NIGERIA DEFEATS COLOMBIA TO REACH NEXT ROUND OF U-17 WOMEN WORLD CUP. COLOMBIA 1 - NIGERIA 2.

COL 1 NIG 2

Nigeria scored a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over a gallant Colombia to earn a quarter-final berth alongside Mexico and at the same time end the hopes of the South Americans.

Needing all three points to stay alive in Group D, Colombia burst out of the blocks with a third minute goal as Angie Rodriguez looped a header from a perfect Nancy Acosta cross over the head of stranded goalkeeper Onyinyechukwu Okeke.

Nigeria drew level just past the midway point of the opening half with Joy Bokiri curling in a perfectly flighted free-kick from the edge of the penalty area.

Nigeria took the lead for the first time approaching the hour mark as some sloppy marking from a corner allowed the tall figure of Uchenna Kanu to nod the ball in unchallenged at the back post.

Midfielder Ihuoma Onyebuchi then rattled the Colombia crossbar with a first time strike from distance with the South Americans increasingly on the back foot.

Colombia goalkeeper Monica Florez memorably pulled off four successive blocks during one almighty goalmouth scramble as they desperately hung on.

The win leaves Nigeria sharing top spot with Mexico, while Colombia will now tackle China PR with each seeking their maiden points of the competition.

VIETNAMESE BLOGGER JAILED FOR 15 MONTHS FOR CRITICAL POSTS AGAINST GOVERNMENT.

A Vietnamese court sentenced a dissident blogger to 15 months in prison for posting online criticism of the government, the latest case in an intensifying crackdown against dissent in the one-party communist country.

At a two-hour trial at the Hanoi People’s Court, Judge Ngo Tu Hoc said on Wednesday that Pham Viet Dao was guilty of “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe the interests of the state” by posting dozens of articles that “distorted, vilified and smeared the senior leaders”.

Dao, 61, confessed to the court and apologised for the “erroneous” details in some of his posts, but said he did not do that on purpose.

JONATHAN IS STILL ON A SACKING SPREE AS NNPC'S DIRECTOR OF EXPLORATION & PRODUCTION LOSES HIS JOB.

President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday sacked the Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mr. Abiye Membere, and appointed five new ones to fill existing vacancies.

According to a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, the new appointees and their portfolios are Mr. Ian Udoh, Group Executive Director, Refining and Petrochemicals; Dr. Dan Efebo, Group Executive Director, Corporate Services; and Ms. Aisha Abdurrahman, Group Executive Director, Business Development.

Others are Mr. Adebayo Ibirogba, Group Executive Director, Engineering and Technical; and Dr. Joseph Dawha, Acting Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production. Abati said the appointments took immediate effect. Among the GEDs, the one in charge of the Exploration and Production is one of the most influential in the hierarchy of the NNPC because the department is responsible for producing the crude oil that is the mainstay of the Nigerian economy. It was gathered that some of the old GEDs had retired from the corporation without the government filling their positions, while some served in acting capacities. 

FG OFFERS AUTOMATIC EMPLOYMENT TO FAMILIES OF IMMIGRATION TRAGEDY.

President Goodluck Jonathan has directed that three employment slots be reserved for the families of those who died during the stampede that occurred during the recruitment exercise conducted by the Nigerian Immigration Service on Saturday nationwide.

Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, disclosed this to State House correspondents on Wednesday at the end of the Federal Executive Council meeting which was devoted to the incident.

He said one of the three beneficiaries must be a lady.

ISLAMIC CLERIC WHO ABUSED 13 YEAR OLD GIRL EVADES JAIL.

An Islamic teacher who sexually abused a young girl as he taught her the Koran has been spared prison after a court was told he is on benefits and his wife speaks ‘very little English’.

Spared prison: Islamic teacher Suleman Maknojioa sexually abused a young girl as he taught her the Koran

Suleman Maknojioa, 40, repeatedly rubbed the 11-year-old’s leg and even reached underneath the long folds of her prayer headscarf to squeeze her chest whilst giving her and her two brothers private tuition in Arabic.

(VIDEO) LIVERPOOL DESTROYS MANCHESTER UNITED AT OLD TRAFFORD. ManU 0 Liv 3.

MANU 0 LIV 3

CLICK HERE TO WATCH HOW MANCHESTER WERE EMBARRASSED AT OLD TRAFFORD BY LIVERPOOL.

(HIGHLIGHTS) China 1 - Nigeria 2.. FIFA U-17 Women World Cup

CHINA 1 NIGERIA 2

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO.

The Constitution Vs. The Generals - Femi

Until a fortnight ago, the Ministry of Defense had no substantive minister for over 22 months. Erelu Olusola Obada, a Minister of State for defense was directed by President Goodluck Jonathan to superintend the defense ministry for over a year. And when she was relieved of her post in a cabinet reshuffle last year the Information Minister, Labaran Maku was saddled with the responsibility of supervising the Ministry of Defense.

It is on record that both Mrs. Obada and Mr. Labaran Maku allowed the Chief of Defense Staff to operate as the de facto Minister of Defense. Under the arrangement the Chief of Defense Staff had direct access to the President. But with the rising onslaught of the Boko Haram sect in the north east zone of the country President Jonathan was recently compelled to appoint a substantive Minister of Defense in the person of General Mohammed Gusau, a retired general and a former National Security Adviser.
 
The new minister assumed duty last week and was reported to have summoned a meeting of the service chiefs to review the state of the war on terror. To the embarrassment of the Minister the Service Chiefs were said to have nominated the Chief of Defense Staff to represent them at the meeting. As if that was not enough the Chief of Defense Staff, Air Vice Marshall Alex Badeh was alleged to
have made it clear to the Minister that he could only relate with the service chiefs through his office.
 
Infuriated by what was considered as an act of insubordination on the part of the Chief of Defense Staff the Minister threatened to resign from the Jonathan Administration. Although the Ministry of Defense promptly denied the rumored resignation of the Minister the crisis has brought to the fore the refusal of the military establishment to subject itself to civil authorities under a
democratic dispensation. Since the military had ruled the country for close to three decades serving military officers have a penchant for treating civil authorities with disdain. The anti-democratic culture is not peculiar to Nigeria. Based on similar experience it is specifically stated in section 87(2)
of the 1994 Ethiopian Constitution, “The Minister of Defense shall be a civilian.”
 
No doubt, the President of the Republic appoints the Chief of Defense Staff and the service chiefs. Pursuant to section 218(3) of the Constitution, “The President may, by directions in writing and subject to such conditions as he may think fit, delegate to any member of the armed forces of the Federation his powers relating to the operational use of the Armed Forces of the Federation”. The
 President pursuant to section 147 of the Constitution equally appoints the Minister of Defense. But the President has, in exercise of his powers under sections 5(1) and 148(1) of the Constitution, delegated his executive powers of
managing the defense ministry to the Minister of Defence. 
 
Apart from such power of superintendence the Minister is recognized as the head of the Ministry of Defense by the Armed Forces Act (CAP A20) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. Thus, in the Armed Forces Council and the National Defense Council the Minister of Defense is higher than the Chief of Defense Staff and the service chiefs in the ranking of the members. For the avoidance
of doubt, the Minister of Defense is the Chairman while the Chief of Defense Staff is the Vice-Chairman of the Army Council, Navy Board and Air Council (See sections  9, 12 and 15 of the Armed
Forces Act). It is pertinent to note that the permanent secretary who is a civilian is the accounting officer of the Ministry of Defense and a member of the governing councils of the armed forces.
 
In the light of the unambiguous provisions of the Constitution and the Armed Forces Act the Chief of Defense Staff and the Service Chiefs are answerable to the Minister of Defense to whom the President has delegated his executive powers with respect to the defense of the federation. Therefore, the President,
as the Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces should, without any further\ delay, call the Chief of Defense Staff and the service chiefs to order.
 
 
FEMI FALANA, SAN

FEMALE BANKER ARRESTED FOR DEFRAUDING EMIR OF KANO.

The princely amount of N46 million in the dormant bank account of the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero, was simply irresistible for the young female banker.

So the suspect, Amina Magaji, was prepared to risk everything to reactivate the account and convert part of the balance there in to her use. The account was said to have been opened  in 1967 but went dormant later. 

The suspect allegedly applied for a cheque book, got it and began to operate the account. By the time the bubble burst, she had, according to a source, withdrawn N17million from the account. Amina, alongside 12 other staffers of the old generation bank, is answering questions from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on the alleged fraud.

MALAYSIAN PILOT WAS A POLITICAL FANATIC AND COULD HAVE HIJACKED HIS OWN PLANE

CAPTAIN ZAHARIE AHMAD SHAH

Police in Malaysia are investigating the possibility that the pilot of missing Flight MH370 hijacked his own aircraft in a bizarre political protest.

It was learnt that Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah was an ‘obsessive’ supporter of Malaysia’s opposition leader, Anwar Ibrahim. And hours before the doomed flight left Kuala Lumpur it is understood 53-year-old Shah attended a controversial trial in which Ibrahim was jailed for five years.

Campaigners say the politician, the key challenger to Malaysia’s ruling party, was the victim of a long-running smear campaign and had faced trumped-up charges.

Police sources have confirmed that Shah was a vocal political activist – and fear that the court decision left him profoundly upset. It was against this background that, seven hours later, he took control of a Boeing 777-200 bound for Beijing and carrying 238 passengers and crew.

Yesterday, Malaysian police searched his house in the upmarket Kuala Lumpur suburb of Shah Alam, where he had installed a home-made flight simulator. But this newspaper can reveal that investigators had already spent much of last week examining two laptops removed from Shah’s home. One is believed to contain data from the simulator.

Nicole Scherzinger set to marry Lewis Hamilton after turning him down thrice.

Nicole Scherzinger has reportedly finally said yes to marrying British F1 star Lewis Hamilton.

Hamilton is in pole position for today's Australian Grand Prix, and news that his long-term beau has agreed to be his wife should mean his is currently on top of the world.

X-Factor star Scherzinger has said yes after turning Hamilton down on three previous occasions.

18 PERISH IN NIGERIA IMMIGRATION SERVICE (NIS) RECRUITMENT NATIONWIDE EXERCISE

Sad times are here again for Nigeria's youth as about 18 job seekers died and many were injured on Saturday during a nationwide recruitment test conducted by the Nigeria Immigration Service.

The applicants reportedly paid the sum of N1,000 as application fee. Millions of job seekers had thronged venues of the exercise, mostly stadia, for the exercise.

Seven were confirmed dead after a stampede at the National Stadium, Abuja, venue of the exercise in the Federal Capital Territory.

The 60,000-seater  stadium was filled up. Each candidate was required to wear a white T-shirt, boxer shorts, socks and tennis shoe for the exercise. The candidates, our correspondent gathered, were tested in logical reasoning, English language and mathematics.

The applicants, mostly youths, had certificates ranging from master’s degree to bachelor’s degree, Higher National Diploma, National Certificate in Education, National Diploma and Senior Secondary School Leaving Certificate.

Jose Mourinho & Two Chelsea players sees red as Aston Villa defeats Chelsea 1 - 0.

Aston Villa 1 Chelsea 0

Chelsea lost at villa park as Mourinho, Willian and Ramires all saw red. 

The title chase is closer than ever.

WATCH VIDEO HERE.

David Silva shines as Kompany sees red in Man City's 2 - 0 defeat of Hull City.

Hull City 0 Man City 2

Despite going a man down, Man City were able to defeat Hull City by 2 goals courtesy moments of Magic from the spanish star David Silva who scored one and provided the other.

WATCH VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS HERE.

Osaze scores 2 as Stoke beat West Ham by 3 - 1.

STO 3 WHA 1

WATCH VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS HERE.

The Uncomfortable Truth Of Elusive Economic Development- Nigeria’s Century Old Failures And Prospects For A New Nigeria By Oby Ezekwesili

Protocols : Good afternoon, chieftains and members of the All Progressives Congress.

Thanks for inviting me as your Keynote Speaker at your Unveiling of Road Map Summit. I do not know how you decided to take this high risk of inviting me to your gathering, knowing full well that my zeal for candor can be generally unsettling for some people of your class and occupation.  Since you took the risk, I have assumed the liberty to speak boldly even to your discomfort especially considering that we live in a season of grim when our country is greatly troubled. In perilous times like this, Truth is the absolute freedom. I shall be spurred on by the counsel of George Orwell who in honor of truth stated that “in a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act”. I further assume that if you wanted someone with the skills of deceit, it would not be me that you would have invited to your gathering. I therefore speak to you today not as a politician but as a daughter of this land.

READ HOW JONATHAN'S VISIT TO KATSINA AIDED DEATH MERCHANTS TO SLAUGHTER 113 PEOPLE.

The massive security set up  in Katsina, the capital city in Katsina State, Northern Nigeria, ahead of a two-day visit to the state by Nigerian President, Goodluck Jonathan meant that policemen and soldiers that could protect villages that had been under siege from blood thirsty herdsmen were diverted elsewhere to protect the president.

A source said because of the President’s visit, military and police protection is absent in Sabuwa and Faskari local government areas, despite the deaths of 69 people since Tuesday, killed during raids by hundreds of armed gunmen on motorcycles.   A previous report had the death toll at 40 - those numbers have increased to 113 as bodies are discovered in forests and other areas.

JAYWON PART WAYS WITH KENNIS MUSIC.

More Artistes are parting ways with their record labels and this  is no surprise at all.  With issues ranging from the general lull in album sales to  breech of contract on the increase, more artistes seem to have chosen to part ways with their records labels. The result is that many of the affected labels have lost their ‘prized possessions’ of late.

Punch reports that Kennis Music artiste, Jaywon (real name Iledare Oluwajuwonlo) reportedly asked his records label to set him ‘free’. Now, the singer has joined the growing number of singers calling it quits with their  labels and by implication, metaphorically ‘biting’ the fingers that fed them.

A statement released by the Public Affairs Unit of Kennis Communications says the singer had written a letter through his lawyer to request the termination of his contract with the company.

JONATHAN'S GOVERNMENT IS CORRUPTION RIDDEN AS REPS UNCOVER ANOTHER N35BN FRAUD.

More revelations by the House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts indicated on Thursday that the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation could not account for N35bn it collected from the Service Wide Vote within nine years.

While the records of the Budget Office of the Federation showed that the OHSF received N52bn between 2004 and 2012, the Permanent Secretary, Mr. Remi Adelakun, admitted only N17.6bn.

The committee, which is chaired by Mr. Solomon Olamilekan, insisted on Thursday that Adelakun must explain how the N35bn was spent.

GUNMEN FREE JONATHAN'S UNCLE AFTER 19 DAYS.

The Police in Bayelsa have rescued Chief Nengite Nitabai, 70, President Goodluck Jonathan’s uncle kidnapped on Feb. 23.

Mr Hilary Okara, Commisioner of Police in the State, confirmed the development in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Yenagoa on Thursday.

He said Nitabai was freed in Odioma community in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa. Nitabai, a community leader in Otuoke, Ogbia Local Government Area, was freed unharmed and had re-united with his family.