Ojukwu represented public accountability, probity, good governance – Jonathan

Abuja – President Goodluck Jonathan said in Abuja on Monday that late Chief Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu represented a worthy example of public accountability, probity, good governance and a fervent advocate of justice.
Jonathan was speaking at a special reception of Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s remains held at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.

Fire scare in Supreme Court….as CJN, six justices scamper for safety

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri

ABUJA-There was pandemonium at the Supreme Court this morning owing to a mysterious fire that forced a 7-man panel of Justices headed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Dahiru Musdapher, to scamper for safety.

The apex court was on the verge of concluding hearing on a suit involving First Bank of Nigeria, when a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Amechi Nwaiwu, SAN, spotted the uncanny fire that was gradually engulfing the left wing of the court.

Worshippers Kill Suspected Fleeing Church Bomber

Sun Feb, 26 2012

By NAN
Angry worshippers at the headquarters of Church Of Christ In Nations (COCIN) in Jos on Sunday killed one of the two suspected bearers of the explosives that hit the Church in the morning.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the bomber and one other, who both wore army camouflage, drove into the Church and beat the security before hitting the building.
NAN correspondent, who was at the scene, reports that the suspect appeared to be in his early 30s.

The suspect, who wore a neatly carved moustache, looked well-fed.
But probably afraid of dying, the bomb carrier jumped out of the vehicle just before the blast went off and attempted to run but could not move as he was affected by the blast.
The angry worshipers, however, descended on him and clubbed him to death.
An eyewitness and a worshipper in the Church, Joyce Dalyop, told NAN that there were arguments among the worshipers over what to do with the bomber before he was finally killed.

Fugates of Kentucky: Skin Bluer than Lake Louise

By SUSAN DONALDSON JAMES
Feb. 22, 2012
Benjamin "Benjy" Stacy so frightened maternity doctors with the color of his skin -- "as Blue as Lake Louise" -- that he was rushed just hours after his birth in 1975 to University of Kentucky Medical Center.

As a transfusion was being readied, the baby's grandmother suggested to doctors that he looked like the "blue Fugates of Troublesome Creek." Relatives described the boy's great-grandmother Luna Fugate as "blue all over," and "the bluest woman I ever saw."

Tankers seize Apapa-Oshodi Road

By Olasunkanmi Akoni & Victor Ahiuma-Young –
LAGOS — Motorists plying Apapa—Oshodi expressway literally went through hell, yesterday, spending hours in the traffic as fuel tankers waiting to load fuel at the tank farms in the area blocked the entire expressway. This was in spite the 72-hour ultimatum given to the tanker drivers on Sunday by the Lagos State Government to remove the vehicles from the highway or  be forcefully relocated.
The traffic which stretched several kilometres was very chaotic at Mile 2 and Julius Berger yard as there were no officials of Lagos State Transport Management Authority, LASTMA to restore sanity.
The state Commissioner for Transportation, Mr Kayode Opeifa, gave the ultimatum when he paid an on-the-spot assessment of the damage at the scene of the last Saturday’s tanker explosion at Mile 2 which claimed three lives and 36 vehicles

Court dissolves 10-year-old marriage over childlessness

Ijebu-Ode (Ogun) – An Ijebu-Ode Customary Court in Ogun on Wednesday dissolved a 10-year-old marriage between of one Alhaji Ibrahim Oduwole and his wife, Shade, on the ground of childlessness and provocation.

Africa will require 1,101 new aircraft by 2030

Addis Ababa – Africa will require 1,101 aircraft by 2030 when the continent’s air traffic is likely to grow at above world’s average, Mr Alan Pardoe, Airbus Head of Marketing Communications has said.
In an interview in Addis Ababa, Pardoe said Airbus latest Global Market Forecast showed that the value of the required aircraft would be 126 billion dollars.

Explosions, gun shots rock Kano

By AbdulSalam Muhammad
KANO – Multiple explosions and gunfire rocked Tishama quarters in Kano metropolis Wednesday morning as JTF raided a suspected hide out for the Boko Haram sect.
Locals says the early morning raid by JTF started around 4.00am local time and that the operation lasted for about four hours.

Lassa fever kills 5,000 annually in west Africa

LAGOS (AFP) – An outbreak of Lassa fever, which according to the World Health Organisation  is the causes of some 5,000 deaths annually in west Africa,  has killed 40 people and infected dozens of others in a third of Nigeria’s 36 states over the past six weeks, a senior health official said Wednesday.
“We have 40 deaths, including two doctors and six nurses, from lassa fever which broke out in 12 states in the past six weeks,” health ministry’s chief epidemiologist Henry Akpan said.
A total of 397 cases were reported, out of which 87 have been confirmed.
Lassa fever is an endemic acute viral haemorrhagic illness common in west African countries including Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Senegal.
The virus is spread through contact with rodent excreta.
Its symptoms include fever, headache, difficulty in swallowing and it can lead to infection of vital organs and death. It was named after the town of Lassa in northern Nigeria’s Borno State where it was first identified in 1969.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/02/lassa-fever-kills-5000-annually-in-west-africa/

18 students in ghastly accident, as tanker crushes man to death

By DAUD OLATUNJI
ABEOKUTA- A load of  18-seater bus carrying students  of Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, Ogun State on Tuesday somersaulted several times on Kobape road, along Abeokuta/Sagamu Expressway in Obafemi Owode local Governmentarea of Ogun state, leaving three of them critically injured while others  sustained various degree of  injuries.

Boko Haram: S/Korea to assist Nigeria on counter terrorism

BY KINGSLEY OMONODI
The republic of South Korea disclosed, Tuesday, that it was ready to share her experience in the handling of terrorism issues and challenges with Nigeria following increased Boko Haram attacks facing our nation.
Making the disclosure when he visited the minister of defence, South Korean ambassador to Nigeria, Jong Hyun Choi whose country has been having territorial issues with North Korea, noted that his country have one of the best counter terrorism forces and program in place saying South Korea was willing to share such expertise with Nigeria to help her checkmate terrorist threats.

We ‘re tired of bombings – Jonathan

BY DAUD OLATUNJI & FRANKLIN ALLI
ABEOKUTA — President Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday, echoed the anger and frustration of the generality of Nigerians over the menace of Boko Haram in the country, saying Nigerians are tired of bombing.
The president who spoke at  the official commissioning of six million metric tonnes Dangote Cement Manufacturing Plant, Ibese, Ogun State also lamented the rate of unemployment in the country, describing it is our greatest problem. He also defended the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger, (GCON) given to the Chairman, Dangote group of companies, Alhaji Aliko Dangote by the Federal Government.
Speaking on challenges of insecurity in the country, Jonathan said, Nigerians want to hear about commissioning of industrial plants and not bombing.

Protest rocks Onitsha as policeman kills driver over N50

BY VINCENT UJUMADU
AWKA- VIOLENT protest sparked off in Onitsha, the commercial city of Anambra State Thursday, over the killing of a commercial bus driver simply identified as Edwin by a trigger happy policeman for failing to part with N50 tip.

According to the conductor of the bus, Samuel Ekwueme who was crying uncontrollably, the police, at Anambra State Broadcasting  Service (ABS) Awka Road Onitsha junction check point, had stopped the Coaster bus driver with registration number AA 763 AHB and asked for N50 tip, but the driver gave him the normal N20.

Madalla Bomb suspect, Kabir Sokoto re-arrested

The main suspect of the Christmas Day bombing at Madalla , Suleja, in Niger state, Kabir Sokoto has been re-arrested.

Sokoto, is suspected to have masterminded the Christams Day 2011 bomb blast at the St. Theresa’s Catholic Church in Madalla, Niger State.

Microsoft, British Council plan 80 digital hubs in Africa

By Emeka Aginam
Software giant, Microsoft, in partnership with British Council will each invest $1 million over the next two years including human resources  and in-kind resources to build 80 digital hubs across 6 Sub Saharan countries.
The Africa digital schools project “Badiliko” is the first project to be implemented as part of the new global agreement between Microsoft and the British Council.

Panic grips oil industry over MEND’s threat

By Emma Amaize
*JTF put men on alert
WARRI- FEAR  enveloped the oil industry, Wednesday, as  the fear-provoking militant group,   Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger-Delta, MEND,  renewed, its warning to carry out more serious attacks on the Nigerian oil industry in the next few  weeks.
In response to the threat, however, the Joint Task Force, codenamed, Operation Pulo Shield, which dismissed the forewarning as propaganda,  has put its men on the alert in the Niger-Delta.
Investigations showed that oil companies, including Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company, SNPEC, Chevron Nigeria Limited, Agip and others, have put in place some measures, which an industry source described as “normal” to avert danger.

Mother docked for selling son for N30,000

BY CHIDI NKWOPARA, OWERRI.
A mother of three, Mrs. Chinenye Aghandu, of Umuezike, Anara, Isiala Mbano local council area of Imo State, is now cooling her heels in police custody, for allegedly selling her day-old baby boy for N30,000.
The other people arrested for allegedly being active participants in the alleged crime include the owner of a maternity home in Nwaorieubi, Mbaitoli local government area, as well as the couple that purchased the baby.

Visa racketeers siphon N3.6bn from Nigeria

By Hugo Odiogor
VISA processing and issuance procedures have become a major source of capital flight as Nigeria loses N3.6 billion through a web of criminal conspiracy between officials of government, embassy staff and consular officers of some embassies on one hand; desperate intending travellers and agents, their agents and proxies, making the West African country the most lucrative consular operating centre in the world.

Shell raises alarm over oil theft

LAGOS (AFP) – Shell raised the alarm on Monday over repeated damage to a key pipeline in southern Nigeria by what it said were thieves seeking to siphon off crude for sale on the lucrative black market.
The Anglo-Dutch oil giant said the Nembe Creek Trunkline had been hit by an increased number of attacks by thieves “barely 16 months after the old line was replaced due to repeated sabotage attacks.”
While highly organised crude theft — locally called “bunkering” — has long been a major problem in Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer, authorities have warned that the practice has been on the rise.
It involves thieves tapping pipelines to siphon off oil either to be sold as crude or to be treated at makeshift refineries. The oil is often directed toward waiting vessels.

MEND resumes hostilities

Blows up Agip trunk line in Bayelsa
BY EMEKA MAMAH & EMMA AMAIZE
WARRI – AFTER cessation of hostilities for some months in the Niger Delta, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, weekend, threatened to bomb telecommunications giant MTN, SACOIL and other investments by South Africans in Nigeria over alleged interference of President Jacob Zuma in its struggle for justice in the oil producing communities.
The militant group also bombed  a trunk pipeline at Brass in Bayelsa State. The pipeline belongs to Italy’s Eni SpA, ENI, which lost “around 4,000” barrels per day of “equity production” from the incident, the Rome-based company said in an e-mailed statement  yesterday  confirming the attack.
The pipeline carries crude to an export terminal in the coastal town of Brass, about 250 kilometres south west of the oil-industry hub of Port Harcourt.

Akpabio donates N50m to Xmas Day bombing victims

The governor of Akwa Ibom State, Chief Godswill Akpabio, has donated N50 million to the victims of Christmas Day bombing at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, Niger State.
About 43 persons were confirmed dead and more than 100 others injured in the attack which the dreaded Islamic sect, Boko Haram claimed responsibility for. Victims of the bomb blast were recently buried in a mass grave.

Forensic evidence: Ngige, Akunyili know fate Tuesday

BY VINCENT UJUMADU
AWKA – Anambra State Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Awka yesterday ruled that it would next Tuesday decide whether or not to reject  written statement of the forensic expert that investigated the votes cast in April 26 senatorial election for Anambra Central senatorial zone.
The tribunal is handling the petition brought by Prof Dora Akunyili who contested the election on the platform of All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, against Sen Chris Ngige of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN.

Robbers cart N96m at Lagos Airport

By ALBERT AKPOR, LAWANI MIKAIRU & DANIEL ETEGHE
ROBBERS, Wednessday night, carted away  US$600,000 (N95, 969, 998.17 million) from a Bureau De Change operator inside  Murtala Muhamed International Airport Lagos.
A source at the airport told Vanguard that the robbers stormed the car park which is usually in darkness and shot sporadically into the air, wounding a woman, before dispossessing their victim of the said amount at about 8.30pm.
The incident, according to the operator who simply identified himself as Salisu took place without any intervention from the security agencies stationed at various locations at the airport.
Salisu said the robbers who arrived with sophisticated weapons traced a Dubai bound passenger that came to change his money into American dollars, adding that the operator ran into the robbers and was disposess of the foreign currency.
However, efforts to reach the Commissioner of Police, at MMA Command, Mr. Gwari Alkali proved abortive as he did not pick his calls or reply the SMS that was sent to him.
The Command Public Relation Officer, Mr Denis Ifijen was also contacted on telephone to confirm the  incident but his phone number  did not go through.

 

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/02/robbers-cart-n96m-at-lagos-airport/

Arrested kingpin not our spokesman – Boko Haram

MAIDUGURI(AFP) – A member of Islamist group Boko Haram has confirmed one of the group’s high-ranking members was arrested, but refuted reports that the detained person was its spokesman.
In a phone conference with journalists in the northeastern city of Maiduguri late Thursday, the man said Boko Haram’s head of “public enlightenment” Abu Dardaa was arrested and not spokesman Abul Qaqa.
The man speaking on the phone claimed to be Abul Qaqa himself, but his voice sounded different from previous such conferences in which the purported spokesman has claimed responsibility for scores of deadly attacks.