Agony of a baby

This baby will never know her mother. Her mother will never sing lullaby to her or rock her to sleep. Worse still, she will never suckle from her mother’s breast.
This is because just one week after her birth, suspected Fulani herdsmen invaded their community in Mbalaagh Council Ward of Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State and murdered her mother, Felicia Asongo.
The baby, who looks so smallish for her age, was lucky to have been smuggled away from the crisis by her grandmother during the attack in which 27 people were allegedly killed. She is now being fed with baby milk under the watchful eyes of her aged grandmother.
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US Judge Rules Against Emeka Ugwuonye, US-Based Lawyer Accused Of Stealing $1.55 Million From The Nigerian Embassy

A United States court has ruled against controversial US-based Nigerian lawyer, Emeka Ugwuonye, in a civil case filed by the Embassy of Nigeria in Washington, DC. The embassy’s lawsuit sought the recovery of a tax refund of $1.55 million it claimed Mr. Ugwuonye stole from real estate transactions he handled for the embassy.
In a default judgement rendered Tuesday, April 23, 2013, Judge Barbara J. Rothstein stated that the judgment against Mr. Ugwuonye’s law firm, ECU Associates, was appropriate because the firm had not responded to court orders to provide an attorney to separately defend the case against it.
SaharaReporters also learned that Mr. Ugwuonye failed to appear at the offices of the law firm retained by the embassy to honor a scheduled deposition. The lawyers for the embassy had written to notify the court that Mr. Ugwuonye did not show up at the deposition despite the fact that he was fully informed about it through court-approved modes of communication.
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Jim Iyke, Nadia Having Secret Affair?

The question on many lips now is, is Jim Iyke, Nollywood bad boy and the pretty Ghanaian actress, Nadia Buari having a secret affair?

The rumour mill has been spinning for a while now leaving everyone confused about the recent hand-in-hand toddling between Jim and Ghanaian sexy screen goddess, Nadia
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Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde Dethrones Genevieve Nnaji As Queen Of Nollywood - TIME Magazine

Genevieve Nnaji is no longer the Queen of Nollywood since the most authoritative and most powerful news magazine in the world TIME magazine has recognized leading Nollywood diva Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde as the new Queen of Nollywood in its citation on her as she became the first Nigerian actor/actress to make the highly coveted and esteemed annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world of TIME magazine. She is among the icons on the list. Omotola has overtaken other Nollywod stars as the most bankable by becoming the highest paid and with over 1 million Likes on Facebook. Governor of Bayelsa State, Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson proudly cited this unprecedented global recognition given to a Nollywood star at the 9th Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) held last Saturday April 20, 2013, at the Gloryland Cultural Center in Yenagoa, capital of Bayelsa State.

Celebrity Birthday: Ini Edo Adds Another Year, Turns 31

One of Nollywood's sexiest actresses, Ini Edo-Ehiagwina is a year older today, Tuesday, April 23, 2013 and has turned 31. The lovely wife of Philip Ehiagwina, who is a US-based businessman, is unarguably one of the most successful actors in the Nigerian film industry.
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Obasanjo had a killer squad as president — Former associate

A former associate of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, Mr. Richard Odusanya, on Saturday alleged that the former chairman of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party’s Board of Trustees was in charge of a killer squad that was formed under the military regime of late Gen. Sani Abacha.

Odusanya reportedly worked behind the scenes when Obasanjo was in power.

In a live interview, with an online news portal, Sahara Reporters, Odusanya  alleged that the former President lodged the killer squad at a State Security Service headquarters, known as ‘Yellow House.’

He appeared on the programme alongside Mr. Segun  Seriki, a PDP member in Ogun State and a member of the House of Representatives in the Third Republic, under the Social Democratic Party.

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JTF Discovers Illegal Refinery, Arrests Seven Persons in Kogi

The Joint security Task Force, JTF,  in Kogi State has  arrested seven persons in connection with an   illegal refinery  discovered in Emomo village in Okene Local Government Area of the state.

The JTF Commander in the State, Lt. Col.  Gabriel Olufemi,  who  along with the Acting State Commandant of the Nigeria Civil Defence and Security Corps, NCDSC,    Kingsley Oguntuwase,  conducted journalists around the refinery in Emomo Village, which is five kilometres  away from Okene, said the vandals were arrested after a tip-off.
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Flood sinks Onitsha: Seven drown, goods destroyed by downpour

Residents of the commercial city of Onitsha especially traders at Electronics Market, Bridge head were thrown into mourning yesterday following a late evening downpour that killed seven persons and destroyed goods estimated at over N1.5 billion.
Daily Sun gathered that the downpour which started at about 7:00p.m on Sunday wreak havoc in various parts of the state, especially the Upper Iweka axis and Onitsha-Owerri Road, where over seven vehicles plunged into the gutters and its occupants were drowned.
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Oil drilling: Ogoni demands N4.7tn compensation

THE people of Ogoni have called on the Federal Government and Shell Petroleum Development Company to pay them the sum of $30bn (N4.7tn) as part of the conditions that will pave the way for the resumption of oil exploration and exploitation in Ogoniland.

The indigenes of the area, who spoke under the auspices of Ogoni Solidarity Forum, vowed to resist any attempt to commence oil exploitation in Ogoniland until their conditions were met.

OSF National Coordinator, Mr. Celestine Akpobari, explained that the Federal Government and Shell had made over $100bn within the 30 years of oil exploitation in the area, hence the need to pay $30bn as compensation for the environmental degradation suffered by the people.

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Mikel, Moses lose FA Cup chase •Three Eaglets fail MRI test

Goals from Samir Nasri and Sergio Aguero sent Manchester City into an FA Cup final and dashed the hopes of Nigeria’s Mikel Obi and Victor Moses. Both players were so hopeful that they could win the English cup with Chelsea to add to the African cup they won in February.

City will now play the final against Wigan Athletic after they beat holders Chelsea 2-1 at Wembley on Sunday. The 2011 winners will return on May 11 after they held off a strong fightback from a Chelsea side playing their sixth game in 16 days.

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Dangote, Otedola should contest political offices –Senator

A Peoples Democratic Party stalwart in Ekiti State, Senator Gbenga Aluko, has urged wealthy businessmen, including Alhaji Aliko Dangote, and Mr. Femi Otedola to go into politics.

Aluko said this in Ode Ekiti on Saturday in an interview with journalists.

He noted that prominent politicians across the globe, including former United States President, George Bush among others, were some of those, who were highly successful in business before going into politics.

Aluko, who is seeking to contest the 2014 governorship election in the state, said corruption would be reduced if wealthy people seek political offices.

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$14.5bn project: Nigeria, others seek assistance over Lake Chad

Nigeria and other countries in the Lake Chad basin have begun seeking the assistance of the international community in the funding of the lake $14.5bn water transfer project.

Minister of Water Resources, Mrs. Sarah Ochekpe, who stated this at a briefing in Abuja on Friday, said there would be channelisation of water from the Ubangui River in the Central Africa Republic to Lake Chad.

She added that Nigeria and Cameroon would discuss operations of Lagdo Dam to prevent flooding this year.

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Miracle escape for 108 passengers as plane crashes into sea as it attempts to land in Bali

 More than 100 passengers had a miracle escape today after a plane crashed into the sea as it attempted to land off the coast of Bali.
Eyewitnesses said passengers fearing for their lives screamed in panic as the Lion Air jet fell short of the runway at Ngurah Rai Airport, near Denparsar.
The aircraft, carrying 101 passengers and seven crew members, smashed into the sea prompting a huge rescue effort.

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U.S., China agree on Korean denuclearization

The United States and China agree that the Korean peninsula must be denuclearized, top diplomats from both countries said on Saturday.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and China's top diplomat, State Councilor Yang Jiechi, made the comments following meetings between the two sides in Beijing.

 

 

(Reporting by Arshad Mohammed; Writing by Ben Blanchard; editing by Jonathan Standing)

Opinion: Chris Webber, Michigan, And The NCAA

Tonight's NCAA championship game has some history attached - Louisville will look to add a third national championship to their venerable program, while Michigan will be looking for a shot at true redemption.

First Look: Taye Diggs And Terrence Howard On Set Of 'The Best Man Holiday'

April 8, 2013: The Best Man is considered a classic in black Hollywood, so it’s exciting to see movement on the sequel, The Best Man Holiday, which hits theaters on November 15. Here, Terrence Howard, Taye Diggs and Harold Perrineau are spotted filming in Canada.

Chris Rock Joins The Second Season Cast Of 'Real Husbands Of Hollywood'

Guess something productive came from that all-comedian-everything event at New York City's Comedy Cellar. Chris Rock is joining BET's Real Husbands of Hollywood.

The 20 Greatest Musical Geniuses Since '93

When we debuted our April/May double covers of Kendrick Lamar and Miguel yesterday on these here Internets, there was much excitement about the pairing of hip-hop and R&B’s leaders of the new cool. But there was also some chatter about what exactly comprises a “List Issue” and ready-to-go debates on the cover line pitting R. Kelly’s musical brilliance against Kanye West’s 20/20 artistic vision. That’s where this definitive list comes in, anchoring the issue and highlighting the 20 minds that have provided the greatest push to music since '93.

Determined to spark deep thought and emerge with definitive rankings,NAZ’s debate squad brainstormed an entire feature well of lists and spent a sweatshop worth of hours in a war room, strapped with 20 years of facts and verbal PowerPoints. We defined “genius” as infinitely creative artists and producers (no executives) able to alter the course of music, and we posed scenarios like: If we plopped that genius in a studio solo, would he/she resurface with something radical?

Click through to see our definitive selections, along with commentary from their contemporaries or successors. Look out for the Top 10 dropping tomorrow (April 11).

Beyoncé, Nine Inch Nails To Headline 2013 Made In America Music Festival

From the looks of Beyoncé's itinerary, she plans to perform on every stage this year.
King Bey started with President Obama's second inauguration, slayed the Superbowl, announced her worldwide Mrs. Carter tour and now she's going to be helping her husband Jay-Z usher in his sophomore Made In America festival in Philadelphia, Billboard reports.

Morris Chestnut Teases Black Panther Role In 'The Avengers 2'

If the former Boyz N' Da Hood star isn't involved in an unrevealed cinematic Black Panther project, then he obviously wants people to think he is.
Morris Chestnut is an undeniable talent but has failed to crack through the gates of mainstream Hollywood or become a household name.
 But according to the source himself, Chestnut is rumored to be tapped to star as T'Challa the King of Wakanda in Marvel Comics' Black Panther film. Hol' up, though, that movie doesn't exist at all, and Chestnut hasn't been offered the role of Black Panther. But the next phase of Marvel entertainment promises appearances from Ant-Man, Dr. Strange, Guardians of the Galaxy will all receive the silver screen treatment.
When you combine these rumors with recent tweets published by Chestnut, things start to look interesting. "It's time to get familiar with the Black Panther character!" Chestnut wrote alongside an image of a Black Panther comic book. Later Chestnut would clarify his tweet with another. "Not final. #BlackPanther may be in #Avengers2 first. RT @Jamaal91604133: @Morris_Chestnut Can't wait to see this movie. #BlackPanther," he wrote in the pidgin Twitter-speak we've all become too familiar with.
With Chestnut publicly pointing out that he's researching the role and reading up on Black Panther's history, it is interesting to note that no one working on the Phase 3 initiative commented on his tweets. Next, he states that Black Panther may make an appearance in The Avengers 2, which could be pure speculation on his part, but seems unexpectedly knowledgeable for someone who isn't involved with Marvel Studios' plans for the character.