2017
Latest News and Information

One of the most trusted and reliable aides of Ekiti
State Governor Ayo Fayose, Chief Segun
Akinwumi, has resigned his appointment after over
three years in office.
Akinwumi was appointed as Director General/
Special Adviser on Procurement Matters where he
served for three years before he was later
appointed Special Assistant on General Matters.
The politician who also served as Commissioner
for Water Resources
during Fayose’s first tenure quit over Fayose’s
alleged moves to impose his deputy, Prof. Kolapo
Olusola as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
candidate in the 2018 governorship poll.
He accused the governor of playing God with the
way he (Fayose) is handling the politics of
succession in Ekiti PDP. Akinwumi said he
doubted Fayose’s claim that God spoke to him on
Olusola’s choice.
The former Special Adviser who is also a former
Chairman of Ilejemeje Local Government tendered
his resignation via a letter dated 29th. December,
2017 which was addressed to Fayose. He did not
give any reason in the letter for throwing in the
towel.
The five-paragraph letter reads: “I hereby tender
my resignation with immediate effect.
“Sir, you would recall that on 24th October, 2014,
you appointed me
Director General/Special Adviser on Procurement
Matters in your
government, the position I held until I was
redeployed as Special
Assistant, General Matters, till today, 29th
December, 2017.
“I thank you most sincerely for giving me the rare
opportunity to
serve at both appointments. Please accept the
assurances of my kindest
regards.”
When asked in a telephone chat by our reporter
on Sunday why he
resigned from the Fayose administration,
Akinwumi said he took the
decision to protect his integrity and the good
name he has built over
the years in politics.
He claimed that Fayose had first told him and
other aides to work for
former Attorney General and Commissioner for
Justice, Mr. Owoseni
Ajayi and later former Commissioner for Works,
Mr. Kayode Oso as
successor
Akinwumi said: “I am a product of establishment
for the past 39 years
and under the tutelage of Baba Awolowo. People
were brought in under
establishment, it was Baba Ayo Fasanmi that
brought us into politics.
“Bringing somebody (Olusola) from nowhere,
bringing somebody from the
sidelines will not work. It is someone within the
system that we want
in the PDP.
“Fayose should stop playing God in our party, let
the national
leadership and people that matter tell him not to
play God again in
our party because you cannot mock God.
“Fayose had told us that he would serve out his
tenure together with
his deputy. No God has spoken to anybody about
it, no one can play God
no matter how highly placed and anyone that
plays God will become an
ex-person.
“This was a man (Fayose) that said in public
glare on April 24, 2014
that Owoseni Ajayi should not contest to be
deputy governor but a
governorship material.
“Fayose also promised before the whole world
that when his tenure
finishes in 2018, he and his deputy, (Olusola)
Eleka would leave the
Government House together.
“Eleka should be advised to dust his papers and
go back to classroom
because imposition won’t work in our party.
Politics has not got to a
level in which somebody will be begged to contest
the governorship in
which the whole state is your constituency.
He said further: “How can you just wake up one
day and impose
(Olusola) Eleka on other party members and
leaders? PDP is not a
one-man party, one man cannot just decide who
is the party’s flag
bearer at a governorship election expected to be
keenly contested.
“This was the same governor who asked us to be
working for Owoseni
Ajayi telling us that himself and the deputy
governor would serve out
their tenure together, that both of them are
leaving the Government
House together.
“Later, he said we should stop working for
Owoseni Ajayi, that the
person now to work with was Kayode Oso and we
started wondering what
was going on.
“He later came to tell us that it is no longer Oso
again that we
should now work for (Olusola) Eleka. We asked
questions, he said he
would not tolerate any question from us that we
should just carry out
his order. Eleka cannot work, we need a popular
and acceptable
candidate.”

Latest News and Information

Arsene Wenger slammed the Premier League for
poor refereeing and scheduling after Arsenal's 1-1
draw at West Brom on Sunday, where Mike Dean
awarded the hosts a controversial late penalty.
Dean pointed to the spot in the 89th minute after
former Gunner Kieran Gibbs hit the ball at Calum
Chambers' arm at point-blank range in the area.
Jay Rodriguez levelled from the spot to cancel
out Arsenal's lucky opener, when Alexis
Sanchez's free kick was deflected into the net by
James McClean.
While Arsenal were far from their best in the
game, Wenger blasted the refereeing standards in
England after the game and said the Premier
League's scheduling was "completely unfair."
Arsenal played Thursday night at Crystal Palace
while West Brom played their previous game two
days earlier on Boxing Day.
"It's disappointing to see that [penalty decision].
But what can you do? We can talk and talk and
talk, it doesn't change anything," Wenger told Sky
Sports. "And anyway, the Premier League doesn't
face the problem.
"Not of the schedule, nor with the referees. I just
would like to remind you that I did fight very hard
with [former Arsenal vice-chairman] David Dean
many years ago that the referees become
professional. But their level, unfortunately, doesn't
go up."
Goalkeeper Petr Cech was also
uncharacteristically angry after the game, having
been booked by Dean for protesting the penalty
decision.
"The player is too close to the ball, he has no
chance to react," Cech told Sky Sports. "That will
never be a penalty. The referee gives this with
two minutes to go, that's why I ask him:
'Why?' ... He could have told me. He just walked
away and gave me a yellow card. I was not rude,
I just asked a question. And I think this
disappoints me even more. ... I expect when I
walk toward a referee with respect and ask him a
question, I would as well like that he answers to
me in a normal way. Not gives me a yellow card
and say nothing."
Wenger added that the result was "difficult to
accept," and again called for video-assisted
replays (VAR) to be introduced in the Premier
League.
"It's time. I don't know why we want to be the
best league in the world and we wait for such a
long time and other leagues use it already,"
Wenger said. "But overall I believe the schedule is
not right. West Brom has five days to prepare for
a game like that, we have three. Chelsea has four
days to prepare the game on Wednesday, we
have three.
"And you can look since the start of the season,
the Premier League has to become serious a little
bit and look at how the schedule is fair or not
fair. On our side it's completely unfair. ... If we
play every day, I have no problem. If the team we
play against has played the day before as well, I
accept it completely. But the way they organise
the schedule cannot be right. It's nothing to do
with top-level sport."

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Diego Costa has declared himself ready to play
after completing his protracted move to Atletico
Madrid.
The former Chelsea striker agreed to rejoin the La
Liga side in September but has been unable to
register as the transfer window was closed.
He was officially introduced as an Atletico player
on Sunday, while he will be registered on Monday
when the winter window opens, and said he was
"tired" of training and keen to play as soon as
possible -- with Atletico's next match coming
against Lleida Esportiu in the Copa del Rey on
Wednesday.
"I want to thank the club for the effort they have
made to bring me back," Costa said, in
comments reported by Marca. "I just want to
play as soon a possible. I'm tired of training."
Costa, 29, helped Chelsea to the Premier League
title last season but his three-year spell at
Stamford Bridge came to an acrimonious end.
Manager Antonio Conte told Costa early in the
summer he was not part of his plans, but Costa
spurned offers from elsewhere to focus on Atletico
-- despite knowing the club's transfer ban would
prevent him signing in the summer window.
On Sunday, Costa said he bore no grudges
against anyone at Chelsea despite perhaps never
fully settling in London.
"I did not learn to speak English," he said. "A
pity, but the truth is that there were very good
people who helped me and made my life easy.
It's a great club and there are only good
memories."
Costa joined Chelsea from Atletico in 2014, and
the club's president Enrique Cerezo said: "Costa
does not need an introduction because this is his
home and today we give him the best of
welcomes. He is an extraordinary player and a
great friend."
After missing the first half of the season, Costa
has work to do to force his way into Spain's
plans for the World Cup, but said the best way to
convince coach Julen Lopetegui of his qualities
was to score goals for Atletico.
"It's a challenge," he said. "The first thing is to
do things right here, because if that happens it
will be easier to be one of Lopetegui's options."
Atletico also unveiled the signing of Vitolo from
Sevilla in a deal that saw the Spain winger trigger
his €37.5 million release clause. Atletico signed
him in the summer and loaned him to Las Palmas
for the first half of the season, but he is now free
to make his debut for Atleti.

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Manchester City face an anxious wait over
injuries to Gabriel Jesus and Kevin De Bruyne,
who were both taken off in the 0-0 draw at
Crystal Palace.
Gabriel left the pitch in tears in the 23rd minute
after appearing to accidentally injure his knee
when he slipped as he tried to control the ball
minutes earlier.
De Bruyne was stretchered off after a strong
tackle from Palace's Jason Puncheon, who was
booked and was also taken off on a stretcher.
But Belgium international De Bruyne was seen
walking back to the City dressing room
accompanied by two medical staff.
City boss Pep Guardiola told BT Sport: "He
[Gabriel] is injured. Hopefully not tough, but
maybe one or two months he will be out.
"With Kevin we were lucky. I don't know what
happened today. We were lucky in the past. But I
don't know what happens in the future."
The draw brought City's 18-game Premier League
winning streak to an end to as they finished one
win short of Guardiola's record, set at Bayern
Munich.
However, they remain unbeaten thanks to a last-
minute penalty save from Ederson, who kept out
Luka Milivojevic's spot-kick.
Guardiola would not comment on the decision to
award the penalty, which came after Wilfried
Zaha went down under a challenge from Raheem
Sterling.
"Maybe [it was penalty] -- I didn't see it really
well," he sad. "But if the referee decided it, it's
OK.
"They are a good team. We knew that. The
second half was better than the first. We had
problems getting going.
"At the end, Ederson helped us to keep one
point."

Latest News and Information

Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson saved a
90th-minute penalty as Crystal Palace ended
City's 18-game Premier League winning run in a
dramatic 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park.
The penalty came when Wilfried Zaha was
adjudged to have been brought down by Raheem
Sterling and the referee Jon Moss pointed to the
spot -- but Ederson kept out Luka Milivojevic's
unconvincing effort.
Palace produced an outstanding performance to
limit the chances City were able to create, but
the runaway leaders -- who lost both Gabriel
Jesus and Kevin De Bruyne to injuries -- almost
made a perfect start when Bernardo Silva shot
just wide with four minutes gone.
But the league leaders showed vulnerability as
the game approached the 10-minute mark when
Christian Benteke had a shot blocked after
Ederson had hit a teammate with his attempted
clearance.
City striker Gabriel suffered an injury as he
pursued a pass soon afterwards but was able to
continue after treatment, and moments later City
were under pressure again as a deflected Patrick
van Aanholt effort flew wide.
Palace had to replace defender Scott Dann with
Martin Kelly after Dann was hurt as he brought
down De Bruyne, and City had to make a
substitution with 22 minutes gone as Gabriel
went down again and this time could not
continue.
The forward was tearful as he left the pitch to be
replaced by Sergio Aguero, who came within a
whisker of opening the scoring when his deflected
28th-minute effort cannoned off a post with
keeper Wayne Hennessey beaten.
Benteke headed wide from a Yohan Cabaye corner
as Roy Hodgson's Eagles continued to ask
questions of City, whose frustration showed as
Leroy Sane went into the book for kicking the ball
away.
In a scrappy start to the second half, Van Aanholt
was booked for a challenge on Bernardo Silva, but
as the hour approached the leaders were close to
breaking through when Ilkay Gundogan
exchanged passes with De Bruyne and curled an
effort wide.
Guardiola replaced Gundogan with Sterling soon
afterwards as he looked to inject more urgency,
and Sterling was soon involved in a move that
ended when Aguero's header was gathered by
Hennessey, who denied Sane soon after.
Cabaye went into the book for a challenge on
Sane that gave City a dangerous free kick but De
Bruyne's effort hit the Palace wall.
As the game moved towards its final quarter of an
hour, Palace boss Hodgson brought Jason
Puncheon into the action in place of Cabaye.
With 78 minutes gone, Puncheon's shot was
blocked and, when Zaha crossed low from the
right, Andros Townsend blazed over from close
range.
Aguero was booked for not retreating at a Palce
free kick from which James Tomkins headed wide,
and at the other end De Bruyne had an effort
cleared by Kelly before City brought on Yaya
Toure for Bernardo Silva.
After Palace had missed their late chance from
the spot, Sane broke for City and was fouled by
Kelly, who was booked.
There was then a lengthy delay as Puncheon
fouled De Bruyne, hurting both players, who were
stretchered off after treatment.

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Jurgen Klopp is confident
Mohamed Salah will be able to maintain his
excellent form for the entirety of the 2017-18
season, even if he is a doubt for Liverpool's next
game on Monday.
Mohamed Salah's second-half double saw
Liverpool produce a come-from-behind win over
Leicester City at Anfield on Saturday afternoon.
The Egyptian's goals took his season tally to 23
in all competitions, which is the most by a
Liverpool player before the new year since Roger
Hunt in 1961-62.
"Yes, he can keep that standard for sure," Klopp
told a news conference. "He's still a young player,
he can improve. It's not only about scoring, it's
about other situations as well. He's so important
for us.
"But he knows and I know he couldn't score if he
did not have the fantastic support of the other
boys."
"I think he can keep this standard, but that's
normal. All the boys can keep the standards they
have in the moment. It's not that it's only a run
or something. The boys show their quality and
we did that already a few times."
Salah played 83 minutes of the match and was
replaced by Georginio Wijnaldum, with Klopp
revealing the goal scorer was suffering from a
slight injury issue and would need to have his
fitness assessed ahead of the New Year's Day
trip to Burnley.
"I don't know in this moment exactly, but he was
limping and that's never a good sign," Klopp
added. "To be honest, we have to see what his
problem was. We will see what he can do for the
next game."
Saturday's comeback extended Liverpool's
unbeaten run to 15 games in all competitions and
ensured they would stay in the top four of the
Premier League as they entered 2018.
Klopp was particularly pleased with the response
from his players after Jamie Vardy put Leicester
into the lead inside two minutes.
"You don't want to be 1-0 down, but if you're
1-0 down that early in the game then you want to
see the reaction you saw tonight," he said.
"That's the best reaction we showed so far when
being 1-0 down.
"It was fantastic. I didn't see one nervous player,
any real reaction in a negative way. We kept on
going and created and played brilliant football.
Defensively we were really strong.
"The main strength of Leicester is counter-
attacking and quick transition, and if you're 1-0
down then it plays in their hands. That makes it
more difficult.
"We did really well and I liked the first half a lot,
apart from the result. Everybody in the stadium
reacted in the right way and saw: 'Wow, what a
game that is.'
"It was 100 percent one of the best [games]
we've played so far."
Liverpool's £75 million signing Virgil van Dijk was
in attendance at Anfield for the first time since his
move from Southampton was confirmed earlier in
the week.
When asked whether the signing of the Dutch
centre-half has made certain Liverpool players
nervous, Klopp said: "Look, that's professional
football. The really good players will always say
the challenge with other players for a position in a
team will always help you.
"We cannot go in a season with two centre-
halves. Hopefully nothing happens. The third one
is already logical [and] if you have a fourth one
then it's even better.
"No player should and can play a whole season.
A club [like] Liverpool, we need to react in
situations when a few are maybe not top level or
injured. That's what we did.
"I don't think the boys were nervous. I couldn't
see any of that tonight. They don't have any
reason to be nervous because I was really
pleased about the development of these players.
"We have to fight and to battle with the biggest
teams in world football, so we cannot go there
with a group of 11 and being best friends
everyday. We need to have a squad who is ready
for that and that's what we are building step by
step."

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Pep Guardiola has admitted
that he is concerned about whether his
Manchester City squad can cope with challenging
for four trophies.
After Sunday's game at Crystal Palace, City will
have played nine games in December and their
schedule doesn't get much relief in January, with
another seven games in 31 days.
City have already reached the semifinals of the
Carabao Cup but would face at least five games
to reach the FA Cup final, while the two-legged
Champions League restarts in the middle of
February with six games before the final in Kiev.
The squad has been boosted by John Stones'
return to training after a hamstring injury but
Benjamin Mendy and Phil Foden are still some
way from returning and Guardiola is wary of
resources being stretched too far.
"I am worried about that. We have to handle four
competitions and I don't know if we able to do
that," the Catalan coach told a news conference.
"With this schedule we have to be careful. I am
worried because we cannot play every four days.
We have to live now and then the FA Cup, the
Carabao Cup -- because Bristol City... something
[special] is going on there.
"But they cannot play, every three days 90
minutes, 90 minutes, 90 minutes. They need
[mental] refreshing to arrive in the last part of the
season quite well. I've never lived this situation
before -- three competitions I have handled many
times but four never."
Meanwhile, Guardiola says England coaches are
always welcome to speak him for advice but
insists they must decide on their own style of
play.
Guardiola's tactics were criticised last season
when City failed to maintain a title challenge, with
some pundits claiming his philosophy would not
be successful in England.
That opinion has changed with his side on a
record-breaking streak of 18 successive victories,
but Guardiola says it's not necessarily the right
option for the national team.
"Of course, [I would help]," he said. "The only
thing I can say it and then after that they have to
do what they believe. Don't follow me because I
have success now -- that would be a big
mistake.
"I was a young manger and for me it was a gift
to speak with managers who opened their doors
to explain what they believe about their
profession about the locker room about the
tactics about whatever.
"Of course I am ready to speak to them. They
don't know it but I am going to learn off them as
well!"

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WIFE of late leader of the All
Progressives Congress in Delta State, Mrs.
Anna Okpozo said people should stop blaming
President Muhammadu Buhari over the
appointment of her late husband, Senator
Francis Okpozo in the recent board
appointment saying no body is above mistake.
*Senator Okpozo
Though she expressed her surprise when she
saw the name adding however that the
President would not be ” everywhere to know
everything”.
However, the wife said that her late husband,
as one of the founders of the All Progressives
Congress, was a close friend of the President
and stood by him, along with a national leader
of the party, during the APC presidential
primary and presidential election.
According to her”During the President’s
inauguration, my husband was there. When he
fell sick and eventually died, we did not hear
anything, though the President too was fighting
for his life. As the head, he (Buhari) sent a
condolence message.
“So, this appointment is giving me some
thoughts on whether it was not the President
that sent the condolence message. If he was
the one that sent the message and was aware
that his (late Okpozo) name was on the list, he
(Buhari) would have corrected it.”
The widower added, “I am not picking any
offence at all because as a President, he
cannot know everything about everybody in the
whole country. Maybe he had delegated the
thing (selection) to some people to do and they
did not consult but just published it (list).
“My husband died on December 26, 2016. So, I
cannot cry over split milk. He is gone; the
living can forge ahead. But I commend him for
remembering my son.”

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Solo climbers, blind people and double amputees
have been banned from climbing Everest under
new rules the Nepalese tourism ministry believes
will reduce the number of deaths on the
mountain.
The changes have provoked criticism from the US
ambassador to Nepal and a former Gurkha soldier
planning to scale the peak after losing both legs
in Afghanistan.
The new rules have been under discussion for a
month and were implemented last week, Nepalese
officials told the Himalayan Times.
Individual climbers will need to be accompanied
by a mountain guide, and high-altitude workers
who accompany expeditions to the summit are
eligible to receive summit certificates under the
revised regulations.
A suggested upper age limit of 76 for climbers –
which Nepalese alpine associations had lobbied
for after the death of an 85-year-old climber in
May – has not been implemented, but the
government maintained the ban on climbers under
16.
Everest once attracted only elite climbers, but as
the relative cost of scaling the peak has fallen,
the mountain has recorded numbers of aspiring
mountaineers, including many from China and
India.
Experienced climbers have raised concern that the
mountain is becoming dangerously overcrowded
and that new companies with lower safety
standards have rushed to fill demand in the
market.

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2017 just keeps getting better for Davido as his
concluded 30 Billion concert sets a new record
not just in Nigeria but globally.
The much-anticipated concert which held at
Eko Hotel and Suites, on Wednesday, December
27, is recorded as the biggest music concert of
the year as it thrilled fans across Lagos State
and beyond, with the hashtag #30BillionConcert
trending in two major continents; United
Kingdom and United States.
Davido and Wizkid
Fans were treated to a great show across the
world and adulation has continued to pour in
for the B.E.T Award winner.
This latest feat further cements Davido’s stake
as one of Nigeria’s biggest artiste of 2017.
Among the highlights that ensured a worldwide
trend of the concert include Mohits Records
reunion onstage and Wizkid’s performance with
Davido.
Furthermore, the widely trended concert proves
that Davido has truly gone international, and
his fan base is growing fast in major countries
of the world.
The concert which was put together by TE
Group, Achievas Entertainment, and Pentagon
was the first for Davido in Lagos and has
promised much more in the future.
Other artists who delivered ecstatic
performances asides Davido include, Terry G,
Olamide, Reekado Banks, Daddy Showkey,
Niniola, CDQ, Sexy Steel, TJAN, Terry Apala,
Wale Turner, Mohits Stars – Don Jazzy,
DBanj, KSwitch, Dr Sid, Ikechukwu, D Prince,
Wande Coal.

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PDP: ‘A govt that appoints dead people cannot
run Nigeria’
APC: ‘You’re belittling governance,
embarrassing yourself'

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday
lashed out at the Buhari-led APC administration
over what it called unpardonable national
embarrassment caused by the appointment of
dead persons as chairmen/members of the newly
constituted boards and parastatals.
The opposition party said the gaffe is a further
confirmation that the APC administration is
completely confused, disorganized and grossly
incompetent.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in turn
labelled PDP ridiculous and an embarrassment to
see everything as an opportunity to attack the
administration “without looking at the seriousness
of their claims.”
The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr.
Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement in Abuja said:
“Nigerians can now see why the nation’s
economy has been in shambles in the last two
years. When we say that this government is
completely inept, some Nigerians did not know to
which level, but now they do.
“This inability to tidy up a simple issue of list of
209 appointees has completely exposed the extent
the APC government is bereft of simple
organizational skills to manage a country like
Nigeria, which is in dire need of development.
“How on earth can a government that cannot
compile a common list handle intricate issues of
national planning and budgeting; issues of health,
education, aviation, agriculture, infrastructure and
management of the huge civil service?
“How can they possibly initiate and successfully
implement national and international instruments
for national development in today’s competitive
world?
“This also explains why nothing has been working
under the APC government. Furthermore, the mix
up in the list also exposes the corruption in the
APC government.
“The fact is that the government of our dear
country has been in wrong hands in the last two
years and the situation will continue to worsen
unless the nation is rescued from them in 2019.
“Finally, we urge Nigerians to disregard the lame
excuses by the APC government and hold them
responsible for the woes that have befallen our
country under their inept and undesirable regime.”
However, in reacting to the PDP statement last
night, the APC National Publicity Secretary,
Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi said the opposition party
was only belittling governance and embarrassing
itself with the way it seeks to use every
opportunity to attack the Buhari administration.
He said “it is embarrassing that the PDP sees
every move as evidence of APC’s inability to rule
the country.
“Things happen. I don’t think the PDP which has
governed the country before should respond in
such embarrassing manner to a situation where in
a list of over 200 a few names, which ought to
have been removed, escaped scrutiny.
“These people died while the process of compiling
the list was still on. It is nothing more than an
honest mistake.
“With the way it is trivializing every issue, PDP is
embarrassing itself and belittling governance. If
after several years in power, they still don’t know
that governing a country is more than the trivial
things they take so serious, then it is quite
embarrassing. How on earth can a party like PDP
say because of such honest mistake, APC is not
qualified to rule Nigeria?
“But we understand their desperation to take
advantage of everything to gain prominence and
seek political mileage.
“But it is ridiculous for them to now see
everything as an opportunity to attack this
administration without looking at the seriousness
of their claims. It is quite embarrassing.”

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Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka is dismayed by the
current fuel scarcity.
He wonders why successive governments find it
difficult to fix challenges facing the country.
He is particularly disturbed by the blame passing
by those charged with the responsibility of
making the country work.
Soyinka, in a statement yesterday on the state of
the nation, could not understand why the
generality of Nigerians are being exposed to
unnecessary hardship caused by the fuel scarcity.
He recalled government’s promise to deal with
the situation during a similar fuel crisis in 1977.
He attached to his statement which he entitled
BLAME PASSING – The New Year Gift to a
Nation, the bromide of the June 7, 1977 edition of
the Daily Times in which President Muhammadu
Buhari, who was Petroleum minister at the time
said the fuel crisis ‘may be over next year.”
He said in the statement: “In the accustomed
tradition, I wish the nation less misery in the
coming year. A genuine Happy New Year Greeting
is probably too extravagant a wish.
“The accompanying news clipping from June 1977
came into my hands quite fortuitously. It is forty
years old. It captures the unenviable enigma that
is the Nigerian nation. It is however a masterful
end-of-year image to take into the coming year,
not only for the individual now at the helm of
government, General Buhari, but for a people
surely credited with the most astounding degree
of patience and forbearance on the African
continent – except of course among themselves,
when they turn into predatory fiends. When many
of us are blissfully departed, an updated rendition
of this same clipping – with a change of cast here
and there – will undoubtedly be reproduced in the
media, with the same alibis, the same in-built
panacea of blame passing.
“Let this be called to our collective memory. Even
before the current edition of the fuel crisis, other
challenges, requiring immediate fix, had begun to
monopolize national attention, relegating to the
sidelines the outcry for a fundamental and holistic
approach to the wearisome cycle of citizen
trauma. “This has been expressed most recently,
and near universally in the word “Restructuring”,
defined straightforwardly as a drastic overhaul of
Nigerian articles of co-existence in a more
rational, equitable and decentralized manner.
“Such an overhaul, the re-positioning of the
relationship between the parts and the whole
offers, it has been strongly argued, prospects of a
closer governance awareness of, and
responsiveness to citizen entitlement. An overhaul
that will near totally eliminate the frequent
spasms of systemic malfunctioning that are in-
built into the present protocols of national
association.
“I recently ran the gauntlet of petroleum queues
through three conveniently situated cities –
Lagos, Abeokuta and Ibadan – deliberately, this
Friday.
“Even with ‘unorthodox’ aids of passage, this was
no task for the faint-hearted. Just getting past
fuelling stations was traumatizing, an obstacle
race through seething, frustrated masses of
humanity, only to find ourselves on vast stretches
of emptied roads pleading for occupation.
“As for obtaining the petroleum in the first place –
the less said the better. I suspect that this
government has permitted itself to be fooled by
the peace of those empty streets, but also by the
orderly, patient, long-suffering queues that are
admittedly prevalent in the city centres.
“It is time the reporting monitors of government
move to city peripheries and sometimes even
some other inner urban sectors, such as Ikeja and
Maryland from time to time to see, and listen!
Pronouncements – such as the 1977 above –
again re-echoing by rote in 2017– are a delusion
at best, a formula that derides public intelligence.
“Buying time. Passing blame. Yes of course, the
current affliction must be remedied, and fast, but
is there a dimension to it that must be brought to
the fore, simultaneously and forcefully? This had
better be the framework for solving even a
shortage that virtually paralyzed the nation.
“Just to think laterally for a moment – what
became of the initiatives by some states nearly
two decades ago – Lagos most prominently – to
decentralize power, and thus empower states to
generate and distribute their own energy
requirements? Frustrated and eventually
sabotaged in the most cynical manner from the
Federal centre!
“The similarity today is frightening – for nearly
four days on that earlier occasion, the nation was
blacked out near entirely. We know that one
survival tactic of governments is to keep their
citizens in the dark over decisions that affect their
lives but, this was literal!
“And yet each such crisis, plus lesser ones,
merely reiterate again and again that this national
contraption, as it now stands, is simply –
dysfunctional!.
“What this demands is that, in the process of
alleviating the immediate pressing misery, we do
not permit ourselves to be manipulated yet again
into forgetting the MAIN issue whose
ramifications exact penalties such as petroleum
seizures and national power outage.
“These are only two handy, being recent
symptoms – there are several others, but this is
not intended to be a catalogue of woes. Sufficient
to draw attention to the Yoruba saying that goes:
Won ni, Amukun, eru e wo. Oun ni, at’isale ni.
Translation: Some voices alerted the K-Legged
porter to the dangerous tilt of the load on his
head. His response was – Thank you, but the
problem actually resides in the legs.
“The providential image above sums up a defining
moment for both individual and collective self-
assessment, places in question the ability of a
nation to profit from past experience. Vast
resources, yes, but proved unmanageable under
its present structural arrangements.
“As the tussle for the next round of power gets
hotter in the coming year, the electorate will again
be manipulated into losing sight of the BASE
ISSUE.
“Its noisome claque in the meantime, the
automated mumus of social media, practiced in
sterile deflection and trivialization of critical
issues, unwittingly join hands with government to
indulge in blame passing and name calling – both
sides with different targets.
“From the anguished cry of Charley Boy’s Our
Mummu Done Do! to expositions from academics
such as Professor Makinde’s recent intervention,
the public is subjected daily to a relentless
barrage of awareness, underlined in urgency.
Nobody listens.
“One wonders if many people read. And certainly,
very few retain or relate – until of course the next
crisis. The Labour movement declares that it
awaits a guarantee of the ‘people’s backing’
before it embarks on any critical intervention.
“Understandably. There is more than enough of
the opium of blame passing on tap to lull
mummus into that deep coma from which – give
it a little more time – there can only be a rude
awakening.
“Sooner than later, but not as soon as pledged,
the fuel crisis will pass. And then of course we
shall await the next round of shortages, then a
recommencement of blame passing. What will be
the commodity this time – food perhaps?
“Maybe even potable water? In a nation of plenty,
nothing is beyond eventual shortage – except of
course, the commonplace endowment of pre-
emptive planning and methodical execution. Forty
years after, the same language of re-assurance?
“There is something rotten in the state of Naija.”

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Some Nigerians who were recently deported from Libya have urged the federal government to focus on securing the release of Nigerians languishing in various prisons a rather than deporting Nigerians doing well in the country.
They said it was wrong for Nigerians who owned their houses and doing well  are deported when thousands of Nigerians are in prisons
Matthew Ereyemwen, who spoke to newsmen in Benin City shortly after he was lodged in a hotel by the state government said it was  better for the government to concentrate on how to evacuate Nigerians who are languishing in various prisons in Libya.
He noted that the deportation of Nigerians living comfortably in their various houses has ruined the chances of those who are in dire need of coming back to Nigeria.











According to him “I travelled to Libya and I knew what I passed through there. Our people are still suffering over there.
“Those people who are living in their living houses  which is their comfortable houses are oppressing us. They are living comfortably in Libya and are not in prisons.
“Those who are living in their living homes are not part of us. Those people that came back from Libya with luggage. We that came from prisons we do not have luggage but only shirt.
“This is the way we dress those of us in prisons. So anybody you see like this with unkempt hair are those who have been kept in prisons for a long time.
” It was not their intension to keep their hair unkempt but it was because they never had combs to comb their hair.
“We do not have our bath and we eat once in a day but those who they have brought along with us who are living in their comfortable houses are not like that”
Another returnee, James Itama appealed to the federal government to concentrate on how to evacuate Nigerians in Libya prisons before concentrating on those living in their comfortable houses in Libya.
“Our people are suffering in Libya prisons. They are more than 2,000 of them in prisons and they are dying.
Reacting to the allegation, the South-West Zonal Coordinator of National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA,  Alhaji Suleiman Yakubu, said the federal government is working assiduously round the clock to ensure that all Nigerians living in Libya are brought back to their country whether in prisons or outside the prisons
Also read:  6,672 Nigerians voluntarily returned from Libya in 12 months
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Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration is committed to promoting the establishment of privately financed modular refineries in the country.
This, he said, will increase local refining capacity, create jobs, ensure peace and stability in the Niger delta region.
A statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Laolu Akande, said that the initiative which featured prominently in recent talks between the Federal Government and the oil-producing areas, as represented by PANDEF, will also reposition the petroleum industry and ensure self-sufficiency of petroleum products, while serving as a disincentive for illegal refineries and oil pollution.
According to the statement released on Saturday, he said “At an end-of-the-year review meeting of the Niger Delta Inter-Ministerial Committee at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, before the holidays, Prof. Osinbajo noted that the Federal Government, in line with its Niger Delta New Vision, is targeting measurable objectives in its efforts towards implementing development projects in the region.
“The December 22 meeting received a report that 38 licensed privately financed greenfield and mini-modular refineries investors have so far indicated interests in the establishment of refineries in the region, and at least ten (10) of the licensed refineries investors are at an advanced stage of development.
“The advanced stage of development means that these projects have passed the Licence to Establish (LTE) stage, while some have the Authority to Construct (ATC) licence or close to having it because they have met some critical requirements in the Licensed stage.
“There are three stages in the process of refinery establishment; Licence to Establish (LTE), Authority to Construct (ATC) and Licence to Operate (LTO).
“So far, 10 modular refineries are located in five out of the nine states in the Niger Delta region; namely Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Delta, Edo and Imo states.
“Also, two out of these 10 – Amakpe Refinery meant to be located in Akwa Ibom, and OPAC Refinery to be based in Delta State – have their mini-refineries modules already fabricated, assembled and containerized overseas, ready for shipment to Nigeria for installation. The total proposed refining capacities of the 10 licensed refineries stands at 300,000 barrels.” it added
Noting the issue of funding as a major challenge to most of the investors, and the primary reason holding further progress of the refinery projects, the Vice President directed that the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources keep providing the necessary support and creating the enabling environment for positive investments in modular refineries by engaging key government agencies
The agencies include the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Nigerian Content Development & Monitoring Board, NCDMB, and financial institutions, including the International Finance Corporation, African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority, Bank of Industry, amongst others.
The Vice President stressed the importance of ensuring that the oil communities have a stake in the modular refineries and directed that an appropriate model be developed to achieve that.
Other issues addressed at the end of the year meeting include the Maritime University, Ogoni Clean-up, and other related issues such as increasing support for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the region.
On the Maritime University take-off, the Vice President noted that further support would be given by the Federal Government to ensure the training of staff to give the best to the incoming students of the institution.
On the Ogoni clean-up, the Project Coordinator for the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project, (HYPREP), Dr. Marvin Dekil briefed the meeting that progress has been made in several areas of the clean-up.
He listed the evaluation of existing water facilities in the four local government areas in Ogoni land in the process of providing clean drinking water, demonstration of remediation technologies at sites in some of the impacted communities; hiring of and the technical training of Ogoni scientists. The Coordinator added that health impact assessment would be conducted in some communities in the coming weeks.
At the meeting were the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Usani Unguru Usani; Minister of Education, Alhaji Adamu Adamu; Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu and the Minister of State for Environment, Ibrahim Usman Jubril.
Others include the Director-General of Nigeria Maritime Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside; Managing Director, Niger Delta Development Corporation, Mr. Nsima Ekere; and the Special Adviser to the President on the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Brig-General Paul Boroh (rtd).
 Also read  Private refinery vows to end fuel scarcity
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President Muhammadu Buhari on
Friday was back at the Cedar Crest
Hospital, Gudu District, Abuja, where
his son , Yusuf , who was injured in a
motorbike accident, was hospitalised.
But the security situation around the
hospital remained tense , as policemen
screened those gaining entry into the
medical facility .
The President, who got there around
6 pm, had on Thursday alongside his
wife and Yusuf ’s mother , Aisha , visited
the hospital .
A guard near the hospital told one of
our correspondents that the First Lady
was believed to have slept overnight
till Friday.
At about 5 . 30 pm when one of our
correspondents got to the hospital , the
Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el- Rufai,
also arrived to check on Yusuf .
The Kaduna State Governor spent
about 20 minutes at the hospital .
“ The dignitaries have not stopped
coming. We see luxury cars every 10
minutes, we see police escorts; I can ’ t
mention everyone who has visited
today .
“ But the wife of the President slept in
the hospital . She is still with the
injured son ,” the guard who pleaded
anonymity , said .
It was learnt that Yusuf ’ s friend ,
Bashir Gwandu, was also at the
Intensive Care Unit of the Cedar Crest
Hospital, Abuja.
The President’ s son had collided with
Gwandu during a motorbike race on
Tuesday night in Abuja.
Yusuf ’s younger sister, Hanan , said his
brother was doing well . Hanan , in a
message on Instagram , stated , “ Yusuf
is doing well . Alamdulilahi . Thank you
for all the messages . ”
Meanwhile, the Presidency on Friday
denied a report that the President’s
wife, Aisha , had been admitted to the
hospital , where her son was being
treated.
It stated that there was no truth in the
news that Aisha suffered shock after
she was told about the motorbike
accident involving Yusuf .
“ I have not been briefed about that,”
the Senior Special Assistant to the
President on Media and Publicity,
Garba Shehu , simply said on the
telephone when contacted .
But the Director of Information in the
Office of the President’s wife,
Suleiman Haruna , was emphatic that
nothing of such happened .
“ There is absolutely nothing like that .
People can be so wicked in their
thinking . Since her son is in the
hospital , is there anything wrong with
her being with her son ? The news is
false, there is nothing wrong with
her ,” Haruna said .
Buhari on Friday joined Muslim
faithful to pray for the quick recovery
of his son . The prayer session formed
part of the Jumat prayers held in a
mosque at the Presidential Villa ,
Abuja.
Government officials who participated
in the session alongside the President
were the Nasarawa State Governor,
Tanko Al - Makura ; Minister of
Education, Adamu Adamu; and the
Group Managing Director , Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation , Dr .
Maikanti Baru .
The prayer was led by the Chief Imam
of Aso Rock Mosque , Sheik Abdulwahid
Suleiman.
Others in the prayer session were
presidential aides , villa staff , among
others.
Suleiman urged the first family to
accept the tragedy in good fate .
He prayed for God’ s guidance and
protection of the first family and all
Nigerians .
The clergyman also prayed for peace
and tranquility in the country . A
similar prayer session was held on
Thursday in the same mosque .
Also, the Oyo State Governor, Senator
Abiola Ajimobi , on Friday urged
Nigerians to pray for the quick
recovery of Buhari’s son.
A statement by the governor’ s Special
Adviser, Communication and Strategy,
Mr. Yomi Layinka, quoted the
governor as describing the
unfortunate incident as depressing.
Ajimobi stated , “ The abiding grace of
God that allowed the ebullient young
man to survive the crash will see to his
quick and complete recovery. It is
indeed heartwarming to hear that he
is in a stable condition now and
responding well to treatment .
“ On behalf of the government and
people of Oyo State , I pray that Yusuf
will soon be back on his feet . The
incident is a temporary setback and
one of the vicissitudes of life . He will
come out of it stronger and will live
long to fulfil his destiny.
“ In the African culture of being our
brother’s keeper , I urge Nigerians to
continue to remember the first family
in their prayers and thoughts in this
difficult period. ”

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After long years of hiatus as a group
since their fallout in 2012 , former Mo ’
Hits Records label stars : D’ banj,
Wande Coal , Don Jazzy , D’ prince , Dr .
Sid and K Switch, came together to
deliver what can be described as an
epic performance during Davido ’s ‘30
Billion Concert’ .
The group went on to perform some of
their biggest hits, including ‘Booty
Call’ , ‘ Close to You ’, ‘Pere ’ and a
handful of others ; to which the
audience boisterously sang along to .
The group’ s former boss , Don Jazzy ,
could be seen performing as well .
But since the stage performance , some
people have speculated that the only
way D’ banj and Don Jazzy would have
shared a stage is if money was
involved . However , when Saturday
Beats reached out to D’banj ’s camp, his
manager, Frank, revealed how Davido
made the feat possible.
Frank said , “ Let us not get things
twisted , not a dime exchanged hands
for any reason . The entire
performance was not motivated by
money at all. It was Davido ’s
initiative , he wanted it to happen at
his show so he went for it and he got
what he wanted. He spoke to all of the
former Mo ’Hits crew members
individually, they saw his point and
they granted his request . Davido is a
good kid, he spoke to every member of
the Mo ’ Hits crew . He thought about
having a Mo ’Hits reunion at his show
and he got it.
“ It was an exciting show and D’banj
loved the performance. Davido made
the request that they do a reunion at
his show and D’banj simply honoured
his request . He wanted the Mo ’ Hits
crew to perform at his show because
they were people he looked up to
before his career started. He made a
request and they all agreed that it
could be done. Before the
performance, everybody was
backstage having fun and when they
were through with the performance,
they all went to the green room and
the atmosphere was a lovely one. I was
there with them and if you had the
opportunity to have seen them bond,
you would not have even believed that
they ever broke up . There was no
awkwardness at all . It was the same
ambiance that surrounded them when
they were still Mo ’ Hits . ”

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The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos,
Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, says Nigerian
universities can be the best in Africa, if they can
enjoy a stable academic calendar.
Ogundipe made the observation in an interview
with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on
Thursday in Lagos.
The vice-chancellor was reacting to incessant
strikes by labour unions in the Nigerian university
system.
According to him, there is the need for education
stakeholders to effectively manage issues that
result in strikes.
“Universities especially the first generation ones in
the country can be ranked best in Africa, if we can
continue with a stable academic calendar.
“There is need for everyone to look inward to
ensure that we are always able to manage crisis
in the system so that the country’s universities
can be ranked among the best in the world,”
Ogundipe said.
He also said that there was the need for the
stakeholders to take university administration and
related issues more serious.
Ogundipe urged that Nigerian university
administration should be done in line with best
practices.
“We are talking about global ranking of
universities, and here we are, still grappling with
issues of strike,” he said.
“An instance is the ongoing strike by the three
non-academic staff unions of universities.
“This does not speak well of us as a country
because one cannot rule out their relevance in the
running of the system.
“As a manager of a university, I know that their
strike has an effect on the operations of the
institutions,” he said.
.The don noted that many facilities for a
conducive teaching and learning environment
were being handled by the non-academic staff.
“But I am sure that the academic staff would be
up to their assignments.
“This group of staff is not on strike.
“The classrooms are open; as we resumed on
December 27, lectures have commenced in most
faculties in our university.
“The strike is nationwide and not local; there is
little the university on its own can do,” he said.
According to him, the striking unions under the
aegis of the Joint Action Committee (JAC) have
been reasonable in their conduct.
.“They are on strike, no doubt about that. Nobody
has forced them to come to work since the
declaration of the strike to the best of my
knowledge.
“My message is that there is need for an urgent
and continuous dialogue between the striking
workers and the Federal Government.“Dialogue is
key,” he told NAN.
NAN reports that the striking unions, under the
aegis of JAC, had on Sept. 11, embarked on a
nationwide indefinite strike over theon-
implementation of an agreement they entered into
in 2009 with the Federal Government

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Cristiano Ronaldo has won the Best Player of the
Year accolade at the Globe Soccer Awards.
Real Madrid's Ronaldo retained the award,
making it four wins overall, after helping his club
defend the Champions League and win the Liga
title.
The 32-year-old, who also won his fifth Ballon
d'Or, the UEFA Best Player in Europe and FIFA's
The Best Award this year, said at the Globe
Soccer Awards in Dubai: "It's a special moment
and I am very happy to receive this award.
"I would like to thank the coach, my teammates
and Real Madrid. Thanks to the people that voted
for me, and do the same next year!"
Ronaldo, who has scored 42 goals this year, was
asked whether he had room for all his trophies
and replied: "Don't worry, I have a lot of space!"
Real were named Club of the Year, with boss
Zinedine Zidane collecting the Coach of the Year
award.
"Thanks to the president, who gave me the
opportunity to coach this team," Zidane said.
"Without these players it wouldn't have been
possible to win this trophy. I've just started in
this, being a coach is a very difficult job and
there are a lot of very good coaches around."
La Liga was voted League of the Year, China
coach Marcello Lippi was presented with the
Coach Career Award and Roma legend Francesco
Totti and ex-Barcelona captain Carles Puyol won
the Player Career Award.
Other winners included Atletico Madrid coach
Diego Simeone, who picked up the Master Coach
Special Award, and Egypt coach Hector Cuper,
named Best Arab National Team Coach.

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A 67-year-old American advance fee fraudster
Michael Neu posing as a Nigerian prince has been
arrested by the police in Louisiana.
He was said to have duped hundreds of people
across America using emails.
Police said he faces 269 counts of wire fraud and
money laundering following an 18-month
investigation.
Police in Slidell, Louisiana, say they finally caught
up with one of the people behind some of those
emails. He’s not exactly Nigerian royalty, either,
police wrote in a Facebook post.
According to The Sacramento Bee anyone with an
email address has likely gotten a message from
the so-called Nigerian prince or two offering
hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars
in secret inheritances or, in some cases, payment
for assistance laundering ill-gotten gains from
mining conglomerates or royal treasuries.
In these scams, the supposed Nigerian prince (or
other official) asks for the person’s personal
banking information in order to speed the transfer
of the purported inheritance or temporarily hold
the allegedly pilfered funds. The information can
then be used to withdraw funds from the victim’s
accounts.
While Neu might lack a royal title, at least some
of the money obtained in his scams did go to co-
conspirators in Nigeria, police wrote. Investigators
are continuing to untangle Neu’s web of scams,
but many other leads also connect to people
outside the U.S., the post says.
Police noted that while these kinds of emails are
laughable to many people, authorities report
millions of dollars in losses to such scams each
year.
“If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is,”
said Police Chief Randy Fandal in the Facebook
post. “Never give out personal information over
the phone, through e-mail, cash checks for other
individuals, or wire large amounts of money to
someone you don’t know. 99.9 percent of the
time, it’s a scam.”
Law enforcement agencies across the nation also
are warning people of calls from scammers
purporting to be police or court officials
demanding payment via phone of bogus fines or
warrants. Another version involves scammers
claiming to be jailed relatives pleading for bail
money, often targeting older people.

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Although merrymaking and giving to the needy
have become long-established traditions for the
Yuletide period, many people tend to concentrate
on the merrymaking part while ignoring the aspect
of giving. They give themselves over to wild
orgies of wining and dining while their next door
neighbours roam around in search of crumbs.
One woman who has been able to see the deeper
significance of the festive period is Hajia Aisha
Babangida. From an early age, she learned that
happiness comes not only from being able to
wine and dine but also from the knowledge that
you are the reason others are also able to eat
and drink. Like a leaf absorbs sunlight, she
imbibed this lesson and has made it the
cornerstone of her adult life.
Thus, she has been going about, putting smiles
on the faces of the less-privileged during the
Yuletide period. Over the past few days, a lot of
impoverished women have become beneficiaries
of Aisha’s generosity as she has been doling out
bags of food, cash gifts and other items to the
overjoyed women and their families.

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The comeback plans for Novak Djokovic hit the
rocks on Friday when a recurrence of pain in his
right elbow forced him to withdraw from an
exhibition tournament in the United Arab
Emirates.
Djokovic hasn’t played competitively since he
retired in the Wimbledon quarterfinals because of
the elbow injury. He was scheduled on Friday to
play Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain in the
exhibition semifinals, his first match in nearly five
months.
“I am terribly disappointed that I am forced to
withdraw,” Djokovic said in a statement on his
website.
“Unfortunately, in the past few days I started to
feel pain in the elbow and after several tests, my
medical team has advised me not to risk
anything, to withdraw from the tournament and
to immediately continue with the therapies.
“This might affect the start of the season and the
tournament plan, but the decision will be made in
the following days.”
Djokovic is entered in the Qatar Open starting on
Monday in Doha, where he’s the defending two-
time champion. That’s his lead-in tournament for
the Australian Open, which starts in just over two
weeks.
Exhibition tournament organizers have arranged a
substitute match between Andy Murray, another
former No. 1 who has been out since Wimbledon
with a hip injury, and Bautista Agut.
Murray has been in Abu Dhabi only to train for
the tour.
Bautista Agut will take on the winner of the other
semifinal between Dominic Thiem of Austria and
Kevin Anderson of South Africa.

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President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday joined
other Muslims to pray for the speedy recovery of
his son, Yusuf, who was involved in a bike
accident on Tuesday in Abuja.
Also at the session with the President were the
Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Al-Makura;
Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu; and the
Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National
Petroleum Corporation, Dr. Maikanti Baru.
Others were presidential aides and Villa staff,
among others.
The prayer was led by the Chief Imam of Aso
Rock Mosque, Sheik Abdulwahid Suleiman.
Suleiman urged the First Family to accept the
tragedy in good faith.
The prayer session formed a part of the Jumat
prayers held in a mosque at the Presidential Villa,
Abuja.

Latest News and Information

Manchester United manager
Jose Mourinho has admitted Romelu Lukaku is
"tired" but insists he cannot rest his star striker.
Lukaku has scored four goals in his last 19 games
after starting his United career with 11 in his first
10 appearances.
The Belgium international has also been partially
to blame for goals United have conceded against
Manchester City and Burnley as Mourinho's team
have struggled to defend set-pieces.
Lukaku has played every minute of United's 20
Premier League games so far this season and
started 27 of their 30 games in all competitions.
Mourinho said the 24-year-old is running on
empty but, asked whether he could afford to give
the frontman a rest, he replied: "No, I can't."
He told a news conference on Friday: "First of all,
people don't have to be grateful to Romelu. I
have to be, not you, not the supporters, not the
pundits. I have to be.
"I think for a striker, any player, he's absolutely
incredible, but if you are a central defender, a
holding midfield player, where you can control
your energy, positional play, you can resist,
survive.
"But for a striker to play 20 matches in the
Premier League, 90 minutes, I have to be grateful.
"Is he unlucky in our box in recent matches? He
was in the picture, was not a direct influence on
just him, but he was in the picture in some of the
last goals we concede, but it is a consequence of
a player that really needs a little rest.
"But the guy is fantastic for me and for the team
and gives absolutely everything and I've no
[criticism]."
Mourinho used Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford
and Zlatan Ibrahimovic as his striker during their
Carabao Cup campaign and started Lukaku and
Ibrahimovic in tandem in the 2-2 draw with
Burnley on Boxing Day.
Ahead of Southampton's visit to Old Trafford on
Saturday, Mourinho insisted he could pair Lukaku
and Ibrahimovic up front again this season -- but
not until they are in better form.
He added: "It can happen but I think to happen
they need both to be in their best moment and
they are not.
"One is not because the situation in his team
didn't allow him to have any rest and he's giving
absolutely everything in every minute and we just
manage to give him a little rest in cup matches
and even so he was on the bench for emergency
situations.
"Champions League was about the same -- we
had to fight until the last match for qualification
and the boy is tired. He is physically a monster
but not a machine and he's feeling it.
"And Zlatan is a man with an incredible injury, an
injury that a 20-year-old man or young man
would suffer, imagine a man 36 years old and so
many miles in high-level football, so it is not
easy.
"We did that against Burnley, we will do that in
some more matches if we need to do, but for
both to play together we need them to be at their
best level."

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A Mararaba Grade 1 Area Court, Aso Pada in
Nasarawa State, on Friday sentenced two
labourers to six months imprisonment each for
stealing 50 tubers of yam.
The judge, Upside Yaqub, however, gave the
convicts, Habibu Kabiru, 25; and Salisu Hamidu,
22, both residents of Old Orange Market
Mararaba, an option of N5, 000 fine each.
Yaqub warned them to desist from committing
crimes and ordered that the tubers of yam be
returned to the owner.
The convicts had pleaded guilty to a four-count
charge of criminal conspiracy, trespass, mischief
and theft.
Following the guilty plea, the Prosecutor, Agabi
Auta, urged the court to try them summarily
under Section 347 of the Administration of
Criminal Justice Act, 2015.
Earlier, Auta had told the court that the
complainant, Utume Clement of Kudu village,
Mararaba, reported the incident at the ‘A’ Division
Police Station, Mararaba, on Dec. 22.
He said that the convicts and one Musa Iliya,
now at large, went to the complainant’s farm at
Kudu village, Mararaba, and harvested 50 tubers
of yam.
The prosecutor said the convicts were
apprehended while trying to put the yam in a sack
and were handed over to the police immediately.
He said the offences contravened Sections 79,
347, 348 and 287 of the Penal Code.
NAN

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Dr. Kayode Fayemi, the Minister of Mines and
Steel Development, on Thursday described the
attempt being made by the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) to reclaim power in 2019 as a plot to
continue to loot the country.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that
Fayemi made the statement while addressing
newsmen at his Isan-Ekiti country home shortly
after hosting APC leaders from across the state.
He urged Nigerians not to use the current fuel
scarcity to rate President Muhammadu Buhari’s
performances, saying
“What we are witnessing is just a normal curve in
the life of any administration.
We will get over it and move on, but largely
President has not disappointed Nigerians,” he
said.
The minister described the panel of enquiry
inaugurated by Gov. Ayo Fayose to probe his
administration as a kangaroo one, revealing that
it was an attempt to smear his reputation and
render him unpopular by the PDP-led government.
“Fayose’s stock in trade is lying against someone
to score political gains.
“They started with the probe of N852 million
UBEC fund and when they knew they could not go
far, they started concocting lies and said I looted
N17 billion.
“Let us wait and see who will go to jail between
Fayose and I.
” I have been out of office and I am still moving
free, but I am sure he won’t be able to walk free
on the streets after losing immunity because of
the way he ran the state aground.”
Fayemi said Nigerians would ensure that PDP
didn’t return to power because of the high level of
looting it perpetrated while in the saddle.
The Minister didn’t say categorically whether he
was still nursing governorship ambition.
He said the APC was incurably committed to
making sure that Ekiti rejoined the league of
developing states by ensuring that the party won
the 2018 governorship poll.
“What the PDP wanted to come back and do is
stealing.
“The options for Nigerians in 2019 is not to return
to the old age of criminalisation and brigandage
by voting for the PDP.
“There is nothing to convince Nigerians that they
have changed with the shenanigans that
characterised their national convention and poor
performances by their governors.
“Up to now, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan and his
henchmen have not apologised
about how they ran the country aground.
” So, there is nothing to suggest that PDP
remains a credible alternative to APC in 2019”, he
said.
Fayemi discountenanced the attacks by his
political adversaries that he had not used his
ministerial position for the benefit of the state.
He said: ”what I have done is measurable and
clear. This government has begun the
construction of a federal secretariat and housing
estate in Ekiti and the rail-line was extended to
this state in the Federal Government’s proposal
due to my intervention.
“About 4,000 Ekiti indigenes are benefitting from
N-power and very soon it will go up to 12,000.
The proposal for kaolin exploration in Ekiti has
just been completed, that of the bauxite will begin
soon.
“President Buhari’s government is planning to set
up a cottage industry in Ekiti for the sake of the
solid minerals exploration and I have enlisted
small scale miners around Ijero Ekiti for them to
be able to benefit from the N5b loan set up by
the Bank of Industry.”(NAN)

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Uruguayan striker Sebastian Abreu has set the
world record for the most professional clubs
played for after signing a deal with Audax
Italiano, the 26th team in his career, according to
his new side.
The 41-year-old, who made 70 appearances for
Uruguay in a 16-year spell and played in three
World Cups, announced this week he will compete
for Audax Italiano, a side in Chile's first division,
after leaving another team in the same league,
Puerto Montt.
A former Deportivo La Coruna player, Abreu
tweeted: "I inform you that Audax Italiano will be
my next club for the 2018 season and we will
have ahead of us the league, Copa Chile and
Copa Sudamericana, this being my 17th
participation in a team playing at CONMEBOL
level. On Jan. 9 we will begin pre-season, with a
lot of enthusiasm and dreams."
Nicknamed "El loco," Abreu had been tied with
German goalkeeper Lutz Pfannestiel, with each
having played for 25 teams.
A statement from Audax Italiano said: "Sebastian
Abreu has become the club's new reinforcement.
The Uruguay striker achieves the "Guinness
Record" for the player to have played in the most
number of clubs in the history of football."
Abreu has scored 400 goals in a career that
began at Uruguayan side Defensor Sporting.
He hit the back of the net 11 times for Puerto
Montt in Chile's first division B this season.
Abreu has played for clubs in Uruguay, Spain,
Argentina, Mexico, Ecuador, Israel, Brazil,
Paraguay, El Salvador and Chile.
Audax Italiano will play in the first round of the
Copa Sudamericana against Abreu's former
Brazilian side Botafogo on April 12.

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An Ado-Ekiti Chief  Magistrates’ Court on friday ordered that the Olukere of Ikere-Ekiti, Obasoyin Ganiyu, 50, and five other persons be remanded in prison for alleged conspiracy, attempted murder and murder.
The other accused are Ajewole Sunday, 25,  Adetowoju Bode, 27,  Kayode Michael, 31,  Olowolafe Tola, 32 and Aluko Taiwo, 32.
News Agency of Nigeria, (NAN) reports that the accused were arraigned on a remand order by Ekiti Commissioner of Police, Mr Ibrahim Chafe, who was present in court.
The order form alleged that the accused committed the offences of conspiracy, attempted murder of Ayodele Osanyinbola and murder of Kolade Adefemi.
The offences are punishable under sections 324, 320 (1) and 319 (1) of the Criminal Code Cap C 16, Laws of Ekiti State, 2012.
The offences were said to have been committed within Ado Ekiti Magisterial District on Monday.
Prosecuting Inspector Okunade Johnson urged the court to remand the accused in prison pending receipt of legal advice from Office of Director of Public Prosecution (DPP).
The DPP, Mr Gbemiga Adaramola, attended the court proceedings.
The plea of the accused was not taken. Their counsel, Mr Ademola Adeyemi, pleaded with the court to consider the nature of the case and admit his clients to bail.
The prosecutor, however, opposed the bail application and pleaded with the court to grant the remand order.
Chief Magistrate Adesoji Adegboye refused the bail application and ordered that the suspects be remanded in prison pending issuance of legal advice on the case.
The case was adjourned till January 8.
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A defiant Gennaro Gattuso has admitted that he may be the "worst coach in Serie A," but has challenged AC Milan to build on Wednesday's 1-0 Coppa Italia quarterfinal win over Internazionale.
The Rossoneri needed a Patrick Cutrone extra-time winner to defeat their crosstown rivals, and now Gattuso wants Milan to take that form into their upcoming league matches.
"Perhaps I am the worst coach in Serie A, but I always want to win, even playing in the garden with my son," Gattuso told Rai Sport. "I want my lads to prove that what I saw tonight was not a fluke, then we'll take it one game at a time.
"Now there are two difficult games coming up in Serie A and we need points to climb the table.
"I didn't see much difference between this performance and the defeat to Atalanta. Some might call me crazy for saying that. We had the game with Verona in hand too until we conceded the first goal like dummies.
"This is a team that does well until it runs into the first hurdle and today we overcame the hurdles."
AC Milan currently sit 11th in the Serie A table, 21 points behind leaders Napoli, with games against Fiorentina and Crotone set to come in the next seven days.
"We were coming off a negative period, so this game was fundamental," Gattuso said.
"I knew from day one what I was going into with the Milan job. It's a big club that won for many years and changed a lot of players recently. We are struggling, but this side has quality and was at times missing that bile. We showed tonight that we can battle it out and then the quality emerges.
"I want to compliment all the lads. I won everything as a player, but as a coach I'm well aware that I'm just starting out. I worked in Cyprus, at Pisa, I've been through it all, but I am happy at Milan and the club is planning things very well.
"In January I'll turn 40, so I still think like a player, believing that with hunger and a sense of belonging, you can go far. I don't hold back, if I have something to say to someone, I'll say it to their face. There's a lot of work to be done, we'd be hypocrites to say this victory resolves all our problems, but it does give us some breathing room."