U.S. FIRST LADY EXPRESSES OUTRAGE OVER KIDNAPPED NIGERIAN GIRLS

 

First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama has taken the rare step of delivering her husband President Barack Obama's weekly radio address on Saturday to express outrage over the kidnapping of some 200 girls in Nigeria last month.

"Like millions of people across the globe, my husband and I are outraged and heartbroken over the kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian girls from their school dormitory in the middle of the night," Mrs. Obama said in the address.

"This unconscionable act was committed by a terrorist group determined to keep these girls from getting an education - grown men attempting to snuff out the aspirations of young girls."

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan said on Friday he believed the girls, abducted by militant Islamist group Boko Haram, were still in his country.

Militants stormed a secondary school in the village of Chibok, near the Cameroon border, on April 14, and kidnapped the girls, who were taking exams at the time. Fifty have since escaped, but more than 200 remain with the insurgents.

The United States offered this week to send a team of experts to Nigeria to support the government's response effort, which has been criticized for being slow.

"I want you to know that Barack has directed our government to do everything possible to support the Nigerian government's efforts to find these girls and bring them home," Mrs. Obama said. "In these girls, Barack and I see our own daughters. We see their hopes, their dreams - and we can only imagine the anguish their parents are feeling right now."

The first lady noted that the school where the girls were abducted had been closed recently because of terrorist threats, but the girls insisted on coming back to take exams.

"They were so determined to move to the next level of their education...so determined to one day build careers of their own and make their families and communities proud," she said.

"And what happened in Nigeria was not an isolated incident. It's a story we see every day as girls around the world risk their lives to pursue their ambitions."
 <Reuters>

BLOGGER BAGS TEN YEARS AND THOUSAND LASHES IN SAUDI.

 A blogger in Saudi Arabia who has been identified as Raif Badawi has been sentenced to ten years in jail, a thousand lashes and a fine worth millions of riyals.
According to a news website, "Raif Badawi originally faced seven years jail and 600 lashes, but an appeal court overturned that sentence and ordered a retrial.
Amnesty International has called the new sentence 'outrageous' and says Badawi is a 'prisoner of conscience'. His website has been closed since his first trial.
Badawi was arrested in June 2012 and charged with cyber crime and disobeying his father - a crime in Saudi Arabia - in relation to his Saudi Liberal Network website..
The site included articles that were critical of senior religious figures such as Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti, according to Human Rights Watch.
The prosecution had demanded that Badawi be tried for apostasy, a crime which carries the death penalty in Saudi Arabia, but his original trial judge dismissed that charge.
Badawi's lawyers have slammed yesterday's sentence as too harsh, althought the prosecutor had asked for a harsher penalty, according to news website Sabq.
The ruling is subject to appeal but, after his last appeal led to a stiffer penalty, and with his original lawyer, human rights activist Waleed Abu al-Khair, currently held in Riyadh's Malaz Prison on charges including 'breaking allegiance with the king', Badawi may think twice about challenging the latest ruling.
Khair was detained incommunicado in April after appearing in court in Riyadh on sedition charges, according to his wife."

  *sighs* didn't know blogging is now a crime in some parts of the world.

WHO reveals drop down in maternal deaths world wide.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a study, reporting that the rate of maternal deaths across the globe has fallen to 45% since 1990.
Here's an excerpt from punchng...

"The statistics, released by the World Health Organization, also provide new evidence on the causes of women dying in pregnancy or childbirth.

The WHO says most are preventable, highlighting the need for more investment in pregnancy care.

In 1990, more than half a million women died in pregnancy or childbirth – by 2013 the figure was 289,000.

But the WHO say the figure it still too high – with 33 maternal deaths around the world every hour.

The gap between rich and poor countries is wide. In sub-Saharaan Africa, a 15-year-old girl has a one in 40 risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth. In Europe, that risk is one in 3,300.

The WHO says the study highlights the need for poorer countries to invest more in health care.

But there is also evidence that in some rich countries such as the United States, maternal mortality is rising, say health experts.

More than one in four maternal deaths is caused by pre-existing conditions which complicate pregnancy, such as diabetes, HIV, malaria and obesity."

This is good News i believe.

NIGERIA YOUTHS DEMAND ANSWERS TO MISSING SCHOOL GIRLS' RIDDLE

Nigerians, especially the youths have been playing active roles towards ensuring the return of the kidnapped school girls in chibok, Borno state.
The youths have launched series of activities ranging from peaceful protest to dedication of display pictures and Personal messages on social media, demanding that the terrorists should "bring back our girls" and that the federal government should be more responsible, while the believers among them take to their places of worship to pray for the victims.
  In view of these, the youths have began asking more direct questions that appears puzzling, here is what a close source sent to me on social media...
 "The students are said to be SSS3 student writing physics examination. QUESTIONS:1. Why are their names not yet published by the school, state government and WAEC?2.Why are their pictures not over the news media?3. How come all 235 students are in SSS3 and all came to write physics examination when the total number of students in the whole school are around 1200?4. It was announced that the Borno states govt gave N1m each to parents of the missing girls. If thats true.QUESTIONS:1.Why was these money given to these parents, was it as compensation for the kidnap or compensation for their deaths?2. On Tuesday 29th April 2014,the senator from Borno said in the senate that the girls has been taken out of the country to Chad, Niger and Cameroon and married off to their adoptors.QUESTIONS: How come these senators know so much, who are their informants? Why is the wife of the state governor organising women to pressure FG in Abuja after the National Security Council has ordered the armed forces to use all state resources to secure the release of the adopted Girls. I just wonder how 200+ girls can be kidnapped at once. How come we havent seen those girls who they said have escaped on tv?If the Ss3 student aren't up to 120 in a school of 1200, how is it possible 234 girls are missing?Where are the school authorities? We haven't seen any of them on tv.We are not fools. WHO IS FOOLING WHO? I need objective answers pls, its time all Nigerians start asking quesions than drawing to conclusion.j

GEJ ISSUES PRESIDENTIAL ORDERS TO SHETTIMA

Nigeria President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is finally doing something worthy about the 200+ missing school girls in Borno state recently. Here is an update on the issue, according to PUNCH NG...
"The meeting between President Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State on the schoolgirls abducted in Chibok ended in the early hours of Sunday with a presidential directive that all the missing schoolgirls must be recovered alive.

 Shettima attended the meeting at the Presidential Villa alongside his deputy, his Chief of Staff, the state Commissioner for Education, Mr. Musa Kubo, the chairman of the local government, the State Commissioner of Police, the Divisional Police Officer and the Principal of the school, Asabe Kwabura among others.

On the President’s side were Vice President Namadi Sambo; President of the Senate, David Mark; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius, security chiefs and some other top presidential aides.

 Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, told State House correspondents that the clear instruction from the President to those who attended the meeting was that the schoolgirls should be recovered on time."

PREMIERE MONOTECHNIC OF COMMUNICATION IN NIGERIA PREPARES FOR STUDENTS WEEK

 After about seven months of academics work, students of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism are about to let off the studious steam of the past months in their students week activities which is set to hold for a week in the first week of June.

  In an interview with the chairman of the students representatives committee (SRC) Ojebola Mathew Opeoluwa, a final year student of the institute, he said that the students week activities of this session promises to be positively different from the previous ones. " I can assure my fellow students that this year's students week activities is going to be the best among the ones we've been having in the past because we (the committee) are bringing in the unusual in better ways than one" he said.

  He said further said that "progressive steps have been made by the committee towards ensuring adequate sponsors for a successful outcome of the week"

  In assuring his fellow students that the forthcoming student week promises to be more interesting than the previous ones, He said "we've set up sub committees for efficient handling of most of these activities, and to give the students a tip of the iceberg, there's a pre-students week activities coming up in exactly a month to the students week itself and that will be in few weeks time".

  About the lined up activities for the event, the chairman said, " we are planning on having both educational and entertaining programs for the event and some of the activities we have lined up are; inter-school debate, raffle draw, corporate social responsibilities, cultural day, essay competition, friendly matches, award giving, contests, dinners and several other activities that are planned surprises for students"

  He assured NIJ students that "we have also secured appointments with some top artistes in the entertainment industry for appearance and shows." 

 "Our gates are widely opened for students of other tertiary institutions in the country to participate with us in our students week activities and we assure them of adequate security". The SRC chairman concluded.   

    

MILITARY RULE IN NIGERIA

WHAT IS MILITARY SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT?

This is a structure of rule that involves a country’s administration and implementation of its law and order, under the control of the military.

INTRODUCTION TO MILITARY RULE IN NIGERIA.

Military rule is not peculiar to Nigeria; it is a continental phenomenon in Africa and some other parts of the world. The military system of government was first introduced into Nigeria on January 15 1966 after a military coup (the first ever in Nigeria) led by the leader of a group of majors, Late Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu. An example of what military rule is all about can be sighted In the opening paragraph of the broadcast that marked the genesis of the military rule in Nigeria. It stated thus “In the name of the supreme council of the revolution of the armed forces, I declare martial law over the northern provinces of Nigeria. The constitution is suspended and the regional governments and elected assemblies are hereby dissolved. All political, cultural, tribal and trade union activities, together with all demonstrations and unauthorized gatherings, excluding religious worship, are banned until further notice. The aim of the Revolutionary council is to establish a strong united and prosperous nation, free from corruption and internal strife……………….”.

ACHIEVEMENTS/SUCCESS OF MILITARY RULE IN NIGERIA.

ü Keeping The Country Together: The first major achievement of military government in Nigeria was keeping the country together as one geographical entity.

ü Large Scale Rehabilitation: The military embarked on large scale rehabilitation programs at the end of the Nigerian civil war.

ü Reorganization of The Army: The Nigerian army was put in a better condition by flushing out unqualified and illiterate soldiers after the war ended.

ü Introduction of New Currency: The Nigerian currency was changed by the military in 1973 from pound, shilling and pence to Naira and kobo.

ü Introduction of N.Y.S.C.: The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme was established in 1973 during the administration of General Gowon.

ü Creation of states.

ü Maintenance of peace.