JONATHAN SEEKS N1.8BILLION TO FUND GHOST PROJECT

Investigative Journalism media outfit, Premium Times has revealed that President Goodluck Jonathan is asking the National Assembly to appropriate about N1.8 billion this year to help connect his home state of Bayelsa, to the national electricity grid, but this request suggests that federal officials only want to pocket the money.

PREMIUM TIMES investigations into the proposed project reveal that President Jonathan is asking money for projects that have been completed seven years ago, and that were all fully paid for in 2006 when he was the governor of the state.

In the 2014 Federal budget recently presented by the Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to the National Assembly for consideration and approval, the government lists as priority, the need to connect the state to the national electricity transmission network, but this shocking blunder is drawing attention to the absence of project monitoring and evaluation principles in policy making under the current administration, and the shabbiness that attends to budget preparation.

SEVEN CORRUPT JUDGES SET TO BE PROSECUTED BY THE EFCC

The Supreme Court is set to meet on the cases of the 23 judges, who are being investigated over large scale corruption. This is just as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, moves in to take over the matter from where the council stops.

Information reaching us indicates that already the commission’s operatives had established enough evidence of corruption against seven of the affected judges and was ready to charge them to court any moment from now.

The Chairman of the Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde, is reported to have visited the Chief Justice of Nigeria and given the assurance that the judges would be charged as soon as the NJC concluded its findings on them. The CJN had however asked the panels probing the judges to give them ‘fair hearing’ in the discharge of their assignment.

BURIAL RITES FOR PROFESSOR SOYINKA'S DAUGHTER ANNOUNCED

Iyetade Verity Soyinka, a daughter of Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka and Mrs. Olayide Soyinka, will be buried on Friday, January 10 in Ibadan, capital of Oyo State. The late Ms. Soyinka died on December 28, 2013 at theUniversity Teaching Hospital, Ibadan, after a brief illness. She was born on June 5, 1965.

In a statement released today, the Soyinka family stated that Iyetade’s death had brought “great sadness and an overwhelming sense of loss,” describing the deceased as their cherished daughter. The funeral statement disclosed that Ms. Soyinka is survived by two children, a daughter, Oreofe, and a son, Adeoto.

The late Iyetade “will be laid to rest on Friday January 10 in Ibadan, after the funeral service at the Chapel of Resurrection, University of Ibadan at 11a.m.,” the family’s statement revealed. It added, “A short service of songs will be held at 5 p.m. on Thursday 9 January.”

PAUL WALKER'S AUTOPSY REVEALS HORRIFIC DETAILS OF HIS TRAGIC DEATH

Paul Walker's autopsy results revealed a horrific list of injuries that led to the star's death as reported be DailyMail. According to a coroner's report released Friday, the actor's skin burned off, he suffered from multiple broken bones and a fractured jaw after his November 30 car crash in a California suburb. It was also revealed the driver of the Porsche Carrera GT carrying the Fast & Furious icon was going 100 mph.

Read previous post about his tragic death HERE, HERE, and HERE.

The 40-year-old could have taken a few breaths after impact as bits of soot were found in his trachea, the report states. The cause of death - which was already stated on his Death Certificate - was from 'combined effects of traumatic and thermal injuries.'

NORTH KOREA'S ECCENTRIC LEADER "KIM JONG UN" FED HIS UNCLE TO 120 STARVING DOGS

 

 North Korean leader Kim Jong Un executed his uncle and a handful of the man’s aides by feeding them to a horde of 120 starving dogs, according to a shocking (but unconfirmed) account.

Jang Song Thaek, the former No. 2 official in the secretive regime, was stripped naked and tossed into a cage along with his five closest aides.

“Then 120 hounds, starved for three days, were allowed to prey on them until they were completely eaten up. This is called ‘quan jue’, or execution by dogs,” according to the Straits Times of Singapore. The daily relied on a description of the execution in a Hong Kong newspaper that serves as the official mouthpiece of China’s government there. More established outlets in mainland China have not repeated the account.

WAR IN THE WORLD'S YOUNGEST NATION - SOUTH SUDAN

South Sudan's army battled rebel forces Thursday, a military spokesman said, as negotiators from the warring sides prepared to meet for talks aimed at ending the violence that has pushed the world's newest country toward civil war.

Having sent delegations to the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, the government and rebels are under mounting pressure from African and Western powers to reach a deal to stop clashes that have killed more than 1,000 people and displaced more than 190,000.

But there is no sign of an end of hostilities just yet. Military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer said that military forces fought with rebels south of the flashpoint town of Bor, the scene of some of the heaviest fighting in the nearly three weeks of violence. He said the Sudan People's Liberation Army was trying to stop the rebels from advancing on the capital, Juba, about 200 kilometers (124 miles) away.

OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER APPOINTED AS CARDIFF CITY MANAGER

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer rescued Manchester United in 1999 to help the club win the Champions League, and he has now been charged with the task of saving Cardiff City from relegation into English football's second tier.

The 40-year-old Norwegian famously came off the substitutes' bench for United in Barcelona to score the winner in stoppage time, giving them a 2-1 victory against Bayern Munich -- a win that wrapped up the Treble for Alex Ferguson's men.

Cardiff's Malaysian owner Vincent Tan will be hoping Solskjaer, who has been given a 12-month rolling contract, can work similar magic for the struggling Welsh side after appointing the former Molde boss as Malky Mackay's successor on Thursday. Cardiff, who lost 2-0 to Arsenal on Wednesday, currently sit one point and one place above the English Premier League relegation zone.

Solskjaer, who attended the match at the Emirates Stadium alongside Tan, promised the Cardiff fans a positive brand of football. I'm really looking forward to the challenge ahead. I'm going to bring my energy and enthusiasm to the club," he told reporters. "I'm a very positive manager. I want to play a good style of football and yesterday [against Arsenal] we showed what a threat we can be."

WOMAN SLUMPS & DIES WHILE TESTIFYING IN CHURCH AT OWERRI

Tragedy struck in Umuogwuta, Ndegwu, Owerri West local council area of Imo State, as a lady who was giving her testimony during the New Year service suddenly collapsed and died.

A villager, who spoke to Vanguard on ground of anonymity, said: “The Lagos-based lady, Ifeoma Anozie, collapsed and died while giving her testimony inside Saint John’s Anglican Church, Ndegwu.”

Ifeoma returned to her country home not to only give testimony about her achievements in the passing year, but also felicitate with her kith and kin. “The lady had hardly commenced her testimony when she suddenly slumped and died in front of the officiating  cleric and left the congregation completely perplexed,” the villager said.

Speaking also on the issue, a woman who simply identified herself as Felicia, lamented that what ordinarily should have been a double celebration for the Anozie family suddenly turned sour. “The church service was designed to be a double celebration for the Anozie family. It, however, turned out to be a tragedy for the family, the church and Ndegwu community,” Felicia lamented.

The remains of the lady had been deposited in an undisclosed hospital morgue.

NO PLANS TO INCREASE FUEL PRICE - FG

The Federal Government said, yesterday, that it had no plans to increase the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, popularly known as petrol from the prevailing pump price of N97 per litre, describing the growing fear of imminent price hike as unfounded.

Equally, what appeared to be a major change in policy, the Federal Government, yesterday, said it has no plans to sell any of the country’s refineries.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati, who spoke on the issue, also said that if selling the refineries was the basis for the plan by the junior oil workers to embark on strike, then the action would be fruitless.

Dispelling fears of pump price hike, the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, said in a statement that all its offices nationwide had stepped up surveillance and monitoring of all products retail outlets to ensure and enforce compliance, stressing that all defaulters will be sanctioned in accordance with the law.

DPR reiterated that all petroleum product marketers must continue to sell at government approved prices. It said: “The DPR wishes to inform the general public that the Federal Government of Nigeria has not and does not intend to increase petroleum product prices contrary to speculations by some members of the public.

“Consequently, all petroleum product marketers are hereby advised to sell at government approved prices and desist from hoarding, thereby causing artificial scarcity and hardship to consumers. “The DPR wishes to reiterate that there is adequate supply of petroleum products nationwide.

PREMIER LEAGUE.COM TEAM OF 2013

The criteria for selection was that all candidates must have played or managed in the Barclays Premier League throughout 2013, thereby ruling out the likes of Gareth Bale (who was sold by Tottenham Hotspur in the summer), Sir Alex Ferguson (who retired in May), and Dejan Lovren, who signed for Southampton in June.

Everton are the most heavily represented Barclays Premier League club, with four Blues defenders included among the back five, while the peerless 82 points Arsenal amassed during 2013 meant that two players from the North London side made the grade, in addition to their manager Arsene Wenger.

There were also two players selected from both Manchester City - Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero - and Liverpool - Steven Gerrard and Luis Suarez-  and one from the 2012/13 Barclays Premier League champions, Manchester United - Michael Carrick. 

RIVERS STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY MAJORITY LEADER CHIDI LLOYD ARRESTED FOR MURDER

The Leader of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Mr. Chidi Lloyd, has been arrested for the alleged murder of his kinsman, Mr. Kingsley Ejeuo and a police sergeant, Urang Obediah.

Lloyd was purportedly arrested on his way to join the state Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, in his private jet in order to escape justice. A statement sent via by the State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ahmad Mohammad, specified that Lloyd knocked down Obediah while pursuing Ejeuo, identified to be his political opponent.

OAU GRADUATE HANGS HIMSELF BECAUSE HIS GIRLFRIEND'S FATHER DID NOT SUPPORT THEIR RELATIONSHIP

LATE ADEBAMBO

In what could be described as a very spiritual tragedy, the Ikorodu town, Lagos State, western Nigeria, was thrown into mourning on New Year day when a graduate of Architecture, Ogunsona Daniel Adekunle Adebambo, committed suicide by hanging himself in an uncompleted storey building.

Read more from PM News..................

The suicide is coming on the heels of the controversy surrounding the death of a mother of two, Mrs. Ibironke Sanni, 31, who allegedly committed suicide two weeks ago by gulping Sniper insecticide in Sholebo Estate, Ikorodu, over her husband’s alleged infidelity.

The body of Adebambo was found around 1 a.m. yesterday dangling from a rope tied to the hook of a fan in an uncompleted storey building at 1, Alice Ogunsona Street, Hilltop Estate, Eruwen, Ikorodu.

P.M.NEWS investigations revealed that Adebambo, 30, studied Architecture at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) and did his national service in Abia State.

The deceased was found by his younger brother after reading the suicide note he left in their sitting room.

He allegedly blamed his action on his girlfriend’s father who refused to allow him marry his daughter.

WHAT HAPPENED TO PASTOR BIODUN'S ROBUST REPLY????

About 4 months ago, news of infidelity of a popular Abuja based pastor circulated around the social media. Ese Walter claimed that Pastor Biodun of COZA had a secret affair with her in a blog post she published. The Pastor neither accepted nor denied the claim, instead he promised a "ROBUST REPLY".

Ese Walter has since deleted the post while the response from  Pastor B is still not ROBUST enough to be published.

Many of us have moved on from the story but a publication caught my attention this afternoon which I deemed fit to share.

Ijabla Raymond wrote thus for Sahara Reporters..................

"It has been more than 4 months now since pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo of COZA ministries promised a “robust reply” to the scandal of sex allegation made against him by Miss Ese Walters, has anyone heard any reply at all? I gather he is still preaching and people are still going to his church.

2014 PROPHECY BY T.B. JOSHUA

Believe his prophecies or not, Prophet T.B Joshua have rolled out the 2014 edition of what has now become an annual prophecy for Nigeria. Read as obtained from PM News.

Prophet T.B. Joshua of The Synagogue Church Of All Nations (SCOAN) has declared 2014 as a year Nigeria’s corrupt leaders would go down. He spoke while ushering in 2014.

In a broadcast beamed live via the church’s popular television station Emmanuel TV, he first counselled believers to stay steadfast in faith despite the challenges that would arise in the coming year.

“We are tempted so that we may pray the more. Afflictions are meant for our spiritual benefit,” he told the congregants and television viewers.

Speaking further, he said: “This New Year 2014 is not like any other year in the past. It is a year of crossing the bridge. To cross the bridge, you need to grab onto faith. This is not going to be easy for the mighty. Many of the mighty will fall. Pray for them. The rich, famous and popular people – many will fall this 2014 because crossing the bridge is not going to be easy; they need God. Many of them believe it is their own making to be great in their own area of expertise.”

THE HEALING WATER IN ENUGU - GREG ODOGWU

A couple of weeks ago, a smartly dressed middle-aged man entered a bank premises in Enugu dragging a 25-litre jerry can filled with unspecified liquid content.

Because he looked awkwardly suspicious with his incongruous cargo, the security personnel at the bank insisted that the man opened the jerry can so they could ascertain the contents.That was when the customer unscrewed the can and simply told them, “I am just coming from Orimiri Jordan (River Jordan). I am here to

withdraw some money before heading for my village in Anambra State.”

That statement turned the man into a momentary celebrity. This is because he just came in from Nachi, a community located in Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State, where a mysterious stream which allegedly heals all kinds of ailments erupted from the ground. The security guards begged the man to give them some of his “miracle water”; and the man obliged them with some cupfuls.

WELCOME NOTE TO 2014 - IT SHALL BE A GREAT YEAR

Let me officially welcome you to year 2014 AD.

Indeed, being alive, hale and hearty cannot be exchanged with money or other valuables. Hence, we must as individuals, family, society, country, race and people give thanks to the giver of life.

This year promises to be an intriguing one politically in Nigeria and events within this year will no doubt determine how the other sectors will fare.

Set your goals for the year, highlight enhancers backed up with prayers to the GOD you believe in and you will not be disappointed.

Finally, we appreciate your support for this blog and be rest assured that we will keep getting better as we bring verified news and gist to you real time.

Regards.

Xantaplus

THE MEN AND WOMEN WHO WILL SHAPE 2014

The year 2014, being the last year before the next round of general elections is bound to be decisive as politicians from across different political hues take position. Some Nigerians who are bound to direct the pace of political activities in the country are mentioned underneath.

President Goodluck Jonathan

GEJ will be the centre of action in the coming year. As president of the country eligible for a second term, the pace and posture of his politics would largely determine the pattern of political activities in 2014.

President Jonathan who had in the past pooh-poohed questions on whether he would seek re-election had said that he would make his plans known in 2014. With that year now at hand, the president can no longer wave aside a response to the issue. Will he or will he not?

Though his body language has all but indicated that the president would be contesting the election, it is not impossible for him to pull back.

A decision to run would heat up the polity to a level beyond the normal level of a presidential contest. A decision not to run could also pose serious threats to national security given the passion of the president’s Ijaw kith and kin who are determined to have their son return to office in 2015.

#PROJECTSMILES WAS A HUGE SUCCESS

PROJECTSMILES is a GREENHOUSE initiative solely reaching out to children. On 26th December 2013, the lives of about 300 police children at the "MOPOL 20 BARRACKS", Ikeja-Lagos, were touched by PROJECTSMILES even though the plan was to cater for 100 children. 

IT WAS INDEED A HUGE SUCCESS.

See more pictures after the cut..............................

DWAYNE WADE HAD A SECRET BABY WITH A MYSTERY WOMAN BEFORE PROPOSING TO HIS LONGTIME GIRLFRIEN GABRIELLE UNION

It turns out Dwyane Wade's been playing more than basketball lately...and new fiancee Gabrielle Union is less than happy about it. 

It emerged on Monday that the Miami Heat star recently had a child with an unnamed woman, according to E! News.

The event occurred while the couple were on a break and before the 31-year-old proposed to the Bring It On star on December 21.

GUNMEN KIDNAP LAGOS PASTOR AND SIX OF HIS CHILDREN

A 27-man gang on Friday abducted a pastor, Mr. Godson Akubiro, and six of his children from their Adeosun Street residence, Koya Estate, Igbo Olomu, Ikorodu, Lagos State. Akubiro is said to be the founder of Mountain of Breakthrough Church in the area. The incident was said to have occurred about 1.30am.

Neighbours, who requested anonymity, said that the gunmen arrived at  Akubiro residence in three jeeps and a Toyota Tundra vehicle. The  number plates of the vehicles were said to have been covered. The gunmen, who wore army camouflage, had allegedly gained entrance into the house with the aid of an iron cutter. It was learnt that since the abduction, no one had heard from Akubiro and his six children.

The Community Developmen Association  Chairman, Mr. Yinka Obasan, said he was alerted about the development about 2am.

“I got a call that night from a resident who was coming from a vigil. He told me that he noticed some military vehicles parked outside Akubiro’s home. He said the vehicles belonged to a high ranking military official because the insignia was covered.