Monday, August 27, 2012

Stephen Keshi drops Obi Mikel and Osaze from Nigerian squad

Super Eagles' Head Coach, Stephen Keshi has called up Skipper Joseph Yobo and Russia-based power-playing forward Emmanuel Emenike, as well as eight other overseas-based players for next month's final 2013 African Cup of Nations qualifying match against Liberia in Monrovia.

At a meeting in the NFF Secretariat in Abuja yesterday, the former libero briefed the NFF Technical Sub-Committee on his conviction about all players on the list and it was duly approved.

Also listed are goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama, defenders Efe Ambrose and Elderson Echiejile, midfielder Obiora Nwankwo and forwards Victor Moses, Ahmed Musa and Ikechukwu Uche.

Effervescent midfielder Nosa Igiebor and in-form marksman Brown Ideye complete the list of 11 players, who will team up with the home-based players that played a 0-0 draw with the Mena of Niger in an international friendly in Niamey last week.

Chairman of the NFF Technical Sub-Committee, Barrister Chris Green, said after the meeting: "Coach Keshi gave his reasons for inviting each of the players and we all agreed with him that these players are in good form presently and will do the job for Nigeria against Liberia."

INVITED FOREIGN-BASED PLAYERS

Goalkeeper: Vincent Enyeama (Maccabi Tel Aviv, Israel)

Defenders: Joseph Yobo (Fenerbahce, Turkey); Efe Ambrose (Ashdod FC, Israel); Elderson Echiejile (Sporting Braga, Portugal)

Midfielders and Forwards: Nosa Igiebor (Real Betis, Spain); Obiora Nwankwo (Calcio Padova, Italy); Victor Moses (Wigan Athletic, England); Ahmed Musa (CSKA Moscow, Russia); Ikechukwu Uche (Villarreal, Spain); Emmanuel Emenike (Spartak Moscow, Russia); Brown Ideye (Dynamo Kyiv, Ukraine).




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Presidency starts dialogue with Boko Haram

Despite denial by Boko Haram spokesman, the Presidency, yesterday emphasised that government had commenced dialogue with members of the sect, assuring Nigerians that the insurgency will soon be brought under control.

Speaking with newsmen, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, said the dialogue was through third parties and not directly with Boko Haram officials.

Abati said that what President Goodluck Jonathan is asking from Nigerians as he tackles the issue through the multi-faceted levels is support.

"When government says it is already talking to Boko Haram, the form of that dialogue must be properly understood. I think a lot of people are under the impression that the dialogue involves a situation whereby government officials are sitting on one side, Boko Haram persons are sitting on the other side in an air-conditioned room and there are negotiations across the table. That is not the form of the dialogue.



"The form of the dialogue is that back room channels are being used to reach across with the sole objective of understanding what exactly the grievances of these persons are, what exactly can be done to resolve the crises, in the overall best interest of ensuring peace and stability in Nigeria and the security of life and property. And all of this is consistent with the position of the President.

"So what is called dialogue is at many levels: through back room channels and through multi-level, constructive interventions to address a difficult issue that is multi-farious".

Explaining further, the Presidential Adviser said "one thing that is noteworthy is that the Boko Haram spokesperson made it clear that they were prepared to go a step further to ensure that persons who are using the name of Boko Haram for political and criminal purposes are identified and checked. What that original statement indicated was that indeed Boko Haram has many faces. It confirms that this thing called Boko Haram is such a multi-faceted phenomenon.

"The true situation has already been stated by the Minister of Information on two different occasions. First in an interview, second through a press release, namely that the Federal Government is involved in dialogue with Boko Haram.

"You will recall that what led to this is that a spokesperson for Boko Haram issued a statement confirming that government and some leaders of Boko Haram were already discussing; in that particular statement the issues being looked at were clearly identified.

"You will recall that in one instance, during a Presidential Media Chat, President Jonathan had made it clear that the Boko Haram phenomenon, the terror phenomenon in Nigeria, is quite a novel phenomenon and that many of the persons involved in the low level insurgency are not known, they have not come forward. However if such persons should come forward, government will grant them a listening ear to know what it is that they are after.

"Again the President is on record, as having made it clear that government's approach to checking the Boko Haram insurgency is at many levels. The available option according to Mr President is not solely one of military action or police action and it is on the basis of this that he had reached out to leaders of political thought in the parts of the country that are affected.

"It is on this basis that President Jonathan held meetings with politicians from the Northern states. Because his position is that look, these people, yes they may not come forward but they are not ghosts, they live in communities. They are members of the Nigerian community, there would be persons who know them. There would be leaders in these communities, in these villages, in these towns who may have an idea and such persons needed to be carried along to assist in addressing the Boko Haram issue".

When government adopts this approach, it does not mean government is abdicating its responsibility to ensure that persons who go against the law are sanctioned.

"There is even a third level of intervention, the economic and social level of intervention. In this regard, President Jonathan has made it clear that many of the efforts being directed towards the affected parts of the country are meant, in fact to redirect the energies of the youths and this is the whole point of using the agricultural sector to transform lives, to create wealth, to create a value chain, the end of which is to create jobs and to engage young people more effectively. This government has a robust agricultural transformation programme that has been justly praised by IFAD and the World Bank".

"The Jonathan administration has been providing wider opportunities for many of the youths in the affected parts of the country to be able to go to school. No other government before now has done as much. Get them off the streets, engage them meaningfully and then of course you know that the government introduced the YouWin programme, and several other pro-people initiatives and policies.

"So, this is the issue at this stage, but one thing you should also note is that the Boko Haram as has been admitted, even by its spokespersons, is a phenomenon that has mutated. So it is not unusual that you will find a situation whereby a variant of the mutation may express a view that sounds like it's contradicting the other. What is certain is that government is considering all of this, government is taking on the issue frontally and through back room channels, with the assistance of a number of persons who have an understanding of the sociology and the character of the problem.

"You must admit of course that a lot is being achieved. Within the last one year and more, you can see that a lot has changed in terms of the knowledge that has been gained about the nature and character of the problem. A lot has been done, and a lot has been achieved in terms of the capacity of the state to deal with the problem.

What President Jonathan is asking for as his government tackles this issue from the various dimensions that we have identified, the political, the economic, the social and also, law enforcement, what he calls for, what he demands from Nigerians is support."





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Joint Task Farce rescues 27 kidnapped oil workers in Bakassi

The Eastern Naval Command of the Nigerian Navy in collaboration with the Joint Task Force, Operation Pulo Shield, in Calabar, Cross River State, at the weekend rescued 27 oil workers who were kidnapped in Bakassi.

A militant gang, Lactop Marine Force, in Bakassi, kidnapped 27 workers of a private oil company, Sinopec, at Ikang near the Bakassi Local Government headquarters.

It was gathered that following the incident, the JTF launched a raid on the hideout of the militants.

Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Naval Command, Rear Admiral Olufemi Ogunjimi, confirmed the JTF raid and described the militant group as criminals, who had nothing to do with the group agitating for the reclaiming of Bakassi, which was ceded to Cameroon by the International Court of Justice. He said Lactop, the leader of the gang, is a criminal who runs a criminal gang which kidnaps for ransom, engages in piracy, sea robbery and killing of innocent people including uniform personnel.

Commander of JTF, Major General Johnson Ochoga, said they have been working hard to flush out the gang in the past three days, and that the militant group was given an opportunity to come out and denounce their criminal activities, but they did not embrace the opportunity before the JTF closed in on them.

Also speaking, the Commander of 13 Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Calabar, Brigadier General Shehu Yusuf, said no life was lost in the operation, and that the military has given Lactop an opportunity to come out. He maintained that if he surrenders himself willingly, nothing would happen to him.

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Thursday, August 23, 2012

Video - Rick Ross shows Nigeria some love - Performs at Lagos




Rick Ross brought some Maybach Music Group love all the way across the Atlantic (as in the ocean) to the motherland this weekend. The Miami rapper made a trip to Lagos, Nigeria for a show and MMG's official video documentarian, Spiff TV Films, was along for the trip, so you can expect visuals soon. "Filming in the slums in Lagos.i just bought out the whole grocery store and gave it to the village. #MMG presence strong in our homeland,"tweeted Rozay.
It doesn't seem like Wale, who is Nigerian (but born in DC), was along for the trip, but the Bawse gave  him a shout out,tweeting, "I Salute #Lagos for having me.my trip wuz #boss gotta rep for my lil bro's @Wale & Vic.luv," Rozay. 
Just this week, the "Hold Me Back" rapper appeared on the cover of the new issue of Rolling Stone magazine. In the interview, the Miami native revealed that it was a friend getting shipped to the bing that eventually led him to employment as a correction's officer. 
Rick Ross' new album, God Forgive, I Don't, is in stores now. Check out photos from his trip to Nigeria in the gallery.
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Nigeria's finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala makes it on Forbes list of most powerful women

Forbes, a leading source of reliable international business news and financial information has released its list of "The World's Most Powerful Women" with Nigeria's finance minister and coordinating minister for the economy, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala taking the 81st position in the politics category as one of only three Africans on the list - Joyce Banda, President of Malawi (71) and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia's President (82).

Angela Merkel, German Chancellor topped the list dominated by women from the United States led by secretary of state Hilary Clinton in second place and 59 others such as Melinda Gates (4), Michelle Obama (7), Oprah Winfrey (11), Christiane Amanpour (53), Lady Gaga (14), Beyonce Knowles (32), Jennifer Lopez (38), Marissa Mayer - CEO Yahoo (21) and Sheryl Sandberge - COO Facebook (10) among others.

Other notable women of power on the list are President of Brazil, Dilma Roosseff (3), Sonia Gandhi, president, National Congress Party of India (6), Christine Lagarde - MD, IMF (8), Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, president of Argentina (16), Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma (19), Queen Elizabeth II of the UK (26), Julia Gillard, prime minister of Australia (27), Yingluck Shinawatra, prime minister of Thailand (30) and Sri Mulvani Indrawati, MD World Bank (72).

Forbes List Of World's Most Powerful Women

1. Angela Merkel Chancellor, Germany

2. Hillary Clinton Secretary of State, United States

3. Dilma Rousseff President, Brazil

4. Melinda Gates Co-Chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

5. Jill Abramson Executive Editor, New York Times Co.

6. Sonia Gandhi President, Indian National Congress, India

7. Michelle Obama First Lady, United States

8. Christine Lagarde Managing Director, International Monetary Fund

9. Janet Napolitano Secretary, Department of Homeland Security, United States

10. Sheryl Sandberg

11. Oprah Winfrey Entrepreneur, Personality

12. Indra Nooyi Chairman and CEO, PepsiCo

13. Irene Rosenfeld Chairman and CEO, Kraft Foods

14. Lady Gaga Musician, Philanthropist

15. Virginia Rometty President and CEO, IBM

16. Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner President, Argentina

17. Ursula Burns Chairman and CEO, Xerox

18. Meg Whitman CEO, Hewlett-Packard

19. Aung San Suu Kyi Chair and Parliamentarian, National League for Democracy, Burma

20. Maria das Graças Silva Foster CEO, Petrobras-Petróleo Brasil

21. Marissa Mayer CEO, Yahoo

22. Anne Sweeney Co-Chair, Disney Media Networks, and President, Disney/ABC Television Group, Walt Disney

23. Diane Sawyer Anchor of World News, ABC, Walt Disney

24. Angela Braly CEO, WellPoint

25. Susan Wojcicki Senior Vice President, Google

26. Queen Elizabeth II Monarch, United Kingdom

27. Julia Gillard Prime Minister, Australia

28. Nancy Pelosi Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, United States

29. Arianna Huffington Editor-In-Chief, Huffington Post Media Group, AOL

30. Yingluck Shinawatra Prime Minister, Thailand

31. Kathleen Sebelius Secretary, Department of Health and Human Service, United States

32. Beyonce Knowles Actress, Entrepreneur, Musician

33. Diane Von Furstenberg Owner, Fashion Designer, Diane von Furstenberg Studio, L.P.

34. Helen Clark Administrator, U.N. Development Programme

35. Georgina Rinehart Executive Chairman, Hancock Prospecting

36. Amy Pascal Co-Chairman, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Sony

37. Margaret Chan Director-General, World Health Organization

38. Jennifer Lopez Actress, Musician, Personality, Philanthropist

39. Sheri McCoy CEO, Avon Products

40. Shakira Musician, Personality, Philanthropist

41. Mary Barra SVP, Global Product Development, General Motors

42. Zhang Xin & family Cofounder, CEO, Soho China Ltd.

43. Alice Walton Chairman, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art

44. Laura Lang CEO, Time Inc., Time Warner

45. Angela Ahrendts CEO, Burberry Group

46. Sue Naegle President, HBO Entertainment, Time Warner Cable

47. Ellen DeGeneres Comedian, Personality, Philanthropist

48. Safra Catz President, CFO, Oracle

49. Laurene Powell Jobs & family Founder and Chair, Emerson Collective

50. Rosalind Brewer President and CEO, Sam's Club, Wal-Mart Stores

51. Anna Wintour Editor-in-Chief, Vogue, Conde Nast Publications, Inc.

52. Helene Gayle President, CEO, CARE

53. Christiane Amanpour Chief International Correspondent, CNN, Time Warner

54. Rosalia Mera Investor, Philanthropist

55. Cynthia Carroll CEO, Anglo American

56. Cher Wang Co-founder and Chair, HTC

57. Abigail Johnson President, Fidelity Personal, Workplace and Institutional Services, Fidelity Investments

58. Padmasree Warrior Chief Technology and Strategy Officer, Cisco Systems

59. Chanda Kochhar Managing Director and CEO, ICICI Bank

60. Gail Kelly CEO, Westpac Banking Group

61. Margaret Hamburg Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration, United States

62. Ellen Kullman Chairman and CEO, EI du Pont de Nemours

63. Drew Gilpin Faust President, Harvard University

64. Shari Arison Investor, Philanthropist

65. Mary Schapiro Chair, Securities and Exchange Commission, United States

66. Angelina Jolie Actress, Philanthropist

67. Miuccia Prada Owner, Fashion Designer, Prada

68. Carol Meyrowitz CEO, TJX Cos

69. Ertharin Cousin Executive Director, World Food Programme, United Nations

70. Sue Gardner Executive Director, WikiMedia Foundation

71. Joyce Banda President, Malawi

72. Sri Mulyani Indrawati Managing Director, World Bank

73. Bonnie Hammer Chairman, Cable Entertainment and Cable Studios, NBCUniversal, Comcast

74. Chua Sock Koong Group CEO, SingTel

75. Sofia Vergara Actress, Entrepreneur

76. Ho Ching CEO, Temasek

77. Tina Brown Editor-in-Chief, The Daily Beast and Newsweek, IAC/InterActiveCorp.

78. J.K. Rowling Author

79. Chan Laiwa & family Philanthropist

80. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw Founder, Chair, Biocon Ltd.

81. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala Minister of Finance, Nigeria

82. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf President, Liberia

83. Gisele Bundchen Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Supermodel

84. Mary Meeker General Partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

85. Shaikha Al-Bahar CEO-Kuwait, National Bank of Kuwait

86. Marjorie Scardino CEO, Pearson

87. Solina Chau Director, Li Ka Shing Foundation

88. Jan Fields President, McDonald's USA, McDonald's

89. Weili Dai Co-founder, Marvell Technology Group

90. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey President, CEO, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

91. Sun Yafang Chair, Huawei Technologies

92. Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi Minister of Foreign Trade, United Arab Emirates

93. Guler Sabanci Chairman and Managing Director, Sabanci Holding

94. Greta Van Susteren Anchor, FOX News, News Corp

95. Mary Callahan Erdoes CEO, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, JPMorgan Chase

96. Mary Callahan Erdoes CEO, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, JPMorgan Chase

97. Mindy Grossman CEO, HSN

98. Patricia Woertz Chairman, CEO and President, Archer Daniels Midland

99. Beth Brooke Global Vice Chair - Public Policy, Ernst & Young

100.Sheikha Mayassa Al Thani Chair, Qatar Museums Authority, Qatar



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