Jackson’s death, his message of peace lives on

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

How Primary School Transformed Dako Community Dako is a remote settlement about two hour’s drive from Abuja’s city centre. The once decrepit settlement has been transformed with the siting of a primary school there six years ago. AGBO-PAUL AUGUSTINE, who visited the settlement recently, writes on the impact of education on Dako.

or Yusuf Adamu, a teacher with only three months experience, the daily bumpy ride on the over 20km stretch from Gwagwalada town to Dako, all in Gwagwalada area council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to teach his 81 primary one pupils at the Local Education Area (LEA) Primary School, Dako, is his little sacrifice for Nigeria’s educational advancement. By motorcycle, it costs a primary school teacher, Baba Ismaila N1,200 for a round trip to Dako daily from Dobi, about seven kilometres from Gwagwalada. He has kept the faith with his 41 primary two pupils as he traverses Dako and Dobi to teach. Daily, as the pupils of Dako primary school sing the national anthem and recite the national pledge with 100 per cent accuracy, little is remembered of the remote community six years ago, when the only road to Dako was just a footpath oblivious of any form of civilisation. LEADERSHIP Weekend endured the tormenting trip to Dako on June 19, 2014, the day LEA Primary School Dako added another feather to its cap. The TY Danjuma Foundation (TYDF) in partnership with Total Child Care Initiative (TCCI) donated a 2-bedroom semi-detached bungalow to the primary school to improve teachers’ attendance as the long distance has taken a toll on teachers who used that as an excuse for their frequent absenteeism. The journey to freedom and opportunity for the children of Dako and adjourning villages began in 2007 when the mainly farming settlement knew nothing than their farmlands. LEADERSHIP Weekend learnt that some children of Dako were taken to cocoa farms in the southwest during the farming season to work for money. Dr. Rosemary Abdullahi, a retired Director of the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and now Executive Director, TCCI took the initiative to set up a school in Dako after she was told of the long labour trip of the children to cocoa farms. “I was informed of the movement of children and young boys to cocoa farms during the

Pupils of LEA Primary School, Dako

farming season to work. The few children that were going to school had to stay within Dobi with other families. “This was pathetic and it stirred up a will to touch their lives positively by setting up a school which eventually started in 2008,” she said. LEADERSHIP Weekend also learnt that the school which was set up through support from Christian missionaries encountered challenges as parents of children who were Muslims refused to send their kids to the school. But that challenge was overcome after it was agreed to handover the school to the FCT Universal Basic Education Board to be run as a public school in 2011. The school started with a two classroom block but “eventually, we approached TYDF for support and they kindly agreed to partner with us. By October 2011, TYDF had completed a block of two classrooms, head teacher’s office and three ventilated improved pit toilets with table and chairs for teachers and pupils,” Dr. Abdullahi told guests. She further explained that the school started with low enrolment and retention of children was also challenging as parents found it difficult to let their children off their farms and by 2008, it had a student

population of 10, comprising eight boys and one girl. By October 2011, the number grew to 85 with 17 girls, thanks to advocacy carried out by TCCI and some locals to encourage parents to let their children attend school. The efforts paid off as pupils increased to 125 by 2012 increasing the number of girls attending school to 30. Interestingly, by June 2014, Dako and the surrounding hamlets had produced about 149 pupils to LEA Dako, stretching all infrastructure in the school in spite of high rate of teachers’ absenteeism. Abdullahi while appreciating the financial support of TYDF, came hard on the authority of Gwagwalada area council whom she accused of not showing clear appreciation and ownership of the school, saying, “It took us almost a year despite several phone calls, visits and letters to get a date for commissioning. This has unnecessarily delayed and extended the implementation period of this project.” She explained that the bungalow was built to allow some of the teachers stay over on work days to reduce hazards of commuting the 20km rough road to Dako and to increase teaching activities in the school and reminded the area council to fulfil the promise of furnishing the

building for the teachers. Also speaking at the occasion, the Chief of Dako, Isa Wakili tasked the management of Gwagwalada area council to complement the efforts of the two non-governmental organisations by providing additional classrooms to the school as the pupil population was fast growing. While receiving the keys to the bungalow, Chairman of the council, Abubakar Jibrin-Giri expressed appreciation to TYDF and the TCCI for the initiative which had brought education to the remote rural community. Speaking to LEADERSHIP Weekend on the side lines, Supervisory Councillor for Education and Social Development of the council, Ishaq Salihu Kaura said the people of Dako were so lucky to have attracted the attention of the two NGOs to provide quality education. “There are several settlements within the area council that have no schools and the council is still struggling to build schools for them,” he noted. On its part, The TYDF promised to provide a borehole for the community to reduce the challenge of water scarcity in the school and the entire community. Speaking later in a special press briefing, founder of TYDF, Lt. Gen. Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma (rtd) represented by the Executive Director, of the foundation, Dr Florence EttaAkinAina said in the next strategic plan period of 2014-2018, the foundation would focus on health and education programmes in the country. Some pupils who spoke to LEADERSHIP Weekend said they were happy to be given the opportunity to pursue their dream through education. “I want to be an engineer that works on the farm, I want to own a big farm in Dako,” one of the ecstatic pupils enthused. Other dignitaries who spoke to LEADERSHIP Weekend said the future of Dako has been transformed forever and urged government to continue to support the school. As the pupil’s population swells, Dako primary school is set to graduate its first set of pupils next year-another milestone in the MDGs goals.

“I was informed of the movement of children and young boys to cocoa farms during the farming season to work

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

Federal Secretariat- Abuja

Retirement: Nigerian Civil Servants’ Nightmare Retirement is probably one of the most dreaded words among civil servants in Nigeria. Many Nigerian civil servants are ready to do anything to avoid leaving the service, even after attaining the mandatory retirement age. DAVID ADUGE-ANI writes on why Nigeria’s public servants are afraid of retirement.

efore the enactment of the Pension Reform Act of 2004, which established the contributory pension scheme for all civil servants in Nigeria, the country was operating a Defined Benefit (DB) pension scheme, which was largely noncontributory. The scheme, according to observers, led to massive accumulation of pension debt and became unsustainable largely due to lack of adequate and timely budgetary provisions as well as increase in salaries and pensions. The administration of the scheme was also termed as very weak, inefficient, cumbersome and not transparent, leading to bureaucracy and high inclination to corrupt practices. At that time, mismanagement seemed to be a brand name in most organisations and it came in different sizes and shapes, where the ingenuity of some selfish few is misused for fraudulent manipulations. Most employees who work in government establishments that handle pension and gra-

tuity matters were found to be very fraudulent in their dealings. This they did through inflating the pension payroll by including fictitious, non-existent and/or ghost pensioners on the payroll. Through these means, monies meant for persons rightfully retired went into personal coffers of these selfish few and that explains why pensioners suffer and wallow in abject poverty. While pensioners are denied their entitlements, these selfish few engage themselves in a life of affluence by buying expensive and exotic cars and building expensive houses, leaving those that served the country faithfully at the mercy of poverty. In the private sector many employees then were not covered by the pension schemes put in place by their employers and many of these schemes were not funded. Even where the schemes were funded, the management of the pension funds was full of malpractices between the fund managers

and the trustees of the pension funds. However in June 2004, the federal government introduced a system that is sustainable and has the capacity to achieve the ultimate goal of providing a stable, predictable and adequate source of retirement income for each worker in the country. The Pension Reform Act 2004 brought in a Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) that is fully funded and based on individual accounts for both the public and private sector employees in Nigeria. The Act also established the National Pension Commission (PenCom) as the sole regulator and supervisor of all pension matters in the country. A retired civil servant and author, Nathaniel Okechukwu Ohanado told LEADERSHIP Weekend that the Pension Reform Act of 2004 is the best thing that has ever happened to the Nigerian retiring civil servant. “This is because as at now, if you are a pensioner under the new act, the question of staying for one year or two years waiting to process your retirement is no longer there. What is obtainable now is that once your bond is released, within the same month, your papers are documented and the following month, you will start collecting your pension. When you retire under the new pension act, it is very easy for you to start receiving your pension,” he said. Ohanado noted that the only lapses at the moment include the work which was done before the year 2004, which has to be calculated and brought on board which according to him, takes up to two or three months to complete. But despite this Act, many civil servants are still not happy leaving the civil service. Many, our reporter gathered, have engaged in various means such as falsification of their age and documents which enable them to remain in service. Ohanado pointed out that the reason many Nigerian civil servants are not happy when you mention retirement is that they are not prepared for it. “The fault for not preparing is always on the retirees themselves. This is because from day one when they started work, government has started preparing for their retirement by deducting some percentage of their salary which is paid to pension fund administrators. But there are certain things the civil servants are supposed to do, which they don’t do. So there is always lack of planning on the part of the civil servants in Nigeria who are retiring,” he said. Another civil servant, Em-

manuel Ugie, told our reporter that government should be blamed for discouraging civil servants from retiring, because government does not train them while in service. “Government is not training its civil servants on how to retire especially from the beginning of their employment so that they will have it at the back of their minds that they will leave the service one day. “So, government should have what is called ‘Advanced Retirement Training’ for civil servants at the time they are engaged and at the middle of their service. Also, another training could be done as an appraisal and then the final training which should be before their final disengagement from the service,” he said. Another civil servant who preferred anonymity told LEADERSHIP Weekend that even when such trainings are organised, it is usually done too late or the wrong ideas are impacted. “There are a lot of lapses on the part of the government in preparing civil servants for retirement. Even at the final disengagement, they don’t get the right resource persons to train the civil servants as they prepare for disengagement from the service. From what I have seen in the trainings I have attended, the resource persons don’t teach them the right things to prepare them for meaningful retirement,” he lamented. However, recently, the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria urged the National Assembly to address the issue of gratuity in the new Pension Reform Bill now before it. The secretary-general of the association, Mr. Alade Lawal, said that the union had observed that in the present Pension Act, workers’ terminal benefits were very low when compared to what it was under the 2004 Act. “If you work for 35 years, instead of receiving something in the range of N12 million under the old arrangement, one gets about N5 million in the present Act. The new Pension Act gives you 25 per cent of your total sum and spreads the remaining 75 per cent over a period of 18 years. When the 18 years elapse, you are entitled to nothing and so you should go hungry or die. We are not happy with this arrangement as most of our members retire into penury and this does not augur well for us as a nation,’’ he added. Lawal further pointed out that the Pension Reform Bill, 2013, which is currently before the National Assembly seeks to replace the Pension Act of 2004 and would make retirement benefits a little bit more meaningful for civil servants.

There are a lot of lapses on the part of the government in preparing civil servants for retirement. Even at the final disengagement, they don’t get the right resource persons to train the civil servants as they prepare for disengagement from the service

Saturday, June 28, 2014

weekend politics Saturday, June 28, 2014

Politics Editor Weeklies: UCHENNA Awom

Why Delta State Is Finishing Strong – Ogeah Barrister Christopher Chike Ogeah is the Delta State commissioner for information. In this interview with Kola Eke-Ogiugo, he speaks on the development projects and several other issues affecting the state. What do you mean by ‘Delta State is finishing strong’?

Of course he got over that and that was why we described what we are seeing today as a harvest of projects all over the state

When the governor got reelected for the second term, there were prolonged litigations and before that there were periods of elections, re-runs and all that took some time. As this time was going, the first tenure of the governor was mainly focused on finishing the projects of his predecessor and of course putting his own vision in proper perspective. In the second term, just as he got down to carry out basically the three point agenda: infrastructural development, peace and security and human capital development, those litigations began. Of course he got over that and that was why we described what we are seeing today as a harvest of projects all over the state. Delta is a massive state, we have over five million people, very diverse and so whatever project you are having in one place, you must replicate it at another. It is not the kind of state where you just develop the state capital and then everybody shouts ‘Hosanna!’ So, because of that we had to develop what we call the two major economic zones in the country. I’m sure Delta is the only state that has two viable airports and two massive economic zones; one of course is the oil and gas zone of Warri and the economic zone of Asaba. Asaba is 10 minutes away from the biggest market in Sub-Saharan African. One of our big projects is the Ughelli-Asaba dualization; over 173 kilometers one side. The whole idea is to be able to connect the two economic zones. We

found out that a lot of or compatriots from across the Niger have accidents, spend days on air trying to clear their goods in Lagos ports, etc, so we realised that we have two ports here: the Koko and Warri ports. The federal government had given an indication that they were going to dredge those ports and once that was done, we knew that all we needed to do was link up those two zones. Coming back to your question, ‘finishing strong’ means that we have on-going projects scattered all over the state. We have mega, massive and empowerment projects because if you build all the bridges, roads and the people are hungry, there is still a massive problem. That is why we developed our Delta Micro Credit Scheme which has been acclaimed to be the best in the country. We strengthen our micro finance banks to give soft loans to a lot of our people who are very talented but have no access to credit. We harness their talents and they started making all kinds of fantastic things from this scheme. We found out that they were repaying, because these loans are interest free, short term. So, we had a lot of these programmes all over the place. We have re-habilitated, renovated, totally refurbished and built new schools, side by side with the training of teachers; we have built four new polytechnics. Looking at healthcare, see what we have done with Eku teaching hospital as well as the maternal and child care hospital in Warri; a first class hospital dedicated to just pregnant wom-

Ogeah

en and children. We have one in Asaba too. Oghara is the first hospital in Nigeria to organise a successful kidney transplant. If you go to Oghara, you will not believe that you are in Nigeria because the governor has taken that hospital to a different level altogether; not just in terms of the modern equipment, but also in terms of personnel. Tell us about your collaboration with Obasanjo in Ogwashi-Uku?

The farms are there. The British High Commissioner is visiting Delta for the first time and he was there yesterday. He stated that it was the best farm he has seen in Nigeria since he’s been here. It is a massive agricultural farm in collaboration with Obasanjo Farms. So, these are all the kind of things we are doing, the whole idea like I said is to be able to get these different areas developed so that we don’t depend sole-

ly oil. Certain quarters assert that the Okpanam road should have attended to by now, what are do you think?

The issue of the Okpanam road has been addressed by the governor several times. It is simple- Asaba is a valley and water keeps returning and you know water will always find its level. When water can’t a find a way out what will happen? We are not saying that because of that we throw our hands up in the air; as we speak now a major design is on-going so we can get the water channelled into the river in Anwai. In a couple of months that whole thing will be over. I think there is just a major link that needs to be done underground somewhere around the core area and once that is done the whole issue will be a thing of the past. So, there is no point repairing those roads when they will keep getting washed away.

This Week On Backlash

Last week was extraordinary in the electoral history of Nigeria, so this week, Backlash is not on a critical or attacking note. The just concluded governorship election in Ekiti no doubt showcased the quality of political tolerance present in the vanquished governor, Kayode Fayemi, who wasted no time in accepting defeat and congratulating the victor, Ayodele Fayose. In turn, Fayose described him as an unusual Nigerian leader”.

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Backlash

Yesterday, Ekiti State Decided – Gov Fayemi

kiti election was epochal, but its beauty lies in the lesson learnt, which was succinctly captured in the very rare exhibition of sportsmanship, statesmanship, candour and high level of political maturity displayed by the vanquished governor, John Kayode Fayemi. His acceptance of defeat moments after the results were declared would remain a reference point in the annals of modern political history in Nigeria, particularly in the opposition All Progressive Congress (APC) camp. This is because, acceptance of defeat and immediate congratulation of the victor is a language not known in the APC dictionary. In a surprise twist, Governor Fayemi, not minding that his party had earlier that day refused to endorse the result, made a state-wide broadcast wherein he equivocally declared: “Yesterday, Ekiti State decided. Following the gubernatorial elections held in the land of honour, Ekiti State, Nigeria, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has officially returned the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as the winner of the election. “If indeed this is the will of the Ekiti People, I stand in deference to your will. If the result of the elections is an expression of the

voice of our people, we must all heed your voice. “I have just spoken with my brother, Mr Peter Ayodele Fayose, congratulating him on his victory. In a few hours from now, I would be meeting the governorelect to discuss the future of our dear state and how we would work together to institute a smooth transition programme. “It has been a hard fought election. As expected, in the course of the campaigns, there were unsavoury episodes as the candidates toured the nooks and cranny of the state to sell ourselves to the people. Elections tend to be highly divisive affairs that often see brother rising against brother. “Despite our diverse party affiliations, and regardless of which way we voted on Saturday, we must remember that we are all sons and daughters of Ekiti State. Ekiti is ours to build together.” He added: “On our part, over the course of the campaigns, we presented our scorecards before the people of Ekiti State. We never at any point took your support for granted. We campaigned, we canvassed and we traversed the nooks and crannies of this state. “Our performance and achievements in office will remain the backdrop against which the next government and indeed future governments will be assessed. We are proud that with the support

of Ekiti people, we have raised the bar of excellence in governance. In all, we gave our best, for conscience and for posterity. “Indeed a new sociology of the Ekiti people may have evolved. However, the task of understanding how the outcome of this election has defined us as a people will be that of scholars. For us as an administration and a cadre of political leaders in Ekiti State, we have fought a good fight, we have kept faith,” he said. Indeed, that sociology of the Ekiti People is what political analysts have been trying to deconstruct since Saturday. Here was an incumbent governor that has changed the landscape of the state. Several kilometres of roads have been tarred, physical infrastructural development dotted all over the state yet his people are not willing to give him a second term ticket. That notwithstanding, the governor restated his good heart and that his acceptance of defeat was not a fluke, when the governorelect, Peter Ayodele Fayose visited him a day after. He had said while reacting to Fayose’s surprise at his concession that he has his respect for the will of the people even as he added that this is one of the ways Ekiti State can progress faster considering its disadvantaged position. “For me, leadership is about service. It is about sacrifice. It is

Fayemi

not about personal aggrandizement, not about personal benefit but the duty that we owe our people is to ensure that Ekiti continues to progress. Anything that will make the state progress is what I will be associated with. People have said my gesture is strange, it is unAfrican, well I am a democrat and the will of the people is the basis of democracy. If it is the will of the people, we do not have a choice than to respect their will, and to do everything to ensure that we deepen this democracy not just for Ekiti but also for Nigeria,” he said. The Governor added that his meeting with Fayose is aimed at setting up a transition committee which will fine tune the process leading to the transition from the current administration to the incoming one.

I salute Fayemi’s courage for accepting me and his readiness to allow peace and love reign in our state

The political acrimony between the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Governor Kayode Fayemi and that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ayodele Fayose officially came to an end with the governor-elect of Ekiti state paying a visit to the incumbent in Ado-Ekiti. Speaking at the office of the governor on Monday, Fayose described the incumbent Governor Fayemi as an unusual Nigerian leader who puts the interest of his state ahead of personal gains. He said Fayemi’s attitude to the outcome of last Saturday’s poll shows that “he conceded in the overall interest of Ekiti State.” Continuing, the governor-elect said Fayemi has demonstrated commitment to the peace and development of the state since 2010; assuring that he would complement all achievements made by the incumbent Governor when he hands over in October. Fayose said: “I got a call from the governor, our leader, Dr Kayode Fayemi and he told me expressly of his readiness to ensure that the state moves forward by accepting the result in the outcome

of the June 21 governorship election, which I consider he is the only statesman that can do that without being immodest. “I want to equally understate the fact that as a leader and governor of a state, when such gestures are made, it behoves on people like me as a leader on the other side to meet with him and acknowledge the fact that he conceded in the overall interest of Ekiti. It is unusual; it is not Nigerian or an African-like for leaders to concede readily,” he added. The governor-elect while urging supporters of each political party to shun acts that can jeopardise the peace of the state, said it was time for reconciliation in order to build upon what Fayemi had done. “I hope this meeting will further strengthen the peace in our state, and I want to add that our supporters must help us to help this state. Some came to my house yesterday singing all sorts of songs. I had to wake up and stop them. This is not a time to sing such songs. It is a time for reconciliation and love, to learn from the past and ensure that we have a wonderful future ahead of us. This

leadership calls for us to live according to the rules of the game and ensure that tomorrow, we will be made accountable. “Dr Fayemi has demonstrated commitment to peace and I am going to complement his effort. I am going to take it up from wherever he stops and make sure that immediately after leaving office, he still continues to enjoy his rights and benefits of a leader that has served his own people,” he said. On a general note, he said: “To Governor Kayode Fayemi, my brother Opeyemi Bamidele and others that we contested together, that have conceded and accepted me as their governor, I want to thank them. I want to assure them that I will work with all of them. The government belongs to all of us. “Four years is a very short time in the life of any administration, I want to let them know that it will be four years of all of us in government. There is no winner, no loser. “Governor Fayemi has called me to concede defeat and I will see him tomorrow, hopefully for us to let the public know that we are

Fayose

together, irrespective of our past. Ekiti belongs to all of us because a governor has only got a term and tenure but Ekiti will remain forever. “I salute Fayemi’s courage for accepting me and his readiness to allow peace and love reign in our state. I am assuring you that this is Ayo Fayose, who is older, wiser and ready to work with everybody.” “Fayemi is a leader in the state and has done his best and his place in history is guaranteed. I commend him and will work with him.

the lashback

Fayemi Is An Unusual Nigerian Leader – Fayose

It has been a hard fought election. As expected, in the course of the campaigns, there were unsavoury episodes as the candidates toured the nooks and cranny of the state to sell ourselves to the people

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

Southern Kaduna Want Their Own Gov – Shekari Charity Umbwe Shekari is the widow of the former deputy governor of Kaduna State and one time commissioner of health under the administration of late Governor Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa. Shekari is currently serving as a board member at the National Communication Commission (NCC). In this interview with MIDAT JOSEPH, she speaks frankly on issues that may likely affect the chances of her party, the People Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2015 governorship election in Kaduna State. How will you describe the political situation in Kaduna today? There seems to be a disconnect between the ruler and the ruled. One would expect that there is cohesion in a democratic environment, but it looks as if things are falling apart and the centre does not seem to be holding. The situation in Kaduna State presently calls for careful attention to the healing of all the people of the state. The people are angry with PDP. If I have to talk about my zone (southern Kaduna) I would say there is a lot of disenchantment, disappointment and misunderstanding. But PDP is a party of the people. We are already in power and to retain power is not so difficult if you carry people along.

Shekari

At what point did things begin to go sour between the PDP and the people? This is my opinion: we had never had a governor from southern Kaduna, prior to Yakowa and I can say that when he died, the people felt they had lost completely; that power had moved out of our hands into the hands of the people of northern part of the state who have always had power. I think those feelings are entrenched in the minds of our people who wanted to see projects implemented. The governor had promised he was going to continue the projects that Yakowa started, but they have not been carried on. I don’t have the data but this is the feeling that the people harbour. For me, I feel that a conscious effort for dialogue is what we need so things will be better for the PDP in Kaduna. Moves are being made, meetings are being held to try to create an understanding be-

tween the governor and us so that we will move the state forward. Do you think dialogue would bring back the people who left the party after Yakowa’s death? In politics nothing is impossible because there are no permanent friends or enemies. There will always be negotiations, realignments, and reorientation. I don’t think anybody wants to lose power. Some want to get power, while others want to hold on to power. It’s left for the one in power to retain it and I think moves are being made at the high levels to resolve all grievances. The scars may be there, but if the people who are aggrieved accept to resolve the issues, why wouldn’t they come back? What do you expect the governor to do? We expect him to continue with all the projects like he promised.

The people are complaining that he is not doing anything about the projects, however, like I said I don’t have the data. The people are also complaining of marginalisation and lack of empowerment. But after we met with the president along with some elders of southern Kaduna, there has been some improvement. The vice president has begun to bridge those gaps that he was probably previously unaware of; the governor is also doing something. We all know that what happened was not created by the governor, it was an act of God. But many acts of God happened and people are dissatisfied. I can tell you that southern Kaduna people will love to have their own as governor. So what we need do now is to make sure that the party moves forward and see that we remain in power. Politics anyway is a struggle for power for the retention of economic resources of a giving hemisphere for equitable distribution of resources. I want to believe what the southern Kaduna people want is equitable distribution of economic resources. You won’t need your brother or sister to be in power if there is equity and equality. Let’s be honest if Yero can do all that, there is nothing that would stop him from continuing as governor. I’m not saying he is not doing well, but there is a feeling that somebody that was just struck there because of a happening should prove his worth and distribute the economic resources equitably, whether the person is a governor, chairman, etc.

Why Delta State Is Finishing Strong – Ogeah 65

That is why we are building more technical colleges and polytechnics

ple here. Skilled labour is what we require in Nigeria-that is what can transform this nation. That is why we are building more technical colleges and polytechnics.

What is going on in the transport sector?

That is one of the areas we have scored fantastic; never in the history of Delta have we been able to attract sea, land or water transportation in the way we have done. We have bought those big Marcopolo buses with airconditioning for inter-city travel, at very subsidised rates; we have bought small buses also for our inter-city, also safe and subsidised. We have bought lots of big boats for our brothers in the riverine areas, who were cut off from each other by the sea. We have also built jetties for them and floating petrol stations, because these boats are powered by fuel. So, those are the kind of things we have been doing. Is the government making moves to attract a federal university to Asaba, apart from the one in Effurun, which is a petroleum university?

Yes! A lot of these things are in the works, but you don’t talk

Regarding the IPP Project, is power failure going to be a thing of the past soon?

Ogeah

when things are still in the works. Meanwhile, with the four polytechnics we are focusing more on skills acquisition and the technical side of things, because white collar jobs do not really transform any economy. So, you have 20 universities here and so what? We want to have welders; we want to have builders. Look up till tomorrow when we want to tile or paint our houses, we have to look for people from Cotounu and all that; we don’t those peo-

You know electricity is one of those things on the exclusive list. So it is a federal government project and if we don’t get our agreements right, the same problem that happened to us even with our own normal power stations here, will happen with the IPP; which is that we produce the power, it goes to the national grid and then finds its way to anywhere else in Nigeria but Delta. But we said no, since we are doing it with our money it must come back here. The expectation is that once that is done, then to a large extent our power needs will be met. Did the governor terminate the contracts of some foreign firms who asked for money before

carrying out projects?

No, I’m not aware of anything like that. Asking for money for what? From what I see everyday or every week when we have our executive council meeting, every contract is different and of course is governed by a document. Now what happens is that of course the payment terms is usually an issue with the contractor; if a contract says 50 per cent upfront or 20 per cent upfront of course the onus is on the government to respect that, especially when the governor pens that contract. Aside from that I can assure you that there have been no controversies. The problem we seem to have in Delta is that usually contractors, after we have fulfilled our own side of the bargain, don’t fulfil theirs. We had a problem with the Ughelli-Asaba dualisation when the contractor short changed himself with what he presented and then later found out that it wasn’t feasible. So, we had to go and re-do the whole thing and these things take time.

In politics nothing is impossible because there are no permanent friends or enemies

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Emab Plaza Blast: Husband Of Amputee Victim Cries Out, ‘Govt Should Help Me’ by winifred ogbebo, Abuja

Her face heavily bandaged, 32-year-old, Gloria Ejike, lay on the hospital bed unmoving, except for the deep breath coming from her and the intravenous drip fixed to her body. On close observation, one could see that her legs under the white hospital sheet were not in symmetry Following the sudden, unexpected bomb blast attack that killed 22 Nigerians in one fell swoop Wednesday at the Emab Plaza, Wuse 11, many of the victims currently receiving treatment in various hospitals are battling to stay alive. Some of them, like Gloria, are also contending with one life-long disability or the other. Gloria, a mother of four, prior to the incident was selling food beside the gate to the entrance of the plaza. That fateful Wednesday, was like any other day to her, without any inkling, that it would mar her for life. The food vendor had no premonition whatsoever of what laid ahead of her, or if she had, perhaps, she would have changed the hand of fate. With his voice choked with emotion, the husband, Eze Ejike narrated the incident, “ I was surprised. On my way coming back from work, my in-law called me and asked me if I heard what happened, I said no. He told me that there was a bomb blast at Banex, but I told him that I was not aware. So later I made a call and the person I called told me to go to Maitama General Hospital.” Ejike who works with SCC Mainyard, said he initially called his wife but she didn’t pick his call and called a relation who also works in the plaza. “I called my wife but she couldn’t pick the phone. She is one of the traders who sell food by the side of the gate of the plaza. So I quickly went to Maitama General Hospital but they didn’t allow anybody to get in. I tried all my possible way but no way so I later went to National Hospital to go and check, I didn’t see her. So somebody now advised us to come and check her here. Now, I look at her, the wound is too much. I am surprised. I don’t know what to do.” With this, Ejike was choked with emotion and his eyes welled up with tears, “I am pleading gov-

Ejike and his wife on her hospital bed

ernment to come and assist us because the wound is too much.” He told LEADERSHIP that they have four children and their upkeep would be difficult for him to bear considering his wife’s condition now. He said, she was able to give the doctor his number before she lost consciousness. Gloria’s senior brother, who is a technician with Julius Berger Plc, Anthony Agbo, added that many people could not locate the body of their loved ones as the bomb blast blew them into bits and pieces while some lost two legs as well. While appealing to the federal government to come to his sister’s aid, Agbo said he never envisaged that he could be a victim of the blast. The medical director of Alliance Clinics, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon, Dr Christopher Otabor narrated how Gloria was brought to the hospital, “Soon after the news of the bomb blast came as we watched it on the television as a breaking news, we immediately sent out a rescue team with a well equipped ambulance to the scene of the accident. We got there on time and we were able to evacuate both the living and a few of the corpses to the central point which was Maitama hospital and from there, a patient who was critically injured was referred to Alli-

ance hospital in Garki. We have the capacity to handle such cases. The patient came in semi-conscious.” According to him, “ There was shrapnel, a very heavy metal that broke through the left thigh, cut through the bone, the blood vessels and that leg was cold on arrival. She was transfused with five pints of blood. Good enough, the staff of the hospital voluntarily donated blood to save her life and she was moved into the theater immediately. In the theatre, the intra operative x-ray was taken which showed that the bone was shattered into several pieces by the metal that was lodged inside the thigh.” Otabor explained further, “The initial examination was confirmed which showed that the blood vessel had been severed completely and so consent was sought and gotten for above the knee amputation. The patient had above the amputation of the left thigh and she’s recovering very well in the ward now. She’s still under close monitoring. The operation went well. Her vital signs are stable now. I met with the family today and discussed with them. The family is very grateful for the intervention. That is where we are at the moment.” The orthopaedic surgeon said he had to move in because with such incident, given the scale and the

population of the people around that area, there would be a mass casualty, which means many people would be injured and the availability of resources especially wellequipped facilities would not be commensurate with the need for it. “That is why I requested that staff members should move straight to the scene to render services that are critically desired at that time. Thank God they got there on time and they were able to contribute their quota and it has paid off.” He said that the patient would have died if time were wasted, saying, “ Any one hour longer, would have led to her death because she was bleeding actively when she got to the hospital and the blood needed to be replaced immediately.” In Garki Hospital, a consultant, Accident and Emergency Unit, Danjuma, said that five of the victims were attended to as soon as they arrived, while four victims with different types of injuries were discharged immediately after they received emergency treatment. “ One is still in the ICU and is being monitored. The one at the intensive unit is very serious as both of her legs were cut off, she has burns all over her body, including her upper arms,” Danjuma said.

Some of them, like Gloria, are also contending with one life-long disability or the other

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Border Towns: Living In The Shadows Of Terror

➔ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 12 transact business. Our correspondent took a walk to Maimoujia village, Niger Republic, few metres away from Kongolam and observed scores crossing the border in and out of Nigeria. The most thriving business in Kongolam appears to be smuggling. Residents defy all odds to illegally import a variety of goods, including rice, spaghetti, cooking oil, sugar and beans. The bug of smuggling appears to have caught up with virtually all the age groups in the community. Musa Aliyu (not real name) is a bus driver resident of Kongolam village. He told LEADERSHIP Weekend that he makes, on average, betweenN70,000 and N100,000 each time he successfully smuggled goods from Niger into Nigeria. “It is risky alright but it is worth it because I can’t think of any other job that will fetch me that amount within so short a period,” Musa enthused, but acknowledged that security personnel “especially customs and immigration, are making life unbearable for us.” However, a businessman cum politician in the area, Alhaji Umaru Kamashirwa told our correspondent that residents of the village are reputed for farming, animal rearing and businesses, insisting that the village has made its mark as one of the best business and farming destination spot in the state. “Our people abandoned the old trade of weaving which our forebears were known for, to take to farming, rearing of animals and business because we have people with high business acumen who are making important marks in different areas,” Kamashirwa said.

Mallam Saleh Dogo is the oldest resident of Kongolam. Alongside Maigari Lasan, who is the village head of Kongolam, Dogo told LEADERSHIP Weekend that the village was founded by one Sarki Gabas Dandima about 170 years ago. Dogo said the village was reputed for weaving as it once served the clothing needs of Katsina and neighbouring towns and villages in Niger Republic. “Our fore fathers were predominantly weavers who wove different type of traditional attires for use in Nigeria here and to people from Niger. The only skill I have learnt is weaving and I can still do it. However, the youths of nowadays are not prepared to learn the art of weaving, we have abandoned it. Only few of us can do that today and we are all old now,” Mallam Dogo added. Like Kongolam, life in Jibiya town is equally boisterous. It is common in Jibiya to meet a resident who has more friends in neighbouring Niger Republic than in Nigeria. Most residents of Jibiya are

businessmen who explore commercial and business opportunities offered by the border post. Unlike Katsina, most border villages in Adamawa State have become ghosts of their former selves. In fact, most of them are either deserted following the intensification of terrorist attacks or reeling under low business activities, due also to the raging insurgency. Villagers, especially those living between Madagali local government in Adamawa State and Gwoza local government in Borno State have now deserted their homes and living in the nearby bushes and mountains. A resident of Kirchinga village, which came under multiple attacks by Boko Haram Haram insurgents, Mr. Amos Sini, said many villagers have completely relocated to the bush and only come into the town during the day time to perform skeletal house chores and immediately leave for the bush as dusk sets in. Another feature of these areas is the absence of police outposts. This is because policemen have also deserted

the areas following the incessant attacks. Boko Haram terrorists have burnt many police outposts in the area, killing a handful of policemen in the process. As a result, inter-border business, which is a money spinner in the area, has come to a standstill. Farming, another major occupation of the people, has also been affected negatively with the mass exodus of the people. But the border communities in the southern parts of the state are enjoying relative peace and business and social activities are going smoothly in these areas. This is because they have been spared of insurgents attacks. A resident of the area, Mallam Saidu Sani, told LEADERSHIP Weekend that commercial activities, especially inter-border businesses between the border villages and their Camerounian neighbours continue to thrive. However, Sani disclosed that one of the major challenges the villagers face is the perennial communal clashes between cattlemen and farmers.

Most border villages in Adamawa State have become ghosts of their former selves

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Saturday, June 28, 2014

The Nigerian Equation And The Categorical Imperative Of National Ideology to the comity; a thanksgiving to render on behalf of all Nigerians; a By Yusufu Ameh Obaje pledge to do more always; a prayer for more opportunities of selfless Therefore, let us put an end to all service and a commitment to live these repeated voices of blame for country and God ultimately as syndrome and endless rehearsal long as there is life to do so. of past memories of our origin as As Nigerians, our ethics of a country, and the role played by service, whether in private or the British colonialists. We have public sector, must be the same. to face the real task of rebuilding It is selfless service all the way in Nigeria of our collective dream. For honour of our country and for the us, to exist is to be a Nigerian. By glory of the one and only God of all the grace of God, even in heaven creation. In that spirit of sacrificial we shall be known as Nigerians service, we can no longer involve in whatever transformed body or ourselves in fraudulent and corrupt spirit. practices that will destroy Nigeria’s This is not a time to continue positive image and weaken her to engage ourselves in self-pity greatness. It is partly for this exercise of waiting for what our reason that we believe that the country will do for us before we real difference between a citizen rebuild our country. Our country of a country and a foreigner or an has done so much by providing the alien is that a citizen stands out root and basis of our existence, the clearly in an everyday lifestyle of land and natural resources, the sacrificial living, unselfish, self- Obaje seeds of existence and national denying, considerate and ever- humans. We hope for a country of ingredients of our development, mindful of doing whatever will people whose greatness stand out the heart, mind, soul, body and make the country the best for the clearly in their experience of true spirit of Nigerianness. It is now benefit of all. freedom; of fulfilled vocation in life; our collective responsibility as As citizens of Nigeria, we are on of sense of accountability to both leaders and followers in Nigeria to twenty-four hours duty per day God and country; of enlightened rise up and rebuild. If leaders fail, for the sake of our country, doing mind; of holistic qualitative it is the responsibility of followers those things that we are assigned education; of corruption free; of to reject them democratically in a to do and those things that we moral uprightness integrity and democratic government and raise give ourselves to do. We all have prosperity; and of being truly new leadership to replace them. something positive to do whether religious. But not in the spirit of commercial small or big, minor or great, within Every Nigerian must have mandate that we have continued the limits of our resources, whether opportunity to become great in to use in raising leadership at all natural, moral, intellectual, their choice career in life. Therefore, levels of governance in this country. economic or spiritual. Together, government must provide the We are still reaping the wages of we can make Nigeria the greatest enabling environment of security commercial mandate for selling of all nations, through selfless of life and property; of peaceful coour conscience to those who bought service in our use and development existence; of enabling law and order; our votes into political leadership, of our multi-dimensional God- of holistic infrastructure; of shelter in all departments of leadership given resources. If we fail to act and food; of encouragement and responsibility in this country. We accordingly, we reduce ourselves recognition of genuine achievers or have ourselves to blame and not to prodigal citizens. contributors to national greatness, God, our country or colonialists. The goal we set for our country in any department of life. However, a new Nigeria is possible, must be the highest and the best It is also the responsibility of if we are willing to return to God and nothing less than that height every Nigerian to assist other wholeheartedly and rekindle our of development. The truth of the Nigerians to realize true greatness great Nigerian spirit of hard work matter is that there is hardly any in their choice career in life. We and dedication to a country we Nigerian who will doubt Nigeria’s are only truly great in life if we believe in, live in and have our God-given potentials and resources succeed in laying foundations, for collective being as Nigerians. to be the best among the comity of other people to become greater in nations but we must take a step their own career in life. As citizens 2. Rendering Selfless Service to further from believing to practical of Nigeria, we are under divine make Nigeria the greatest of all action of selfless service by all. It obligation and national moral Nations is not the work of foreign nations duty not only to be the best in our If our country Nigeria is to to take us there but our own direct chosen vocation but help other achieve true greatness and indeed responsibility while co-operating Nigerians to become the best in become the greatest of all nations, with genuine foreign partners. The their career. This is what brings out citizens must offer selfless service hour for the dream, the belief, the our own individual true greatness at all times and by all reasonable action and the realization is now! and the country’s greatness in the means. There is no other real comity of nations. We have no alternative than to render sacrificial 3. To realize true greatness for other real alternative on this matter services to our country. For the all Nigerians in all areas of life. than to be each other’s keeper, each Nigerian citizen, selfless service The desire of every normal other’s mentor, each other’s builder is a duty to perform by all positive human being is to achieve greatness and each other’s real partner in means; an obligation to carry in life. For us in Nigeria, we yearn progress, in honour of our country out with zeal and enthusiasm; a for a country where citizens’ Nigeria, for the betterment of the responsibility to discharge in the greatness includes a lifestyle of world at large and to the glory of spirit of integrity and credibility; genuine God-fearing; of love for God ultimately. a sacrifice to present in humility God and fellow humans; of patriotic and holiness; an offering to give in and responsible citizenry; of inner 4. In the Spirit of one Family, the spirit of absolute indebtedness peace and tranquillity with fellow one World, one Common Destiny. Our national ideology must If we fail to act accordingly, we reduce ourselves inspire us to live together as one to prodigal citizens family, in one world, with one common destiny. The belief or from THURSDAY

the confession that the one God created the heavens and the earth must motivate us as humans to acknowledge our oneness as one family, under him, who is Lord of all. Against this background, we believe that one of Nigeria’s greatest gift by God is the presence of two most powerful monotheistic religions in the world, namely Christianity and Islam. The believers on both sides of the religious confession acknowledge the oneness of God, the oneness of the human family, the oneness of the world in which we live in and our one common destiny of arrival by birth and departure by death, without hesitation. These beliefs provide solid foundation of our country’s oneness. Therefore, any form of discrimination along the ontological units of ethnicity or tribe, sex, colour of skin, height and religion is a contradiction of the highest order and must be rejected in its entirety. The five units of existence, identified above, are divine ontological imperatives of life, which are fixed or given by God himself, and we are not in the position to alter them, except to exercise the freedom of choice in religion as permitted by God himself. For instance, no child that is born into this world determines which ethnicity or tribe that he or she wants to belong to in this life. The decision is made for us by God himself as no child in her mother’s womb determines which tribe he or she wants to be identified with. At the same time, God does not ask for permission from any mother in order to form a male or a female child in the womb. It is all determined by the one and only creator God. It is equally not for us to determine the colour of our skin in the womb or the physical height that will be the limit of our physical growth but God himself defines the colour and the height ultimately. Even in religion, a child born in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, is

more likely to be a Muslim than a Christian. Similarly, a child born in Rome, Italy, is more likely to be a Christian than a Muslim. Of course, we are aware of the privilege of religious choice and conversion theory. God allows it all not for divisive reasons but for unity in diversity, and diversity in unity, in one world of one humanity, under one and only God, who created them all. Therefore, if we cannot choose for ourselves our place of birth, ethnicity, colour of skin, height and religious affiliation at birth, then any form of discrimination, hatred and rejection based on these divinely ordained ontological imperatives, is an attack on God himself. And if we insist on waging war against our one and only God, we must be prepared to face the consequences. One is therefore not surprised that we are today faced with the horror of spiritual blindness, which in turn has given birth to all kinds of hatred, discrimination, wickedness, violence, ignorance and poverty. We are divided on things or beliefs that are meant to unite us. Religion provides the foundation for all human unity, peaceful co-existence and meaning progress in life. God has ordained it in order to reveal his own nature and the nature of humans and how to relate to him as the God of all and to one another as one family, working together in worship of him and in celebration of life as a whole. It is only then that we fulfil the purpose of our existence. But even the Church that has been equipped in Christ to be God’s instrument in recreating one new humanity of people in one world under one and only Lord of all creation, has failed woefully as itself remains divided in tradition and lifestyle. As the saying goes: a divided church has no message for a divided world! The time has come for us in Nigeria to ride on our national ideology in order to rebuild our house together as one family, one world and one common destiny. 5. To the glory of the one and only God who made us all. One of the cardinal objectives of national ideology is to inspire citizens to develop a culture of acknowledging the fact that the Almighty God deserves being celebrated always, for the gift of our country, Nigeria. As citizens, we must come to terms with the reality that we owe everything to God, the maker of all. We are all God’s possession, the land and all the resources, both natural and humans, are all his own. We can do nothing at all without God himself granting both life and the means of our life-oriented actions or activities. TO continue TOMORROW

Leadership wEEKEND

DAY With

Ishaku Kigbu

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Enyeama Named Best Keeper

Vincent Enyeama

Vincent Enyeama has been impressive between the sticks for Nigeria in the ongoing 2014 FIFA World Cup finals in Brazil. His last minute save to deny Edin Dzeko a sure goal as Nigeria beat Bosnia-Herzegovina 1-0 in a Group F game on Sunday is probably his finest moment so far in Brazil.

That moment of sheer genius is however just one of many so far provided by the goalkeeper who is currently ranked as the best of all shot-stoppers currently in Brazil by FIFA. The 31-year-old is also ranked as Africa’s best player at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil with 9.59

points in the latest Castrol Index Top 10 rankings released by the World football governing body. Only Karim Benzema (9.77), Robin Van Persie (9.72), Arjen Robben (9.67) and David Luiz (9.63) have amassed more ranking points than the Nigerian shotstopper.

Maigari Reacting To Eagles’ Protest

Joseph Yobo and Kenneth Omeruo of Nigeria compete for the ball with Edin Dzeko of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 2014 FIFA World Cup Group F match

Crack In Eagles’ Camp Over FIFA Appearance Fee Players boycott training Ishaku Kigbu, Sao Paulo, Brazil

The Super Eagles camp in Brazil is torn apart over quarrel with the Nigeria Football Federation on appearance fee. The latest incident is capable of threatening Nigeria’s quest to beat France and advance in the ongoing World Cup. Upon qualification for the knockout stage, the Super Eagles revisited the issue of appearance fee and demanded that the NFF pay them before the second round clash with France in Brasilia. But NFF president, Aminu Maigari, swiftly reacted that the team is ungrateful and cannot hold him to ransom. He described the move by the players as cheap blackmail. “This is blackmail. I cannot bow to cheap blackmail. As far as

I am concerned, the federation has done everything for the team. The federation has kept faith with every contract it had with the team. We even paid them $5,000 each for losing to Argentina when in the plan they are not supposed to get anything. I just tagged it qualification to second round bonus.” To press home their demand, the players boycotted training on Thursday and threatened not to fly from Campinas their base to fly to Brasilia to honour the game against France. As at the time of filling this report, they are yet to leave for Brasilia. This is not the first time the Eagles are grand standing and holding the nation to ransom. At the World Cup in France in 1998, fight over money sent Eagles packing from the competition at the second round, a similar scenario played out prior to the Confederation Cup in same Brazil; and now

it is about to play out again. LEADERSHIP Sports reliably gathered that, leader of delegation to the World Cup, Senator David Mark has been called upon to intervene. He was said to have been furious after only settling the matter few days ago promising the Eagles they will get their money once FIFA releases it. Team captain, Joseph Yobo, however gave a glimpse of hope when he informed that Eagles have put their bonus row aside and will concentrate on the task of beating France for the quarter final ticket. The squad had agreed a graduated percentage payment for each stage, and the players wanted the first installment, for reaching the round of 16, paid. “We are here to play for our country,” he told reporters yesterday.”I can tell you as team captain that the team will travel to Brasilia today and we will train, and play against France.”

Kanu Tips Eagles For Quarterfinals By Ishaku Kigbu, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Former Super Eagles skipper, Nwankwo Kanu, believes the Super Eagles will go past France when they clash on Monday at Estadio Nacional Stadium in Brasilia in the knockout group of 16 clashes. The former Nigerian national team captain said from what he has seen of the Eagles they will reach the quarter final of the World Cup. He maintained optimism that the Nigerian team will beat France next week.

Speaking ahead of the game, he commended the team for their performance against the Argentines stating that they would be better when they play France. “This team will like joke bulldoze its way to the semi-final. After the way they played Argentina, nobody should write them off. I think the French game will suit the Eagles and I see them battling past France for a quarter final ticket. For the Eagles holding their own against an Argentine

team that has great players like Messi, Aguero, Higuain, Di Maria Lavessi and Mascherano is a clear testimony that they can face any team and get results. They lost to Argentina because they did not believe they could win the game. I think they played the South Americans with too much respect. At 2-3 I felt the Eagles should have pressed for the equaliser and probably a win. They will learn from this and move on” said the two-time African footballer of the year.

This is blackmail. I cannot bow to cheap blackmail. As far as I am concerned, the federation has done everything for the team. The federation has kept faith with every contract it had with the team. We even paid them $5,000 each for losing to Argentina when in the plan they are not supposed to get anything. I just tagged it qualification to second round bonus

Today’s Matches • Brazil vs Chile 6:00pm • Uruguay vs Colombia 10:00pm

Tomorrow’s Matches • Netherlands vs Mexico 6:00pm • Costa Rica vs Greece 10:00pm

Moses

Moses May Return For France Clash Chelsea of England striker, Victor Moses could make a return to Super Eagles line-up against France on Monday. Moses, who was loaned to Liverpool last season, missed Super Eagles’ last two games against Bosnia-Herzegovina and Argentina with conspiracy theorists ruling that Keshi may be having personal issues with the gifted striker. With the Latest developments in the team camp and the injury to Babatunde Michael, Moses will likely be one of the first names on Coach Stephen Keshi’s list as African champions prepare to take on France in the round of 16 on Monday in Brasilia. Though, Super Eagles spokesman, Ben Alaiya denied insinuation that Keshi had issues with Moses, saying omission of Moses for the games against Bosnia-Herzegovina and Argentina respectively were purely on medical grounds. “My last child is older than Moses, so why will I quarrel with my son? People must find out facts and not speculate especially when we have a capable media person in our midst,” Keshi was quoted as saying by Ben Alaiya. The coach then added that Moses has a muscle strain that was discovered by the team’s medics after the first game against Iran and was advised by the doctors to “rest” to achieve optimum results in subsequent matches. “We can understand that all players want to play at the big stage but it’s up to us and the medical team to manage their career and balance it with due diligence regarding their health and that is why we have not played him,” Keshi said. Moses also lends credence to Keshi’s views by taking to ‘twitter’ to discuss the situation. “The lads were brilliant again against Argentina) and did the country proud. Gutted to miss it again with a muscle strain,” he tweeted via @VictorMoses. BY Salifu Usman, Abuja

AMUSEMENT PARK

MAkE SOMEBODY HAPPY TODAY. MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS — Ann Landers

28.06.14

www.leadership.ng

FOR GOD AND COUNTRY

No. 438 N300

The Weekend Column Capt Daniel Omale

it has become obvious that Nigeria’s security agents have been scanning the wrong place

s a DC-8 cargo aircraft pilot, between 1988 and 1989, I flew from Ostend, Belgium, to Mogadishu, Somalia, at least 10 times. Prior to the civil war, Mogadishu was known as the "White pearl of the Indian Ocean”. It was one of the most beautiful cities in Africa and Somalia was a sovereign nation with Siad Barre as its head of government. In 1990, in the capital city of Mogadishu, the residents were prohibited from gathering publicly in groups greater than three or four. Fuel shortages caused long lines of cars at petrol stations. Inflation had driven the price of pasta, (ordinary dry Italian noodles, a staple at that time), to US$5 per kilogramme. The price of khat, imported daily from Kenya, was also US$5 per standard bunch. Paper currency notes were of such low value that several bundles were needed to pay for simple restaurant meals. A thriving black market existed in the centre of the city as banks experienced shortages of local currency for exchange. At night, the city of Mogadishu lay in darkness. Close monitoring of all visiting foreigners was in effect. Harsh exchange control regulations were introduced to prevent export of foreign currency. Although no travel restrictions were placed on foreigners, photographing many locations was banned. During the day in Mogadishu, the appearance of any government military force was extremely rare. Alleged late-night operations by government authorities, however, included "disappearances" of individuals from their homes. 1991 was a time of great change for Somalia. The Barre administration was ousted that year by a coalition of clan-based opposition groups, backed by Ethiopia's then-ruling Derg regime and Libya. Following a meeting of the Somali National Movement and northern clans' elders, the northern former British portion of the country declared its independence as Somaliland in May 1991. Although de facto independent and relatively

Terrorism: What Next? daniel@leadership.ng

stable compared to the tumultuous south, it has not been recognized by any foreign government to date. Many of the opposition groups subsequently began competing for influence in the power vacuum that followed the ouster of Barre's regime. In the south, armed factions led by USC commanders General Mohamed Farah Aidid and Ali Mahdi Mohamed, in particular, clashed as each sought to exert authority over the capital. On a de facto basis, northern Somalia is now divided up among the autonomous regions of Puntland (which considers itself an autonomous state) and Somaliland (a self-declared but unrecognized sovereign state). In central Somalia, Galmudug is another regional entity that emerged just south of Puntland. Jubaland in the far south is a fourth autonomous region within the federation. The foregoing is a testimony to how easily a country can disintegrate into unproductive factions. No one ever believed that Somalia would quickly evaporate into fragments, with different regional leaders claiming sovereignty or independent states. But one thing was common during Siad Barre’s regime --corruption was at its epic level, similar to what is happening in Nigeria today. After the bomb explosion in Abuja on Wednesday, it has become obvious that Nigeria’s security agents have been scanning the wrong place. In the name of Boko Haram, we have virtually forgotten to be vigilant; we have neglected the ideal that even our neighbours or friends are capable of rendering terror on us. With unemployment soaring to 50 per cent of our population, youth restiveness and vulnerability will surely induce crime. There is no way we can fight terrorism with the level of corruption in the land; everyone, at this stage of our endurance, should be a suspect in the war against terror. Politicians, FROM LAST WEEk

in my opinion, are the most likely individuals that could sponsor terrorism in Nigeria – it does not matter the party of affiliation. Once there is a bomb explosion, the first name to come to our mind is Boko Haram. By so doing, we have limited our angle of vision, and defeated the effort to proliferate and propagate intelligence as the most possible mitigation tool. No nation can overcome terrorism or insurgency with physical weapons such as AK-47 or rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) in the hands of halftrained and corrupt policemen. This is no ordinary war that an enemy stands face to face to challenge a regime or a group of people. This is affliction of fear in the mind and soul of a people, dehumanization of fellow human beings through fear of aggression, elimination, and under stealth-like operation. The porous security within has made everywhere and everyone vulnerable to untimely harm. The saddest aspect of this saga is that, gradually, Nigerians are getting accustomed to the idea that bombs or other explosive devices can occur anywhere, anytime. This country is on the verge of becoming another Somalia, where human life is as worthless as a stray dog. If after 71 days in captivity the Chibok girls are still at large, with no hope of liberating them, then, it is almost impossible for us to find our killers. Nigeria can only recover from the incessant terrorists’ offensiveness if we were dedicated to the cause and effect of bringing the girls back to their parents -- no price is too high to pay. Nigeria is gradually degenerating into a state of anomie with no clear vision of tomorrow. Our leaders have become complacent: they are more interested in party politics, how to gain access to the national podium where looting and theft occur with impunity. Everyone wants to join the

Next Generation Cockpit Design

➔ SEE PAGE 7

08054102747 (text only) next government, not to serve but to steal from the national treasury. In the name of lust for power, politicians scramble for relevance, and if there is no leeway, they instill fear in us. The name Boko Haram is easy to allocate all explosive deaths to. Some even believe that all northern Muslims are members of the sect; therefore, it is needless to look beyond Boko Haram if there is a bomb explosion in the country. Hardworking northern traders en route to Port Harcourt were arrested two weeks ago as Boko Haram militias, creating sensation that further narrows the search for the scourge. Instead of budgeting N1.5 trillion for police reform, we must employ intelligence, a less expensive but effective means of fighting terror in the country. Let’s put surveillance on all Nigerians with emphasis on ambitious politicians, PDP or APC members alike. If a simple election in Ekiti, a tiny state in Nigeria, would require 20,000 security agents, then, we must check ourselves again. If the electorate cannot decide who should lead them, it will be difficult to repossess our freedom. The future of Nigeria is uncertain because we have allowed corruption to override our sense of judgment and reality. The current wave of terrorism is an offspring of corruption. What next for Nigeria?

GHANA MUST GO 24-hour power supply, a major headache — Mrs Funke Osibodu

Doesn't she know where to get APC?

• LEADERSHIP (ISSN 0331-328X) is published in Abuja by LEADERSHIP GROUP LIMITED, 27 Ibrahim Tahir Lane, Off Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Way, Utako District, Abuja P. O. Box 9514, Garki II, Abuja. Lagos Office: 34/36 Adegbola Street, Anifowose, Off Oba Akran, Ikeja. E-mail: info@leadership.ng, advert@lerdership.ng, newsroom@leadership.ng