Wahab Oba and his colleagues after thier release today, in Umuahia.
Wahab Oba addressing the press today in Umuhia.
Some of the journalists' bare feet
Contrary to ealier reports that the police rescued the four abducted journalists, kidnapped a week ago at Umuafouka junction, in Obingwa Local Government Council of Abia State, facts emanating from the state revealed that the journalists were released by their abductors in the early hours of today.
According to eyewitnesses, the released journalists were looking disheveld and unkept with some of them wearing bathroom slippers.
They were said to have been fed on bread and water as they were moved from one location to the other, in the forest during their captivity.
The released quartet of Wahab Oba, Lagos council Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists,(NUJ) Adolphus Okonkwo, Zonal secretary of the union, Sylva Okereke, Assistant Secretary, Lagos Council, Shola Oyeyipo, member NUJ and their driver, Azeez Abdulrauf are awaiting the return of Governor Theodore Orji, who was said to be away in Abuja. However, there are indications, that the journalists may have met with the Inspector General of Police, Ogbonna Onovo.
The journalists said that they were not tortured by their abductors who blamed lack of development, unemployment and injustice in the polity for their action.
Seven people were killed on Saturday morning when unknown persons attacked Maza, a village in Jos North Local Government of Plateau State.
The attack on the sleepy and mountainous village, also left 10 others injured, while some houses were burnt.
"We are just coming out of the village; it is a difficult terrain really. There isn't much to say. This incident is just sad,'' Kingsley Umoh, Spokesman for the Military Special Task Force (STF) charged with maintaining peace in Jos, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
Mr. Umoh's figure, however, differs with that of the State Government, who announced that 10 people were killed while another 10 sustained serious injuries.
Some reports said the dead included the family of a Christian priest.
Witnesses said the men attacked the family of Nuhu Dawat in the village of Mazah, 12km (7 miles) from the state capital of Jos, killing his wife, two children and a grandson.
The priest ran for his life, later telling Reuters: "I leave everything to God to judge."
Plateau State Police Commissioner Gregory Anyating told Reuters the authorities were trying to find out "the root causes of the violence", but it had not spread to other villages.
"The attack is nothing unusual; it is just another attempt to destroy the peace Plateau people have been enjoying in the past months,'' Mr. Gregory said.
He said that those injured were being treated at the Plateau Specialist Hospital.
"It is an embarrassing situation. Just when we thought we had found peace, we suddenly have to cope with another ugly situation," he said.
The Commissioner, who appealed to the people to remain calm, and not to take the law into their hands, called for more vigilance from the STF to prevent a recurrence.
Hakeem Kae-Kazim born October 1, 1962 is an actor of Nigerian descent who played Georges Rutaganda on Hotel Rwanda in 2004 directed by Terry George. He also starred as Colonel Ike Dubaku in season 7 of the Fox television series 24 and the TV movie tie-in 24: Redemption.
He has won various of awards all over the world for his remarkable performance classically trained in the UK at the highly regarded Bristol Old Vic.
This time he has taken his success story back home and he partaking in a brand new movie titled “Inale”, which is about “Inale”, the beautiful daughter of the great King Oche, of the Idoma people in Idomaland, Nigeria. Her beloved Odeh must win the wrestling tournament to win her hand in marriage. The village gathers for the ceremony only to find a stranger in their midst, that challenges not only the tradition of the village but the strength of Odeh and Inale’s true love.
Four soldiers and two naval officers have beaten three officers of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA into unconsciousness at Mile 2 area of Lagos State, Nigeria.
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The LASTMA officers-Gbenga Ajayi-Bembe, Akeem Bisiriyu and Abiodun Kayode were battered by the military men while trying to tow a broken down trailer obstructing traffic at Mile 2.
They were immediately rushed to the Gbagada General Hospital for treatment where they were revived after remaining in a state of unconsciousness for sometime.
P.M. NEWS gathered that trouble started when the Head, Zone 5, LASTMA had asked Kayode, the LASTMA towing vehicle driver to go and tow a trailer, which broke down at Mile 2 ‘Oke.’
The owner of the trailer was said to have called in the soldiers and naval officers who came and gave Kayode the beating of his life.
The soldiers successfully removed the trailer that had already been carried by the towing van and drove off while Kayode contacted his boss to come to his rescue, and then chased after the fleeing trailer being driven by the soldiers.
Getting to First Gate, Mile 2, Kayode used his towing vehicle to block the trailer while the soldiers came down and descended on him and beat him mercilessly until he collapsed into a state of unconsciousness, while two other officers came to rescue him.
The other two officers-Ajayi-Bembe and Bisiriyu who came to rescue their colleagues were also thoroughly beaten until they also became unconscious while the soldiers and the naval officers took the trailer away.
Speaking with P.M. NEWS, Kayode narrated the story, saying that “my boss told me to go and tow a trailer which broke down at Mile 2 Oke. I had already jacked the trailer into the towing van when the owner went to call two soldiers and they beat me up and removed the trailer from the van.
“I called my boss to come to my rescue and I pursued the trailer to first gate and blocked it. More soldiers and naval officers came and they beat me until I fainted.
“They beat my two other colleagues into unconsciousness and they smashed the windscreen of the towing van. I was soaked in blood before I passed out. The area boys in the area also started throwing stones at us.”
The three LASTMA officers also sustained severe injuries.
As at the time of filing this report, Bisiriyu was still seriously in bad condition in the hospital as he could not talk.
At the posh Murtala Muhammed Airport 2, in Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria, where the mighty and the influential meet daily, many Nigerians still find it difficult to use the escalators at the airport. Even the elite are victims. Yesterday, a woman in one of her best attire spent a couple of minutes at the threshold of one of the escalators trying to figure out how the technology works. And when she finally attempted to use it, she slipped and fell. She used the staircase instead after recovering from the fall, to get to the departure lounge where she was to board a plane. The four escalators at MMA2 take passengers from the check-in section to the boarding and departure areas of the airport. They also convey air travellers from the departure hall to the check-in lounge of MMA2. Daily, passengers fall while trying to use the escalators. Some prefer to use the staircase. “It’s good to do some exercise,” some passengers told P.M.NEWS when asked why they prefer to use the staircase when the escalator will just take them upstairs with ease. Some passengers resort to holding hands to ease their fright and stabilise themselves. A few days ago, a couple was seen holding hands firmly to avoid a fall. They were relieved when they got to the end of the escalator, their faces beaming with broad smiles. Our correspondent observed that passengers find it difficult to use the escalator, especially at the threshold and exit. This also applies to the three lifts available to passengers at MMA2 where some passengers have been stranded not due to power failure or mechanical fault, but because they did not know what button to press to make it work. About three weeks ago, a passenger with Aero Contractor, who thought a stranger had travelled with her luggage, was scolded by the police at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Two (MMA2) after she screamed right in the MMA2’s terminal building. She was warned not to ever scream at the airport, a public place which attracts mainly the elite. A manager of Bi-Courtney Aviation services, operators and owners of MMA2, who scurried to the checking area of the building after the high-pitched shout of the woman, told the passenger that next time she will be detained and interrogated by the police if such an incident ever occurs at the airport. The woman, it was later learnt, was travelling by air for the first time. She had met a stranger and kept her luggage with her to make some calls. But, when she returned, the stranger, a passenger with the same airline, had joined the long queue at the check-in section of the building. Unable to locate the other passenger, the first-time air traveller started wailing, drawing the attention of everybody. “I didn’t know I cannot scream at the airport,” said the woman who was scolded by the police after she recovered her luggage. “There is need for more enlightenment,” she said.
Tragedy struck at Divine Call Power Bible Ministry, Market road, Giwa, Oke-Aro Agbado when a middle aged woman identified as Kehinde Adewalure slumped and died in the church during a service last Sunday. According to Pastor John Abati who reported the incident at Agbado Crossing Police Station, Ogun State, the woman slumped during church service and was rushed to Oguntuyi Medical Centre, Iju Road, where doctors on duty confirmed her dead. The Divisional Police Officer in charge of Agbado Crossing Police Station, Ogun State, Mr. Thank God Obijiaku, a Superintendent of Police (SP) immediately dispatched detectives led by Corporal Joseph to the scene and thereafter to the hospital. After preliminary investigations, the corpse was removed to a mortuary for autopsy. When P.M.NEWS sought the opinion of the DPO on the matter, he said: “We are still investigating, you may call the Police Public Relations Officer for whatever information you want.”
A 23-year-old lady, Rachael Gbadamosi, is in police custody for allegedly stabbing a man, 30-year-old Christian Egwuchukwu, to death over the victim's alleged attempt to rape her.
The incident happened at No. 20, Kareem Babatunde Street, Papa Asafe, Agege, on July 11. While many Lagosians were watching the FIFA World Cup final match between Spain and Holland, the alleged suspect and the victim were fighting each other in their one-room apartment. In the process, Miss Gbadamosi allegedly stabbed Mr. Egwuchukwu in the neck.
According to the police, Mr. Egwuchukwu lost a lot of blood and was confirmed dead at a private hospital the following day.
Miss Gbadamosi and the late Mr. Egwuchukwu were living with Miss Gbadamosi's cousin in the one-room apartment. She said the victim had attempted to rape her on several occasions, but her stiff resistance made him even angrier. On that fateful day, he was determined to carry out his threat of molesting her, before he died from the stab wound on his neck. She said she acted in self defence.
Self defence
"I live with my cousin at Agege in a room and in May, my cousin brought his friend, Christian, to come and stay with us. My cousin, Abel, works at Victoria Island, and he is hardly around. Since Christian moved in, he had tried to sleep with me, but I always refused him. Last Saturday was the fourth time he attempted to do it, but I told him he will not succeed and he became very angry. There was a day I was sleeping but my brother (cousin) was not around, and Christians tried to rape me."
Miss Gbadamosi said she informed her cousin and her mother about the victim's threats, but he did not change. "When his pressure became too much, I told my mother, who live in Edo State, and also my cousin; my cousin even sent him away, but Christian begged him that he will not try me again. After a while, he stopped and I thought he had truly changed. But that Saturday, he came home and started making trouble. I just ignored him, but he was bent on quarrelling with me.
"He threw my clothes and my brother's clothes, which I kept on the bed, onto the floor, dragged me to the bed, and tore my night gown. He was holding tight to my neck, as if he wanted to strangle me. I tried to resist him, and quickly ran to the door, but there was no light. I thought of what to do to protect myself and that was how I took the table knife on the shelve and stabbed him on the hand. He took the knife, and stabbed me in the hand, but unknowingly I stabbed him on the neck. God knows, I did not intend to kill him," she narrated. The police spokesperson, Frank Mba, said Mr. Egwuchukwu bled to death as a result of the injury on his neck.
"He was rushed to the hospital, but he had already lost a lot of blood, because nobody was around to take him to the hospital. People should be careful how they expose their female children to strangers. If first aid was given to this victim, probably he would not have died. People should not take the laws into their hands, as they can report all cases of assault and harassment to the police, and the necessary action will be taken. The case has been transferred to the Homicide Department at Panti for a discreet investigation," Mr. Mba said.
A similar incident happened in May when a 26-year-old lady, Ifunnaya Marcus, allegedly stabbed her boy friend, Princewill, to death over a minor quarrel.
Miss Marcus, who also used a knife on her boyfriend, said the victim had battered and beaten her on several occasions. A group of female lawyers from Project Alert, a non-profit organisation in Lagos, rose in defence of Miss Marcus, saying that her action was triggered by the man she loved, who unfortunately turned her into a punching bag.
IT has been reported that the rate of child crimes have increased over the years, although the Police has put up a spirited fight to prevent such crimes. According to statistics from the Police, over 3,760 cases involving children have been reported and investigated.
Most of these cases range from child neglect, abuse, torture, abduction, sacrifice, murder, kidnapp and abortion. Although some measures have been instituted to reduce these crimes, one area that has not been exploited is the contribution of Nigerian movies towards crime.
For most of you who have watched these movies, the scenes depicted are mostly those that involve violence, witchcraft, murder, child sacrifice, robbery, theft and breaking families.
The images these movies portray are detrimental to our society and could possibly be one of the little known causes of increased crime in Uganda. Desperate people pick tips from these movies on how to execute crimes.
Over the years, the Nigerian movie sales have increased tremendously. The entry of these movies that go for as low as sh1,000 on the streets, has a negative effect on our families and society.
Parents have entrusted housemaids with their children and they spend most of their time watching Nigerian movies as opposed to doing domestic chores.
Have we ever assessed the impact that the Nigerian movies have on our families? Are we aware of the content in these movies and how this can either contribute to or destroy our families?
I have also read about cases where families and the public have blamed the Police for failure to protect children, yet parents are contributing to the bulk of criminals by breeding them in their homes.
The Police should investigate the contribution of Nigerian movies towards increased crime rates and take appropriate action.
It is time parents banned Nigerian movies from households and screened the material they expose their families to.
Lastly, the electronic media should sieve what movies are fit for public viewing and which movies would fuel violence and evil thoughts. The writer works with a microfinance and is a social critic
KADUNA—NORTHERN leaders, yesterday, gave President Goodluck Jonathan the green light to contest the 2011 elections saying that he became the President under a joint ticket with late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
They said that Yar’Adua’s death should not deprive Jonathan the rights and privileges of the joint ticket.
To see photos of those in attendance click here
Rising from a one-day summit at the Kaduna International Trade Fair Complex, Kaduna, under the auspices of “Northern Political Summit,” the leaders said that what the North needed now, was good governance irrespective of where the person came from.
Giving a summary of the communiqué towards the end of the summit, one of the conveners, Prof. Jerry Gana said the North desired a free, fair and credible election in 2011 and urged the Independent National Electoral Commission under Professor Attahiru Jega to ensure free and fair polls next year.
Gana said: “The summit expressed the strong desire for free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria and called on the Chairman and commissioners of INEC to do everything within their power to ensure preparation for credible elections in Nigeria come 2011.
“The summit also called on governments of the federation to make adequate resources available to the electoral commission to ensure that free, fair and credible elections are conducted in Nigeria.
“There was a strong desire by the summit for every effort to be made to use good governance to bring development to every sector of the economy in the northern part of Nigeria in terms of infrastructure, education, industries, employment and uplifting the lives of our people.
The summit resolved to hold a northern economic summit next year in order to focus attention on the economic and social conditions of communities in the northern part of Nigeria.
Power sharing and rotation
“The summit considered the various positions, viewpoints and options together with the related implication to the peace and stability of the country. It resolved that the zoning produced the presidency of Alhaji Umaru Yar’Adua and President Goodluck Jonathan was an inseparable ticket, therefore, the demise of one did not invalidate the privileges of the remaining beneficiary of that zoning.
“The summit called on the leadership of the PDP to allow superior provision of the Nigerian constitution to guide the party in producing guidelines and regulations in the conduct of primaries to elect presidential candidate.
In the circumstances, the most viable option is what has been expressed. First, to ensure that indeed, the conduct of the primaries are such that the best candidates are given the opportunity to run for the office of the president.”
Yakowa declares open the summit
Speaking while declaring the summit open, the Kaduna State Governor, Mr. Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa urged delegates not to look at only one parameter “with regards to power sharing and power rotation” in the country.
Yakowa said: “Whatever we would do should be in the context of the Nigerian constitution which is supreme over all other arrangements that would be made or might have been made at some point.
“Many countries of the world are fast reviewing their positions with a view to being first class players in the globalization arrangements where justice, unity, and national integration of our country serve as our roadmap to 2011.”
Former Governor of Plateau State and pioneer National Chairman of the PDP, Chief Solomon Lar said: “As one of the founding fathers of the PDP, I remember clearly the basic considerations of the principle of zoning, and the interim nature of its application.
“Zoning was never meant to be a permanent feature of our democracy. Surely, the day is coming when both our nation and our democracy would become so mature as to make zoning most unnecessary.
“Having tasted the power of civil discussion and dialogue in the resolution of problems, I am a great believer in the wisdom of talking things over, hence my solid support for this summit. This is the beauty of democracy- the freedom of expression.”
Prof. Jerry Gana, apparently referring to the insistence by some northerners that it was the turn of the zone to produce the president in 2011, said, that democracy was about “the primacy of the rule of law, the culture of honour, transparency, and accountability of governments to the people” adding that “coercion is not only costly but rapidly erodes effectiveness.”
He said: “The policy of zoning was adopted by the founding fathers of PDP to resolve the huge crises that followed the annulment of the June 12, 1993 election and it was through leadership gatherings of this nature that the questions of power shift and power rotation were peacefully resolved in 1998/1999.”
Ambassador Shehu Malami said there was nothing like good governance in the North as most of the elected leaders were not developing the area physically. He said: “We need to use our finances judiciously. We need not talk about politics most of the time and not talk of the economic and industrial development of the north and the country at large.”
ATTENDANCE LIST
*Gov Patrick Yakowa Sen. Abubakar Sodangi Hon. Usman Nafada Chief Solomon Lar Chief Barnabas Gemade Amb Shehu Malami Amb. Hassan Adamu Lt. Gen. Saliu Ibrahim Lt Gen Ishaya Bamaiyi Gen Lawrence Onoja Prof. Iya Abubakar Prof Jerry Gana Sen. Jonathan Zwingina, Sen. Walid Jubril Sen. Bala Mohammed Mr. Mark Jacob Sen. John Wash-Pam Sen. Ibrahim Mantu Col. Dungs Sen. Isaiah Balat. Abubakar Audu, Amb. Onu Isaac Garba Mohammed Joshua Dariye Abubakar Audi Labaran Maku Sn. Usman Wowo Chief Mike Aondoakaa Mrs. Sarah Jubril Bala Kaoje Alhaji Tukur Jigamchi Alhaji Ali Abacha Sen. George Akume Gen. A.B. Mamman Dr. Muktar Mansur Dr. Idi Hong Humphrey Abba Babanginda Nguroje Salisu Buhari Ambassador Isa Maina Sen. Abba Aji Sani Ndanusa Mr. Damishi Sango Muktar Yero Alhaji Yusuf Ayitogo Alhaji Kaulaha Aliyu Hon. Clarence Olufemi Obadayan Audu
…targets self sufficiency in cement production in 2012.
By Victoria Ojeme & Funmi Olasupo
Minister of Finance Mr Olusegun Aganga has disclosed that the number of unemployed Nigerians has risen to 12 million, since March 2009.
The Minister, who spoke during the inauguration of the Committee on Job Creation in Abuja, cited the statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in 2009.
Also, at the occasion, it was revealed that the Nigeria will soon achieve self sufficiency in cement, as a fall out of over $5billion investment in the sector by major cement manufacturers in the country.
Speaking during the inauguration of the Committee, Aganga regretted the rising level of unemployment, in spite of the appreciable level of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), put at 7.23% by the first quarter of this year.
“It is one of the ironies of our time that at a time the nation’s economy is growing, unemployment is growing equally” he lamented.
Describing the unemployment situation as unsalutary, the Minister noted that Nigeria, “parades some 12 million unemployed people. More alarming is the fact that the nation’s youth who are the hope of tomorrow form the bulk of this large brigade.
He stated further that, Nigerians between the age bracket of 15 to 24 years resident in urban areas account for 49.9% of the unemployed, while women form the highest ratio of unemployed Nigerians wit
Indications have surfaced that Eagles manager at the 2010 World Cup, Lars Lagerback might have walked away from his 200, 000 dollars (about N30.1m) a-month job.
lagerback
The Swede flew back to his country after South Korea knocked out the Eagles on June 22. He went on a two weeks break according to Nigeria Football Federation officials, but the holiday period has passed over by a week, yet there is no world from Lagerback. His six months contract is due to expire this month.
It was gathered that Lagerback who promised Nigeria a semi-final ticket has not communicated to the NFF his next line of action even as the federation awaits the contract extension offer made to him.
Besides, the changes made recently at the NFF when the president, Sani Lulu, his vice Amanze Uchegbulam and Technical committee chairman, Taiwo Ogunjobi were impeached has unsettle Lagerback, it was learnt. The sacked NFF trio threw their weight behind Lagerback despite the poor result in South Africa.
“We haven’t heard from him. All I can say is that Austin Eguaveon is taking charge of the team till a decision is taken,” said a member of the NFF technical committee in Abuja.
Lagerback who was paid his salary up front during his short spell, had suggested in South Africa that Nigeria and indeed other African countries, should try home grown coaches if they are to succeed at the global soccer fiesta.
He recommended that Nwankwo Kanu should consider coaching adding that the Eagles captain will be an excellent coach for the Eagles.
I’m in my mid-30s, and just out of a relationship that I thought would have ended in marriage. Now I’m convinced that I might never marry and start a family. A few of my friends are in the same boat and one or two have opted for having children out of wedlock. I find myself jealous of younger women who are married with children. Will my time ever come?
A film based on the life of late rapper, Dagrin, is in the works. Titled Ghetto Dreams, the film will chronicle the growing years of Dagrin, his struggles, his rise to fame and his death.
Renowned Director, Lancelot Imasuen (pictured above) has been drafted to be the Director of the film which is being produced by Stingomania Entertainment.
Hip Hop star, 9ice, recently confirmed that his new international CD version will sell for N2, 000. Tuface started the trend earlier this year when he announced that his CD will be sold for N1, 000. A few other artists including Ruggedman followed suit. A lot of their fans aren't happy about it tho. Now 9ice wants to surpass everyone...hmmm!
I supported Tuface's N1, 000, but N2, 000? That's a bit of a stretch really. But like 9ice said on twitter "buy or u don't buy..." Hopefully, he has a lot of die-hard fans.
A former leader of a Nigerian Islamic sect behind the 2009 uprising which killed hundreds of people has issued a statement expressing solidarity with al Qaeda and threatening the United States.
Reuters gathered on Wednesday that Abubakar Shekau, a former deputy leader of the Boko Haram sect, who was thought to have been killed by police in last year‘s fighting, offered condolences for the deaths of al Qaeda commanders in Iraq in the statement on a jihadist website.
”Do not think jihad is over. Rather jihad has just begun. O America, die with your fury,” the statement said. The translation of the statement, according to Reuters was published by the U.S.-based SITE Intelligence Group.
SITE said the statement was addressed to al Qaeda affiliated groups in Algeria, Somalia and Yemen, as well as Iraq.
A five-day uprising by Boko Haram in Maiduguri and other cities in the northern part of the country over a year ago killed close to 800 people, as security forces fought days of gun battles to end rioting by sect members.
Boko Haram is one of a number of militant movements in northern Nigeria which wants sharia (Islamic law) to be imposed more widely in Africa‘s most populous nation.
21-year old youth, Funsho Akinmola has been arrested by the police at Alade Police Station for having carnal knowledge of two kids who are children of same parents.
•Funsho Akinmola arrested for molesting two sisters
Nigeria’s performance at the just ended World Cup has been reflected in the ranking of all the teams that participated at the Mundial by FIFA. In a release by the world football governing body, Nigeria came a distant 27th position out of the 32 teams that participated.
Other African teams at the tournament which included Algeria, Cameroon, South Africa, Ghana and Cote d’Ivore were ranked 28, 31, 15,7 and 17 respectively Meanwhile England's performance at South Africa 2010 was officially her worst at a World Cup finals, according to FIFA.
The governing body's post-tournament rankings placed Fabio Capello's side 13th out of the 32 teams following her tame exit in the last 16. Her previous worst placing was 11th in 1958 and this summer's ranking is seven places lower than England's showing at the last two tournaments.
Winner, Spain, was top followed by the Netherlands, Germany and Uruguay. England failed to qualify for the World Cup in 1974, 1978 and 1994. She went out in the last 16 this time after scmolesting through a group that included the United States, Slovenia and Algeria, before losing 4-1 to Germany in the last 16 - her heaviest World Cup defeat. England went out in the group stage of the 1950 and 1958 tournaments, when there were only 16 teams in the tournament, but still managed to rank higher than 13th. The World Cup was expanded from to 24 teams in 1982 and to 32 in 1998.
Fifa's rankings take into account group stage results, progress in the competition and the quality of opposition. The top four rankings mirrored the final positions in the tournament. Of the beaten quarter-finalists, Argentina were fifth, Brazil sixth, Ghana seventh and Paraguay eighth. Japan, Chile, Portugal and the US were all higher than England in the table, while 2006 World Cup winners Italy were 26th and France, who triumphed in 1998, were 29th after their dismal group stage exits.
Fifa president Sepp Blatter suggested England's poor performance could be explained by the number of foreigners in the Premier League but also pointed to the overall strength of teams at what turned out to be an unpredictable World Cup. "England is considered as being the motherland of football, as Brazil is the heartbeat of football, but there are no small national teams any more," he said. "There are small countries but their national teams are very strong as football has developed." Despite England's poor showing at the tournament, the Football Association decided to stick with Capello, whose contract runs until the 2012 European Championship.
Attention now turns to the friendly against Hungary at Wembley on 11 August and the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign, which starts in September with back-to-back fixtures against Bulgaria and Switzerland. Capello will discuss his plans at an FA Board meeting on Thursday. Fifa's latest world rankings will be released on Wednesday, with world champions Spain poised to reclaim top spot from Brazil. Semi-finalists Uruguay are likely to jump up from their current 16th place, while England (eighth), Italy (fifth) and France (ninth) could all drop down following their under-par results in South Africa.
Umuahia – AS the 24 hour ultimatum issued by the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ogbonna Onovo to the hoodlums who kidnapped four journalists last Sunday in Obingwa area of Abia state, expired without the abducted journalists being freed, Governor Theodore Orji has hired Israeli security experts who are assisting the police to track down the kidnappers and rescue their victims.
Wahab Oba , 2nd right with Lagos CP, Marvel Akpoyibo and others, at an event, recently in Lagos.
The Israelis were seen with Onovo when they visited Umuahia and Aba, Tuesday, in preparation for the operation to rescue the kidnapped journalists. Onovo met and consulted with Governor Orji, Aba business community and the over 800 traditional rulers in the state, including those from Obingwa council, seen as haven for crimes, especially kidnapping.
The police said they would embark on house to house, community to community search for criminals and weapons in Ngwa land and other communities in the state.
Meanwhile, the leadership of NUJ has been communicating with the abductors who insisted on N250 million ransom for the release of the journalists.
Onovo who addressed the royal fathers Tuesday evening, after addressing Aba business community, lamented the bad image the menace of kidnapping has brought to Ndigbo. Even his job, he lamented, may as well be threatened because this atrocity is being committed by youths from his geo-political zone.
Though he admitted that some of his men are involved in the evil crime of kidnapping , he assured that they were being taking care of. He wondered why Ndigbo would only be leaders in evil acts that fetch money, saying that it is against the hard working spirit which Ndigbo are known for.
“On our part, we have a problem because some of our men have hands in them (crimes). We have to put our house in order too. We are already taking care of them. A lot of our men are in Abia not to work any more but to trade, make money”, Onovo lamented.
Onovo who spoke in Igbo language, called on the royal fathers to be of assistance on the planned operation to flush out kidnappers in the state, particularly in Ngwa land. He also said he came to Abia specifically because of the “embarrassment” the kidnappers are causing the Federal Government.
Onovo further said that South East leaders, especially himself and the Governors have become objects of mockery by their colleagues from other zones, who always embarrassed them each time they met, asking them mockingly, about kidnapping and at times making caricature of them by calling them kidnappers. Onovo particularly lamented his own experience where he said that he is now regarded as “a doctor that could not cure himself ” because this evil in being committed in his area.
“I came from Abuja because of what is happening in our land. It is embarrassing. I don’t know when Ndigbo joined in leading bad life. Our youths are now committing all manner of evils just to make money. Ndigbo are killing Ndigbo in Igboland. They kidnap anybody at sight-old, young even royal fathers. It is a big problem. Are Ndigbo the only people who are facing hardship? Why are our youths in the forefront of these evils?
“When drug was in vogue, it was Igbos. In 419, it was our people. Robbery, our people also lead. Must we be first only in evil things? Our royal fathers, please you have to find solution to this, even if it means calling on our forefathers to intervene like what happened in Benin where the Oba said enough was enough. Ndigbo are noted for their hard work, not crime. But the quest and love for money have changed this virtue for bad. We recognize their wealth without minding how it came. We need you to give us information about these people.”
I was watching her from behind. Her ass wasn’t quite big, but I really liked them. But it wasn’t her ass that I was staring at. It was her dusty feet. It was the dry season and the road was dusty. And somehow I had come to like her feet more when they were dusty. I like it so much that I kissed her dusty foot one day. A little weird, I know.
“Hope say no be my ass you dey look?” she said not turning. Her voice reminding me again of the girl in ‘Annie’ (the film about an orphan Annie where “Hard Knock Life” was first sang) who always said ‘Oh my God, Oh my God, Oh my God…’ in a tiny little voice.
“Are you sure we shouldn’t take a taxi?” she said again not turning.
“It wouldn’t be an adventure again.” I replied. “We are almost there.”
We continued our journey to a cyber café someone had told us was within trekking distance – turned out the place was quite far. But I was enjoying the trek with her and didn’t want us to take a taxi. We walked… and talked… and laughed. I kept looking at her dusty feet all the way. That day was one of the happiest I spent with her.
Now, I am sitting next to her still looking at her feet. The jungle boots won’t let me see if they are dusty or not. But I keep seeing the dusty feet and not the jungle boots.
“Make una begin enter, bus don full.” The driver said.
I then realized it was her jungle boots I had been staring at and also that we were at the bus terminal. I then looked at her. She was fair and fair and pretty and slim. Fair as in Shakespearean fair and fair as in complexion fair. To me, she was “the fairest of them all”. I looked at her for a while. She was looking at me too. It seemed she would cry any moment.
Even though we hadn’t actually been in love, we were actually in love. Our own kind of love. If we weren’t in love, how could we explain the nights we lay on her bed chatting or the evenings we just sat and talked at the tennis court when our friends thought I was teaching her tennis? Why did she tell me a lot of things about her personal life, not everything though? Sometimes we calculated how much we could spend in front of the salesgirl and other customers at the two fast food joints we usually went to. We’ll then share the bill 70-30. We were called the ‘proper fraction’ when we sang the popular nursery rhymes and doughnut Repair Club’ songs we learnt as children. We were practically children whenever we were together and I loved it.
We were still talking as she sat in front of the bus close to the window when she began to act like she was really about to cry . I didn’t want her crying because I could cry too. For the first time that day, I tried to make her a little sad. I forgot that too much happiness could make a female cry as much as sadness could.
“I want you to kiss me now”, I said.
I was expecting her to say what she usually said whenever I jokingly asked her to kiss me. “Are you mad?” or “you don dey mad” or “what sort of play is that” or”it seems we are becoming too familiar”… I wouldn’t have been surprised to get a slap from her for ruining ‘our’ moment. But she stared at me for a while. Then she steps out of the car and drops her NYSC cap on her seat. She was frowning now. This frown was more than the one that usually told me I had overstepped my boundary. She dragged me to a corner. At this point I had this feeling one has when father or mother wants to flog you and tells you to come to his/her room and locks the door… nobody tells you what to expect next. She stared at me for a while.
“You are crazy” she finally said.
I wished I hadn’t mentioned kiss. I was still thinking of how to apologize before she started laughing. Was the laughter like ‘how did I become friends with this A*#S?’ or what? I was thinking of other options when she gave me a fast kiss. I kept quiet for a while. I looked around, we were alone.
“Did you… actually… kiss me?” I stammered.
“Try and learn how to ask a lady for a kiss, okay?” she said with a smile.
“I’ll try”, I said not believing ‘my fair lady’ just kissed me.
She then kissed me again. This time, very passionately. We held each other. Kissing, to me, is like a communication. But I could neither send nor receive any message. Her kiss wasn’t sweet. I never believe that kisses are sweet, like sweet as in sweet. Maybe sweet as in not sweet. But that kiss was like a bottle of chilled water after playing a set of lawn tennis that ended 7-6. The chilled water wouldn’t be sweet, but it’ll surely be something better than sweet… wonderful maybe.
I was sitting inside the big coaster bus. I was going home happily. But every time I remember I wouldn’t meet her at home, I became a little sad. But I kept smiling all the way. Then Nokia’s standard message tone and I read the message – ‘I love you and I know you love me too. I also know we both know why we better stay as friends for now. Hope you enjoyed the kiss half as much as I enjoyed it.’
I smiled and replied – ‘Yea, we both know. And I’m also glad we both know that it’s ‘for now’. To a lover and a kisser that’ll never be forgotten, I will always value whatever we’ve had and will have.’ I smiled and sent and smiled again. ‘For now’ was like hoping against hope. It’s a little sad because I knew we couldn’t be more than friends. Best friends at most. But I’ll always love you… I’ll always remember your kiss.
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