News Update:Boko Haram Received N1.5 Million From Senator Zanna

Another story has come up for  Senator Zanna came; the senator had to explain to the men who interrogated him why he gave Boko Haram members N1.5M for Sallah rams.
Monday night, Zanna arrived at the SSS headquarters in Abuja at about 1 pm where he was processed for interrogation.

He gave further insight into his relationship with the dreaded Islamist sect and reiterated his denial that Bama was arrested in his Maiduguri home.

He told his interrogators that he gave N1.5 million for Sallah rams to the sect members following their threat to attack him.

He explained that when they took his aide to his house for a search, they retrieved N250, 000 and left a message with the aide for him that he should provide them N10 million or they would come for him.
The senator, who was released at about 10 pm, is expected to report back at the SSS headquarters by 11am Tuesday.
The bottom line of it all is that, he SSS men during their interrogation with the Senator found out that, the Senator still communicates with his nephew, Bama the Boko Haram member, but the Senator insists it is not true.

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3 SUSPECTED KILLERS OF 4 UNIPORT STUDENTS IN ALUU COMMUNITY ARRESTED!

Report just reachin us says: 13 members of Aluu community have been arrested in connection with the killings so far. Three of the suspects however spoke to pressmen and recounted their roles in the lynchings/eventual murder.

David Chinasa Ugbaje (30) said a policeman joined in beating the youths; another was pleading that they be released.

Ugbaje said;

“Around 7 am, I left my house. I dressed up to go to work. On my street, I saw a crowd of people with four unclad boys, who were being led into my compound, No. 9, Royal Villa in Omuokiri-Aluu. I said what was the problem and they said the boys were armed robbers. I said that is my compound, let us go and see the person, if he is their member or let them point the particular person, who is their member they were going to look for”. Click to continue.

“I opened the gate, they entered. A crowd of people that I could not control. They entered the compound. They pointed to the room of one of our co-tenants, whose name is Bright. They said one of the boys was staying with Bright. When they got there, Bright’s door was locked. Some people wanted to break the door”.

“They started beating the boys. Very serious. Along the line, two policemen came around. One of the policemen was pleading. The other policeman joined in beating the boys and later said the crowd should hand over the boys to them, but the crowd said ‘no’. ‘We no go gree, we no go gree’.

“As the policemen were leaving, they said whatever this thing was going to bring, you would bear the result. Since I live in the yard, I said if I stayed there and the people were killed, automatically, the house would be in trouble. We are now in trouble. I brought out my belt; I started flogging people and asked them to leave the yard. I was beating the people (crowd) very seriously”.

“One Ikwerre man in the crowd asked why I was beating the crowd for the boys to be moved from our yard. I continued to beat the crowd to carry the boys to where they brought them from. I drove them out of our compound and gate. They injured me in my hand, when I was trying to open the gate”.

“I started flogging for them to leave. There is water in our (house’s) frontage. They went there and soaked the boys (four) inside the water. I discovered that one of the boys was my customer on campus, at the University of Port Harcourt, where I work. He was an Igbo student. I asked the boy: are you a student?

“If you watch the video, you will see me where I held belt, asking the boy. The boy told me ‘no’, that he was not a student (of UNIPORT). Quite all right, I knew him very well. He once bought slippers from me and used to repair slippers from me. I am a shoemaker at UNIPORT”.

Maybe the boy was afraid to tell me he was a student. There was nothing I could do because of the crowd. If I talked more than that, they could join me with them.

“The beating was going on, here and there. At the end, they finally moved the boys out of my street. I then went out. My wife has just been delivered of a baby.”

On his role in the lynching of the four students, Ugbaje said: “I flogged the boys twice.”

Amadi, alias Kapoon,'s role

“I live at No. 9. Royal Villa in Omuokiri-Aluu. I am from Ikwerre. I work at UNIPORT. I am a printer. I do photocopying and binding. In the morning on that day, I dressed up, as usual, so that I could go to my work. When I came out at the junction, so that I could pick a bike, I saw a crowd of people, with four boys. They were unclad, with tyres on their necks”.

“I shifted a bit, but to verify what was happening, they told me the four boys came to rob. I asked where they were taking them to. They said they were taking them to No. 9, where I live”.

They said they mentioned one of our neighbours. That they came to look for him as well.

“I followed the crowd. Before I reached my estate, they had already reached the house with the four boys in front of my neighbour, Bright, from Ogoni. They said they were looking for one of the boys. Before they came, the back door was locked. Some of the people in the crowd said they were going to break the back door. Others said no, they should leave the door, since Bright was not around. At the end, they started beating the boys”.
“They started beating the boys. In the process of beating the boys, policemen came, but they said no, they were not going to leave the four boys. I called this my neighbour (David Chinasa Ugbaje), with other neighbours, that we were not going to allow that kind of thing to take place in our estate that we would be in trouble.

“This my neighbour (Ugbaje) collected his belt. I collected a small stick, and we started chasing people, flogging everybody, to take the boys out of our yard. We started pushing everybody out, including the four students. They left their tyres, I said they should take their tyres out of the yard and we locked our gate.

“I flogged everybody, including the four boys, for everybody to go out. I beat one of the four boys twice and the other one, I beat once.

Segun said:

“My name is Segun Lawal. I am from Osun State. I live in Omuokiri-Aluu. I was in the house, around 6:30 am to 7 am. I am a taxi driver. I saw a crowd and I parked my car outside. I saw a police vehicle coming and I followed the police. I saw four policemen. I saw the policemen enter the gate”.

“As I reached the gate, they were beating the boys. I had to raise my hands up, to defend the boys. If you watch the video, you will see it. I wore blue polo shirt. I started pleading for the crowd not to kill the four boys. They did not listen”.

“The Policemen left immediately. I had to leave. As I left, I went to GRA (Port Harcourt); one of my customers called that I should take him to Obudu Cattle Ranch (in Cross River State).

“I came back on Saturday night (October 6). I was in my house. Policemen came to arrest me. I never had this type of experience. I told the police that I was not around. That I traveled to Obudu. I did not beat the four boys.

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MAN BURNS HIMSELF AFTER HE LOOSES JOB

A man who had lost his job and feared he could no longer support his family doused himself in alcohol and set himself on fire in front of the presidential palace in Italy on Thursday.
The 55-year-old Romanian severely burned his legs and torso, but does not have life-threatening injuries, police said.

A police officer burned his hand trying to put out the flames in the incident in Rome outside the 16th century palace, which serves as residence and office for Italy's head of state, Giorgio Napolitano.

The Romanian, who lives in the northwest Italian region of Piedmont, had recently lost his job as a truck driver and was struggling to take care of his wife and baby girl, Italian media reported.

The country's year-long recession has been worsened by tax rises and pension cuts introduced by Mario Monti's government to try to help rein in the massive public debt. Unemployment is at its highest level since monthly records began in 2004.

A wave of highly publicized suicides linked to financial woes this year has highlighted the human cost of the crisis.

In August, a man set himself on fire in front of the Italian parliament after battling unemployment, and died a week later.

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PSQUARE-PETER OKOYE REACTIONS:-WE ARE REALLY BLESSED BY GOD NOT BY ILLUMI SHIT!(DEVIL)

Nigerian twin brothers Peter and Paul Okoye known as P Square, delivered a solid performance in front of 35 000 screaming fans at the Glamis Arena in Harare. The show was sold out and many fans sadly had to be turned away.

Where other foreign musical acts like Sean Kingston and Mr Vegas flopped in Zimbabwe, the ‘Chop my Money’ and ‘Beautiful Onyinye’ hit makers did not disappoint. Now you see why they were signed onto a partnership deal by Akon’s Konvict Muzik label?

The duo who performed with the aid of a live band, opened their act with their hit song “Temptation” before their churned out their popular hits like “Give Me That”, “Story” and “I Love You”. After almost two hours of performing the duo closed their well-choreographed act with their newest hits “Chop My Money” and “Beautiful Onyinye”.
Perhaps wary of wild allegations making the rounds especially after their very successful Zimbabwe showing, Peter  Okoye has taken to twitter to dismiss rumors of their Illuminati membership – the second time in a fortnight that popular Nigerian artistes will have to deny their success to the exclusive secret society.
Peter Okoye ‏@PeterPsquare
Success doesn’t happen over night. And we worked so hard for it. God made it possible #TeamPsquare
Peter Okoye ‏@PeterPsquare

Yes I will say it again and again. We are really blessed by God not by illumi shit!(Devil)

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CHELSEA CLINTON LAUNCHES HEALTH INITIATIVES

Chelsea Clinton the daughter of former US president Bill Clinton and current US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, on Tuesday was in Nigeria to help launch a programme in the capital Abuja along with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan and others which was aimed at reducing death rates of children and mothers due to diarrhea and other preventable diseases.

Chelsea Clinton is a board member of the Clinton Health Access Initiative.
“An estimated one million mothers and children die each year in Nigeria from preventable diseases, including 100,000 deaths due to diarrhea,” a statement from the Clinton Foundation said.
A range of companies and organisations have signed on to the effort that will mainly focus on increasing access to zinc and oral rehydration solutions (ORS), which the foundation said was “the most effective diarrhea treatment.”
“Increasing the percent of children with diarrhea who receive ORS and zinc to 80 percent by 2015 could help prevent 220,000 Nigerian children from dying,” it said.
“Zinc and ORS can prevent over 90 percent of diarrhea-related deaths and cost less than $0.50, yet less than two percent of children in the country are currently using the complete treatment.”
Nigeria is Africa’s most populous nation and largest oil producer, but most residents live on less than $2 per day.

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NORTHERN IRELAND COACH MICHAEL O'NEILL HAILS 'MAGNIFICENT' PORTUGAL DRAW

Michael O'Neill has labelled Northern Ireland's draw with Portugal on Tuesday as one of the side's greatest ever results. 

In Cristiano Ronaldo's 100th game for his country, Niall McGinn's strike was cancelled out by a last-gasp Helder Postiga goal and O'Neill was delighted with his players' efforts, insisting they deserved more than a point from the clash in Porto.

When asked where the result ranked among previous triumphs, O'Neill told Sky Sports: "It's up there.

This is as difficult a place to come, certainly in Europe, against a world-class team. "All credit goes to the players.

They were magnificent. Their work rate, desire, the way they worked for each other - you cannot ask for more than that.

"It was very harsh to lose a goal at the end. Of course, we had to weather severe pressure but at times I thought we passed the ball well, scored a fantastic goal and we're coming out disappointed with a draw.

"The shape of the team was excellent, the work rate, the way they went about the game, was fantastic. "To go ahead and stifle Portugal was fantastic.

I'm disappointed for the players because they deserved a wee bit more than a draw from the game."

The former Shamrock Rovers manager believes the result can act as a springboard for his side after seeing the Ulstermen drop to 117th in the Fifa world rankings.

"They have to take confidence and belief from what they did tonight," O'Neill added.

"Their togetherness and spirit has been unquestionable. At times it has been questioned, but certainly tonight they answered that.

"There is more in this team, because we were down a few bodies. We've got younger players coming into the team all the time.

"If they can continue to improve and grow and obviously have more performances like tonight, then if you have that spirit you will always get something in football."

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SOME GREAT LESSONS I HAVE LEARNT -OPRAH WINFREY

 

www.idethompson.blogpsot.com

Here are some lessons Oprah Winfrey shares.

 1. What you put out comes back all the time, no matter what. (This is my creed.)

2. You define your own life. Don't let other people write your script.

3. Whatever someone did to you in the past has no power over the present. Only you give it power.

4. When people show you who they are, believe them the first time. (A lesson from Maya Angelou.)

5. Worrying is wasted time. Use the same energy for doing something about whatever worries you.

6. What you believe has more power than what you dream or wish or hope for. You become what you believe.

7. If the only prayer you ever say is thank you, that will be enough. (From the German theologian and humanist Meister Eckhart.)

8. The happiness you feel is in direct proportion to the love you give.

9. Failure is a signpost to turn you in another direction.

10. If you make a choice that goes against what everyone else thinks, the world will not fall apart.

11. Trust your instincts. Intuition doesn't lie.

12. Love yourself and then learn to extend that love to others in every encounter.

13. Let passion drive your profession.

14. Find a way to get paid for doing what you love. Then every paycheck will be a bonus.

15. Love doesn't hurt. It feels really good.

16. Every day brings a chance to start over.

17. Being a mother is the hardest job on earth. Women everywhere must declare it so.

18. Doubt means don't. Don't move. Don't answer. Don't rush forward.

19. When you don't know what to do, get still. The answer will come.

20. "Trouble don't last always." (A line from a Negro spiritual, which calls to mind another favorite: This, too, shall pass.)

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WHAT A MESS!- THE STORY OF ARAB BILLIONAIRE

Remember Sheikh Rashid Bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, son of the Arab billionaire who bragged about how his £200,000 Ferrari was seized by the police and later released to him after they got to know his identity? Now here comes his Dad's story.

All of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Zayed Khalifa’s forty wives got their period at the exact same time. In what is being described as one of the most unfortunate events in recent UAE history, the PMS calendars of the Sheik’s wives became synchronized and created a terrible headache for everyone involved.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Zayed Khalifa, one of the richest men in the United Arab Emirates, first heard about the disaster from his eunuch, sources within the palace report.
In the meantime, the troubled man managed to answer a few quick questions from media representatives.
“Back when I only had two wives I could maybe handle a couple of mood swinging, bloated, depressed, angry and resentful chocolate-eating monsters at a time, but with just one more than that you’re as good as dead. I was convinced that this would never happen with all forty of them at the same time – I mean, what are the odds?” the grief-stricken ruler asked.

Palace representatives said that the harem would be put under quarantine for the next several days in order to avert a greater catastrophe, and that the Sheikh would do the same thing any other man would do in similar circumstances, “hide somewhere until it all passes.”

One of the Sheikh’s wives spoke to reporters about the mood inside the palace. “How is it even possible to cycle through every human emotion in one day? It’s so exhausting. And we get no support from our husband. None of us even give a damn if he comes back unless he brings us mass quantities of chocolate covered peanut butter balls,” Adara al-Sadah, wife number 28, was quoted as saying.
The Arab billionaire stated in the end that “having a harem can easily transform from being every man’s sweetest dream to every man’s worst nightmare.”

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SOME CRAZY SLEEKY CARS FOR SOME COOL RYDE!

 DO YOU LOVE CARS? SURE YOU SHOULD THESE ARE SOME FANTASTIC LATEST

CAR 1

CAR 2

 This one up here can be good for just 2, you know on the travelling things! Pretty cool!

CAR FLY

CRAZY CAR3

Oh my God! I think this is the mirror of future technology and world. When I see this car is mind blowing. This car design is very latest and strong. This car has no engines, no drivers, no limits and no steering wheel. This car is surprise of the future. This car shapes is very different.

 The visibility is unpredictable, converging high fashion and high technology. The car very latest design that no engine, no steer wheel, and petroleum-free. The designers came out with really unique revolutionary ideas. It has minimum weight and perfect aerodynamics, low resistance mobility, and very efficient. After all, I like this car because it design, engine. Colors. Overall is very latest. It’s very fantastic.

BMW LOOKING SLEEKY!

www.idethompson.blogspot.com (c) 2012

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THE BURNING CONTINUES, THIS TIME IN WARRI!

Is it now a competition of burning of thieves? Just few days ago, we heard the story of how four University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) students were brutally murdered in Umuokiri village, Aluu, Rivers State.

Its not be too long four students were murdered for allegedly stealing laptop computer and a blackberry phone in Umuokiri village, Aluu, Rivers State.. The students, Chiadika Lordson, Ugonna Kelechi Obusor, Mike Lloyd Toku and Tekena Elkanah were brutally beaten and burnt to death by a group of people in a small town in River state .It was a horrible sight for all and those who saw the video.


The police were quick to arrest the suspects as there was video evidence showing the babaric nature of the youths. But the line of the story seems not to have ended as this time in the oil city, Warri, Delta state, a man has just be done the same community justice.

The man was allegedly to have stolen a neck chain in one of the popular markets and the people who caught him felt the best way to go about the issue was by burning him to death. The faces of the muderers are shown in the video (but Youtube has pulled it down).

One thing is common in the two events, 1) They were accused of doing something against the law. 2) They were burnt to death.3) They were quick to do all this.

So could this have been the best way to go about justice, we are humans and not babaric, besides theres a Or is it that the security agencies in the country cannot be relied on with matters like this?

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UNIPORT 4: My Son Is Innocent – Father Of Slain Victim

"I want justice to prevail because the children were innocent” - 

Toku father of slained victim

The 4 slain Uniport Students

Father of one of the slain students at Omuokiri-Aluu in Rivers State, Mr Mike Toku has also called on the Rivers State government and human right bodies in the country to ensure justice was done on the issue.

Toku, who is a staff of the state-owned radio station, said he was sure his son and the other three who were killed by the riotous Omuokiri–Aluu youths were not robbers as alleged.

According to him, his son and his other three friends slept in a friend’s place in the community so that they could track a fellow who was owing them money in the early hours of the following day.

He said when they got to the fellow’s house after the argument that ensued, the fellow raised alarm, calling them thieves.

Mr Toku said he got to know that his son, late Mike Toku and the others were being lynched to death at about 7am when somebody called to alert him.

He said he finally got to the scene of the murder at about 9am only to see the lifeless bodies. According to him, he was assisted by his wife and three other persons to rush them to the hospital where they were pronounced dead.

Toku said efforts should be made to bring those behind the heinous act to justice. “I want justice to prevail because the children were innocent,” he said.

“The community had no right to do what they did. I am appealing to the government and human rights communities to stand firmly behind the families of the deceased to fight for justice”. According to him, they were killed at about 7am of the black Friday.

Meantime, some persons have wondered why it took so long for the Police to get to the scene of the brutal murder.  Those who spoke to Vanguard said if the police which has an outpost station around the University of Port Harcourt had hastened to the scene of the murder they probably could have rescued the victims of the mob action.

Mr Toku said when he got there, he only saw a Joint Task Force, JTF patrol vehicle. He said he was told that the JTF team fired shots to scare away the killers.

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Murder Of Uniport Students: D'banj's Expresses Feelings

Four young men, all undergraduates, brimming with great dreams, unfulfilled aspirations and a promising future were killed. To express the depth of my pain and shock at their murder is impossible. And understanding how events could have degenerated to this level is truthfully beyond me.

 

Lloyd, Ugo, Tekana and Chidiaka

Four promising young men whose lives were interwoven in one way or the other with yours and mine.

 

I mourn deeply with the families of these young men because this is OUR collective loss. They were our colleagues, our classmates, our neighbors, our brothers… our friends.

 

We are NOT a nation of barbarians. We CAN follow due processes and procedures. We MUST fight together as ONE NATION to ensure that Justice as a whole is served, and as a PROCESS, is duly followed-ALWAYS.

 

We can only try to make meaning of this senseless tragedy by ensuring that this WILL not happen again, by affirming that the pursuit of justice does not in any way entitle any of us to the willful elimination of other people’s lives and by ensuring that we, as youths, do not destroy the honorable mantle placed on us as the future of our nation, by eliminating our present.

 

Aluu 4 and Mubi 40, Rest In Perfect Peace.

God Bless Nigeria

 

Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo

D’banj

UN Youth Ambassador for Peace

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SOME GREAT FACTS TO INSPIRE YOU!

Welcome to Idethompson blogh1>

SOME AMAZING FACTS FOR YOU! MY READER! THEY MAKE LEARNING FUN!

1. If you stop getting thirsty, you need to drink more water. For when a human body is dehydrated, its thirst mechanism shuts off.

2. The pupil of the eye expands as much as 45% when a person looks at something pleasing.

3. Laughing lowers levels of stress hormones and strengthens the immune system. Six-year-olds laugh an average of 300 times a day. Adults only   laugh 15 to 100 times a day.

4. Men’s shirts have the buttons on the right, but women’s shirts have the buttons on the left.

5. The reason honey is so easy to digest is that it’s already been digested by a bee.

 6. The color blue has a calming effect. It causes the brain to release calming hormones.

7. Every time you sneeze some of your brain cells die.

8. Your left lung is smaller than your right lung to make room for your heart.

9. The verb “cleave” is the only English word with two synonyms which are antonyms of each other: adhere and separate.

10. When hippos are upset, their sweat turns red.

11. Google is actually the common name for a number with a million zeros.

12. Human hair and fingernails continue to grow after death.

13. It takes about 20 seconds for a red blood cell to circle the whole body.

14. Most soccer players run 7 miles in a game.

15. Every day 200 million couples make love, 400,000 babies are born, and 140,000 people die

16. In most watch advertisements the time displayed on the watch is 10:10 because then the arms frame the brand of the watch (and make it look like it is smiling).

17. Women blink nearly twice as much as men.

18. The average person laughs 13 times a day.

19. Women blink nearly twice as much as men.

20. The three best-known western names in China: Jesus Christ, Richard Nixon, and Elvis Presley

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Auction for Einstein 'God Letter' Attracts an Anonymous $3 Million Bid

An eBay auction for an original letter handwritten by Albert Einstein in which he expresses his views on the existence of God was opened Oct. 8, and in about 10 minutes from the time an anonymous bidder named o***h had placed the first offer at the opening price of $3 million.

In the letter, Einstein calls belief in religion and God "pretty childish" and ridicules the idea that the Jews are a chosen people.

Eric Gazin, president of Auction Cause, the agency managing the sale, has said "This is the most historic and significant piece we have listed on eBay in an email. "We are excited to offer a person or organization an opportunity to own perhaps one of the most intriguing 20th-century documents in existence. This personal letter from Einstein represents the nexus of science, theology, reason and culture."

Einstein handwrote the letter in German to Jewish philosopher Eric B. Gutkind on Jan. 3, 1954, a year before Einstein's death. The letter was a response to Gutkind's book "Choose Life: The Biblical Call to Revolt" (1952, H. Schuman; 1st edition).

In part of his letter, Einstein writes, "For me the Jewish religion like all other religions is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions. And the Jewish people to whom I gladly belong and with whose mentality I have a deep affinity have no different quality for me than all other people. As far as my experience goes, they are also no better than other human groups, although they are protected from the worst cancers by a lack of power. Otherwise I cannot see anything 'chosen' about them," as translated from German by Joan Stambaugh. [Religious Mysteries: 8 Alleged Relics of Jesus]

In his book, Gutkind suggested that unlike the mass hypnosis spoiling mankind at the time, "The soul of the Jewish people was never a mass-soul. Israel's soul could not be hypnotized; it never succumbed to hypnotic assaults. … The soul of Israel is incorruptible."

And as for whether Einstein believed in God? Yes and no, it seems.

In a March 24, 1954 letter, he is quoted as writing, "It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it."

However, in the letter to Gutkind, Einstein wrote the word God was "nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honorable, but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish."

This isn't the first time this "God" letter has been up for auction: In 2008, an unidentified buyer who had "a passion for theoretical physics" bought the letter at a Bloomsbury Auctions sale in London for $404,000, 25 times its presale estimate, according to an article in the New York Times.

The letter to Gutkind has been stored in a temperature-, humidity- and light-controlled environment at an academic institution specializing in the care of cultural heritage collections, according to an eBay description. Since the letter has been known among scientists for more than 50 years, the description reads, its authenticity has never been questioned. The letter is in its original envelope, holding a stamp and postmark from Princeton, N.J, where Einstein lived toward the end of his life.

The last few years have seen an outpouring of projects that bring the famous genius down to earth: For instance, in March, a large collection of Einstein's documents — everything from personal letters to scientific manuscripts — went online as part of an endeavor by the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and at the Einstein Papers Project at the California Institute of Technology. The archive reveals both the academic side of Einstein — with one of only three existing manuscripts containing the famous E=mc^2 equation written in Einstein's handwriting — and his personal life — with a postcard to his mother Pauline.

In addition, in 2011 pieces of his brain went on display for the first time at Philadelphia's Mütter Museum and Historical Medical Library. And just last month an iPad app was released that allows the public to get up close and personal with Einstein's gray matter.

The "God" letter will be up for auction for 10days on E-bay.

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U.S. WON’T TOLERATE EFFORTS TO HARM AMERICANS – OBAMA

President Barack Obama has declared that the United States has a profound respect for people of all faiths. 

Obama in his weekly radio address said, “Yet there is never any justification for violence …. There is no excuse for attacks on our embassies and consulates.”

Angry anti-American protests have swept the Muslim world in response to a film that insults the Prophet Mohammad. An attack on the U.S. consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi killed U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three others this week.

A day after Obama led a somber ceremony marking the return of the bodies of the Americans killed in Libya, he acknowledged that a surge of anti-American violence in the Middle East is disturbing.

The Pentagon is sending Marines to beef up security at the U.S. embassy in Sudan, following similar reinforcements to Libya and Yemen.

The Libyan attack and the U.S.-directed outrage have raised questions about Obama’s handling of the so-called Arab Spring, a series of revolutions that have unseated entrenched authoritarian governments.

The turbulence in the Middle East has had ripples in a tight U.S. presidential election, with Obama’s Republican challenger Mitt Romney saying Obama has weakened U.S. authority around the world.

However, Obama repeated a vow to bring the attackers of the U.S. consulate in Libya to justice. “We will not waver in their pursuit,” he said.

The president also said the turmoil should not deter U.S. efforts to support democracy in the region or elsewhere.

“Let us never forget that for every angry mob, there are millions who yearn for the freedom, and dignity, and hope that our flag represents,” he said.

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£2.2m PHCN Pension Fund Traced To London Bank

The eight-man panel set up by the former minister of power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, to investigate pension matters in the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) has discovered about £2.2 million (N572 million) PHCN pension money stashed away in Barclays Bank, United Kingdom.

This was disclosed during the presentation of the committee’s report to the minister of state for power, Arc. Darius Ishaku, in Abuja yesterday.

The committee headed by former auditor-general of the federation Mr Joseph Ajiboye noted that although it met with initial difficulty in getting the financial statement of PHCN, the panel was eventually able to access all required documents and began its search from 1990.

He said the sum of £2.2 million which was traced to the UK bank was unutilised for over 20 years, and efforts to retrieve it were met with bottlenecks. “But we believe the Nigerian high commissioner in London can help in retrieving the money,” he said.

Explaining how the money got to Barclays Bank, Ajiboye said PHCN had expatriates at the initial stage whose pensions were supposed to be paid. “We understand that the last expatriate has since died, so there’s no need for the account to continue to exist,” he said.

More findings, he said, also revealed that, between 1990 and 2010, the total amount of money remitted to the PHCN superannuation fund was N53.6 billion. A breakdown showed that between 1990 and 1999 a total of N1.7 billion was paid into the fund while N51.2 billion was remitted between 2000 and 2010.

On the controversial 25 per cent allegedly deducted from PHCN workers’ salary, Ajiboye explained that findings from meetings held with the Nigerian Union of Pensioners and pay slips up to April 2012 presented by PHCN workers revealed that there was no evidence of deduction from any worker’s salary.

“All 25 per cent remittance into the superannuation fund was made by PHCN management. The pension fund is not funded by government as was the case of the police and military pensions. It was from their revenue that they funded their pensions.

“Since they have been recording losses for some years now, sometimes there was no money to set aside to fund the pension. The current expenditure of PHCN is not budgeted for; they make their money and pay their staff and run their business,’’ he said.

The panel also disclosed that one of PHCN’s properties in Kado, Abuja, was purportedly sold by PHCN management to generate money for the pension fund but noted that there was no record of the money paid into the fund.

In his remarks, Ishaku commended members of the panel for their effort to deliver the report on schedule. He expressed the hope that the report will aid in finding a lasting solution to the lingering PHCN/labour issue which has now been transferred to Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).

He said government would also explore ways to retrieve the money stashed overseas.  The meeting ended with a visit to the site of PHCN’s property.

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Must Read: Prevent Sack Letter or Salary Deduction- Prevent Lateness at work!

Prevent Sack Letter or Salary Deduction- Prevent Lateness at work!

Overcoming lateness at work can sometimes be challenging. The fact that you might be hooked up with one activity or another is no excuse for your boss. He just want competency!

No employer cherishses lateness, as he will one time or the other make emphasis that "punctuality is the sole of a business"(which is true).

However, an employer will always have great pleasure to know that his workers are always punctual and with no doubt this could bring some reward to you especially when you have a very generous boss.

Most at times you wonder why you can't always get to work before or on resumption hour, this is very common in our system. But if you can make that choice of been punctual at work you are going to be one of the most valued and credible emplyee in your organization.

Lets look at some of the 5 reasons we go Late to work

I have been able to analyze the some of the issue of lateness to work and  have realize that even though this can be very challenging to overcome, knbowing ts a challenge can solve the problem

 1. Get Motivated:

Do you remember your first day at work? You were punctual that nobody had to question you of you late-coming to work. you always got up early from bed. you were always punctual, you had more energy  you were very determined never to go late, and all of a sudden you can't just explain how you improve in late-coming. Motivation has an imporatnt role to play in our life. 

When you begin to loose motivation, chances are that you would go down the drain.  

ops! This is not to say you couldn't have stayed motivated.

The lack of motivation is one of the most primary cause of lateness no matter your pay if you really lack external motivation apart from your organization lateness won't be far from you.

 However, you must keep yourself motivated. You might want to follw this simple steps to staying mottivated at work.

- Dont drain yourself with too much task.

- Give yourself time to rest (even if its few hours)

- Eat when you are hungry:

- Drink enough water

- If it's possible take a walk outside your office: I remember doing this when I felt stressed out at work two years ago.

 - Amongst all, you will have to stimulate your energies, to ensure you do not have a psycological breakdown.

 - Look for ways to create new operating standard through your strength.

2. Do your Thinking before you Sleep:

   If you are in the habit of making retrospect on your preparation to work. You might want to focus mainly on today's work instead of wasting valuable time thinking of how you spent your yesterday at work then quickly focus at what is on ground. This might not look like an obstacle but from my gathered experience you will go much late if you spend the whole of the day just thinking.

3. Don't Procrastinate!:

If you know what I mean don't beat about the bush trying to gather some document ,write some plans, go for an assignment.

Stop procrastinating. There is a common saying that procrastination is a thief of time. Time waits for no man. Learn to take every single action that comes to your mind at once for example:yu might want toyou might also want to try Napoleon Hill's simple advice which is DO it now!. when and idea flashes through your mind. Do it Now. He calls it the self starter.

4. Wake up Early: 

The popular saying goes "early to bed early to rise". Avoid sleeping late so as to wake up early for work. If you wake two hours from your resumption time it can really help. Also ensure you do not over weigh yourself with food overnight.

5. Never Rush to Work:

Be at the bus stop at the at least 50min from your resumption to work.


Going early to work will really help in your work affairs. It will relieve you of some guilt and stress, since coming early will help you plan your day well and also for the next day.

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Jonathan canvasses global support for job creation efforts

President Goodluck Jonathan has appealed to international development partners and the private sector to support his government’s efforts to create jobs for the youth.

The President made the appeal on Monday when he inaugurated the second edition of the Youth Enterprise With Innovation in Nigeria (YouWin) programme aimed at providing grants to about 1,200 entrepreneurs.

The President said he decided to devote the edition solely to female entrepreneurs in recognition of the increasingly central role women were playing in the nation’s overall economic development.

He said, “I urge all stakeholders, including our youths and their leaders in the private sector, as well as international and development partners to join hands with us as we expand this laudable initiative and give fresh hope to our young people.

“People may ask why the government talks about YouWin; of course, we know that the present administration is committed to creating jobs for Nigerians. And jobs can be created through direct employment by government and her parastatals and agencies; but, we believe that a more sustainable approach to job creation is encouraging the private sector.”

“And to do that, we need to build young entrepreneurs who will be able to employ five or more people and that multiplier effect will give us more job opportunities than even government expanding the parastatals that will make them less productive. That is one of the cardinal points of YouWin,” he added.

He said the edition would also help address the relatively low participation of women with just about 17 per cent of winners in the first edition, which was designed for both men and women.

Under this phase, he said 1,200 women would receive between N1m and N10m over the next 12 to 18 months.

In addition to the grants provided for the 1,200 winners, Jonathan said at least 6,000 aspiring young entrepreneurs would be selected, trained and equipped with high quality business skills each year.

This, he added, would enable them harness their business and job creation potential.

The President said, “The first reason why we are focusing on women solely this time is that globally, the world talks about women and children. It is a topical point globally and Nigeria must be among the comity of nations.

“So, we must come up with programmes that will help women and protect and save lives of children, that is at the UN level. So, we must do things that other nations will copy from us, we should not only be copying from others.”

“In another ways too, women, in terms of using small money to create opportunities, have done it better than men,” he added.

Jonathan also reiterated his position that the era of godfathers must end in the country, saying it was high time for things to be done based on merit.

He said, “One of the awardees said earlier that after filling the forms, she wanted to get a contact in the Ministry of Finance that will facilitate the process of her winning; unfortunately, she couldn’t but later realised she didn’t even need it.

“We want to change that mentality and syndrome that you must know somebody to talk to somebody and we have begun with the YouWin Programme. That mentality must change. Gradually, we are changing it. You cannot change a society overnight, it is step-by-step. I promise Nigerians that I will sanitise Nigeria.”

The Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said the programme was designed for women because they occupied a very strategic place in entrepreneurship in the country.

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Nigeria News:N5000 note: It is an indication of currency devaluation. – Tinubu

Former Lagos State governor Bola Tinubu has described the plan by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to introduce the N5,000 note as a sign of currency devaluation, even as he accused the Peoples Democratic-led government of being irresponsible.

Tinubu, who spoke to journalists in London at the weekend on his way to the US Democratic Convention, said the government was spending much more than it has, and has been mismanaging the economy.

“It is an indication of currency devaluation. It is not his (CBN governor) own problem. He is a banker for the entire nation. He keeps eye on the economy and comes up with policies. The problem that we have is that we are spending what we don’t have. We are not managing our resources very well.

“If you (government) are losing over $6bn in oil revenue to theft, if you are losing $6bn to $10bn to oil subsidy theft, and if you spend 75 per cent of your budget to service recurrent expenditure and you are borrowing, not for long term activities and development that will sustain the nation on the long term, you get devaluation and you are seeing the effect of devaluation,” said Tinubu. “The economy is on reverse, it’s a yoyo economy. This government is not serious, they don’t know what they are doing.”

On the Ondo election, Tinubu accused Ondo State governor,Dr Olusegun Mimiko of betrayal of trust, adding that the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) will win the election.

“We are going to defeat him. He is a betrayer, like he has betrayed others in the past. He got into Adefarati’s cabinet in 1999, betrayed him and moved to PDP. He later betrayed Olusegun Agagu and came back. He promised that within 30 days of his declaration, when we were fighting the case in the court, he would come to ACN and, after being sworn in, he started dillydallying. That is his trait. He’s not principled; a person with character would not do that definitely,” said Tinubu.

On the new Lagos traffic law, he said the law is not anti-people but against those who want to violate the traffic.

“The opposition parties which are criticising the law are bereft of ideas. Governance is about idea. The law is for safety and the government has the responsibility of safety of lives primarily, then properties. So you are saving lives and property. Vehicle is an asset. People should learn to obey simple law, it is for their own good. It is not for government. If you are not in violation, no one will arrest you. If you are in violation, the court will listen to you. In that if you don’t have money to defend yourself, Office of the Public Defenders is there, established by the government for those who don’t have money. We should clap for the government. We have to be civilised. Look how clean this place is (referring to London),” said the former governor.

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