Barack Obama DNC Convention 08 Acceptance Speech - Part 2

Barack Obama DNC Convention 08 Acceptance Speech - Part 2

PHILO'S RECIPES

Dear Mr. Tony,
Thanks for your participation in this important discussion.

There are Nigerians who believe that going to Nigeria to marry "field workers" (kids who can be groomed to become nurses or Nigerian trained nurses) mean potential source of wealth.

Wrong. They grow up and become intolerant of emotional, psychological, and physical abuse met on them by their sugar daddies..so called husbands.

Our Nigerian men here refuse to marry the young US-Nigerians but go to Nigeria to seek "virgins" or "novices", nurses, doctors, pharmacists, etc out of ignorance. They forget that the novice learns from examples, life experiences, training and over time. In some cases, they become worst than the Nigerians they left here who already know how this place functions. I always wish them good luck because I know they are going to need it.

I remember growing up in Nigeria and the shock I experienced when I got here and discovered how much I did not know about life. I quickly told myself to get with it or be eaten alive. I learned, adjusted, and blended. Well, I can tell you that the old me was shed off almost 30 years ago. I had no choice. I had to survive in the big city with 45 storey

ADVISE FOR THE MALE FOLKS:

Therefore when an imported girl, yet to be a woman, a year later, tells the 48-60 year old, start-over husband to get lost, or wake up and smell the coffee, it comes as a rude awakening to him too. After all, he paid $3000-$4000 in flight ticket fares just to fly him and his bride back to the US when he went to finalize the import arrangement; not minding the green card rigorous process and charges, the waiting period, the long distance phone calls, and western union fees paid for her tuition to finish high school or college and money given to her parents while he was wooing her. It is not cheap to marry and bring a woman from home. But it is wrong to assume that they are going to be your future meal ticket and vice versa. Wrong!! Wrong!!!, Wrong!!!!

Fact: Some of them assume that the number of times you have had sex with them and the number of children they have had and pregnancy pains pays for all that. Secondly, a nurse goes through 4 to 6 years of intensive training, sleepless nights for exams and then takes the mother of them all, board exam. After that, she works 12 hours every night for 3-5 days a week without sleep along with menstrual cramps, monthly periods, crying, needy babies, and 4-6 pregnancies. This means a bunch of very angry and irritable women. It is only with the grace of God that you find a calm nurse. Therefore, if you bring up matters that should only be discussed during vacations, she might snap at you. In fact, I would not accuse a woman who works 12 hours and sleeps during the day, cooks, cleans, nurses infants, goes to day care centers for pick up and drop offs, and attends Nigerian meetings 3 times a month, participates in church activities in the community, of having affairs. She might bite you. If I were you, I would go back to school to study nursing like your wives so that you can understand what she is going through. And if you feel too macho to do so, just shut up and accept the new wife.

I mean no disrespect to the women married and brought here. I want the same for my sisters at home too because it will help them get green card and I will send less money through Western and pay less Western Union fees. So bravo for the winners. Just don't get yourselves killed. Ask questions before you marry the been-to.
God bless you. I care.

Sir Phil.
PRO, PRO and Vice president.
President and CEO of Nwarueze Enterprizes.
_______________________________________________________________________________


Dear friends,

It is well worth it in most cases to go home and find a wife or husband if one is having difficulty finding one here to marry.

But I am using the word "find" very loosely here. Please know that it is ridiculous for anyone to think that one "find" a spouse. If you choose to find one because you think you know better or believe there is no God, I pray the God helps you keep your choice and improve your lives abundantly while He prepares your heart to be born again.

Life partners do not get found by us or picked by us. The Lord selects our partners, and sets up the right circumstances for us to meet. Examples of marriages that are predetermined by God are those marital relationships that last for decades with minimal conflicts. What I consider minimal are those that do not result in severe irreparable damages. Simple everyday arguments are expected and allowed. They also make one more human. They allow the partners to see what bugs them. It is usually short and can be overcome with a serious massage and Ewedu, Edi-kanko, Egusi and serious Ogbono soup for a fufu loving husband. Simply put, farinate him. If you think I am mistaking, watch a men with pot belly. He is more likely to hold his wife's hand, wear uniforms with her to a party, Carry the youngest baby with one hand while balancing her on his stomach than the tall, slim, firm, muscular man with eternal roving eyes. We have a few like that in my community. Although they argue, Banga soup and synthesized pounded yam usually does the trick before the inner room.

Like I was saying before I started thinking about fufu and romance, God brings a spouse to a person. When people attempt to force the issue, "find" one themselves, they run into all kinds of difficulties. Have you noticed that the wife that was easiest to woo is usually the one that gives you the least headache? It is because before you were born, before you were ready to get married, before you opened your mouth to ask for his/her hand in marriage, he/she was chosen for you by God.

Therefore, if you don't go looking, but pray and follow your heart when you are ready, but keep your hands, heart, and mouth clean (I am not referring to only brushing your teeth), she/he will be at the right place at the right time when you are ready. Have you noticed how most good pastors seem to find the best girl in the village and the bad ones marry the village bitches?

A Niger brother just went home to find a wife like several others. The first one that was recommended had always asked him to bring this and that. He had spent several thousand dollars on her until he decided to visit her. When he arrived, she did not come to the airport to welcome him. He stayed in Lagos for a few days and did not see her. He finally decided to go to the village to see her and ask why she did not come to Lagos knowing that her beloved future husband candidate was coming from abroad and is now in town. The first thing she said to him when she set eyes on him was Welcome, where is that --------------- you promised to buy and bring to me. He was so disappointed that he took the gift back; after-all she was an ordinary Pharmacist. Considering that someone had recently recommended a doctor, he ran back to the city to get engaged to the doctor he had neither met nor spoken to before. She was a better commodity and was going to be a better source of income. To him I say "wait until she comes to the USA and takes the intensive course in preparation for the difficult medical board exam and then we'll know whether or not she will hand over her paychecks. I will wish you all good luck.

To the good wives and husbands, from home, I will say bravo. Keep on loving because love conquers all. There are still very many Nigerians without AIDS and very many who have not started wearing tight jeans, and do not speak with fake American accent.

MEN'S CORNER:

For the men in the USA, I will say, look around here first and then go home but do not rush into things. Lower your standards a bit. Also, keep the age difference between 2-10 years. 11-30 years is too much. She might feel as if she is sleeping with her father. Be a lover, learn to caress, learn to share the domestic workload, learn to play with her, the children and all of the family members together. Go to church together and learn to lead in prayer sessions. Watch TV together, shop together, go out for drinks with her alone, go on dates, and basically continue courting her. She will be the best you've ever known.

LADIES CORNER:

Do all the things I recommended for the men but most importantly, give him his space, rub his back, massages his stomach to enable the fufu to digest because you know he is not going to jug, run or walk, or to go to the Gym. Nibble on his ears if it is clean, rub his hair, and take care of him all over. He may be a man but he can still use some motherly nurturing like one of your babies. Real men do place their heads on their wife's shoulders or lap. If he does not do that, he does not know what he is missing. It might be all it will take for you to say " yes daddy" like the Phillipinos. Don't make him like their men though. They tend to reverse the family roles from too much "yes daddying".

That reminds me, is that why they do not kill their wives even though 99% of their women are nurses? Hmmmmmm.

God bless you all.
______________________________________________
Philomina

OPEN YOUR MIND

As immigrants in New Jersey my sister and I were the only black kids in our school and everyone was curious and wanted to be friends with the African girls.

I remember an occasion where I met a kid at the playground, I had never seen him before, he just kept staring at me till I spoke to him. He asked if he could touch me, he touched me and looked at his hand then exclaimed with surprise that my color didn't come off. He then asked me if we lived in trees in Africa.

He went down like a full sack at my punch.

I was defending Africa!!!

Parents of both parties were asked to come to school, the term racism was used, I didn't understand it, all I knew was that he insulted me and I beat him up. He was made to apologise.

Fast forward several years.

A young lady in London, on my first trip outside the country alone and an adult. Standing at the bus stop I saw a white girl. I had white neighbors back home but I had never seen anyone so white in my life. She was paper white and looked translucent with extremely black hair, ultra high boots with spikes on them, lips and nails painted black. She had piercings all over her face and lips. She had on a black tee-shirt and jeans. The tee-shirt had the image of a skull on it. I couldn't look away, I kept staring, fortunately it was a couple of years before all the street stabbings.

She said hi, I actually jumped, then replied. She told me her name was Amanda, I wondered how she could have such an ordinary name.I also wondered if I was the only one seeing her, maybe she was a ghost…she sure looked like someone from the Adams family.

She said she liked my necklace, I asked her what she did to make her skin so white, she laughed and asked if I wanted to feel her. I touched her…I expected her to be icy cold but she was as warm as I was.

Her bus came and we waved goodbye. Years later I still wish I got her number.

I later learnt she was/is a goth.

For the first time in my life I understood the question the little boy asked me. He wasn't insulting me or being racist… Racism was an adult term to just wanting to know. He just wanted to know!

Amazing what you learn when you open your mind!

NIGERIAN MEN & THEIR WIVES....USA

Dear All,

People who read the journalist's reports on these killings will discover that in some areas--the writer sounds as if though he is blaming the women; in some areas the writer sounds as if though he was blaming the men. In general the writer appears to be more explicit on the names he was calling the actors.

My position is that the phenomenon is despicable-- no human being will accept that killing someone can be condoned in any way except when someone is physically or obviously on his/her way to kill someone else---in that respect--the case of self-defense may apply.

But we all must agree that sometimes in life, people do things that indeed kill other people directly or indirectly. As such, some times human beings--men or women launch a first strike if they feel that someone else is already on his/her way to kill the person one way or the other. An example will be the killing of the Supper-Star, Malvin Gay by his father--and other examples like that. But let it be clear, I do not give prescriptions for how to kill people--I do not kill people and do not intend to kill anyone or suggest that anyone should kill anyone for any reason whatsoever.

What I was alluding to is that: as a community, Nigerians in America should no longer just be wondering, name-calling, when these killings occur: people must dig deeper than that to seek solutions. In the ancient times--when certain bad things began to happen, the ancients make special journeys to visit supper Oracles for solutions. In this modern time, as well, communities consult experts for solutions. The occurrence should be researched in order to get scientific data that will help our communities to device ways for solutions.

Even just publicizing those gruesome pictures can make people to think twice when they are embarking on criminal schemes--both the men and the women. For quite some time now--most people who came from Africa have the feeling and belief that people from Africa cannot be as deadly as some Americans: they want to use American laws the ways it fits them, but pretend that they do not also know that Americans also, when people do them things that defy morality/humanity/ and rationality- -they some times as well snap and do strange things. For example, a woman who shot the man who raped her very young boy and the courts seemed to be handling the man in a softer way; we have seen lovers shoot people who seemed to put their hands in the mouth of the person they violated.

Some Nigerian men who know clearly that our Nigerian laws forbid men going around (f----king/screwing ) peoples' wives, do it anyways simply because they factor that Nigerian people do not shoot. When you go to parties in this America--and in the party there are Americans and Nigerians in the party--the people Nigerian Coward men would openly be chasing are women with other Nigerians. It is not that they think that they are physically stronger than the Nigerian men who may be there with the women; it is simply because the bad Nigerian men are so cowardly that they just cannot dare mess with women with Americans openly.

They know that Americans of all types will waste no minute in executing them, if the felt insulted by the Nigerian or any man in that matter. I have observed this in many states and places I have been. The same is the case with some of our women--some (bullshits they feed Nigerian men--are sometimes because they felt that Nigerian men are not violent--that they do not kill. While I will like an immediate stoppage to these senseless killings--I also hope that people who are still alive can take some lessens from what have happened so far. Do not dare anyone so badly! If you are a woman--once you know that you are doing certain things you would not have been doing ordinarily in our cultures to a man--do not be too sure of his resolve to endure; if you are a man--and doing bad things with the belief that American laws are on your side or easy on those things--do not be too sure about that. The man you are messing with his wife or the woman you are messing with could also possibly act like American-borns.

One time in California, one woman whom people say was a pauper in Nigeria--but when one guy from her area went home, married and brought her here, trained her in nursing school; after she started making money she filed for divorce and took the houses, the children and so on. Although in a court of law--the system made the woman to be paying the guy back some money; but that woman had the habit of every place there is a party where she knows that the guy will be there--she goes there and be doing all sorts of things she could do to provoke the guy. We have not heard that anything happened, but I felt that the woman should have been more careful and take precaution than that. At least, try to avoid contacts with the guy to give the devil no chance. To prove that the woman may be the offender there--we have learned that she went home and remarried and brought a guy from Nigeria here--and the same thing that happened with her and the first guy happened again--and the newest guy fled off from her.

I have criticized bad Nigerian men: I supported none of them. I am simply saying that--sometimes our people overdrive this their understanding of American ways of living--and it have been showing.

There is one altruism, once there is a conflict--the parties to the conflict all have a share in the causes of that conflict one way or the other. The idea of blaming one party is absolutely wrong. For that reason, we need to research the phenomenon so that we can use the scientific finding to educate our people--both from home and those who are already here.

IF NIGERIAN WOMEN IN NIGERIAN AND OUR MEN ARE SEEING THOSE PICTURES--THEY MUST HAVE LEARNED FEW THINGS FROM THERE. WHEN SOMEONE STAYS HERE AND KEEPS TELLING A WOMEN WHO IS STILL AT HOME THAT AMERICAN LAWS FAVOR WOMEN OR A NIGERIAN MAN WHO IS BEING UNDER ILLUSIONS OF WHAT THIS COUNTRY IS ABOUT, OR IS NOT, THE FATE OF THE MEN IN THE PICTURES MUST HAVE TOLD THEM ONE THING OR ANOTHER. THAT SOMETIMES--A NIGERIAN COULD ALSO ACT LIKE AMERICANS. IF SOMETHING IS NOT DONE--SOON, THE WOMEN WILL ALSO BEGIN TO DO WHAT AMERICAN WOMEN DO AS WELL. SWINDLING A MAN OR WOMAN WITH THE HOPE THAT ONE WILL GET WAY WITH IT--MAY BE BECOMING A THING OF THE PAST. LET US LEAVE ALL CHEATING; DUPING; SWINDLING; AND BE GOOD LAW-ABIDING CITIZENS OF AMERICA AND NIGERIA.

As to Yoruba men--one of the men is a Yoruba man--this ugly event touched on all the major peoples of Nigeria--look at the names well. We may give the credit of not being among this evil by Hausa people to their women's culture. As you know that--the Hausas and Muslims maintain zero tolerance when it comes to a woman going "wild" if you like. Perhaps the answer to that question is that the people adhere to their culture even while here. If the Southerners and their Christian beliefs are too easy to transgress-- the Muslims and Hausas are not that way yet. I do not see Hausa men in this America their wives would prepare and head to parties alone as some Southerns wives do and many other things they know they could not do in Nigeria. The two most obvious bones of contention-- center on fidelity issues and money. We shall be saying more on this.

Jerry Stephens

(USA)

STUDY VACATION WITH AFRICAN CHILDREN

OUT OF OFFICE FROM 11TH TILL 26TH AUGUST

MOST WEB AND BLOG ACTIVITIES MAY BE SUSPENDED

Chukwubike Okey C.

A Deal Gone Sour

NEWSWATCH

By Chris Ajaero
Sunday, August 03, 2008

Sam Edem, former diplomat and chairman of the Niger DeltaDevelopment Commission, NDDC, trades accussations with Perekabowei Ogah, a sorcerer, he allegedly hired and paid N800 million to kill for him.

These are not the best of times for Sam Edem, chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC. Edem is currently in the eye of the storm over his alleged attempt to use diabolical means to eliminate Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State and Timi Alaibe, managing director of NDDC.

Investigations by Newswatch revealed that the embattled NDDC chairman squandered one billion Naira on a juju priest who promised to perpetrate the act through fetish practices. Both Edem and Perekabowei Ogah alias Mathew Sonoma, the 34-year-old native doctor from Bomadi, Delta State whom he hired to execute the dastardly act have made confessional statements to the police. In their confessional statements obtained exclusively by Newswatch, both confirmed their involvement in the alleged murder plot.

Ogah in his statement dated June 11, 2008, said his relationship with Edem started in 2007 when the latter realised that he was to be relieved of his appointment as NDDC chairman and sought for spiritual powers that could stop it. Kakas Amgbari, who works with Edem had introduced Ogah to Edem as a native doctor who was capable of helping his case.

Ogah, however, told the NDDC chairman that it would cost him N15 million and he agreed to pay. "On that note, I listed the items required for the sacrifice to cost the sum of N15 million naira which he subsequently paid into my executive savings account which I have with the Oceanic Bank, Ughelli," Ogah said. The native doctor claimed that after he had performed the necessary rituals, Edem was retained as NDDC chairman and his client was happy with him.

Consequently, the NDDC chairman who was now convinced about the efficacy of Ogah's powers decided to give him three new assignments. The first one was that he should work on Governor Akpabio through his fetish powers so that he would always do his bidding, especially by awarding contracts to him. The second assignment was for him to either eliminate Alaibe or inflict him with stroke using diabolical means.

Edem's reason for seeking to eliminate or incapacitate Alaibe was because he saw him as a stumbling block to him in NDDC as Edem claimed he does not give him breathing space to operate as the commission's chairman. The third assignment Edem had for the native doctor was that he should "work on the Vice-President, Goodluck Jonathan so that he can always obey him and always support him if there is any plan to remove him from office."

Based on the seriousness of the assignments, particularly the one that involved the elimination of Alaibe, the native doctor gave him a bill of N570 million which Edem also paid instalmentally. He initially paid N220 million and followed it up with N50 million and then N40million, which brought the total to N310 million, leaving a balance of N260million. The native doctor immediately went to work. Ogah claimed that before he was given the assignment, Edem's relationship with Governor Akpabio was not quite cordial. He, therefore, prepared a charm which he gave to Edem and instructed him to meet with Akpabio.

During the meeting, he should touch the charm on Akpabio's drink and, thereafter, touch it on the ground. Edem did as the native doctor directed and after the meeting, the governor allegedly awarded him a road contract worth seven billion Naira.

However, in the process of using the charm as Ogah instructed, Edem forgot to touch it on the ground. The native doctor claimed that as a result of this mistake by Edem, the charm affected the governor's health and he was flown abroad for medical attention. Edem who did not
want Akpabio to die in the process, because his contract would be at risk, went to the native doctor and confessed that he forgot to touch the charm on the ground as he directed. Ogah then told Edem that in order to save the governor's life, he should pay an additional sum of
N50 million. He complied and Ogah appeased the gods, hence Akpabio did not die from the effect of charm.

But the assignment that the native doctor should eliminate Alaibe through diabolical means proved difficult for him. The native doctor said after the expiration of the period he promised Edem that Alaibe would die and the NDDC managing director was still alive, he (Edem) came to him. "I told him that his spirit is too strong. On that note he (Edem) grew annoyed and asked me to refund the money, he paid for Timi's work," Ogah said. It was at this juncture that Edem requested Ogah to refund the money he had so far paid him but he refused, insisting that the NDDC chairman should rather pay him the remaining N260 million. This marked the beginning of the disagreement between Edem and Ogah. Edem, therefore, petitioned the police alleging that Ogah was a fraudster and had defrauded him of millions of Naira.

This was why Ogah was arrested and detained at the Zone 5 Police Headquarters, Benin City. It was after his arrest that he made startling revelations on his sordid affair with Edem.

But the native doctor claimed that before the burble burst, Edem had burnt the sum of N270 million while naked in a cemetery in Port Harcourt as part of the ritual. The ashes from the burnt Naira notes were rubbed on Edem's body by the native doctor in a bid to fortify him.

In his own statement to the police, dated June 18, 2008, Edem neither denied nor admitted his alleged plot to eliminate Alaibe and Akpabio. He, however, said that Ogah was introduced to him as a pastor by Amgbari in November, 2007. After some prayer sessions in his house, Ogah started extorting money from him with death threats to him, family members and staff. "I later discovered that this man is a hardened criminal with fetish practices and diabolical powers. The truth is that I was hypnotised by this man into believing anything he said. He employed dangerous threats as a weapon to continuously extort huge amounts of money from me while putting me under his spell," Edem stated.

The NDDC chairman said that the extortion of money from him by Ogah started in November, 2007 and lasted till April, this year when God rescued him from his spell. "By the time God rescued me from his spell, this criminal and his cohorts had drained me financially, emotionally, and psychologically, " Edem told the police. According to him, the total amount collected from him by the native doctor under alleged hypnotic spell is about N800 million. He said he usually paid the money with bank drafts into Ogah's Oceanic Bank International
Plc account number 0231701700330. The NDDC chairman alleged that the native doctor used part of the money collected from him to acquire a hotel complex in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, at the cost of more than N100 million and a fleet of new cars of different brands and models.

When the police monitoring team from Zone 5, Benin City searched Ogah's residence in Bomadi recently, many cars were recovered from him. But Ogah denied the allegation by Edem that the money he used to acquire cars and other properties were proceeds from his dealings with him. "The money I used in buying my cars and other properties were strictly mine as I do work for politicians who pay me handsomely," he said.

Other items recovered from Ogah's residence are Government House, Yenagoa staff identity card and a Bayelsa Government House plate number: BYGH 43. The native doctor claimed that the Government House identity card was issued to him by Diepreye Alamieyeseigha when he
was in office as the Bayelsa State governor. He further claimed that he still had free access to Government House, Yenagoa, when Goodluck Jonathan, vice-president, became the governor because he was the spiritual godfather to both leaders. "The Government House, Yenagoa staff identity card recovered from my house by the police was issued to me by Ex-Governor Alamieyeseigha when I was his spiritual godfather during his tenure and that of Ex-Governor Goodluck Jonathan," Ogah stated.

With regard to the Bayelsa Government House plate number, he claimed it was meant for a Peugeot 504 car assigned to one Bobo 2Pac, who he said is a younger brother to Alamieyeseigha. Ogah recalled that in 2000, he had an accident with the car along Mbiama road and, thereafter, the vehicle was taken to Government House, Yenagoa. He however, added that he mistakenly kept the plate number in his house.

Efforts by Newswatch to get the reaction of the vice-president through Ima Niboro, his senior special assistant, media, failed as he could not be reached on phone last week. But another official in the vice-president's office who craved anonymity said that Jonathan is a staunch Anglican and so would not be associated with anything fetish.

At press time last week, Alamieyeseigha could also not be reached on phone for his reaction to Ogah's allegation that he was his spiritual godfather when he was in office as governor.

But John Araka, media consultant to Edem while reacting to the alleged attempt by the NDDC chairman to use the native doctor to eliminate Alaibe and Akpabio denied Ogah's claims. "It is unthinkable that Edem would want to kill Alaibe. What for? So that he can succeed him as managing director? It's all blackmail," Araka told Newswatch.

On the allegation that Edem paid the native doctor to eliminate Governor Akpabio, Araka said the NDDC chairman was one of those instrumental to his emergence as Akwa Ibom State governor. "They had a good relationship. So, he would not want to destroy the house he
helped to build," Araka said.

Newswatch, however, learnt that the startling revelations by Ogah has strained the relationship between Edem and Alaibe. It was gathered that although the two NDDC top officials were handling the matter maturedly, a cold war is raging in the commission owing to this turn
of events.

There were also indications last week that Governor Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State was still dumbfounded that Edem, his kinsman, could be linked with a plot to eliminate him. Usoro Usoro, chief press secretary to the governor told Newswatch that a few days before the revelations became public knowledge, Edem had visited Akpabio at Akwa Ibom Governor's Lodge in Abuja. "Before these revelations, the governor had no problem with Edem. That was why the revelations are shocking to him," Usoro said. He said the governor has informed
President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua officially about this development.

Usoro explained that his boss was confident that the police would get to the root of the matter. The governor's image maker also said he was not aware that his boss awarded a road contract to the tune of seven billion Naira as alleged by Ogah.

On the claim by Ogah that the charm he gave to Edem affected Governor Akpobio's health and made him to be flown abroad for medical treatment, Usoro said no such thing happened. He said the governor could have travelled for treatment abroad but it certainly has nothing to do with the alleged charm by the native doctor. "Governor Akpabio firmly believes in God. So, nobody can harm him," Usoro said.

Newswatch further gathered that Edem was deeply pained by the revelations of his sordid affair with the native doctor. In a bid to re-establish his ties with the governor, he recently approached Camillus Etukudo, the Catholic bishop of Ikot Ekpene Diocese, and pleaded with him to help him beg Akpabio for forgiveness, saying that he fell into the hands of satanic agents. He decided to seek the bishop's intervention because the governor is an ardent Catholic and is very close to the respected clergyman.

The greatest source of worry for Edem now is not the huge amount he lost in the business but how to defend the source of the money he squandered. This is because some Nigerians have already started calling on the federal government to investigate the source of the money Edem gave out to the native doctor and his collaborators. Consequently, Edem has taken certain steps to douse public criticisms of his action through some groups who have been defending him.

One of such groups is the Ibom Youth For Peace Movement, IYPM. In a statement signed by David Friday Ibanga, president of IYPM, the group frowned at what it termed organised blackmail and campaign of calumny against a respectable and patriotic son of Akwa Ibom State. It wondered why sycophants and charlatans were spreading rumour about assassination plot when the suspects who were arrested and released have already apologised to the NDDC chairman. "We have watched with dismay, the way and manner desperate political fortune seekers have capitalised on the ongoing false rumours to score a cheap political point without recourse to proper reasoning or making any effort to unravel the truth concerning the assassination bid story, thereby assassinating and battering another man's well earned character and image," IYPM stated.

The group also said that it was not possible for Edem to attempt to kill Akpabio or Alaibe. "What does Ambassador Sam Edem stand to gain by killing Governor Akpabio that he supported or does he want to become governor or the managing director of NDDC? Ambassador Sam Edem is a decent, patriotic son of the South-South, he has never been involved in any shady deal or anything inimical to the peace and development of the Niger Delta region," IYPM said.

Another group that has risen in defence of the NDDC chairman is the Niger Delta Law Students Association. Uko Ekpenyong, national coordinator of the association said his members were shocked that the Nigerian public have become so gullible to believe the alleged murder scandal. To him, the entire assassination story is "a hoax and some powerful politicians must be behind this devilish act."

When Newswatch contacted Udo Ekpoudom, the Assistant Inspector General of Police, AIG, in charge of Zone 5, Benin City, last week, he confirmed that both Edem and Ogah had made statements to the police investigative team. He said Ogah was initially detained but later released on bail. "We are still investigating the case and I am confident that we will get to the root of the matter," Ekpoudom told Newswatch.

Nigeria lagging behind in achieving MDGs

UNICEF says Nigeria lagging behind in achieving MDGs



LAGOS (Xinhua)-- The UN Children's Fund UNICEF has rated Nigeria low in its effort in attaining its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), according to a report by the UNICEF office in Nigeria received here on Wednesday.


The report said Nigeria had not made sufficient progress in the attainment of most of the targets of the MDGs set by the UN to eradicate poverty, reduce child and maternal mortality, fight disease and achieve environmental sustainability by 2015.

The UNICEF report indicated that Nigeria had a 29 percent prevalence of underweight children in 2006 and an annual reduction rate of only 2.2 percent.

UNICEF said though Nigeria recorded 68 percent net school enrolment, there was still no progress towards the MDG target, on the achievement of the Universal Basic Education.

It said Nigeria had a 0.89 percent gender parity index, with 72 percent male net enrolment to 64 percent in female, on the elimination of gender disparity in primary education, according to Unicef.

GOWAN & BAKASSI

Published 8/14/2008 3:26:00 AM

Nigerians should not cry over transfer – Gowon....
Jude Owuamanam, Jos

As Nigeria gets set to hand over the Bakassi peninsula to Cameroun on Thursday (today), a former Head of State, Gen Yakubu Gowon, has said that the ceded territory never belonged to Nigeria. He also denied accusations that he handed Bakassi over to Cameroun because of its support for Nigeria during the Biafran war.Gowon, who spoke in a telephone interview with our correspondent on Wednesday, said that the International Court of Justice at The Hague, which gave the ruling ceding the peninsula to Cameroun, was right. He added that Nigerians living in that part had the choice of living there under Camerounian laws or agreeing to be resettled in Nigeria.He said the misconception about the ownership of the peninsula arose when Nigeria was administering the western part of Cameroun as part of the United Nations mandate. Gowon explained that when a plebiscite was undertaken, the people of Western Cameroun decided to go to Cameroun whereas the northern part decided to be in Nigeria.He recalled that it took the ingenuity of the then Premier of Northern Nigeria, Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, to convince the northern part of Cameroun to be in Nigeria while the Nnamdi Azikiwe-led National Council of Nigeria and the Camerouns (as it then was) did little to convince the western part of Cameroun to to remain part of Nigeria.The former head of state said that the ICJ in its ruling, took into cognisance, the Anglo/German Treaties of 1885 and 1914, adding that at the dawn of independence, all African countries agreed to abide by the international boundaries agreed by the occupying powers.Meanwhile, a professor of History of International Relations, University of Lagos, Yomi Akinyeye, said, "The handover is in order. The place called Bakassi never belonged to Nigeria in the first place. The issues and the ownership are so clear."We were only misled by so-called experts who were misguided and who deceived us into going to the International Court of Justice. We never stood a chance."The documents with which the ICJ reached the inevitable decision are in the public archives, we in Nigeria have them, others have them in their own archives."They are based mainly on Anglo-German Treaty of 1913 and at Independence in 1960. It was obvious that other agreements would have to be made but based on the original legal documents signed between the two colonial powers of Germany and Britain."