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Saturday, June 30, 2012

News alert: Reagan Ufomba bounced in Owerri , during APGA meeting of Umeh faction

 
Reagan Ufomba of APGA is in for more troubles as his efforts to revert his expulsion from the party has hit the brick walls again. Our source learnt that Ufomba was thoroughly embarrassed and humiliated few days ago in owerri when he wanted to gate crash into a caucus meeting of Umeh faction of the party. According to a top member of the party who pleaded anonymity said, Ufomba’s decision to disrupt a meeting of the party at Ojukwu’s residence is his albatross. 

He said that Ufomba is expelled and that may be final. It was learnt that Ufomba is distressed as he is said to be reaching out to Chekwas Okorie who is planning to register another party after UPGA was not registered by INEC. Ufomba our source said is devastated by this development. Ufomba confided in a friend that he is finished politically.

More details later

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Prominent Politicians Behind Kaduna Violence, As ‘Faceless’ Politicians Release Incendiary Video

 
A highly placed security source in Kaduna State has told SaharaReporters that prominent politicians, several of them in government, are behind the widespread and deadly violence recently witnessed in parts of the state. The bloody events began with suicide bombings that hit Zaria and Kaduna about two weeks ago, targeting Christian churches.

The security source said the crisis became more volatile when a few prominent politicians further fueled the violence by instigating their political thugs and hoodlums.
According to the source, “The Commissioner of Police made it clear that politicians are part of the violence to achieve certain political interests.” He added that these politicians supplied sophisticated weapons and other armories that were used by the rampaging killers. He claimed that the security agents know who bought the guns, but that the agents are powerless to take action because those behind the violence “are untouchables and sacred cows.”

The source revealed that security agents had received confessions from some suspects about their sponsors. “The facts we gathered are provable, but who will prosecute the big men behind the gangsters?”
“Some of our leads indicate that politicians poured kerosene into the fire from the side,” added the source.
In a related development, SaharaReporters has learnt that copies of a macabre video from the recent chaos and terror in the state are being clandestinely circulated in Kaduna with the aim of fomenting more violence.

The video, which is being seen by a growing number of people, shows officers of the police ferrying corpses of those who died in the series of attacks and counter-attacks. Our source disclosed that the aim of those circulating the video was to cause more tension in the state.

The source accused those distributing the video of “dispatching a clip to create tension that will lead to violence.” He lamented that law enforcement and security “bosses are watching and cannot do anything.”


SAHARA REPORTERS

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Nigerians Are Battered Souls, Broken Spirits - Professor Ayittey


 
 George Ayittey
 
 
A top Ghanaian economist, Professor George Ayittey, has stated that decades of misrule and total government dysfunction have combined to transform Nigerians from resilient and dynamic people into vulnerable people.

In the past, according to Prof Ayittey, Nigerians were “bustling with energy, dynamism and entrepreneurship”, but a perpetual leadership crisis had transformed them into “broken spirits and battered souls” trapped in cocoons of fear, mistrust and despair.
“Decades of reckless misrule and total government dysfunction have corroded the fabric of Nigerian character and society.
“When trapped in such a mess or maze, it is difficult to see the way out”, he said.

Prof Ayittey made this known on twitter last night in response to some criticism directed at him by some aggrieved Nigerians.
The US based economist had criticised the President of Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GEJ), describing him as a joke and a mediocre President, following his (GEJ’s) interaction with the Nigerian media last Sunday.

Prof Ayittey had described GEJ’s performance during the interaction as abysmal, and chastised him for not showing remorse despite his inability to resolve the Boko Haram crisis.
Mr Ayittey had also lambasted GEJ for “impatiently” indicating that he would not declare his assets.
He had ended his criticism with a call on Nigerians to rid themselves of GEJ as soon as possible.
But these criticisms did not go down well with some Nigerians, who took to twitter to criticise the Prof and urged him to focus on Ghana’s own problems.
However, In a calm and measured response, Prof Ayittey called on Nigerians to look beyond tribe and religion in analysing socio-policio-economic issues.
He said his criticism of GEJ aimed at helping the Nigeria identify its flaws, and exposing the Nigerian people to new or alternative perspectives.
The Economist underscored the need for Nigerians to be amenable to criticisms and new ideas, adding that outsiders were sometimes in a better position to offer criticism or advice.
Prof Ayittey went on to debunk assertions that he was seeking political office in the country.
“I have no political axe to grind in Nigeria. I cannot even be president of Nigeria. In fact, I am not interested in the presidency of any African country”, he emphasised.
He also conceded that it was inappropriate on his part to criticise GEJ without offering solutions to the problems he identified.
He therefore promised to do an article to be titled Making Nigeria Work Again, which he said would be available soon.

Professor Ayittey is a Ghanaian economist, author, president of the Free Africa Foundation in Washington DC, professor at American University, and an associate scholar at the Foreign Policy Research Institute.
  Read the entire tweet posted on June 26, 2012 below:
“To my Nigerian followers. I appreciate all your wonderful comments, including the negative ones, regarding my write-up on GEJ. It will be impossible to respond to all individually; hence, this generic response.
I always distinguish between African leaders/governments and the PEOPLE. Chinua Achebe said it best in his book, The Trouble With Nigeria. There is nothing wrong with the Nigerian character, culture or water. The problem lies purely and squarely with the leadership.

I have always admired Nigerians in the past — resilient people, bustling with energy, dynamism and entrepreneurship. You will still find these admirable traits in some spots such as Onitsha Market. But the Nigerians of today are of a different stock – broken spirits, battered souls and trapped in cocoons of fear, mistrust and despair. Decades of reckless misrule and total government dysfunction have corroded the fabric of Nigerian character and society. When trapped in such a mess or maze, it is difficult to see the way out. When you engage a Nigerian in a conversation, the first thing s/he wants to know is which tribe or religion do you belong to? It never used to be like this.

The Ashanti have a proverb which says, “The one cutting a path through the bush does not see if it is crooked or not. Only those who stand afar can determine this.” What I write about Nigeria comes from this perspective. I am not Yoruba, Ndigbo or Hausa. I have no political axe to grind in Nigeria. I cannot even be president of Nigeria. In fact, I am not interested in the presidency of any African country. I call it the way I see it without fear or favor. The advantage and the service that I provide to the people of Nigeria is that I can say a lot of things which they are afraid to say. That doesn’t mean everything I say about Nigeria is true but at least it exposes the people to new or alternative perspectives.
However, it is not enough to say that President Goodluck Jonathan is a joke without pointing out the way forward, which is what I drilled into my students. Accordingly, I am writing another piece, Making Nigeria Work Again, which I will tweet in a couple of days.”

Professor Ayittey holds a B.Sc. in Economics from the University of Ghana, Legon, an M.A. from the University of Western Ontario in Canada, and a Ph.D. from the University of Manitoba. He has taught at Wayne State College and Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. He held a National Fellowship at the Hoover Institution in 1988-89, and then joined The Heritage Foundation as a Bradley Resident Scholar. He founded The Free Africa Foundation in 1993, to serve as a catalyst for reform in Africa.
In 2008 Dr. Ayittey was listed by Foreign Policy as one of the “Top 100 Public Intellectuals” who “are shaping the tenor of our time”. He lives in Lorton, Virginia.

Breaking News: APGA members revolt against Ufomba for using their names

Controversy is now trailing Reagan Ufomba’s illegal use of APGA  members names on his birthday anniversary advert in the papers. Ufomba recently placed advert in the papers congratulating himself using names of APGA members without authorization. Unfortunately for him, these people have revolted against Ufomba over this stupid show of shame. 

According to them how can a man expelled from the party for insulting Ojukwu be using names of people to praise himself. They urged him to retract the advert and apologize to them or will face the legal consequences.

More details soon!

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Nigerian Breaks Academic Record At John Hopkins University

A 22-year-old Nigerian has emerged the best graduating student of John Hopkins University in the United States. He obtained a Grade Point Average of 3.98 out of a possible 4.0 to earn a degree in Neurosciences, SEGUN OLUGBILE writes.

A 22-year-old Nigerian, Emmanuel Ohuabunwa, has made history at John Hopkins University, United States of America. Ohuabunwa from Arochukwu, Abia State, has done the nation proud by becoming the first black man to make a Grade Point Average of 3.98 out of 4.0 to bag a degree in Neurosciences in the university. He was also adjudged as having the highest honours during the graduation that was held on May 24 this year.
For his efforts, he has won a scholarship to Yale University to pursue a degree in medicine. Besides, he has been inducted into Phi Beta Kappa Society, a prestigious honour group that features membership of 17 US Presidents, 37 US Supreme Court Justices, and 136 Nobel Prize winners.
According to Wikipedia, The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honour society. Its mission is to “celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences” and induct “the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities.”
It was founded at The College of William and Mary on December 5, 1776, and thus it is the oldest honour society for the liberal arts and sciences and among the oldest undergraduate societies in the US.
In an online interview with our correspondent, Ohuabunwa, who was born in Okota, Lagos and attended Lilly Fields Primary School, Lagos, said he left Nigeria after his junior secondary school education at Air Force Comprehensive School, Ibadan, Oyo State.
“My parents moved the whole family when I was 13 years old. I was about to begin SS1 at Air Force, Ibadan. When I got to the US, I was enrolled with my age mates, which meant at 13, I was in middle school. I went to Fondren Middle School, which was in the middle of the ghetto. That was one of the darkest years for me because I encountered a lot of peer pressure. Some of the students, ignorant about Africa, bullied me and called me names such as ‘African booty scratcher’ because to them, Africans were dirty and scratched their butts all the time.

“Some asked me if I lived in mud huts and ate faeces for breakfast. I remember one day, when I was walking to the school bus, a boy came from behind and punched me in the face, called me an African and walked away. It took everything in me not to retaliate. I knew that God had put me in the U.S for a purpose and it did not involve fighting or selling drugs or doing the wrong things.
“My experience during that year gave me a thick skin. I learned to stand for what I thought was right even when the opposition seemed insurmountable. I also learned to look at the positive in all situations. Even though these kids were bullying me, I was still gaining an opportunity to school in America and nothing would stop me from making the best of this opportunity.
“The shocker was that the kid that punched me in the face was black. I would have expected the blacks to be nicer to me. Nevertheless, I don’t blame those kids because they were ignorant about Africa. All they knew about us was the stuff they had watched on TV or documentaries, showing primitive African tribes, living in the jungle and making noises like monkeys.
“In regards to the whites, there might have been some minor episodes but again I don’t blame them for it because it is a problem with stereotypes,” he said.

But in spite of this humiliation and racial prejudice against him, the first in a family of three was not discouraged. He faced his studies and was always coming top in his class. After he completed his middle school education, he passed the entrance examination to DeBakey High School for Health Professions. It was at this school that his interest in neurosciences and medicine started.

“By the second year of high school, we were able to interact with doctors, nurses and other administrators in the hospital. The more I learned about medicine, the more it felt like the thing God was calling me to pursue and by being in the US I got a lot of people to support me to do this. Even though in high school, I got to see first-hand what it meant to be a doctor. We studied advanced anatomy and physiology, learned medical terminology, and learned important skills, such as checking blood pressure, pulse rate, and many more.
“I knew I wanted to go to the best school in the US. I had heard that Johns Hopkins Hospital had been ranked the number one hospital in the US for the past 21 years and I wanted to be in that environment.’’
Worried that his parents might not be able to sponsor him to the university, Ohuabunwa purposed to work very hard. He did and when the result of the PSAT came, he performed so well that he won the National Achievement Scholar.

By virtue of this award, he received certificates of recognition from various organisations including senators from the Congress of both Texas and the US. He also received scholarship from the University of Houston; Rice University, Texas A&M Honors College and many more.
He had also won the Principal’s Award during the annual awards ceremony at DeBakey High School.
“During our graduation ceremony at DeBakey, I also won the Award for the Most Outstanding Senior Young Man and the student volunteer award for my volunteer activities in the State of Texas,” he said.
But his breakthrough came when he won the Bill and Belinda Gates Foundation full scholarship to any university of his choice. He worked hard and gained admission to Johns Hopkins University to study Neurosciences.
But why Neurosciences, Ohuabunwa said, “I studied Neuroscience, because I was fascinated with the brain, its control of our behaviours and how various diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, lead to a decline in its activity. I also minored in Psychology because I wanted to understand disorders in the psyche. What causes bipolar disorders or schizophrenia. I did not just want to label them as crazy but to understand what causes these conditions and how we can treat them,’’ he explained.
But what does he consider to be the missing links in the education sector of Nigeria when compared with that on offer in US, Ohuabunwa said unpredictable academic calendar, corruption, examination malpractice and inadequate funding were some of the problems confronting his home country’s university sector. These, he said, were absent in the US.
“There were a few problems with Nigerian higher education that contributed to our emigration in 2003. The first was the number of strikes that occurred in schools. It took my uncle seven years to graduate with a degree that should have taken him only four years. A second problem was the corruption. We had heard of people going into universities, because they paid someone to look the other way. I also heard of a few cheating scandals, where people would pay someone to take their exams for them or get a copy of the exam a few days before,” he said.

But is he saying that US university system has no such problems at all? Ohuabunwa said, “Although this sometimes occurs in the U.S, it is less common because of the strict security. I remember when taking the Medical College Admissions Test, test required before one can matriculate into medical school, each student had to get his fingerprints taken every time we entered and left the hall. The whole place was packed with cameras and security staff that monitored everything we were doing. The exam was computerised to make sure that no one saw the test before the actual date.”
Another difference, he said, is that America rewards hard-work while the system also emphasises on a balance between academic life and extracurricular activities.

On how he won the scholarship to Yale, Ohuabunwa said his 3.98 GPA in Neurosciences, and many awards he had won and God’s grace, contributed to his winning the scholarship.
“As at the time of my application for medical school, I had a 3.98 GPA of a 4.0. This made me the only black student inducted into the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa. I was also awarded the Becker Family Scholarship for being the most outstanding student in the Neuroscience major at Johns Hopkins University. Furthermore, by God’s grace, I took the MCAT and scored in the top five percentile.
“That, combined with my hours of volunteer service in different hospitals across the US allowed me to gain acceptance into every medical school I applied to, including Harvard, Yale, Johns Hopkins, Columbia, and Cornell. As the time came to make a decision, I had narrowed it down to Harvard and Yale. Both schools, I enjoyed visiting. Nevertheless, while my parents prayed, they asked God to give us a sign of what school to attend. A few days later, I received a letter from Yale Medical School, offering me a full ride scholarship for all four years. That was the sign from God,” he said.

But would he come back to Nigeria after the completion of his programme, he said yes.
“I am absolutely interested in the health care policy decisions in Nigeria. Because there are many changes that need to occur, I will not rule out the possibility of coming back after my studies, in order to join hands with the leaders to make these changes possible.’’

He added that his ambition is to become a medical doctor specialising in brain surgery.
“Two weeks ago, my grandmother passed away after a long battle with strokes. Even during emergencies, it was difficult for her to get to the hospital, let alone get treatment. This is a common theme not only in the health care system of Nigeria, but in different countries in the world, where the poor get neglected.
“Second, Nigerian hospitals lack the infrastructure required to compete with major hospitals around the world. It would be an honour to one day contribute to this transformation that is necessary for improvements in Nigeria’s health care sector,” he said.
He, however, advised Nigerian youths who have the wherewithal, to go abroad to study. Ohuabunwa also called on wealthy Nigerians to invest more in the education of the poor rather than in acquisition of material things.

Ohuabunwa, however, said that his parents, who he described as his greatest role models, contributed a lot to his academic feat through Godly training, counsel and guidance. He also did not forget the impact that his short stay at Air Force school had on him.
“I was definitely not the brightest at Air Force. At that time, I felt like I spent more time running away from seniors than focusing on my studies. Nevertheless, I learned three things at Air Force that have served me well in the US. I learned discipline, adaptability and resilience. These attributes helped me a lot in US,” he said.

Culled from PUNCH Newspaper

Monday, June 25, 2012

Confirmed!: Igbo Language approved by Oxford/Cambridge Exam Board

After years of relentless campaign that would have seen mere mortals throw in the towel, Mrs Hope Ify Ofomata and Vincent Onwukanjo of the Igbo Language Campaign Committee have done what seemed impossible by the standards of Igbos in the diaspora, by doggedly fighting to get the two greatest institutions in academia to accept Igbo language as a course. 

This in effect means that Igbo language has now joined a distinguished list of languages to make into the Oxford/Cambridge Exam Board. This would also act as a catalyst for Igbo language to be strengthened within families, some of whom are ashamed of interacting with their children in Igbo. With this development the fear that Igbo language will become extinct in 75 years may prove to be just another pessimistic prediction.  

Every good minded and genuine Igbo person who can make it to London should attend the event as contained in the attached flyer below to celebrate this unique achievement.