AN APOLOGY

i sincerly want to apologise to you, my dearest friends for being AWOL all these while.
iam sorry for the silence without a prior notice.
in all, you have been in my thoughts and i promise to be back with interesting and thought provoking contents.
pls do bear with me, and thanks for staying with me through these times.
you guys rock!!!!!
its friday!!!!!!!! be good, have fun and stay out of trouble.

rita

BREAKING NEWS:TWIN BOMB BLAST IN JOS

Twin blast rocked jos this afternoon. The explosion  ripped through the University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) area inside the terminus market in Jos, Plateau state.                                                                                             

The number of casualty is still unknown at the moment. eye witnesses at the scene of the blast have been tweeting pics from the blast. find pics below..........................................................                               

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NOA shares more pics of our men in action to #bringbackourgirls(photos)

NOA is the National Orientation Agency.

  

#bringbackourgirls: Would Jonathan succumb to the pressure for prisoners swap?

President Goodluck Jonathan is currently under pressure from some prominent Nigerians and some of his influential aides to accept the prisoner swap offer made by Boko Haram to release the over 200 schoolgirls it abducted from their school in Chibok on April 14, investigation has revealed.

The leader of the sect, Abubakar Shekau, had in a recent video asked for the release of Boko Haram members detained by security agencies across the country in exchange for the abducted girls.

Although the Presidency had ruled out what it called “trade by barter” in securing the release of the schoolgirls, some top government officials, including the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, had at different times said the government would go to any length to ensure that the girls were brought back to safety.

But it was learnt on Sunday that the President was being pressured by some prominent Nigerians to accede to the demands of the sect.

Their argument, it was gathered , was that what Nigerians and the international community were
interested in at this time was the release of the girls and not the process leading to it.

“Some prominent Nigerians are already reaching out to the President on the need for him to change his stand on the matter and do anything that can lead to the release of the girls. They are of the view that the release is the most important thing now,” a source close to the Presidency said in Abuja.

He did not name the prominent Nigerians whom he said had reached out to Jonathan on the matter.

The source added that some of the President’s top aides were also of the view that inasmuch as the girls were still in the abductors’ den, Jonathan’s goodwill among Nigerians and on the international scene would continue to dwindle.

This, they argued, would not do the President and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party any good as election year approaches.

Our source said If the President finally yields to the pressure, the release of the Boko Haram members in detention would not be made a public issue like when their wives and children were freed last year.

The source said this was to avoid the moral burden of justifying the release of criminals in exchange for innocent girls.

He added that once the decision was finally taken, the sect members who had already been convicted by courts might not benefit from the arrangement.

The source was not sure whether Shekau would also enjoy the luxury of naming his members who should benefit from the exchange or not.

He said, “Some of us are on the same page with these prominent Nigerians on this matter. Government should not be seen to be too rigid on this matter if we must get result.

“The way it is going, if the pressure is sustained, I see the President giving up on the matter in coming days and processes leading to the consummation of the agreement will be done behind the scene.

“This is why some government officials have been saying that the government will explore all options. It is our belief that this should be done as secretly as possible because of those who do not see the sense in government releasing criminals in exchange for the innocent girls.”

The Northern Elders’ Forum had said no sacrifice was too much to bring back the girls, even if it included releasing Boko Haram prisoners.

The forum’s spokesman Prof. Ango Abdullahi, had told SATURDAY PUNCH that, “every sacrifice is worth making to get these girls released from wherever they are kept.”

Jonathan had in May last year directed the Defence headquarters to release some Boko Haram members in its custody.

The decision was said to have been in furtherance of the Federal Government’’ position in response to requests by the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Reconciliation.

The Spokesman for the President, Reuben Abati, had at that time said Jonathan’s directive was evidence of his government’s multi-dimensional approach to tackling the security challenge in some parts of the country

Gen Buhari denies having any adopted son

Gen Buhari has denied that a young man(pictured above)named Mohammed Buhari who was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on  suspicion of fraud to the tune of N20 million is his adopted son.

General Buhari through his camp has stated that the reports are false as he has no adopted son.

This was contained in a statement released by the Buhari Vanguard on behalf of the General.

Read full statement below:

Gen Muhammadu Buhari (Rtd) wishes to state categorically that he does not have any adopted son called “Muhammadu Buhari” and had no need to adopt a son at any time having been blessed with choice children, both male and female.

Muhammadu Buhari and his family do not know the said “Muhammed Buhari” who is alleged to be involved in a N20m scam and is being held by EFCC as reported by Saharareporters.

It is regrettable to note that after several unsuccessful attempts to smear the hard earned respect, popularity, dignity, and enviable image of Muhammadu Buhari, mischief makers have resorted to a laughable tactic of linking Muhammadu Buhari to a crime just because someone who has been alleged to have committed a crime somewhere bears the name “Buhari”.

Muhammadu Buhari is blessed with very descent and disciplined children who obviously took after their father. His children have no single record of stealing and inordinate behavior anywhere in the world. They do not seek attention, but have proven the stuff their father is made of any time their character is put to test.

However, this is understandable, since the entire attempts by mischief makers to discredit Muhammadu Buhari as an individual have failed. We frown at this poorly articulated gimmick to indirectly link Muhammadu Buhari and his family to a crime allegedly committed by someone unknown to him and his family just for the fact that the said suspect bears the name “Muhammed Buhari”.

We urge Nigerians to ignore the said report as Muhammadu Buhari and his family will continue to set the pace for others to follow in good character and conduct.

British Surveillance jet breaks down on its way to Nigeria to help #bringbackourgirls

In another news, the British surveillance jet which was on its way to Nigeria to help in the search for missing Chibok girls reportedly broke down in Senegal due to unspecified technical problems.

UK Ministry of Defense released a statement explaining this...

"A technical fault which has delayed the Sentinel aircraft on its way to Ghana is being investigated and will be solved as soon as possible. In the meantime the UK military team continues its work on the ground while other surveillance aircraft continue the search for the missing schoolgirls," .

British Prime Minister, David Cameron, announced that Britain would offer Nigeria a surveillance jet to help in the search of the missing girls.