Welcome to Joseph Ebongie's blog: May 2014

Saturday, 31 May 2014

Jerry Okorodudu – my wife cheated on me

Former Boxing National Light Heavyweight Champion, Jerry Okorodudu, has revealed why he will never take back his estranged military officer’s wife in spite of entreaties from some friends and associates who are pleading with him to allow the woman return to her matrimonial home.

Speaking with Saturday Sun in Lagos, Okorodudu, a former Olympian who is now the National Boxing Coach accused the woman of not only deserting him when he was out of job, but also committing adultery by dating other men when she packed out of his house.

Except of his interview with Saturday Sun

A Social commentator, Oscar Onwudiwe, on Saturday opined that corruption is what binds Nigeria together, and without it, the country would disintegrate.

He made the controversial statement while speaking on ‘15 Years of Interrupted Democracy’In Nigeria, on Channels Television’s breakfast programme, Sunrise.

Onwudiwe said that Nigerians should be grateful as the country was evolving through democracy, noting that some individuals, including former President Olusegun Obasanjo, should be thanked for the transition to democratic rule.

Hon. Bitrus Kaze has urged the Federal Government not to offer amnesty to Boko Haram sect, describing it as a step in the wrong direction.

Hon. Bitrus who represents Job South|Jos East in the House of Representatives on Friday in a statement issued in Jos stressed that such effort, coming at a time the international community has declared to support Nigeria to stamp out terrorism will boomerang.

His stated, "I do not subscribe to any form of dialogue with terrorists; we will not grow weary of making the point resoundingly clear that no country the world over has succeeded in curbing the menace that way.

A US soldier who has been held by the Taliban in Afghanistan for nearly five years has been freed in deal that includes the release of five Afghan detainees, US officials say.

US Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, 28, was handed over to US forces in good health, the officials said.

The five Afghan detainees have been released from the US prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

They were handed over to Qatar, which mediated the transfer.

Sgt Bergdahl was the only US soldier being held by the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Officials said he was in good condition and able to walk. He is expected to be transferred to Bagram Air Field, the main US base in Afghanistan, and then on to the United States.

In a statement, President Barack Obama said Sgt Bergdahl's recovery "is a reminder of America's unwavering commitment to leave no man or woman in uniform behind on the battlefield''.

Officials said the Taliban had handed him over on Saturday evening, local time, in eastern Afghanistan. Several dozen US special forces were involved in the exchange, they said, which took place near the Pakistani border.

What am I missing here, is this a swap deal?

Meriam Ibrahim: Sudan 'to free' death row woman

Sudanese authorities are to free a woman who was sentenced to death for having abandoned the Islamic faith, a foreign ministry official says.

Meriam Ibrahim, who gave birth to a daughter in custody, will be freed in a few days, the official told the BBC.

Abdullahi Alzareg, an under-secretary at the foreign ministry, said Sudan guaranteed religious freedom and was committed to protecting the woman.

Khartoum has been facing international condemnation over the death sentence.

In an interview with The Times newspaper, British Prime Minister David Cameron described the ruling as "barbaric" and out of step with today's world.

The UK Foreign Office this week said that it would push for Ms Ibrahim to be released on humanitarian grounds.

Dairy Farm Senior Secondary School, wins 5th GTbank Principal Cup

The 5^th Edition of the GTbank Principal Cup Finals for both Male and Female Secondary Schools in Lagos were played today at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos.

The boys’ final was between Dairy Farm Senior School, Agege and Oriwu Senior Model School, Ikorodu. Two goals in both halves from prolific striker, Adeoye Sunday gave Dairy Farm the trophy. While the girls’ final featured Ikotun Senior High School and Government Senior College. Government Senior College lifted the trophy.

See more pics after the cut

Kim Kardashian changing her last name to ‘Kardashian West’ has spark a debate on social media, with some saying her decision was the ‘respectful’ thing to do, while others balked at the tradition.

The decision whether to keep or change one’s last name after marriage in some society is seen as compulsory and others personal, 65 percent of women in their 20s and 30s prefer to take their husband’s last names, this is according to a survey conducted by Facebook and The Daily Beast.

Some women are of the view that since women are outpacing men in education and in the workforce, they no longer need men for financial security or to procreate. So why forfeit our names for the sake of marriage.

There are indications that the need to feed the over 200 students of Government Secondary School, Chibok, abducted by Boko Haram insurgents on April 14 has put pressure on the Islamic terrorist group to steal food items and loot communities close to Sambisa Forest in the North East.

It has been revealed that the violent Islamic sect had in the past week stepped up the looting of villages, markets and food stores in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states for food items including grains and bread.

Residents of these communities said that the rate at which the insurgents stole their foodstuffs was unprecedented, noting that the pressure to feed the abducted girls might have contributed to the desperation of the insurgents to steal and kill the villagers in the process.

Rachel Jeantel who was on the phone with shooting victim Trayvon Martins in the last moment of his life, honoured his memory on Friday by completing her high school education. “I did it …I never quit” Jeantel said.

Yes you did it sweetheart, yes you did and he is certainly proud of you and so are we. Well done.

Fuji music is very dangerous by ETCETERA

Fuji music and I got divorced at a street carnival on October 1st, 2010. I just couldn’t take it anymore and thought it best that we went our separate ways. I guess the feeling was mutual because that was the same day I recovered my sanity and my personal cool.

What would I become if I wasn’t aware of myself anymore? Unlike many adults, I have no stomach for music that makes me want to vandalize my home and for some crazy reasons; I have discovered that some fuji songs that are popular right now make you want to assess your mental state. The simple truth is one can’t remember any of such songs getting posted daily on blogs. I can only recognise a handful of artistes mentioned by some die-hard and unrepentant fanatics in my hood.

Men who feel stressed have fewer, slower sperm

Psychological stress may degrade sperm quality and sperm fertility, according to a study published today in the journal Fertility and Sterility.

“Men who feel stressed are more likely to have lower concentrations of sperm in their ejaculate, and the sperm they have are more likely to be misshapen or have impaired motility,” said researcher Pam Factor-Litvak, an epidemiologist at Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health, in a statement. “These deficits could be associated with fertility problems.”

Just found this from her Media Adviser Isaac Umunna saying her death is a rumour. Thank God.

MY THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Happy People See God’s Bigger Picture

“I want you to know, my dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News” (Philippians 1:12 NLT)

If you want to be a happy person, you need to look at every problem from God’s viewpoint. Happy people have a larger perspective. They see the big picture. When you don’t see things from God’s point of view, you get discouraged, frustrated, and unhappy.

No matter what’s going on in your life — the good, the bad, and the ugly, God is working out a plan. Paul knew this. He says in Philippians 1:12, “I want you to know, my dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News” (NLT).

According to sources the CDS whose competence has been questioned in recent times said his announcement was necessary before other countries to give the assurance that it was capable of tackling the rising wave of insurgency.

A competent source said: "If the Americans had made the breakthrough, it would have been the end of the Nigerian Military and the President, as Commander-in-Chief, knows that he must show and have confidence in the capacity and competence of his troops.

The Presidency we are told has reportedly softened its stance over the Chief of Defence Staff revelations based on his explanations.

This is my take on this story:

Early this morning I received a BB chat message from a friend saying Prof. Dora Akunyili was dead. I have since tried to get this message confirmed but couldn’t. So am asking, please does anyone know if it’s true or not.

Over the past weeks there have been all kinds of rumours about her death since she went to India for treatment. She is one of the delegates in the ongoing National conference that’s on break due to the death of the wife of its Chairman, Justice Idris Kutigi.

Meet The GF7, a flying jet-propelled car

Meet the Car that can actually fly, no joke. The GF7, is a flying jet-propelled car.

The concept vehicle comes from Napa, Calif.,-based designer Greg Brown and engineer Dave Fawcett Airboss Aerospace. Fawcett has engineered other aircrafts, including the Viper, the Maverick and Javelin jets.

The Miami Heat some few minutes ago made history. Four consecutive NBA Finals.

Since 1987, only three different teams (The 1991-1993 Chicago Bulls, 1996-1998 Chicago Bulls and the 2000-2002 Los Angeles Lakers) have won three straight Championships.

No team during that period has appeared in four straight NBA Finals.

Only one team has ever appeared in four or more consecutive NBA Finals and that was the Celtics, though of a much earlier era, from 1957-1966 and at a time when the NBA only had 9 total teams not 30 and when it was possible to win only two series (and a total of seven games) to advance to the title round. Now there are 15 teams in each conference, and three series and 12 victories are required to serve as their Finals representative.

The sparkly dress worn by Khloe Kardashian with a plunging neckline to Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s pre-wedding dinner at the Palace of Versailles have caused a scrambling by people to find out who the designer is and how they can get their hands on it.

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling plans to file a $1 billion lawsuit against the NBA, his lawyer confirmed to Yahoo Sports on Friday afternoon.

Sterling's decision comes one day after his wife Shelly Sterling reached agreement to sell the franchise for $2 billion to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. Donald Sterling is "looking … separately" at possible legal action to stop the team's sale to Ballmer, Donald Sterling's attorney, Max Blecher, told Yahoo Sports.

The purpose of the $1 billion lawsuit against the NBA, Blecher said, is to seek damages for Sterling's lifetime ban and termination of ownership.

The NBA remains confident it has the legal grounds to stave off any lawsuits from Donald Sterling and install Ballmer as owner of the Clippers, league sources said.

Actor Brat Pitt now a farmer, owns world class wine

Not satisfied with making blockbuster Hollywood hits, Brad Pitt has now turned his sight into producing fine wines.

The 50-year old said in a new interview that he has taken his talent as an actor and producer and put them to use on his Miraval Estate winery in Provence.

He claims he took the same approach he has to film to produce his first vino, the Cotes de Provence Rose Miraval, which was ranked the ‘best Rose’ in the world’ in 2012.

Brad bought the estate in 2012 with his long-time partner Angelina Jolie

Friday, 30 May 2014

Oprah accused of breaking up stepmother’s marriage

Oprah Winfrey is being accused by her stepmother, Barbara Winfrey of evicting her from her home following a bitter 18-month divorce battle. The 66-year old grandmother yesterday said goodbye to the impressive five-bedroom property in Franklin, South Nashville – a place she has called home for 14 years. She had until midnight to vacate the house after being booted out by talk show queen Oprah Winfrey.

The former high-school vice-principal who is now homeless and facing the prospect of living in motels believes Oprah had a ‘personal vendetta’ against her and deliberately tried to ‘destroy’ her life.

In a bid to woo Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State back to the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, the Federal Government has approved the release of River State government-owned aircraft grounded last year over alleged illegal entry into the country.

The government also gave its approval to the River State government to bring in two armoured helicopters procured by the administration in Port Harcourt to enhance security. He has also be given the benefit of influencing the emergence of his successor in office if he should take the bait.

Thought it is expected for him to remain in the All Progressive Congress, APC, but should support the President’s re-election bid in which case, the Presidency would push to ensure the emergence of his chosen successor.

Story Credit: Cknnigeria.com

PDP, cause of Nigerian problem - Amaechi (Really!)

The Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Amaechi, has reiterated that the way to solve the problems facing the country is to vote out the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2015 general elections.

Amaechi stated this at the second International Conference on Democracy and Good Governance with the theme: ‘Nigeria’s Democracy: Issues and Challenges’, held at the new Dr. Obi Wali Convention Centre in Port Harcourt.

He maintained that something was wrong with Nigeria, and that the solution would be to ensure that the present administration was removed irrespective of the person’s geo-political zone.
His words: “Vote out those who have kept us inside this kind of situation. Vote them out whether they are from Niger Delta or from Southern Delta or from whatever Delta. We need to vote them out now and change Nigeria.

The Chairman of Stallion Group, Mr. Sunil Vaswani, on Nigeria’s Democracy Day, presented three Nigerian-made models of Nissan vehicles to President Goodluck Jonathan in commemoration of the nations’ Democracy Day.

The presentation of the vehicles to the President was at the International Conference Centre, where a special event, tagged “A day with young leaders of Nigeria,” specially organized to mark the nation’s Democracy Day.

The vehicles, produced at the Stallion Nissan Motors Plant located on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, included a Nissan Patrol SUV, Nissan Almera (Sunny) saloon car and a Nissan NP 300 Pick-Up.

The Stallion’s automobile facility in Lagos is targeting to produce 45,000 vehicles annually.

Congratulation Nigeria, we now have a Made in Nigeria Vehicle. It’s even coming before the initial time frame of June 2014. Great work. Let’s hope the prices are also affordable for all and not just the rich.

Panic as Emirates slashes Dubai-bound flights

Emirates Airlines management announced some days ago that it was cancelling one of its twice-daily flights to Dubai. The explanation for the reduction of scheduled was to allow for the upgrade of the runway of its Dubai International Airport terminal from May 1 till July 20, 2014.

Emirates Airlines originally operated one flight per day from Nigeria to Dubai, but increased the frequency to two in response to an upsurge in passenger number.

There were initial anxiety as how Nigerian passengers heading for Dubai will cope with the reduction of the flight but as always Nigerians have had to make alternative arrangements to arrive at their destination by making connecting flights through Abu Dhabi and other destinations in the Middle East.

However the Managing Director, Gadeshire Travel and Tours Limited, Mr. Gbenga Adebayo, said the reduction of flights by Emirates could have posed some problems in the peak of the summer period.

So please if you are going to Dubai, beware and make the necessary arrangement on time.

Professors, Perm Secs to earn full salaries as pension

Pension stipends received by professors and permanent secretaries will be augmented by the Federal Government when the new Pension Reform Act is eventually passed into law, investigation has revealed.

This development will enable them to continue to earn their full salaries in retirement even when they don’t have enough funds in their Retirement Savings Accounts, unlike other retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme.

The National Pension Commission had told the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service and the House of Representatives Committee on Pension that some categories of workers were unable to get sufficient pension stipends as provided by the law.

These include top public servants like permanent secretaries, police officers, professors and others whose conditions of service prior to the enactment of the Pension Reform Act, 2004 allowed them to enjoy 100 per cent of their final pay as pension for life.

Akpabio signs the “Mother of all pensions” into law - to receive N100M annually after he leaves office.

Akwa Ibom State governor, Godswill Obot Akpabio has sign into law the “mother of all Pension ever”, after the Akwa Ibom State Assembly passed what can only be described as the most outrageous and most controversial pension bill in the history of humanity. You can read it Here.

But just to summarize, the following are his benefits for life and that of his deputy after he leaves office and to gain favour for the bill, he included past governors of the state and also those of the old cross river's state. Can you imagine?

Read and be shocked:

MediaTakeOut.com just heard the craziest rumor – and we wouldn’t have even given it a SECOND THOUGHT – if it wasn’t coming from a VERY POPULAR CELEBRITY.

According to the celeb – there were rumors back in 2008 when Rihanna was FIRST SIGNED TO DEF JAM- that she was pregnant, ALLEGEDLY. And the father was ALLEGEDLY one of the people from the label who WE ALL KNOW. They say that BEFORE the rumors of the pregnancy, Rihanna was on the BACK BURNER at the label.

A Sudanese woman sentenced to death for marrying a Christian was forced to give birth with her legs chained, it has been revealed today.

Meriam Ibrahim was shackled as her baby daughter was born in jail in Sudan where she is awaiting execution for marrying a Christian U.S. citizen.

Amid the joy of seeing his child for the first time, her husband Daniel Wani has spoken of his anger at the treatment she received during labour.

The San Antonio Spurs quickly ended any comparison arising from any questions about the 2012 Western Conference finals, after beating the Oklahoma Thunder City in Game 5 117-89.

San Antonio had taken the first two games in the series before dropping a pair in Oklahoma

City, evoking similarities of two years ago when the Thunder ripped off four Straight wins after going down 0-2 to become conference champs.

Well, Spurs is not having any of that this year.

By the time Akpabio turns 70 … BY ABIMBOLA ADELAKUN

Swaziland’s King Mswati III, Africa’s last absolute monarch is often cited as the most wasteful leader of any country. Mswati III is the leader of a nation that bests only Somalia in terms of economic performance. Two-thirds of his loyal subjects live in chronic poverty, and expectedly, human rights are routinely violated. Yet, this man has no qualms rolling in and exhibiting excess wealth.

When not collecting wives at his dreadful Reed Dances –he has 15 of them presently – he is busy selling food crops donated to his country or, globetrotting. If Mswati’s buffoonery can be excused on the grounds of youthful exuberance –he became King when he was 18 – what excuse can a man almost thrice his age have for being illogical with statecraft?

A formerly obese teenager has told how cruel taunts from bullies inspired her to get fit and become a beauty pageant queen.

Keli Kryfko, 23 - the current Miss South Texas titleholder - weighed more than 200lbs when she was at middle school and wore a U.S. dress size 24.

But at the age of 14 she decided to get in shape after hearing another student refer to her as 'the fat girl' when she failed a P.E. fitness test.

'I knew that that’s not what I wanted my definition to be anymore,' Miss Kryfko said.

In a bid to battle the bulge, one of the first things the Houston native did was ditch sugary sodas for water.

I was opportune, or sorry, unfortunate to have seen Tiwa Savage's new Video, "Wanted" online and I got wondering. What was the concept for the video and what in the heavens is her husband, Mr. Billiz and BB winner, Uti Nwachuwkwu trying so hard to say on twitter to her defence?

Everything Charles Novia said about the video was correct. It’s an eyesore to the eyes. Great for the bedroom but bad for the public.

She was literally simulating sexual acts in the video. I can not even begin to go into the ugly details of her video.
When did Nigeria become America?

When you are planning for war, it’s best to have the people that really matters behind you and not the crowd.

The people that matters may be few and the crowd more but remember, in this life, the few have always ruled the many.

Let God be involved in all you do. He is the “FEW” that controls “ALL”.
Good morning Jesus, good morning All.

90% of the Chibok girls’ protesters are APC member - Maku

The Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, on Wednesday alleged that about 90 per cent of protesters campaigning for the release of the over 200 schoolgirls abducted from Chibok, Borno State, are members of the All Progressives Congress.

He also said that President Goodluck Jonathan had performed miracle with the achievements recorded by his administration in three years.

He said the President deserved commendation because the feats were achieved despite the fact that no Nigerian leader had faced the kind of challenges he was facing now.

Maku said this while answering questions from State House correspondents after the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by Jonathan.

A German study suggests that watching porn may be linked to reduced activity in certain areas of the brain

A new study finds that men who watch a lot of pornography tend to have less gray matter volume as well as less activity in the region of the brain linked to rewards.

The German study, published in JAMA Psychiatry and which analyzed a relatively small sample, provides the first evidence which could lead to establishing a link between pornography consumption and brain size. However, it did not determine whether watching porn leads to the decreased volume and activity, or if people born with certain brain characteristics watch more porn.

The Senate Committee on Finance on Wednesday described as untrue allegations by the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Lamido Sanusi, that $49.8bn was missing from the Federation Account.

The committee, led by Senator Ahmed Makarfi, which submitted its report also said the total crude oil lifting from January 2012 to July 2013 was $67bn and not $65bn as claimed by Sanusi.

Sanusi had written President Goodluck Jonathan alleging that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation had failed to remit $49.8bn, being part of the income it generated from the sale of crude oil to the Federation Account.

Pregnant woman stoned to death for marrying the man she loved in Pakistan

A pregnant woman has been stoned to death by her own family in front of a Pakistani high court - for marrying the man she loved.

Nearly 20 members of the woman's family, including her father and brothers, attacked her and her husband with batons and bricks in broad daylight.

Farzana Parveen, who was three months pregnant, was killed before a crowd of onlookers in front of the high court of Lahore, police have reported.

The protest over the abducted female students of Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok in Borno State days back, degenerated into fisticuffs as pro-government and the Oby Ezekwesili led BringBackOurGirls clashed in Abuja.

See more pics after the cut

After proving he’s not a 42-year old masquerading as a youth team player, Lazio midfielder Joseph Minala has been cleared to resume his career.

The Italian FA launched an investigation after an African football website claimed that Cameroon-born Minala was pretending to be 17 and had altered his passport to take a full 25 years off his actual birth date, leading to an official investigation which saw him questioned by the league’s federal prosecutor.

Were attempt made to fix the Nigeria friendly against Scotland? See for yourself

There were already reports before the Nigerian – Scotland match of match fixing allegations, which of course were vehemently denied by all the authorities concerned. But that did not stop watchers from paying close attention to the match, so it was shocking to witness an incident during the match that suggested there could have been some suspicious move by one of the Nigerian players to that effect.

Two sisters, aged 14 and 15, were found hanging in a mango tree hours after they disappeared near their home in Katra village in Uttar Pradesh state.

The sisters were allegedly gang raped by men – including at least one police officer and killed with their bodies then hung from a tree. The sisters had gone into the fields because there was no toilet in their home.

It was also reported that villagers sitting under the girls’ bodies prevented authorities from taking them down until the suspects were arrested. Reports also suggested that four men have already been arrested by the police with three more suspects still at large.

See the uncensored pics after the cut

A magazine, In Touch, is claiming that 18-year old Kendall Jenner, sister to Mrs. Kim Kardashian West’s social media account is populated by millions of fake Twitter accounts, indicating that she may have paid a service to give her the illusion of massive popularity.

The names of the aspiring model’s Twitter followers were run through a fake follower check app, and it revealed that over half of Kendall’s 7.99 million followers are ‘fake’ or inactive.

Meet the green caterpillar with one of the best disguises you would ever see. It looks and acts like a snake to scare off predators. It does this by expanding certain parts of its body so it looks like a snake.

Hemeroplanes species behave like the reptile in its larvae stage by striking harmlessly at predators so it does not get eaten.
It was found by a University of Pennsylvania photographer while working in the Area de Conservacion Guanacasta, Costa Rica.
See more pics of the INSECT to convince you after the cut

There is no trick in this picture, it's just the angle that makes it look special.

To be sure, look at the back feet of the animal in front and you will see the feet of the bird behind.

Saturday, 31 May 2014

Men who feel stressed have fewer, slower sperm

Friday, 30 May 2014

A German study suggests that watching porn may be linked to reduced activity in certain areas of the brain

Thursday, 29 May 2014