Welcome to Henry Nwachukwu's Blog: November 2014

Sunday 30 November 2014

Johnson rescues Liverpool

Struggling Liverpool got back on track with a 1-0 victory over Stoke on Saturday

Liverpool ended their three-match losing streak as Glen Johnson’s late goal clinched a hard-fought success against Stoke at Anfield.

Reds captain Steven Gerrard was dropped to the bench on the 16th anniversary of his Liverpool debut and Brendan Rodgers’ side were lacklustre without him.

Stoke’s Bojan Krkic hit the woodwork in the second half, but Liverpool improved after Gerrard came on for the final 16 minutes and England right-back Johnson popped up with the winner in the 85th minute after Rickie Lambert’s header had hit the bar.

Sultan asks Muslims to unite against Boko Haram

The Sultan of Sokoto and leader of Muslims in Nigeria, Alhaji Mohammed Sa’ad Abubakar III, has challenged Islamic sects in the country to unite and fight Boko Haram insurgency.

The Sultan, while condemning the suicide bomb blasts at the Kano Central Mosque on Friday, which left about 120 worshippers dead and many others injured, stated that “those behind all the attacks are not Muslims.”

He spoke on Saturday in Abuja during a post-2014 Hajj conference organised by the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria held at the National Mosque. Continue...

Darren Wilson, the police officer who fatally shot an unarmed teenager in August, has resigned from the police department in Ferguson, Missouri, his attorney, Neil Bruntrager, confirmed to CNN Saturday night.

In a telephone interview with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Wilson said he resigned after the police department told him it received threats of violence if he remained an employee.

"I'm resigning of my own free will," he said. "I'm not willing to let someone else get hurt because of me." Continue...

WOW! Meet the world's largest family - with 181 members

Ziona Chana has 39 wives, 94 children, 14 daughters-in-law and 33 grandchildren. They all live with him in his hotel-like 100-room, four-story house perched among the hills of Baktwang village in the Indian state of Mizoram. Continue..

No fewer than 120 died and 270 were injured on Friday as the violent Boko Haram sect bombed the 10,000 capacity Kano Central Mosque where the Emir, Alhaji Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, usually leads prayers.

About 10 gunmen went on a shooting spree after the blast at the mosque, which is close to the Emir of Kano’s palace.

A rescue official, who spoke with Agence France-Presse, put casualty figures at almost 400, adding that 120 were killed and 270 hurt in the three explosions that rocked the mosque. Continue....

Nigeria remain 42nd on FIFA ranking

Despite the Super Eagles’ failure to qualify for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, Nigeria remained on the 42nd spot in FIFA worldranking released on Thursday.

The national team also retained the ninth position among African teams.

The Eagles had dropped five places to 42nd on the previous FIFA ranking for the month which was released on October 23. But the country will slip further if they stay idle without quality international matches from now and through the 2015 Nations Cup.

Though they lost three spots to 18th globally, Algeria remain number one in Africa. They are followed by Tunisia, which went nine places up to 22nd in the world; and Cote d’Ivoire, which gained one spot up to 24th. Continue..

French President Francois Hollande is to arrive in Guinea, becoming the first Western leader to visit a nation hit hard by the deadly Ebola virus.

He will deliver "a message of solidarity" to Guinea, where more than 1,200 have died of Ebola.

France has pledged 100m euros (£79m; $125m) to help tackle the disease by opening several care centres in Guinea. Continue..

A suicide attack in the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Thursday morning killed five people and wounded 33 others, including at least four children, said Hashmat Stanikzai, a police spokesman said.

An explosive-laden car was detonated as a foreign embassy convoy was passing in the 9th District police zone, said Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqi.

The UK Foreign Office said two of those killed worked for the British Embassy.

One of the dead was a British national, a civilian security team member, and the second was an Afghan national working for the embassy, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said in a statement.

A second British member of the security team was injured, he said. Continue..

The British Government, through its Charity Commission, has said it is not investigating Winners Chapel International, a church belonging to the popular pentecostal clergyman, Dr. David Oyedepo.

A spokeswoman for the commission said the CC was only considering the financial information provided by the church.

The CC is responsible for registering eligible organisations in England and Wales that are established for only charitable purposes, taking enforcement action when there is malpractice or misconduct and ensuring charities meet their legal requirements. Continue..

His name in Igbo language means “Lord bless me”. But today Chigozie is certainly not feeling blessed as he is one of the numerous Nigerians currently serving various jail terms in Ghanaian prisons.

He was arrested at the airport in Ghana while trying to smuggle Marijuana to Hong Kong and was subsequently sentenced to 15 years imprisonment. Chigozie’s health is said to have deteriorated, allegedly due to the poor condition of the prison. They (inmates) are allegedly denied food and medical attention when sick. Continue...

The Lagos State Police Command on Thursday presented crime statistics from November 2013 to October 2014, showing that about 78 robbers were gunned down by officers of the command.

The statistics also showed that within the period, no fewer than eight cops were killed.

The state Commissioner of Police, Kayode Aderanti, at the 8th Town Hall Meeting on Security on the Lagos Island, said the robbers and the police officers lost their lives in different shootouts between the police and the men of the underworld. Continue..

Brazilian football legend Pele's condition has improved, according to a Thursday evening statement from a Sao Paulo hospital.

There had been earlier concerns about Pele's health after Albert Einstein Hospital issued a release that said his condition was "unstable."

Thursday night's release said Pele was relocated to the intensive care unit because a kidney dialysis machine he needed was in ICU. Continue..

Investigation of India girls' hangings finds no evidence of rape, murder

An investigation into the deaths of two teenage girls found hanging from a mango tree in northern India has concluded that they committed suicide and that there's no evidence of rape, sexual assault or murder, according to a report released by India's Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday.

The two girls, who were cousins, were found dead in May in a remote village in the Badaun district of Uttar Pradesh state.

During the initial stages of the investigation, an autopsy report confirmed the two girls had been raped and strangled. Continue..

Oduah’s ex-husband dumps PDP for APC

The jury may still be out for many Arsenal fans over the future of coach Arsenal Wenger but few can argue about the Frenchman leading the Londoners to the Champions League knockout stages for a 15th consecutive year.

He achieved his latest qualification after goals from Yaya Sanogo, his first for the club at the 19th attempt, and Alexis Sanchez secured a 2-0 home win over Borussia Dortmund.

Dortmund's compatriots Bayer Leverkusen and Spaniards Atletico Madrid also made it through to the Last 16 on Wednesday. Continue..

Leading Nigerian telecommunications firm, Globacom has been listed as one of the top One Hundred Firms in Nigeria for the 2014 fiscal year. The top 100 companies’ list is based on international benchmark set by the International Integrated Reporting Council. The benchmark includes the amount of turnover, level of investment in the country and thenumber of jobs so far created in the economy. Continue..

Music star and HKN gang boss, Davido (David Adedeji Adeleke) reportedly spent over N35m on brand new cars for both his manager, Kamal Ajiboye and his producer, Sheyi Akerele (Shizzi).

Davido bought a brand new black Mercedes 450 GL which cost N12m for his manager while that of his producer, is a brand new black Porsche Cayenne which cost N24m.

Egypt sentences 78 minors to prison

Seventy-eight Egyptian minors have been handed sentences of between two and five years in prison by a juvenile court in Alexandria on charges of “belonging to an outlawed group,” according to Egypt’s state news agency.

Heavy security was seen outside the court in Alexandria on Wednesday, where judicial sources said those sentenced were aged between 13 and 17.

The minors’ lawyers were barred from attending the court hearing while their family members were forced to wait outside. Go ahead..

The black flag of ISIS flies over government buildings. Police cars carry the group's insignia. The local football stadium is used for public executions. A town in Syria or Iraq? No. A city on the coast of the Mediterranean, in Libya.

Fighters loyal to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria are now in complete control of the city of Derna, population of about 100,000, not far from the Egyptian border and just about 200 miles from the southern shores of the European Union.

The fighters are taking advantage of political chaos to rapidly expand their presence westwards along the coast. Continue..

Despite Nigeria not qualifying for the AFCON 2015 holding in Equatorial Guinea in January, the country looks set to have a good representation at the tournament given the number of officials that have been invited by the Confederation of African Football, CAF. Continue....

French police are investigating the deaths of an elderly British couple in the Pyrenees. The bodies of 98-year-old Derek Hawkins and his 88-year-old wife Sheila were found at their home in the village of Fabas south of Toulouse. Both had died of gunshot wounds and there was a gun at the scene. Hugh Schofield reports.

Wiz Khalifa attempts to break the internet with a nude photo

What Kim K can do, Wiz Khalifa can do it better. The rapper shared a nude pic of himself on his instagram page today. The pic shows him pouring water over his head with one hand and holding his genitals with the other hand while in a bathroom with the caption; 'No shower til 4pm'. More picx..

Seven Hong Kong police officers have been arrested for assault over an alleged case of police brutality at pro-democracy protests last month which shocked residents of the Chinese territory.

Footage of the alleged assault, taken by a TV crew at the city's main protest site in Admiralty on October 15, was widely disseminated online, sparking an outcry from the public, politicians and rights groups.

It appeared to show officers leading the man to a dark corner, where he was laid on the ground and repeatedly kicked and punched while others stood around, keeping watch.

The alleged victim was identified as Ken Tsang, a member of the Civic Party political group. He is also a social worker and a member of the 1,200 member election committee that chooses Hong Kong's leader. Photos were subsequently released by the Civic Party showing Tsang with a bruised face and welts on his back. Continue..

A presidential aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Wednesday said the ruling Peoples Democratic Partywould destroy the country if it was not stopped in the 2015 elections.

Buhari said this while addressing party delegates that would vote in the APCpresidential primaries slated for December 10 in Calabar, Cross River State. Continue...

7.0-magnitude quake strikes off Indonesia

A 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck in the Molucca Sea off Indonesia late Wednesday night, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

There was no immediate report of any damage. No Pacific-wide tsunami is expected, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

The quake happened at a depth of 65 kilometers (40 miles) in the sea between the Indonesia's Sulawesi island and the country's Maluku Islands at about 10:33 p.m., the USGS said.

Jonathan has poor understanding of Boko Haram-Obasanjo

The former head of state warned that for Nigeria to make progress, it must not continue to engage in disdain for the truth, elevation of corruption and incompetence, reinforcement of failure, celebration of heinous crimes and mediocrity, tribal bigotry, fomenting violence and anti – democratic practices in states and National Assembly.”

Nigeria’s former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Wednesday, sneered at President Goodluck Jonathan for not having adequate understanding of the Boko Haram insurgency and being unable to proffer a response to the menace staring the nation its face. Continue

26 year old Crista Engles (pictured above) was accidentally shot dead by her 3 year old son at their home as she was attending to her 1 year old daughter.

According NBC News, the little boy shot and killed his mother after finding a loaded semi-automatic handgun in their home in Tulsa, Oklahoma yesterday November 25th. Continue..

From New York to Los Angeles and dozens of cities in between, protesters flooded the streets to denounce a Missouri grand jury's decision not to indict Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson.

A day after the country learned that Wilson wouldn't face criminal charges for killing unarmed teenager Michael Brown, at least 130 protests sprouted up across the U.S.

Some demonstrations blocked bridges, tunnels and major highways. But unlike the violence that erupted in Ferguson on Monday night, the Tuesday night protests were largely peaceful. Continue..

Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, on Tuesday said he will support whoever emerges as the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, if he loses the party’s ticket.

Abubakar said this while addressing APC Enugu State national delegates at the Nike Lake Resort Hotels in Enugu on Tuesday evening.

He also said he will not criticize the other presidential aspirants. Continue..

Hong Kong student protest leaders Joshua Wong and Lester Shum were among those arrested amid heated confrontations as authorities attempted to clear demonstration camps in the Mong Kok district for a second day.

Wong, the 18-year old founder of the secondary school activist group Scholarism, and Shum, deputy secretary general of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, were arrested after police and bailiffs moved to clear barricades on Nathan Road in the bustling commercial area, Continue..

We all know that David Adeleke, a.k.a Davido who is also the HKN gang leader, graduated from Babcock university where Minister of finance, Ngozi Okonjo-iweala felt embarrassed by his rude behaviour. but did you hear that on that same Sunday, he disrupted the convocation ceremony where he was one of the 1, 544 graduating students? Continue....

The Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, says there are high possibilities of building collapse in police barracks across the state.

The governor, who spoke during the inauguration of the newly reconstructed Area C Command headquarters in Surulere on Tuesday, added that the Ojuelegba Police Barracks was a prime example.

Fashola, who inaugurated the building, named after a former Commissioner of Police, late Kafaru Tinubu, lamented the failure of the Federal Government to adequately fund law enforcement agencies in the country despite receiving 52 per cent of the federal allocation. Continue..

Salaries of the missing 30 mobile policemen in Borno State would be stopped by April 2015, if the men failed to show up at their squadron units,

The policemen were declared missing in August after an attack on the Police Training School, Gwoza, Borno State, by Boko Haram insurgents.

Investigations by our correspondent indicated that the missing personnel might be given up for dead if they did not report to their commanding officers by the end of the first quarter of the New Year.

It was however learnt that the missing police personnel would be declared dead formally after seven years. Continue...

Barcelona's Lionel Messi became the Champions League's all-time top scorer with a hat-trick against Apoel Nicosia.

Messi went into the Group F game in Cyprus level on 71 goals with former Real Madrid forward Raul.

Luis Suarez had already opened the scoring with his first goal for the club when Messi diverted Rafinha's 38th-minute shot past the keeper.

Messi netted his second in the 58th-minute with a low right-foot finish before tapping home from close range. Continue..

The Lagos/Ibadan Expressway has been dubbed in some quarters as a highway of horror due to the frequent fatal auto accidents that have occurred there. This possibly explains why commuters usually engage in passionate prayer sessions before embarking on a journey through that seemingly accident-prone road

Penultimate Tuesday witnessed another ghastly accident on the expressway that claimed several lives, prompting unrestrained wailing from shocked road users and sympathisers. Even law enforcement agents appeared unsettled by the high fatality of the multiple accident which was accompanied by an inferno. Continue..

The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria on Tuesday bowed to pressure by devaluing the naira from N155 to N168 to the US dollar.

The MPC tightened the apex bank’s monetary policy by allowing some flexibilities in the exchange rate to stem speculative activities and depletion of reserves.

The announcement was made by the CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, while briefing journalists shortly after the MPC meeting at the bank’s headquarters in Abuja.

The bank also increased the Monetary Policy Rate from 12 per cent to 13 per cent. Continue...

:Hon. Kawu Sumaila, one of the lawmakers who jumped the fence and fought for House of Reps speaker, Aminu Tambuwal to get into the chamber last week, is seeking to be the Governor of Kano state come 2015.

Tuesday 25 November 2014

Sultan, Oritsejafor differ on war against Boko Haram

Two prominent Nigerian religious leaders the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, and the National President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, yesterday, openly differed on the war being waged against Nigeria by the Boko Haram insurgents.

Although the two religious leaders agreed that the Boko Haram sect had committed serious havoc against the country and its people, they disagreed sharply on why the sect has continued to unleash unabated violence on the nation. Continue..

It's official: Katy Perry to headline Super Bowl halftime

Get ready to hear that voice, hear that sound -- like thunder gonna shake the ground.

Confirming rumors that had been around at least since last month, the NFL said Sunday that Katy Perry will headline the next Super Bowl halftime show.

Following in the show-stopping dance steps of Bruno Mars from this year might be a tall order. But Perry says she's already planning her own fireworks.

I've got some insane ideas this year," she said in a videoposted soon after the announcement. "What if we covered the stadium with glitter? Continue..

President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick has given a hint that Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi won’t be fired by his board, but rather would send him for a refresher course abroad.

Upon announcing the sacking of Keshi a month ago, Pinnick revealed the coach and his assistant turned down the opportunity to go for refresher courses to be sponsored by the board.

However, events took a different turn when an order from the country’s president, Goodluck Jonathan forced the NFF to reinstate the coach and his technical crew. Continue..

The wife of the President, Mrs. Patience Jonathan, on Monday in Abuja pleaded with Nigerian women to vote for her husband, President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2015 Presidential election.

According to her, only Jonathan can protect and defend their rights among all the aspirants for the seat.

She also asked women to actively participate in the on-going electoral processes in the country, saying it was time for them to compete favourably with their male counterparts for elective positions.

Patience, represented by the Minister of Water Resources, Mrs. Sarah Ochekpe, made the remarks while declaring open a two-day National Conference on Women and Elections, with the theme, “Enhancing Opportunities for Women Candidates,” organised by the United Nations Development Programme in collaboration with the Federal Ministry for Women Affairs. Continue..

Sunday 30 November 2014

Saturday 29 November 2014

Friday 28 November 2014

Thursday 27 November 2014

Wednesday 26 November 2014

Tuesday 25 November 2014