Tunisians bury Slain Opposition Leader!

In a country quieted by the largest labor strike in decades, thousands of people started to gather early Friday for the funeral of Chokri Belaid, a leading opposition figure assassinated by unknown gunmen two days ago. 

Slain Opposition leader Chokri Belaid

The killing of Mr. Belaid, a human rights activist who had been a harsh critic of the ruling Islamist-led party, has led to fears that polarization and growing political violence will imperilTunisia’s transition, often held up as a model in the region.

“We are steadfast, like mountains,” mourners chanted in the Jebel Jalloud neighborhood, where they gathered the rain in preparing to march to the city’s largest cemetery.  “We do not fear assassination.”

A steady stream of supporters also traveled to Mr. Belaid’s home, where a circle of flowers and other mementos marked the spot where he was killed, raising fears of a broader conflagration.

  “I’m afraid the country will descend into chaos,” said Nuzha ben Yayha, a mourner who came to pay her respects.

The country’s labor federation called the first general strike in more than three decades for Friday to coincide with the burial, adding to a combustible mix of passions just two years after the overthrow of President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali in early 2011 signaled the beginning of the Arab revolts sweeping the region.

The official TAP news agency said the national Army had been ordered to “secure” Mr. Belaid’s funeral “and ensure the protection of participants” while the trade union federation had called for a “peaceful” general strike “in order not to serve the objectives of Tunisia’s enemies who had planned Chokri Belaid’s assassination.”

The embassy of France, the former colonial power, said on its Web site that it would close its schools in the capital on Friday and Saturday for fear of renewed outbursts of violence.

On Thursday, protesters clashed with riot police officers in several cities. In Tunis, shuttered stores, tear gas and running street battles recreated the atmosphere of that uprising against former President Ben Ali but with none of the hope. Instead, many worried about a growing instability following the killing.

Adding to the uncertainties, Tunisia’s governing Islamist-led party on Thursday rejected a proposal by the prime minister to form a national unity government.

The announcement by the party, Ennahda, revealed growing strains within a movement that has promoted its blend of Islamist politics and pluralism as a model for the region. As it rejected the proposal by the prime minister, Hamadi Jebali, a member of Ennahda, the group also publicly rebuked one of its most senior leaders and rejected his efforts to calm the political crisis.

“The prime minister did not ask the opinion of his party,” Abdelhamid Jelassi, Ennahda’s vice president, said in a statement reported on the party’s Web site that rejected the proposal to replace the government with technocrats not affiliated with any party. “We in Ennahda believe Tunisia needs a political government now. We will continue discussions with other parties about forming a coalition government.”

The troubles in Tunisia unsettled the region and endangered a country that was credited with avoiding the chaos plaguing some its neighbors. In the same way some had held up Tunisia’s transition as an example, politicians in the region studied Mr. Belaid’s assassination and saw a broader warning.

Mr. Belaid’s death was seen as a blow to the country’s turbulent transition, raising the possibility that the political violence in Tunisia had reached a dangerous new level.

In the southern mining city of Gafsa, riots broke out and the police fired tear gas at demonstrators who threw stones, a local radio station reported. The city is known as a powerful base of support for Mr. Belaid, who was a fierce advocate for the miners.

A regional headquarters of Ennahda was burned down in the town of Siliana, according to local news media, one of more than a dozen party offices attacked by protesters in the last two days.

In one of the most disturbing aspects of the situation, Mr. Belaid had himself warned just before his death about Tunisia’s troubling turn toward violence and called for a national dialogue to combat it. He took special aim at Ennahda, accusing the Islamist group of turning a blind eye to crimes perpetrated by hard-line Islamists known as Salafis, including attacking Sufi shrines and liquor stores.

There have been no arrests in the killing, and no suspect has been identified. The governing party has condemned the assassination. Anxiety about the assassination reverberated in Egypt, where political feuds have been eclipsed by street clashes between protesters and the riot police. Security officials said plainclothes guards had been assigned to guard the homes of prominent opponents of Egypt’s Islamist-dominated government. The worries were amplified because of a fatwa issued by a hard-line Egyptian cleric saying that opponents of President Mohamed Morsi should be killed. The fatwa specifically mentioned Mohamed ElBaradei, a former United Nations diplomat and leader of Egypt’s largest secular-leaning opposition bloc, which led him to request the protection.

“Regime silent as another fatwa gives license to kill opposition in the name of Islam,” Mr. ElBaradei wrote in a twitter message. “Religion yet again used and abused.”

On Thursday, Mr. Morsi addressed the issue in a speech, saying that political violence “has become one of the most important challenges that face the Arab Spring revolutions.”

In what seemed to be a direct challenge to religious hard-liners — as well as an attempt to avoid the criticism directed at Ennahda — he condemned those “who claim to speak for religion” and who “permit killing based on political differences.”

“This is terrorism itself,” he said.

Governor Chime, returns after 140 days!

Enugu state Gov. Sullivan Chime

The Governor of Enugu State, Mr. Sullivan Chime, returned to Nigeria on Thursday after 140 days sojourn abroad where he reportedly attended to his failing health  in a London hospital.

The governor was said to have arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, from London in the early hours friday, (8th Februaru 2013).

Chime left the shores of the country since September 19, 2012, ostensibly on holiday but his prolonged stay abroad had attracted public angst even as many believed the governor’s health had failed. The rumour of his death indeed circulated across the country sometime ago.

There were however, conflicting reports about his whereabouts in the Federal Capital Territory.

While some people said he was at the Enugu State Governor’s Lodge, others said he was at a private residence in Asokoro.

Others also said he was at the Anambra Governor’s Lodge where he was touted to be ready to address a press conference.

However, when our correspondent visited all these addresses, Chime could not be found.

An Enugu-based lawyer, Mr. Ray Nnaji, said, “I think he is back. A lady who sat on the same aircraft with him confirmed this to the leader of Save Enugu Group, Maxi Okwu.”

 “The General Editor of Tell magazine, Adekunbi Ero, equally told me that someone close to him also boarded the same plane, British Airways, that brought Chime into the country today (Thursday),” Nnaji told our correspondent in Enugu.



Our correspondent sought out the woman who spoke to Okwu and she said, “I boarded the same flight with the Enugu State Governor. I sat close to him and even saw him greeting and chatting with a Peoples Democratic Party chieftain from Imo State.”

 “He was looking very frail and emaciated. As soon as we landed at the airport, he even walked to his car unaided, but there was a formidable security team waiting for him and he left with them.”

At the Enugu Governor’s Lodge, renovation works were ongoing, but some of the workers were not at the site but a security guard at the gate said he was not aware of the arrival of the governor.

Another man, who also came briefly to the lodge, directed our correspondent to the Anambra Governor’s Lodge.

However, a source close to the governor told our correspondent that the governor was at a private residence within Asokoro and that he would be going to Enugu in a chartered flight on Friday (today).

Also, a protocol officer at the Government House in Enugu confided in our correspondent that Chime would arrive in the state today.

“If there are no hitches, we would leave Abuja by 2am tomorrow (Friday) and get to Enugu before or by about 7a m. We are taking this step because we do not want people to besiege the airport or wait on the streets, all because they want to see the governor.

 “By the time he gets into town, he would definitely make changes in his cabinet as he has been so unhappy with the way things were done in his absence. He is so bitter that Enugu never worked while he was away.”

Meanwhile, the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party said it received the news of the return of Chime to the country with great joy.

The party said in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, that the party was happy that the governor returned in good health.

The statement read, “We sincerely thank all the functionaries of the Enugu State Government and the state PDP officers for their loyalty and commitment to the ideals of the Party and the PDP Chime-led administration.

“Furthermore, we thank the good people of Enugu State and indeed all Nigerians whose prayers ensured the successful return of the governor.




“We dare say that the love shown to the governor by all and sundry during his period of absence is a clear indication that our people appreciate the good work of the governor.

“We are confident that the governor shall consolidate on the tremendous achievements of his administration now that he is back to work.”

Also, the Save Enugu Group that sprung up in the wake of Chime’s “disappearance” on Thursday reacted to the governor’s return.

The group in a statement jointly signed by its convener, Maxi Okwu; Secretary General of the Conference on Nigerian Political Parties, Willy Ezeugwu; and a former Commissioner for Information in Enugu State, Igbonekwu Ogazimora, said,“Chime, we learnt, arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, this morning and was taken to the city. We note this coming exactly one month after we first sounded the alarm of prolonged and unexplained absence.

 “We acclaim this as falling within desired responsive action of leaders in a democracy. If the information on the unstable and frail condition of the governor is reliable, he should avoid the pitfall of trying to combine full recovery with the stress of political power play.

 “We wish to state that Chime did not deserve being hustled out of ‘gainful stay’ in good health institutions if the right things were done first and before questions arose. In that respect, we, as other good people of Enugu State stand to hold responsible the primitive liars in Government House.”

Nigeria polio vaccinators shot dead in Kano!

Nine female polio vaccinators have been killed in two shootings at health centres in northern Nigeria.

In the first attack in Kano the polio vaccinators were shot dead by gunmen who drove up on a motor tricycle.

Thirty minutes later gunmen targeted a clinic outside Kano city as the vaccinators prepared to start work.

Some Nigerian Muslim leaders have previously opposed polio vaccinations, claiming they could cause infertility.

On Thursday, a controversial Islamic cleric spoke out against the polio vaccination campaign, telling people that new cases of polio were caused by contaminated medicine.

Some Kano residents told news men in the city, that those injured in the first attack had been taken to hospital.

A health official confirmed that those killed in the second attack in Hotoro were female health workers - there were earlier reports that people waiting at the clinic had been among those shot.

Witnesses in Hotoro told news men that  gunmen also approached the health centre using a motor tricycle.

Kano banned motorbikes from carrying passengers after a recent attack on the prominent Muslim leader, the emir of Kano.

Analysts believe the attacks may have been the work of the militant Islamist group Boko Haram but it has not yet commented.

The group - whose name translates as "Western education is forbidden" - says it is fighting to overthrow the government and impose Sharia.

It has been blamed for the deaths of some 1,400 people in central and northern Nigeria since 2010.

Along with Afghanistan and Pakistan, Nigeria is one of only three countries where polio is still endemic.

In the past month, polio workers have also been targeted and killed in Pakistan, where the Taliban have threatened anti-polio efforts - accusing health workers of working as US spies and alleging that the vaccine makes children sterile.

culled from the BBC.

Word for the Day:  “Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.” ― Albert Einstein

Beyoncé's publicist asks for 'unflattering' Superbowl photos to be pulled!

Beyoncé's publicist has asked news websites to take down photos from Beyonce's Superbowl performance after deeming them 'unflattering'.

Word for the Day:“In the land where excellence is commended, not envied, where weakness is aided, not mocked, there is no question as to how its inhabitants are all superhuman.” ― Criss Jami, Venus in Arms

Gunmen attack oil ship in Nigeria's delta, three killed!

NIGERIA:

                                                 

Gunmen ambushed an Indian-owned oil barge on Tuesday as it was being escorted by the military through Nigeria's Niger Delta region, killing two soldiers and one crew member on the ship, a security forces spokesman said.

The ship belonging to Sterling Global Oil Resources, part of the Sandesara Group conglomerate, was fired on in the Angiama area of the delta, according to Onyema Nwachukwu, spokesman for mixed military and police brigades in the Niger Delta region.

He added that the gunmen were repelled by return fire.

"Our troops were escorting the Sterling Global Oil barge ... when they ran into an ambush. Two soldiers and one civilian were killed," he said, and three civilians on the boat were wounded. "Troops have been deployed to the area because some of the gunmen fled wounded."

There was no immediate comment from Sterling.

The swampy Niger Delta is plagued by violence of assorted militants, criminal gangs, pirates and oil thieves seeking to grab a share of the two million barrels of oil a day produced by Africa's most lucrative energy industry.

Pirates usually attack ships offshore, while oil thieves steal from pipelines in the delta's labyrinthine creeks, although with so many armed gangs riding around on speedboats, the distinction is sometimes blurred.

Many gangs are offshoots of militant groups that attacked the oil industry ostensibly for political reasons during a decade of unrest in the delta, before a 2009 government amnesty.

The amnesty formally ended the conflict, but criminal networks continue to operate.

Suspected Nigerian pirates have hijacked a French-owned Luxembourg-flagged tanker along with its 17-member crew off Ivory Coast, Ivorian officials and the International Maritime Bureau said on Monday.

Word for the Day: “Great occasions do not make heroes or cowards; they simply unveil them to the eyes of men. Silently and perceptibly, as we wake or sleep, we grow strong or weak; and last some crisis shows what we have become. ” ― Brooke Foss Westcott

Unknown Gunmen Shoot Dead Lagos White Cap Chief!

LAGOS:

Unknown gunmen in the early hours of yesterday morning have shot dead a Lagos white cap chief, Chief Kayode Adeshina, the Onimole of Lagos at his home located at Iga Idugaran Street, Isale-Eko, Lagos Island, Lagos.

 late Chief Kayode Adeshina

The 73-year-old chief was said to have been killed around 3am yesterday in his palace at House No. 5, Onimole Palace, Iga Idugaran Street, Lagos Island.

Children and relatives who were with the deceased when the unidentified gunmen struck said they were scared, as they could not do anything to help the old until he gave up the ghost.

According to one of his children, Oyinlola Ikuforiji, “the gunmen stormed the palace around 3a.m and made straight to the chief’s room where they found him sleeping. He was rudely woke up from sleep and a gun was pointed at his forehead.

He pleaded with them to spare his life but they in turn demanded that he gave them money. But, he told them that he had no money on him and was afterwards shot at, until he passed on few minutes later”.

It was gathered that immediately after shooting him, the killers started ransacking the palace, as they locked up the entire house, including the room where the old man was shot.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, Lagos State Command, Ngozi Braide confirmed the incident, saying police had commenced investigations into the matter, as she assured that the perpetrators of the heinous crime would soon be and brought to book.



Word for the Day:“In an age of hope men looked up at the night sky and saw “the heavens." In an age of hopelessness they call it simply “space.” ― Peter Kreeft

Thames torso boy was victim voodoo killing!

Pioneering scientific police work has confirmed that an African boy whose torso was found in the Thames in 2001, was the victim of a voodoo-style ritual killing.

A scientist using nuclear technology has established that the unidentified five - six year old, named Adam by detectives, almost certainly came from Nigeria.

And ground-breaking forensic work has even narrowed the location to one of three areas of the West African nation.

Now a senior detective and a Government forensic scientist have travelled to Nigeria to gather further evidence which they hope will not only lead them to the boy's home village but also to his identity.

Last night a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: 'The main thrust of the investigation is to try and identify who murdered Adam, and to do this we need to establish who he really is.'

It is the first time that the examination of radioactive isotopes has been used in a British criminal investigation. Isotope levels in bone reflect the geology of the area where someone has grown up.

The extraordinary forensic work also involved the detailed analysis of a sinister substance in the boy's stomach which has now been positively identified as a 'black magic' potion.

Scientists also made a microscopic examination of pollen found in his lungs and intestine which proved he had been in the London area for at least 72 hours before his death.

Detectives think he was brought to Britain specifically for a human sacrifice.

Speculation that the killing involved witchcraft has been rife since the black boy's body - without head, arms or legs - was found in the Thames near London's Globe Theatre on September 21, 2001 by a man walking across Tower Bridge.

Police frogmen also recovered a set of candles wrapped in a cotton sheet. Daubed in felt tip on the sheet was a West African name - Adekoyejo Fola Adeoye. Part of the name was also on the candles.

A post-mortem revealed another potentially vital clue. In the boy's stomach was a concoction of minerals and vegetable matter, which police suspected was fed to him as part of the ritual killing.

Forensic tests revealed that 'Adam, was a five or six-year-old boy from Nigeria who had been poisoned 48 hours before his death and was paralysed but conscious when he was killed.

Officers believe his death was a ritualistic killing and he had been poisoned with an extract from the carabar bean.

The potion included tiny clay pellets containing small particles of pure gold, a clear indication that Adam was Britain's first-known victim of a Muti ritual killing, prevalent in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa.

Muti murders are carried out in the belief that the body parts of children are sacred. They command large sums for use in medicines said to provide good luck, virility and business success. The bodies are often disposed of in flowing water.

Much of the scientific analysis-in the Adam case has been conducted by Professor Ken Pye, head of the forensic geoscience unit at Royal Holloway University of London, who also worked on the Sarah Payne murder inquiry.

The only clothing on Adam was a pair of orange shorts, exclusively sold in Woolworths in Germany and Austria.

Det Insp Will O'Reilly, who is leading the investigation and who earlier this year travelled to Johannesburg in South Africa in the hunt for clues, has been liaising with his counterparts in Germany and Belgium over two similar child deaths.

A black teenager was found dead from an apparent ritual killing in Frankfurt while the mutilated torso of a white child was found in Belgium.

A 31- year- old asylum seeker of West African origin, was questioned was arrested in connection with his death in July 2002,after clothes in her Glasgow tower-block flat were found to have come from the same shop as Adam's shorts.  but she was deported to Nigeria months later.

Mrs Asaguede came to police attention after social workers became increasingly alarmed at her boasts about knowledge of human sacrifice.

DNA tests have since established that Mrs Asaguede is not Adam's natural mother but detectives are still anxious to trace her husband and to establish the whereabouts of their own young son.

The couple, who also have two daughters, aged six and seven, had lived in South London but are also known to have connections in Germany. Mrs Asaguede is on police bail pending further inquiries.

In December 2001 a £50,000 reward was offered for any information leading to the successful conviction of those responsible, and in April 2002 Nelson Mandela made a global appeal for information about the murder.

Ten years on Det Ch Insp Dunn said they would continue to do all they could to bring Adam's killers to justice.

"This is a case which is hugely important for the people of London and the people of Nigeria that we successfully conclude this investigation.

"We must not have any further cases of people being brought into the country for criminal slaughter."

"If you do bring trafficked people and those people come to harm, then we will leave no stone unturned in seeking you out," he warned.

Word for the day;“The greatness of humanity is not in being human, but in being humane.” ― Mahatma Gandhi