Olumide Fafore's Blog: August 2014

Sunday, 31 August 2014

Chibok girls: Powerful Nigerians don’t want girls rescued — Negotiator

Some powerful Nigerians are sabotaging the efforts of the Federal Government and other concerned citizens to ensure that the over 200 girls kidnapped by Boko Haram are set free.

This was disclosed by the President, Civil Rights Congress, Mr. Shehu Sani, in an exclusive interview with SUNDAY PUNCHlast week.

Sani, who has been involved in efforts to get government and Boko Haram to discuss the fate of the girls in the past, said some powerful individuals, whom he refused to name, ensured that the talks derailed.

A file photo taken on November 8, 2012 shows fighters of the former Mozambican rebel movement "Renamo" receiving military training in Gorongosa's mountains, Mozambique. Mozambique ex-rebel group Renamo has declared on October 21, 2013 the end of a peace deal signed 21 years ago after the army seized its military base.

Mozambique's three presidential hopefuls kicked off campaigning ahead of October polls on Sunday, following a ceasefire deal between the government and revived rebel group Renamo, whose leader remains in hiding.

The official campaign season started 45 days ahead of the polls that will almost certainly install the ruling Frelimo's candidate, former defence minister Felipe Nyusi, as president, since two years of violent clashes with Renamo -- the official opposition -- seem to come to an end.

Only three candidates gathered the necessary 10,000 nomination signatures to run for president.

She has expensive tastes, owns a lot of land in Zimbabwe and is now entering politics, a move that is roiling this southern African nation that has known only one leader since independence: President Robert Mugabe, who is 90 years old.

The newcomer is Mugabe's 49-year-old wife Grace, who accepted a nomination last month to lead the ruling party's women's wing, triggering accusations that Mugabe aims to set a political dynasty in place. Her nomination has already caused infighting in the ZANU-PF ruling party, with some claiming they've been intimidated.

The ZANU-PF Women's League said they hope Mrs. Mugabe can advance women's issues and help heal factionalism because she has "the president's ear."

But, like her husband, Mrs. Mugabe has a knack for giving speeches with fiery and hostile language.

MILITARY IN CHARGE: A soldier stands guard in front of an armoured personnel carrier outside the army barracks in Lesotho's capital, Maseru yesterday. The mountain kingdom's Prime Minister, Tom Thabane, accused the army of staging a coup against him and has fled to South Africa.

A group of South African soldiers helped Lesotho Prime Minister Tom Thabane to flee his home in Maseru just before the arrival of military mutineers who were determined to force him out of office.

Thabane was taken across the border to Ladybrand in the Free State, where he is under the protection of the South African government.

Yoruba actress and ex-wife of actor Saidi Balogun, Fathia Balogun Williams is now a proud owner of a beauty and wine shop named 'House of Faiteer' located in Abeokuta, Ogun State and it stocks variety of human hair, hair extensions, wine, spirit and others.

Her colleagues, friends and loved ones, were there Friday, August 29, 2014 to celebrate with the ace actress on the opening of her new business.

More pics after cut....

Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa yesterday appointed former President Olusegun Obasanjo

as the pioneer Chancellor of the newly established Jigawa State University.

The State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Prof. Haruna Wakili,

stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Dutse. The commissioner

also explains that the appointment letter has been sent through a delegate to the former

President at his country home in Abeokuta.

President Barack Obama departs Westchester Countyl Airport in New York accompanied by his wife Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha Sunrday, Aug. 31, 2014, after attendending a wedding at Pocantico Hills

Setting aside for a few hours the pressures of trying to calm the world's trouble spots, President Barack Obama assumed the role of spectator for something more joyous: the wedding of the first family's longtime chef and friend.Chef Sam Kass and MSNBC host Alex Wagner tied the knot Saturday at Blue Hill at Stone Barns, a farm-to-table restaurant in Pocantico Hills, just north of New York City. More pics after cut...

The Australian hostage negotiator Dennis Stephen involved in negotiating for the release of the Chibok girls has been revealing a lot about those behind the funding of Boko Haram. He has mentioned a former Borno state Gov, Alimodu Sheriff and an unnamed retired army chief , he's now claiming that the terrorist group is funded through the CBN. In an interview with TheCable, Stephen claimed a senior official of the CBN handles the financial transactions of the sect group. Read his statement below...

"One of the biggest of suppliers of arms and military uniforms to the JAS (Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad, better known as Boko Haram) currently lives in Cairo, Egypt. He is the recipient of money sent by political sponsors from Nigeria. The funds go through the CBN’s financial system and appear to be a legal transaction.

Joan Rivers, the actress and comedian, has been placed on life support days after suffering from a cardiac arrest during throat surgery, according to reports.

Rivers was rushed to hospital in New York on Thursday after she stopped breathing while undergoing an endoscopy at a Manhattan clinic.

According to TMZ, she is now reliant on life support machines and the family will be given the decision by doctors of whether or not to turn the machines off.

Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade Are Married

Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union

From Being Mary Jane to being married!

Actress Gabrielle Union, 41, star of the hit BET drama about a woman unlucky in love, found her own happy ending Saturday, marrying long-time boyfriend Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade, 32.

The pair wed in Miami in front of an intimate crowd of family and friends. Wade's two children from a previous marriage and a nephew he's raising helped Wade propose back in December.

The dreaded Ebola virus came to the children’s hospital in the form of a 4-year-old boy.

His diagnosis became clear three days after he was admitted. The Ola During hospital — the nation’s only pediatric center — was forced to close its steel gates. Fear swelled. The boy died. The 30 doctors and nurses who had contact with him were placed in quarantine, forced to nervously wait out the 21 days it can take for the virus to emerge. And remaining staff so far have refused to return to work. They, along with millions of others, are facing the worst Ebola outbreak in history. Already, the hardest-hit West African nations of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone have reported more than 3,000 cases, including the infections of 240 health-care workers. More pics after cut...

Exclusive Pictures From Nollywood Actress Rukky Sanda's Birthday Party.

More pics after cut....

It follows a controversial Nigerian Football Federation 'election' last week,which split the governing body .

Fifa said they do not recognise the executives' election from Tuesday, although football's world governing body said that "it appears the ministry of sports has recognised them."

"We will not recognise the outcome of the above mentioned elections and should there still be persons claiming to have been elected and occupying the NFF offices at midnight on Monday 1 September 2014, we will bring the case to the appropriate Fifa body for sanctions, which may include the suspension of the NFF," said the Fifa statement on Friday.

A slice of cake from Princess Diana’s wedding to Prince Charles in 1981 has been sold at an auction for $1375.

The 33-year-old cake in its original white and silver presentation box was sold by Nate D.Sanders Auctions of Los Angeles in an online auction on Thursday.

A card on the box says the cake comes “With best wishes from Their Royal Highnesses, the Prince & Princess of Wales," an Associated Press report said.

Found: The Islamic State's Terror Laptop of Doom: Foreign Policy

Abu Ali, a commander of a moderate Syrian rebel group in northern Syria, proudly shows a black laptop partly covered in dust. "We took it this year from an ISIS hideout," he says.

Abu Ali says the fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), which have since rebranded themselves as the Islamic State, all fled before he and his men attacked the building. The attack occurred in January in a village in the Syrian province of Idlib, close to the border with Turkey, as part of a larger anti-ISIS offensive occurring at the time. "We found the laptop and the power cord in a room," he continued, "I took it with me. But I have no clue if it still works or if it contains anything interesting."

Senegal confirms its 1st case of Ebola

A man that was hired by the community sprays chemicals to try and prevent the spread of the Ebola virus is seen in Monrovia, Liberia, Friday, Aug. 29, 2014.

Senegal has recorded its first case of Ebola in an outbreak that is ravaging its West African neighbors, the Ministry of Health said Friday.

The infected person is a young man from Guinea, Health Minister Awa Marie Coll Seck told reporters.

Sello Maake Ka Ncube is said to be one of the highest paid actors in South Africa. The silver screen veteran has previously plied his trade on Generations and can now be seen on e.tv's Scandal! More pics after cut...

Three million refugees have fled the conflict in Syria as of Friday, according to the UNHCR, the United Nations' Refugee Agency.
The New York Times reports that more than one million people have fled the country in the last 12 months alone. That figure only counts those who registered as refugees, the paper said. The total number is believed to be significantly higher.

More pics after cut

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan holds a replica of his electronic identity card - 28 August 2014

Nigeria's president has formally launched a national electronic identity card, which all Nigerians will have to have by 2019 if they want to vote. Goodluck Jonathan received the first biometric card which can also be used to make electronic payments.
MasterCard is providing the prepaid payment element and it hopes millions of Nigerians without bank accounts will now gain access to financial services.Another pic after cut...

SIS is now the wealthiest terrorist organization on the planet, according to Foreign Policy. And the Al Qaeda offshoot has the ambition and perhaps even the organization needed to put its piles of oil and smuggling-related profits to work, as its several-hundred page-long annual report from this past March demonstrates.

For example, ISIS brings in nearly $12 million a month in revenues from extortion and other shady practices in the Iraqi city of Mosul alone in addition to $1 million to $3 million a day selling oil illegally.

Shakira is pregnant again!
The singer is expecting her second child with footballer Gerard Pique, and confirmed the good news in an upcoming issue of Cosmopolitan Mexico.
“Yes, I’m pregnant,” she told the outlet.
Shakira, 37, and Gerard, 27, are already parents to 19-month-old Milan and couldn’t be happier with parenthood.

FILE - This Aug. 12, 2014 file photo shows a healthcare worker walking near a Ebola isolation unit wearing protective gear against the virus at Kenema Government Hospital in Kenema, Sierra Leone.

Federal researchers next week will start testing humans with an experimental vaccine to prevent the deadly Ebola virus.
The National Institutes of Health announced Thursday that it is launching the safety trial on a vaccine developed by the agency's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and GlaxoSmithKline. Beginning Tuesday, it will test 20 healthy adult volunteers to see if the virus is safe and triggers an adequate response in their immune systems. Another pic after cut.....

Young HR Professional Kunle Olaifa To Be Buried Tomorrow, Burial Arrangement Announced By Family

Kunle Olaifa, one of Nigeria future and Human Resources Professional who was a mentor to

several young Nigerians will be buried tomorrow. Kunle Olaifa died from an auto accident last week.

He will be missed by family, friends and associates. He was 34 years. May his gentle soul rest in
perfect peace. Burial arrangements as announced after cut...

The ongoing Ebola menace in this side of Africa has indeed caused panic amongst citizens of affected countries and it’s neighboring, meanwhile education on the killer disease has been destabilized.

Sadly, passionate actress Nadia Buari has been affected by the inability of authorities to provide essential education on the disease, this prompted her to enlighten her social media following on Ebola.

A man prepares to take off his protective suit at Biankouma's hospital during a simulation, on August 14, 2014.

Nigeria has confirmed its first Ebola death outside Lagos – a doctor in the oil hub of Port Harcourt.

His wife has been put under quarantine, while a further 70 people in the city are under surveillance.

Latest figures show more than 1,550 people have died of Ebola, with at least 3,000 confirmed cases - mostly in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the total number of cases could potentially exceed 20,000.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie

The couple tied the knot in France last weekend after nine years together, a spokesperson has confirmed to PEOPLE magazine.

The 50 year-old actor and the 39-year-old actress, who met while shooting 2012 movie 'Mr and Mrs. Smith', got engaged in 2012.

Angelina and Brad have children Maddox, 13, Pax, 10, Zahara, nine, Shiloh, eight, and five-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox together and the 'Maleficent' star revealed in May that the couple were waiting for the "right time" to get married.

Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) will be approaching the High Court to appeal against the 14-day suspension from the National Assembly.

Speaker of Parliament Baleka Mbete this week served the 25 EFF MPs, including leader Julius Malema with letters announcing that they would be placed on suspension for 14 days unless they write letters stating why they should not be suspended.

Mbete has suspended the EFF members following their behaviour in Parliament last week after staging a protest demanding President Jacob Zuma to “Pay Back The Money” spent on upgrading his private Nkandla homestead.

“We will be approaching the High Court to apply for an urgent interdict against the suspension,” Julius Malema said today.

In war, nobody wants to be the last to die. In Gaza, it was the chief of the electric company’s maintenance division and his deputy. In Israel, it was a pair of volunteers working a security detail on their kibbutz.

The four deaths on Tuesday, hours before an open-ended cease-fire began between Israel and Hamas, reflected the often indiscriminate, opaque and lethal nature of a conflict that dragged on for 50 days and more than 2,100 deaths, only to end where it began, with a truce deal that is essentially a retread of the one signed in 2012 after the last Gaza war.

After months of searching and endless auditions, the top 16 contestants for Season 10 of Idols SA have been chosen.

The first group of eight Top 16 finalists who will perform for the public this week in a bid to secure a spot in the Top 10. They are Bongi Silinda, Celine Homan, Chante Geary, Ivan Roux, London Louw, Mirandi Smith, Vincent Bones and Vincent Verhoog.

Thereafter (Sunday, 7 September) it will be the turn of the second group of eight, namely Demi Lee, Kyle Deutchmann, Lize Mynhardt, Musa Mashiane, Olivia Cloud, Rowan de Villiers and Roxy McDean.

Exclusive Pictures From Late Dora Akunyili's Honours And Tribute Ceremony In Akwa, Anambra State

An Honours and Tribute ceremony was held yesterday 27th August 2014 at the women development centre in Akwa, the capital of Anambra State for late Prof Dora Akunyili by the State Government.

The event was attended by the state agaovernor, Willie Obiano, former governor, Peter Obi and former Nigerian Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Yakubu Gowon among several others.

Late Dora Akunyili will be laid to rest later today. More pics after cut...

Nobel prize-winning novelist Doris Lessing, who died in 2013 aged 94.

“Classrooms without textbooks, or an atlas, or even a map pinned to a wall. A school where the teachers beg to be sent books to tell them how to teach, they being only 18 or 19 themselves. I tell ... how everybody begs for books: ‘Please send us books.’”

These were among the late Doris Lessing’s opening remarks when, aged 88, she became the oldest person to accept the Nobel prize for literature.

http://weirdworldnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Swazi-Reed-Dance.jpg

Girls who do not turn up for King Mswati III at the forthcoming annual Umhlanga Reed Dance in Swaziland will be publicly whipped.
They have been told that if they travel to the event in which tens of thousands of bare-breasted girls dance in front of the King, but do not attended the ceremony, they will be beaten on the buttocks when they return to their homesteads in Mbilaneni.
Thami Thikazi, the headman of the Mbilaneni chiefdom, said if parents disagreed with the punishment they would be forced to wield the lash themselves.

Royal Dutch Shell PLC (AMS:RDSA) is one of a handful of foreign oil companies selling their assets in Nigeria, as local companies gain ground amid increasing problems with theft and corruption in the Niger Delta.
“We have signed sales and purchase agreements for some of the oil mining leases, but not all that we are seeking to divest,” Shell said in a statement.
Oil theft is a billion-dollar problem in Nigeria, the largest crude producer in Africa. Criminal gangs steal roughly 250,000 barrels per day, according to Reuters. Generally, thieves tap into pipelines in the Delta and pump the crude into waiting boats and barges. And sometimes they even refine it themselves before illicitly selling it to buyers around the world.

Shirley Sotloff, the mother of captured American journalist Steven Sotloff, pleaded Wednesday with ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi to spare the freelancer’s life and return the U.S. citizen to his family. Steven Sotloff was threatened in a video released last week by the militant group Islamic State that showed the beheading of GlobalPost journalist James Foley. The unidentified militant in the video said Sotloff’s fate depended on U.S. President Barack Obama’s “next decision.”

Video: Celebration Of Tuface, Godswill Akpabio And Others At AFRIMMA Awards 2014

Courageous woman overcome obstacles:Public Protector Thuli Madonsela

Thuli Madonsela.

"Courageous women have broken boundaries," she said at the 35th anniversary of the Businesswomen's Association of SA in Sandton, Johannesburg.
Women such as Charlotte Maxeke had overcome obstacles. "Courage and leadership motivated them."

"She wrote to the president seeking a meeting with him in a bid to ask him not to extend the pass laws to women. When that failed she led the iconic 1956 march," Madonsela said.
Educated mothers raised educated children.

"If you educate a woman, you educate the community. If you invest in a woman, you invest in the community," Madonsela said.

Exclusive Pictures From Late Prof Dora Akunyili's Requiem Mass In Abuja

Requiem Mass at Pro-Cathedral Catholic Church, Garki Abuja held in honor of late Prof Dora Akunyili yesterday was attended by President Jonathan, his wife and several dignitaries.Prof Dora will be laid to her tomorrow in Anambra State. May her gentle soul continue to rest in perfect peace. More pics after cut...

The BBC reports that Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf sacked several of her ministers who traveled abroad in defiled of her plead that they should stay at home and help in the fight against Ebola. Can you blame them for?

Nigerian Uzo Aduba Wins 'Outstanding Guest Actress' At Emmy Award

Uzo Nwanneka Aduba.

Nigerian-born American artiste, Uzo Aduba, has won the 'Outstanding Guest Actress' for the comedy entitled: 'Orange is the New Black' in the Emmy Award for 2014
An Emmy Award, or simply Emmy, is awarded in recognition of excellence in various sectors of the American television industry.

A Palestinian Hamas supporter holds up a little girl wearing green flags as people gather in the streets during celebrations for the cease-fire between Palestinians and Israelis, in the West bank city of Ramallah, Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2014.

Israel and Gaza's ruling Hamas agreed Tuesday to an open-ended cease-fire after seven weeks of fighting — an uneasy deal that halts the deadliest war the sides have fought in years, with more than 2,200 killed, but puts off the most difficult issues.
In the end, both sides settled for an ambiguous interim agreement in exchange for a period of calm. Hamas, though badly battered, remains in control of Gaza with part of its military arsenal intact. Israel and Egypt will continue to control access to blockaded Gaza, despite Hamas' long-running demand that the border closures imposed in 2007 be lifted. More pics after cut....

We at FOB continue to cry for our girls. We are appealing to the Federal Government and international community to do everything possible to bring back our girls alive. More pics after cut....

Ebola isolation centre in Lagos

Nigeria is really close to getting rid of the deadly Ebola virus disease, as only one confirmed case remains in the country. This optimism was expressed by the Minister of Health, Onyebuchi Chukwu, on August 26, 2014.
PremiumTimes report that this message has been conveyed by the minister, who was represented by the spokesman, Dan Nwomeh, in a press statement released yesterday.

Chukwu revealed that only one Ebola patient remained in isolation in Lagos, down from the 13 officially-confirmed cases in the country.

Chibok Girls: 57 Chibok Girls Gain Admitted Into Schools In The United States

57 Chibok schoolgirls who managed to escape from the captivity of the dreaded Boko Haram sect have reportedly gained admission into a school in the United States of America (USA).
The Centre for Promotion of Ethics, Values and National Integration (CENPEVNI) said it was able to secure the admission through its collaboration with other groups.
This was disclosed in Abuja by the executive director of the group, and project coordinator, Rehabilitation and Reintegration Outreach Mission (RROM), Dr Mercy Sokomba, at a one day Stakeholders Interactive Session on Effective Victim Support Strategies, Leadership reports.

Exclusive Pictures From The66th Primetime 2014 Emmy Awards At The Nokia Theatre In Los-Angeles

More pics and lists of winners after cut....

Defence headquarters in response to reports that about 480 Nigerian soldiers fled to Cameroun, deserting the counter terrorism battle in the north east, said the troops crossed the border in a tactical maneuver.
A statement on the DHQ blog site titled: "Big story: the Nigerian soldiers found in Cameroun," said: "The Nigerian troops that were found in Cameroun was as a result of a sustained battle between the troops and the terrorists around the borders with Cameroun which saw the Nigerian troops charging through the borders in a tactical maneuver."

FGN "Nigeria May Get Rid of Ebola By Sept 6"

The current Ebola outbreak may be over in the country on September 6 when all those receiving treatment and those under quarantine are expected to be released, a senior government official has said.

Professor Abdulsalami Nasidi, the Project Director of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control said in Abuja yesterday that Nigeria had been able to tackle the Ebola virus frontally and "we very close to pushing the disease out of our land at least for now."

The deadly viral disease has claimed more than 1000 lives in West African including five people in Nigeria.

Pictures of Michael Brown flank his casket during his funeral, Monday, Aug. 25, 2014, at Friendly Temple Missionary Baptist Church in St. Louis.

The mourners filled an enormous church to remember Michael Brown — recalling him as a "gentle giant," aspiring rapper and recent high school graduate on his way to a technical college.
But the funeral that unfolded Monday was about much more than the black 18-year-old who lay in the closed casket after being shot to death by a white police officer. The emotional service sought to consecrate Brown's death as another in the long history of the civil rights movement and implored black Americans to change their protest chants into legislation and law.

Photo Of The Day: Asisat Oshoala, Most Valuable Player Of The U20 FIFA Women's World Cup In Canada

Nigerian striker Asisat Oshoala was voted the Most Valuable Player and Best Player at the 2014 FIFA U20 World Cup in Canada. She was awarded the Golden Ball award and Golden Boot having scored seven goals and provided two assists.

Video: Boko Haram Declares A New Caliphate In North Eastern Nigeria

Nigeria edged out in U20 Women's World Cup final

Oshoala leads the way as individuals recognised

Nigeria suffered a 1-0 loss to Germany in the Under-20 Women's World Cup final in Montreal, Canada.

Despite dominating the match for long periods, Nigeria were unable to find a way through their opponents.
They fell to a goal by Lena Petermann, who slotted in from six yards in the eighth minute of extra-time.
Nigeria striker and tournament top scorer Asisat Oshoala missed a number of chances, while German keeper Meike Kamper was named player of the match.Another pic after cut...

Pages

Sunday, 31 August 2014

Mozambique's three presidential hopefuls kicked off campaigning ahead of October polls on Sunday, following a ceasefire deal between the government and revived rebel group Renamo, whose leader remains in hiding.

She has expensive tastes, owns a lot of land in Zimbabwe and is now entering politics, a move that is roiling this southern African nation that has known only one leader since independence: President Robert Mugabe, who is 90 years old.

A group of South African soldiers helped Lesotho Prime Minister Tom Thabane to flee his home in Maseru just before the arrival of military mutineers who were determined to force him out of office.

Saturday, 30 August 2014

Friday, 29 August 2014

Thursday, 28 August 2014

The couple tied the knot in France last weekend after nine years together, a spokesperson has confirmed to PEOPLE magazine.

Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) will be approaching the High Court to appeal against the 14-day suspension from the National Assembly.

After months of searching and endless auditions, the top 16 contestants for Season 10 of Idols SA have been chosen.

Wednesday, 27 August 2014

Tuesday, 26 August 2014

Monday, 25 August 2014