I Apologize For Disrespecting You – Basketmouth To Jonathan

Veteran Nigerian comedian, Basketmouth, has withdrawn his statement on the state of the nation, apologizing to former president, Goodluck Jonathan for disrespecting him.

In his last Instagram post, the comedian debunked rumors that he was one of the advocates for the emergence of Buhari’s administration.

He aired his stance on his alleged involvement in politics.

He said he never campaigned for President Buhari or any other politician (including former president, Jonathan).

He wrote: “Truth of the matter is that I would have voted anyone that could speak two words of English against Ex-president Goodluck Jonathan and that’s strictly based on the amount of greed and selfishness we witnessed from members of his (Jonathan’s) administration in the 6 years that he sat on the rock.

“I have said it numerous times that I am not a politician hence I try not to dabble in politics. However I think a few people interpret crying out against injustice by the one as campaign for the other.”

But barely 24 hours after airing his stance, Basketmouth apologized for appearing as though ‘disrespectful’ to Jonathan.

He, however, retracted his statement, stating he has ‘nothing but respect’ for the former president.

He wrote: “I have to sincerely apologise at this point that in expressing my opinion in my last post which was primarily to clear the air about who I campaigned, supported or rooted for or didn’t, I was disrespectful to a man I have nothing but respect.

“The last President may have had some wrong advisers and consequently decisions were made that will eventually impact on the economy, however I am sorry if it came across as an attack on the man Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

“We all desired a CHANGE, majority voted for it, now we have it, it is definitely a process, a tough one because I know the hustle is real…believe me, I know.

“I trust it can only get better, let’s just try to be patient,” he added.

Source: Dailypost

Read More

Navy Nabs Suspected Crude Oil Thieves, Destroy Illegal Refineries In Delta

The Nigerian Navy says it has arrested two suspects in connection with crude oil theft in Delta State.

The Navy spokesman, Commodore Chris Ezekobe, in a statement issued Wednesday, said the arrest was made by a patrol team deployed by the Nigeria Navy Ship (NNS) Delta.

He said the suspects, who have been handed over to officials of Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, for persecution, were picked up on 21 July, 2016 at Ugbosede Community in Warri South West Local Government of Delta State.

Commodore Ezekobe added that their arrest is in connection with the discovery of illegal refinery in the area, adding that at the time of arrest, items recovered from the suspects include 115 HP outboard engine speed boat.

He said a 90 HP boat conveying five drums each of substances suspected to be illegally refined AGO, were also recovered.

The Navy spokesman also said on 5th August 2016, the patrol team deployed by NNS Pathfinder, raided Betaland, an enclave close to Cawthorne Channel in Rivers State.

“During the raid, an illegal refinery site was discovered and destroyed. Items also destroyed in the site include 4 storage tanks each ladens with about 40,000 litres of suspected illegally refined AGO and a Cotonou boat containing about 60,000 litres of suspected stolen crude oil.

“The Nigerian Navy is once again sending a strong message to the criminal elements who are sabotaging the economic assets of the country to have a rethink or face the full wrath of the law”, Ezekobe said.

Read More

Bloggers Association Condemns EFCC’s Arrest Of Blogger, Calls For His Immediate Release

Read the statement below…

The Guild of Professional Bloggers of Nigeria (GPBN), the umbrella group of bloggers in Nigeria has condemned the arrest of an Abuja based blogger, Mr Abubakar Sidiq Usman by the EFCC. In a statement signed by its Ag President, Chris Kehinde Nwandu, on behalf of the Association, the Union asked the graft agency to immediately release the blogger .

It queries the action of the graft agency which is usurping the functions of the police. According to the body, the appropriate action to be taken by the agency if aggrieved is to report the matter to the police which will then carry out an investigation.

The accused will be made to write down its statement and if found culpable charged to court to defend his action.

While we will not condone, the action of any member, the Union said the manner with which the agency arrested the blogger is condemnable .It does not follow global practice.

It therefore calls on the graft agency to focus its attention on its core mandate which is financial and other economic related offences.

It will be recalled that Mr Abubakar Sodiq Usman , publisher of www.abusidiqu.com was picked up at his Kubwa, Abuja home in the early hours of yesterday by some operatives of the EFCC and was questioned over the alleged offence which contravenes sections of the Cyber Crime Act.

According to the Union, the association has set up an ethics committee within its ranks to handle issues like this. It requests any aggrieved person or organization to take full advantage of the ethics committee of the Union to address critical issues of this nature.

SIGNED

GUILD OF PROFESSIONAL BLOGGERS OF NIGERIA

Read More

Budget Padding: Presidency Explains Why It Cannot Act Now

The Presidency has reacted to the controversy in the House of Representatives over alleged N42billion constituency projects inserted into the budget at committee level after the House had passed the document.

Presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, yesterday said the wrangling was a matter the presidency could not dabble in yet.

According to him, it was only when the House of Representatives referred it to the executive that the presidency can act.

“It is a National Assembly matter, especially the House of Representatives,” he told Daily Trust.

“When it is sorted out there and referred to the Presidency, that is when the Presidency can do anything about it.

“There is the principle of separation of power,” Adesina added

Read More

Wickedness! Google Female EmPloyee Rap3d, Murdered & Burnt In Massachusetts Woods

A Google employee from New York City who disappeared on an afternoon jog while visiting her mother in Massachusetts has been found murdered in the woods.

Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said Monday that 27-year-old Vanessa Marcotte was reported missing after failing to return from a run between 1pm and 4pm in Princeton.

Her body was discovered at around 8.20pm Sunday by a state police K9 unit near Brooks Station Road, about a half-mile from her mother’s home.

A source told Fox25 in Boston that investigators were examining the possibility that Marcotte was sexually assaulted and set on fire, with burns to her hands, head and feet.

Authorities would not specify how she died but say her death appears to be a homicide. An autopsy is scheduled.

‘We have a horrible set of facts, horrible circumstance,’ Early told reporters during a news conference.

He added that it was unclear whether Marcotte’s killing was a random act of violence and urged local residents to remain vigilant and exercise caution.

Read More

Raymond Dokpesi Denies Alleged Sponsoring Of NDA

The National chairmanship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Raymond Aleogho Dokpesi, has denied sponsoring activities of the Niger Delta Avengers, saying that it is nothing but a blatant concoction of falsehood obviously laced with the political intention of throwing a spanner in the works of our nation wide campaign/consultation with PDP delegates throughout the country in our bid to contest the National Chairmanship of the PDP.

He called on all Nigerians and delegates to the PDP National Convention to ignore Cynthia Whyte allegation.

This was amde known in a statement signed by Alhaji Shehu Gabam DG, Raymond Dokpesi Campaign Organisation today.,

Read More

Rio 2016: CCTV Footage Shows How Young Thieves Target Tourists In Broad Daylight At The Olympics (Photos)

Astonishing footage posted to Facebook in Brazil shows how tourists are robbed in Rio de Janeiro at the 2016 Olympics. In the footage, a grown woman strides towards a pedestrian and flings her arm out in an attempt to steal her bag.

In another instance, a young boy hangs behind a man holding cash in his hand. Without one swift move, he grabs the cash and runs.

They snatch earphones, cash, handbags, backpacks, iPhones and jewellery. More photos below…

Read More

WAEC: May/June 2016 Results Released, 53% Pass

The West Africa Examinations Council (WAEC) has released the results of the May/June 2016 examination.

v

According to the examination body, 878,040 or 52.97 per cent of 1,544,758 candidates who wrote the examination obtained credits in five subjects and above, including English Language and Mathematics.

Head, National Office of the council, Mr Olutishe Adenipekun, stated this during the release of the results for senior secondary school students in Lagos on Friday, August 5.

Adenipekun said performance of candidates was encouraging compared to the 31.28 per cent and 38.68 per cent recorded in 2014 and 2015 respectively in the same category.

He added that out of those that sat for the examination, 1,014,573 of them representing 65.70 per cent obtained six credits and above.

He attributed the improvement to better commitment on the side of the students, teachers and governments at all levels.

“We should join hands to sustain this positive trend so that our children will reach their desired academic peak and the country better for it,’’ he said.

Adenipekun, however, said that the results of 137,295 candidates were withheld due to examination malpractices.

“The cases are being investigated and reports will be presented to the appropriate committee of the council.

“The committee’s decisions would be communicated to the affected candidates through their schools,’’ he said.

He noted that of the figure that sat for the examination, 825,650 were males, representing 53.5 per cent while 718,585 were females and represented 46.5 per cent.

The head of office added that out of the total number of the candidates that sat for the examination, 1,393,907 candidates had their results fully released, while 158,718 others have a few of their subjects still being processed due to errors mainly traceable to the candidates and schools in the course of registration or writing the examination..

.

Read More

Yahoo Baddest Boy? Nigeria’s Big Online Scammer Nabbed In Rivers State By EFCC & Interpol

Fast-lane to wealth and its troubles! A Nigerian suspected of being in charge of a network of internet scammers, stealing around $60m (£45m), has been arrested in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

According to the international police organisation, the 40-year-old Nigerian known as ‘Mike’, the head of an international criminal network behind thousands of online frauds was arrested in a joint operation by INTERPOL and the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC).

The baddest guy is believed to be behind scams totalling more than USD60m involving hundreds of victims worldwide. In one case a target was conned into paying out as much as $15.4m.

The network compromised email accounts of small to medium businesses around the world including in Australia, Canada, India, Malaysia, Romania, South Africa, Thailand and the US, with the financial victims mainly other companies dealing with these compromised accounts.

Heading a network of at least 40 individuals across Nigeria, Malaysia and South Africa which both provided malware and carried out the frauds, the alleged mastermind also had money laundering contacts in China, Europe and the US who provided bank account details for the illicit cash flow.

Following his arrest in Port Harcourt in southern Nigeria, a forensic examination of devices seized by the EFCC showed he had been involved in a range of criminal activities including business e-mail compromise (BEC) and romance scams.

The main two types of scam run by the 40-year-old targeted businesses were payment diversion fraud – where a supplier’s email would be compromised and fake messages would then be sent to the buyer with instructions for payment to a bank account under the criminal’s control – and ‘CEO fraud’.

In CEO fraud, the email account of a high-level executive is compromised and a request for a wire transfer is sent to another employee who has been identified as responsible for handling these requests. The money is then paid into a designated bank account held by the criminal.

‘Mike’ first came onto the law enforcement radar through a report provided to INTERPOL by Trend Micro, one of its strategic partners at the INTERPOL Global Complex for Innovation (IGCI) in Singapore. This, combined with actionable analysis and intelligence from Fortinet Fortiguard Labs in 2015, enabled specialists at the INTERPOL Digital Crime Centre, including experts from Cyber Defense Institute based at the IGCI, and the EFCC to locate the suspect in Nigeria, resulting in his arrest in June.

Abdul Chukkol, Head of the EFCC’s Cybercrime Section said the transnational nature of business e-mail compromise makes it complex to crack, but the arrest sent a clear signal that Nigeria could not be considered a safe haven for criminals.

“For a long time we have said in order to be effective, the fight against cybercrime must rely on public-private partnerships and international cooperation,” said Mr Chukkol.

“The success of this operation is the result of close cooperation between INTERPOL and the EFCC, whose understanding of the Nigerian environment made it possible to disrupt the criminal organization’s network traversing many countries, targeting individuals and companies,” added Mr Chukkol.

Noboru Nakatani, Executive Director of the IGCI warned that BEC poses a significant and growing threat, with tens of thousands of companies victimized in recent years.

“The public, and especially businesses, need to be alert to this type of cyber-enabled fraud” said Mr Nakatani. “Basic security protocols such as two-factor authentication and verification by other means before making a money transfer are essential to reduce the risk of falling victim to these scams,”

“It is exactly through this type of public and private sector cooperation that INTERPOL will continue to help member countries in bringing cybercriminals to justice no matter where they are,” concluded Mr Nakatani.

The 40-year-old, along with a 38-year-old also arrested by Nigerian authorities, faces charges including hacking, conspiracy and obtaining money under false pretences. Both are currently on administrative bail as the investigation continues.

Source: Interpol

Read More

Wow! You Won’t Believe What Singer Adele Was Seen Doing With Adekunle Gold’s Album (Photo)

Adekunle Gold has made headlines after popular international act, Adele, was seen with his new album.

Adekunle Gold stormed the Nigerian music scene with his groundbreaking hit single “Sade”.

Since then he has kept on mesmerizing Nigerians with lovely tunes from his rich stockpile of hits.

However, singing is not the only thing Adekunle Gold is known for. The young man is widely regarded as the King of photoshop in Nigeria consiedering his prowess and photoshopping skills.

He made headlines sometime ago when he photoshopped himself into photos of Kim Kardashian and Chrissy Teigen which got people talking.

This time around, the “Orente” crooner has made new headlines for his photoshopping ability.

He succeeded in beautifully photoshoping his album cover into the hands of inernational singing sensation, Adele as seen below:

It is obvious that without being told, no one would believe that Adele is not actually caryying the album cover of Adekunle Gold.

Read More

Ijaw Militants In Lagos Creeks Cry Out: We’re Ready To Surrender -

Just few days after Ijaw Youth Council claimed that the guys attacking, looting communities in parts of Lagos and Ogun states were not from Ijaw, some revelations are beginning to play out.

Militants and pipeline vandals within Arepo have indicated their commitment to surrender their arms to the Federal Govern­ment.

Leader of the Ijaw mili­tant group – Forest Soldiers and Adaka Boro Last Born – General Agbala, told The Sun in a private telephone inter­view that they are agitators and not criminals.

The Army, Air Force and the Navy, have been giving them the heat through aerial bom­bardment to rid the Arepo area of crim­inal elements.

The operation which also involve the Police, the De­partment of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Se­curity and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), has re­corded substantial success.

The militants leader, Agbala who spoke partly in pidgin English in the wake of the bombardment of the areas, said he has been doing his best to rid the area of criminal elements, saying that kid­napping has never been in his line. He said a visit to Ogun State would re­veal that he had in the past handed over a man named Ototo to the police, Bishibi­shi and other boys.

Agbala said, “something like kidnap­ping, armed robbery, I am not involved. But na some bad people dey spoil my name up and down. Na im make me dey vex.”

Speaking on their interaction with the government delegation that visited their camps, Agbala said the visit took place last year and he was the one who received the officials.

Agbala said they told the government delegation that they had no problem with anyone, even as he stated that they had since been waiting for the implementation of the ne­gotiation before the ongo­ing crisis started.

On how to end the pipeline vandalism, Agbala said the government del­egation requested they stop vandalizing pipelines so that they would be given contract to secure the pipe­lines, some would be sent to school, while others would engage in vocational training.

Asked to distinguish between vandals and mili­tants, particularly where his group belong to, Agbala said even though they are in Ogun and Lagos states, they are of Ijaw origin.

Corroborating Agbala’s submission, the General Secretary of Forest Soldiers and Adaka Boro Last Born, Honourable Omomoh, said they have always been as­sisting government in rid­ding the areas of criminal elements, saying they made some arrests in the past which the State Anti Rob­bery Squad (SARS) in Ogun State can testify to.

“We are still waiting for them. We are always loyal to the government, but the casualties recorded are too high,” Omomoh declared.

Meanwhile, the Joint Force, Operation Delta Safe (ODS), has allayed the fears of people in the Niger Delta region over any possible break of law and order.

The Commander of the ODS, Rear Admiral Joseph Okojie who spoke in Yena­goa, Bayelsa State vowed that the military would not abdicate its responsibilities to protect the territorial in­tegrity, lives and property in the region.

While dismissing threats by those he stated have no social base, he assured that ODS with its multi agency com­position is capable of nip­ping any security situation in the bud.

Read More

Budget Padding Crisis: Abdulmumin Jibrin Arrives At ICPC Office To Submit Petition Against Speaker Dogara (Photos)

Abdulmumin Jibrin, the ousted Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation arrived at ICPC office on Monday, August 1, to submit his petition against Speaker Yakubu Dogara; Deputy Speaker, Yusuf Lasun; Whip Alhassan Doguwa and Minority leader, Leo Ogor.

The Kano State lawmaker has accused the Speaker and some other lawmakers of corruption and padding of the 2016 budget and allocating to themselves 40billion naira out of the 100billion allocated to the entire National Assembly.

Mr Jibrin said via his twitter handle that he would fully cooperate with investigators to understand the level of budget fraud and abuse of office by Speaker Dogara and other lawmakers.

“My lawyers have confirmed my appointments for today(Monday) with security and anti corruption agencies to personally provide insight on my petition,” he said in a series of tweets earlier today,”

More photos below…

Read More

‘One Man Said If I Continue With This Job I Can’t Get Married & My Mum Hated The Work’ – Female Welder

UNICEF shared this inspiring story of a young female Welder, Rosemary Amposah from Bechem, Ghana.

“My mother said I should become a policewoman, a nurse or a doctor. She said those are the jobs that people respect,” Rosemary said. “When I left high school, there was very little to do. I worked at a filling station selling petrol but had very little fulfillment.

I always asked myself, what if this company collapses or the owner decides to sack me? My father brought me here to learn welding. My mother hated the idea and always compares me with my sister who went into nursing training. But my dad supports me. Everybody says it’s a man’s job. In my class, there are fifteen boys and I was the first girl to join them. I walk a very long distance to get to school and each time, I get someone who passes a negative comment. Like the last time, one man saw me and said if I continue with this job I can’t get married and it would be difficult to give birth.I think they are trying to pull me down but I’m not interested.”

Read More

Happy 40th Birthday To Football Legend Kanu Nwankwo,

Happy birthday to Kanu Nwankwo, the footballer who gave the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Ajax, Inter Milan and Arsenal, so many fond memories. He turns 40 today. Wishing him many more amazing years ahead from all of us at Emmygist!

Read More

The Prices Of The Newly Launched Gionee M6 And M6 Plus Will Surprise You

The monstrous battery capacity Gionee M6 device has been launched together with elder brother Gionee M6 Plus

Now the only differences between the Gionee M6 and Gionee M6 Plus can be seen in their display sizes and batteries.

While the Gionee M6 spots 5.5inches display together with 5000mAh battery, the M6 Plus on the other hand is bigger, featuring 6.0 inches display and 6020mAh battery capacity, sharing similar battery capacity with their younger brother Gionee M5.

Another important feature to note on the Gionee M6 and M6 Plus is that they both came in 2 variants of 64GB and 128GB internal storage.

But we are interested in taking look at the price tags for these two devices.

The launch price for Gionee M6 64GB variant was pegged somewhere around $409 (N122,700) while its 128GB variant is around $439 (N131,700).

Then on the Gionee M6 Plus 64GB variant, the launch price was place at around $454 (N136,200) and its 128GB variant stood somewhere around $485 (N145,500).

Having seen the prices for the Gionee M6 and M6 Plus newly launched devices, what are your take on the prices? Do you consider them pricey or are the prices truly commensurate with the powerful specs that the devices are packed with.

Or will you rather go for Samsung devices of similar price range? What are your takes?

Read More