Amaechi, getting more isolated as Gov. Babangida pledge loyalty to Jonathan

Indications are emerging that embattled Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi is increasingly getting more abandoned  by other governors elected on the platform of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger State and Chairman, Northern Governors Forum on Tuesday openly pledged loyalty and support to President Goodluck Jonathan. He also debunked rumours making the round that he was one of the governors planning to dump PDP because of Amaechi’s travails.
Speaking at the ground breaking ceremony of Zungeru Hydro-electric Power Project, Governor Babangida said, “Those who are thinking that there is war between the Niger state government and governor and the President should swallow their spit.
“We are one, we recognise that the people of Nigeria elected him and we respect that. If we do not respect and follow you (Mr. President), God will ask us. So we are saying, Mr. President that we are for you”.
“If you hear a lot of criticism, it is not because we do not love you (President) but because we want you to do more. Regardless of the noise, I know PDP shall make it, because we are one and we all are in one party.
“We are with you and I hereby pledge my government and peoples’ loyalty and support to you. I am saying this because in our culture and religion if you don’t respect your leader, Allah will not be happy with you”.
Pledging his continued support and loyalty to Jonathan, Aliyu explained that his criticism of the President’s policies and programmes were not a show of disloyalty but a deliberate move to attract more projects and attention to his state.
Governor Aliyu , in a press statement signed by  his Chief Press Secretary, Malam Ndaladi Ndayebo  described as false, rumours  that he was one of the governors planning to leave PDP because of the crisis precipitated by the outcome of last Friday’s Governors Forum election.
According to the statement, “The story of planned defection of Governor Aliyu is a figment of imagination of persons who are either threatened by the successes the party has made in the last 14 years or are afraid of squaring up with the party in 2015 general elections”.

Nigerian military claim to have discovered Hizbollah arms cache

Soldiers in northern Nigeria have uncovered a hidden arms cache that authorities there believe belonged to members of the Lebanese militant movement Hizbollah.

Officials showed journalists the weapons, which they said soldiers confiscated from under the master bedroom of a home in Kano, the north's largest city. The weapons had been packed into small coolers and concealed under several layers of concrete, the military said in a statement.

The arms, later shown on the state-run Nigerian Television Authority, appeared to include badly corroded rocket-propelled grenades, landmines, hand grenades, assault rifles and magazines. Some of the weapons appeared to have been charred.

The military did not explain why the men held the weapons, other than to say they were part of Hizbollah, the Lebanese Shiite Muslim political party.

"The arms and ammunition were targeted at facilities of Israel and Western interest in Nigeria, however, the security agencies are making frantic efforts to unveil the true situation," the military's statement read. "At the end of investigation, all those involved will be prosecuted."

The military did not say which targets had been chosen to be attacked. They said three Lebanese men had been arrested, including one who was caught at Kano's international airport trying to board a flight to Beirut carrying some $60,000 (£39,400) in cash.
Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation with more than 160 million residents, has a large Lebanese community that has interest in businesses across the country. However, this was the first time that Nigerian authorities have claimed that Hizbollah had an operational interest in the country.
Iran, which backs Hizbollah, has recently been implicated in two incidents in Nigeria. An Iranian and his Nigerian accomplice were sentenced to five years in prison earlier this month over trying to smuggle a weapons shipment heading to Gambia through Nigeria. U.S. authorities and the United Nations have linked the Iranian to his nation's Quds Force, part of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.
In February, Nigerian authorities broke up what they described as an Iranian-backed group that was gathering intelligence about locations frequented by Americans and Israelis, as well as making lists of famous people for possible attacks. Those arrested in the operation have yet to face charges.

The Politics of Governor Amaechi's suspension

Political stakeholders in Rivers State have started reacting to the suspension of Governor Rotimi Amaechi by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP). Our investigation shows that what is at play at the moment, is who gets what, how and when, not just at the federal level but also at the state and local levels in Rivers State.
While politicians whose political wheel will be better oiled by Amaechi's downfall are arrayed against him, those who need him to retain their positions or realise their ambitions are with him but in the final analysis, as far as PDP is concerned, Amaechi is fighting against very formidable forces. He may have to move to another political platform in order to realise his future political ambition
Whereas Senator Magnus Abe, representing Rivers South-East and Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream) described the suspension as unnecessary, Barrister Emmanuel Okah a former Information Commissioner in the State is in full support of the suspension.
Responding to questions from ionigeria.com, Senator Abe said, “It (suspension) will not solve the problem of PDP. What the Party needs now is reconciliation and healing”.
However, Barrister Emmanuel Okah described the suspension as long overdue.
According to Okah who was the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Peter Odili and later Information Commissioner during the brief tenure of Celestine Omehia as Governor of Rivers State, “it has become obvious that his activities are not in the interest of the Party”.
“If you look at the pattern of voting at the NGF election, you will see that he is cherished more by the opposition parties so let him go and join them”, Okah added.
The  National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Mr. Olisa Metuh announced Amaechi’s suspension in a statement on Monday in Abuja  for violating Articles 58 1 (b), (c ), (h) and (m) of the Parties Constitution
While Amaechi’s suspension may not be unconnected with the ongoing controversy trailing last Friday’s Chairmanship election of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) which has pitched him against the interest of President Goodluck Jonathan, local Rivers State politics is also at play.
It would be recalled that in 2007 after winning PDP’s governorship primaries, Amaechi was substituted with Celestine Omehia because he was alleged to be corrupt and as such former President Olusegun Obasanjo did not want him to fly the flag of the Party. Omehia flew the flag of the Party, campaigned and was declared the winner of the Governorship election and sworn-in.
Amaechi refused to relent, he went to the Supreme Court and in a judgment that still amazes many, the Supreme declared Amaechi as the governor of the State despite the fact that he was not fielded by the party and he did not participate in the campaigns.
For some analysts the Supreme Court should have cancelled the election totally and called for a fresh election since Rotimi Amaechi did not contest the election, Rotimi Amaechi, also, did not pray for such orders, namely swearing him in as the governor, in his case. If he had contested the election, perhaps he would not have won the election. The Justices of the Supreme Court however contended that the electorates voted for PDP at the election and since Amaechi was the duly nominated candidate, he should be sworn-in.
With the current crisis, the Odili/Omehia group in Rivers PDP now have the opportunity to take over the control of the Party in the State. If the Odili/Omehia’s group takes over the Party machinery, it will therefore mean that the supporters of Amaechi will loss out.
While Senator Abe, who was first appointed Secretary to the Government by Amaechi belong to Amaechi’s group, Barrister Okah belong to the Odili/Omehia’s group.
So, it is not just 2015 politics at the federal level that is at play,  It is also about who becomes the next governor of Rivers State.

Woman Who Lost Both Arms And Legs After Taking Injection For Bigger Bottom

A mum of two as told her story - how her quest for a bigger bottom left her in agony and led to her losing her hands and feet, as well as her buttocks. The 46-year-old former hairdresser Apryl Michelle Brown had black-market silicone injections which turned out to be BATHROOM SEALANT and she blames "vanity" and wants to warn others of the terrible dangers of such illegal treatments. Apryl said: "I've paid a terrible price for vanity and I'll pay for the rest of my life. But I blame no one but myself. "I want to share my story to warn others about these so-called 'quick fix' surgeries. "I didn't realise the dangers. I thought it was a harmless injection that would give me the perfect bottom. But the reality was the silicone used wasn't suitable for humans. It was, in fact, bathroom sealant only suitable for DIY. "My body had a massive allergic reaction to it which left me at the brink of death. "I was in so much agony that, by that point, dying would have been a release. The only way doctors could save my life was to amputate my buttocks, my hands and feet." Teased as a child about her "pancake" bum, Apryl vowed to buy a shapelier one when she was older. She said: "I didn't know if I wanted mine to look like Janet Jackson's or J-Lo's. "I didn't even know how you could do it. I just wanted a new, bigger bottom." The moment that changed her life came in 2004, when two women walked into her successful beauty salon to get their hair done. One of them ran "pumping parties" - where unqualified practitioners inject illegal silicone into "patients" at their home. Apryl, from Los Angeles, said: "One of the women told me how she had given bottom injections to the friend who was with her. "I remember thinking it was a miracle she'd walked into my life. Her friend showed me the work she'd had done and it looked great. "In a split second I made the decision that I was going to go to this woman and let her inject silicone into my behind." That decision nearly killed her. Apryl paid the woman, who had no medical background, around ?650 for two lots of injections. Doctors later discovered the substance used was industrial-grade silicone. Apryl admitted: "I didn't do any research. A combination of naivety, misplaced trust and insecurity led me to take this disastrous decision. "I trusted her because she seemed so professional, and I had no reason to think anything awful was going to happen. "She carried out the procedure in her daughter's bedroom. She assessed my bottom and said, 'You'll need three or four sessions to get the result you want'. "The first procedure took an hour. I remember asking, 'Is it meant to be so painful?' and she said, 'Yes'. It felt like it was squeezing through my nerves." Within weeks Apryl returned for her second treatment. She said: "After going through it again I had an epiphany. As I left her house I thought, 'What am I doing? I have no idea what she's putting in my body'. "I never returned. But though I didn't know it then, my life had already changed forever." Over the next two years the area where she'd been injected became hard and the skin blackened. Apryl, mum to daughters Danye, 22 and Courtney, 21, said: "Within a few months of the second injection my buttocks began to harden. I knew something wasn't right. But shame stopped me seeking medical help. As time went on it got worse as the skin blackened. I developed hard lumps. Then the searing pain started. I had to tell my doctor what I did. I was so ashamed." Apryl spent the next four years in constant pain. Two surgeons told her it was too dangerous to remove the silicone. She said: "I was in so much agony I became a regular at hospital asking for medication to ease what was like a combination of a migraine, childbirth and toothache localised in one area. In February 2011 a surgeon operated unsuccessfully. Apryl developed a hole in her buttocks - thought to be the trigger for an infection that in June was nearly fatal. She said: "I was 24 hours from dying. I didn't think of leaving my family. It was a relief I'd finally be free of pain." Doctors put her in an induced coma for two months while performing 27 surgeries - starting with amputating her buttocks - and doing extensive skin grafts. She said: "They saved me but gangrene set into my hands and feet. I was brought out of sedation shortly before I became a quadruple amputee. "My hands looked like those of a dead person. I knew then I was going to lose them." She added: "At first you try to register your new limbs. The real comprehension comes when you start to live this new life. "I had dark times. I cried a sea of tears. I had to face the fact I'd lost my hands, feet and buttocks because of complications from bottom injections. I was overwhelmed by shame and guilt... all because I wanted a bigger bottom. "I was six months in hospital. By the time I was discharged I was determined to turn this terrible thing into something positive. "I decided to do a triathlon. I told myself if I could achieve that I could do anything. "I took my first steps again by the end of 2011. I built up to training six days a week, learning to walk, cycle then swim again using my residual limbs. "I'd be crying in pain but I'd push through it. And six weeks ago I did it - completing a three-mile walk, ten-mile cycle and a 150-metre swim. "When I crossed that finishing line with my family cheering me on, I cried tears of joy." She added: "I haven't sued or sought compensation. I just want to move on. There are things I miss dearly - I'll never be able to do my girls' hair or feel sand between my toes. "But I believe I survived to share my story. "I want to warn others of the dangers of black-market surgery. We were born whole, perfect and complete. "My greatest message is we have to learn to love and accept ourselves for who we are."

Thousands protest gay marriage in Paris

PARIS, May 27 – At least 150,000 demonstrators took to the streets of Paris to protest a new law allowing gay marriage, a largely peaceful gathering that later turned violent as riot police battled hundreds of right-wingers.

Police said they had made a total of 293 arrests and that six people were injured in the course of Sunday’s demonstration: four police officers, an AFP photographer and a protester.

Interior Minister Manuel Valls, in a statement, blamed the “extreme right” for the violence.
“These incidents were provoked by several hundred individuals, most from the extreme right and the (nationalist) Identity Bloc, who violently attacked police,” he added.
The rally came as the jury at the Cannes film festival in southern France on Sunday awarded its Palme d’Or top prize to the sexually graphic lesbian love story “Blue is the Warmest Colour” by French-Tunisian director Abdellatif Kechiche.
The main demonstration on Sunday saw three separate processions converging on the Invalides esplanade, filling the huge promenade with pink and blue — the colours adopted by the anti-gay marriage movement.
Police said 150,000 people turned out to protest, a figure immediately contested by organisers who said one million opponents of the law had shown up.
Some of the far-right activists briefly unfurled a banner at the ruling Socialist party’s headquarters urging President Francois Hollande to resign.
As the protestors dispersed, after a largely peaceful march, police said up to 500 people began attacking them by throwing metal barriers, smoke flares and beer bottles.
The youths shouted slogans against the government such as “Socialist dictatorship” and also threw objects at journalists covering the event.
Late Saturday, police had detained 50 people involved in an anti-gay marriage protest on the busy Champs-Elysees avenue.
Fears of unrest at Sunday’s protest had been fuelled by violence that erupted earlier this month during celebrations marking football club Paris Saint-Germain’s league victory, which saw tourists attacked and shop and car windows smashed.
Some 4,500 security forces were mobilised for Sunday’s demonstration that was billed as a last-ditch show of force by opponents of the bill allowing same-sex marriage and adoption, which was voted into law on May 18 following months of bitter protests.
But those in the protest ignored the recent tensions, bringing their children along as others had in previous demonstrations.
“We keep hearing about a far-right movement, I can see only families here,” said one man called Raoul, who came from the city of Dijon.
Onlookers were instead treated to creative forms of protest. One man dressed in black held a scythe and wore a mask of Hollande as he stood behind a coffin containing a mannequin dressed as Marianne, the emblem of France.
“Hollande, your mother isn’t called Robert”, shouted some of the demonstrators in a slogan that gained in popularity as the afternoon progressed.
Supporters and opponents of the bill began protesting last autumn when it was adopted by the cabinet, and continued to do so at regular intervals throughout the country during the legislative process.
The definitive vote in the French parliament came on April 23 when the law was passed legalising both homosexual marriages and adoptions by gay couples.
One of Hollande’s campaign pledges, it has proved hugely divisive in a country that is officially secular but predominantly Catholic.
France is the 14th country to legalise same-sex marriage, an issue that has also divided opinion in many other nations.
In Brazil, tens of thousands of evangelical Christians marched in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday protesting a recent legal ruling allowing gay marriage.
And in Poland, some 10,000 protesters marched Sunday in solidarity with opponents of the French law, to defend the traditional family structure.
But according to a survey published Sunday in the Journal du Dimanche, nearly three-quarters of French people are tired of the anti-bill protests and think they should stop.
Another potential flashpoint will be in the southern town of Montpellier on Wednesday when the country’s first gay wedding is due to take place.

Jonathan vs. Amaechi: House of Reps report indicts Aviation Ministry, Caverton helicopters

The federal government’s allegation that Rivers State Government falsified permits used in operating its aircraft, is a deliberate falsehood that cannot be substantiated and enforces the state’s claim that it was a victim of federal “witch-hunting”, a House of Representatives committee has said in its report of an investigation into the matter.

The report, submitted by the investigating committees to the House plenary Thursday, said federal aviation authorities deliberately refused to acknowledge Rivers State’s ownership of the aircraft, and may have indeed pressured aviation agent, Caverton Helicopter, to deny having a business relationship with Rivers State.
The committees said it was clear Caverton willfully misled the authorities by denying it acted on behalf of Rivers State. The report recommends officials of the company be prosecuted.
The controversy, which led to the grounding of the aircraft, is widely seen as a face of a political feud between Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, and President Goodluck Jonathan over the 2015 presidential election. Mr. Amaechi has criticized the government’s policies, and is reportedly against Mr. Jonathan’s plan to seek a fresh term.
During investigations, lawmakers ordered the list of all private jets and owners and documentations to be submitted by the Ministry of Aviation to enable the committees examine whether the Rivers State treatment was any different, particularly as it regards ownership and expiration of license.
The committees said ministry and its departments blatantly refused to send in the required materials despite assuring to do same.
“This attitude may be interpreted as an attempt to hide the suspected fact that many aircraft air being operated with expired permits or licenses,” a likelihood which would nullify one of the government’s allegations that Rivers state operated the aircraft on an expired permit.
More details…

Achebe remains arrive, begins final journey

AT 6. 00am yesterday, the remains of 82-year-old Nigeria’s literary icon Chinua Achebe, who died in a Boston hospital arrived Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja from his US-base. The body was released by government officials led by the Secretary to the Federal Government, Chief Anyim Pius Ayim.
Also at the airport to receive the casket draped in the National colours of green, white and green were his first son, Dr. Ike Achebe, Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State, Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo and former governor of Abia State, Ogbonnaya Onu, former FCT minister, Chief Chuka Odom, former Minister of State for Education, Dr. Jerry Agada, former House of Representatives member, Dr. Wale Okediran, chairman of the Achebe National Transition Committee, Prof. Uzodinma Nwala, traditional rulers and leaders of Igbo communities, including those from his Ogidi community, and writers.
The casket, carried by pall bearers in traditional Igbo attires was ushered into the reception hall of the domestic wing of the airport in a procession led by Rt. Rev Owen Nwokolo who, in a brief sermon, prayed for the repose of Achebe’s soul saying, “We are gathered to say nno (welcome) to Achebe. He has come back, though dead but we know that his works keep him alive. We are gathered to receive him because of what he has accomplished throughout the world.”
He praised the departed literary icon for his exemplary and transparent life and called on Nigerians to learn from Achebe’s transparency and selflessness.
Also speaking, Senator Pius Anyim, extolled the virtues of Achebe and said his death was a terrible loss to Nigeria and urged the family of the author to bear it with strength.
The body was accompanied by Achebe’s wife, Prof. Christie Achebe, his children Chidi, Chinelo, Nwando and her husband.
Dr. Ike Achebe, the first son of Achebe expressed his appreciation for the support his family has received since his father’s death on March 21.
He said: “I want to appreciate everyone that has worked tirelessly to ensure that the transition is peaceful. I thank you all”.
After the airport reception, the casket was ushered into a smaller plane, escorted by Achebe’s widow and other dignitaries for onward flight to Enugu where a reception was also held in his honour at the University of Nigeria, UNN, Enugu campus.
UNN formally declares Achebe absent at Senate; pays tributes
At the senate session held in his honour late Achebe was formally declared absent having confirmed his demise by sighting his corpse which laid in-state at the Enugu campus of the university.
The senate and indeed the entire university community paid glowing tribute to Professor Achebe whose demise, they said, would leave a void in the hearts of people and the University of Nigeria where he is revered as a great academic and administrator.
Professors, Associate Professors, Senior lecturers, and other scholars, draped in their flowing academic gowns, filed past the casket wrapped with national flag bearing the remains of the late author of Things Fall Apart.
The remains of the departed literary icon, Professor Chinua Achebe arrived Enugu at  12.35pm yesterday. A private aircraft belonging to Overland Nigeria marked 5N-BPE brought the dark brown casket wrapped with dark blue lace to the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu from Abuja.
Professor Christie Achebe, his widow, children and Engr Austin Achebe, his elder brother and leader of the Achebe family were among personalities on ground at the airport to receive his corpse.
A dark Mercedes Benz R500 belonging to M.I.C funeral undertakers conveyed the casket to the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus and a special Senate session was held in his honour presided over by the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Bartho Okolo and attended by other scholars. The event which was attended by members of Achebe’s family and his associates in Enugu State commenced at 3: 45pm and ended 6pm.
“We are gathered for the purpose of paying our last respect to Emeritus Professor Chinua Achebe,” Prof Okolo told the large audience drawn mainly from the university community.
During the special Senate, there was a long roll call of all the professors who are members of the senate. All of them answered their names but when Achebe’s name was called severally, everywhere was dead silent without Achebe responding.
“Dear colleagues, it is unlike Emeritus Professor Chinua Achebe, our revered man of letters, the literary giant, the Eagle on Iroko, to stay silent at the mention of his name,” Okolo said.
After formally announcing the passing of Achebe, the Vice Chancellor said: “For the avoidance of doubt, may I call his name one more time: Emeritus Professor Chinua Achebe! (still no response). Truly, this is a solemn confirmation that the earthly sojourn of our revered colleague, Emeritus Professor Chinualumogu Albert Achebe, our compatriot who rose to become a citizen of the world has come to an end. It is, therefore, with profound grief and regret that I preside over this special senate in his honour.”
Okolo described the late icon as “a truly distinguished academic of international status and one of the finest academics that the University of Nigeria has ever produced.” He added that Achebe was one of the best creative minds of the present generation, stressing that the late writer told the story of Africa in over 50 different languages.
“In doing so, he brought various aspects of the political history and socio-political existence of Nigeria to the attention of the world,” he said, adding that “Achebe will be remembered as a remarkable teacher, an astute administrator, creative genius, a story teller and author of extra-ordinary ability.”
The UNN VC said Achebe, during his life time, enjoyed a larger than life image as a world renowned literary giant, adding that in addition to his winning many literary awards, “his creative works, which often had prophetic undertones, drew world attention to African literature.”
However, at the end of the session, the motorcade bearing Achebe’s remains left Enugu for Awka where another funeral would take place in his home state, Anambra ahead of his internment at his Nkwelle Ogidi hometown in Idemili Local Government Area tomorrow.