Daily Archives: July 16, 2014
Wizkid Declares Collabo with Rihanna on 24 Birthday
Pop star Ayo Balogun, popularly called, Wizkid turned 24 today, and he has revealed that he is celebrating his 24th birthday with 6 parties and he has a song with international pop star Rihanna. The song is off his forthcoming album. He called into BeatFM 99.9 to talk about his birthday and he disclosed the new song with Rihanna. However, excited fans have been tweeting about the news.
“He has a song with Rihanna!!! Nigga jus confamd on beatfm999,Bruh I swear I can’t wait for his album to drop.
“And ToolzO just made Wizkid say it for the first time, he has a song with Rihanna.
Official Photos From Nkiru Sylvanus Movie Premiere
Nigeria Security Operatives arrest Man for circulating false boko haram attack messages in Abuja
A statement on the website of the Defence Headquarters, DHQ, said Mr. Ugwu, who lives in Abuja, creates text messages of impending bombings by Boko Haram and sends to Nigerians.
The suspect, DHQ said, was tracked by security operatives after dispatching text messages of impending bombings of some hotels in Abuja.
Mr. Ugwu confessed that he employed the gimmick as revenge because the management of one of the hotels failed to offer him employment, DHQ said.
DHQ also said that the suspect confessed that his motive was a ploy to instill fear in the mind of the hotel’s chairman.
2015: PDP govs passes a vote-of-confidence on Jonathan
of Tuesday. The PDP lawmakers had, during the first meeting, passed a vote-of-confidence on Jonathan, asking him to contest the 2015 election. When asked whether the governors also endorsed Jonathan at the meeting, Akpabio said although he would not pre-empt the action of the PDP governors, he could attest to their loyalty to the President. “Members of the PDP Governors’ Forum were present when the National Assembly (House of Representatives) caucus did what they did. I do not want to pre-empt the action of PDP governors, but I can attest to their loyalty and their commitment to the success of Mr. President, come 2015,” the Akwa Ibom State Governor said. When the governor was asked what the response of the President was to his endorsement by the lawmakers, the governor said although Jonathan did not give any answer, he was obviously elated. He attributed the President’s silence to the fact that the Independent National Electoral Commission was yet to release its timetable for the election. “Mr. President didn’t give anybody any answer. He did not say he would contest or he would not contest. Rather, he thanked them for the interest and confidence reposed in him. But I think from his body language, he is very mindful of the law and the need to wait for guidelines from INEC. That was what I noticed,” he added. Akpabio said the President, governors and the party’s NWC did an appraisal of the meeting they had with the lawmakers and resolved that such meetings should be held more regularly.
Does Japanese artist’s arrest prove her point?
(CNN) — In a country with a flourishing porn industry and an annual penis festival, it may come as a surprise that an artist with a mission to make female genitalia "more casual and pop" has run afoul of authorities.
But in Japan, a conceptual artist known for creating works inspired by her genitals is being held by Tokyo police on charges of sharing obscene material electronically.
Megumi Igarashi, who goes by the pseudonym Rokudenashiko (which means "good-for-nothing kid"), launched a crowd-funding campaign to raise money to build a kayak in the shape of her vagina using a 3D printer.
In exchange for donations, supporters of the project were given data that would allow them to make their own 3D prints of her genitals.
Police arrested Igarashi Saturday, charging her with "distributing data that could create an obscene shape through a 3D printer."
The 42-year-old denies the charges, saying that she doesn't acknowledge that the work is "an obscenity." For her, it's a piece of fine art.
In fact, Igarashi came up with the the idea for the project based on her own self doubt. Female genitalia is such a taboo in Japanese society, she explained on her fundraising page, that it has become "overly hidden."
She did not know what a vagina "should look like," she said, and worried that her own was "abnormal."
Images of penises, on the other hand, were an acceptable part of pop culture, she said. (And anyone who's witnessed crowds licking phallic lollipops and sporting penis-shaped glasses at Japan's "Festival of the Steel Phallus" will find it difficult to argue with her.)
The artist has embarked on a whole series of cutesy works inspired by the female anatomy, from smartphone cases to a giant kawaii mascot. She created miniature dioramas, including one of workers toiling away in a vagina-shaped crevice at Fukushima's damaged nuclear plant.
Many critics of her arrest have pointed out that Japan only banned the possession of child pornography a month ago, and even then, the ban excludes explicit anime and manga cartoons.
Distributing uncensored images of real genitalia is a crime under the country's obscenity laws.
More than 17,000 people had signed an online petition calling for Igarashi's release as of Wednesday.
One of her lawyers, Kazuyuki Minami, acknowledges that not everyone will appreciate Igarashi's work, but says that her case is about more than artistic expression.
"Whether you experience empathy with her works that challenge a taboo will depend on the individual's sensitivity. However, all people who believe in freedom and equality of human beings should understand that her arrest and detention was not right thing."
Police are still questioning Igarashi, a spokesperson for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police told CNN Wednesday.
The earliest the artist can be released is August 8, although police can hold her for up to 20 days in order to gather evidence because she denies the charges, the spokesperson said.
If convicted, she could face up to two years jail time or a fine of as much as 2.5 million yen (around US$24,500), her lawyers say.
We Don’t Rob During the Ramadan and on Fridays’ Caught Robbers Tell Police
And clearly, many men must have fallen prey to their wiles. These are hardened criminals who have terrified the people of Ibadan. One of them, Lawal Kabir claims he is a devout Muslim who considers Fridays and the Ramadan period as sacred and therefore, he cannot engage in robbery at such times.
Update: How Nigerian officials received Nyanya bombing suspect from Sudan
Aminu Ogwuche reportedly fled to Sudan immediately after the April 14 bomb blast.
The International Police, INTERPOL, on Tuesday handed over the alleged mastermind of a Nyanya bomb blast, Aminu Ogwuche, to Nigerian security.
The Defence Headquarters, DHQ, first said this through its twitter handle @DefenceInfoNG.
“Ogwuche, the Nyanya Bombing Mastermind was received at the Abuja Airport 3:150PM today, Now in Nigerian Security Custody #CounterInsurgency,” it said.
Not long after, officials briefed journalists on the matter, saying the suspect was extradited from Sudan.
The Coordinator, National Information Centre, Mike Omeri, led the spokespersons of the police, Frank Mba; Department of State Services (DSS), Marilyn Ogar; and Defence Headquarters, Chris Olukolade, to receive the suspect.
Mr. Ogwuche was declared wanted by the federal government on May 15 shortly after the DSS paraded some suspects in connection with the bombing which led to the death of at least 75 people.
Also declared wanted was Abubakar Tsiga, said to be chief mastermind of the bombing.
Shortly after Mr. Ogwuche was declared wanted, he was arrested by the International Police Organisation, INTERPOL, in Sudan, where he fled to. The extradition process back to Nigeria was kept a top secret by the security agencies for operational reasons.
However, on Tuesday the police sent a text inviting journalists to cover the unveiling of a “Special Counter-Terrorism Equipment’’ at the airport.
A few minutes after the journalists arrived at the airport, only photographers and television cameramen were invited to take photographs of the special equipment.
At about 3.20 p.m., the spokesperson of the DSS emerged from the arrival hall, beaming with smile and announced the arrival of Mr. Ogwuche, saying “here is the special counter-terrorism equipment.”
Mr. Ogwuche was guarded by plain clothed security operatives into an 18-seater Toyota bus and driven away.
Addressing journalists later, Mr. Omeri said that the suspect would be interrogated and prosecuted.
“We have just successfully been able to secure his (Ogwuche’s) extradition from Sudan and he is back to his home country to answer questions.
“The usual procedure will take place; he will be interrogated appropriately and charged to court when all the processes are concluded.
“The fight against insurgency and the effort to get our girls back is top a priority of the Federal Government,’’ Mr. Omeri said.
The accused, a U.K.-born Nigerian, was a soldier with service number SVC 95/104 but deserted the army in 2006.
He served in the Intelligence Unit of the Nigerian Army at Child Avenue, Arakan Barracks, Lagos, between 2001 and 2006.
He was arrested on November 12, 2011 at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on arrival from the U.K. for suspected involvement in terrorism-related activities.
He was, however, released on bail to his father, Agene Ogwuche, a retired colonel, on October 15, 2012, following intense pressure from human rights activists, who alleged human rights violation, the SSS said.
The elder Ogwuche, a retired colonel in the Nigerian Army in 2012, had pledged to produce his son when needed for questioning.
On May 15, the State Security Service arrested the suspect’s father, Agene Ogwuche, following a breach of bond, which he signed while taking his son’s bail in 2012.
PHOTOS: Mikel Obi Visits Nigerian Breweries (Mikel Obi As You Have Not Seen Him Before)
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Chibok Girls’ Families Reject Presidential Meeting, Jonathan Blames Opposition
In a statement issued to the national media, and one SaharaReporters obtained, the president’s office blamed opposition forces for the cancellation.
The parents of the kidnapped Chibok students said ‘no’ to a meeting with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday, the BBC reports. Their rejection of the Tuesday meet-up in Abuja was unexpected, and has struck a blow to the president’s ongoing charm offensive.
The meeting was a staged event organized by Levick, the Washington-based PR firm, and President Goodluck Jonathan was set to formally meet and be photographed with the families of the students abducted by Boko Haram in mid-April. 17 Chibok residents were expected to meet with the president, including five of the students who had managed to escape. However, the Borno State families, in a surprising last minute move, reportedly called it off.
In a statement issued to the national media, and one SaharaReporters obtained, the president’s office blamed opposition forces for the cancellation, and put out the following:
“It now appears that our fight to get the girls of Chibok back is not only a fight against a terrorist insurgency, but also against a political opposition.”
“It is with great regret that I announce the cancellation of the meeting with 12 parents of the abducted Chibock children, as well as five of the brave girls who escaped from the terrorist organization Boko Haram. I scheduled this meeting, which was to be open to the media for coverage by Nigerian and international press, to listen to their stories and to privately brief the parents and the girls on our efforts to rescue the abducted girls.”
“My priority is not politics. My priority is the return of these girls.”
“Unfortunately, political forces within the Nigerian chapter of Bring Back Our Girls have decided to take this opportunity to play politics with the situation and the grief of the parents and the girls. They should be ashamed of their actions.”
“Those who would manipulate the victims of terrorism for their own benefit, are engaging in a similar kind of evil: psychological terrorism.”
“I want to be clear, this government stands with complete solidarity with the girls and their parents. We are doing everything in our power to bring back our girls. Despite the shameful and disgusting games being played by the Nigerian chapter of Bring Back Our Girls, as a father of girls, I stand ready to meet with the parents of our abducted children and the truly brave girls that have escaped this nightmare through the grace of God.”
The “summit” was supposed to be a public relations opportunity for President Jonathan. That summit with 12 parents of the abducted Chibok students in the Nigerian capital would have been invaluable to him politically.
In May, President Jonathan had backed out of a scheduled meeting with the parents of the kidnapped Chibok students while visiting Borno State.
Military forces traveling with the president cited security concerns that prevented Jonathan from visiting Chibok back then. Some Chibok residents speaking with a SaharaReporters correspondent afterwards said they felt ‘snubbed’ by the president’s bailout on the visit.
Phillip Elwood, the Vice President of the Levick firm, told a SaharaReporters correspondent hours after the cancelled event that the reasoning for the Jonathan bailout was that “they are facing a crisis on the ground.” Elwood offered no further information, and told the correspondent to call back later for more information.
SaharaReporters did call back, but Elwood’s phone immediately forwarded to voice mail. At press time, there was no mention of the cancelled event on the company’s web site.