Jonathan creates new army division, sends 8,000 troops after Boko Haram

President Goodluck Jonathan appears set to
boost the strength of the military in the
insurgency infested North-east after indications
emerged that about 8,000 troops are being sent
there.
The troops, according to security sources, will
form the nucleus of an army division to be
established in Maiduguri, Borno State capital.

Sunday Vanguard was made to understand at
the weekend that the need to establish the new
army division in the stronghold of the Boko
Haram Islamist group is to firm up the successes
recorded by special forces of the Joint Task Force
(JTF) which have reportedly dislodged the
insurgents from the forests and mountains of the
North-east.

The move came to light barely 48 hours after the
United States (US) said security efforts were
necessary to protect innocent Nigerians, prevent
Boko Haram’s acts of violence, capture and
prosecute its leaders.

The US Under Secretary of State, Wendy
Sherman, who gave the recipe to ending the
insurgency challenge in Nigeria on behalf of her
home government, spoke in Abuja at the
opening session of the US-Nigeria Bi-national
Commission’s Regional Security Cooperation
Working Group on Thursday.

Also yesterday, the Chairman of Police Service
Commission (PSC), Mr Mike Okiro, advocated the
establishment of a civil force to complement the
efforts of security agencies at the grassroots to
curb terrorism and other crimes.
Sunday Vanguard learnt that the new army
division to be domiciled in Maiduguri is tagged
7th Infantry Division and may have one General
Etnan as the General Officer Commanding (GOC).

The 8,000 troops to be deployed there, according
to sources, are made up of 7,000 troops from
army headquarters brigade in Yola, Adamawa
State, the army headquarters brigade (Mongonu)
in Maiduguri, the battalion in Yobe and the army
headquarters brigade in Sokoto as well as the
about 1,000 troops recalled from operations in
Mali.

Sunday Vanguard was told that the new army
division will take over operations of securing the
entire North-east and seal off the border axis
between Nigeria and Niger, Chad and Cameroon
where intelligence has shown that terrorists get
their training and launch bombing attacks on
Nigeria.

Before the establishment of the division which
Sunday Vanguard gathered was on the
recommendation of the Chief of the Army Staff,
Lt. General Oyeabor Azubuike Ihejirika, parts of
the Area of Responsibility (AOR) were under the
1st Infantry Division of the army in Kaduna,
which has Major General Garba Wahab as GOC
and 3rd Armoured Division in Jos which has
Major General Awala as GOC.
Asked about the fate of the Major General
Ewansiha led JTF in Maiduguri, with the
establishment of the new division, a source said
the JTF will work hand in hand with the new
division, adding, however, that it (JTF) is an
interim force which most likely will be scaled
down after the first phase (6 months) of the
state of emergency had achieved its objectives.
Meanwhile, Sunday Vanguard gathered, also at
the weekend, that the Nigerian Airforce Strike
Group with headquarters in Yola, Adamawa
State, where some attack aircraft of the Tactical
Air Command are stationed, is to be upgraded
with the injection of more fighter and patrol
aircraft as well as helicopter gunships.

The upgrade became necessary, according to
sources, to provide air cover and patrols over the
vast and dense forests of the North-east where
Boko Haram insurgents held sway for months,
hoisting their flags, claiming territories and
collecting taxes from Nigerians.
Towards this end, it was gathered that the Chief
of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Alex Sabundu
Badeh, has directed the relocation of some
patrol and surveillance aircraft from the 81 Air
Maritime Command in Benin, and the Special
Operations Group in Port Harcourt to Yola.

Some
Alpha jets will also leave Kainji for Yola.
The PSC Chairman, Okiro, advocating the
establishment of a civil force to complement the
operations of security agencies, yesterday,
believes the force, under the supervision of the
police, will curtail terrorism and other criminal
activities at the grassroots.
The former Inspector General of Police (IGP)
spoke at the Corporate Council on Africa in
Washington, US. The Corporate Council, which
has on its membership Nigerians in diaspora,
had invited him to deliver a lecture during a
round table discussion on civil security in Nigeria.
Citing the civilian JTF in Borno State, he noted
that “the positive impact of the youth civilian
volunteer group in Borno State justifies such
reasoning.”

Okiro based his belief on the principle of the
American Homeland Security, stressing that the
operation of the civil security force should be in
line with Bahama and Sri-Lanka models, which
are under the command of the police.

Nigerian state (ogun) plans Africa’s tallest building

The Ogun State Government, western Nigeria, on Friday demolished its old
Secretariat at Oke-Ilewo in Abeokuta, the capital.
Mr Mohammed Affez, Lead Urban Designer and Project Director of Abeokuta City
Centre told newsmen in Abeokuta that it was demolished to give way for new
Abeokuta City Centre project.
Affez said the master plan of the project was being finalised and would include 60-
storey skyscraper hoped to be the tallest in Africa.
He said the project would be handled and financed by Urbanisima Ltd., a Malaysian
company.
“There would be adjoining structures which would redefine the landscape of the
capital city.
“Others are shopping mall, recreation centre, signature tower, office complex, hotels
and world class convention centre.”
The demolition is being carried out by China Civil Engineering Construction
Corporation (CCEC).
Recently,members of the state’s Technical Committee on the project visited Malaysia
for a week-long training on the design of its master plan.

A message to all single ladies - from Charly Boy( Charles oputa)

  If you're a single lady...this message is for you
from Mr Charles Oputa
All the single ladies reading this, chin-up
and give your good self a thumb up.
Nothing doest thou. Last week I had a
father/daughter discussion with my
Princess. I could feel the frustration in her
tone as we spoke about different issues.
When I asked about her boyfriend she
gave me a very long and irritated “Naija
babe” hiss, she aired out her frustrations
with this whole dating business. "Daddy
we are no longer dating." “I’m so very
sorry my love, but what happened I
queried,” very anxious to hear the gist,
cause me and my Princess are just that
close. This is my daughter’s 3rd boyfriend
since she started dating, and she has only
been with him for barely 6months…
"Daddy, please I’m tired, he is not
ambitious, he has no drive, and he is too
laid back for his own good, how can I
marry a man like that? To make matters
worse, he thinks I am overly ambitious,
he says I do way too much – please tell
me how that’s a bad thing.” Hummmmm,
my daughter, my princess my pride and
joy is unhappy.
You see since childhood, my Princess has been
very independent, very focused and
determined - no nonsense kind of ‘chic’, (can
an apple fall too far from its tree). She is
intelligent and extremely hardworking, I mean
what more could a man ask for in a woman?
Quickly, I was thinking of how to calm my
ticked off Princess down. "Darling, you know
daddy will always love you no matter what,
most importantly you know damn too well that
you are not under any pressure to get married.
So be patient, concentrate on your carrier and
yourself my darling, he will come when he
comes, and if he doesn't come, have your
baby, I wouldn't mind another grandchild." Did
I really say that? Oh! Yes I did, and I meant
that.
Single ladies are on the rise these days,
because for a long time coming, there has been
an explosion of male joblessness in Nigeria and
the world over. There has also been a decline
in men's life prospects that have disrupted and
distorted the dating or the "marriage market",
in a way that narrows a marriage minded
woman's options. Today all the Nigerian single
"good" ladies who are desirous to settle down
are at a cross road in their dating life, most of
them are simply tired, a lot are frustrated and
many are giving up. Their options are really
limited; it is mostly between the millions of
Gigolos or the deadbeat, some of who are
pretending that they are waiting for Jesus
before they get it together; those who don't
have ambition burning in their soul. I can't
believe that I told my daughter to go ahead
and have a baby out of wedlock. Well, with the
way things are playing out in our environment,
it is time we embraced new ideas about dating
and marriage. Society’s highest institution
called "Marriage" is fast becoming old
fashioned and outdated. Look around and see
the alarming rate of divorce matters all over
the place, something is definitely wrong my
people. At this rate, falling in love and getting
married will be a question of choice rather
than societal expectation or luck. Frankly
speaking, women have climbed so high in their
independence and career and are doing way
better than the men. Men have been falling
behind with amazing alacrity. Good single
women are so disappointed and it’s
unimaginable, it's like going to a party that has
been the talk of the town for long. You buy
your new dress hoping to show off at the
party, but by the time you land, they tell you
that all the good people have left, and the
ones left are really the servants, their friends
or relatives who have come to scavenge on the
left over food. Believe it or not, that's the
situation today, no kidding.
Since the days of my grandfather, marriage
has been primarily an economic and political
contract between 2 families, prized and policed
by families, relatives and community. That’s
why in my village, they will tell you "no be only
your wife/husband you they marryoooooo"
Things have changed since then, most of our
dates are from facebook, bb chat, online
dating, the hocus-pocus church called
Pentecostals, etc. There is no doubt in my mind
that we are in the midst of an extraordinary
change. The transformation of young
outstanding women, considered marriage
material, is momentous, immensely liberating
and immensely scary for prospective suitors. All
the old ways are breaking down, these days
ladies want to be in-charge of their lives, you
can't blame them. Forget about the days of
being submissive, na for your pocket. Forget
about marriage vows where it says about
obeying your husbands, hummmm joor, they
are not slaves, understanding works better. Do
they need husbands to have babies these
days? Please don't get this twisted, marriage is
divine and sweet when you can not only find a
soul mate, but someone who can inspire you,
respect you, love you, adore your feminity and
independence. They are hard to find oooooo.
My daughter knows that finding a good man is
like finding a needle in a haystack. None the
less, should women feel psychologically
defeated? Hell No! Most men who don't know
what time it is are still locked down with that
old macho bullshit, that it is a Man’s world.
Hummmmm for where, my people, women run
things now, let’s get used to it, abegi, so our
days on earth will be longer joor.
My princess, my baby, my joy, my little big girl
knows that her character, her pedigree, her
background, her ambition, her zeal and
courage will most likely intimidate a lot of men
out there, she realizes that this will further
narrow her pool of prospects, just like she is
also aware that with each passing year she is
getting older and never younger but the
options stay very limited. All I’m trying to say is
this, I tip my hat for all the "good" single ladies
out there, keep the fate, I admire your courage
in not wanting to settle for any trash out there.
If it doesn't fit, trash it, finding a life time
partner is not ‘moimoi’. The world is already
too troubled for you to be in a relationship
that you know will not make you happy.
Women can see these things ahead you know,
that's why they are a special breed of God’s
creation. I have discovered lately that men
need women in their lives to keep them stable,
but if push comes to a shove, women don't
really need men, a case in point, ‘The great
Oprah’. Yes, good men are hard to find, ask
Lady D. Ha!!

I Go Dye releases new pics as he passes positive message to youths

Comedian (i go die) says 'you can re-write
your story by making it history'. See more pics
of the comedian

Former Chelsea coach and champion league winner Roberto Di Matteo is in Nigeria

Former Chelsea coach Roberto Di
Matteo is in Nigeria. He came into the country
today Friday August 16th courtesy Guinness,
the beer of choice. While in town, he will be
launching the Guinness Football Manager- a
platform that put you in the driver’s seat and
lets you ‘Be the Boss’ as you pick your team,
call the shots, and, if you do well, win fantastic
prizes.
He will also be announcing the launch of the
epic football show Guinness Raise Your Game
- a weekly show that will bring you all the
latest football news, amazing interviews with
world-class footballers, epic live music
performances and exclusive on-the-sofa chats!
Sign up for free at m.guinnessvip.com and own
your own team and be the first to know
Roberto’s activities. Also tune in to super sports
to hear Roberto’s analysis on matches to be
played on Saturday August 17 th, 2013.
All these brought to you by Guinness. As the
new English premier league begins be sure to
grab a bottle of Guinness and drink
responsibly. Guinness is sold strictly to +18.

FG appoints electricity generating football inventor as Ambassador

  The Federal Government has appointed
Jessica Mathews, a U.S.-based Nigerian, who
invented energy generating football and skipping
rope as an `Entrepreneurship Ambassador’.
The Minister of Trade and Investments, Dr
Olusegun Aganga, announced this on Friday after
the presentation and demonstration of the
invented products to President Goodluck
Jonathan at the Presidential Villa.
Aganga said, “Mathews is an inspiration to every
Nigerian, especially children, and the product is
portrayed as made by a Nigerian for the world.

The product is actually versatile, it is not just
about the electricity you see, you can use it to
charge your mobile phones and fans so there are
so many things for which it can be used.

“We are also looking at the possibilities of
manufacturing it in Nigeria and see how we can
make it cheaper in this country.
“I am glad that Matthew has also agreed to be
our ambassador in terms of promoting
entrepreneurship in our universities.

“What we want to do is to bring successful
entrepreneurs like Matthew to inspire the
students and make them more creative so that
they can also be employers of labour,’’ the
minister said.

Matthew, an Edo-born inventor, who
demonstrated the soccer ball, said it could
generate three hours of electricity after 30
minutes of play and could store power for 72
hours.

The electricity generated by the ball, according to
her, can be used as electricity source to power
lighting points and household equipments.

Mathews, 25, and Co-founder of Uncharted play,
said the airless football used as electricity power
source when not in use, could span for 18-
months before replacement.
The inventor, who studied Psychology and
Economics in Havard University, U.S., said she
taught herself Electrical and Mechanical
Engineering because of her interest in the field
She said her motivation to invent the ball and
skipping rope came when she attended a
wedding in Nigeria and there was a sudden
power outage.

“I am a Nigerian and was in Nigeria, it was my
Aunt’s wedding and we lost power. How many
times, is there anyone who has not been
affected?

“For me, I was raised to seek a solution when
there is a problem. To be as creative as you can
and be opened to different ways so you can
address the situation,’’ she said.
Mathews, who spoke on why she chose to use
football, explained: “to me, we all know that
football is the most popular thing in the world.

“To most people, football form is the most
convenient; any man on the street will be
attracted to kicking football.

“So, the idea is to put something that people
really love and get more out of it.
“These are the things we can use to see if we
can amplify existing behaviour to bridge the gap
between what is working and what is not
working in this country that we love so much.

“We take our passion for sports that is so
beautiful and we say okay, let’s give people
renewable clean power that they can control.’’
She said the innovation, which had been
accepted and already in use in the U.S., would
be affordable when mass-produced and
introduced into the Nigerian market.

“Right now, if we are going to sell it here in
Nigeria, it will be equivalent to what you will pay
for a solar inverter.
“Right now, we have not started making them
here, we are selling them in New York and in
New York, we charge people a lot because it is
New York,’’ she said.

Dr Reuben Abati, the Special Adviser to the
President on Media and Publicity, said Jonathan
congratulated Mathews on her creativity and
innovativeness.

“The president is particularly impressed that
Matthew is multi-talented, and that she
developed herself in science despite that she is a
psychologist and economist.
“It is a proof of the quality of human resource
we have in Nigeria and the president is proud of
her,’’ Abati said.

Abati said the president assured that the
invention would be used as a major tool to
mobilise young children and encourage them to
think more deeply.

Teacher can’t read own certificate?

BENIN CITY
When the late Afrobeat legend, Fela Anikulapo-
Kuti sang his popular number, Teacher, Don’t
Teach Me Nonsense, many thought it was just a
song but the song had become a reality in time.
It was sometime in 2011, when Governor Adams
Oshiomhole paid an unscheduled visit to a
primary school in Edo North senatorial district of
the state that he found out the rot which has
pervaded the Universal Basic Education in the
state.
For someone who has embarked on massive
construction and rehabilitation of schools in the
country of course, he must be concerned with
the quality of teachers in these schools.
Oshiomhole beckoned on a teacher in the school
and asked him what are his workings hours. The
teacher could not answer and said I don’t know
and later murmured “7am to 4pm Sir”.

A visibly shocked Oshiomhole now called a pupil
and asked, “where is your teacher? The teacher
standing beside him replied on behalf of the
pupil “na me”. That was when the governor knew
that he has a serious problem in the educational
sector.
A week after the incident, a group of Universal
Basic Education teachers who were at the
Government House in Benin to protest their non
absorption into the state teaching service
stormed the state government House, unknown
to them the governor was waiting for such an
opportunity to bare his mind on the rot in the
system. While addressing the UBE teachers he
asserted that employment into the state teaching
service will no longer be automatic, adding that
the applicant must show competence beyond
paper qualification.
He said to them, “the governor does not have a
guaranteed job, therefore nobody can have one.
You must go through proper interview. The
system must be convinced that you have what it
takes to be a good teacher”. He stressed that the
system must go through progressive change to
ensure that education is restored to its pride of
place, stressing there are teachers who cannot
speak English. “Whatever they were doing
before, we have to review it in the light of
current experience. We have teachers who
cannot speak English. I asked a teacher last
week what the working hours were. He did not
know, he said 7am to 4pm. And I asked a pupil,
where is your teacher? The teacher said, ‘na
me’. The governor disclosed that government
was going to employ teachers to fill the existing
vacancies, but it must be based on merit and
not geographical area.

APGA Threatened To Declare Okorocha's Seat Vacant

The All Progressives Grand Alliance has
threatened to ask a court to declare Imo State
Governor, Rochas Okorocha's post vacant over
his defection to the All Progressives Congress.
The National Chairman of APGA, Chief Victor
Umeh, stated this in an interview with
Saturday PUNCH in Abuja on Friday.
Umeh said the party would be relying on the
Supreme Court judgment in Rotimi Amaechi vs
Celestine Omehia and the Peoples Democratic
Party, which decided that the electorate voted
for a political party and not individuals.
He said APGA would base its court action on
the fact that it was the party that gave
Okorocha the ticket to be governor.
He said, "Okorocha's case is entirely a
different thing and the party has suspended
him for his actions and despite the statements
by his aides and his deputy that they are in
the APC for good. We are waiting for him to
make a formal declaration on joining the APC.
"If he does that, APGA will take him to court
seeking a declaration that his seat becomes
vacant. In doing that, we shall be relying on
the Supreme Court authority in the case of
Rotimi Amaechi vs Celestine Omehia and the
PDP, where the Supreme Court emphatically
stated in the judgment that the electorate
voted for the party and not the candidate."
Asked whether the governor was risking
expulsion, the APGA chairman said, "The
choice is his," adding, "ordinarily, we won't
like to expel a governor that was elected
through our platform."
Several calls and a text message put to a
former Commissioner for Information in IMO
State, who has been acting as Okorocha's
spokesperson, Mr. Chinedu Offor, were not
replied.
But sources in the Imo State Government
House told our correspondent that the
governor travelled to the United States in
company with many of his friends and aides.
The governor recently dissolved his cabinet
and removed his aides.
However, Okorocha's immediate past Special
Assistant (Media), Mr. Ebere Uzoukwa,
dismissed the threat.
Uzoukwa, who is also reacting as Convener/
President of South-East Progressive Assembly,
said, "Though we do not intend to speak for
the governor nor the Imo State government
on this particular issue, but as progressives
deeply committed to promoting democracy at
the grass roots as well as raising political
awareness in the South-East, we frown at
Chief Umeh's destructive agenda, which, if
not checkmated, has the tendency of
polarising the zone ahead of 2015.  

Femi Kuti's Performs With His Sons On Stage

Femi Kuti's young sons joined him and his
Positive Force band on stage last night to
perform at the New African Shrine...and I hear
they gave a great performance. He's grooming
future Afrobeat kings. 

Fashola Is A Gift To Nigeria - IBB

Former military dictator, Ibrahim Badamosi
Babangida has described Governor Fashola as
a gift to Nigeria. HE made the remarks during
a courtesy call on the Goveernor to
sympathize with him on the passing of his
father, Ademola Fashola.
Speaking during the visit at Lagos House,
Marina, IBB said, “In Islam, we do pray for
long life but long life does not mean living for
100 years or 500 years. We are gratified that
Papa left and he left one important gift, that
is Governor Raji Fashola. So we are grateful
that God has spared his life to see a Governor
that everybody respects in this country and I
also pray that one of your children will also
take the footsteps you have taken after Papa”.
Also present at the meeting was Abdulsalami
Abubakar, who declared, “I keep saying that
without peace, there wouldn’t be any country,
without peace, there wouldn’t be people and
without peace there wouldn’t be means of
livelihood”.
Speaking in response to the retired Generals,
Fashola prayed for peace in the country and
said he hoped the promise of Nigeria will
come alive during their lifetimes.
He said, “I hope that the leadership that you
both provide for this country will continue to
endure and that through that leadership,
much more enduring peace would spread
around this country and that the promise of
this country will come to pass in your
lifetime.” 

Hull City renamed by owners

Hull City will drop their Association Football
Club label, as part of a rebrand by the club's
owners.
The decision to overhaul the club's moniker
will see a focus placed on 'Tigers' as owners
Assem and Ehab Allam look to create a
stronger identity both at home and abroad for
the Premier League newcomers.
References to AFC - which has been part of
the club's name since they were founded in
1904 - will be gradually phased out, with the
term remaining on the club's badge this
season before being removed.
The club will ultimately be know as Hull City
Tigers locally, with the Allams claiming they
will rebrand as Hull Tigers in the national and
international market.
"Hull City is irrelevant," Assem Allam told the
Hull Daily Mail. "My dislike for the word 'City'
is because it is common.
"City is also associated with Leicester, Bristol,
Manchester and many other clubs.
"In the commercial world, the shorter the
name, the better. The more it can spread
quickly.
"It is about identity. City is a lousy identity.
Hull City Association Football Club is so long."
The move has generated controversy among
the club's supporters, with an online petition
already established protesting against the
rebrand.

Police Arrest MASSOB Leader, 3 Members For Chanting War Songs

Police Arrest MASSOB Leader, 3 Members For
Chanting War Songs

MASSOB

Coordinator of the Movement for the
Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra
(MASSOB), Anioma/Ndokwa East region of
Delta State, Emeka Okafor was on Wednesday
arrested by operatives of the state police
command, for allegedly chanting war songs.
The 52-year-old was arrested with three
other members of the movement at a
location in Omini-Ugboma community, near
the Bridge Head in Asaba, the Delta State
capital.
Confirming the arrest, Delta State Police
Command spokesman, ASP Lucky Uyabeme,
said the Command acted on a tip-off to
effect the arrest of the MASSOB members.
Uyabame said six Biafran flags were
recovered from the suspects, and they were
chanting war songs at the time of their
arrest.
“Four members of MASSOB were
apprehended at Omini-Ugboma near the
Bridgehead chanting war songs. The police
are currently investigating the suspects to
ascertain the motives behind their
congregating at the location where they were
arrested,” Uyabeme stated.

Joseph and Adaeze Yobo Share Workout

Nice couple, 
What do you think?