ADC attacks Buhari, says govt full of lies

The African Democratic Congress (ADC, has countered President Muhamadu Buhari’s claim of good governance in the last three years.

President Buhari had said that members of the opposition cannot fault the efforts his administration had made in its three major areas of focus, namely security, economy and the fight against corruption.

Buhari stated this in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu on Thursday in his hometown, Daura, Katsina State, while hosting some state governors elected on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress, some federal and state lawmakers and state commissioners to a lunch.

Buhari said he would continue to do what he was expected to do in the leadership position God had given him.

Disagreeing with Buhari’s claim, the Chairman of the African Democratic Congress, Chief Okey Nwosu, said it was unfortunate that Buhari had converted the exalted office of the President to a “lie manufacturing plant.”

Nwosu, whose party has been endorsed by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, said statistics from every credible organisation and even agencies of government showed that poverty and unemployment had worsened.

He further stated that the crisis in the Middle Belt had reached unprecedented levels under the Buhari administration and it was therefore deceptive of Buhari to claim that he had effectively tackled insecurity.

The ADC chairman said “Transparency International had exposed Buhari’s anti-graft war for the sham that it was and subsequently urged the President to focus on improving the lives of Nigerians rather than propaganda.

“Buhari has turned the Presidency into a lie manufacturing plant. He has no right to evaluate himself. It is Nigerians that are supposed to assess his performance. However, the facts speak for themselves. Under Buhari, poverty and unemployment have worsened.

“He claims to have effectively tackled insecurity but every day new IDP camps are springing up. I recently returned from Borno State where I saw IDP camps all over the place.”

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Study reveals marijuana ages brain by three years

A new research report published in the journal of Alzheimer’s Disease has revealed that smoking cannabis ages the brain by an average of nearly three years.

According to New York Post, Marijuana was found to ramp up brain aging by 2.8 years making it worse for the mind than bipolar disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Schizophrenics’ brains were found to age by an even greater average of four years.

Boozing was also shown to age the organ by 0.6 years, the research adds.

Brain aging is defined as reduced blood flow through the organ.

Lead study author, Dr. Daniel Amen, founder of Amen Clinics, said: “The cannabis abuse finding was especially important, as our culture is starting to see marijuana as an innocuous substance. This study should give us pause about it.”

Reduced brain blood flow has previously been linked to strokes and dementia.

The researchers analyzed 62,454 brain scans from 31,227 people.

Scans were collected during both rest and concentration and taken from people aged between nine months and 105 years old to determine factors that contribute to brain aging.

Researchers analyzed the blood flow through 128 regions of each brain to determine how old they thought the individual was.

Once they learned the person’s actual age, they were able to measure the rate of accelerated aging.

Dr. George Perry, from the University of Texas, San Antonio, commented on the research, saying: “This is one of the first population-based imaging studies, and these large studies are essential to answer how to maintain brain structure and function during aging.”

The results also suggest bipolar disorder accelerates brain aging by 1.6 years, with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) speeding it up by 1.4 years.

No link was found between depression and brain aging.

Amen added: “Based on one of the largest brain imaging studies ever done, we can now track common disorders and behaviors that prematurely age the brain.

“Better treatment of these disorders can slow or even halt the process of brain aging.”

Study author, Sachit Egan, from Google, a partner in the study, added: “The results indicate that we can predict an individual’s age based on patterns of cerebral blood flow.

“Additionally, groundwork has been laid to further explore how common psychiatric disorders can influence healthy patterns of cerebral blood flow.”

The findings were published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

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Democrats face 'almost impossible map' to retake U.S. Senate

CHICAGO (Reuters) - One political analyst calls it "an almost impossible map." Others are even less optimistic.

But despite the Democrats' long odds to retake the U.S. Senate in November’s congressional elections, party strategists meeting in Chicago this week say the escalating legal troubles of President Donald Trump's former associates and corruption scandals engulfing Republicans could boost Democrats chances.

The path, however, remains difficult.

Democrats are defending two dozen Senate seats this cycle - including 10 in states Trump won in 2016, some by huge margins. They need a net total of two seats to seize control of the chamber.

Having a majority would allow the party to derail or stall much of Trump’s policy agenda and increase congressional oversight and investigation of the administration, as well as complicate future conservative nominations to the U.S. Supreme Court should another vacancy occur.

Stu Rothenberg, a non-partisan political analyst, called the Senate landscape "an almost impossible map" for Democrats. But, he added, given the headwinds facing Republicans, "the Senate could be in play."

In interviews at the Democratic National Committee’s summer meeting in Chicago, a dozen party strategists, party members and candidates discussed the party's path and strategy to winning back the Senate, which Democrats last controlled in 2014.

CRITICAL CONTESTS

Democrats say five races are particularly difficult this year. They are spending hundreds of millions of dollars defending them. Losing just one of the seats in West Virginia, Indiana, North Dakota, Montana and Missouri - all won by Trump in 2016 - could doom any shot of retaking the Senate.

An array of state polls give Democrats hope. Opinion surveys show toss-up races in North Dakota, Indiana and Missouri. In Montana, which Trump carried by 20 percentage points, incumbent Democratic Senator Jon Tester leads recent polls by an average of five percentage points. In West Virginia, which Trump carried by over 40 percentage points, Democratic Senator Joe Manchin is slightly ahead in recent polling.

“Those five states are clearly the biggest targets for Republicans,” said Geoffrey Skelley, a non-partisan analyst at the University of Virginia Center for Politics. “There’s two ways to look at the Senate map. It’s really bad for Democrats, but the flip side of this is that this is a perfect year for them to be defending it.”

A Republican operative working on Senate races said Democrats seeking re-election in states where Trump remains popular should be worried. "Their national party’s lurch to the left is doing nothing but turning off voters in these states and further damaging their vulnerable incumbents."

Florida's Senate fight concerns some Democrats. Polls show a tight race between incumbent Democratic Senator Bill Nelson and Republican challenger Rick Scott, the state's governor. Scott led Nelson by six percentage points in a Florida Atlantic University poll released on Tuesday.

While straining to hold all the states Trump won, Democrats are also focused on Arizona and Nevada, which strategists said are crucial pick-ups for the party.

In Arizona, where Republican Jeff Flake is retiring, Republicans are in a three-way nominating contest ahead of voting next Tuesday. On the Democratic side, Kyrsten Sinema leads in polls.

Senator Dean Heller of Nevada is considered the most vulnerable Republican incumbent. Party strategists said his vote to repeal parts of the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, has been a gift in a state with many retirees and where access to healthcare is a major issue.

Democrats need to hold all the states they are defending and win Nevada and Arizona to secure a one-seat Senate majority.

FOCUSING RESOURCES

Priorities USA and Senate Majority PAC, two Democratic Super PACs, are together spending at least $120 million on ads in Arizona, Nevada, West Virginia, Indiana, Montana, North Dakota and Indiana. Super PACs must operate separately from political campaigns but can raise and spend unlimited money.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee’s independent expenditure arm has made an initial television buy of $30 million in Arizona, Nevada, West Virginia, Indiana, Montana and North Dakota.

The party and outside groups also have started to pour resources into more long-shot opportunities to gain seats in Tennessee and Texas, Democrats said.

Recent polls have placed Democratic challenger Beto O’Rourke within as few as two to four percentage points of Republican Senator Ted Cruz in Texas.

In Tennessee's open race, former Democratic governor Phil Bredesen, a popular moderate, is now in a close race with Republican congresswoman Marsha Blackburn, according to polls.

HEALTHCARE, TAXES AND CORRUPTION TOUTED AS WINNING MESSAGE

Internal Democratic polling shows that healthcare and the Republican tax cuts that some voters view as a giveaway to wealthy Americans and corporations are winning issues for Democrats this November.

"Critical issues, like healthcare, are really important to voters. And Republicans thought the tax cuts would be a winning issue, but it's turned into a loser," said Karen Finney, a Democratic strategist at the Chicago gathering. "We have these big issue trends working in our favor."

DNC chairman Tom Perez made clear that Democrats in Senate battles would highlight the legal troubles around Trump after the conviction this week of Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, and the guilty plea by his former personal attorney, Michael Cohen.

Cohen pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges including tax evasion, bank fraud and campaign finance violations. He testified that Trump had directed him to pay hush money to two women who claimed they had affairs with Trump, and the payments were made to influence the 2016 presidential election.

Trump, who has denied the affairs, says he paid Cohen out of personal funds and that the payments were not intended to benefit his campaign but to resolve a personal matter.

“The culture of corruption from this Republican leadership is out of control," Perez told the party's meeting

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Study reveals marijuana ages brain by three years

A new research report published in the journal of Alzheimer’s Disease has revealed that smoking cannabis ages the brain by an average of nearly three years.

According to New York Post, Marijuana was found to ramp up brain aging by 2.8 years making it worse for the mind than bipolar disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Schizophrenics’ brains were found to age by an even greater average of four years.

Boozing was also shown to age the organ by 0.6 years, the research adds.

Brain aging is defined as reduced blood flow through the organ.

Lead study author, Dr. Daniel Amen, founder of Amen Clinics, said: “The cannabis abuse finding was especially important, as our culture is starting to see marijuana as an innocuous substance. This study should give us pause about it.”

Reduced brain blood flow has previously been linked to strokes and dementia.

The researchers analyzed 62,454 brain scans from 31,227 people.

Scans were collected during both rest and concentration and taken from people aged between nine months and 105 years old to determine factors that contribute to brain aging.

Researchers analyzed the blood flow through 128 regions of each brain to determine how old they thought the individual was.

Once they learned the person’s actual age, they were able to measure the rate of accelerated aging.

Dr. George Perry, from the University of Texas, San Antonio, commented on the research, saying: “This is one of the first population-based imaging studies, and these large studies are essential to answer how to maintain brain structure and function during aging.”

The results also suggest bipolar disorder accelerates brain aging by 1.6 years, with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) speeding it up by 1.4 years.

No link was found between depression and brain aging.

Amen added: “Based on one of the largest brain imaging studies ever done, we can now track common disorders and behaviors that prematurely age the brain.

“Better treatment of these disorders can slow or even halt the process of brain aging.”

Study author, Sachit Egan, from Google, a partner in the study, added: “The results indicate that we can predict an individual’s age based on patterns of cerebral blood flow.

“Additionally, groundwork has been laid to further explore how common psychiatric disorders can influence healthy patterns of cerebral blood flow.”

The findings were published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

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Bayelsa imposes curfew on Twon Brass over killing

The Bayelsa Government on Friday imposed a curfew on Twon Brass in the Brass Local Government Area of the state, where three were killed on Aug. 15.

 The Deputy Governor of the state, Rear Adm. Gboribiogha Jonah retired, told a news conference in Yenagoa that the curfew would last from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily. 

 He condemned the killing, which was blamed on political thugs at Ada-Ama Square in Twon Brass, saying that the curfew would be lifted only when peace returned to the community.

 “The State Government has gathered that the violence was sponsored by some individuals for political purposes. 

“We have direct law enforcement agencies to carry out thorough investigation into the activities of the hoodlums and ensure the prosecution of all persons that may be found culpable,” Jonah said.

 The spokesman of the Bayelsa State Police Command, DSP. Asinim Butswat, had earlier said that the incident involved suspected thugs, who claimed to be members of the APC and PDP in Brass.

 “We have commenced investigation to ascertain the remote and immediate causes of the crisis. We advise people to go about their normal activities,” said Butswat. 

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2019: APC speaks on internal division, blasts Senator Boroffice

The All Progressives Congress, APC, in Ondo State has described the lawmaker representing Ondo North Senatorial District, Senator Ajayi Boroffice, as a hater of the party.

The party accused the lawmaker of giving the erroneous impression that the party in the state is divided and disunited.

Senator Boroffice had during the week, warned that it will be suicidal for the APC in the state to contest the 2019 general elections as a divided house.

But reacting, to the party’s Director, Media and Publicity, Steve Otaloro, in a statement yesterday, described the Senator’s statement as “appalling and uncharitable.”

The statement added, “This statement gave the erroneous impression that the party is in a fray of sort and needed a peace maker to appease it.

“Far from it as he has presented it. The party is in good shape and is at work in harmony to defeat the opposition in the coming general election.

“Boroffice’s statement also passively expressed such lies that it was by his influence the APC was able to defeat the PDP in the 2016 gubernatorial election in the State.

“Everyone living in Ondo State knew the overt anti-party activities perpetrated by him to subvert the APC’s victory in the 2016 governorship election.

“For a man, who worked assiduously to hammer out an action plan for the opposition against us to come back preaching party unity and cohesion, sparks stupidity.

“We are definitely wary of such person and his Trojan horse.

“Senator Ajayi Boroffice has continually demonstrated his open hatred for our party, hence, he is not in a position to advise us in any way. He can pocket that.

“APC in Ondo State is already moving forward as one united family and working across the state to reach out to the electorate.

“Senator Boroffice is not bigger than the party; it is expedient for him to jump on the APC bandwagon for his own good.”

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14 political parties to participate in Imo state LG polls

About 14 political parties will be participating in the local government election in Imo state scheduled for Saturday, August 25

-The parties include the All Progressives Congress (APC ), Accord Party, Green Party of Nigeria (GNP), Young People’s Party (YPP), KOWA, Mega Party of Nigeria (MPN), Social Democratic Party (SDP) and African Democratic Congress (ADC)

- The parties will be contesting for 27 chairmanship positions and 645 councillorship positions

Ahead of the Imo state local government election, 14 political parties including the All Progressives Congress (APC ), Accord Party, Green Party of Nigeria (GNP), Young People’s Party (YPP), KOWA, Mega Party of Nigeria (MPN), Social Democratic Party (SDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), among others will be participating, The Nations reports.

eagleee.com gathered that Hon Ethelbert Ibebuchi, the chairman of the Imo state Independent Electoral Commission (ISIEC), made the disclosure while briefing journalists on the preparedness of the commission.

Ibebuchi said the political parties will be contesting for 27 chairmanship positions and 645 Councillorship positions.

He further stated that the commission has concluded all necessary arrangements to ensure a hitch free and credible polls.

“The Commission is ready for the election and we are urging the people to come out perform their civic responsibilities. Let me assure all and sundry that ISIEC has made available to all participating political parties and their candidates, a level playing ground to actively take part in order to actualize their political goals,”

“May I in unequivocal terms assures our numerous publics that ISIEC is sufficiently ready to go. Be rest assured that as part of our altruistic design to ensure a hitch free exercise, there shall be restriction of movement of persons between 8am and 4pm when polls are expected to come to an end,” he said

emiratco previously reported that the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Imo has distanced itself from the proposed local government elections planned by the government of Owelle Rochas Okorocha as it described the polls fixed for July 14, as unconstitutional.

In a statement by Damian Opara, its spokesperson, the party argued that the proposed election did not follow constitutional stipulations.
According to the statement, the Supreme Court had advised the Imo state Independent Electoral Commission (ISEC) against holding the election.

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2019: Shehu Sani speaks on APC automatic ticket

Shehu Sani, the Senator representing Kaduna Central has spoken on receiving automatic ticket to seek re-election in 2019 under the All Progressives Congress, APC.

Speaking with newsmen after meeting with President Buhari in Daura, Sani said though he was not so keen about automatic ticket, the party had pledged to reward loyalty.

He, however, stressed that while rewarding members for their loyalty to the party, due process must be followed.

“I think the party had made it very clear and known to each and every person that there will be reward for loyalty but in every sense of the word due process of the party needs to be followed.

“And as far as we are concerned, what matters most to us is not simply about automatic ticket but about the peaceful and transparent conduct of the 2019 election and also the very need for us as a people and as a nation to know that the fate of the country is on our hands.

“There is the need for us to keep aside all sectional, ethnic and religious differences for the progress of this country and going by the very fact that the President has intervened and chairman of the party has intervened – all family squabbles would certainly come to an end,’’ he said. 

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2019: You are daydreaming, can’t allow takeover from Buhari – Adebanjo tells Tinubu

A chieftain of Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, has said that the All Progressives Congress, APC, National Leader, Bolaji Tinubu must be naive to think that the North will allow him to succeed Buhari in 2023.

Adebanjo further called on the people of the South-West not to allow themselves to be fooled by Tinubu a second time.

“Tinubu is daydreaming if he thinks the North will ever support his presidential ambition. We have our principles,” Adebanjo was quoted by Punch as saying.

“We are not supporting Buhari under any circumstance and Tinubu cannot lead Yoruba land because all he has done is to lead us astray. All he has done for us is to give some of our people who are close to him appointments.

“Nothing tangible has been done for Yoruba land. He gave his stooges appointments, nothing more, nothing less. If he has done more than that, let him say it.”

The 90-year-old said the only demand the Yoruba had made was restructuring, which the APC had been dishonest about.

He added, “How can they be telling us about restructuring committee, when from the outset, they were supposed to have started restructuring. Who do they think they are fooling?

“If Tinubu is daydreaming, he shouldn’t think others are daydreaming like him.

“Buhari is a stranger to us in Yoruba land. The only Yoruba supporting him are those benefiting from this corrupt regime.”

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No crisis in APC caucus in House of Reps - Abdulmumin Jibrin

Abdulmumin Jibrin says the APC caucus in the House has internal ways of resolving crisis

- Senator Shehu Sani states that he chose to remain in the APC because of the intervention of President Buhari and the national leadership of the party

A member of the House of Representatives, Abdulmumin Jibrin, has dismissed media reports that there is crisis within the All Progressives Congress (APC) caucus of the House.

Reports had emerged that the speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, and some lawmakers on the platform of the APC are planning to remove the House majority leader, Femi Gbajabiamila.

But Jibrin, who is a member of the APC, in a tweet on Friday, August 24, said the caucus of the party in the House may have internal issues but resolves them internally.

He said the Femi Gbajabiamila remains the House majority leader.

Meanwhile, Senator Shehu Sani (APC- Kaduna Central) has stated that his decision to remain in the ruling party was not because his grievances against the party leadership in Kaduna state had been addressed, but due to the intervention of President Muhammadu Buhari and the national leadership of the party.

Sani made the disclosure during a Sallah visit to President Muhammadu Buhari in Daura, Katsina state on Thursday, August 23, NAN reports.

Emiratco gathers that the senator called on all aggrieved members of the APC in the National Assembly to put aside parochial interests and join hands with the party in promoting national interest for the general good of all citizens.

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PDP Reps reveal what will happen if Dogara is impeached

The Parliamentary Democrats Group (PDG), a group in the House of Representatives has warned the All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers in the lower legislative chamber, against an alleged move to remove Yakubu Dogara as Speaker.

In a statement on Thursday, Timothy Golu, a lawmaker from Plateau and spokesman of the group, said any attempt to oust Dogara would be met “with fire”.

Golu said Dogara had been performing well and was leading the House with the fear of God.

“We believe that it is the aftermath of the gale of defections that had hit the APC in recent times, of which more are being expected that is affecting the members.

“However, any issue that concerns the larger house will not cease to get our attention, especially the accusation by one group that another group is contemplating the impeachment of the speaker.

“We want to warn that such discussions should start and end at the APC secretariat or the secretariats of the various APC house groups. We are keeping our eyes and ears wide open for any such eventuality and to restate our readiness to return fire for fire on anyone thinking of it.

“If they claim that someone is thinking of becoming speaker in 2019 when the current tenure has not ended, it will not be out of place to suspect such motives. This is especially so when the same people have been talking strongly on the urgent need to address critical legislative issues,” the statement read.

Golu also asked his APC colleagues not to distract the House from important issues.

“Our colleagues leading various splinter groups in the APC should allow the House to go on smoothly until June 9, 2019 or thereabout,” he said.

“We do not want the externally-influenced distraction taking place in the red chamber where some anti-democratic forces want to truncate democracy, to happen in the house. As true democrats, we are at alert, keeping vigilance and monitoring happenings with eagle eye wherever they are,” he added. 

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How we felt when Ortom, Tambuwal, Ahmed dumped APC for PDP – Okorocha

Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha on Thursday described the defection of some governors of the All Progressives Congress to the Peoples Democratic Party as painful.

He said this in Daura, Katsina State when he led other APC governors to visit President Muhammadu Buhari to felicitate with him in the spirit of the season.

Okorocha said: “We had wished that none of them, especially the governors, had left the part. We had wished, and it pains us so much.

“The pain is because they had associated and related together as brothers.

“All of a sudden, you don’t see one of your own; we feel it.”

Recall that three governors: Samuel Ortom of Benue State; Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara State; and Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State recently defected to the PDP.

Okorocha,however, noted that despite their painful exit, he believes it had no further effect on the APC.

“The governors defection had no negative effect whatsoever on the APC. Within one week, people had forgotten and we have forged ahead,” he added.

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Two Nigerians jailed for life in South Africa for human trafficking

A high court in Gauteng, South Africa has handed life sentences and an additional 106 years imprisonment to two Nigerians for human trafficking.

The duo, Frank Amaku and Ilo Promise Somadina (25), were arrested by the Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime investigating unit in April 2016 at a hideous dwelling in Fourways where they reportedly ran a brothel and held victims captive.

Five victims were rescued during the operation and taken to a place of safety.

Godfrey Lebeya, national head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, applauded the investigation team for working around the clock to ensure that the accused were ultimately convicted and sentenced.

“The sentence couldn’t have come at a better time, taking into consideration that August is celebrated as Women’s Month in South Africa,” he said.

“This is a time to once again warn those who abuse women, that they will be brought to book and justice will be served.”

One of their victims from Upington was kept at the Fourways home, where she and three other women spent months servicing the pair’s clients until they were rescued.

The Nigerians denied their level of involvement in human trafficking and have stated on multiple occasions they will appeal the conviction.

Their lawyer, Moleko Ratau, asked that the court be lenient with the pair as they were “relatively young” when the said crimes took place in 2016.

The court was told that the duo kidnapped the women specifically for financial gain, transforming them into sexual objects and dehumanising them, which was evident by Boswell’s testimony that she had been starved and forced to live in terrible conditions. 

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We are back from Egypt’ – Over 1,000 members dump APC for PDP in Ebonyi

Over 1,000 members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Ebonyi local government area of Ebonyi State have decamped to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.

The decampees were on Thursday led into the PDP by Hon. Bede Nwali, former member representing Ebonyi North-East constituency in the state House of Assembly.

Nwali, who led his loyalists into the PDP, said “we have been in Egypt for years and have decided to go back to the PDP.”

He thanked PDP Executives and members in the Ebonyi local government area for welcoming them.

He declared support for Governor David Umahi’s administration, while appealing to other people of Izzi clan still in opposition to join hands with the Governor in developing the state.

Receiving the decampees, the state PDP chairman, Onyekachi Nwebonyi thanked them for taking the bold steps in joining the party and urged them to feel free and associate with the party members

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Violence in Rivers elections was introduced by my generation - Advocacy group leader

Violence in Rivers state politics, especially during election period, has continued to be an issue of concern to many in the country

- The leader of an advocacy group known as the Rivers Unity House (RUH), Kingsley Wali, has said that his generation introduced violence in the state's elections

- In regret, Wali said that those within his age bracket owe Nigerians apologies for the awful trend in the state

Kingsley Wali, the leader of an advocacy group known as the Rivers Unity House (RUH) on Thursday, August 23, blamed his generation for introducing the culture of violence and destruction in elections in the state, Vanguard reports.

Decrying the negative influence of violence in the development of the state, Wali said: “My generation destroyed our politics and I think my generation owes this current generation a duty to say we are sorry we created this wrong and we need to move on.

"Moving forward, you need to do it differently. Let’s face it, what has violence done for the people politically? People have gotten into power. You use people and discard them. Even those who used and discard people, what has it done to them? Nothing.

"They have not really made any progress. What you see are people having temporary comfort and at the end of the day because of the way they got the wealth, it is not sustainable.

“Why not try sustainable growth where people are seen as part of a system and they put all hands together to ensure it works because if it works, it will work for everybody. We are looking for a situation where we create a system that works.

“What we speak for and against is the ailment in the society. It affects the political class, affects my own party, APC. So, it is not a case of demoralizing the other side of the coin. It is something that is destroying every facet of the economy.

“You will find out that whatever transpired in last Saturday’s by-election will equally play out in the parties. I wouldn’t bother myself with details of who did what, but at times like this, the whole system is flared up and the confusion out there will blind most of us to the truth.”

Former Deputy Speaker, Rivers State House of Assembly, Leyii Kwanee, on the occasion said that his generation was ready to make amends, having failed the people.Kwanee said: “The very day you realise you have erred, you apologise and take it up from there, that is your good morning. Our generation, those within our age bracket, we have failed the people. There is no shame about it.”

Meanwhile,emiratco reported that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had disagreed with Governor Nyesom Wike's allegation that the police should be blamed for the violence that marred the Saturday, August 18, by-election in Rivers state.

While the INEC chief praised the police for wading in and preventing total break down of law and order during the election, Governor Wike blamed the police for causing the violence that marred the election.

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UPDATED: Former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan dies

Former UN Secretary-General and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Kofi Annan has died at the age of 80, his foundation said on Saturday.

Annan, a Ghanaian national, died in hospital in Bern, Switzerland, in the early hours of Saturday, two of his close associates said.

In Geneva, the Kofi Annan Foundation announced his peaceful death with “immense sadness” after a short illness, saying he was surrounded in his last days by his second wife Nane and children Ama, Kojo and Nina.

Annan served two terms as UN Secretary-General in New York from 1997 to 2006 and retired in Geneva and later lived in a Swiss village in the nearby countryside.

“In many ways, Kofi Annan was the UN. He rose through the ranks to lead the organization into the new millennium with matchless dignity and determination,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, whom Annan had chosen to head the UN refugee agency, said in a statement.

As head of UN peacekeeping operations, Annan was criticized for the world body’s failure to halt the genocide in Rwanda in the 1990s.

“The UN can be improved, it is not perfect but if it didn’t exist you would have to create it,” he told the BBC’s Hard Talk during an interview for his 80th birthday last April, recorded at the Geneva Graduate Institute where he had studied

The Nobel Laureate died after a brief illness.

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Recover Deleted Files in Windows (The Easiest Way)

Are you worried about losing important data that you deleted mistakenly on your PC or USB devices? Don’t worry! We have a solution for you. You can restore or get your deleted data easily just by following a few simple steps.

Before proceeding, we have a very useful tip for you in case you mistakenly delete some data on your PC. You should always stop using the device immediately you mistakenly delete something as it will keep your deleted data safe.

If you continue to use the device, it might create new data files and your previous data might get lost. So always remember this.

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Abia to procure materials from Kano for making Aba products

Ikpeazu made this known when his counterpart from Kano, Dr Ibrahim Ganduje, paid visited him at the Government House, Umuahia, after the latter had been conferred with an honorary traditional chieftaincy title by the Chairman of Abia State/ South East traditional Rulers Council, Eze Dr Eberechi Dick.

The conferment, which took place at Dick’s Ewuga Palace in Obingwa LGA, was in appreciation of Ganduje for protecting south easterners resident in Kano State. Governor Ikpeazu, who said Abia would leverage cotton and the ternary in Kano to improve the leather, shoes, and bags industry, pointed out that the two states needed one another to survive.

“Abia will explore ways of making bulk purchase of leather from Kano, to drive the shoe factories in Aba. Our Commissioner for Trade and Investments will soon visit Kano State with Aba leather manufacturers in that regard.”

He further stressed the need for every ethnic nationality in the country to respect each other’s difference, and learn how to leverage the things they share in common for the sake of posterity.

“For me, every part of Nigeria needs each other and this is the kind of synergy we need,” adding that he has opened talks with the Bank of Industry (BoI), to see how best to source the materials.

Ganduje on his part said the honour done him would further consolidate national integration that Nigeria yearns for, and urged Nigerians to understand their differences and accept each other as the only way to build a united nation.

Former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and now Emir of Kano, Lamido Sanusi Lamido, who was in Ganduje’s entourage, described Kano as a cosmopolitan society that welcomes and accommodates the residents and visitors.He said any country that wants to make progress must be accommodating, and expressed delight that governors Ikpeazu (PDP), and Ganduje (APC), are working in such a manner that promotes national unity and development.

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NDC Chairman advises General Mosquito to retire as General Secretary

NDC's Central Regional Chairman, Allotey Jacobs, has advised the party's General Secretary, General Mosquito, to resign

- According to Allotey Jacobs, General Mosquito needs to leave to pave way for others to contribute to the party

- He said that NDC needs youthful ideas to pull it out of opposition

The Central Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Bernard Allotey Jacobs, has called on the party’s General Secretary, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, to retire.

Speaking on Okay FM, Allotey Jacobs argued that there is the need for Asiedu Nketiah, better known as General Mosquito, to give way for fresh ideas for the party.

He added that other equally capable people who are endowed with new ideas have to move the party forward.

Asiedu Nketiah, NDC's General Secretary Source: Supplied

In his opinion, there is a new breed of political youths who appeal more to the new generation of electorates and can therefore bring in more votes.

Such people, he went on, should be allowed to contest the available positions in the party.

“Asiedu Nketia’s time is over. His time has elapsed. His presence is preventing younger people in the party from contesting various positions, a situation which is very worrying,” he lamented bitterly.

He went on to say that “There are younger people in the party who are capable of working so they should stop the musical chairs and shifting cultivation and allow new people in the party [to contest],” he added.

Allotey Jacob’s comments follow those of General Mosquito, who has revealed his intention to contest for his position as General Secretary.

According to General Mosquito, he is the best person to pull the party out of position.

He explained that he stands tall and unmatched when it comes to the party’s history and operational strategies.

But Allotey Jacobs, who accused General Mosquito of being the cause of the defeat of the NDC in the Central Region, says he prefers Koku Anyidoho who is the Deputy General Secretary to General Mosquito.

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Genevieve Nnaji's 'Lionheart' starring Nkem Owoh, Pete Edochie & Onyeka Onwenu to Premiere at #TIFF18

Nollywood actress Genevieve Nnaji’s latest production ‘Lionheart’ which was shot last year, is set to have its world premiere at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival.

The movie follows Genevieve who plays Adaeze, a level-headed executive in her father’s bus company, Lionheart Transport. Time and again, Adaeze has proven her keen ability to make a profit and to manage the most heated situations. But when her father falls ill, both her and her rival are passed over in favour of Adaeze’s less-than-suave uncle, Godswill.

Determined to fight her way to the top, but not wanting to go against her father’s wishes, Adaeze feels like the proverbial bus has left the station without her. She must quickly shift gears, however, when her and Godswill discover that Lionheart is running on fumes, financially. Together, the unlikely duo must come together to save the company and their family name.

Sharply and comically observed, the film deals with the everyday sexism that saturates workplaces everywhere, and captures the delicate balance between honouring one’s family while finding the courage to strike out on one’s own.

Lionheart stars Nkem Owoh, Pete Edochie, Onyeka Onwenu and more, and this would be Genevieve’s directorial debut.

The festival is scheduled to take place from the 6th to the 16th of September 2018.

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