EXTRA: I’ve had only one wristwatch for 17 years, says Peter Obi

Peter Obi, former governor of Anambra state, says he has only one wristwatch, and he has worn it for 17 years, and two pairs of black shoes, which he travels with most times.

Speaking at The Platform, the flagship  programme of Covenant Christian Centre in Lagos, Obi said when the Economic and Financial  Crimes Commission (EFCC) searched his house at Osborne, Ikoyi, Lagos, they found nothing.

He said the anti-corruption agency said he does not leave there because they could not find wristwatches, jewelry and other exotic materials.

Speaking on the Ikoyi cash, Obi said: “Let me tell you what is worrisome; well we don’t know, they are still dealing with who owns the money or who doesn’t own the money, but that will one day be clarified”.

“Let me tell you where I am even worried. Why would anybody put it in such a circmstance, what if it caught fire? If that money was put in our banking system, whoever kept it would have earned eight percent per annum, so he would have earned about $7 million by now.

“$7 million is about N2.8 billion today. That is the amount I spent for all secondary schools in Anambra in a year. If he decided to be generous and give it to graduates, they would have shared it to 2,800 graduates, out of which 2,000 would have been successful.

“I live there, but having been governor of Anambra for eight years, I cannot live outside Anambra. The only place I have a house officially built is Onitsha, if you see any house in Lagos, Abuja or anywhere  else belonging to Peter Obi, confiscate it. I lease that place for my wife and children.”

On the search of his Ikoyi home, Obi said nothing was found except his wife’s cloth and shoes, adding that he has only one wristwatch, which he has used for 17 years.

“Ask those who searched it. I was abroad, they said they wanted to search my house, I sent the key, and they searched my whole apartment and I can tell you the only thing they found.

“They said this man doesn’t live here. It was only his wife’s clothes and shoes that we saw, we didn’t see anything belonging to him.

“I have said it to Nigerians, Peter Obi wears only black shoes, and I have two pairs of it, and I travel with it. The purpose of shoe is to protect the leg from being hurt. Nothing else. I bought this from Marks and Spencer, $49.99, finish.

“They said ‘we didn’t even see watch’, and I have said it to everyone, this is the only watch I have, I have worn it for 17 years. The purpose of watch is to keep time. Why would I keep a watch at home? Whose time is it keeping?”

Source>>>https://www.thecable.ng/extra-one-wristwatch-17-years-says-peter-obi

Northern Governors Meet in China, Seek Emir Sanusi’s Deposition

By Mustapha Usman

At least six Northern governors including governor of Kano State, Abudullahi Ganduje, have met in Guangzhou, China, where they resolved to take “severe action” against Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II.

Governors from nine states are currently attending Nigeria Governors’ Investment Forum in China.

The embattled emir had fired a salvo at Messrs Ganduje and Yari during the just concluded Kaduna Investment Forum (KADINVEST 2.0) in Kaduna.

In his keynote speech at the forum, Mr Sanusi faulted Mr Ganduje’s planned light rail project in Kano, saying it was misplacement of priority. The emir also blasted Mr Yari for blaming fornication for the recent outbreak of meningitis in the country.

Led by the chairman of Nigeria Governors’ Forum and governor Zamfara State governor, Abdulaziz Yari, the governors reached the resolution after a marathon meeting at Ritz Carlton Hotel on Sunday.

Sources said while majority of the governors present at the meeting supported Mr Sanusi’s deposition outright, two of the governors proposed probing of the emirate accounts and sanctions before the eventual removal.

According to the source, the governors noted that if the state allowed the emir to go “scot-free” without taking punitive measures against him, he would still continue talk against the governors.

“The governors deliberated on the issue at length, including the possible successor to the throne who will be acceptable to people. The wanted Ganduje to take severe action against the emir,” he said.

Present at the Guangzhou meeting were Governors Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara, Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State, Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State, Abubakar Bello of Niger State, Tanko Almakura of Nasarawa State and Kashim Shettima of Borno State. 

Buhari Will Soon Come for Obasanjo – J. T. Useni

ON FEBRUARY 20, 2016.
Lt-General Jeremiah Useni is among other things a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, former military governor of the old Bendel State and is presently, senator representing Plateau South in the National Assembly. In this interview with MARIE-THERESE NANLONG, he gives his views on sundry national and state issues.
Going by what has been happening in Nigeria since the return of democracy in the country; do you think the military was right in interfering in governance in the past?
The military was very justified because looking at what was happening at that time, there were lots of crises all over the place, the situation in East, West and so on. Don’t forget that the first state of emergency ever declared in Nigeria was during democratic rule. I’m sure you know that there were lots of indiscipline in the democratic rule and civilians were going round saying to the military, do you want us to die before you do something? So the military did not just wake up and said give us power, Buhari and Obasanjo it was the civilian who instigated the military to come into governance and to see what was happening. It is just the way the coup took place was one sided, it was mostly Igbos, what did they do, they killed the leaders in the West, killed Sardauna in the North. If not, if it was a general thing and in agreement with the military, that type of selected killings wouldn't have taken place.
Do you think President Buhari is upholding the rule of law in the way he is handling national issues including the trial of Nnamdi Kanu?
He is following the rule of law and I don’t know where he has gone wrong, unless you will tell me where he is going wrong. We just fought a war on Biafra and we now have peace, so for some people to come again and start reviving Biafra they are not asking for peace and you want a responsible government to just keep quiet? Biafra issue had been locked up, it should remain locked up. May be that time the person in question was very young , he didn’t know how people suffered; we fought for three years so you can imagine the number of people dead and you want to revive that? How do you foresee governance in the north ahead of 2019?
Well, the problem of the North now is this Boko Haram which affects about three states, Borno, Yobe and Adamawa but the government is really taking care of that. What the North needs now is to really organise itself and think of one thing, getting a credible leader like we had in Sardauna. Sardauna was a real leader in the North but when Sardauna died, young politicians brought many things into politics like tribalism, the Boko Haram hide under religion that they don’t believe and everything changed but now that we are taking care of the Boko Haram and people are returning to their villages and also with this rehabilitation scheme headed by General Danjuma, maybe by the end of this year, things will be much better and people must have learnt their lessons. I know we have problems not only in the North but in other places like in the Niger Delta area and what the Biafra people are trying to create in the East, but the whole country needs to readjust itself and move ahead but I’m sure we will still remain relevant.
Recently, former President Obasanjo indicted the National Assembly, accusing it of corruption, as a senator what is your take on that?
He has been replied and I agree with the response. He brought corruption to the National Assembly with the way he was giving out money to senators especially when he wanted to go for third term. He spent a lot of money he can’t account for. What Buhari is doing now, is like what Awolowo said when he was Minister of Finance under General Gowon and the government then put up a probe and wanted to go backward to past government. But Awolowo said no; new logs go on top of old ones, to get to the old ones; you must remove the new ones first. That is what Buhari is doing now, trying to clear the new logs so that he can get access to the old ones; when he clears the new ones and gets access to the old ones, the case of Obasanjo will come up. So he has no excuse at all to say such a thing because if there is any corruption at all in the National Assembly, he was the cause. The PDP in Plateau State since after the last elections seems to be falling apart.
Do you regret joining the party at this time, if not, what are you doing to revive the party ahead of the 2019 elections?
No, no, no; I don’t. I’m not regretting anything at all. You know I don’t like running from party to party but I am only sorry for our boys who were deceived by those who were saying PDP is going to rule for another 60 years and when they were given some money to campaign they just put the money in their pocket thinking that people will just go and vote for them. It is not like that, some of these people need to transport themselves to where you want them, and you have to feed them so a lot of things went wrong.   I can’t say I regret joining PDP but I’m just sorry for some of our people who indulged in such things and put us in this situation but we are trying to sort them out.
What is your personal effort at reviving the party in the state?
The first thing I tried to do was to get my Senatorial district intact and I have done that. I had meetings about seven times but none of the other Senators have had even a single meeting in their senatorial zones. I have done that and have been going round and I am concentrating on my senatorial zone but I have spoken with my colleagues that whether we like it or not we must take responsibility for our senatorial zones then three of us will see how we can move the whole zones forward. Whether Plateau South, Central or North, there are Senators like me and when we meet, if it comes to doing something for the entire State, we are saying that we made mistakes by losing the governorship, we must learn from our mistakes and work hard now to gain the governorship in 2019. So we are working on that and I’m already spearheading that as far as my senatorial zone is concerned. We have gotten the message and we are working hard towards it.
Do you envisage a mass defection from the PDP to APC?
If there was any, you would have known but no more movement anywhere, it is APC that will come back to us.
How do you see the Lalong’s administration in the last eight months?
I am not against Lalong as an individual, he is a friend but all I have been saying to him is look, you won on the platform of the APC that is what the constitution says that you must win an election on a platform of a party. Having won, you are not a governor of APC and we call Buhari President of Nigeria, we don’t call him President of APC. He must take everybody along whether in your party or not but if you think someone is good somewhere who can handle any assignment for you, call the person, that is what the civilized world is doing. So if you do that, you will gain more for your party but if you think that the winner takes it all which of course will not go down well with the majority then go ahead. He should be grateful to the PDP because if not for the imposition of a candidate by Jang, he wouldn't be there. The people voted for him out of annoyance, they are not talking about APC, it was out of annoyance and the same people are still in the PDP anyway. As an individual I have nothing against him but that is my warning. Let him govern properly so that he has a good name, but if he fails, he knows why he failed. PDP failed in the State because we made a wrong choice of candidate and somebody insisted on imposition of a candidate but we are not out.
Okay sir, what is your advice for the people of Plateau at this time?
Well, they should remain calm and peaceful. I am happy that all these killings, killings have been on the reduction though there are still concerns in some parts of Plateau North especially Riyom and Barkin Ladi. It is still not very peaceful yet around Northern Plateau but I am saying that there is no excuse for people to continue to fight and kill. In my area for instance, in the South, places like Wase where Hausa/Fulani and the Tarok people were having issues and in parts of Shendam and Langtang South, things are improving because if you go there, you see the people moving together and it is very peaceful. We have high hopes that the peace will be sustained, people should just live in peace with one another.

Source: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/02/buhari-will-soon-come-for-obasanjo-useni/

Olubadan-in-Council Declares Eze Ndigbo Title Illegal

ON FEBRUARY 19, 2016. By Ola Ajayi.
Ibadan—The Olubadan-in-Council has in a letter, warned Dr Alex C. Alozie to stop parading himself as holder of the title of   Eze Ndigbo of Igbos in Ibadan and Oyo State. Meantime, Alozie yesterday  protested against the letter The letter addressed to the President General, Ohaneze Ndigbo, marked LL8co/02/16 and signed by one Oladepo Abiodun Esq states that “Our instruction is to make it clear to you that your action and that of your group you purport to represent in Ibadan and Oyo State in general amounts to an act of insubordination, illegality and a calculated attempts to cause chaos and breed a state of anarchy in the state.” But, responding Dr. Anozie said, “We had informed the whole world in the past of a high court judgment over the Igbo leadership tussle in Ibadan and Oyo State which favoured Dr. Alex Anozie and our association, ACDA, affiliate of Ohaneze worldwide. Making reference to the letter from the council, he said the documents referred to were documents that featured between 1997 and 2010 when most people were confused by the deceit of his opponents. While addressing newsmen at his ‘palace’ in Ibadan yesterday, he said “ the State High Court in Ibadan had ruled on the 18th of February 2014 which no other court has vacated, that only me, Dr Alex Alozie should be paraded as Eze Ndigbo of Ibadan and Oyo State.” He further stated that “ it is quite unfortunate that most people were confused through disgruntled individuals who go about deceiving people and parading themselves against the judgment of the High court in spite of the fact that the judgment of the High Court has neither been vacated, nor have they got any stay of execution against the case.” He further clarified that the title of Ezendigbo, Onyedu Ndigbo, Onyeisindigbo or Ochiigbo all mean the same thing in Igbo expression and that not withstanding anybody or group is at liberty to refer to him as any of those mentioned Igbo titles.
Ibadan—The Olubadan-in-Council has in a letter, warned Dr Alex C. Alozie to stop parading himself as holder of the title of   Eze Ndigbo of Igbos in Ibadan and Oyo State. Meantime, Alozie yesterday  protested against the letter The letter addressed to the President General, Ohaneze Ndigbo, marked LL8co/02/16 and signed by one Oladepo Abiodun Esq states that “Our instruction is to make it clear to you that your action and that of your group you purport to represent in Ibadan and Oyo State in general amounts to an act of insubordination, illegality and a calculated attempts to cause chaos and breed a state of anarchy in the state.” But, responding Dr. Anozie said, “We had informed the whole world in the past of a high court judgment over the Igbo leadership tussle in Ibadan and Oyo State which favoured Dr. Alex Anozie and our association, ACDA, affiliate of Ohaneze worldwide. Making reference to the letter from the council, he said the documents referred to were documents that featured between 1997 and 2010 when most people were confused by the deceit of his opponents. While addressing newsmen at his ‘palace’ in Ibadan yesterday, he said “ the State High Court in Ibadan had ruled on the 18th of February 2014 which no other court has vacated, that only me, Dr Alex Alozie should be paraded as Eze Ndigbo of Ibadan and Oyo State.” He further stated that “ it is quite unfortunate that most people were confused through disgruntled individuals who go about deceiving people and parading themselves against the judgment of the High court in spite of the fact that the judgment of the High Court has neither been vacated, nor have they got any stay of execution against the case.” He further clarified that the title of Ezendigbo, Onyedu Ndigbo, Onyeisindigbo or Ochiigbo all mean the same thing in Igbo expression and that not withstanding anybody or group is at liberty to refer to him as any of those mentioned Igbo titles
Ibadan—The Olubadan-in-Council has in a letter, warned Dr Alex C. Alozie to stop parading himself as holder of the title of   Eze Ndigbo of Igbos in Ibadan and Oyo State. Meantime, Alozie yesterday  protested against the letter The letter addressed to the President General, Ohaneze Ndigbo, marked LL8co/02/16 and signed by one Oladepo Abiodun Esq states that “Our instruction is to make it clear to you that your action and that of your group you purport to represent in Ibadan and Oyo State in general amounts to an act of insubordination, illegality and a calculated attempts to cause chaos and breed a state of anarchy in the state.” But, responding Dr. Anozie said, “We had informed the whole world in the past of a high court judgment over the Igbo leadership tussle in Ibadan and Oyo State which favoured Dr. Alex Anozie and our association, ACDA, affiliate of Ohaneze worldwide. Making reference to the letter from the council, he said the documents referred to were documents that featured between 1997 and 2010 when most people were confused by the deceit of his opponents. While addressing newsmen at his ‘palace’ in Ibadan yesterday, he said “ the State High Court in Ibadan had ruled on the 18th of February 2014 which no other court has vacated, that only me, Dr Alex Alozie should be paraded as Eze Ndigbo of Ibadan and Oyo State.” He further stated that “ it is quite unfortunate that most people were confused through disgruntled individuals who go about deceiving people and parading themselves against the judgment of the High court in spite of the fact that the judgment of the High Court has neither been vacated, nor have they got any stay of execution against the case.” He further clarified that the title of Ezendigbo, Onyedu Ndigbo, Onyeisindigbo or Ochiigbo all mean the same thing in Igbo expression and that not withstanding anybody or group is at liberty to refer to him as any of those mentioned Igbo titles.

Flavour Shows Off The ‘Lionel Messi’ Inside Of Him On A Soccer Pitch (Photos)

Posted by Adebayo Kayode


Singer Flavour, is one football lover but little did we know he also played the game as well.

In a series of new photos we came across, the singer was spotted on a pitch enjoying some football and it appeared that he even scored a goal and showed us his celebration facial expression

Flavour sure looks good for a player, maybe he’d have been a successful footballer if he wasn't a musician.

Pope says Trump 'not Christian' in views, plans over immigration

BY PHILIP PULLELLA Thu Feb 18, 2016 1:26pm EST

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is "not Christian" because of his views on immigration, Pope Francis said on his way back to Rome from Mexico.

The pope said, however, he did not want to advise American Catholics on whether or not to vote for Trump.

    In a freewheeling conversation with reporters on his flight back from a visit to Mexico, Francis was asked about Trump and some of his statements, such as vowing to build a wall between the United States and Mexico if he becomes president.

    "A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian," Francis said in answer to a specific question about Trump's views. "This is not in the gospel."

Asked if American Catholics should vote for someone with Trump's views, Francis said:

    "I am not going to get involved in that. I say only that this man is not Christian if he has said things like that. We must see if he said things in that way and in this I give the benefit of the doubt," he said.

On his last day in Mexico, Francis said a Mass on the U.S. border, where he railed against immigration policies that force many underground and into the hands of drug gangs and human smugglers.

Trump has also said he would deport millions of illegal migrants if he wins the November U.S. election. Last week he told Fox Business television that Pope Francis did not understand the Mexican border issues.

    "The pope is a very political person. I think he doesn't understand the problems our country has. I don't think he understands the danger of the open border that we have with Mexico," he said.

    Asked about being called a "political person", Francis said: "Thank God he said I was a politician because Aristotle defined the human person as 'animal politicos'. So at least I am a human person."

    Trump has taken a more than 20-point lead over U.S. Senator Ted Cruz in the Republican race for the presidential nomination, with his campaign seeming to thrive off the endless controversies that he has generated.

Pope Francis gestures during a meeting with the media on board the papal plane while en route to Rome.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-trump-pope-idUSKCN0VR277?utm_source=Facebook

Buhari and Nigeria’s Negative Image

ON FEBRUARY 17, 2016. By Michael Egbejumi-David

 Some thirty years or so ago, Fela had a hit song titled, ‘Beast Of No Nation’ in which he sang, “I never hear that before o, make government talk o, my people are useless, my people are senseless, my people are indisciplined. Which kind talk be that o…?” Fela was referring to Buhari’s military government.

30 years on, nothing’s changed: President Muhammadu Buhari is still socking it to his people, still disparaging his people, still bad-mouthing them in the committee of nations. In a recent interview with a British newspaper, Buhari declared that Nigerians abroad have made it difficult for Europeans and Americans to accept them because of the number of Nigerians in prisons all over the world accused of drug trafficking or human trafficking.  He finished off by saying, “We will encourage our countrymen to stay at home, work hard and make a respectable living at home.” There goes our number one ambassador perpetrating negative stereotypes again.

Really Nigeria doesn't need Buhari’s type of unhelpful intervention right now. It will further worsen its citizens’ marginalization abroad and increase prejudice against all Nigerians. Secondly, a president who habitually goes Overseas for medical treatment has no standing at all to tell other Nigerians to stay home. The same factors, same conditions at home that propels the president into the arms of doctors in a foreign land are the same that drives many Nigerians abroad. Everyone’s life and future is dear to them and they’ll do everything possible to make sure they get the best they can get – not just presidents.

No, Buhari did not say that all Nigerians abroad are criminals but he abdicated his responsibility when he threw some of his own citizens under the bus in a foreign land to a foreign media. That can never be cool. It is already hard for some Nigerians in the UK in light of the recent recession and the influx of Eastern Europeans into that country. For our own president to put his boot in is very disheartening. Buhari has handed the UK government and other racists another (official) weapon with which to further marginalize Nigerians. Is there more crime in Nigeria than in the USA? No. Are there more criminals in Nigeria than in the UK? No. Who are the number one foreign prisoners in the UK? The Polish. Nigeria is not even in the top five 5.

Without Nigerian Doctors and Nurses, the UK NHS will struggle very badly – maybe even collapse for a short while. If all Nigerians in the IT and Social Work sectors in the UK pull out, those sectors will struggle. What about Nigerian Pastors? Ditto for the USA; if Nigerian educators down tools, that sector of America will struggle. Perhaps these were what the president could have flagged up in his interview. If he later meets with Nigerians in a private Nigerian forum, he could tell them off. He could remind the few yahoo boys to lay off, return home and stop giving the country a bad name. Rather it was the President who gave the country a black eye. I spent 33 years living abroad; Brazil, USA and the UK in that order. I tell you, sometimes it wasn't easy image-wise. The first stigma we faced in those days was that we were a brilliant people under un-dignifying military yoke. Then the Yahoo and credit card boys came in the 1990s and made life really uncomfortable for every Nigerian. A few drug dealers came later. I never heard of human trafficking. Back then, even our Embassy and Consular staffs (from Rio de Janeiro to London) treated their fellow Nigerians like unwanted people. You’d be lucky if you could get anyone in those places to talk to you. You’d be luckier if you got your passport sorted in two months. At its height, one chap who went by the imaginative name of Alhaji Alhaji who happened to be our High Commissioner (Ambassador) in London, in a fit of undiplomatic hysteria, declared that most Nigerians in the UK were criminals and wondered aloud why the British government issued them visas. Only God and a few privileged angels knew what provoked the man.

However, things began to improve in the 2000s thanks in part to the efforts of former president Olusegun Obasanjo, and largely due to the excellence and achievements of second generation Nigerian Diaspora. It is Buhari’s primary task to make our image problem abroad better. However, in his second coming, it seems to me that Buhari is only interested in bending over backwards to please and pander to our erstwhile colonial masters when there is absolutely no need for it. It took the government of Murtala/Obasanjo in the mid 1970s to take on the British head-on and get us some much deserved respect. We seem to be going backwards in that regard again. We seem to be taking instructions from Downing Street, in particular, and the European Union in general before we make any moves in Nigeria.

The Wikileaks revelations of a few years ago where our very senior government officials were falling over themselves and couldn't wait to blab to low level Western diplomats was a painful read. I do not see how Buhari’s latest remark would encourage any potential investor to come to Nigeria. The president ought to know that his main job is to defend Nigeria and Nigerians everywhere; not to put us down in foreign media in the hope to please foreign leaders. That is old and it is unproductive.

*Dr. Egbejumi-David , a medical practitioner, wrote from London.