Atlético Madrid have advanced to the Champions League final for the first time since 1974 after a spirited 3-1 victory over Jose Mourinho's Chelsea on Wednesday night at Stamford Bridge in London.

A late first half goal from Adrián and a second half goals from Diego Costa and Arda Turan overcame an opening strike from Fernando Torres to send Los Colchoneros to the Champions League final where they will face city rivals Real Madrid on May 24th in Lisbon.

The match-up between the two Madrid sides will mark the first all-Spanish Champions League final since 2000 when Real Madrid defeated Valencia 3-0.

Head coach Diego Simeone opted to start Adrián in place of Raúl García in the Atlético attack so it was the former Deportivo man getting the start up top with Costa. In midfield Mario Suárez and Tiago manned the center while Koke and Turan lined up out wide as wingers. In defense it was the trusted back four of Juanfran, João Miranda, Diego Godín and Filipe Luís that was tasked with shielding starting goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

After a goalless draw in the first leg in which scoring chances were few and far between, Atlético very nearly found the back of the net in just the fourth minute of action when Koke lofted a shot from the left that went over Chelsea goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer's head and struck the crossbar before being cleared away. It initially looked like a harmless cross from Koke, but the ball was on target and nearly dropped into the Blues' net.

Unlike the first leg, a goal was to happen as Chelsea grabbed the opener in the 36th minute through former Atlético striker Torres. Willian did well to split a pair of Atlético defenders deep by the right corner flag; the ball then found Spaniard Cesar Azpilicueta who cut a ball back toward the middle for Torres, and the man who made his professional debut along the banks of the Manzanares sliced in a shot that slightly deflected off Suárez and skipped past Courtois into the Atlético net. As a sign of respect, Torres elected to not celebrate the goal, raising his arms as a sign of asking forgiveness from the Atlético fans for scoring the goal against his former club.

But Simeone's decision to start Adrián would pay off handsomely as Atlético found the precious equalizer just a minute before halftime. A ball played in by Tiago was met at the far post by a streaking Juanfran whose cutback across somehow bounced through the Chelsea defense and found Adrián who hit a scuffed shot that still bounced past Schwarzer, setting off a wild celebration in the corner in front of the Atlético fans - a scene reminiscent of Andres Iniesta's celebration following his late goal at Stamford Bridge to send Barcelona to the 2009 Champions League final.

Simeone's men nearly then grabbed a goal at the start of the second stanza as the Chelsea defense were once again hesitant on a ball across the area and it fell to Turan whose shot from a close, acute angle was parried away by Schwarzer. Chelsea then almost struck for a second via a set piece but defender John Terry's thumping header was well blocked by Courtois.


Things continued in Atlético's favor in the 59th minute when Costa was brought down in the area by Chelsea substitute and former Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o. A ball that popped up in the area saw the Cameroonian crash into Costa and referee Nicola Rizzoli pointed to the spot. It was nearly a full two minutes before Costa struck his penalty due to his displeasure with the grass on the actual penalty spot, but once he did, with the Atlético fans singing the name of the late, great manager Luis Aragonés, Costa slammed his penalty into the top part of the Chelsea net to give Atlético a 2-1 advantage.

In full desperation, Chelsea pressed high up on the pitch and nearly got their second on a David Luiz header, but the ball struck the post. But Atlético were up for the fight and completed their removal of Mourinho's defensive bus with a third goal in the 72nd minute. Much like the first goal, a ball was played to Juanfran at the far post and the cross from the Spanish international found the head of Turan whose header was tipped onto the crossbar by Schwarzer but it bounced right back to the Turkish midfielder who calmly deposited the ball into the net to increase the lead to 3-1 which silenced the Londonders in attendance.

Atlético were strong until the end and looked much likely to find a fourth than Chelsea grabbing a second as Simeone's men controlled the final 20 minutes with aplomb and can continue to dream of an unprecedented European/La Liga double.

The abduction of teenage girls from Chibok community in Borno State has generated so much international attention.




It has become an embarrassment to the Nigerian government as so many members of the international community seems to have lent their voices to call for the release of the girls.



Soul singer, Mary J Blige just tweeted her concern saying it's been two weeks since the girls have been abducted and they haven't been rescued.





Keri Hilson also wondered how the girls could be rescued.






We just pray these girls are rescued soon enough as the trauma cannot be over-emphasised.

"The girls, we believe, are alive but they have been moved from the location to which they were originally taken," the intermediary told Channel 4 News. "It would not be hard to engineer a deal. It looks like they want to release them."

The kidnappers have warned, however, that attempts by the military to launch a rescue attempt "may result in the deaths of many of the captives".


"They want a way out," said the negotiator, who has long experience of dealing directly with the Islamist group Boko Haram in previous hostage crises.

Boko Haram translates as "western education is forbidden" and, like the Taliban, the group opposes the education of Muslim girls, particularly if that education has western influence.

Even though most of the kidnapped teenagers are from Christian families, the intermediary says the group believes it has already succeeded in embarrassing the government and instilling terror in the civilian population.


However splinter factions within the fractious group are understood to be arguing over what to do with their hostages. "The danger now is that the military will get involved and that can only end badly," he said.

Past kidnappings by the al-Qaeda inspired jihadist group, which is fighting for a strict sharia state in northern Nigeria, have ended with the execution of hostages as a result of attempted military intervention.


The hostage-takers have now been asked for a list of the girls' names as proof-of-life. The negotiator - who wanted to remain anonymous for reasons of personal security - said the group is demanding a ransom but added: "we are hoping they will soften their stance".

The Islamist insurgents abducted 273 girls, aged 16 to 18, from dormitories at the Chibok Girls' Secondary School in Chibok, Borno state, a fortnight ago. Around 40 girls reportedly escaped early on. The numbers of those originally kidnapped - and those still held captive - has been in dispute. Last week, the missing girls' parents insisted that government figures had dramatically underestimated the number held.

The school's headteacher, Mrs Asabe Kwambura, told Channel 4 News on Tuesday that a further 10 girls had since been "recovered". "For now, the total number of girls we have recovered is 53 while 220 girls are still missing," said Mrs Kwambura.


The abductors, who have been in intermittent contact with the intermediary over the past 48 hours, claim to have released "a number of hostages" because "they did shehada" - meaning forcible conversion to Islam, a hallmark tactic of Boko Haram.

Channel 4 News has also established that the schoolgirls are not being held in the group's notorious bush camps in the Sambisa forest, an area 50 miles to the south east of the Borno state capital, Maiduguri. This region has reportedly been the focus of Nigerian military activity in recent days.

Instead, the hostages have, we understand, been split into smaller separate groups, a number of whom have been taken close to - or across - Nigeria's eastern border with Cameroon. This is an area from which Mohammed Nur, one of Boko Haram's leading commanders is known to operate.

"They have a problem," the intermediary said. "They have 220 captives and moving that many around cannot remain hidden. There is good, reliable, local knowledge as to their location. The military knows where they are."

The relocation of the teenage hostages has been corroborated by a senior community leader in Chibok, the town from which they were abducted. Dr Pogu Bitrus told Channel 4 News that he too has learned that following the kidnapping, many of the girls were forcibly converted and some then married off in neighbouring Cameroon. He did not cite his sources.

"Many were taken to the northern part of Borno state and then moved across into the Republic of Cameroon," he said. "After they converted to Islam, they were forcibly married off with a bride price of just 2,000 Naira [less than £10]." Dr Bitrus believes some of the girls do still remain in Boko Haram camps in the Sambisa forest. "The federal government must act fast" to avoid them suffering the same fate, he added.

Public fury in Nigeria is focused on the government's perceived failure to respond to the hostage crisis. On Wednesday, women from across the country plan to stage a "one-million-women protest march" in the capital, Abuja, demanding the girls' release.

Former British prime minister Gordon Brown, now the UN education envoy, has also announced that he will meet Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja next week to discuss the girls' abductions. In a statement on Tuesday, Mr Brown said: "Despite a frantic search for them I understand the fears that the girls will either be used as sex slaves or be murdered."

President Jonathan has emerged as a lightning rod for public outrage. "It is inexcusable that this government is not responding," said Dr Margee Ensign, president of the American University of Nigeria. "It seems it is either incapable of handling or unwilling to handle this situation."

Dr Ensign spoke to Channel 4 News from Yola, in Adamawa State, south of where the schoolgirls are being held, which is also under emergency rule as a result of the Boko Haram insurgency. She leads a local peace initiative among Christian and Muslim communities in Yola, and added: "You have to have an effective response to stop this violence.

"A military response can only stop the violence for a short period. But the only sure way to ensure peace is development. This crisis is playing out in one of the poorest parts of the poorest regions of Nigera, where illiteracy is around 80 per cent and where health care is almost non-existent."

While relatives of the missing girls have pressed for an urgent military rescue attempt, a security analyst familiar with Nigerian military operations said the armed forces would likely view a negotiated, peaceful release "as a humiliation".

The Nigerian military is widely reported to have benefited financially from the conflict with Boko Haram, with commanders - and politicians - rumoured to have taken cuts and kickbacks from multi-billion dollar budget allocations intended to fund the government fight back.

"They're making a lot of money from arms and security contracts connected with the anti-insurgency effort," said one analyst, who wanted to remain anonymous.

Although President Jonathan recently replaced the chiefs of his armed services, some question how much influence he wields over elements within the military. Many Nigerians are also convinced that the silence of other prominent Nigerian politicians on the issue of the schoolgirls' abductions is down to political rivalries.

"They want to see Goodluck go down," said one source.

Gbenga Celestine contributed to this article, from Maiduguri, Nigeria


Source: http://www.channel4.com/news/nigeria-girls-alive-boko-haram-exclusive

A 27-year-old medical school student using the name "Elizabeth Raine" to protect her identity, has been running the online virginity auction since March 31 which ends May 7.






She told Huffington Post:







"I actually didn't like the anonymity. People mistake it for shame.Plus, there has been some speculation that I'd be outed and I wanted to do it on my own terms."







The current top bid listed on her website is $300,000, but she said she's received bids near $550,000 that she's in the process of confirming.




She says her main purpose of the auction is to make money and also adventure, eroticism, scandal and the chance to challenge norms about virginity.



"I've been planning this for a year and I've had a personal transformation because of it."I'm more educated about prostitution, virginity and slut-shaming.I am not emotionally damaged, broken or shut off as a result of it," 





The winning bidder will have to provide Raine with proof that he has no sexually transmitted diseases and is willing to wear a condom. He also may not be under the influence of booze or drugs during the encounter, nor may he attempt anal sex or treat her violently.

She's also open to kissing the winning bidder, and even holds out a small amount of hope that it might lead to something more.



"I wouldn't rule out love, but it's very unlikely,There will be a legal contract between us," she said. "[The winner] may not be happy [with the sex], but he knows what he's paying for."




Raine admits she does have a thing for older men and tall guys, but those factors probably won't come into play for what is basically a business deal.

Adidas is in pole position to secure what is expected to be a landmark kit deal with Manchester United worth a staggering £600 million, Goal understands.

The German sports manufacturer has emerged as the frontrunner to clinch a world-record agreement with the Premier League champions ahead of rivals Nike, Puma and Warrior.

United chiefs are confident the new deal will be worth $1 billion, equivalent to nearly £600m, and will comfortably exceed all other football kit contracts.






It is not yet known how long any deal would run but it is unlikely to be for more than 10 years, meaning that it should be worth more than double any existing agreement.

Real Madrid's £31m-a-year deal with adidas, which was renewed in 2012 and runs until 2020, is the world's biggest current kit deal ahead of Barcelona's £27m-a-year contract with Nike.

In the Premier League, Arsenal announced earlier in 2014 that they have secured a £30m-a-year agreement with Puma, which starts on July 1, while Liverpool have a £25m-a-year contract with Warrior.

But United are confident of blowing their domestic and European rivals out of the water with a deal that will reflect their commercial dominance and the continued growth of Premier League football around the globe.

Nike's current £25.4m-a-year deal with United, which began in 2002, expires in June 2015 and a six-month negotiating exclusivity period with the US sportswear giant ended last year.




Goal understands that the Red Devils' London-based commercial operation have also held talks with Nike's three major rivals and the club are close to making a decision on the brand with which they shall sign up.

Those close to the talks say that adidas have emerged as the favourites but United are contractually obliged to hand Nike the opportunity to match any deal offered by another brand.

Detectives from force headquarters, yesterday, grilled Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State for four hours at Government House, Yola, over a recent memo he sent to the Northern Governors Forum, NGF, alleging genocide in the North by President Goodluck Jonathan.



This came as the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, warned politicians, including serving governors, against inflammatory and divisive statements capable of endangering the peace and security of the nation.


Vanguard gathered that the team of investigators, drawn from the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Force Intelligence Bureau and the IGP monitoring unit, included two Deputy Commissioners of Police, one Assistant Commissioner of Police and two Superintendents of Police.



It was gathered that the interrogation of Nyako, which started at 10am, lasted till 1.30pm and was the first part of the session as the governor is expected to produce a proof of his allegations.



The areas said to have been concentrated on by the detectives were those of the Federal Government's genocide to reduce the voting populace of the North, allegation of Boko Haram terrorism and the herdsmen attacks and killings which the governor alleged to be a project pursued by the government for political purposes.



Contacted on the development, Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Frank Mba, confirmed the visit of the Police team to Adamawa State Government House, but noted that the officers were on a fact-finding visit.



Meanwhile, the IG, in a statement by Mba, stressed that inflammatory statements were capable of desecrating the national symbol and identity, and promoting a regime of lawlessness, vowing to visit same with sanctions.















Source: Vanguard Newspapers

Personally I am against office romance but since we have to talk about it let's get into it. Sometimes when you spend long hours with someone you tend to grow feelings for the person


The most common cliché is that of the boss with his secretary but there are many other examples of work-based relationships from the snog at the Christmas party to getting frisky in the supplies cupboard. Work-based relationships aren't always superficial and it is almost inevitable that at some point in your career you will have a crush on someone at work. Here are some tips to help make sure you don't end up wanting to resign if it doesn't work out.


Do:


 - Concentrate on building a good working relationship first – see how you cope with decision making, conflict etc. in the work environment

- Study them as a person – do they have qualities you admire or is it just a physical attraction

- Make sure the feeling is mutual – making a pass at someone who isn't interested – at worst  it could lead to you being accused of intimate harassment or at best come across as a bit of an office sleaze and liable to being gossiped about

- Consider how the company would view a relationship between you two and reconsider if it could jeopardise either of your positions

- Remember a crush is just a crush and many of them will pass of their own accord if you don't act on them

- Arrange to discuss any chance of a possible romance away from the office

- Play the tape forward and ask yourself how you will feel if it doesn't work out or you get rejected

- Accept a no as a no and don't push, persuade or try to cajole someone into changing their mind if they don't feel the same way

- Try and maintain a professional standard in your work no matter how strong your feelings are – this will help avoid you getting into trouble with management

- Give things time to develop – if you have a crush that lasts longer than about three months then it may be that you are developing a deeper connection with someone

- Ask yourself if you want a partner who you share your whole life with? They could be with you for 8 hours a day at work and then again when you get home – are you the sort of person that would thrive on this or not?

- Be discreet and never discuss the details of your dates with other work colleagues

Don't :


 - Go straight to a colleague with your feelings – talk it through with someone away from the situation first

- Drop hints, come on too heavy or make lewd remarks about someone's appearance

- Conduct your relationship on company time

- Tell your other work mates if you ask someone out or if a colleague asks you on a date – don't boast about your pulling power or make fun of someone else attempts

- Get involved with someone who is already in a relationship

- Flirt outrageously at work, it can be embarrassing for people around you both and will leave you feeling a bit red faced if nothing comes of it

- Have sex on the first date – or first few dates – it is harder to get out of a relationship with someone you work with as you can't just not call them so you need to be absolutely sure you both want the relationship to continue before you get physical

- Use your  expense accounts for dates

- Use the company in-house email systems for personal correspondence

- Mistake a passion for a shared project as a passion for each other –  if you are working for long hours towards a shared goal it may seem that your colleague is the only person who understands you but that isn't necessarily the basis for a lasting relationship – will you both be taking your work home with you?

Culled from: eharmony.co.uk

Real Madrid sailed into their first Champions League final since 2002 with an astonishingly one-sided away victory over holders Bayern Munich.


Sergio Ramos scored two headers from set-pieces before Cristiano Ronaldo rounded off a counter-attack to all but end the game as a contest.


Ronaldo added a late free-kick for his record 16th goal of the European campaign to seal a 5-0 aggregate win.


Real will face either Chelsea or Atletico Madrid in the final in Lisbon.

The defeat was a humiliation for Bayern, who last year thrashed Barcelona 7-0 on aggregate in the semi-finals before overcoming fellow Germans Borussia Dortmund to lift the trophy for the fifth time.

And the result will increase the pressure on manager Pep Guardiola amid the growing feeling that, despite winning the Bundesliga in record time, he has not delivered the progress his employers were expecting.


The future of the former Barca coach will be of little concern to Real, who now have the chance to add to their record haul of nine European Cups, 12 years after Zinedine Zidane's volley delivered their last triumph at Hampden Park.


With Zidane now watching from the Real bench as a member of Carlo Ancelotti's coaching staff, the Spaniards started the game with verve and purpose and were swiftly on the way to their first victory over Bayern in Munich at the 10th attempt.

Gareth Bale had already gone close with a long-range effort after Manuel Neuer's weak punch when a Luka Modric corner from the right located the unmarked Ramos, who powered a header past the Germany goalkeeper.

Shortly afterwards, Real doubled their lead via a near-identical goal as Angel Di Maria's free-kick was flicked on by Pepe, and Ramos was once again on hand to head in.

With Bayern's usually fervent fans stunned into silence, Real added a third on the break. Karim Benzema's hooked pass sent Bale racing clear and the Welshman squared for Ronaldo to slot in his 48th goal of the season and surpass the previous record of 14 goals in a European Cup season, held by Lionel Messi, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Jose Altafini.


The only low for Real in an otherwise perfect first period was Xabi Alonso's yellow card for a foul on Bastian Schweinsteiger, which will rule him out of the final on 24 May.

With Bayern needing a near-impossible five goals, the second half was predictably flat.

Arjen Robben curled wide from the edge of the area, Franck Ribery drew a rare save from Iker Casillas with a low drive and substitute Mario Gotze could not keep his shot below the bar after turning sharply in the box.


And Bayern suffered a final ignominy in the 89th minute when Ronaldo curled a 20-yard free-kick under a jumping wall to kick-start the Real celebrations.

The victory sets up a mouth-watering final either way, with Real poised to face either former boss Jose Mourinho should Chelsea make it through, or city rivals Atletico.

That tie is delicately poised at 0-0 going into Wednesday's second leg at Stamford Bridge.

The owner of the Los Angeles Clippers professional basketball team has been banned from the National Basketball Association for life after a recording emerged of him making racist remarks.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Donald Sterling would be forced to sell his interest in the team.

And the league will fine him $2.5m (£1.5m), the maximum allowed.

Mr Sterling was recorded asking a woman not to associate in public with black people nor bring them to games.

He later said the recording "does not reflect his views".

In a news conference on Tuesday, Mr Silver told reporters that Mr Sterling's "hateful opinions... simply have no place in the NBA".

"That they came from an NBA owner only heightens the damage," he said. "I am personally distraught that the views expressed by Mr Sterling came from within an institution that has historically taken a leadership role in matters of race relations."

Mr Silver said Mr Sterling would be banned from participating in all team business, as well as attending any NBA practices or games.

The fine will be donated to organisations focused on combating racism, he said.

And Mr Silver said he would urge the NBA's board of governors to force Mr Sterling to sell his stake in the team, which he purchased in 1981.

It is considered the harshest punishment ever meted out by the NBA.

"Commissioner Silver showed great leadership in banning" Sterling, basketball great Earvin Magic Johnson tweeted following the announcement.

Mr Johnson reportedly posed for a photo with Mr Sterling's female companion, leading to his comments on the controversial recording.

Following the announcement of Mr Sterling's NBA expulsion, the Clippers' website posted the message: "We are one."

"We wholeheartedly support and embrace the decision by the NBA," the statement added. "Now the healing process begins."

The row erupted on Friday when celebrity news website TMZ published a 10-minute audio recording in which a man can be heard criticising a woman, believed to be Mr Sterling's girlfriend V Stiviano, for posting online photographs of herself with black friends at Clippers games.


"It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you are associating with black people. Do you have to?" the man says.

"The little I ask is not to promote it on that... and not to bring them to my games."

On Tuesday, Mr Silver said Mr Sterling had acknowledged it was his voice on the recording. It was not clear how or when the conversation was recorded.

The remarks caused an immediate uproar in Los Angeles and among basketball fans across the country.

The Clippers are competing in the first round of the NBA playoffs, drawing extra scrutiny to Mr Sterling's remarks.

On Sunday before a game against the Golden State Warriors, the players staged a silent protest, going through a pre-match warm-up with shirts on inside-out to hide the team's logo.

The players also wore black wristbands or armbands and all wore black socks with their normal jerseys.

Mr Sterling did not attend the game.

The publicist of twin music duo, P-square, Mr Bayo Adetu in a recent interview with Icon Weekly magazine  said it was all a publicity stunt and that celebrity blogger Linda Ikeji who broke the story properly misled us all.


He even took a jibe at Linda and called her a 'mere' blogger and this did not go down well with her sister, Laura.

Laura mocked Bayo and told him to his face that her sister earns more than Psqaure!!!


See excerpts from the interview below and Laura Ikeji's response:

"Greetings, Bayo, we heard that the Okoye brothers have finally reconciled, can you give us an insight on what really happened?


(After a long laugh…) "My brother, I'm telling you this as a friend, there was no fight at all. The whole thing started after Jude tweeted some days back and bloggers feasted on it and gave it several interpretations which never existed, and that was how we got here.


"Are you saying there wasn't a fight at all, how then did Peter and Paul keep releasing comments through their Facebook accounts?

"My guy, I can authoritatively tell you that neither of the P-Square brothers, nor even Jude operate their Facebook accounts anymore.

Whatever Facebook posted was from an impersonator, pretending to be anyone of them. P-Square is active on twitter, not on Facebook, so you see, the whole thing was founded on lies.

"If what you are saying is true, why did they all tweet a re-conciliatory tweet this morning indicating that they have mended fences?

"There's one thing you should know, P-Square are not politicians, and neither are they businessmen to be worried about what one useless blogger or the other has to say about them.

"In this game, bad publicity is good publicity. When we read those funny posts, we decided to play along with the general public and what they were meant to believe.


"Yesterday, Thursday, April 24, 2014 was Jude Okoye's birthday and he also used the opportunity to propose to his girlfriend while we laughed at the stupidity of some Nigerian bloggers.

"We later decided to further play into their hands by reaching a consensus to tweet what they have termed the 'reconciliation tweet'. 

"However as a journalist, I am pained that trained journalists allow themselves to be remoted by Linda Ikeji, a mere blogger without any professional training to stall them from investigating serious news material like this.

These days, immediately Linda posts anything on her blog, journalists just go there and copy and paste the story without any checks and balances, it is outrightly wrong, I'm really upset about this.

"She called me after posting the story and I just decided to ignore her calls, because I didn't think we had anything more to say when the milk has been spilt. 

"I have taken my time to explain to you this way because you are a friend and did not join the bandwagon. 


"As for those bloggers out there, I allowed them to write whatever they like; after all, they are consuming their internet data, not mine."

President Goodluck Jonathan has terminated the appointment of his Special Adviser (Political), Alhaji Ahmed A. Gulak with immediate effect.


President Jonathan thanks Alhaji Gulak for his services to the present administration and wishes him success in his future endeavors.



This information was contained in a series of tweets by the President's spokesman, Reuben Abati (@abati1990).

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has dismissed the claim by a Singaporean, Wilson Perumal, that he helped Nigeria qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.


A statement from NFF's Assistant Director (Communications), Ademola Olajire, on Tuesday in Abuja said Perumal's claim was nothing more than "distinct fiction by a self-confessed and convicted Singaporean match-fixer".

"The true heroes of Nigeria's qualification for the 2010 World Cup were the Federal Government, the NFA, players and coaches of the Super Eagles, and the rest Nigerians," it said.


The statement also quoted NFA's General Secretary, Musa Amadu, as saying Nigeria had nothing to do with Perumal all through Super Eagles' qualifying campaign for the World Cup in South Africa.


"We have gone through the fictitious write-up by the Singaporean, who was fittingly convicted for his nefarious activities and has spent time in jail.

"The NFA is saying now that there was no truth to the claim and that we had nothing to do with Perumal all through the Super Eagles' qualifying matches for 2010 FIFA World Cup.

"Perumal's statements are hogwash and have no legs to stand on. We have ordered for the book itself with a view to digesting it and looking critically at it.


"If the book impugns on the image of the NFA, our players and the larger image of our dear country, we will take appropriate action," the statement quoted Amadu as saying.


It added however that Amadu said further enquiries on the matter should be directed at world football-governing body, FIFA, since the match was a FIFA competition qualifier.

"NFA's Integrity Officer, Sanusi Mohammed, stated that he, alongside NFA's Match-fixing Investigative Officer, Christian Emeruwa, was in communication with FIFA Security (Department) on match-fixing matters and would dig deeper into the claim," the statement read.

Perumal had claimed in the book that he helped Honduras and Nigeria to qualify for the 2010 World Cup through his activities.


He claimed he held a meeting with a Nigerian football official where he promised to help Nigeria qualify for the World Cup.


This was in return for free rein in organising three warm-up matches and a cut of the money FIFA provides for hosting a training camp during the competition.


Perumal claimed to influence three players who are on his payroll to help Nigeria to victory in one of their qualifiers.

He further claimed to have promised the Mozambique Football Association a $100,000 bonus if they were able to hold Tunisia to a draw.

The draw would have stopped Tunisia from leapfrogging Nigeria and seize automatic qualification.

Hey guys! Happy workers day in advance!!!
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There is this funny story making the rounds in Liberia and it involves our very own screen goddess, Omotola Jalade Ekeinde.

The story has it that Omosexy is set to 'remarry' a certain Morris Seimavula.

The reason they said Omotola is 'remarrying' is as a result of the 'death of Captain Ekeinde in a plane crash' (God forbids that happening).



And the supposed 'wedding' is to take place on the 30th of May 2014.














Photo Credit: SDK's Blog
















**This sounds so fake and very untrue, but I am not sure how all this came about.
I'm guessing it's the handwork of mischief makers, probably trying to scam people.**

Culled from SaharaReporters:

An ex-student of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Mr. Ambrose Ezeanwani, who exposed a racket in the students' bursary scheme in Delta state was handed over to men from the Delta State Government yesterday afternoon after days of illegal detention in Lagos. Police officers in Sabo Station handed him over after the Delta State officials visited to ask for his transfer to Asaba, Delta
State where he will be most likely tortured and "tried" for revealing the fraud perpetrated by officials of the state.


Ezeanwani was President of the National Association of Delta State Students Union at the University of Lagos. During his tenure, he revealed that the bursary system was fraught with fraud, which he said was being perpetrated by men in the scholarship board in Delta State.


Ezeawani alleged that the irregularities surfaced since the current Commissioner for Higher Education in the State, Mr. Hope Eghagha came on board. Mr. Eghagha a former professor at the University of lagos was a former newspaper columnist and critic of the Delta state government before bagging a government appointment a few years ago.

Ezeawani claims that Eghagha's office had created a system for students bursary application where non-existing students are awarded bursary by the state. He said in his investigation, which the UNILAG students' records office corroborated, the names published as "approved" for bursary awards every year were non-existent in the Institution's official records.

Ezeawani further stated that his research discovered that the office of the Commissioner for Higher Education in Delta State led by Eghagha had generated about 23,000 fake students and bank accounts and sorts codes throughout institutions across the country to siphon bursary funds while publishing fake names of beneficiaries in the print media every year. Although few genuine names of students are mixed in the published bursary approval list every year, it is observed that most of the genuine students are shut out of the scheme while non-existing names are paraded.

Ambrose had led series of protest marches calling for investigations into the scam, however, the Economic and financial crimes Commission EFCC) to whom he directed his protests did nothing to investigate the fraud.

Last Wednesday on his way to Federal college of Education (Technical) Akoka, some men in mufti pulled up in front of him and attempted forcing him into their car. Ezeawani said he resisted and headed for the police station in Sabo instead. The men followed him and asked the police to hand him over but the police refused.


The men apparently sent by the Delta State government then asked that Ezeawani be detained for them to go and prepare documents from Asaba to facilitate his hand over. He has now been handed over yesterday to policemen from Asaba who are suspected to be doing the bidding of the Delta State officials.

Some of the schoolgirls abducted by suspected militant Islamists in northern Nigeria are believed to have been taken to neighbouring states, a local leader has told the BBC.

Pogo Bitrus said there had been "sightings" of gunmen crossing with the girls into Cameroon and Chad.

Some of the girls had been forced to marry the militants, he added.

Mr Bitrus said 230 girls were missing since militants attacked the school in Chibok, Borno state, two weeks ago.

The Islamist group Boko Haram has been blamed for the night-time raid on the school hostel in Chibok town. It has not yet commented.



Mr Bitrus, a Chibok community leader, said 43 of the girls had "regained their freedom" after escaping, while 230 were still in captivity. This is a higher number than previous estimates, however he was adamant it was the correct figure.

"Some of them have been taken across Lake Chad and some have been ferried across the border into parts of Cameroon," he told the BBC.

"And then we got this information that the captors went and auctioned these girls into marriage for a bride price," he added.

The students were about to sit their final year exam and so are mostly aged 16-18.

Boko Haram has staged a wave of attacks in northern Nigeria in recent years, with an estimated 1,500 killed this year alone.













Culled from the BBC

The Nigerian police today fired tear gas canisters at protesting polytechnic lecturers who are engaging in a peaceful protest to force the Nigerian government to have dialogue with the lecturers relating to their demands.



The lecturers and a few poly students gathered at the federal Secretariat in Abuja for ask for reopening of Nigerian polytechnics whose lecturers had embarked on a strike since last year.




The protesting Polytechnic lecturers  first gathered  at the Eagle Square early this morning  to protest non implementation of the agreement made by the both Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP) and the Federal Government and later marched down to the Ministry  of Education where Minister of Labour Emeka Wogu addressed the protesters and promised that their grievances would be addressed. The minister then  appealed for patience and understanding from the lecturers.           




However, dissatisfied with the promise the peaceful rally later headed toward the  National Assembly complex where a protest letter was billed to be  submitted to the both the Senate and House of Representatives leadership. Armed policemen fired tear gas canisters at the  protesters and used hot water hoses to disperse the crowd.

The protesters vowed not to leave until they submit their protest letter to the leaders of National Assembly.  The Polytechnic lecturers have been on strike since ten months without any sign from Government to meet their demands.

What a big God! What a mighty God our God is. A fool will say there is no God. He looks around and all over the place and does not or can not see what God is doing. What l am today was made possible by the Lord God who made the heavens and the earth. I never imagined l could make it in life the way things turned out to be. 

I desired to make it in life through 'the works of my hands' and the grace of God. But the latter became the major aspect,  while the work of my hands was just an addendum (would l be correct to use this word).

My testimony had been shared with a special class of people some times ago. I always look for a forum like this (KFB OGCHDT) to tell the people who are hopeless.  If you, reading this piece, has never seen or felt the move of God in your life, l want to tell you there is nothing, l say nothing God cannot do. 

I finished my education to an appreciable level. I applied for work unending. There was no one to give me a push in life. There was one thing l never failed to do, that is crying to God to help me in life. I would tell Him it was only Him that could help.

All around me, l would hear 'Think and get started' l thought and thought yet l could not bring myself up to do anything. But praise to the living God who rules in the affairs of His people. Where l could not help myself, God rose for me. 

I was in a place of worship one fateful day, when the guest speaker that day - a man of God, gave me hope.  

He pointed at me and said that 'by this time next week, you would change your position. You would be in the class of the millionaires'. 

Lol, I just said Amen in the faith but I wondered  how  possible that would be.

Anyway, I received the message as mere declaration.

This happened 7 years ago and l am sharing it with you today to tell you to depend on God totally whatever success you are making now.  We need HIM.

On the fifth day of the prophesy, God used a mad Man for me.

There was this mad that normally passed by our street, I would buy a small loaf of bread for him or throw N50 at him, praying along side my giving that no power would turn me or my people to such state he was.  

This man was seriously mad. Everybody around our street knew him. Sometimes he would be stark naked walking around talking to only - God knows where. 

Mark my word, he was not like today's mad men with whom you will find expensive hand sets etc.  

So on this fateful day, the mad man spoke to me after I gave him some money, he said 'follow me, l want to show you something'. 

Of course, curiosity took the better part of me. I followed him at a distance; he got to the dunghill around our house- about eight or so houses to ours, and told me to go and carry one salt sack hidden under debris. 

I was initially reluctant, may be it was a setup. But he said 'Go, take it. l want to show you kindness as you have been to me. Some people were fleeing and dropped this. They may come back later in the night to take it. Money is there'. 

His speech was not normal. With fear l moved to the place, picked a plank to hit and feel the 'thing'. People were moving on the UN-tarred road by it. 

l pretended as if l was one of those who go about picking things on the refuse hills. And true, it was money, real money! 

The mad man had seen it while picking junks on that hill. But God put me on his mind to go and invite me to the place. I felt like taking it to the Police but l had a rethink. How would they know the owner? Would it not be descended upon and 'gulped'? 

I came home, separated the whole lot-a million naira and opened four accounts to lodge the money. It must not sleep with me. Until l know what become of the aftermath. I wanted to know or hear of a hue or cry about it. 

For two or so weeks after, nothing happened. l remembered the message 'this time next week....'. God raised me up from that. l went into the business and God has been helping me, giving me ideas to expand. 

I have never shown my face in giving the testimony in order not to get undue attention. I only told my Pastor and decided there and then with him not to mention my name whenever he wanted to use my case to tell people that God can do anything and can use anything to bring about His work to perfection. 

Kemi, you too had heard of this testimony before, l just want to share it on the platform you provided. God is the Almighty! Only Him could have done it. Note, the guest pastor that prophesied to me was not in the same town as l was then. If God could pick me out of the crowd and change my story, my destiny is in His hand, SO IS YOURS.

Veteran film maker Amaka Igwe is dead. She passed on few hours ago after losing the battle to Asthma Attack.


Amaka who celebrated her birthday recently is survive by children and husband, Mr Charles Igwe. Amaka is created with several movies and drama series like Checkmate,Violated, Nneka The Pretty Serpent etc. She is also a national award winner. Her death was confirmed to CKN Nigeria few minutes ago by her husband Charles.

According to him,Amaka died at their hometown Udi in Anambra State where they went for a project. They were to head to Port Harcourt from Udi when she died. Charles was too shock to speak further when CKN Nigeria spoke to him.



Amaka Igwe is also the owner of Nigeria's big time radio station TOP FM,Lagos. Recently she informed CKN Nigeria that She was also planning to commence her Television Station which license she secured few years ago. She is also the Initiator of BOBTV an annual conference of TV producers and equipment manufacturers which has been hosting in Abuja for over a decade now.
















Source: CKN

Manchester City and Paris St-Germain have both been found to have breached Uefa's financial fair play (FFP) rules.


Under 20 clubs in total are understood to have failed to meet the criteria.


They have received settlement offers from Uefa's club financial control board (CFBCB), who meet on Thursday.


The clubs must now decide whether to accept the offered sanctions or try to negotiate a lesser punishment that may vary from a reprimand to a fine up to European squad restrictions next term.


The outstanding cases will go to an adjudicatory panel for a final decision if an agreement cannot be reached.


While the settlements each club have been offered remain unknown, Uefa could reveal the outcomes as early as Friday.



Uefa president Michel Platini recently said he did not think any of the clubs who breached rules, which limit losses to £37m (45m euros) over the last two years, would be liable to the most powerful sanction of being excluded from European competition next season.


Sides not playing in Europe this season will not have to pass the FFP rules until next autumn.

Aishat (Charity) Uzoechina, the 26-year-old daughter of Pastor Raymond Uzoechina, who converted to Islam last year, is set to wed.

The Executive Director of Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC, Ishaq Akintola, whose organization has kept tab on the convert for months, said Miss Uzoechina is set to marry on May 2.

Mr. Akintola, a professor at the Lagos State University, said in a message posted to a discussion forum moderated by MURIC, that Miss Uzoechina would be marrying the lawyer who handled her case after her conversion to Islam became controversial.

Mr. Akintola's message reads as follows:

Salaam All,

Remember Sister Aishat? She is the pastor's daughter who reverted  to Islam last year and the father raised hell in Niger State. MURIC has been monitoring her progress.

She is to wed on Friday, 2nd May, 2014.

Guess who is the proposed husband? Barrister Tijani, the lawyer whom MURIC got to handle her case in court.

Isn't this worth celebrating?

Details of the arrangement for Miss Uzoechina's marriage ceremony are not immediately available.


PREMIUM TIMES could not reach her and her fiancé for comments.

Background

Miss Uzoechina, a student of the Federal Polytechnic, Bida, converted to Islam on February 13, 2013, angering her family and sparking a religious controversy in the country.

Following her conversion, she dropped her first name (Charity) and adopted Aishat in its place.


Fearing for her life, she stopped school and approached a Shariah court in Niger state, asking for protection from her parents.


The court asked the Etsu Nupe, Yahaya Abubakar, the spiritual and political head of the Bida emirate in North-Central Nigeria, to take her into custody.


However, her father, Pastor Uzoechina, and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) tried to take her back from the Etsu Nupe, accusing the Emir of abducting and forcibly converting the student to Islam.


But the Etsu Nupe and the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) insisted that Miss Uzoechina voluntarily converted to Islam and on her own sought refuge at the Etsu Nupe's palace in Bida out of fear she might be harmed.


Miss Uzoechina was quoted at the time as saying her conversion to Islam was "strictly personal, gradual and well thought-out."


"I joined Islam purely on my own terms. I love the character of Muslims that I have related with, particularly the way they behave. You know Muslims believe in God," Miss Uzoechina, told OnIslam.net at the time.

"I have Muslim friends and I watched what they do, that enticed me to join Islam."

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