Lamentation of a patriot

Patriotism is simply an incurable disease. A patriot may be disappointed several times over by his country and vouch never to support such again, but again and again, he will do.

“Hello Yinka, where are you? Those guys broke my heart, indeed I'm very sad as I am”

“That stupid Musa guy actually displayed his ineptitude today. He doesn't know how to play anything.”

“I don't blame him sha. The sad thing is that Odemwengie and Obafemi will be feeling vindicated now”

"CAF surely have a thing against us, imagine that penalty they awarded Zambia. I know it's because we didn't pay that TV right. Very very ridiculous, 4 million pounds abi how much. Bunch of thieves!

"I pity Keshi too, if he mess up with this competition, he'll ruin the chances of any other local coach managing the Super Eagle"

Those were the words of my friend during a telephone conversation immediately after the Nigeria-Zambia match that ended 1-1.

He did not even give me enough time to respond to his emotional outpour. Realising that he needed a shoulder he could cry on, I just waited patiently at my end of the line.

I felt I should help him out of his mystery, so I tried to cut in ..

“but you shouldn't be that surprised now, you didn't actually expect them to do any better, do you?”

“Noooo, it's not as if I have high hopes on them, but you know something just keep telling me they could surprise me...(murmuring inaudibly as he dragged on his last word) Too bad, Olorun n gbo (hisses) too bad”

I thought of another way to end the call or digress from the topic. “Just go home now and meet your wife she must be angry by now. I'm sure you didn't inform her you'll be staying this late”

“See, this time I'm even more angry than anybody...ehn (pauses...hisses) guy the thing pain me gan ni o”. 

I could sense his anger and disappointment, I envisaged he'll throw tantrum at the slightest opportunity and prayed silently that his wife would be in a better mood than himself.

“I don't see us going out of the group stage 'cos those Ethiopians will beat us” he lamented.

“Isn't that better? At least it'll save us the agony of incessant pain and heartache like the one you are going through now” I suggested.

Then he quickly switch on his patriot alert.

"But who knows we may beat them o, you know if Burkina faso beat Ethiopia and we beat Ethiopia and Zambia draw or lose to Burkina Faso. Anyhow that's mere permutation"

 

The chat went on and on for about 9 minutes until he ran out of credit or network connection failed and I felt relived.

My friend wasn't the only patriotic Nigerian that the Eagles broke his heart. Patriotism is actually a disease!

Most Nigerians, before the start of the competition, were not optimistic of the Eagles putting up any fantastic performance at the Nation's Cup, yet they all trooped out in their millions to watch and support their country. All filled with a secret hope that the Super Eagles will spring a surprise. If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.

I have read on twitter and other forum how bitter Nigerians are at the "almost" performance of the Eagles. Almost will never kill a bird.

 As is usual of us all, we will lament and lament and throw blames, point accusing fingers and vouch never to waste our money seeing the Eagles play again...but as is expected of a patriot we shall all be at various viewing centres to see the Eagles lose to the Ethiopians and continue the lamentation. 

It's Nigeria, that's what we do; we are patriots.

Dead goat, living goat

Asking questions may make one look foolish at first, but wise, once you get the right answers, so says my grandpa. It’s a world where we all think we know the answers so we don’t ask questions!

So, he told me this story. 

Seated outside with his grandson, an old man told the boy “do you know that a dead goat can devour more wraps of pap than a living one?”

No! The young lad interrupted rebelliously.  “Grandpa, you might have been right many times, but this time you are wrong, and I can go to any length to prove you wrong”

“You go get a dead goat, I’ll get a living and healthy goat and let’s see which of them can devour more pap”

Although not surprised at the boy’s enthusiasm the old man was taken aback by the boy’s resolve to challenge him. “So, what happens if you lose”? The geriatric asked.

“I’ll grant your wish to study in the village, I’ll quit the city” the boy promised.

“If you win, you’ll inherit everything I have both here and in the city” the old man staked.

In a while, the old man ordered that two goats be brought and four baskets of wrapped pap, each containing 40 pieces. 

The boy took one of the goats and place a basket filled with pap at its front. The hungry goat pounced on the basket, eating the pap frantically. As is usual of goats, it was attracted by all the pap in the basket that it didn’t finish on a wrap before moving to the other. In all, the goat ate 9 wraps of pap.

Although the boy was disappointed with the goat’s appetite, he consoled himself that a dead goat couldn’t do any better.

The old man ordered that the second goat be slaughtered and cooked. From the minute the goat was killed, people started gathering to know what the old man was celebrating. They all waited to have a taste of the goat. The old man ordered that the people be served with wraps of pap as they have a piece of the goat. With one piece, some people ate as much as three wraps of pap.

When those that have been to the farm came back, the goat meat had finished but they ate half basket of pap with the broth left. In all the people ate 5 baskets of pap with the goat meat.

The boy felt cheated and disappointed. “But it was not the goat that ate the pap but the people” he submitted in defence of himself.

“Would the people have gathered if they hadn’t seen the dead goat and would they have eaten the pap without the meat or its broth?” the old man questioned in reply.

“Just a simple question could have saved us all the pains and stress we’ve been through. Much more it would have kept you in the city” the old man winked. The boy sobs everyday on his way to the village school.

Have you ever wondered why we all seem to know the problems bedeviling Nigeria but have no real solutions to them? We are too ignorant and every time someone comes to us in the form of a politician, professor, activist or colleague with a purported solution to our problems, we don’t ask questions, rather we argue or simply keep quiet.

Have you ever been privilege to be where two Nigerians are arguing? They argue with all the strength in them, trying to create a superior argument. “Don’t tell me that” “See I don’t need anybody to tell me anything” “If you like kill yourself, you will not agree and I won’t too” “They are all the same thing” “This Nigeria can never get better”. I tend to hear this every time there is a discussion about Nigeria.

David Orr in his 1991 evergreen speech submitted that in most respect, the Germans were the best educated people on earth, but their education did not serve as a barrier to barbarity because their education emphasized answers instead of questions.

Ignorance is not a curable disease; education cannot cure it, only constant questioning can push forward the frontiers of knowledge. Little wonder Jesus said “ask and it shall be given unto you”.

The emerging marriage culture in Lagos

Yinka Ojo

The emotion had been building up between Ade and Vivian for a while, and when the romance started it wasn't going to stop until a baby is involved. A token a while, a raise for hairdo, an apparel for the festivity, a soft loan now and then for a beautiful lady that had moved to Lagos on the empty promise of a greener pasture, the only consolation Vivian could think of was a pregnancy and a permanent tenancy with Ade her benefactor.

Ade, 25, is happily married with two kids, a family which he sustains with the proceeds of driving “Keke Marwa”. The repair of the third mainland bridge came with a boost for his business, making him a “bigger boy”, with extra change to finance his illicit friend-with-a-benefit affair with Vivian.

Vivian is from Benue state. She came to Lagos on the advise of a secondary school friend who does not want her to “bury beauty for bush”. Almost stranded in Lagos with want of decent job, Vivian was left with no option than to explore the offer that Ade presented her. The sweet experience soon culminated in a blissful bulging stomach for Vivian who refuted Ade's suggestion of an abortion, despite her knowledge of his marital status.

For Vivian, abortion is not an option, now she has a legitimate hold on Ade, who has agreed to rent a room for her somewhere in Lagos island with a promise of daily and monthly stipends for her upkeep. Just like that, Vivian has become someone's wife!

The scenario above pictures the emerging socio-cultural trend defining marriage and family in Lagos, especially among the lower class.

Culture is the total way of life of a people. Culture in Lagos state is redefined everyday. This redefinition is termed “cultural dynamism”, a situation in which an aspect of culture subsume or is been subsumed by a different culture resulting in a cultural paradigm shift.

In Lagos the dynamism is more noticeable in marriage and family set ups, especially amidst the lower class which constitutes a greater percentage of the population.

Traditionally, Yoruba people (who make up the traditional bulk of Lagos) value the sanctity of marriage and its processes. Although the culture neither promotes extravagance nor attaches financial gratification to giving out a child in marriage, it emphasises respect for both the bride and its family. Therefore, getting pregnant before marriage is an act that could tarnish the image of a family as morally corrupt. The onus of transmitting this value lies on the women who usually warn their female children against such acts which is called “Iyawo o ni nylon bag” (a bride with her bridal loads packed in a single nylon bag as opposed to the prestigious box” or “Iyawo oju window” (bride brought in through the window”).

The values above may sound like tales from the primitive age to some people, especially in the fastest growing mega city in Africa, Lagos. Incidence of men impregnating young ladies is on the rise in the state. Young men get their family started as if by default, no formal introduction, no ceremonies; the in-laws just need to be sure their daughter is not on the street! It's that simple if you are single. The major yardstick is a room big enough for you and your “wife”.

Married men usually secure accommodation for their lovers “carrying their babies, or simply deny responsibility for such pregnancy. If the lady insisted on seeing the pregnancy to delivery, the man, most often than not, renegades responsibility of taking care of the baby to its mother. Considering the financial condition that necessitated the relationship in the first place, such mothers are rarely able to take care of the young one.

Tens of divorce cases resolved or pending in magistrate courts around the state may, however be a determinant of how these unions end.

This trend recently attracted the attention of the Lagos state government who legislated that any man that fails in its responsibility to a woman and her wards will face the full wrath of the law. The State Attorney General, Ade Ipaye said "Any person who impregnates a woman or girl and fails, refuses or neglects to contribute to maternity related cost from ante-natal or post-natal stages, is guilty of an offence under section 277 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State and is liable to face the wrath of the law,"

Despite the law and examples that abound, there may be no end in sight to this way of life as the factors that necessitated these acts of infidelity and union remain. Poverty and the need to survive, by all means, in an overpopulated city with low moral standard may continually ensure unplanned parenthood, unplanned and unwanted pregnancies as single girls continue to tie themselves in somewhat suicidal nuptial knots.

Gunmen kill four more policemen in Kano

Gunmen suspected to be members of Islamic terror group have shot dead four policemen on patrol in Kano on Tuesday, the second attack in under 24 hours, ending a brief lull in violence.

A police officer on the scene after the attack, who declined to be named, told Reuters that the gunmen ambushed the patrol vehicle before escaping on motorcycles - a classic tactic of Islamist sect Boko Haram.

After a surge in fighting around the turn of the year, there have been fewer assaults by the Islamist militants in the past two weeks, although they remain the biggest security threat to Africa's top oil producer.

"Four police officers attached to the Kano police command were shot dead today by suspected terrorists of the Boko Haram sect, near the Angwa-Ukwu police checkpoint," the police officer said. "They escaped on their motorbikes."

The attack came less than a day after two policeman were killed on Monday at a checkpoint elsewhere in Kano.

Boko Haram, based loosely on the Afghan Taliban, killed hundreds last year in a campaign to impose sharia, or Islamic law, on religiously mixed Nigeria.

The sect has forged links over the years with international jihadists in Mali and Niger, including al Qaeda's north African wing, and Nigerian officials fear the country's involvement in a proposed intervention force to fight Islamists in Mali could inflame its own Islamist insurgency.

Boko Haram's violence remains focused mostly on security forces in the northeast, although its attacks have spread across the north and to the capital Abuja.

A senior Boko Haram commander blamed for organizing several suicide bombings, Mohammed Zingina, was captured on Sunday in Maiduguri in the northeast, where the sect's headquarters lie.

The government has promised rewards for information on some Boko Haram members that could lead to their arrest. Zingina was on that list.

Another, emerging group called Ansaru, known to have had ties with Boko Haram, claimed an attack on a police barracks in the capital Abuja in November, where it said hundreds of prisoners were released.

The group, labeled a terrorist organization by Britain, has also said it was behind the kidnapping of a French national at the end of last year who is still missing.

+Reuters 

MRS Tin Can tank farm on fire!

A fire incident has been reported at the MRS tank farm in Tin Can Island, Apapa Lagos.

The fire was said to have followed a massive explosion that rocked the oil company's facility. 

 

Eyewitness said vibrations from the explosion was felt as far as Wharf Apapa and Wilmer in Olodi Apapa.

An unconfirmed source has said the inferno emanated from a ship that caught fire and exploded  while discharging fuel into an MRS depot. Four people are allegedly injured as fire fighters make effort to quench the innferno.

 

More details shortly...

Strange But True: Astronauts Get Taller in Space

Have you been contemplating growing taller after 21, worry no more?

Astronauts in space can grow up to 3 percent taller during the time spent living in microgravity, NASA scientists say. That means that a 6-foot-tall (1.8 meters) person could gain as many as 2 inches (5 centimeters) while in orbit.

While scientists have known for some time that astronauts experience a slight height boost during a months-long stay on the International Space Station, NASA is only now starting to use ultrasound technology to see exactly what happens to astronauts' spines in microgravity as it occurs.
"Today there is a new ultrasound device on the station that allows more precise musculoskeletal imaging required for assessment of the complex anatomy and the spine," the study's principal investigator Scott Dulchavsky said in a statement. "The crew will be able to perform these complex evaluations in the next year due to a newly developed Just-In-Time training guide for spinal ultrasound, combined with refinements in crew training and remote guidance procedures."
A better understanding of the spine’s elongation in microgravity could help physicians develop more effective rehabilitation techniques to aid astronauts in their return to Earth’s gravity following space station missions.
Past studies have shown that when the spine is not exposed to the pull of Earth's gravity, the vertebra can expand and relax, allowing astronauts to actually grow taller. That small gain is short lived, however. Once the astronauts return to Earth, their height returns to normal after a few months. But still, scientists haven't been able to examine the astronaut's spinal columns when experiencing the effects of microgravity until now.
This month, astronauts will begin using the ultrasound device to scan each other's backs to see exactly what their spines look like after 30, 90 and 150 days in microgravity. Researchers will see the medical results in real time as the astronaut take turns scanning their spines of their crewmates.
Astronauts typically visit the space station in six-month increments, allowing for long-term studies of how the human body changes over time in microgravity.
"Ultrasound also allows us to evaluate physiology in motion, such as the movement of muscles, blood in vessels, and function in other systems in the body," Dulchavsky said. "Physiological parameters derived from ultrasound and Doppler give instantaneous observations about the body non-invasively without radiation."
Astronauts typically visit the space station in six-month increments, allowing for long-term studies of how the human body changes over time in microgravity.
 
So start saving for your next trip to space!
Source

Nigerian footballers lack the discipline to win Ballon d'Or - Gaiya

Godfrey Gaiya, Chairman, House of Reps Committee on Sports, said on Tuesday that Nigerian footballers lacked the discipline and commitment to win the FIFA World Footballer of the Year Award.

Rep. Gaiya was reacting to the 2012 FIFA Ballon d’ Or won by Barcelona/ Argentine striker, Lionel Messi, his fourth in a row. He told newsmen in Abuja that every Nigerian player was a potential winner of the award but noted that they needed to put some extra effort to measure up to Messi’s standard.

"Talent is talent; you don’t buy it with money. Everybody that can play for Nigeria is a potential world football award winner. ``However, it is not enough that you play for Nigeria and for a club in Europe. You need a cutting edge talent that will put you above your peers. That doesn’t come with just a wish because it's hard work and discipline.

"As it is, I am not convinced that we have the potential of getting there because our players lack discipline and the commitment to get there,” Gaiya said. 

The legislator dismissed suggestions that football administrators had not done enough to take the players to that level. "There is no level of administrative acumen that can translate into a player being named the best in the World. "Messi is the best not because the Argentine Football Federation has done anything more than the country has done. "Rather, Messi has excelled because he has done so much at club level, which is far from the level of government commitment, funding and encouragement,” he added.

The House member explained that former Liberian team captain, George Weah, became the only African so far to have won the award in 1995 because of hard work. He added that Weah’s football commitment manifested in Liberia, when he used his personal funds to bankroll the National team.

What's your take, is Gaiya right or wrong?

NSCDC arrests 60 persons for attacking 7 officers

The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Lagos State Command on Monday, said it arrested 60 persons for allegedly attacking its men while carrying out their lawful duties.

Sunday Obafaiye, told newsmen  in Lagos that seven of his men were seriously injured by the suspects. "My men went to Manjidun community in Ikorodu area of Lagos to check pipeline vandals. "While my men were trying to arrest some vandals, large number of the community people came out to attack them with guns, cutlasses, sticks and other dangerous weapons.

"Seven of my men were seriously wounded but 60 persons were arrested. ``Some petroleum products the suspects got from vandalised NNPC pipelines and weapons were recovered. "The suspects are currently detained at Alausa office,’’ Obafaiye explained.

The commandant said that the suspects would be charged to court after investigation.

Ali, Aneni, Ekwueme, 9 others vie for PDP BoT Chairmanship today

Twelve members of the Peoples Democratic Party Board of Trustee (BoT), are expected to contest the trustee chairmanship position of the party on Tuesday. 

The candidates include Dr Alex Ekwueme, Dr Ken Nnamani, Dr Okwesilieze Nwodo. Orhers are Dr Amadu Ali, Chief Tony Aneni, Chief Emmanuel Iwuayanwu, Chief Don Etibet and Sen. Bode Olayinka. Also in the race are Chief Yekeen Adeojo, Sen. Onyeabor Obi, Chief Harry Akande and Chief Shuaibu Oyedo. 

NIPOST retirees protest unpaid 60 months pension arrears

Retirees of the Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST) in Lagos State on Monday protested over alleged non-payment of their 60 months pension arrears by the Federal Government. 

The placard carrying retirees numbering about 100 protested in the front of the General Post Office, Marina, Lagos, at about 11:30 a.m. Some of the placards read: ``Please, PMG pay us our 60 months pension arrears now’’, "The joy of the Civil Service is to eat fruits of one’s labour, after retirement’’. Others read: ``Must NIPOST retirees be suffered after retirement’’?, and ``President Goodluck Jonathan save the souls of NIPOST retirees from dying’’. 

Police kill 91 kidnappers in Delta in 2012 - CP

The Police Command in Delta on Monday said that no fewer than 91 kidnappers and armed robbery suspects were killed by the police between January 2012 to Jan. 5, 2013. 

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr Ikechukwu Aduba, gave the figure to newsmen in Asaba on Monday. He said that though the state was a flash point for criminals, the security agencies were ready to combat the criminals. He warned the criminals to turn a new leave because there would be no hiding place for them this New Year. 

Man bags 2 month imprisonment for stealing phone

A 21-year-old Ibrahim Abubakar was on Monday convicted and sentenced to two months in prison by an Abuja Senior Magistrates’ Court for stealing a phone and an international passport. The police prosecutor, Cpl. Francis Tanko, told the court that one Angulu Emmanuel of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), reported Abubakar at the Wuse Zone 3 Police Station. 

Messi wins Ballon d'or for a record 4th time

JTF denies killing UNIMAID student

The Joint Task Force (JTF) on Operation Restore Order (ORO) has denied allegation that it shot dead a student of the University of Maiduguri on Jan. 4 in Maiduguri.

JTF spokesman Lt.-Col. Sagir Musa, made the denial on Monday in Maiduguri in a statement issued to newsmen. Musa, however, acknowledged that a student was injured by stray bullet during a cross fire between the JTF and some suspected terrorists in Gwange, Maiduguri on Jan. 4.

"Information at our disposal revealed that about 5.50pm on Friday, a JTF location was attacked by suspected Boko Haram terrorists in Gwange, Maiduguri. "During an exchange of fire, a taxi car was caught in the cross fire. Unfortunately a university student was hit by stray bullet,'' he said.

Musa said the victim was immediately rushed to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH). ``The injured student was taken to UMTH where he is receiving medical attention and responding to treatment,’’ he said.

Only 3% fibroid causes infertility, says gynaecologist

Have you lost hope of getting pregnant at the news of having fibroid? You shouldn't be!

Dr Prosper Igboeli, a gynaecologist, on Monday said most women with fibroid did not require treatment for it to get pregnant. Igboeli, the Managing Director of M and M Hospital, Fertility and IVF Centre, said in Abuja that only three per cent of fibroids caused infertility. He said the treatment options were having correct diagnosis and the restoration of fertility by preserving the integrity of the endometrium.

Reps set to strip CBN of supervisory role

The House of Representatives has initiated steps to curtail the bank supervisory roles of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and fully empower the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) to do so.

Governor's wife orders sack of female councillor

Have you ever wondered what the office of the First Lady does in a state? Wonder no more! Wife of Katsina State governor, Hajiya Fatima Ibrahim Shema, has ordered the sack of the supervisory councillor for water and sanitation in Matazu local government area of the state, Hajiya Hadiza Ibrahim.

Mrs Shema reportedly gave the directive to sack Hajiya Hadiza Ibrahim, the only female councillor at the Matazu local government transition management committee through a letter of "termination of appointment" dated 27th December, 2012.

Police prevented another Offa -Erin Ile clash

The Mobile Police Unit in Offa, near Ilorin, on Sunday averted a communal clash between two neighbouring communities of Offa and Erin-Ile in Kwara state.

It was gathered that a disagreement between members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in the two communities sparked off the trouble.

Cat caught sneaking saw, phone into Brazil prison

Anybody or anything could be an accomplice to crime.
A cat carrying a saw and a mobile phone was "detained" as it entered a prison gate in northeast Brazil, Brazilian media reported on Saturday.

Prison guards were surprised when they saw a white cat crossing the main gate of the prison, its body wrapped with tape. A closer look showed the feline also carried drills, an earphone, a memory card, batteries and a phone charger.

All 263 detainees in the prison of Arapiraca, a city of 215,000 people in the state of Alagoas, are considered suspect in the plot, which is being investigated by local police.

Ba to debut in FA Cup against Southampton

New Chelsea signing Demba Ba could make his Chelsea debut in today's FA Cup match.
Ba, who joined Chelsea on a three-and-a-half-year deal for an undisclosed fee, from Newcastle United, trained with the club on Friday.
 Manager Rafael Benitez said: "He's fine so he has a chance to play."

Ba failed a medical with Stoke in January 2011 because of a chronic knee problem but Benitez said there was "no problem" with the striker's medical.
"We know the situation," said the Spaniard.

"This is a player playing in the Premier League and playing every game and he can play [every game] for us."

It is believed Ba's contract with the Magpies contained a clause allowing him to speak to other clubs in the event of a £7m bid.

The new signing will be eligible for selection for Saturday's match at Southampton and the Capital One Cup semi-final against Swansea, but is not available for Chelsea's Europa League campaign, having appeared in thecompetition for the Magpies.
"It feels good to be here. I'm very happy and very proud," the 27-year-old told the Chelsea club website. 
"It was important for me, and for Newcastle, to get my future sorted and now we can move on.
"When the club who won the Champions League wants you, the decision is very easy. This club is massive and that's something that helped the decision a lot. It was not a hard one."

Ba, who moved to Newcastle from West Ham in June 2011, replaces Daniel Sturridge, who left Stamford Bridge to join Liverpool this week.

Ba has scored 13 league goals for the Magpies this season. His arrival will help alleviate the burden on £50m frontman Fernando Torres.
The 28-year-old Spaniard has scored 14 goals this season, seven of them in the league.

• Born in Paris suburb of Sevres
• One of eight children
• Previous clubs: Rouen, Mouscron, Hoffenheim, West Ham, Newcastle United
• Scored seven goals in only 12 Premier League starts for West Ham
• Scored 17 goals in his first season at Newcastle
• Already has 13 league goals so far this term, almost half of Newcastle's entire tally

 Source

Church of England okays gay men to become bishops

The Church of England's House of Bishops has said gay men in civil partnerships can join the episcopate. Photograph: Graeme Robertson/Getty Images

The Church of England has agreed that gay clergy in civil partnerships can become bishops so long as they remain sexually abstinent, a decision that looks likely to reignite one of the Anglican community's most bitter internal debates.

The decision was taken by the House of Bishops, the section of the General Synod responsible for church teaching. Evangelical Anglicans immediately signalled their opposition to the idea, leaving the church with the prospect of two simultaneous internal rows following the synod's decision in November to block women from becoming bishops.

The 2012 Premier League broken down in numbers

The year of 2012 was a remarkable one for sport and football had more than its fair share of drama, especially in the Premier League.

From Papiss Cisse's goal of the season against Chelsea to Sergio Aguero's stoppage-time strike that secured Manchester City the Premier League title in the most dramatic of circumstances, it was quite a year.

Bisi Komolafe is dead

Nollywood actress, Bisi Komolafe is dead. The outstanding actress was reported dead on Monday night, some hours to the New Year at UCH, Ibadan. 

Bisi was said to have had complications with her four months pregnancy which resulted to miscarriage and her death.

The actress according to sources was supposed to fly out of the country later this week.

The film industry which suffered several losses in 2012 has been thrown into mourning in the new year. 

The actress was recently engaged to her lover Tunde Ijaduola. The traditional introduction of the couple was sad to have been conducted in Ibadan, earlier in 2012 where the two families gave their blessing. 

Nigeria cannot have peace without balanced resources allocation - Abba-Ibrahim

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Housing, Sen. Bukar Abba-Ibrahim (ANPP-Yobe) has warned that Nigeria cannot have peace without a balance in the allocation of resources to various zones of  the country. He said this on Monday in Abuja while explaining why the North was opposed to the Petroleum Industry Bill, which he said is lopsided.

Abba-Ibrahim, who stated this at an interactive session with journalists, said that the clause in the PIB, which was asking for additional 10 per cent revenue for oil producing communities was unacceptable. “Derivation is only one out of seven sources of revenue for the oil producing states. They have the Federal Government's take home, the NDDC with over N500 billion being projects only in oil producing communities. ``They also have the Niger Delta Ministry with over N400 billion Federal Government grants in the name of amnesty and oil companies doing social corporate responsibility"

Welcome to 2013!!!

NewsandMuse234 welcomes you into year 2013. We wish you good news and greater things in the new year. Stay with us for refreshing news and muse throughout the year.

Thank You

Happy New Year