A psychiatrist should examine me if I join Obasanjo’s coalition - Soyinka

Wole Soyinka, Nobel laureate, says he should be examined by a psychiatrist if he joins the Coalition for Nigeria Movement (CNM) masterminded by ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Obasanjo recommended the coalition in a letter he wrote to President Muhammadu Buhari in January.

The elder statement had asked Nigerians to rally round the movement, saying neither the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) nor the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) could give Nigeria the leadership it deserves.

But speaking in an interview with BBC Yoruba, Soyinka said the coalition is not meant for someone like him.
“Me? Obasanjo would establish a group and I will become a member of such group? That means they should get a psychiatrist to examine me,” Soyinka said.

He also spoke about the letters which Obasanjo and former military President Ibrahim Babangida addressed to Buhari.
Soyinka said people should get suspicious “when these soldiers speak” because there is the possibility that “what they have in mind is different from what we have in mind”.

The scholar said nonetheless, the content of the message should be examined even though the messengers are not trustworthy.
“When these soldiers begin to speak, we are supposed to get suspicious and ask what exactly do they have in mind? It is possible that what they have in mind is different from what we have in mind,” he said.

“You can look at it from two perspectives, the messenger and the message. The message should be examined closely. We should not look at the misdeeds of the messenger alone. Let’s start by asking, is he saying the truth or telling lies, or is he being tricky?
“If he is saying the truth and talking about things that are beneficial to the masses, we would allow that be. After that, we would now look at the person speaking, what is in his mind? …  even if it’s a little child who is speaking, as far as that child is saying the truth, we won’t ask the child to keep quiet. We won’t ask the child what do you know? We would listen. It is the same situation with those who have presided over the affairs of this nation without making significant progress.

“We have seen their weaknesses, we have seen their nakedness in public, if they now want to be covered by saying that they have turned a new leaf, we would examine that, too. What I am saying in essence is that what they have said should also be examined.”
He urged the youth to come together and present a candidate to represent them, adding that the older generation would support them.

“We have a lot of them. It is the turn of the younger ones. If they come together, as we speak, if they can start now and bring out one individual among them, we will work with him,” he said.
“We are going to give them the support they need to transform the country. People like us are supposed to sit somewhere.” - Cable Nigeria

Former Super Eagles star, Amokachi reveals country his twin sons will play for

Former Super Eagles forward, Daniel Amokachi has said he would want to see his twin sons play for the Super Eagles of Nigeria instead of Tunisia, the country of their mother.

Amokachi, fondly called Da Bull in his active days told reporters,“Definitely, that would be my dream, their mother’s dream, even their dream because their heart is with Nigeria,” when asked if he would like his children wear the Super Eagles’ shirt like their father did.

Amokachi added that the boys had turned down the opportunity to be capped by Tunisia, but remains hopeful that they can play for Nigeria.

He added, “They are doing pretty well in Besiktas, they are with the U23 team, we are trying to see if they can play the professional angle of it because, in Turkey, they leave the foreign slot for professionals.

“Right now, however, they are working very hard and we hope that soon, they will get the opportunity to play in a place where they can give a good account of themselves.”

He prayed that Nigerian players remain injury free in order to find themselves in good form before the World Cup.

He continued, “Qualifying for the World Cup is one thing but the World Cup proper is a different ball game.

“The most important thing is that our players should be healthy and have enough playing time in their respective clubs because that will definitely tell when it comes to the World Cup.

“I have confidence that this team can take us to the next level, like the quarter-final or even win the World Cup.” - Daily Post

Catholic Church Rejoins CAN After 5 Years

The Catholic Church has announced its return to the Christian Association of Nigeria after about five years of dissociating itself from the body.

The return process was concluded on Thursday and Friday in Abuja when a delegation of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, led by  Rev. Fr. (Prof.) Cornelius Omonokhua, attended the expanded National Executive Committee and quarterly meeting of CAN for the amendment of its constitution.

The CSN delegation participated in the two-day meeting.

The President of CAN, Dr Samson Ayokunle, according to a statement issued on Sunday by his Special Assistant, Media & Communications, Adebayo Oladeji, could not hide his happiness on the new development.


Ayokunle was quoted as saying, “Their return is one of the best things that have happened since I was given the mandate to become the President of CAN. One of my visions for CAN is to bring our Catholic brothers and sisters back to the fold and I must acknowledge the support and understanding of my brother in Christ, Most Rev. Ignatius Kaigama, the president of Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria and his team.

“I give kudos to all the principal officers, the directors and some Christian leaders in the country for their support and understanding while the dialogue lasted. My joy knows no bound with the presence of the CSN at the constitutional amendment meeting of CAN held on Thursday and at the NEC meeting on Friday. It is our prayers that the body of Christ in the country will remain one forever in Jesus’ name.

“At a time like this when Christians are almost becoming endangered species in Nigeria, when churches are being denied Certificates of Occupancy, especially in the core North, when Christians are being denied key public offices and when the Church is expected to speak for the voiceless, especially over the economic and social hardship in our country, we cannot afford to be at war with ourselves.” 

Nigerian Woman To Serve Six Years In Jail For Drug Trafficking In Rwanda

The specialised chamber for international crimes at the High Court in Kigali on Thursday sentenced a Nigerian woman to six years in prison for drug trafficking.

Priscilla Duru was arrested at Kigali International Airport in October 2016 as she tried to smuggle1.3 kilograms of heroin through Kigali en route to Nigeria.

During the hearings, she denied the charges arguing that she was given the bag by a Tanzanian woman and didn’t know the contents of the bag.

Reading the verdict, the presiding judge Alice Rulisa said that the court had established that Duru entered the country to wait for another person to give her the narcotics from Tanzania so that she could transport it to Nigeria.


The High Court ruled that the suspect was well aware of the contraband, waited for over a month in Rwanda before the bag containing the drugs was brought to her.

Duru, who was in tears during the reading of the verdict, had previously begged for clemency adding that if she knew that she had been given drugs, she would have alerted the police before leaving Kigali as she indicated that she only came in Kigali after she was asked by a “family friend” who owns a pharmacy in Nigeria to carry for him a bag with a certain medicine called Ephedrine.

She claimed that she had approached him for help because she needed to cater for her children after losing her husband.

Court ruled that she will have to serve six years in Muhanga Prison, and pay two million Rwandan francs in fines. 

NBS : 1, 306 Nigerians died in road accidents in Q4

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says no fewer than 1,306 Nigerians died in road accidents in the fourth quarter of 2017.

The NBS stated this in its, “ Road Transport Data for Fourth Quarter 2017’’ posted on its website.

The NBS said that 1,200 of the 1,306 Nigerians who died, representing 92 per cent of the figure were adults, while the remaining 106, representing eight per cent, were children.

According to the report, 1,019 male, representing 78 per cent died in the period under review, while 287 female, representing 22 per cent, died in road accidents in the period.

The report said that 2,489 road crashes occurred in fourth quarter of 2017.

It indicated that speed violation as the major cause of road crashes during the period and this accounted for 45.08 per cent of the total road crashes reported.

It said that loss of control and dangerous driving by motorists represented 10.08 per cent of crashes recorded in the fourth quarter.

According to the report, a total of 7,349 Nigerians got injured in the road accidents recorded in the period.

It stated that 6,855 of the 7,349 Nigerians that got injured, representing 93 per cent of the figure, were adults, while the remaining 494 Nigerians, representing seven per cent of the figure were children.

It also reported that 5,366 male, representing 73 per cent, got injured during the quarter, while 1,983 female, representing 27 per cent, were injured within the period.

The report said that a total of 214,256 national drivers’ licenses were produced in the quarter.

It stated that Lagos and FCT produced the highest number of drivers’ licenses, while Zamfara and Kebbi States produced the least numbers of national drivers’ licenses in the period - Daily Post

MAD MAN ! Why herdsmen must kill – Ango Abdullahi

A former Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, and spokesperson of the Northern Elders Forum, NEF, Prof. Ango Abdullahi has vehemently defended the incessant killings by Fulani herdsmen across the country.

Abdullahi also said that the herdsmen menace is politically motivated by the South to disrupt the politically united North ahead of the 2019 general elections, adding that this was how Boko Haram was introduced during Goodluck Jonathan’s government which led to his failure in the 2015 polls.

Justifying the killings, the Professor said that the herdsmen are killing members of their host communities in order to defend themselves, adding that the herders were free to take the cattle to any part of the country the same way an Igbo man does his business.

In a strong worded interview with Vanguard, Abdullahi said, “I have been involved in debates against some respected people from the southern part of this country who believe that this country is not balanced because the North is too big; because the North is too politically united, so there must be a way of disrupting this unity, and this is what we are seeing on ground today, and the elements that are being used are the Fulani herdsmen.

“This matter would be looked at properly; political alliances and so on are welcome. You don’t need to lose blood, or property to engage in political alliance or whatever you want, or still, you don’t need to introduce excuses that will lead to loss of lives. We saw this when the Boko Haram was on ground; they said northerners created the sect to disrupt former President Goodluck Jonathan’s government, which led to his failure in the last election, and so on.

“Now that Boko Haram is out of the way, the new excuse is the Fulani herdsmen. This is what is happening in other places except in areas that you are talking.

“We have seen what they called a new handshake across the Niger; it is political, and we have seen the mourning that has taken place in Benue and other places to show that the monolithic North is not in tandem with the Middle Belt; it is all politics. Our Middle Belters don’t need to take the agenda that appears to be a thing of distrust. We are not going to force anybody into a relationship politically or otherwise. We see this as a political agenda.

Asked if herdsmen are not the ones committing the murders, he added, “The truth is, if you want to kill me and I have a chance first, I will kill you, or you do want people to be killed and not defend themselves? By your reporting, you have denied them justice and government also has denied them justice by not going to arrest those that are killing them. So, they defend themselves.

On the herdsmen that kidnapped, raided and Chief Olu Falae’s farm ablaze, he said, “My uncle was kidnapped last week in Kaduna, my cousin’s children were also kidnapped and they had to go and find N2.5 million to pay. Why is Olu Falae case different?

“Because he was Secretary to the Federal Government? He is a Nigerian just like my uncle and my cousin whose children were kidnapped. The right of every citizen is important under the law. Why is he so special?

“What about the impunity of the people killing herdsmen? The herdsmen in Nigeria are reacting to the injustice meted out daily to them?

“You people, you Nigerians, including you who are biased, who are not prepared to protect the rights and interests of herdsmen. They are killed but not reported, that is not acceptable.

“Herdsmen operate in these places you mentioned because the country has denied them the traditional routes which the British created for them IN 1914 when they occupied this country because they realised that, like cars require tracks, herdsmen also require tracks they can use to graze and drink water.

“The British provided it for them and gazetted it but people have denied them these routes. So, where do you expect the animals to follow? They have to follow somewhere and the easy road is the one other people are using. We are all living in Nigeria.

Asked if he was trying to justify the menace of herdsmen, he maintained, “I am justifying it very strongly because herdsmen are being unjustly treated in this country.

“They are businessmen just like the farmers whose crops are being destroyed. They should invest in their business; buy ranches like the farmers bought their parcels of land.

They are businessmen. If an Igbo man could go to my state and set up a shop, why shouldn’t herdsmen operate elsewhere? Or are you the one who planted the grass the animals are feeding on? Are you the one who created the water they drink?

“The land belongs to Nigerians and herdsmen are Nigerians. If an Igbo man can go to the North and set up a business, why won’t herdsmen go to the South, including your village, to graze their cattle?

“Where we come from, you don’t pay for land, you only ask for permission to use it. That is why I said you people are biased against other people and that is why the peace of this country will be very difficult.” - Daily Post

British prime minister attacks overpriced tuition fees and says you don't have go to university to succeed

Students in England often pay too much for higher education and tuition fees have not created the competitive market it was hoped they would achieve, Theresa May will say.

In a speech in Derby, the British prime minister will announce on Monday (19 February) a government review of higher education funding and will argue for an end to "outdated attitudes" favouring university over technical education.

She will say: "We now have one of the most expensive systems of university tuition in the world. All but a handful of universities charge the maximum possible fees for undergraduate courses.

"Three-year courses remain the norm. And the level of fees charged do not relate to the cost or quality of the course. The competitive market between universities which the system of variable tuition fees envisaged has simply not emerged," she will say.

The review due out in 2019 will look at the costs of higher education funding, whether career guidance could be given to students who may not need to go to university and if maintenance grants to help with accommodation costs should be introduced.

It signals how tuition fees has emerged as a key fighting ground for both the Tories and Labour. The Labour party pledged to scrap fees at the last election, while the Tory government said it would freeze the top rate of tuition fees at £9,250.

The education secretary Damian Hinds told the BBC fees should reflect the value of the degree.

"What we need to look at is the different aspects of pricing, so the cost to put on the course, the value it is to the student and also the value to our society as a whole and to our economy for the future," he said.

However his predecessor, Justine Greening, who was sacked in the cabinet reshuffle, said making universities charge less for degrees which offer lower earnings could discourage poorer students from going for high-earning careers.

"The thing that really matters from my perspective is social mobility, and making sure we don't end up with a system where young people from more disadvantaged backgrounds feel like they ought to do one of the cheaper degrees, rather than doing the degree they actually want that will unlock their potential in the future," she told the BBC.

Janet Beer, the president of Universities UK and the vice-chancellor of the University of Liverpool, said there should not be a divide between academic and technical qualifications.

"The perception may be of academic versus technical qualifications, but the reality is very different. Universities are key to developing the skills needed by employers and students across a wide range of industries, sectors and professions," she said. - IBT

Jungle republic : Police escort kills taxi driver

Men of the Rivers State Police command yesterday averted a crisis in Rumuokoro junction area of Port Harcourt, the capital.

A police officer escorting a tanker laden with substance suspected to be illegal crude oil shot and killed a taxi driver, simply identified as Bright, and escaped.

Eyewitnesses said: ‘’The truck ran into traffic at the junction. The police escort got off to clear the road. The victim tried to make way for the truck.

Continuing, they said:  ‘’While the officer was trying to break the mirror on the driver’s side with the nozzle of his cocked gun, the bullet went off, killing the driver instantly.

Fearing a mob action, he ran away.

Angry onlookers staged a riot, insisting that the body will not be moved until the escort is produced.

They blocked roads leading to University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, the one leading to Obio/ Akpor LGA as well as the road leading to Mile 3, causing serious traffic in the area.

Youths marched to the nearby Rumuokoro police station in protest.

Attempts by the police to recover the remains, failed. Over 10 truckloads of policemen were later deployed to the scene to clear the crowd.

Relatives of the victim  could not stop crying. Efforts to speak them failed.

Police spokesman Nnamdi Omoni, a Deputy superintendent of Police(DSP), confirmed the incident but said the officer, a mobile policeman, was not from the command.

He said he learnt he was on special duty and that efforts were being made to unravel his identity. - The Nation