Etisalt Now U r tAlking.

Pls vote  for at http://www.micropage.opera.com/etisng/

vphm670i0q.html. Thank U al

Fear of Election Violence: Politicians Move their Families Overseas

In  a bid to avoid being caught up in the violence that may erupt after the February 2015 general elections, politicians, many chief executive officers/chairmen of companies, top businessmen and several other wealthy Nigerians have started relocating their families out of Nigeria.

Investigations by PUNCH showed that some apprehensive politicians and members of the business community started relocating members of their families abroad few weeks ago.

In fact, it was learnt that many are still moving their families out of the country.

According to findings, medical check-ups, vacation, among others, are being cited by wealthy Nigerians as the reasons for their trips to stay out of Nigeria during the elections.

Aviation experts told Punch that passenger traffic in Nigeria is usually low between January and March but that is not the case this year.

The CEO of a travel agency, who identified himself as Damian and did not want further details about himself or his company in print, said many of his clients had made bookings to travel abroad for fear of being caught up in violence.

Damian said, “It is true that there is an increase in the number of transactions we receive; many people are making bookings to leave the country.

“People are afraid; they fear that there may be violence after the election. Those making travel plans are mostly businessmen. I am also running away. I will leave before the election and return after the person who emerges as the president of the country has been sworn in.”

Similarly, a popular travel agency on Lagos Island told one of our correspondents that many managing directors/chairmen of some companies in Nigeria had booked their flight tickets in anticipation of leaving the country before the general elections.

One of the senior workers with the company, who simply identified himself as Thaddeus, said aside politicians who thronged the firm to buy tickets, many companies’ MDs and businessmen had bought tickets from the firm between November 27, 2014 and January 14, 2015.

Thaddeus named the United States, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirate as the most preferred destinations of the MDs.

He said, “Some politicians made arrangement to travel out of the country after the election, while many of the MDs chose to leave the country with their families a week before the poll.

“Before the political parties’ primaries held late year, we procured tickets for the families of some politicians and we believe that they must have left the country by now. The politicians started procuring their tickets from the first week of this month.”

A human rights activist, Jiti Ogunye, said it is necessary that politicians refrain from manipulating the electorate and election results to avoid violence after the elections..

Ogunye said, “The first condition for credible election is the activation of electoral justice. Politicians should learn not just to preach peace but to do justice. If they manipulate the election results, there could be reaction of violence. So I advise that they play by the rules so that we can enjoy peace in this period. They should not rob the electorate of their decisions.”

Source: Punch

Muna Obiekwe Biography

The passing away of Nollywood star actor Muna Obiekwe came as great shock both for Nigerians and the actor’s colleagues. It would be recalled that the sad news broke out yesterday. It was however surrounded by controversy as some insisted that the information was fake.

The misunderstanding was connected with the tweet allegedly posted by the actor himself on a Twitter handle, @MunaObiekwe, that he was still hail and hearty. Soon the indications emerged that the mentioned Twitter account was fake.

Obiekwe’s colleagues took to social media to express their sorrow over his death.The president of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Ibinabo Fiberesima, confirmed the news in a phone interview with Y!Naija saying:

“Yes, he is truly dead, i have spoken to his wife… He was a private person, he didn’t tell us he had problems so there was no way we could have helped….please i can’t disclose much information for now.”

It was learnt by The Nation that Muna had been battling renal related ailment but had kept it secret for a long time before informing Ibinabo Fiberesima.

Some unconfirmed reports say that his death was connected with his financial state.

“He could not go for his regular dialysis for the past two weeks because he was broke but rejected seeking public assistance due to shame.”

Muna Obiekwe’s Biography

Today we are paying tribute to Muna Obiekwe and recalling some of the episodes of his career which got Nigeria talking.

1. Raunchy movie scene?

The Enugu based Nollywood star was once involved in a serious controversy over a spicy incident with a fellow colleague, Biola Ige. Muna was pictured grabbing Biola’s boobs in the movie, Pregnant Hawker. However the actress later said that the widely circulating photo was fake and that there was no such scene in the movie.

Muna also commented:

“…I don’t remember the movie. I also don’t remember grabbing Biola’s boobs. If the movie exists, that scene never took place.

“Like I told you, I don’t recall the movie. I do a lot of movies and I can’t remember what happens in all of them. The fact that I don’t recall means that the movie was shot a long time ago. Probably three or more years back. When love scene was in vogue with producers. I’m still searching for the movie to acquaint myself with the story.

“There has never been anything between myself and any actress that I’ve made a movie with. My romantic relationships have always been outside the movie industry. I don’t take my work home.”

2. Muna becomes a baby daddy, they say

In 2011 it was reported by Nigeriafilms that that the actor fathered a girl “birthed by Treasure Daniels(one of the shocking look alike twin of the Gholden Girlz fame) who recently meandered into music.” It seems however that the information was never confirmed and remained rumours till the date.

3. The many roles of Obiekwe

The actor has featured in dozens of movies including Men in Love, Songs of Sorrows, Wasted Effort, My Best Friend, etc.

In the drama Men in Love dating back to 2010 he played a gay man. The film was harshly criticized as many alleged that it was popularizing the ideas of homosexuality in Nigeria.

In Fumble the actor played a role for which he was wearing a female pant in one of the scenes.

We express condolences to the family members, friends and colleagues of Muna Obiekwe. Rest in peace.

Photo: Young girl goes missing in Ogba, Lagos

15 year old Paulina Ojeka Ogwuledwu, pictured below has been declared missing by her family. According to her Uncle, a pastor with Baptist Church in Ogba, who spoke with LIB, Paulina, an indigene of Benue state, was last seen on Wednesday January 14th. She lived with her Uncle in Ogba and is an apprentice with a fashion outlet in Ogba. On the day she went missing, Paulina had gone for her training and returned in the evening but later left the house and up until today has not returned.

Anyone with information about her whereabout should please call 08027186422 or 08060168569 or contact the nearest police station.

An Open Letter to Nigeria’s President by Hafsat Abiola

Hafsat Abiola is a human rights, civil rights and democracy activist, founder of the Kudirat Initiative for Democracy (KIND), and daughter of late business man/politician, MKO Abiola. Her letter below

Dear President, 

As young global leaders we would like to express our deep concern about the recent situations in Nigeria.

The massacre in Baga has been Boko Haram’s deadliest so far and what has it met with? Your silence. Most disturbing still is the fact that you would send a message to France condemning the killings there, yet seem unable to address the Nigerian people who look to you for leadership. Unfortunately, it would not be the first time

On 10 November 2014 a suicide bomber killed 47 people and injured 79 others. The following day, with barely a mention of this horrific incident targetting children, you launched your re-election campaign.

And despite the ease with which you move on, even you will remember the abduction of the schoolgirls in Chibok in April last year. It was 40 days before you addressed the country on that occasion. Nigerians waited, perplexed, as your government debated whether or not the abductions had even taken place.  As a result, of all the girls captured, only 52 have secured their freedom – escaping on their own. The rest are still in captivity, still waiting to be rescued, 276 days after being taken from their friends, family and community.

Could it be that your government also doubts that the Baga attacks happened? Amnesty International’s satellite images confirm that indeed a massacre took place, and as many as 2000 people are dead. Yet your army wastes time contesting the numbers.

Whether 150 or 2000, we’d like to hear from you on your governments plans to secure the region and to bear witness to the loss of lives in Baga. We have seen a clear incompetency in handling matters of national interest. In the context of existing ethnic and religious fault lines, silence only says that Nigeria’s government does not care about the victims and is not dealing with the insurgency.

True the global community has also failed to maintain pressure on your government that seems ambivalent about fulfilling its constitutional role to secure the lives and properties of its citizens.

As 1.5 million Nigerians flee their homes,  swelling camps within Nigeria and overwhelming border communities’  (if not same as before), it seems the only hope to see you act is global outrage. It was this that finally forced you to address the nation and the world 40 days after the Chibok abductions.  It was only then that you reached out to other countries and, with their help, agree a plan for a regional security force to secure the porous borders between Nigeria, Niger and Chad where Boko Haram roams undeterred.

Perhaps, had international pressure been sustained last year, a multi-regional force would have been based in Baga as planned. Perhaps it would have been strong enough to repel Boko Haram when the militants attacked on 3 January. Perhaps 2000 lives could have been saved.

But Isis happened and the world moved on, leaving a small national military unit to stand between thousands of armed militants  and a town of ten thousand people. We now know what happened. The world has seen pictures of bodies still strewn around the forest and river where they died.

If these deaths do not generate the attention, outcry and action that they ought to, we can only prepare the ground for more bodies because Boko Haram shows no sign of relenting. The insurgents can be defeated but first you must decide if the lives of Nigerians are worth it or not.

Break the silence, Mr. President. Call for global attention and support to avert a crisis that begins to echo the early days of the Rwandan genocide.  Be the voice for the thousands of innocent people who have died and the millions who yearn for peace. They have the right to rebuild their communities and claim their place in the unfolding rise of the African continent.

Hafsat Abiola-Costello 

Founder/President Kudirat Initiative for democracy

Nigeria

Co-Signatories

Arnaud Ventura, France

Bjarte Reve, Norway

Binta Niambi Brown, USA

Erik Charas, Mozambique

Funmi Iyanda, Nigeria

Georgie Bernadette, USA

Jacqueline Musiitwa, Zambia

Loulwa Bakr, Saudi Arabia

Leo Shlesinger, Chile

Marieme Jamme, Senegal

Mark Turrell, Germany

Rossana Figuera, USA

Salim Amin, Kenya

Soulaima Gourani, Denmark

Susan Mashibe, Tanzania

Tara Fela Durotoye, Nigeria

Bobby Brown says he and Whitney Houston cheated on each other

Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston were married for 15 years (1993-2007) and Bobby says they cheated on each other through out their loving, turbulent marriage. In an interview with Access Hollywood set to air today Jan. 17th, after Whitney's Lifetime biopic airs, Bobby opened up about the cheating rumours that followed the couple for years.
"There was infidelity in the marriage, yes, on both parts. Both of us cheated on each other - period. So that's hard to swallow for both of us. I just think when two people that love each other as much as we loved each other, when they start drifting apart, different people come into the situation, into the scenario, and we make mistakes. We're human.' he said.

Angry Mob Lynch Boko Haram Suspect at Kano Mosque

A suspected Boko Haram member was yesterday lynched at the Kano Central Mosque where hundreds of worshippers were killed late last year. According to DailyTrust, the suspect was lynched by an irate mob around 11.30 am at the Kofa Kwaru area of the mosque as worshipers were congregating for the juma’at prayers.

Last November, over a hundred worshippers lost their lives at the mosque when insurgents hurled explosives at them and opened fire on others who tried to escape. It was gathered that the suspect was
pursued to the Kofar Kwaru area of the Emir of Kano’s palace where he was overpowered and lynched.

One worshipper, who said he witnessed the lynching, stated that a gun was found on the suspect, which prompted the mob action.

“The suspect went to drink tea around the mosque. It was the tea seller that raised an alarm that he saw a gun in the guy’s possession and that was what caused the commotion,” the witness said.

But in a telephone interview, the spokesperson of the Kano State police command, ASP Magaji Musa Majia, who confirmed the lynching, said nothing incriminating was found in his possession.

“The identity and address of the suspect is still unknown. No explosive or weapon was found on the deceased’s body. We have not found any incriminating evidence on him and nobody has come out to give or tell us of any gun or explosive found on the deceased,” he said.

The spokesman reiterated the command’s commitment to ensure the safety of all and appealed to the people of the state to desist from taking laws into their hands, saying jungle justice would not help.

Since the November 2014 attack on the mosque, youths and other volunteers have been mounting surveillance there and before worshippers are allowed in, they are thoroughly searched. Similar checks are conducted in other mosques across Kano State.