Photo Archive: When London Traffic light dazzled Emir of Katsina

Photo Archive: Emir of Katsina marvels

 at London traffic light  

Published on August 23, 2015 by pmnews   ·   2

The late Emir of Katsina, Usman Nagogo and his aides admiring a traffic light in London during a visit in the 1960s.

Between now and then, Nigerians still marvel at the latest technologies designed and developed by advanced countries.

Posted by Baba Dantiye and others.

5 Nigerian pilgrims die in Saudi Arabia  

Published on September 9, 2015 by pmnews   ·   

FILE PHOTO: Muslim pilgrims gather on Mount Arafat near Mecca as they perform one of the Hajj rituals on October 3, 2014 (AFP Photo/Mohammed al-Shaikh)

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) on Wednesday said five Nigerian pilgrims had died in the Holy land

The Head of Madinah Operations of NAHCON, Dr Bello Tambuwal, disclosed this to newsmen in Madinah.

Tambuwal said four of the deceased died in Madinah and one in Macca.

He said NAHCON had established two clinics in Madinah to provide medical treatment to the pilgrims.

“The clinics were stocked with drugs. We brought some from Nigeria while we bought some here.”

He also said that the commission had not recorded any traffic accident involving a Nigerian pilgrim.

Tambuwal said 46,770 pilgrims had so far been transported to Saudi Arabia, adding that the exercise would be completed on schedule.

All Boko Haram camps have been destroyed, terrorists subdued

All Boko Haram camps have been destroyed, 

terrorists subdued – DHQ  

Published on September 9, 2015 by pmnews   ·   1

Colonel Rabe Abubakar

The Nigerian troops have destroyed all known Boko Haram terrorists’ camps and cells in the North East and have subdued the rampaging terrorists.

The Director of Defence Information (DDI), Colonel Rabe Abubakar stated this at his maiden media interaction with journalists at Defence Headquarters (DHQ), Abuja.

Abubakar said that the terrorists have been so militarily defeated and weakened that they can never hold any part of the territory in that part of the country.

He said: “These terrorists have been subdued, even if they are adopting other means and as they are restratagising, we are also doing same

“We have been coordinating on the air and ground assault to make sure that these terrorists hideouts are completely decimated. As I am speaking to you all the terrorists camps have completely been wiped out. So right now they are completely in disarray, having no command and control of where to plan. We have even taken over the their camps that most of them have even abandoned their bases and blended within towns and communities. We have also apprehended some of them and very soon move back to their communities.”

“We are making a lot of headways and a lot of achievements and people should know that Boko Haram is no longer strong enough to hold ground. Very soon this issue of whether they are in control of any territory in Nigeria or not will come to the open. We must begin to think of the nation. I am assuring you that they will never again recapture the territory taken from them, because what is happening right now with the deployment of troops, equipment and morale will ensure that, “he added.

Abubakar said that a lot of progress has been made as a result of new strategies adopted by the new service chiefs including constant morale boosting visit to the troops on the front line.

These visits, he said, coupled with the deployment of sophisticated weapons, have not only boosted the morale of the troops, but practically introduced a new dimension on combating terrorism and insurgency in the north east, “hence the issue of desertion, complaints of non equipment and lack of morale and motivation are now thing of the past”.

He noted that emphasis are now placed on credible training and retraining on the sanctity of human rights observance and protection of the combatants in the battle fields, promising “an improved enforcement of rule and relations of the international standard”.

“As the mop up operation and mines clearance is intensified in the liberated areas, so also necessary measures are being put in place to ensure that safety and security prevail in those places.”

However, he said, it will definitely require collective effort to detect and apprehend the would be suicide bombers in our respective localities.

Part of that collective effort, Abubakar noted, is the deployment of 8,700 strong regional force at the designated sectors under the newly restructured MNJTF.

Stowaway caught inside Med View plane’s tyre compartment at Lagos airport  

Published on September 9, 2015 by pmnews   ·  

Jamiu Yisa

Med-View Airliner: emergency landing in Lagos

An unidentified young man whose age was put at around 25, has been apprehended and handed over to the police at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja, for attempting to stowaway on board a Med View Airline aircraft.

P.M.NEWS reliably gathered that the man had successfully hidden himself in the tyre compartment of the aircraft which was ready for taxiing from the private terminal known as MMA2.

Luck ran out on him when an eagle eyed pilot caught him when he was doing the last inspection round the plane before take off.

He was said to have confessed hiding around the airport for two weeks trying to achieve his purpose during interrogation.

The stowaway was said to have also confessed that he did what he did out of desperation to leave the country in search of greener pasture.

Speaking on how he found his way into the tyre compartment of the aircraft, he declared that he jumped through the fence that demarcates the VIP section from the tarmac where the plane was waiting for clearance for take off.

It was further gathered that the stowaway has been handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for further questioning.

How to Handle Every Breast Type

How to Handle Every Breast Type

How to Handle Every Breast Type

     Breasts are like snowflakes. Every one is unique. Know the right moves, though, and you'll have her melting in your arms. (And for more ways to melt her mind, pick up a copy of
The Men's Healthand Women's HealthBig Book of Sex.)

• Large Breasts: In a study conducted at the University of Vienna, researchers found that large breasts were about 24 percent less sensitive than small ones. "This is probably because the nerve that transmits sensation from the nipple is stretched," says Alan Matarasso, M.D., a plastic surgeon in New York City. Stimulate the outer sides of her breasts, just below the armpits, with your tongue or fingertips. Make flipping motions with your tongue and even experiment with light nibbling.
• Small Breasts: They're sensitive, but they can handle more motion because of their size. Use your palms to cup and gently bounce her breasts during sex. 
• Droopy Breasts: Droopy breasts can be the least sensitive--not only are the nerves stretched, but they're compressed by the breasts' weight. Have her lie on her back; it'll cause her breasts to shift up and out, relieving the tension on the nerves and helping her focus on the pleasure. 
• Surgically Enhanced Breasts: If done properly, implants won't interfere with sensation. But they will move differently. Concentrate on the surface of her breasts. Use your tongue to make circles that gradually spiral in toward the nipples. 
• New-Mom Breasts: Her nipples will be tender, so focus on the breasts' undersides, which are frequently neglected. Gently cup and support her breasts. It'll feel nice to her after a long day of suckling.

President Obama says he’s changing the name of the tallest mountain in North Americ

President Obama says he’s changing the name of the tallest mountain in North America

Pres. Obama said Mount McKinley will be renamed to Denali. (Source: Wikimedia)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — To hear the White House describe Alaska, the state has become the canary in the climate change coal mine, complete with raging wildfires, accelerating ice melt in the arctic, vanishing glaciers and whole villages forced to relocate away from rising seas.

President Barack Obama will carry that urgent message to Alaska this week in the hopes his long journey away from his busy agenda in Washington will begin to change the national conversation on global warming.

His first step while he’s there: officially renaming the country’s tallest mountain from Mt. McKinley to Denali, an historic nod to the region’s native population, which the White House says is under threat from the already-present threat of climate change.

“This is all real. This is happening to our fellow Americans right now,” Obama said in his weekly address Saturday.

All week long, Obama will try to call attention to Alaska as a kind of climate change ground zero. Whether it’s a hike on a melting glacier near the town of Seward or his visit with fisherman in the remote coastal village of Dillingham, the President wants a distracted public to see the jarring effects of global warming through his own eyes.

To maximize the impact of the historic trip, which will make Obama the first sitting U.S. president to visit the arctic, the White House plans to devote all of the resources of its potent social media operation.

It’s also using the trip to formalize the Denali name change, which native Alaskans have sought for decades. Named McKinley in 1896, shortly after President William McKinley was nominated as a candidate for office, the 20,320-foot peak has long been known locally as Denali, its name in the indigenous Athabascan language.

The national park that surrounds the mountain was named Denali in 1980, but the peak itself is still listed in official federal documents as McKinley. Past attempts to make the change were blocked by lawmakers from McKinley’s home state of Ohio.

IObama is set to meet Monday with members of the native population to discuss ways the federal government can help them prepare for the effects of a changing climate, which the White House says include interrupted winter hunting seasons, newly hostile conditions for fish and wildlife and seawater encroaching on long-settled territory.

“The issue of climate change is not an issue of the future tense in Alaska, it is affecting people’s lives and their livelihoods in real ways,” White House senior adviser Brian Deese said in a preview of the three-day trip.

During a conference call with reporters, Deese laid out the administration’s latest data on the climate challenges facing Alaskans.

The arctic has warmed almost twice as fast as the rest of the world and portions of northern Alaska have lost a “football field’s worth of land a day to coast erosions and sea-level rise,” Deese said.

Wildfires have scorched “5 million acres of land, which is approximately the size of my home state of Massachusetts,” he added.

Obama will deliver remarks at a conference of arctic nations in Anchorage to foreign ministers representing counties with a vested interest in the region. Secretary of State John Kerry, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and other top administration officials are also making the 4,000-mile plus journey for the gathering.

The foreign policy implications of a changing arctic are quickly coming into focus for the Obama administration, as Russia is increasingly behaving like a military rival in the area.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think-tank recently warned Moscow is boosting its military presence in the arctic, dubbing the Russian ambitions as “the ice curtain.”

The rapid ice melt in the Arctic is more than just a military concern. There are also vital economic considerations, as the evolving climate is opening up new shipping opportunities over the top of the world for counties from China to Scandinavia.

But for fishermen who have relied on the predictability of Alaska’s frigid temperatures for generations, the stakes are much higher. As the President noted in his weekly address, the state’s independent governor warns four Alaskan villages are in “imminent danger” and must be relocated.

“Think about that. If another country threatened to wipe out an American town, we’d do everything in our power to protect ourselves,” Obama said in the address. “Climate change poses the same threat, right now.”

Even though environmentalists welcome the President’s focus, some conservationists have accused Obama of climate hypocrisy, citing the recent approval for Royal Dutch Shell to begin oil and gas drilling in the Chukchi Sea off of Alaska’s northwest coast. Also of concern to climate change activists is the administration’s looming decision on the Keystone XL pipeline.

“Climate leaders don’t drill in the arctic,” tweeted the progressive group, Credo. The tweet featured a rendering of Obama wearing a Shell oil patch on his chest and standing on an aircraft carrier with a banner reading “Mission Accomplished,” a reference to the image of President George W. Bush during the Iraq War.

The President defended the decision in favor of Shell’s application as part of a balanced energy approach which he describes as the development of domestic resources of oil and natural gas until more sustainable, alternative fuel sources become the norm.

“I share people’s concerns about offshore drilling. I remember the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico all too well,” Obama said in his weekly address. “That’s precisely why my administration has worked to make sure that our oil exploration conducted under these leases is done at the highest standards possible.”

One White House official dubbed the journey to Alaska a “signature” trip of the Obama presidency, noting climate change will come to be seen as a top priority in the administration’s “fourth quarter.”

Just last week, Obama paid visits to Nevada to discuss initiatives to expand solar power and New Orleans where he marked the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and warned about the effects of severe weather.

Later this year, Obama will return to the issue of global warming when he meets with Pope Francis in September and again at a climate conference in Paris in Decembe

100 days of Buhari

As President Muhammadu Buhari marks his first 100 days in office, we note with joy the positive atmosphere that has enveloped the nation and the renewed hope and optimism it has engendered among Nigerians that ‘change’ has indeed come and that we have begun the journey to achieving our deferred dream of making Nigeria a great country. Since after Nigeria’s independence in 1960, never has there been such a groundswell of optimism in our collective ability to resurrect the ‘crippled and sleeping giant’ of a nation and begin to position it to achieve its manifest destiny of being the voice of and leading Africa and the black world.

Right from the day of his swearing-in, President Buhari made it clear that this would be a new beginning for the country and that he would wage a relentless war against insecurity, corruption and impunity. True to his words, he set about almost immediately on a shuttle diplomacy to rally Nigeria’s neighbours to act in concert to defeat the Boko Haram insurgents that had been terrorising the country and, recently, neighbouring countries. He visited Chad, Niger, and Cameroon, and hosted a summit on the Lake Chad Basin Commission. These visits achieved the important aim of starting and deploying the Multi National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) with headquarters in N’Djamena, Chad, to comprehensively tackle the Boko Haram menace. Between these, he also travelled to Germany, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States – all aimed at winning key supports, assistance and friends for the country in the fight against insurgency.

Expectedly, the president wasted no time in sounding the battle cry in the war against corruption and impunity, which many Nigerians have identified as among the main reasons for our national malaise. Through his body language and some concrete steps taken, like the change of guards at the NNPC and other institutions, the president indicated clearly that it would no longer be business as usual and that his administration would vigorously pursue and prosecute corrupt and erring officials. He has been particularly successful in building a national consensus against, and intolerance of, corruption and impunity encompassing the media, civil society groups and the general public. He is also determined to see to the recovery of looted funds stashed in foreign accounts/countries by corrupt government officials and has sought the help of the international community, particularly the United States and United Kingdom, to achieve this.

However, we are constrained to point out that despite the groundswell of support for the war on corruption and the posturing of the administration in this area, no one has as yet been charged to court for corruption. What appears to be happening is a carefully orchestrated campaign of calumny, terror, and media trial that may not conform to the rule of law.

For instance, there was a media blitz against the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki, to the effect that he purchased fake military hardware and could not account for a large cache of funds meant for the purchase of military equipment. This led to a commando-like storming of his house in Abuja and his father’s house in Sokoto by the Department of State Security with all the drama that went with it. To our utmost shock, when he was charged to court, he was only charged over offences relating to possession of firearms without licence and not the corruption/mismanagement the administration had earlier touted. This is a dangerous signal. Government must stop the smear campaign and media trials on citizens and take its cases to the courts if there is evidence of corruption on anyone.

Again, even after several denials, and despite our best efforts to ignore the trend, the president’s appointments thus far have shown a tendency towards provincialism, and this is already generating tension among Nigerians, on social media and elsewhere. We are strictly in favour of merit-based appointments as sine qua non for the country to move forward. However, we urge the president to take into account the fragile nature of Nigeria’s unity and extend his searchlight to other sections of the country as he seeks to appoint only highly qualified people of good repute and integrity.

It can bear stressing that President Buhari is not the president of Northern Nigeria alone and must not allow himself to be seen as such. We recall the resounding line in his inaugural speech: “I belong to everybody and I belong to nobody”. We, therefore, urge the president to live up to the letter and spirit of those words and not fritter the goodwill that came with his elections and the early days of his administration. Understandably, many people in his party are now angry and embarrassed at what they termed his unilateral and sectional appointments and actions. As one of the president’s backers recently commented on social media, “A president who ran for election on the mantra of change can’t continue the tradition of invidiously clannish appointments and expect to continue to enjoy national goodwill.”

All said, we agree with Gregory Kronsten, an analyst, that “the president has been very active in the three months since the handover on 29 May”. Even though he has not appointed his ministers, he has, however, “wielded the axe at leading public agencies and indicated policy preferences for a number of industries such as textiles and aviation”.

Going forward, we urge the president to seize the opportunity of the moment to build a national consensus and unite the entire country around the quest for growth and development. The clock is ticking.

Nigeria Army uncovers Boko Haram bomb facto

Nigeria Army uncovers Boko Haram bomb factory 

C

Library File

The spokesman for Nigeria military, Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman says its military has uncovered a major Boko Haram bomb-making factory and arrested two leading members of the militant group.

According to Usman, the operation resulted in the seizure of a vehicle and bomb materials, including gas cylinders and fertilizer.

He described the discovery as “an unprecedented feat," which he says demonstrates the military’s determination to defeat the terrorist group.

“When troops of 25 Task Force Brigade did cordon and search operation along the Sandia, Kokakowa and Nyaleri villages in Borno State, they discovered an improvised explosive device-making factory, along the Maiduguri-Bulabulin-Damboa road,” Usman said.

“Alongside, quite a number of other equipment and other weaponry were recovered from the factory. In addition to that the troops were able to capture two key Boko Haram terrorists including an emir- a local community leader in the militant group,” he added.

Usman said the captures help with the military’s intelligence gathering operations in the effort to combat and defeat Boko Haram.

Increased deployments

He said there has been an increase in troop deployment in areas often attacked by Boko Haram militants.

This, he said, forms part of the new strategy to increase pressure on the militants in the effort to end their violent campaigns.

“There is intense pressure on the Boko Haram terrorist group not just by the Nigerian army, but the Nigerian Air force also bombarding them here and there ... we are gradually kind of tightening the noose around them in the Sambisa forest,” Usman said.

“People who are quite familiar with the dangers inherent on the road between Maiduguri and Maiduguri-Bulabulin and Damboa road, because of this cordon and search operation, people tend to be attacked so we trying hard to make sure that the roads are opened and protected,” he added.

Usman also said the military is making progress toward meeting a directive from President Muhammadu Buhari to defeat the Islamic militant group within the next three months.

He said the joint multinational force based in neighboring Chad is fully operational and adding the military pressure on Boko Haram militants who often carryout out cross border attacks.

The Islamist extremist group has killed more than 10,000 people since 2009, including 1,000 dead in northeast Nigeria since Buhari was inaugurated in May.

Attached audio is VOA's Peter Clottey in an interview with Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman spokesman for Nigeria's army.

Obasanjo Is A Liar; I Have No Respect For Him – Soyinka

Posted by: niyi August 30, 2015

Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka, has described former President Olusegun Obasanjo as a liar who should not be taken seriously.

Soyinka said this, weekend, during an event organised by telecoms company Globacom at the Eko Convention Centre, Eko Hotel and Suites, in his honour. The event was tagged An Evening With Soyinka.

In response to a question on Obasanjo’s recent statement where he described Soyinka as a political illiterate, Soyinka said Obasanjo has a right to his opinion.

“Obasanjo is entitled to his opinion. The question is ‘who can respect the opinion of a liar’? He is a liar and can prove that. He has been described as an economic illiterate. His book, ‘My watch’ is full of lies. In fact, he began the book with a lie when he said that he deplores lies, and he repeated it several times. I’m not bothered when somebody like Obasanjo passes his opinion about me. I have no respect for Obasanjo. He is a liar.

“I am writing a book titled Republic of Liars and Obasanjo has a prominent place in it. The book will be out soon,” Soyinka said.

The event, which was also a celebration of young literary stars – Seffie Attach, Tope Folarin and E. C. Osundu – was marked with performances.

This is how to get US Visa in Nigeria - US Embassy

US embassy attends to visa complaints on Hangouts

Three officials of the United States Embassy in Nigeria, of Friday, interacted with Nigerians from different parts of the country for an hour and three minutes. They spoke on what applicants should do or avoid when processing the US visa.

The live show was not a television programme. Recognising the growing influence of digital media, the visa officers took to Google Hangouts to provide answers to questions bordering applicants while busting various myths around visa processing.

The officers said they took to Google Hangouts to help applicants relate with the embassy directly instead of patronising touts and agents.

The session, which was moderated by Oluwaseun Olaniyan, an on air personality, gave the US embassy officials an opportunity to explain the differences between the immigrant and non-immigrant visas, tricks in the application process and likely pitfalls that applicants should avoid.

The visa officers also explained the rationale behind some common questions and how responses increase or reduce applicants’ chances of getting a visa. For instance, they spoke on why social and economic ties had become an important question during an interview.

In the course of the interactive session, viewers were given an opportunity to ask personal or general questions. All that was required was a click on a keyboard.

Few days before the Google Hangouts, the embassy sent a press statement, inviting interested individuals to hook on to the event. It also gave an hashtag – #AskTheVOs – through which questions would be received.

Indeed, participants bought into the show, sending questions bordering on income range that could be considered satisfactory for anybody to be given a visa.

But the officers said that the important thing, in the case of non-immigrant applicants, was applicants’ ability to prove that they had economic ties with their countries of residence. They noted that those who satisfied all conditions were never refused.

“Ties are essentially the various aspects of your life that bind you to your country of residence: your possessions and family relationships. Visa officers pay a particular attention to ties as they have to do with an applicant’s home country or country from which they are applying,” they said.

The officers advised visa seekers against relying on agents to fill application forms, adding that visa agents were only motivated by the financial rewards instead of helping their clients to secure visas.

“We strongly discourage the use of touts and agents at any point in the visa process. These agents often give applicants false information. Ultimately, touts and companies are primarily interested in making money not getting you a visa. They do applicants a disservice.

“Touts and agents are part of the reason the consulate reaches out to the Nigerian public through events like this Google Hangouts. We strongly recommend that people apply for a visa and go through the entire process on their own,” they said.

According to the officers, visa process could be carried out by applicants without any assistance. The embassy’s website, they noted, was a sufficient guide for even a first-time applicant.

“Application for a U.S. visa is simple and straightforward. Every piece of information you need can be found on our website,” they noted.

One of the issues they emphasised during the session was that getting a visa does not guarantee an entry into a foreign country but only allows the holder to present himself at a port of entry. They described the visa as “an endorsement issued by a government.”

At the end of the Google Hangouts, the embassy’s representatives said members of the public whose questions were not addressed, could relate with them through #AsktheVOs.

But some of the participants said U.S. visa process was not as simple as the officers made Nigerians to believe, asking why hundreds of applicants were still disqualified daily if it were that simple.

For instance, tweeting on @Davidbeloveth, David Arogundade said, “Some questions are not thoroughly dealt with because I don’t think it is that simple.”