Police Machines Protest Shoddy NFF Treatment Cry Out Against Federation Cup NFF Injustice

247ureports
-
0



by Johnny Ogbah

The Police Machine FC of Owerri have cried foul over the shoddy treatment of their Appeal

against Imo FA’s Appeal Committee’s decision to replay their Federation Cup match which was

abandoned by Heartland FC when they refused to take a penalty awarded to them with four

minutes to the end of their quarter final encounter.

In a comment released by Barrister Johnny Precious Ogbah of Activity Chambers, counsel to

Police Machines, the sports lawyer queried the grounds on which the decision was reached,

stating that the Disciplinary Committee of the NFF had which was the body legally empowered

by the NFF Statutes to hear the case was not given the opportunity to do so, whereas the

organisers of the competition unilaterally decided to hold the decison on their own without

due process.

“We all know that the NFF has just two statutory bodies empowered to sit over such matters

which is the Disciplinary Committee, and the Appeals Committee. By 10am on Tuesday 15th May

I received a phone call by the secretary of the Disciplinary Committee inviting us attend a

hearing of our matter on Wednesday 16th May and immediately made arrangements to fly down

from Abuja to attend to it. However, my Clients informed me that a letter had arrived from
the NFF dated 14th May 2012 saying that a decision had been reached by the Organisers of the

Federation Cup to uphold the Imo FA decision.

“I got here this morning and the answers I received from the NFF were not at all

satisfactory. I also went to the Disciplinary Committee and the secretary informed me that

our matter was on the list of matters to be heard but that they were ordered to remove it as

a decision had been reached by the Organising Committee. We now ask the question, on what

grounds did the Organisers, or Oganising Committee have to sit on the appeal when they are

not empowered by statute to do so? They have no jurisdiction to decide the matter.

Article 6 of Schedule 6 of the Rules and Regulations of the Federation Cup 2012 empowers

only the Disciplinary and the Appeals Committee to hear such matters. Nowehere is it stated

that the Organising Committee can, if they so desire, hear such matters. That’s the problem

with Nigerian football. People cannot just take powers into their hands when laws and statutes have not given them the right to. The only bodies empowered to sit on our appeal in this instance is the Disciplinary Committee but some other kangaroo Committee claim to have sat on our decision and reached a most unfair and unjust decision, without letting us know the grounds on which they reached this decision. Whereas the Disciplinary Committee which are empowered to hear the matter, and which are duly constituted of experienced lawyers, arbitrators and administrators invited us to come and state our case, a committee which lacks their experience and know how sit on the case on their own, withour recourse to hearing from the aggrieved parties, and reached a unilateral decision to replay the full 90 minutes of a match that was in the 86th minute and just 4 minutes away from penalty shoot outs.

“Contrast this with the case of Nembe United of Bayelsa. Bayelsa Utd abandoned their match when it was time to play penalties and the same NFF Organising Committee ordered them to replay their penalties? Or is it because, unlike Nembe Utd who’se chairman is the 2nd Vice President of NFF, our clients are just a team of hardworking Police men with no godfathers in Nigerian football?

“In all matters like this, justice should be done and seen to be done. Heartland FC refused to take a penalty kick when they were a goal down with 4 minutes to play then the decision was to replay the entire match, blatantly ignoring Article 14 of Guidelines to the Imo State Federation Cup 2012 which is identical to Article 3.11 (A) of the Federation Cup Rules which states that “ If any club supporter, player or official encroaches on the field of play to cause the discontinuation of the game for TEN (10) minutes or more, the club on whose behalf the disturbance was caused shall lose the match to their opponents”

“Heartland were “rewarded ” by the football authorities with a full 90 minutes whereas a similar scenario occured in the Nembe Utd v BAyelsa Utd match and a replay of the penalty kicks was ordered. WHy couldn’t a similar decision be given in Police Machines’ case?

“Further more, we paid N100, 000 to have our appeal heard and heard properly. We were denied that and are now being told to protest further, and pay more fees, if we were satisfied with a decision that was given by a body that lacked jurisdiction to even hear the matter in the first place.”

“All we demand is justice and fair play in this matter. Due process must be followed. We have spared no costs in fighting injustice to this level and yet there seems to be no justice in sight. However, we will not relent in our battle to see that we get justice in this matter,” he concluded.

JAMB Seeks EFCC’s Assistance To Curb Exam Malpractices

247ureports
-
0

The Registrar and Chief Executive, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, Prof. ’Dibu Ojerinde, on Wednesday, May 16th, 2012, called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to offer his Board assistance in curbing myriad of malpractices plaguing the conduct of public examination in Nigeria. He made the appeal in Abuja during a courtesy visit on the EFCC chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde in his office.
Ojerinde said that the most challenging issue confronting JAMB was the issue of examination malpractices. He explained that though the mandate of JAMB was to conduct credible and valid examinations free of malpractices, the rising spate of sharp practices among students sitting for its examinations has become a cause for concern. He disclosed that, in the last Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, two individuals who designed bathroom sleepers that accommodated handsets to receive answers from outside were arrested. The sleepers, he said, were designed specially to cheat during the examinations.
“There is this particular case of a woman in Ikirun, Osun State . During the examination, a search was conducted on her and the scanner gave indication that there were foreign metal object in her body. All entreaties to her to bring out what was on her failed until a woman supervisor had to take her to a closet and undress her only to discover that a handset was prepared just like a pad in her private part. It was that bad. If we had not used the scanner, we couldn’t have detected it. Even at that, I am sure there were people that still went away with it”, Ojerinde lamented.
In justifying the collaboration and assistance he sought from EFCC, Ojerinde said that, “We realized that we in JAMB don’t have this special Eagle Eye to detect some of these things. We have come to solicit for your assistance on how we can work together to exterminate this problem”, he said. He also spoke of plan to introduce e-testing to replace the manual examination conducted by the Board. The idea, he said, will be introduced gradually as candidates will be allowed the option of paper/pencil examinations or e-testing. “In that way, children will write their examination electronically and at the end, the candidate will submit and the scores will appear immediately and the candidate will go home with his/her scores; but the national standardization will still take place”, he proposed.
He said the Board was still perfecting the idea and working out modalities with the supervising Ministry and relevant agencies.
In his response, the EFCC Chairman appreciated Ojerinde’s visit saying that his appointment as JAMB Registrar was a confirmation of his leadership qualities. While describing education as important to both parents and the nation, he lamented a situation where some parents and teachers encourage students to engage in examination malpractices. “It shows the level at which the value system has deteriorated”, he declared.
Lamorde assured JAMB Board of EFCC’s collaboration. He said the Commission will always be available to handle any issue referred to it, promising that, “we would always intervene not only during examinations, we would also like to beam searchlight on personnel of JAMB to know how the questions get to the candidates”,he said.
The EFCC Chairman also suggested that efforts should be made to de-emphasize paper qualification in Nigeria . ‘Even in the western world, there are people who have done wonderfully well without having a university or a polytechnic degree. These people have contributed meaningfully to the society”, he added.
In the entourage of JAMB’s Registrar were Hamzat Balogun, Director of Accounts; Sulayman Y. Muhammad., Director, Corporate Services and Barrister M. S. Ibrahim, JAMB’s Legal Adviser.

EFCC Arraigns Congolese over Currency Trafficking

247ureports
-
0

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned a 42 year-old Congolese,  Seleto Papy before a  Federal High Court sitting in  Ikoyi, Lagos,  on a  five-count charge bordering on unlawful possession of fake foreign currency totalling Thirty Eight Thousand Four Hundred American Dollars ($38,400).
The suspect was arraigned before Justice James Tsoho.  After the charges were read out to the accused person, he pleaded not guilty to them. Prosecution counsel, Modupe Akinkoye then urged the court to remand the accused in prison and fix a date for the commencement of trial. However, defence counsel, Adeniyi Odunsi told the court that his client was entitled to bail based on the National Refugee Asylums Certificate. He urged the court to exercise its power judicially and judiciously, insisting that the accused person is presumed innocent until proven guilty. After listening to the counsel on both sides, Justice Tsoho, granted the accused person bail, and ordered that he should be remanded in prison custody until he meets the bail conditions.  Bail was granted in the sum of N5million naira and two sureties in like sum. They must have landed properties in Lagos and must be ready to submit their original Certificates of Occupancy. They must also produce an evidence of tax payment in the last 3 years and two recent passport photographs. Papy was arrested on February 1, 2012, by National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, during an outward clearance of cargo at the Nacho Shed on Asky Airline en route to Congo Kinshasa for trafficking fake currency and later handed over to the EFCC. The 42-year old unregistered pharmacist, who came to Nigeria in 2006 was said to have collected goods from one Alexis Mbunge, a Congolese, to send to Congo on his behalf.  
The goods which comprised slippers and singlets packaged to be delivered to Alexis’ sister in the Democratic Republic of Congo, had fake dollar notes stuffed in it.  Papy said that he did not bother to check the goods based on trust, until the consignment was searched at the Airport. The search yielded $38,400 counterfeit currency.

IGP Meets Criminal Faction of Boko Haram

247ureports
-
1

Information available to 247ureports.com through sources within the leadership ranks of the dreaded terrorist group, the Boko Haram indicates that the Nigerian security agents may have been conned by a criminal faction of the Islam group.
According to available information, the Borno State Government had approached a faction of the Islamic group based in Borno state led by Ali Jos. A meeting between the two was held two days ago at the Government House in Borno State. The discussion concerned calling a seize fire and a halt of all violent operations.

But operators within the Islamic group have discounted the faction led by Ali Jos as not recognized by Boko Haram. The source indicated that Ali Jos to be a native of Benue State [Tiv Tribe] whose operational activities are localized in Borno State alone. He added that the Ali Jos led faction are primarily concerned with criminally minded operations such as attacking schools and other civilian targets in Borno State. “They are the ones attacking schools.”

The source continues that the violent activities will not end until the Supreme Leader of the Islamic group, Malam Shekau, is engaged in a dialogue – and an agreement reached. “Shekau is the Supreme Leader”, exclaimed the Boko Haram source.

The Inspector General of Police, Abubakar is scheduled to meet with the Ali Jos led faction of Boko Haram in Abuja today – Wednesday May 16, 2012.

Stay tuned

Kano: JTF Nab 4 Boko Haram Suspects

247ureports
-
0

Information reaching 247ureports.com through a credible source indicates that the Joint Task Force [JTF] may have nabbed four [4] suspected members of Boko Haram at a town called Unguwa-Uku in Kano State. The arrest was made the evening of Tuesday May 15, 2012 at 6pm.

The arrested suspects, according an eyewitness, were caught driving in a brand new green Volkswagen Golf 3.

The men of the JTF had been trailing the men in the Volkswagen vehicle until they arrived at a JTF checkpoint – when the men were asked to exit the vehicle – and to sit on the floor. As the four suspect exited the vehicle, they made no attempt at resisting arrest nor did they question the reason for their arrest. An eyewitness account indicated that the men were not surprised to have been stopped and arrested by the security agents. The men were said to be smiling as they sat on the floor, one was dressed in a red kaftan and the others in a white polo.

The arresting officers comprised of men from the State Security Services [SSS], plain cloths police officers and uniform mobile police officers. They were said to begin manhandling the 4 suspects – as the suspects sat obediently on the floor. One of the officers ordered for the men to lay-down – and as they began to lay down – the officer began beating one of the suspects with his boot and using the butt of his riffle. Other officers joined in the beating.

The fate of the 4 suspects are not known.

stay tuned

Buhari’s Prediction Of Bloodshed In 2015 And Comments On Boko Haram, Sad And Unfortunate – Presidency

247ureports
-
6

State House Press Statement

The attention of the Presidency has been drawn to unfortunate statements in the media made by former Head of State and presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), Major Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) in which he allegedly predicted bloodshed in 2015 and labelled the Federal Government led by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, as “the biggest Boko Haram”.

But perhaps the most unfortunate part of the statement was the portion in which Buhari said that, “Since the leaders now don’t listen to anybody but do whatever they wish, there is nothing the north can do.”

We find it very sad that an elder statesman who once presided over the entirety of Nigeria can reduce himself to a regional leader who speaks for only a part of Nigeria. We now understand what his protégé and former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Nasir El’Rufai, meant when he wrote in a public letter in October of 2010, telling Nigerians that Buhari remains “perpetually unelectable” and that Buhari’s “insensitivity to Nigeria’s diversity and his parochial focus are already well-known.” Who can know Buhari better than his own political associate?

Come to think of it, as the CPC presidential candidate in the 2011 election, how many states in the Federation did he visit to campaign for votes? Buhari never bothered to campaign in the southern part of the country and consistently played up the North-South divide to the chagrin of patriotic and well-meaning Nigerians. As the results revealed, Nigerians will never vote for anyone who wants to divide the country. Is Buhari going to continue to be a sectional leader?

The Federal Government led by President Jonathan is not Boko Haram. Boko Haram means Western Education is sin. That being the case, one wonders how a government that devoted the largest sectoral allocation in the 2012 budget to education could be said to be Boko Haram. Between 1983, when Buhari forcefully seized power from the democratically elected administration of President Shehu Usman Shagari, and 2012, no other administration has committed the same quantum of resources as the Jonathan administration to education in the part of Nigeria that has witnessed the most Boko Haram-related insecurity.

Only on April 10, 2012, President Jonathan commissioned the first of 400 Federal Government Model Almajiri Schools, equipped with modern facilities such as a Language Laboratory, Qur’an Recitation Hall, classrooms and dormitories as well as a clinic, vocational workshop, dining hall and quarters for the Mallams. As Nigerians read this, more of such schools have been completed.

We now challenge Major General Buhari (rtd) to tell Nigerians what he has done, whether in his capacity as the head of a military junta or in his private capacity, to bring education to vulnerable children. If he cannot live up to this challenge, perhaps he has to reassess who really is Boko Haram.

Buhari claims that the Federal Government does not listen. Such an accusation ought not to emanate from a man overthrown by his own hand- picked colleagues in the military for refusing to listen to advice and behaving as if he had a monopoly of knowledge.

It is on record that the Federal Government led by President Jonathan is a listening administration hence its decision to pursue all means of resolving the Boko Haram insurgency including through dialogue.

When Buhari says that “if what happens in 2011 should again happen in 2015, by the grace of God, ‘the dog and the baboon would all be soaked in blood”, we hereby state that it is Buhari himself who does not listen. He has obviously refused to listen to the Nigerian People, the European Union, the Commonwealth Monitoring Group, the African Union and a multitude of independent electoral monitors who testified that the 2011 elections were free and fair and “the best elections since Nigeria returned to civil rule.”

Indeed, such a reaction from Buhari is not totally unexpected since he has become a serial election loser who has never taken his past election defeats graciously even when such elections were generally acknowledged to be free and fair.

Still on the issue of Boko Haram, we wonder what locus a man whose party’s Secretary General, Buba Galadima, told the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in December, 2010, that the Federal Government is underestimating the support base of Boko Haram, has to accuse a government that has been threatened on camera by the leaders of Boko Haram of itself being Boko Haram?

Major General Buhari (rtd) also boasts of his knowledge of the Petroleum Industry because of his time as Federal Commissioner for Petroleum. We wonder why he did not boast of the infamous scandal that occurred in that ministry where under his watch billions of Naira (in the 1970s) were reported stolen, a matter which led to the setting up of the Justice Ayo Irikefe panel.

Finally, we wish to make it known to Buhari that given his reference to “dogs and baboons”, perhaps his best course of action would be to travel to the zoo of his imagination because President Goodluck Jonathan was elected by human beings to preside over human beings and it is human beings who will determine what happens in Nigeria at any material time not “dogs and baboons”.

REUBEN ABATI

Special Adviser (Media & Publicity) to the President

May 15, 2012.

 

Stealing Ebonyi Local Governments’s Funds

247ureports
-
2

by Emma Igwe

In fairness to Her Excellency , the wife of State Executive
Governor, Mrs. Josephine Elechi . She is a rare gift to humanity and
EBONYIANS in particular . She is an icon per excellence , a virtuous
woman and a social political connoisseur who knows where and when it
is pinching her children . This commendation is a well deserved honour
, an unbiased appreciation of a woman after our heart , devoid of
sycophancy or any appendage to her status as the First Lady of the
State . I am not commending her Excellency’s laudable MCCI programme
which has not only revived the once hopeless VVF in this State but
united many homes that were hitherto broken by the menace . It speaks
for itself .This encomium has nothing to do with the first lady’s
sympathy and incurable love for widow hood and the indigent people in
the society .
This time, she has won my accolade for her immense concern and
solemn steadfastness to generate sense of belonging , safety and
satisfaction to the people at the grassroot which development and
political participation has continued to elude . She demonstrated
respect for the people of Ebonyi State and God recently when she
damned every consequence and publicly condemned the ineffectual and
inept performance of our some council Chairmen who vested with the
power to promote and co-ordinate development at that level of
government . She exemplified a rare sense of responsibility and
responsiveness to the hues and cry among the public over that tier of
government . She exhibited these starling qualities during her
official visit and project inspection tour to Ikwo Local Government .
She courageously unmasked Barr. Celestine Igberi Nweme ,the Algon
Chairman as a low performer whose insignificant development plan has
not touched the lives of those in the periphery of decision making
arrangement but has alienated the poor rural dwellers from government
. Her Excellency also rejected his gifts for abysmal infrastructural
facilities in his council area and ordered him to convert the gift into meaningful projects that will benefit the people at the grassroot.

The first lady while berating the ignoble action of the council
stated bitterly “that despite the allocation the local governments
receive like others, it was not utilized by the council chairman”
It was also pathetic to hear from Her Excellency that some local
governments and sister development centres could not even pay a common
counterpart fund to World Bank Agency to secure grant to embark on
grassroot projects in their various council areas . It can be deduced
from the anger of Her Excellency over this uncommon drama that there
is enormous fund available to the local governments but its economic
and financial profile is still very poor; relative to the
developmental programmes it is expected to carry out in their
locality.
It can also suggest that the council chairmen have failed to
exercise the certain powers and control over the affairs in their
domain. There seems to be some impediments that have been infringing
on the functions and duties of these council Chairmen who have
continued to live outlandish life style since they assume office at
the expense of the poor rural dwellers.
While some people might ascribe the political connotation and or
bitter personal rancour with the affected council chairman to the
action of the First Lady , I am of the view that the thing that made
a mother to publicly spank his lovely child is deeper in meaning than
what we think.The drama has summarily brought so many questions to my
mind. One , since the council areas have enough fund at their disposal
according to Mrs. Elechi why has local governments which are suppose
to serve as the basis for socio-economic development in their various
localities do not live up to their expectations . Two , what are the
causes of the apparent conspicuous under performance of local
government chairmen in the state . To diagnose the poor performances
of our council areas so many questions need to be answered .

One , did the council chairmen emerged on popular mandate of their people or
were they imposed on their people by Ikwo power brokers who merely see
the council areas located several kilometers away from Ikwo as
extension of their business enterprises that must make profit at the
end of every month.

Two ,how many times have the Governor visited
various council areas on projects inspection or do the Governor rely
on his brothers who are exploiting the inaccessibility of the
Governor to make various demands on the council chairmen since they
can never verify from his Excellency. In this regard the Governor
needs to tender apology to Ebonyi people for his docility on
monitoring our council areas and for his failure to caution his
brother who goes around giving various and unmerited awards to Council
Chairmen and Coordinators for a mere fact that they make a monthly
return of two million naira to the powerful Ikwo commissioner.

It is pertinent to raise this fear as every available
indications ,convictions and physical observation have shown that un
necessary interferences by a particular powerful commissioner of Ikwo
extraction and widescale embezzlement by officials at the local
government has made the needed development of the grass root a tall
dream and has rendered them financially incapable to discharge their
constitutionally assigned responsibilities.

Thirdly, what are the challenges of the local? Given the dismal performance of local
governments these days in the economic development process of local
areas which made the first Lady to fight in public , it is imperative
to know if local government is truly a third tier of government or an
agency under the ministry of local government and chieftaincy matters
headed by Mr. Celestine Nwali .

Can we posit now that section 7 of the 1999 constitution has lowered the status of local governments as a mere appendage of the state government . In practical terms, the first
Lady should be aware of existence of one unholy alliance between the
state and local councils called the JOINT ACCOUNT COMMITTEE (JAC)
constituted by the state government under the imperial leadership of
Mr. Celestine Nwali. The wife of the governor should equally know that
Ikwo people are responsible for the maladministration of our Council
areas in Ebonyi .

How come an Ikwo man is the commissioner for local
governments, Chairman, Association for Local Governments of
Nigeria(ALGON }, Ebonyi State Chapter, Chairman Coordinators Forum,
Chairman Local Governments pension board to mention but a few. Is
Mrs. Elechi not aware that unnecessary deductions are made to satisfy
the gluttonous tendencies of Ikwo political cabal?. Why come JAC will
never publish the allocations made available to local governments and
Development centres?
Madam Excellency ,are you not aware of several phony accounts created
for the purpose of diverting our collective wealth . The former beauty
goddess of Abakaliki land , if you can summon the courage to stop
this particular Ikwo from stealing our collective wealth , you will
register your name in the Guinness book of records . The to do good
may be there but the courage may be lacking in view of the prevailing
politics of sycophancy and clannishism as exemplified in the present
day government. All these incapacitate the council chairmen from
functioning effectively and further alienate grassroot people from
social services .
However, local governments in now considered as an extension of
the ALMIGHTY ministry of local government and chieftaincy matters ,
created as a subservient institution that have become a tool of
manipulation by the commissioner instead of the aspired status of
instruments of change and development at the grass root. The council
Chairmen awaits for next directives from the ministry before they
could think of paying their salaries let alone embarking on
development project.The degree of external influence and intrusion in
that level of government by the agent of the state is worrisome .
Recently , one hundred and forty million naira(#140m) was
withdrawn from the account of one Emeka Nwali, a close relative of the
Commissioner and shared among the council chairmen and some
coordinators. The money was withdrawn from Stanbic Ibtc bank Abakaliki
and presently, each council chairman, his or her relative presently
maintains an account with the bank for future deals. Her Excellency,
you may wish to probe into that transaction to know the real owner of
the account, how such among of money was sourced and the purpose of
bribing the council chairmen to open account with the bank.
Let it not be said that this account is been used to divert
public funds into private purse

I think her Excellency is right in tackling the issue of bad
governance at the local government level. But the crux of the matter
is that the ALMIGHTY power and misuse of the political control
enjoined by the State government over them is drastically affecting
the performance of the Councils’ chief executives.

It is no secret that most of the chairmen are handpicked by the Ikwo over lords since
the Governor himself don’t know much about the younger generation
while less than 20% are selected by few powers in the cabinet of His
Excellency during elections .The last clear case of who pays the piper
dictates the tune. These chairmen end up as bedroom or better still
errand boys for their political masters who sees the council as either
an avenue for baking their own proportion of national cake or as a
private property . As a consequence therefore underdevelopment will
continue to wage on at that level.

Lamorde Decries Fraud In Land Acquisition in FCT

247ureports
-
0

Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr Ibrahim Lamorde on May 15th , 2012, decried fraudulent dealings in land acquisition in the    Federal Capital Territory , FCT.“For some of us in the law enforcement regime in this country, if there are areas that have become interesting to visit and where fraud is being perpetuated, it is land administration in the FCT. It is in the FCT that people brandish supposed originals of Certificate of Occupancy of plots of land and other people still come and contest it with the original Certificate”.
Speaking at the public presentation of a United Nations Development Programme, UNDP – sponsored report of a “Systems Study on the Federal Capital Territory Land Administration and Documentary on Grassroots Involvement with Budget Process in Abuja”, Lamorde described the results of the study as commendable, stressing that such a report should be expanded and applied not only in the FCTA but across Nigeria.
He described land scam as the biggest scam in the FCT, and explained that, since “land is very important to us in African; I hope we can move forward positively from this study and replicate it in other parts of the country”.
  In his submissions, the Acting Chairman of the ICPC, Hon. Ekpo Nta, stated that, “land plays a very critical role in our private lives and national development.  High propensity for corrupt practices in land administration if left unchecked can lead to frustrations, demolitions, civil strife and deaths.”
He noted that, “the choice of land Administration in the FCT as an area of interest, was unavoidable.  We are delighted that the study was embraced by all levels at the FCT administration because they are interested in running corrupt- free land administration system so that they can work in peace and safety.”
The Minister of the FCT, Bala Mohammed represented by Engr. Anthony Ozodinobi, Permanent Secretary of the FCT applauded the ICPC for initiating the systems study and highlighting the issues and challenges of land administration.
He said “the FCTA will actively work to improve and remove bottlenecks within the system and take a closer look at the overlaps and capacity deficiencies within the FCTA which will lead to improved service delivery.”
Also in attendance at the presentation were Secretary of the ICPC,  Elvis Oglagba; Representative of the Director General of the Bureau of Public Procurement,  Gambo Muazu;  Chairman,  Code of Conduct Bureau, Mr. Sam Soba, and  board members  of the ICPC.

Pres. Obama’s Former Pastor: His Camp Offered Me $150k to Shut the Hell Up!

247ureports
-
0

 

Rev. Jeremiah Wright — the guy who almost derailed President Obama‘s campaign in 2008 — is running his mouth again … this time claiming the Obama camp tried to bribe him four years ago … with $150k of hush money.
Mr. Wright — President Obama’s former pastor — started a media frenzy when his controversial sermons surfaced and an “outraged” Obama was forced to publicly condemn him. But the reverend claims in went beyond that.
He tells the NY Post, “After the media went ballistic on me, I received an e-mail offering me money not to preach at all until the November presidential election.”
Wright says the email — and subsequent offer of $150k through one of the members of his church — came from “one of Obama’s closest friends.”
According to the pastor, he met with Barack at one point during the election: “And one of the first things Barack said was, ‘I really wish you wouldn’t do any more public speaking until after the November election.’ He knew I had some speaking engagements lined up, and he said, ‘I wish you wouldn’t speak. It’s gonna hurt the campaign if you do that.'”
Among Wright’s most damning sermons to come to light during the election … he said the 9/11 attacks were “America’s chickens are coming home to roost.”

Iran Prohibits Use of Foreign Email Addresses

247ureports
-
0

The closely watched crackdown on Iran’s Internet access experienced another major development  this week involving email access to the rest of the world. According to a new report from AFP, an order from the country’s telecommunications minister dictates that all telephone companies, banks, and insurance firms are prohibited from using foreign email services such as Google’s Gmail, Yahoo Mail, or Microsoft’s Hotmail.

From now on, organizations fitting the aforementioned descriptions must use email addresses ending with iran.ir, post.ir, or chmail.ir. Accordingly, Iranian universities must use email addresses ending in ac.ir or .ir, and governmental bodies must use emails ending with gov.ir or .ir, according to AFP, which cited Asr Ertebatat.

These latest changes come as the country prepares to deploy what some have described as its “national Internet” or “halal Internet,” a system that would compel Iranians to only use Iranian email, search, and micro-blogging tools.

Last year, Ali Aghamohammadi, the government’s head of economic affairs, said “Iran will soon create an Internet that conforms to Islamic principles, to improve its communication and trade links with the world… We can describe it as a genuinely ‘halal’ network aimed at Muslims on a ethical and moral level.” And, just last month, the country took the wraps off its Supreme Council of Cyberspace, a group devoted to closely monitoring and policing Iran’s Interet use.

Iran’s increasing Internet controls have come under fire from foreign officials, including President Obama, who in March described the crackdown as an “electronic curtain,” according to Reuters. Reports from inside the country are similarly grim. Weeks ago, one Iranian Internet user told The Washington Post that “none of the fun sites such as Facebook work anymore. All I can read is official Iranian news websites.”

Reporters Without Borders, a press freedom advocacy group, recently ranked Iran (175) below China (174) and just a few slots above North Korea (178) in its most recent Press Freedom Index. Number one was Finland, while the U.S. ranked 47.

1...5,8025,8035,804...5,926Page 5,803 of 5,926