This Is My story, By Sanusi Lamido Sanusi

Perhaps right now we will wonder and keep wondering on who is actually telling the truth!

In the beginning

As at the time I came into office, several things had collapsed. From banks to stock exchange, they had crashed. Inflation was at 15.6percent three months before I became Central Bank Governor; there was already instability in every sector of the economy. When I look back, I thank God for the people who supported us and criticized us as well because criticism has made us stronger. Also, when I look back, I can point to several things that have changed after our arrival and till date.Keeping inflation downFor the first time in a long while, we have been able to keep inflation at about 7percent since January 2013 and it is still like that up till this moment. As far as instability and exchange rate is concerned, we have worked tirelessly to ensure things work out well for the economy.We also introduced cash reduction in the system. Although most people didn’t like it because they felt it will add more problem to the exchange rate because people want to buy dollars but against all odds, the cashless policy has worked and it’s still working today.On the face-off between CBN and NNPCOn the face-off between CBN and NNPC, I must say that we are not EFCC. What I have been talking about is the areas that affect my job which have been a dwindling in the money that comes into the Federation Account. Let me make it clear, the disputed $20billion may be gone. And what some people want is the continuity of this; that stealing of public funds should continue.On his suspensionI must say that there was no time when the CBN received any letter from the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria. At no point were we given any letter to respond to over any financial allegations. Also, nothing in the letter declared that I did anything wrong. I can tell you that CBN does not operate the way it’s been presented because all facts and statements of account are there for everybody to see. They said we spent N1.2billion on the police – even if that is true, is that corruption? Did I set up my security outfit and pay myself?  I want to repeat that I have had my last day in office. I have achieved everything I set out to achieve. Looking at the suspension letter, I was not given the benefit of doubt to respond or explain myself.Court orderHowever, I have a court order now enforcing my fundamental human right because once they seize your passport, you don’t know the next step they will take. I took an exparte motion to court to ensure I am not harassed.On the allegation that he is partisanWhen I was in King’s College, I was in Form 2 when Bukola Saraki came into Form 1. He has been my friend since we were 11years old. Also, El- Rufai has been my friend. I never knew I will be CBN Governor because I had wanted to study law, also Bukola Saraki never knew he would become a politician because he read medicine. These people remain my friends and, with all sincerity, every one of us has friends across political divides. These are things some Nigerians categorize and accuse me of being a politician. Also, I had known Governor Fashola and Bola Tinubu since I was in First Bank. I am a Lagos boy as well and my children were all given birth to and groomed in Lagos. When Nasir El- Rufai heard what happened, he decided to come to the Lagos airport so that if I am going to be arrested, it will be in the company of some of my friends. He never came to the airport as an APC member but as a friend. I am not a politician but people think I am one.What next on NNPCIt is not my responsibility anymore but I can comment as a Nigerian. I can talk if I feel like. I believe nobody will challenge me that I did not speak out when I was supposed to as CBN Governor. If the next CBN Governor wants to pursue the missing funds matter or the National Assembly wants to go ahead, they are free of do so. Can you imagine a sitting Minister on national television saying they spent money without appropriation. In any other country, such minister has sacked herself. To  me, that is not financial recklessness.Let me simply ask, if the Nigerian Constitution says don’t spend money without appropriation or says don’t pay subsidy and the Minister went ahead to pay, is it not a political problem? Technical problem is what we deal with at CBN, we deal with CRR and other issues.In this kind of situation of investigation going on, you are supposed to either keep quiet as a wise man or walk away. But as you can see, I am not a wise man.Donation of 100millionIt is called principle of donation. During the Ikeja bomb blast explosion, the CBN Governor then, Joseph Sanusi, gave N10million. So I was not the first person to do that. This is contained under Corporate Social Responsibility. The blast in Kano did not affect  Kano citizens alone, SSS offices, police stations were attacked and these are federal offices which have several people from the South working there. I can tell you that 80percent of the victims of that bomb attack are not Kano citizens, there were several Christians from the South involved and I gave N100million to their families. What is bad in that? Why are people not complaining  about the N500million I compelled the Bankers Committee to give to flood victims in Benue State and other places? What is wrong in it? With CSR, you cannot do everything in all the 36states of the federation; you will do the little you can.Mint printing!This is one area that we have been able to cut down on spending. In 2012, CBN spent N38billion on mint printing down from the N49billion spent in 2011. In 2013, we spent N35billion and, in my 2014 budget, my plan was to spend N30billion. So we have been bringing down the cost of printing.Under the Fiscal Responsibility Act of the CBN, we contribute 80percent into the Federation Account. In 2008 before I became Governor, CBN contributed N8billion into the Federation Account. In my last year, we gave N159billion. In 2012, we gave N80billion, in 2011, we gave N60billion. In the first four years of my term as CBN Governor, we gave government about N279billion. The National Assembly called  to commend me. We have been able to give N600billion from surplus alone and the money is made from prudent finance, cutting down currency expenses, every over headline has gone down. So I can say, with all sense of humility, that the last thing anybody can accuse me of is financial recklessness.
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One all time truth about Government

Need I say more??? Everything that one needed to say, was said here.

Matters Arising from the Alleged torture and death of a young Eco bankstaff

Who dies after taking a bottle of soft drink if that drink was opened  before him? Especially if there existed no prior medical issue?  There was a case of fraud...true. The young man confessed to it according to the report below...ok. He was denied bail because a certain amount was demanded by the bank through the police....true according to the report. But the big question is, how come he suddenly slumped after drinking a bottle of soft drink? What are they not telling the public? Bottom line, he committed fraud. Very wrong but he promised to pay. We will not and never , ever justify fraud but why let him die? This is all not right and just may be some one is not telling the truth. Fraud yes but he is still a Nigerian citizen and deserves justice. See report below

 Eco Bank Staff Allegedly Tortured To Death In Police Custody (PHOTO)

A Nigerian, David Ekpo has raised alarm over the alleged killing of a friend of his, Babatunde Oke who died in police custody on Thursday, February 20th, 2014.According to citizen reports made by David Ekpo on Facebook and Twitter, Oke worked at the Ladipo Oluwole, Ogba branch of Eco Bank. He was said to have been accused of a N1.2 million fraud by his employer and handed over to the police. Oke is now dead and Ekpo alleges that he was tortured to death while in police custody.ALSO ON THE THE TRENT: Eco Bank Staff Allegedly Tortured To Death In Police Custody (PHOTOS, TWEETS)Punch Newspapers has reported on details and circumstances surrounding Oke’s death:An employee of Ecobank, Babatunde Oke, on Thursday February 20th 2014, died in the custody of the Falomo Police Divisional Headquarters in Lagos, after he was detained for three days over his alleged involvement in a N1.2m fraud.Oke, who is survived by a wife and two children, was said to have worked at the Ogba, Lagos branch of the bank.Though the real cause of his death is yet to be ascertained, witnesses said he slumped at the police station after taking a soft drink.According to a media consultant, David Ekpo, who wrote about Oke’s death on social media, the deceased had paid part of the missing money before he was arrested by the police.The lawyer to the deceased, Femi Olatunde, also said the Ikoyi police station had demanded the he paid the sum of N1m before he would be released on bail.Olatunde said, “I was at the police stattion before they brought him there at about 7:30pm on Tuesday, the police refused to grant him bail. They said we must bring N1m. This was a case of fraud involving about N1.2m. The following day, his father came from Abeokuta and they told him the same thing. I negotiated with them and they brought their demand down to N600,000. The father told me that he was going to bring N100,000 and I was to make arrangements to get N100,000. I spoke with him on the phone around 12:45pm on Thursday and 30 minutes later, was told he was dead.“They said he drank a bottle of soft drink before he started convulsing and then slumped. When I saw his body, red substance was coming out of his mouth. The autopsy will come out on Tuesday, so we cannot conclude for now.” The deceased’s immediate younger brother, Seun Oke, corroborated the lawyer’s account and added that he was at the police station when his brother died.He faulted the bank for freezing the deceased’s children’s account, making it difficult for his wife to withdraw money for their upkeep.He said, “Tunde’s wife also works with Ecobank. When I got to the police station on Thursday, I saw him and we spoke. I was telling him it was wrong for the bank to freeze the kids’ account. It’s actually against the law. I know because I’m also a banker. They did not allow the wife who is a signatory to the account to withdraw from it. He called his wife’s phone to tell her to call the man that was supposed to give the lawyer money, but she didn’t pick her phone.. So, he called the man himself. Later, they asked him to enter another room where other suspects were kept. Then, my mum said we should go to the ATM to get more money.”Oke added that he and his mother waited outside the police station for the lawyer to come with the money, when he saw a van taking his brother to the hospital.He said, “I spotted my brother’s shirt and saw that he was lying down in the van, unconscious. I ran and flagged them down. They allowed me enter, when they knew I was his brother.  He was lying almost lifeless. I saw him making little movements on our way to the hospital. He was foaming; some substance and blood were coming out of his mouth. When we got to the hospital, he was pronounced dead.“When I went back to the hospital, they told me that when he entered that room, he saw somebody drinking a soft drink and he asked a lady in the stattion to buy one for him too.Then he uncorked the bottle, put the cork in his pocket and drank from the bottle. He then started convulsing and slumped. I suspect  foul play.”Wife of the deceased, Ebun Oke, told our correspondent on the telephone that the police cannot claim ignorance.She said, “I spoke with my husband on Tuesday, he was healthy and strong. His family members were with him on that Thursday when he was supposed to be given bail because we had already arranged how we will pay the rest of the money, only for them to tell us he was dead. I don’t know what they did to my husband.”Mother of the deceased said she was with Babatunde on the day of the incident and did not suspect anything until he was brought out from the station on a stretcher.A close friend of the deceased, Olukunke Falade, described him as easy-going.He said, “Tunde and I grew up together in the same area in Onipanu, Lagos. Our families were close. His mum and my mum were friends and his dad and my dad were friends too. We both attended Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife. Though he got to Ife before me because he was older than me.“I saw him last about three years ago at a wedding. I knew Tunde as a smart guy. His education was fast. He had double promotions in primary school. He was easy going and never troublesome. He was a good Muslim.”A member of the Brand and Communication Unit of the bank, Austin Osokpor, told SUNDAY PUNCH, that the deceased had admitted to committing the fraud and the bank reported to the police as was required by law.He said, “There was an ATM fraud,  it was traced and it was found out that it was him. He admitted it. The police was informed as is normally done and he was taken to the police station. The family said they didn’t want him to be prosecuted. Instead of going to court, they wanted to refund the money.“The parents brought money that Thursday, but they said they would wait for the lawyer to come before handing it to the police. They were still waiting when he said he wanted a drink. After he drank it, he slumped and when the policemen could not resuscitate him, he was taken to Falomo Police Hospital where he died.”Osokpor said the bank immediately ordered for an autopsy.When contacted on Saturday, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, refuted claims that Oke was tortured to death. Braide said the deceased drank a soft drink before he slumped.

My prayer on Omojuwa' ten point submission on the suspension of the CBN governor

I will expect that for every single observation made by every Nigerian like the one made here, they may likely end on the pages of every blog, newspaper or magazine. Our patience and silence in Nigerian is indeed admirable. May be because the country once fought a civil war, and so if you mention war today, your parent and mine will not hear of it. They fought the war, they saw the pain and we only read the history or were too little at the time to know what was going on. So, we must only continue to pray and hope. We can also only continue to write and hope. I can never say go yo war...no as that will be destructive. But there is a way yo go to war without being destructive. Is there a war to fight? Yes and the name of that war is corruption. We must go to war against corruption. We must fight until we put to that war all we can. We need the courage of David, the zeal of Paul and the gentleness of Gandi. Does the government have a social media arm, they should read. To speak clearly , it's obvious that some people think that Nigerians are blind, deaf and dumb to simple reasoning. I have never seen any where in the world where a government dares her citizen like it happens in Nigeria, because even some of the actions we see, can and should not be demonstrated before primary school pupils let alone a person of great intellectual standing. Nigeria politics is very true to the assertion, in politics, there are no permanent friends, only permanent interest. While I am not supporting Sanusi, if the report analyzed below is any thing to go by, it  can be conclusively concluded that more than it, being a report intended to be for the interest of Nigerians, it may be serving a personal ego, a personal interest, a peoples ambition .  Who keeps a man in office if all those allegations are true for many months only to suspend him now? That is if those allegations are true, but I trust truly that the suspended Governor will hit the public with his defense soon. I hope his defence come making sense if not may the heavens dame Him for deception. You cannot claim to be on the Side of truth when you don't know the first meaning of what it means to be truthful. We await his defence. For me what goes around comes around and this is a huge lesson. Sanusi once defended this government against Nigerians on the supposed removal of oil subsidy issue, today am sure he knows better. However, one thing is clear with the President Jonathan administration, I doubt if he acts based on what he wants. Secondly, I strongly opine that his advisers need to be schooled properly on diplomacy, timeliness,sincere leadership and governance.  No matter the agenda a man pursues, the truth is the truth. See below for  Omojuwa's observations and thank you Omojuwa for this observations. I must also say thank you to all those who have courageously spoken the truth, may your days be fruitful, long and healthy. Mr President, Nigerians are still watching and praying. Mr President, if the intention here is true and genuine, may the heavens continue to bless your effort . But if not, the heavens will fight some day even if the people won't . God may be silent,but He will fight. 

10 Curious Points You Must Not Ignore While Reading The CBN Report By The Financial Reporting Council – Omojuwa 

1. Based on the allegations raised, suspended Central Bank Governor has a case to answer and he MUST as a matter of expediency state his own side of the issue. This should not be up for debate.

1. The report was prepared by The Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN), formerly the Nigerian Accounting Standards Board (NASB). The council operates under the Ministry of Trade and Investment. The Ministry of Trade and Investment has a Minister who is subjected to the President of Nigeria. Essentially, the President himself might as well have prepared the report. It is like being a judge in one’s own case.

1. The report repeated the same lines over and again. The 13 pages could easily have been two pages. May be those who prepared it felt repeating the accusations will make the number of accusations increase. Or repetition would make them believe their own report. One sensible way they could have increased the size of the report would have been to at least quote parts of the report of the referred joint auditors that suggest they DID NOT certify that the accounts give a true and fair view of the financial position of the CBN. The FRC stated their opinion was carefully crafted and was capable of deceiving the uninformed but the FRC could have helped the President better by at least quoting some of that “well crafted” opinion. May be they left it out to avoid the situation of that single line deceiving the President too?

1. The report failed to mention the increase (or decrease) in income generated by the Central Bank in the period under review. They failed to tell the President in their reporting whether the Central Bank was remitting less money into the Federation account since the advent of the Sanusi Lamido administration or it was remitting less. They should have stated this. Not stating it should get one curious.

1. According to the report, the Central Bank of Nigeria never did anything right with its financial reporting. This is interesting because one would assume that even the daftest of thieves would at least cover his/her tracks a little. It is either the suspended Central Bank Governor was naïve in never ensuring at least one thing was done right with the CBN’s financial reporting or the report of the Financial Reporting council of Nigeria had an intent from the beginning; nail Sanusi Lamido Sanusi by all means. One of my suggestions on this note is certainly likely to be true. Make your own decision.

1. The report while speaking of some expenses made sure not to state that the expenses mentioned were likely to have catered for the Central Bank headquarters in Abuja, its regional offices across the federation and all the other offices located in all the states of the Federation. The Central Bank has a presence in all the states of the federation. Its budget covers all these states. Surely, this should have been stated in a report that sought to clear the air on financial recklessness or otherwise. May be the report had a clear intent from the get go. Like reporting to a charge, “Get me a Financial recklessness report on Sanusi’s CBN!”

1. The report suggested the investigation into the allegations could not be carried out with the CBN Governor and his Deputy Governors allowed to continue in office. Curiously though, the President suspended only the Governor. Are we missing something here? This is of course not emphasizing that the Deputy Governors be suspended, it is only stating that surely Sanusi Lamido Sanusi was the specific target all along.

1. The report was sent to the President 7th June 2013. The president ended up suspending the Governor on the 20th of February 2013. Why did the President wait for so long? Could it be because the CBN Governor refused to keep quiet about what he thought was the administration’s continued mismanagement of the economy? Was the straw broken when Sanusi Lamido finally dared the Oil cabal? Or could it be that the President decided he had to make the illegal move of suspending the Governor seeing as even if the courts find it illegal, Nigeria’s slow grinding court system would have ensured that with the tenure of the Governor ending only months later, the court ruling would have little or no effect on a CBN led by Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.

1. The Financial Reporting Council let down its guard in its conclusion by finally giving an indication of the purpose of the report. It mentioned in its second bullet point “for political reasons.” Is a report that oughtt to be objective, based on facts and figures allowed to subjectively refer to “political reasons” as one of the reasons the President must act? This is probably arguably one of the most curious parts of the report.

10. The suspended Central Bank Governor no doubt has a case to answer based on this report, spurious or not. The Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria under the supervision of the Mr. Olusegun Aganga’s Ministry of Trade and Investment certainly has a report that puts its independence on the issue in doubt. That’s expected, it derives its budget from the Presidency. It is an organ of the presidency.Conclusion: It is impossible not to look at these issues altogether and not see that our country continues to be run like a Primary School Pupil’s club. Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Allison Madueke who could easily be assumed to be Nigeria’s de facto President openly stated on national television that she disregarded a Presidential directive that has since amongst other scams cost the country about $20 billion yet no questions have EVER been asked of her despite these and several other allegations. We see again and again that the Petroleum cabal is bigger than Nigeria and this will remain as long as the Jonathan administration, now globally renowned for its corruption, continues to hold sway.God bless the patience and the looking-up-to-God energy of the people of Nigeria. Amen.You can download the report of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria and the Sanusi Lamido Sanusi’s Memorandum submitted to the National Assembly on Non-Remittance of Oil Revenue below.This is Japheth Omojuwa | @omojuwaViews expressed are solely the author’s

Beyoncé - it's her show, she can show it.

Super display right? After all it's Beyoncé !

She lost weight on a vegan diet late last year and concerned fans were worried Beyonce Knowles' famous curves were gone forever. However, the 32-year-old singer proved that is not the case as she took to the stage at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland, for the latest leg of her The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour on Thursday night. Beyonce dressed in a blue and green playsuit, which not only highlighted her long, toned legs, but the plunging neckline displayed a great deal of her cleavage. 

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2564444/Beyonce-wows-Glasgow-gig-Scottish-tartan-shirt.html#ixzz2tx63Pc00 Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

2face Idibia Sick!

It's not in my place to judge this Son of Nigeria, but it's in my place to wonder at how much celebrities cheat and feel it is their right to do so even with the lesson from broken marriages which they always claim result from irreconcilable differences. I am one of those who dint want to delve into his many children issues, but after marriage, it does not look like this Benue celebrity is about to stop. If this story is true, let me ask, what is wrong with innocent Idibia? Does he have some infection in between his legs? May be his ailment can be coined from the name which gave him so much fame and is making him lose it. May be we should say he is suffering from 2facecomiasis. A condition resulting from the uncontrolled desire to continue to procreate with reckless abandonment. Abi Wetin una want make I talk? This is becoming a sickness, truth be told. But we all still love 2face or don't we? Some body preach Jesus to him please ...see the report below

2Face Idibia In Adultery Mess With Lagos Banker, May Get 8th Child Soon !

This is that kind of story one hears and he or she just shakes his or her head and spits on the ground in disgust.
Tuface Idibia has become notorious for making several children with different women who are not his wives! Tuface is the celebrity who has made Baby Mama culture the new norm in Nigeria.
When he decided to settle down with Annie, one of his Baby Mamas, many of his fans and critics were happy that finally he would become more responsible and s*xually focused on his legal wife, Annie, but the latest report filtering into town concretely suggests that marriage cannot change this Benue born singer.
Icon Weekly can authoritatively inform you that as you read this, a young lady who works for one of the new generation banks, Teniola, is three months pregnant for this prince of African music! Did that hit you like Mike Tyson's punch! Wait, more is coming.
We gathered that Teniola who hails from Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State has been Tuface's account officer for a long time now. Did you say this s*xual relationship could have been going on before his marriage?
Teniola, a graduate of University of Lagos might just be another victim of the pressures marketers in the banking sector face to lure customers with everything they have, if you know what I mean.
The worst part of the story is that 2baba wants the pregnancy terminated! Our source revealed to us that he has been begging Teniola with a brand new car to get rid of the pregnancy and keep this scandal out of media radar. Has he stopped counting his children? I guess it is time to ask 2baba.

Sanusi's Suspension and the Key question!

Believe me when I say I have tried to avoid commenting or going near the Sanusi issue, but all attempts have failed me. Each time I try, I have been greeted with so much I can't hold back on. Let me state for the record here that I have no doubt that the president of the federal Republic has the right to sanction, suspend or sack the governor of the CBN after all, he is the boss and the commander in chief of the armed forces. I am not questioning his right to suspend or sack him. The president may even claim his suspension is due to security report received and in the supposed best interest of the country choose to suspend or sack him. Like I said, he is the president and commander in chief.

Also, let me establish here that I am not bothered about why he sacked or suspended him. I am still wondering if he was suspended because, the idea of suspension and supposed replacement does not tally. If he was suspended, why is a replacement necessary almost immediately? I thought suspension meant wait, we will investigate you, if you are found guilty, then we will replace you after sacking you. But to have suggested a replacement already, made  and still make me feel, the letter was wrongly titled. It should have read 'SACK' it is wrong to say one thing and mean another. Am just saying! OK to my issue, am not bothered about the 'why' I say this because you and I will never know the real reason. Do they owe you? No they don't.  The presidential adviser on media, Mr Doyin THE LION Okupe, may have explained some things which stood as, may be clear cut or unclear allegation against the CBN governor, I looked at the dates and wondered why the suspension is coming now and I can't place it. How? How? How? The president issued a 22 paragraph query to the governor on the 4th of May 2013. The CBN governor replied on the,22nd of may 2013. Follow my line of thinking, it was then forwarded to the financial reporting  council to further scrutinize and professionaly advise. But did you notice something in that response, it was not dated. The date it was forwarded to the council was not stated. Perhaps it was for personal or security reason. The body then replied the president according to Mr Doyin Okupe but no date. Was this a smart way to hide a fact or a truth? This raises a credibility question in the face of a very 'smart' defence.  Trust me, we really may never know the real reason Sanusi was suspended or may be 'sacked' that is why I said, I am not bothered about the why of his suspension. After all, I benefit nothing from it.

However, I, as a citizen of Nigeria, I am bothered about the When. Referring to the timing of his suspension or his sack. How come , the man was asked to leave office only at a time ( when) he requested to know what happened to the 20 billion missing money from oil account? Believe me, I am not a fan of Sanusi or the presidency, I don't benefit from either of them, but don't you think this raises a moral question? Questions credibility? Also, how come Sanusi had been allowed to stay in office till now if he was truly that corrupt as claimed by the presidential spokesman since May of 2013? Trust me, this amongst so many other issues raises the moral question, has the presidency acted rightly and in the interest of Nigerians? Or merely demonstrated his power as the commander in chief for political reasons? Only time will tell if at all it will. See the media report below.

The real reason Sanusi was suspended — Presidency

The Presidency yesterday explained that the suspension of governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi was not related to witch hunt, but alleged cases of impunity, incompetence, non-challance , fraud, wastefulness, and gross abuse of and noncompliance with provisions of the Public Procurement Act 2007.According to the Presidency in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr Doyin Okupe, Sanusi’s sack by President Goodluck Jonathan was also not a deviation from the anti-corruption drive of the present administration.Okupe who explained that the issues that culminated into the suspension of the CBN Governor dates back to April 2013 following the submission of the CBN audited accounts for the year that ended on December 31st 2012 and which was submitted to the President by the Apex bank.The statement read, “there were several grievous issues bothering on impunity, incompetence, non-challance , fraud, wastefulness, and gross abuse of and noncompliance with provisions of the Public Procurement Act 2007 by Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.“This caused Mr President to issue a 22-paragraph query to the suspended CBN Governor on the 4th of May 2013 and the subsequent written explanation by Mallam Sanusi which was forwarded to the President on the 22nd of May 2013. After painstaking analysis and examination, the response was forwarded to the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria for further scrutiny and professional advice.“The Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria thereafter forwarded a 13-page response to Mr President with various critical observations and far-reaching recommendations. One of the recommendations states thus “ Your Excellency may wish to exercise the powers conferred on Mr President by Section 11(2) (f) of the CBN ACT 2007 or invoke Section 11 (2) (c) of the said Act and cause the Governor and Deputy Governors to cease from holding office in the CBN.“It is also important to note the unrestrained manner, recklessness and impunity with which the CBN Governor had governed the apex bank in the last few years. In 2013 alone, the suspended CBN Governor single-handedly made spurious donations and awarded questionable contracts totaling 163 billion Naira (over 1 billion US dollars) to various institutions without recourse to the President as stipulated by Section 7 sub-section 5(a) of the CBN Act.Most unfortunate is the fact that of the 63 projects listed under the Corporate Social Responsibility of the CBN, ONLY 3 of the contracts above 1 billion Naira were referred to the bureau of Public Procurement as required by law.“It was based on this and other recommendations contained in the said report and after further consultations among stakeholders that Mr President in his wisdom and in the interest of probity, accountability and in order to preserve the integrity and sanctity of the Nations apex bank, decided to take the appropriate decision to place Mr Sanusi Lamido Sanusi on immediate suspension.“This action of Mr President is coming after a painstaking appraisal and investigation of all issues involved. The fact that this has occurred at the same period that Mr Sanusi accused the NNPC of non- remittance of 20 billion dollars to the Federation Account does NOT in any way derogate from the grave infractions and illegalities discovered in the audit report of the CBN and its operations.“For the avoidance of doubt, Nigerians should be assured that Government will go to any length to ensure that Mallam Sansui’s allegations against the NNPC are fully and conclusively investigated and if anyone is found culpable, they will be subjected to the full weight of the law.”- See more at: http://thebusinessdispatch.com/the-real-reason-why-sanusi-was-suspended-presidency/#sthash.62ydccKu.dpuf

A quick and brief response to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's brief article titled why can’t he just be like everyone else?’ In Support of Gay life

When a child is allowed to eat continuously with the elders, certain things will come up. That child may quietly begin to learn from the discussions of the elders or if life has destined him to be a failure, he can gradually begin to grow wings thinking that in his youth, he is qualified to be called an elder all because he is allowed to seat on the table with the elders. Chy as I like to call her is a super author no doubt, one who has my urtmost respect and  admiration in every class of writing she has ventured into. I not only admire her, I love the simplicity with which she presents her piece, a style begging today's generation of writers  to stay simple and communicate simply. I lack when placed side by side with this award winning author the intellectual prowess  to begin to critique her work. She is known by the world and even if I decide to deny that, the earth on which I walk will remind me deep down, she stands. But be that as it may, when issues bothers on my country, my people, my land, Nigerian with all of its glorified corruption and mismanaged resources, I am passionate. I am because I belong to that school of thought which holds that, it can only take long, some day, some how, those who steal from us will crawl on their knee and beg us. But at that time, it will be too late. I believe In Nigeria and those who steal from her will have God some day to answer to here on earth and in the world beyond because even by the faith of ten, this country will change. 

I read the argument or perhaps simple opinion presented by my sister chy, in support of gay law or to be fair to what she wrote, against the criminalizing of gay life. Though Chys argument was smooth, yes no man decides how he becomes or we don't criminalize adulatory no, we don't. But she was asked a simple question , did she answer it? no. Hear the question..."An acquaintance recently asked me, ‘if  you support gays, how would you have been born?’ Of course, there were gay Nigerians when I was conceived. Gay people have existed as long as humans have existed. They have always been a small percentage of the human population. We don’t know why. What matters is this: Sochukwuma is a Nigerian and his existence is not a crime"  Chy , you did not answer the simple question. Perhaps, you did not have the answer. The answer to that question in truth, would have formed the possible introduction, the body, argument and conclussion of everything you wrote on this subject. Let me answer that question for you, if being gay formed the basis of our human existence, you chy, would never have been born. In truth, one of the basic gain  of man and even animals is procreation. In gayism, if you allow me put it that way, you cannot procreate. Also, I like your argument or position which did not attempt to make it the norm, but present an emotional argument saying, they have always been in the minority. Chy, this will not sell. That still did not answer the question. In life , opposite attracts. It is the man to the woman. Even you chy know this truth. Why dint you marry a woman and feel cool with it? The answer is simple, it is because, even you, chy, know the truth. 

In America today, it is said that, to mention God in publics is not allowed because it infringes on the right of others. We know that much. It's now a free society and don't forget my sister that freedom comes with a lot of responsibility. Their society is paying the prize for it. You can watch the news yourself. Even your Nigerian brothers and sisters are being murdered because of the insanity that the removal of God from their culture has caused. Well, we are not ready to go that way. The non removal of God and his ways from our culture may not have done much for us, but it has helped us maintain our sanity. People don't just decide to walk into a mall and start shooting except for those who kill in The name of the same God and an act they carry out because those who should, have not showed enough courage in wanting to stop them.  Chy, we love the way we are. We don't need the acceptance of the western world if that is what you wrote this article to achieve. If criminalizing it is the only way to get people to come out of this way of life, so be it. The government have my full and unalloyed support on this. Believe me when I say that does not mean I hate gay people, it only means I will continue to love them enough to help them see why they should consider becoming normal . Does it mean they are considered by me to be abnormal, in truth, the gay life to me does not seem normal. This is my point. See below for Chimamanda's article.

Why can’t he just be like everyone else?’   written by award winning writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
In secondary school, some boys in his  class tried to throw Sochukwuma off a second floor balcony. They were  strapping teenagers who had learned to notice, and fear, difference.  They had a name for him. Homo. They mocked him because his hips swayed  when he walked and his hands fluttered when he spoke. He brushed away  their taunts, silently, sometimes grinning an uncomfortable grin. He  must have wished that he could be what they wanted him to be. I imagine  now how helplessly lonely he must have felt. The boys often asked, “Why  can’t he just be like everyone else?”
Possible answers to that question  include ‘because he is abnormal,’ ‘because he is a sinner, ‘because he  chose the lifestyle.’ But the truest answer is ‘We don’t know.’ There is humility and humanity in accepting that there are things we simply don’t know. At the age of 8, Sochukwuma was obviously different.  It was not about sex, because it could not possibly have been – his hormones were of course not yet fully formed – but it was an awareness of  himself, and other children’s awareness of him, as different. He could  not have ‘chosen the lifestyle’ because he was too young to do so. And why would he – or anybody – choose to be homosexual in a world that  makes life so difficult for homosexuals?
The new law that criminalizes homosexuality is popular among Nigerians. But it shows a failure of our democracy, because the mark of a true democracy is not in the rule of its majority but in the protection of its minority – otherwise mob justice would be considered democratic. The law is also unconstitutional, ambiguous, and a strange priority in a country with so many real problems. Above all else, however, it is unjust. Even if this was not a country of abysmal electricity supply where university graduates are barely literate and people die of easily-treatable causes and Boko Haram commits casual mass murders, this law would still be unjust.  We cannot be a just society unless we are able to accommodate benign difference, accept benign difference, live and let live. We may not understand homosexuality, we may find it personally abhorrent but our response cannot be to criminalize it.
A crime is a crime for a reason. A crime has victims. A crime harms society. On what basis is homosexuality a crime? Adults do no harm to society in how they love and whom they love. This is a law that will not prevent crime, but will, instead, lead to crimes of violence: there are already, in different parts of Nigeria, attacks on people ‘suspected’ of being gay. Ours is a society where men are openly affectionate with one another. Men hold hands. Men hug each other. Shall we now arrest friends who share a hotel room, or who walk side by side? How do we determine the clunky expressions in the law – ‘mutually beneficial,’ ‘directly or indirectly?’
Many Nigerians support the law because they believe the Bible condemns homosexuality. The Bible can be a basis  for how we choose to live our personal lives, but it cannot be a basis  for the laws we pass, not only because the holy books of different  religions do not have equal significance for all Nigerians but also  because the holy books are read differently by different people. The Bible, for example, also condemns fornication and adultery and divorce,  but they are not crimes.
For supporters of the law, there seems to be something about homosexuality that sets it apart. A sense that it is not ‘normal.’ If we are part of a majority group, we tend to think  others in minority groups are abnormal, not because they have done  anything wrong, but because we have defined normal to be what we are and since they are not like us, then they are abnormal. Supporters of the  law want a certain semblance of human homogeneity. But we cannot  legislate into existence a world that does not exist: the truth of our  human condition is that we are a diverse, multi-faceted species. The  measure of our humanity lies, in part, in how we think of those  different from us. We cannot – should not – have empathy only for people who are like us.
Some supporters of the law have asked –  what is next, a marriage between a man and a dog?’ Or ‘have you seen  animals being gay?’ (Actually, studies show that there is homosexual  behavior in many species of animals.) But, quite simply, people are not  dogs, and to accept the premise – that a homosexual is comparable to an  animal – is inhumane. We cannot reduce the humanity of our fellow men  and women because of how and who they love. Some animals eat their own  kind, others desert their young. Shall we follow those examples, too?
Other supporters suggest that gay men  sexually abuse little boys. But pedophilia and homosexuality are two  very different things. There are men who abuse little girls, and women  who abuse little boys, and we do not presume that they do it because  they are heterosexuals. Child molestation is an ugly crime that is  committed by both straight and gay adults (this is why it is a crime:  children, by virtue of being non-adults, require protection and are  unable to give sexual consent).
There has also been some nationalist  posturing among supporters of the law. Homosexuality is ‘unafrican,’  they say, and we will not become like the west. The west is not exactly a homosexual haven; acts of discrimination against homosexuals are not  uncommon in the US and Europe. But it is the idea of ‘unafricanness’  that is truly insidious. Sochukwuma was born of Igbo parents and had  Igbo grandparents and Igbo great-grandparents. He was born a person who  would romantically love other men. Many Nigerians know somebody like  him. The boy who behaved like a girl. The girl who behaved like a boy.  The effeminate man. The unusual woman. These were people we knew, people like us, born and raised on African soil. How then are they  ‘unafrican?’
If anything, it is the passage of the  law itself that is ‘unafrican.’ It goes against the values of tolerance  and ‘live and let live’ that are part of many African cultures. (In  1970s Igboland, Area Scatter was a popular musician, a man who dressed  like a woman, wore makeup, plaited his hair. We don’t know if he was gay  – I think he was – but if he performed today, he could conceivably be  sentenced to fourteen years in prison. For being who he is.) And it is  informed not by a home-grown debate but by a cynically borrowed one: we  turned on CNN and heard western countries debating ‘same sex marriage’  and we decided that we, too, would pass a law banning same sex marriage. Where, in Nigeria, whose constitution defines marriage as being between a man and a woman, has any homosexual asked for same-sex marriage?
This is an unjust law. It should be repealed. Throughout history, many inhumane laws have been passed, and  have subsequently been repealed. Barack Obama, for example, would not be here today had his parents obeyed American laws that criminalized  marriage between blacks and whites.

I will call him Sochukwuma. A thin,  smiling boy who liked to play with us girls at the university primary  school in Nsukka. We were young. We knew he was different, we said,  ‘he’s not like the other boys.’ But his was a benign and unquestioned  difference; it was simply what it was. We did not have a name for him.  We did not know the word ‘gay.’ He was Sochukwuma and he was friendly  and he played oga so well that his side always won.

 

An acquaintance recently asked me, ‘if  you support gays, how would you have been born?’ Of course, there were gay Nigerians when I was conceived. Gay people have existed as long as humans have existed. They have always been a small percentage of the human population. We don’t know why. What matters is this: Sochukwuma is a Nigerian and his existence is not a crime.

Refocusing the blog

The publisher regrets the non consistency in publication. He has seen the need to refocus the blog for better and more effective result.

Kindly bear with him..

Sincere Regards

Summarizing News around Nigeria Today

The below report was beautifully done by DailyPost.

Good morning! Here are 10 things you need to know this morning:

1. Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Dimeji Bankole, was yesterday, at the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, discharged and acquitted of an allegation that he used fake companies to defraud the federal government to the tune of N894 million while in office. The presiding Judge had ruled that no concrete evidence was provided by the EFCC to back up its claim. The case was decided by Justice Chukwu who quashed all 16-count-charge levelled against the former Speaker.

2. Equally on the headline this morning is the ongoing jungle justice practice in Calabar, Cross Rivers State where it was reported that over 20 robbery suspects had been killed since the past few weeks by some angry mob who believed that the best way to protect themselves was to kill all criminals caught in the state. The most recent of all is the lynching of two young men, suspected to be armed robbers.

3. On entertainment news is the return of Nollywood Actress, Liz Benson in a new flick titled ‘Dry’. The movie produced by Stephanie Okereke-Linus revolves round Vesico Vaginal Fistula (VVF), a disease in women, especially those of them from the North.

4. Conspicuously on the headline is that the Federal Government will on Thursday next week clear the controversy surrounding the payment of Subsidy on kerosene. Report says the Attorney General of the Federation, Bello Adoke, will next week before the Senate investigative panel, clear the air on the controversial matter, to determine whether NNPC was right or wrong in its argument on the continuous payment of subsidy on Kerosene.

5. Bank Customers have been given 18 months deadline to complete their biometric registration as they may not be able to make bank transaction without their fingerprints after the deadline.

The Governor, CBN, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, who launched the biometric registration exercise at the CBN head office in Lagos on behalf of the Bankers’ Committee, said the aim was to eliminate all forms of frauds and other negative practices from Nigerian banks.

6. Chairman, Organisation and Mobilisation Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party in the South-West, Chief Buruji Kashamu has dismissed Obasanjo’s recent comment on Jonathan’s second term ambition where he (Obasanjo) said that Jonathan promised to serve for a single term. Kashamu said that their was no such agreement as Obasanjo was only playing the role of a spoiler in the PDP. He also accused the former President of asking his supporters to register with the APC.

7. There are indications that fuel scarcity will soon hit the nation, as the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG has threatened to embark on an indefinite strike if the ongoing divestment in the oil sector by some multinationals was not stopped.

NUPENG is of the view that the ongoing divestment was aimed at sabotaging the Federal Government’s efforts to reposition the petroleum sector.

8.In the news this morning is the fire outbreak at the power generating section of Transcorp Metropolitan Hotel in Calabar, Cross River State on Friday. Report says the section was razed in the inferno that was caused by a pumping machine which ignited while one of the staff of the hotel was trying to refuel a 500kv generator from the storage tank.

Although, no life was lost, insiders said property worth over N300M were destroyed.

9. The defection of a PDP lawmaker representing Adamawa South Senatorial District, Senator Hassan Ahmed Barata to the All Progressives Congress, APC remains very conspicuous on the news headline this Saturday.

10. Finally, there is an ongoing plan by the All Progressives Congress, APC, to meet with the 11 PDP members who have been stopped by the Senate leadership from defecting to the APC. Report says APC will find a permanent solution when it meets with the defecting Senators, precisely next week.

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The things Nigerians will do to make money

The issue with the below report is not when it comes out in the open, the question is who follows it to the end?

Hotel Selling Cooked Human Meat Found In Onitsha, 11 Arrested With Human Heads !According to Osun Defender, Onitsha police arrested 11 people after they discovered 2 fresh human heads in a hotel (name withheld) very close to the popular Ose-Okwodu market in Anambra state on Thursday. 2 AK47 rifles and other weapons were also discovered in the hotel.The arrest followed tip-offs from area residents on Thursday morning.The hotel owner, 6 women and 4 men were arrested.After police got access to the hotel, they made a startling discovery of two human heads wrapped in a cellophane bag, two AK47 rifles, two army caps, 40 rounds of live ammunition and so many cell phones.“Each time I came to market, because the hotel is very close to the market, I always noticed funny movements in and out of the hotel; dirty people with dirty characters always come into the hotel.So, I was not surprised when the police made this discovery in the early hours of yesterday,” said a vegetable seller in the area.A Pastor who was among the people who tipped off the police on Thursday said: “I went to the hotel early this year, after eating, I was told that a lump of meat was being sold at N700, I was surprised.So I did not know it was human meat that I ate at such expensive price.” 

The danger in Sugar, your Kidney at risk

In most cases, the things that kill, are the sweetest. The below is an outstanding report

Soft drinks, sugar have negative effects on kidney, heart .
If you drink a lot of sweetened or soft drinks, this is something to consider. Emerging research suggests that regular consumption of sugar and sweetened drinks not only predispose to weight gain, heart problems, diabetes and tooth decay, it could also cause kidney damage, reports Sade Oguntola.That cold bottle of common sugar-sweetened beverage or cup of juice may be haven after a long walk in the sun and there is need to quench one’s thirst, but drinking this two to three times daily does not do the body any favour.Scientists looking into how diets high in sugars and sugary-sweetened beverages negatively imparts the body found that aside this contributing to weight gain and increased diabetes risk, daily intake of soft drinks can affect the functioning of important organs of the body such as the heart and the kidney.Researchers in a new study found that employees at a university in Japan who consumed more than two bottles of soft drinks a day were more likely to have protein in their urine when compared to those who had fewer or no soft drink on a daily basis.Protein in the urine is considered an early, but reversible, marker of kidney damage. Now, it is also taken as an early marker for heart disease, stroke and heart failure.This study presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Nephrology, in Atlanta, included more than 12,000 university employees who underwent their annual check-ups at their health centre. As part of the examination, their urine was tested for evidence of protein.Nearly 11 per cent of employees who said they drank two or more soft drinks per day had protein in their urine during three years of follow-up. In contrast, 8.4 per cent of those who did not drink soda and roughly nine per cent of those who drank about one can a day tested positive for protein in their urine.In a second study from Case Western Reserve University, researchers analysed the effects of fructose or fruit sugar consumption on kidney function in rats.  Overall, the rats that consumed fructose had kidneys much more sensitive to a protein that regulates salt.  Researchers believe this sensitivity might help explain why consumption of high-fructose corn syrup, which is now used to sweeten most soft drinks, may contribute to the epidemic of diabetes, tooth decay, bone structures, obesity, kidney failure, and hypertension.Previously, a cross-sectional study documented in the journal, PLoS ONE, that  women who drink two or more cans of regular sugary beverages a day may be increasing their risk of kidney damage by as much as 86 per cent due to the drink’s sugar content.The analysis included 9,358 participants ages 20 and older from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 1999 through 2004.After adjusting for age, race, ethnicity, gender, poverty level, and whether the soft drinks were diet, there was an overall 40 per cent increased risk of albuminuria, a protein and sensitive marker for early kidney disease, among participants who drank at least two regular soft drinks a day.A January 2012 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine found that people who gulp diet soda daily have a 43 per cent higher risk of vascular events, such as stroke and heart attack, than people who do not drink diet soft drinks. However, light diet soda drinkers, those who take diet soft drinks somewhere between once a month and six a week, were not more likely to suffer vascular events.Drinking one sugar-laden soft drink every day could dramatically increase the chances of having a heart attack.  A study of more than 40,000 men suggested that a daily sugar-sweetened drink raised the chances of having a heart attack by 20 per cent.Tests on blood samples showed those who drank these sugary beverages tended to have higher levels of dangerous blood fats and of proteins linked to heart disease. Levels of ‘good’ cholesterol were lower, the journal Circulation reported.The 2012 study also found that the more sugary drinks someone had, including fruit squashes to which sugar is added during manufacturing, the more the risk rose.Is there a safe amount of soft drink to take daily? There is really no safe amount of beverage to take considering its sugar content and the fact that most exceeds the recommended amount of sugar individuals should take.American Heart Association guidelines recommended daily sugar intake of nine teaspoons for adult men, five teaspoons for adult women and three teaspoons for children.Dr Adebowale Ademola, a consultant paediatric nephrologist, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Oyo State, however said that if the new findings that overconsumption of soft drinks can affect the functions of the kidney could be proven, it means that people would need to be more careful with intake of sugary drinks.“Many people add sugar to their tea, coffee and other food items that they take and so this might mean that individuals would have to eat less sugar,” he said.Dr Ademola, noting that inadequate intake of water and salt had been established to distort the functions of the kidney, said kidney damage however could occur due to excessive intake of food, especially junks, where this habit results into obesity.He declared: “Things like carbohydrate will not damage the kidneys directly. But if a person is obese, obesity can take its toll on the functions of the kidney. There is a condition that is medically called obesity-associated kidney disease that occurs because someone is obese.”Dr Ademola, however, said in Nigeria that hypertension and diabetes account for the majority of kidney disease cases in adults while congenital problems and infections were commoner causes in children.