President George Weah shuts down internet in Liberia over protests

President George Weah of Liberia on Friday blocked the internet, in what is believed to be a move aimed at suppressing ongoing anti-government protests in the capital city, Monrovia.

An organisation that monitors internet disruptions and shutdowns, Netblocks, confirmed the shutdown, saying access to social networking platforms Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and Snapchat had been restricted in the West African nation.

‘‘The disruptions affecting ordinary operation of the social media platforms have raised concerns of a state order to restrict the Save The State protests in Liberian capital Monrovia,” NetBlocks said in its statement.

Organisers of the Save The State protests, on Friday, mobilised thousands of Liberians to demonstrate against high rates of inflation and corruption in the country.

The protests are likely to be a key test for President George Weah, who campaigned over the same issues in his ascent to president, about 18 months ago.

The protesters are bracing for a possible violent showdown with security forces or even prolonged disruption.

The protests coalition calling itself the Council of Patriots, comprises politicians, professions, students and ordinary members of the public.

George Weah, in power since January 2018, is struggling to revive a country that is one of the poorest in the world.

The former football star insists he is aware of the burden of ordinary people, and improvement to health, education and roads remain his priorities

Chinese billionaire executed for raping 25 underage school girls

A billionaire businessman in China has been executed after being found guilty of raping 25 underage female students, according to a court.

Zhao Zhiyong had sexually assaulted the young victims on 32 occasions in the space of one and a half years.

He was sentenced to death for raping last October before being executed yesterday, according to the Kaifeng Intermediate People's Court in central China's Henan Province.

In an online statement, the court said Zhao had colluded with an accomplice, named Li Na, who was responsible for scouting for victims. 

Between May 2015 and January 2017, Li brought underage girls to hotels or Zhao's home for him to have sexual intercourse with by force. 

The court said it carried out the execution after receiving an order from the Supreme Court. 

Zhao was said to be an influential businessman in Kaifeng. 

He owned a large flour factory and was the deputy head of the Kaifeng Chamber of Commerce, according to Chinese news outlet The Paper, citing a court notice.

He was also said to be a representative of the Kaifeng People's Congress 

The notice also claimed that Zhao, 49, had sent Li to look for 'young female pupils' from middle schools in the county of Weishi so that he could have sex with them.

Li, together with eight accomplices, forced the victims to sleep with Zhao by beating them, intimidating them and taking pictures of their privates as threats.

The notice added that Zhao had raped 25 middle school students on 32 occasions, including 14 girls who were not yet 14 years old.

Zhao's accomplice Li was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve.  

JAMB highest scorer, Ekene Franklin, bags $40,000 scholarship from Ghanaian University

The highest scorer of the 2019 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in Nigeria, Ekene Franklin,15, has been offered scholarship worth $40,000 by Academic City College, a private university in Accra, Ghana.

The College Senior Admissions Manager (Nigeria), Mrs Ogechi Ekpe, disclosed this over the weekend at a workshop organized by the institution for schools and parents at the Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos.

She said the scholarship would cover tuition and boarding for the duration of his programme at the university.

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“We have a full scholarship for Ekene. He was supposed to be here today (Friday) but we did not talk about the scholarship today because he was not here. We were to present a scholarship of $40,000 to the boy from year one till he graduates,” she said.

“We were hoping he would be here today so our President can give him the award. The school is here now. We have to go there and see if we can either take him to Ghana or get our President to come again and give him the scholarship. The scholarship is for real. It is called the Presidential Scholarship so the school pays everything including the hostel fees.”

Mrs. Ekpe said that Academic City College, which offers programmes in Engineering, Business, Communication Arts and Information Technology, accepts students from 15 years of age because it has a system in place to monitor them. She said:

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“That is why we want him there. Nigerian schools won’t give him admission but we will. We start admitting from 15 which is why we have a very visible Dean of Students’ Affairs. We make sure that they go to class, especially foreign students. You cannot be in the hostel during learning hours. Dean Ruth, that is her name, she normally goes round.

“There are parents that pay for their kids to be off campus but all international students must be on campus because we don’t want them to have immigration issues; we don’t want them to go off track and start doing drugs. We actually insist that in the first year at least they must be on campus.”

KanyiDaily had reported that Ekene Franklin, a 15-year-old student from Abia State, emerged the best candidate in this year’s UTME, by scoring 347 marks as the highest mark released by Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

Google celebrates Samuel Okwaraji’s 55th Posthumous birthday with doodle

Technology giant, Google, on Sunday honoured late football legend, Samuel Okwaraji, who died while playing for his country, Nigeria, on August 12, 1989.

Okwaraji would have been 55 today, May 19, 2019.

The footballer slumped and died while playing for the Super Eagles against Angola at the National Stadium, Surulere Lagos in a 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifier. The match ended 1-0 in favour of Nigeria. igeria.

The former Green Eagles midfielder was born in 1964 in Orlu, Imo State, South-east Nigeria.

Google honoured him with a Doodle on its search engine.

Among the Nigerians who remembered the footballer is Yusuph Olaniyonu, spokesperson to Senate President Bukola Saraki. Mr Olaniyonu took to his official Tweeter handle @Yusupholaniyonu, to celebrate the football legend.

He said: “I join numerous Nigerians and lovers of sports across the world while on a true hero of Nigerian sports who died some 30 years ago. May his gentle soul continue to rest in peace. #GoogleDoodle.

The Nigerian government in a post on its Tweeter handle,  @FGNingeria, said.

“Today, we celebrate one of our past Heroes ~ Samuel Sochukwuma Okwaraji (19 May 1964 – 12 August 1989), a Lawyer turned Footballer. He served his father’s Land with all might. May the Labor of our Heroes never be to celebrate.

#OurHeroes #GoogleDoodle.

Nigerian court orders 3 men to pay N7,000 (15 dollars) fine for raping 2 underage girls

There is an outrage in Kaduna state, Nigeria presently over the decision of an upper Shari’ah court sitting in Tudun Wada, Zaria, to sentence three rapists to one year imprisonment with an option of N7,000 fine.

Our source report that the judge of the court, Malam Iliyasu Muhammad Umar, ruled that the three suspects will serve one year jail term or pay N7,000 fine with 20 strokes of the cane.
While presenting his case at the court, Prosecutor Yahaya said the offence committed by the suspects contravenes sections 222 and 117 of the Penal Code. .

According to investigation, the trio, Hassan Suleiman, Ibrahim Usman and Adamu Audu, lured their victims while on their way to school.

While Hassan Suleiman and Ibrahim Usman used to intercept the 9-year-old girl and rape her, Adamu Audu’s victim is a 10-year-old girl.

The two girls are both attending an LEA Primary School in the Tudun Jukun area of Zaria. According to reports, the crime had been going on for many months before the suspects met their waterloo. .

Many residents of Zaria and human rights activists have, however, condemned the verdict, especially based on the fact that he did not support his decision with any provision of Islamic jurisprudence, as Shari’ah is the status of the court. .

Meanwhile, Kaduna State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Hafsat Mohammed Baba, has said her ministry would follow up the case to ensure justice is served, adding that the verdict would only encourage rapists.

Smoke weed & get energy to work, Tanzanian President tells his cabinet members

Tanzanian President, John Pombe Magufuli, has advised his ministers to smoke marijuana to enable them to discharge their duties fearlessly.

The controversial president known globally as a dictator was of the view that his Water and Irrigation Minister, Makame Mbarawa is too lenient with workers under his ministry, for which reason some critical projects have been delaying.

According to tuko.co.ke, Magufuli recommended the narcotic herb to Mbarawa after inspecting water and irrigation projects and launching a road in Njombe, Igawa area, some of which fall under the purview of the minister.

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The president is quoted as saying:

”I just heard there was money set aside for these projects but nothing is being done on the ground. There was a time I visited the lake area and found out that there was nothing even after disbursing TSh 400 million and TSh 800 million consecutively, still no water.”

Apparently being fed up with the water shortage in certain parts of the east African country despite huge investments, Magufuli though marijuana could be a good antidote to his minister’s inefficiency. He said:

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”Now, Minister I would like to please ask you to be harsh when it comes to dispensing your duties. If you want and can, smoke the bhang from Njombe so that you become bold, do it.

Magufuli, however, warns his cabinet members to smoke the weed privately so that they do not encourage others from following suit.

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“However, smoke it in secrecy if need be, so that citizens cannot see you and follow suit.

“That way you will be harsh to the engineers when you go to inspect government projects,” he told the minister.”

Magufuli is due to face the Tanzanian voters at the ballot next year to seek a second and last term as president and, therefore, completion of pending government-sponsored projects is definitely a matter of urgency

Woman lost her senses after wearing pant given her by Nigerian Yahoo boyfriend

A 32-year-old woman, Rachael Godwin, who works as a physiotherapist at the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos, has shared the shocking story of how her boyfriend, a suspected Internet fraudster simply identified as Olumide, allegedly forced her to wear pants which he allegedly used for money rituals.

 According to our source, Rachael met with Olumide in January 2018 at one of the Bus Rapid Transit terminal leaving Ikorodu for Ikeja. They became friends and then exchanged contacts. Shortly after, they began dating.

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“I met Olumide in January 2018 on a BRT vehicle that was travelling to Ikeja from Ikorodu. I work at the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, as a physiotherapist.

“We started talking and became close friends and lovers. He told me that he had gonorrhoea and I treated him. I guess he must have hypnotised me such that I really didn’t know what I was doing. I gave him my entire savings; he even lodged at a hotel at Kosofe, Ketu, for four months and I paid the bill of N185,000.

“He later took me to his father at Ikosi. They live in a very unhealthy environment, which made me to pity them and I offered to help. I rented a house for myself in November 2018 and he visited me in the house that same month.” she said

A distraught Rachael said that sometime in December 2018, Olumide visited her home and told her he intends to buy a Toyota Venza which he looked up on the internet and informed her it would cost N11.8 million. She explained that when she asked him how he would raise the money for the car, he requested that they should open a joint account for that purpose.

“I used my land documents to get a loan and even promised to gather all I had in my account. My trouble started on December 14, 2018, when he came to my house and gave me one of my pants to wear. I refused to wear the pant because I was not comfortable with the request. He called one of my neighbours, Helen, who helped him to force me to wear the pants. After I was forced to wear the pants, I lost my senses and was taken to my mother’s house.

“I was taken to Ibadan for treatment and I got better. I did not suspect him then. I kept relating to him. On December 31, 2018, I went to a church for Thanksgiving. I was given some prayer points to be said at midnight.

“While I was praying sometime in January, Olumide started shouting, ‘Stop praying, they have wired the money, it is only $2,000 from Alaska in the USA,” she said

She immediately alerted the police and he was arrested.

Speaking from his detention cell, Olumide denied the allegations levelled against him by Rachael. In his confessional statement, he reportedly stated that he was shocked to discover that the $2,000 he got from the United States amounted to only N750,000. He said he gave Helen N300,000 and also gave part of the money to an unnamed man.

Confirming the arrest, the spokesperson of the state police command, CSP Chike Oti, said on the case was still being investigated at the command headquarters and that Olumide would be charged to court at the conclusion of the investigation.

First cousins who fell in love, get married in United States

A pair of first-cousins who fell in love with each other traveled hundreds of miles from Utah to Colorado to get married. Michael Lee and his close relative Angie Lee traveled from their home in Eagle Mountain, Utah to Colorado tie the knot on Monday. Their home state only allows cousins over the age of 65 to get married, but makes an exception for couples aged 55 if they can prove they are infertile.

Those rules are aimed at limiting the chances of children being born to first cousin parents with genetic abnormalities. First cousins share 12.5 per cent of their DNA, making them up to twice as likely to have a disabled child as a man and woman who aren’t closely related.

Michael and Angie finally got together last winter after 10 years apart, and say they are no longer worried about disapproval from their families. Angie told ABC4: ‘We said OK this is crazy but we’re adults now, we’re single now, we’re just going to go for it and who cares what our family thinks.’ They are now petitioning for Utah to change its ‘antiquated’ laws so that other first-cousin couples can tie the knot. Those same rules mean their marriage is not considered valid in Utah.

Recalling how he first realized his love for Angie when they were kids, he said: ‘We were second grade. ‘I remembered I stopped her mother and said “I’m going to marry Angie.” ‘She said, “No, sorry you can’t, you can be friends.’ He added: ‘I’ve always felt that life wasn’t fair. ‘Why did the person I wanted to be with most, and who I had the most attraction to the most, the most natural feelings for, why’d you have to be my cousin?’ He continued: ‘No one I’ve ever been with will make me feel as perfect as she does. Her being my cousin and some of the responses is a small price to pay.

Protests rock Anambra community over sale of community land to Fulani Herdsmen

Protests rocked Anam community in Anambra on Sunday morning as aggrieved villagers took to the streets to agitate after it was claimed that the king sold community land to the Fulani herdsmen for cattle grazing.

This was said to have resulted in a clash between the youths of the community and the herdsmen. Last year, the people of Amichi in Nnewi South Local Government Area, Anambra State, decided not to take any chance after some Fulani herdsmen pitched their camp in their community.

The herdsmen had arrived in the town and wanted to graze their cattle but the villagers refused and chased the told them out of the community.

Aba residents shun IPOB's directive, troop out en-mass to receive Buhari (Photos)

President Muhammadu Buhari’s visit to Aba, Abia state was a hugely successful one as residents of the city trouped out in-mass to cheer him despite calls from the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, to residents to stay at home during the visit.

Buhari was in the state to commission the 9.5 Megawatts Independent Power Plant, at Ariaria Market in Osisioma Ngwa council area before proceeding to Eyimba stadium to attend the All Progressives Congress (APC) rally on Tuesday.

Buhari was reported to have specifically told the people of the State at the campaign rally that “I’m fighting their corruption, while they are fighting my integrity, let’s see who wins”.

Drama as Buhari presents wrong APC governorship candidate in Cross River (Video)

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, presented a wrong person, Ndoma Egba instead of Owen Enoh as the All Progressive Congress (APC) governorship candidate during his party Campaign in Cross River State.

Watch video below

Students forced to eat raw chicken after being caught stealing (Video)

Some students who were caught stealing chicken have been forced to eat it raw as punishment for their crime.

The Police has arrested four men for forcing three Senior secondary school students to chew raw chicken. The students were alleged to have been caught stealing the chicken in Akomadan area of Ghana.

The suspects are Prince Adu, 40, a farmer; Peter Owusu Aduomi, 41, CPA; Francis Osei, 31, teacher and Abukari Anaba, 57.

According to the Ashanti Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Assistant Superintendent of Police Godwin Ahianyo, on January 21, 2019, the students, all juveniles, were arrested by the suspects for stealing a fowl.

And as their punishment, they were made to chew the fowl raw and were videoed while chewing the fowl. They were provided drinking water to wash down the bites to ensure they really ate the raw meat.

He said the video went viral and police investigation led to the arrest of the suspects who are currently in police custody to be processed for court.

According to him, “the police command condemns the behaviour of these suspects and assures the public that whoever is involved would be made to face the full rigours of the law to serve as a deterrent to others.”

Watch the short video below:

Former Prime Minister uses Nigeria to crack corruption joke at summit in Nairobi (Video)

Former Prime Minister of Kenya, Raila Odinga, used Nigeria to crack a corruption joke at a summit in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital on January 26^th, 2018.

While speaking at the summit, Odinga narrated the story of how a Nigerian Minister of Public Works learned corruption from his Malaysian counterpart some years back during a visit to the Asian country and then came back to improve on it.

Odinga in his joke implied that corrupt Nigerian government officials use 100% of public funds to build palatial mansions for themselves.

Watch the video of him cracking the joke at the summit below…

(VIDEO) Lightning strikes down a Brazilian footballer during match

A football player has been struck by a lightning bolt while playing during a youth game in Brazil.

The Associated Press reports that a Brazilian footballer recently needed medical attention after lightning hit the field during a youth tournament match.

Lightning struck during the Copa Sao Paulo event in Diadema, outside Sao Paulo, sending players scattering for cover.

Images that went viral showed Henrique, a defender for the Agua Santa team, groggy and lying on a bench.

Agua Santa said on Monday that Henrique recovered shortly after leaving the stadium in an ambulance and did not need to be taken to a hospital.

The opposing goalkeeper in the same match, Matheus Mendes of Atletico Mineiro, told ESPN Brazil he felt head pain because of the incident.

Mendes did not go with Henrique in the ambulance.

Follow the link below to Watch video

https://youtu.be/FoWoYFXjltI

(VIDEO) Nigerian policeman fell off moving van while celebrating reversal of Lagos CP’s redeployment

A policeman who was in jubilation over the reversal of the decision to redeploy the police commissioner from Lagos state fell off a moving van and nearly died.

While his colleagues fired gunshots in the air, he fell off the vehicle and the driver of the van ran over one of his legs.

The incident occurred on the premises of the Lagos State Police Command Headquarters in Ikeja area of the state.

 The police officer was among the personnel on the convoy of the Commissioner of Police, Mr Edgal Imohimi.


The officer was, thereafter, taken to the hospital for medical attention.
On Sunday, the police authorities directed Mr Kayode Egbetokun to take over from Imohimi as police commissioner in Lagos.

Imohimi was then redeployed to the Force Headquarters in Abuja as the Commissioner of Police in charge of Explosive Ordinance Unit.

He, however, told the reporters who were at the command headquarters to witness the handover and takeover ceremony between him and Mr Egbetokun that the ceremony would no longer hold.

The police commissioner said they were already in the process of concluding the procedure which began before they got a signal from the Force Headquarters to maintain status quo.  WATCH VIDEO BELOW

(VIDEO) Residents attack pastor caught with female panties in Edo

A popular pastor who goes around doing early-morning preaching in Auchi, Edo State was this morning, caught with a bag full of panties and bras.
He was accosted by some vigilante members and was asked why he is always preaching with a Ghana must go bag.

Unsatisfied by his explanation, they demanded for a check and many underwear were found inside the bag.

Out of curiosity, they dragged him to his house and church and more bags containing female underwear were discovered.  WATCH VIDEO BELOW

Catholic Priest beaten to coma in Abakaliki over N500 gate fee

Doctors and nurses at the Accident and Emergency Unit of the Federal Teaching Hospital Abakaliki (FETHA), Ebonyi State are battling to save the life of a Catholic priest, Rev. Fr. Mathew Orie who was reportedly beaten to coma at Abakaliki rice mill for refusing to give a revenue agent at the gate N500. The priest, who is the principal of Girls’ Technical College, Agba in Ishielu Local Government Area, had gone to the mill to buy rice for his students. He had reportedly paid all necessary revenues to enable him to take the rice out of the mill before he was accosted by one of the revenue agents, who demanded that he must be settled before taking the bags of rice out of the mill.
“Having been told that he has cleared every fee, Fr. Orie decided to carry his goods out of the gate and refused to pay N500 a tout asked him to pay. It was at this point that the tout descended on him and beat him to pulp. “It was policemen who were contacted that came and took him to the hospital where he is currently receiving treatment,” a witness said. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Loveth Odah, confirmed the incident. The PPRO disclosed that a motorcycle belonging to the suspect, which he abandoned while fleeing had been recovered by the police while efforts were on to apprehend him.
She said: “The police commissioner received a distress call that there was an issue at the rice mill. A reverend father went to the rice mill to buy rice. After buying the rice, he was cleared and was given a receipt of clearance that he can pass or go with the rice. “A man just emerged from nowhere and claimed that he is part of the rice mill revenue collectors and supposed to be settled by the Catholic priest.
The cleric told the agent that he has been cleared having paid all necessary revenues. One of the revenue collectors told the agent to allow the reverend father to pass because he has settled everything and he is a priest.
“The agent then descended on the reverend father when some of the revenue collectors removed a blockade at the gate to enable the cleric to pass. The cleric fainted and he was rushed to the hospital. But as I am speaking with you, he is responding to treatment. “The boy abandoned his motorcycle and escaped immediately. The police have discovered his motorcycle. Efforts are on to arrest the suspect.”

Man threatens to assassinate Buhari if he wins 2019 election

A Nigerian man has threatened to assassinate President Mumamadu Buhari if he is declared winner after the forthcoming presidential election in Nigeria. The man who goes by the name Victor Ogungide, has taken to the social media to drive home his threat. According to him, President Buhari made him to loose his job in 2017…. Read his posts below.  

Coup in Gabon: Military takes over power from President Ali Bongo

A military coup is ongoing in Gabon as soldiers in the west African country who claimed they are out “to restore democracy”, took control of the national radio station in the early hours of Monday.

The Military who claimed they have seized power in oil-rich Gabon, where the ailing leader’s family has ruled for 50 years,  read a short statement announcing a “National Restoration Council”. AFP reported that shots were being fired in Gabon’s capital Libreville, and around state television offices in the centre of the capital at about 6:30am (05:30 GMT). It was also gathered that the military vehicles blocked access to the site.

In its statement on Monday, the military officers condemned President Ali Bongo who addressed his compatriots last Monday from Morocco for the first time since suffering a stroke in October. They described the message as “a pitiful sight” and a “relentless attempt to cling onto power.”

Nigerian witches issue warning to Atiku ahead of 2019 elections

The Association of White Witches in Nigeria (AWWN) has warned the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar against repeating the mistake of former President Goodluck Jonathan if he wants to win the next presidential election. 

The witches claimed that Jonathan refused to listen to the “wise” an action that led to his defeat in 2015 by President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress, APC. AWWN spokesperson, Dr. Okhue Iboi, in a chat with Independent on Thursday, said Atiku should hearken to instructions if he wants to defeat Buhari during the presidential election. 

The association said for the former Vice President to win, he has to undertake the assignment of visiting the church, mosque, and the witches’ association for special prayers. According to Oboi, “These three spiritual places are keys in this year’s election. He has to go to these three places for special prayers to be offered on him. If he fails to do so and chooses to follow the way of Jonathan, then he should forget the presidency. “In 2015, we told President Jonathan the same thing, but he refused and we all know what happened after that. Millions of Nigerians want Atiku to be the next president, but he has this assignment to undertake so that God can clear his way to win the election.” Iboi disclosed that during their meeting which was held in Calabar, the Cross River State capital in the first week of December, it was clear that the gods favoured Atiku to be the next president of Nigeria but he must seek spiritual covering. “Atiku will win Buhari with a landslide if he obeys this simple instruction,” he said.