Wednesday, May 13, 2015

Coup: Burundi borders shut to prevent President’s return

The Burundian general who has launched a military coup has ordered the closure of an airport and land borders to stop the president returning to the country, Sky News reports.
Major General Godefroid Niyombare


Major General Godefroid Niyombare made his bid for control just hours after President Pierre Nkunrunziza flew to neighbouring Tanzania for talks with regional leaders.


He has accused the president of violating the constitution by seeking a third term.


Thousands of people turned out to celebrate the attempted coup.


President Nkurunziza used Twitter to called it a “failed” coup and later announced he was returning to the country – but General Niyombare has other ideas.


“I order the closure of the airport and border, and I ask every citizen and law enforcement down to the airport to protect it,” he said in a radio broadcast.


Sporadic gunfire was heard on the streets of Bujumbura after the attempted coup was announced.


General Niyombare – a powerful former intelligence chief who was sacked earlier this year – told a national radio station: “Given the necessity to preserve the country’s integrity… the President Pierre Nkunrunziza is dismissed from his functions.”


It follows weeks of protests against Nkurunziza’s decision to stand for a third term.


Fifteen people have died during unrest.


Protesters have been trying to prevent him from standing for re-election, because they see him as a repressive, divisive leader incapable of reducing the country’s extreme poverty.


Relative normality has now resumed in the the capital, prompting President Nkurunziza’s office to write on social media: “A group of soldiers mutinied this morning and made a fantasy declaration of a coup d’etat.


“This attempted coup was foiled and these people… are sought by defence and security forces so they are brought to justice.”

Police Releases Names & Photos Of Arrested Lekki Robbers [Photos]

The Lagos State Police Command has released the photos of the masterminds of the deadly Lekki Phase 1 armed robbery attack of March 12, 2015, where more than five police police officers and a fish seller were killed.
The-suspects--360x225


The robbers numbering over 20, had stormed the Peninsula through the Lagos Lagoon and held the area to ransom for more than an hour in which time they robbed a bank, carting away millions of naira.


As they were making their get away via the lagoon in speed boats, they met a police team escorting some expatriates and opened fire on them, killing five of them instantly.


They also killed a Senior Secondary School student who was helping her aunt to hawk fish in the area, before escaping.


But the police intensified a manhunt for them and few days ago, four of the hoodlums were arrested in different parts of the country, including the suspected gang leader, Duke Odogbo, 38, Lawrence Kingsley, 31, Ebi Tosan, 20, and Ekelemo Kuete, 30.


They were paraded earlier today at the command headquarters in Ikeja, by the state Police Commissioner, Kayode Aderanti.

Senator Ben "I Dont Fly First Class" Ben Bruce shares Photo Evidence To Show How He Flies

Senator-elect and Chairman of the Silverbird group, Ben Murray Bruce has been in the news of late.




As of late at the Silverbird Man of The Year recompense service which held in Lagos, in his discourse, Ben had ordered Nigerian pioneers and legislators to begin thinking about the masses and reflect empathy towards them in their ways of life. As indicated by him, “Nigeria is too poor for our leaders to act like multi-billionaires, and Nigeria is too rich for our people to be poor.”


Keeping up that it is workable for affluent pioneers to live basic lives, Ben Murray-Bruce uncovered he hadnever flown first class in his life. Many have questioned him but Ben has now shared photographs to show his announcement.

Protesters Descend On A Female Police Office That Shot A Protester Dead In Burundi



This is the shocking moment a Burundian policewoman was dragged on the ground by a rampaging mob who accused her of shooting at people taking part in a riot over the country’s president’s controversial bid for third term in office.


Officers had opened fire on demonstrators amid furious clashes on the streets of the capital Bujumbura, as Pierre Nkurunziza defied international pressure to cease his latest campaign for president. Shortly after the shots were fired, the policewoman was punched, kicked and dragged along the streets of the capital Bujumbura by a furious mob who managed to separate her from her colleagues.


Harrowing images show the woman attempting to flee for her life while knife and stone-wielding men fight among themselves to reach her.


 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fx_eGuEyoAo


Dangote’s refinery set to run on UOP technology

UOP LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Incorporated, on Wednesday said its process technology, catalysts and proprietary equipment would form the basis for Dangote’s refinery, the largest refinery in Africa that is targeted at reducing Nigeria’s dependence on imported fuels and petrochemicals.


Africa’s richest man and President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, had in March announced that his oil refinery would process 650,000 barrels per day of crude, up from the 450,000bpd initially planned.


The completion of the plant, expected to come on stream in 2017, will see Nigeria having the largest refinery in Africa.


Dangote Oil Refining Company selected UOP technology for a world-scale integrated refinery and petrochemical plant to be built in Lekki, Lagos, said Honeywell in a statement on its website.


Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer with the second largest amount of proven oil reserves on the continent, currently imports most of its refined product requirements due to lack of domestic refining capacity.


The Senior Vice President and General Manager, UOP’s Process, Technology and Equipment business, Pete Piotrowski, was quoted as saying, “UOP has been designing state-of-the-art refineries and petrochemical plants for more than a century; so, we are well-equipped to help Nigeria develop a massive new installation to meet its domestic needs.


“This project will enable Dangote to improve Nigeria’s oil refining capabilities, reduce the country’s dependence on imports, and work to revive and transform the Nigerian economy.”

Real Madrid Ancelotti banned

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has been given a two-game touchline suspension by the Spanish Football Federation, Sky Sports reports.
Carlo-Ancelotti


The decision means the former Milan boss will be unable to sit on the bench for the rest of the La Liga season.


Ancelotti was reported by referee Carlos Clos Gomez for sarcastically applauding the officials at the end of Madrid’s 2-2 draw with Valencia on Saturday which all but ended their title hopes.


Los Blancos trail Barcelona by four points with just two games away to Espanyol and home to Getafe left to play.


However, the Italian is still free to marshal his troops from the touchline in Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final second-leg with Juventus as well as in the final should Real Madrid get through.


Ancelotti’s former club hold a 2-1 lead from the first leg after goals from ex-Real striker Alvaro Morata and a Carlos Tevez penalty.

Modern manhood is in crisis

The term ‘man’ is usually reserved for an adult male of the human species; while the term ‘manhood’ is used to describe the period after he has transitioned from boyhood, having attained male secondary sexual characteristics that symbolise his coming of age.
Adeoye-Oyewole


Masculinity may vary in different cultures, but it has universal principles across cultures. Sometimes, gender scholars use the phrase ‘hegemonic masculinity’ to establish this universal concept.


Masculinity embodies assertiveness, responsibility, selflessness, ethics, sincerity and respect. Masculinity itself has social status that has strong associations with physical and moral strength. The biological inputs through hormones induce the masculinisation process that redirects the biological processes from the default female route.


In many cultures, displaying characteristics not typical to one’s gender may become a social problem for the individual. However, labelling and conditioning are based on gender assumptions as part of socialisation to match the local cultural template.


In the primitive hunter-gatherer societies, men were often — if not exclusively — responsible for all large game killed, the capturing, raising and domesticating of animals, the building of permanent shelters, the defense of villages and other tasks where the male physique, strength and spatial cognition are most useful.


Evidence abounds to show that the Neolithic revolution by men that led to the status of prehistoric ranches was a product of the intimate knowledge of animal life. Each time the universally agreeable traits of manhood are challenged, anxiety and anger may be provoked, leading to maladaptive behavioural patterns.


With the globalisation of values, there is an increased objectification of both sexes. Although the actual stereotypes may have remained relatively constant, the value attached to masculine stereotypes may have changed over the past few decades since it is argued that masculinity is an unstable phenomenon and never ultimately achieved.


However, the old ideals of manhood are getting obsolete, just as the new is still invisible to us as we grope in darkness concerning what forms the basis of manhood and masculinity crisis, with grave mental health consequences in societies in cultural transition, such as ours.


The typical modern African man has cognitive dissonance with respect to his roles as a traditional dominant male in the family, as he also attempts to espouse the western ideas that compel him to recognise his wife as a partner in the business of raising the family.


The traditional stereotypes of the father as the breadwinner and the mother as homemaker are almost historical in the light of today’s economical realities.


The masculinity crisis ensues as men are in search of a role in modern societies, since the traditional male attitudes are no longer in much demand anywhere. Deindustrialisation, which involves the replacement of old smoke stick industries with new technologies, has allowed more women to enter the labour force and reduced the demand for great physical strength.


The gender warfare through feminism questions male dominance over women; and the rights that had been erstwhile granted on the basis of their sex.


Masculinity crisis arise from the fundamental incompatibility between the core principle of modernity that all human beings are essentially equal (regardless of their sex) and the parochial   tenet of patriarchy that men are naturally superior to women and thus destined to rule over them. The Nigerian situation is serious because the current mental health consequences of this crisis are enormous. A good number of the boys drop out of school, indulge in cybercrime, just as they come down with substance abuse disorder. There is a growing population of young men that lack the emotional maturity and capacity to give leadership in a home.


True manhood, which finds its expression in creative leadership, courage, protection and nurturing of the female gender, is never developed as a result of the maladaptive coping strategies.


It is equally disturbing that in most convocation ceremonies, the females may have 11 and only one for the males, illustrating the manhood crisis emerging in Nigeria. The female employees appear more focused and competent than their male counterparts. A good number of today’s men were brought up by single mothers who were the first set to have experienced this masculinity crisis that saw these boys grow up without a man in the house. The single mothers effectively train the girls, while the boys play the role of surrogate husbands as he does not take responsibility in the house, with reckless access to mummy’s money and car, while his female siblings plan the budget and do house chores.


The boy now grows to become irresponsible and turn round to invoke the traditional attributions of dominance without responsibility, resulting in high rates of divorce, growing population of marriageable ladies without mature young men to marry them.


The increasing rate of mental health disturbances in this cohort is alarming; and the situation requires urgent attention by all stakeholders.


 


Source

Niger lead poisoning kills 28 children

The Federal Government has confirmed the death of 28 children in a fresh outbreak of lead poisoning from illegal mining in Niger State.


The Minister of State for Health, Fidelis Nwankwo, who stated this during a press briefing on Wednesday in Abuja, said 63 cases of the outbreak had been confirmed by the state government, while many animals in affected communities had died.


He said there was palpable fear among neighbouring communities in Kaduna State, noting however that the disease was not contagious.


The communities affected are Shikira, Magiro Ward and Kawo, all in Rafi Local Government Area, according to the Director of Port Health in the Ministry, Dr. Nasir Sani-Gwarzo, who led the Federal Government’s team to the areas.


Gwarzo emphasised that the current outbreak was deadlier than the one which broke out in Zamfara in 2011 in which 400 people were killed.


According to him. the public should not have exercise fear over the outbreak but should instead, take all precautionary measures against its spread.


Nwankwo said the health ministry received the report of the outbreak on the May 7 and immediately swung into action.


He said, “The lead poisoning was confirmed and it is confirmed that most of the people affected are children below the age of five years.


“The affected children were found to have high serum lead levels of between 171.5 – 224ug Pb/dl (normal is less than < 10ug Pb/dl). That means, 17-22 times higher than the acceptable limits as established by the World Health Organisation.


“The rapid assessment by the NCDC/FMOH/MMSD revealed that as of May 12, 2015, 65 cases and 28 deaths had occurred giving a case fatality rate of 43 per cent. All the 28 cases were children below the age of five, made up of 17 females and 11 males.


“Additionally, the finding revealed a serious impact on our livestock with cows, goats and chickens most affected.


“The devastating impact of this outbreak is associated with new mining sites, which were found to contain more leaded ores, which are often brought home for crushing and processing.”

Kanye West gets A Doctorate From Art Institute Of Chicago, see his weird Acceptance speech !

Kanye West may have dropped out of school at 20 years old, however he is currently a pleased proprietor of a PhD.


kanye


 


The rapper got an honorary doctorate from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) for his “transformative, genre-defying work”, DNAinfo reports. In his acceptance speech, Kanye concedes what this honor means to him;


“This honor is gonna make your lives easier,” the rapper said. “Two reasons: You don’t have to defend me as much and I’m going to make all of our lives easier. And it’s these Floyd Mayweather belts that are needed to prove what I’ve been saying my entire life. Whether it’s the cosign of Paul McCartney grabbing me and saying, ‘It’s okay he doesn’t bite white people.’ Or The New York Times cover. Or the Time ‘Most Influential’ cover. And now, a doctorate at the Art Institute of Chicago.”


“When I was giving a lecture at Oxford,” Kanye added, “I brought up this school because when I went on that mission to create in other spaces — apparel, film, performance — it would have been easier if I could have said I had a degree at the Art Institute of Chicago.” Lisa Wainwright, dean of faculty, explained that the faculty had decided to give West the honorary degree after he publicly mentioned the school. “I read it and thought, ‘Wow, this is a fantastic moment.’ Here is this major figure in the cultural landscape promoting art school, this guy from Chicago saying art school is cool. So we thought, ‘This man deserves an honorary doctorate from us!’ He should have gone here,” said Wainwright.

Why I challenged 2003, 2007, 2011 polls in court – Buhari

President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari, on Wednesday explained why he went to court to challenge results of the presidential elections he lost in 2003, 2007 and 2011.  Buhari, who  stated this when Delta State All Progressives Congress members visited him in Abuja, said he took the decision because he believed Nigeria must be free.


Buhari said,


“Going through the court is not easy, both materially and physically, and I maintained that consistency because my view about my country is that Nigeria should be truly free.”


He condoled with the delegates over the killing of some people during the last general elections.


The president-elect added, “I understand why many of you, who were denied the opportunity to choose those you want to represent and lead you  are taking the line I took in the last 12 years  in line with our constitution.


“Whether you get it or not, the most important thing is that you believe in the system and you should continue to try until the system is perfect.


“I express my condolence to you for the people murdered and I assure you that my objective of remaining consistently in partisan politics is to make sure that Nigerians are given their inherent right  to choose whoever they want to lead them.”


The president-elect said he would never support anybody who undermined that right of Nigerians.


He added that arming unemployed youths and sending them to kill their own people was the worst thing anybody, aspiring to leadership, could do.


According to him, he will concentrate on what Nigerians would be proud of, adding that Nigerians would be respected. Buhari explained that the first objective of the APC would be security, adding that insecurity destroys the economy. The leader of the delegation and the APC governorship candidate in the state,  Olorogun Otega Emerhor, alleged that the Peoples Democratic Party disenfranchised the people of Delta State and the South-South at both the presidential and governorship elections.


He stated,


“As our submission to the tribunal in respect of the governorship and state Assembly elections will demonstrate, in truth, majority of Deltans were ready for the change you represent and were geared to vote massively for you and APC.


“Unfortunately, a grand design executed by the PDP in the South -South and South-East and particularly  Delta,  Rivers and Akwa Ibom states, made sure that no proper elections took place.”


He alleged that  result sheets were confiscated and results fabricated, alleging that PDP resorted to violence and intimidation.


Emerhor said,


“Our election petition shows that while announced voter accreditation was over 1,017,796, the actual card reader accreditation report shows only 709,700. “As you are aware, Delta State, along with Akwa Ibom and Rivers states are rich in oil resources and the PDP is determined to hold on to these states at all cost in order to utilise the huge revenue base of these states to re-launch itself to national reckoning.


 

B'Haram terrorists attacks Maiduguri in fresh offensive 

Dread sect, Boko Haram, have propelled a fresh offensive on Maiduguri, Borno State capital.
boko_hoodlums


Occupants said the aggressors raged the town, sending the troubled inhabitants, who were clearly gotten unawares, into frenzy with a lot of them fleeing their different locations to their home in absolute disarray.


Reports said troops of the Nigerian Army are fighting the trespassers.


It was learnt the Boko Haram terrorists entered the region of the town through ‘Cashew Plantain’, which is behind Gina Barracks, lodging the 7th Division of the Army.


More details later


 

Amber Rose wears a 36H bra, Finally Proves Her backside Is Real [Photos]

Many have constantly accepted that Amber Rose’s ass is fake, yet the ex-stripper has at last chosen to close down the bits of gossip. She showed up on RuPaul’s Good Work show on E!, and when RuPaul inquired as to whether her butt was fake, she denied it. RuPaul then inquired as to whether he could issue her a decent squeeze… He said



“May I please squeeze the evidence?”


After the squeeze, he said:


“I concur, “This s*** is real! This case is closed.”


Amber also revealed that she wears a 36H bra and she’s considering implants.


“It’s just this area over here [she points to her side bosom ] is just skin. I wanna fill it out but I don’t know if I want to get an implant because my bosom  are really nice,”

Shocking Video Of KFC Workers Washing Chicken On The Floor [Video]

A video of KFC workers in South Africa washing chicken on the floor has sparked public outrage. The incident occurred at the fast food branch in Braamfontein.


Here is the video:


Following the outrage, KFC executive, Jason Kerr, explained why the incident occurred.


IOL News account of Kerr’s explanation:


KFC chief executive Jason Kerr told The Star on Monday morning during a visit to the affected branch in Braamfontein that the chicken pieces formed part of the raw wastages and was to be thrown away.



But he said employees at the outlet on the corner of Biccard and De Korte streets took the affected chicken pieces that were not perfect for consumption to the back of the store to remove the breading.


Breading of the chicken refers to the process of coating it with flour and their secret blend of herbs and spices.


Kerr said the employees did this because they feared management would discover that they breaded the chicken after it was identified as being “imperfect”.


Although the incident has damaged the food outlet’s brand, Kerr was adamant that the employees in question only violated a minor regulation and did not harm the consumers.


“The team members are not to blame because no harm was done to the consumers.”


The employees have not been suspended following the incident but will undergo a hearing.


The store has also been reopened following the closure on Friday.

Geopolitics: Yet another huge diplomatic victory for Russia

Unless you read Russian or monitor the free blogosphere, you might not have noticed this, but something big just happened in Russia: Kerry, Nuland and a large State Department delegation have traveled to Sochi were they met with Foreign Minister Lavrov and then with President Putin.


Kerry-Putin-300x170

Welcome back to reality John!


With the latter they spent over 4 hours.  Not only that, but Kerry made a few rather interesting remarks, saying that the Minsk-2 Agreement (M2A) was the only way forward and that he would strongly caution Poroshenko against the idea of renewing military operations.


To say that this is a stunning development would be an understatement.


For one thing, this means that the so-called “isolation of Russia” is now officially over, even for the “Indispensable Empire”.


Second, this is, as far as I know, the first official US endorsement of M2A.  This is rather humiliating for the US considering that M2A was negotiated without the Americans.


Third, for the very first time the US has actually warned the Ukronazi junta against a military attack.  This, at a time when the Ukronazis are in a state of bellicose frenzy and Poroshenko just promised to re-conqueor not only the Donetsk Airport, but all of the Donbass and even Crimea, show that for the very first time the US and Kiev are not on the same page.
cnn


 


Fourth, the USA has, for the first time, declared that if M2A was implemented, EU and US sanctions would be lifted.  Interestingly, the Russians were not even interested in discussing the topic of sanctions.


So what does that all mean?


At this point, nothing much.


Americans are terrible negotiators and in every single US-Russian negotiation over the conflict in the Ukraine the Russians completely out-negotiated their American “geostrategic partners” (the quasi-official ironic Russian term describing the West) every time.  What typically happens, is that Kerry caves in, then comes back to Washington and changes his tune by 180 degree.  The Russians know that and the Russian media stressed that in its analyses.


Still, the USA can zig and then zag as many times as they want, reality does not zag.  If anything, the recent presence of Chinese and Indian troops on the Red Square showed that the notion of “isolating Russia” is a non-starter whether Kerry & Co. accept it or not.


Then, there was the rather interesting behavior of Nuland, who was with Kerry’s delegation, she refused to speak to the press and left looking rather unhappy.


Not on the BBC

Not on CNN


Finally, a quick check of the Imperial Mouthpieces reveals that the Imperial Propaganda Department does not really know what to make of it all.


So what is going on, really?


Honestly, this one is too early to call and, as I said, the chances for yet another US “zag” are very high.


Still, what *might* be happening is that the Americans have finally (!) figured out a few basic facts:


  1. Russia will not back down

  2. Russia is ready for war

  3. The Nazi-occupied Ukraine is collapsing

  4. Most of the world supports Russia

  5. The entire US policy towards Russia has failed

All of the above is rather obvious to any halfway competent observer, but for an Administration completely intoxicated with imperial hubris, crass ignorance and denial these are very, verypainful realities to catch up with.  However, denying them might, at the end of the day, get the USA nuked.  As the expression goes, if you head is in the sand, your ass is in the air.


not_on_bbc

Not on CNN


Thus it is possible that what just happens is the first sign of a US sobering up and that what Kerry came to explore with Lavrov and Putin is some kind of face saving exit option.  If that is so, then this is terminal news for Poroshenko as this means that the US has basically thrown in the towel in utter disgust with the freaks in power in Kiev.


Furthermore, this might be a sign that US military analysts have taken a very negative view of the Ukronazi changes of success in their planned “Reconquista” of the Donbass.  By going to Russia and officially endorsing M2A Kerry might be sending a message to Poroshenko: forget it, it ain’t happening!


Still, I would strongly caution against any premature optimism.  I consider a US “zag” a quasi-certitude.  My hope is that the “zag” will be limited in magnitude and that when it happens, it will be more about face-saving exit for Obama than about a denial of reality.


What is certain though, is that Russia has won yet another battle is this long war and that all the signs are pointing at the inevitable defeat of the Empire.


The Saker

CrossTalk: Teetering Ukraine

cross-talk

Check out Femi Kuti'Shoki' moves

Femi Kuti showed his shoki moves a weekend ago at the multimillion naira home of Tunde and Wunmi Obe.


The 52-year-old Afrobeat maestro was taking care of business as he entertained visitors with rambunctious and mainstream move moves including a noteworthy Shoki routine. More pics bellow.

Photos: Lupita Nyong'O shines in green at Cannes Film Festival

Lupita Nyong’o walked celebrity lane at the 68th yearly Cannes Film Festival Opening Ceremony on Wednesday evening in a jade Gucci chiffon plisse outfit with a cape detail.


She gave some twirls as the paparazzi took photographs of her.


More photographs bellow.