Miss Universe Nigeria 2014, Celestine Osem Dazzles in New Photo Shoot

Miss Universe Nigeria 2014, Celestine Osem is super hot in her newly released photos, as the graduate of Mass Communication from Madonna University Okija, Anambra State, looked all glam and sexy in every single photo, check it out:

Is the Solution to the Nigerian Problem Printing of a New N100 Note???

I don’t know how our government sets its priority, but seriously is it a new N100 note that we need now, at this very stage of our life as a country??? Well, the TRADE Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, also shares my sentiment, and over the weekend, faulted the introduction of new N100 bank notes by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, to commemorate Nigeria’s centenary celebration, saying it was ill-timed and wasteful.

President and Secretary General, Mr. Bobboi Kaigama and Musa Lawal respectively, TUC said in a statement:

“printing of new currency is usually a capital-intensive venture, and raises questions as to how the CBN hopes to grapple with the economic implications of redesigning and printing the new bank notes.
“Even the timing of the project is inappropriate, coming so late in the year when the economic hustle and bustle associated with Christmas and New Year are nigh.
“These, together with the heightened state of insecurity in parts of the country, the frenzy of political activities and electioneering campaigns towards the forthcoming 2015 elections, and the current slump in global oil prices make this the worst possible time for such drastic fiscal policy.”

What’s your take? Do you agree with a new note right now????

Africa International Film Festival, AFRIFF in Photos

The Africa International Film Festival, AFRIFF, in Tinapa, Cross River state just came to a close and it was the gathering of the stars, check out outfits of some your favourite celebs:

I Don’t Want to be Branded a Home Breaker – Rapper Ruggedman

Nigerian rapper and businessman, Ruggedman, who was alleged to have had an affair with his friend, 9ice’s ex wife, Toni Payne, many years ago, which reportedly led to the crisis in the marriage. In a recent interview, Ruggedy who has since denied any involvement in the mess, had this to say:

“As for 9ice, I have not seen him in a long time but all I wanted to do was to clear my name from the whole issue that happened. To me, it was a bad thing. In Nigeria, it is bad to be branded as a home breaker and that was why I fought tooth and nail to clear my name.
I never had any issue with 9ice and he never told me directly that he had any issue with me. Even in his song, Once Beaten, Twice Shy, he never mentioned my name; neither did he mention Toni Payne.
“I did not reply the song but I talked to him because it was his song that was causing the whole problem. I called him like a friend was supposed to do and told him that his song was causing some issues that I did not like. I asked if he was talking about me and he said no and
I told him to tell his publicist to clear my name but he refused and I wondered why.
I watch too many American movies, so I recorded the phone conversation because I felt that for you to have kept quiet for over six months and the whole story started from your song, then his silence meant a lot of things. I told them that I would give him a week to clear my name and when he did not do anything, I put out the conversation.
“When I called him at first, he said he was too busy to do anything but when I posted the conversation, he suddenly had time to talk and even had time to record a song to ‘diss’ me. Unfortunately ‘dissing’ me is like going into the bush with a stick to fight a hunter. I was sorting the whole thing out my way but when he put it into music, I had to respond because he mentioned my name in the song.
I did not reply by insulting him, instead I reminded him of how he started, where he came from and where he is in life right now. I reminded him of what I did for him and for him to go against me was not right and I ended it with ‘God bless you,’

And to the lesson learnt, he said:

“I learnt from the whole scenario that there is the need to be very careful and expect anything from anybody. Although that is how I have been living my life, I did not expect it from somebody that was close to me. But now, I expect it from everybody including my mother. Now I am careful about everybody and everything.

Nice one right???

See Photos: Cleric Kills 62-year old woman, dumps corpse on bridge

The police in Lagos have arrested a cleric, Mr. Isiaka Akanbi, for allegedly killing a 62-year-old woman, Raliatu Kareem.The police also accused Akanbi of stealing the deceased’s wallet and other personal effects.

Punch learnt that Akanbi, popularly called Alfa, had a traditional healing centre on Lawani Street, in the Olodi Apapa area of Lagos. Kareem, who hails from Ilorin, Kwara State, had known Akanbi for about 20 years as she was a close customer of his.

It was gathered that on Saturday, October 25, Kareem, who lived on Ope-Ewe Street, Agbado Ijaiye, Lagos, went to visit an elder sister, Risikatu Raheem, whose daughter put to bed in the Olodi Apapa area.She was said to have left Ijaiye after the monthly environmental exercise was over, informing her 20-year-old son, Abdullahi, of the visit to her sister.

Kareem reportedly stayed till around 6pm at her sister’s place on Salubi Street before she headed for the Alfa’s place.

Our correspondent learnt that two days after, Kareem did not return home as she promised. The family became apprehensive and went on her trail to the Olodi Apapa area.

After failing to locate Kareem at the sister’s apartment, some family members, who knew she was a friend of the cleric, decided to check the Alfa’s place.

On getting to Akanbi’s centre, the Alfa denied setting eyes on Kareem.However, the family became suspicious when Akanbi reportedly started packing his property, and preparing to flee the house some hours later.

The family was said to have raised the alarm and headed for the Tolu Police Station to report the incident. The police later came to arrest Akanbi.

During interrogation, 55-year-old Akanbi told the police that he did not kill the woman, adding that she died in his place. Akanbi added that when he realised the woman was dead, he buried her personal effects to erase any trace of her in his house.He also told the police that he took the corpse to Marine Bridge, abandoning it there.

He said,

 “On the evening of October 26, it is true that she visited me. We have been very good friends too. On that day, she just collapsed and became unconscious. I quickly rushed her to a nearby hospital, but I was shocked when the nurses told me she had died.

“I got a NAPEP tricycle and took her corpse to the Marine Bridge that same night and abandoned it there. I did not want people to trace her corpse to me. When I got home, I buried her wallet, handset, bangle and ring behind my house.

“I did not kill her. I am an Alfa, I do favour charms for traders. I met Raliatu in 1986. Since then, we have been family friends. She used to come to my place for consultation and I had been to her house too.”

One of Kareem’s children, Abdullahi, said the family wanted Akanbi to produce the corpse of their mother so that they could bury her appropriately.

He said, 

“I have seen the man in our house a number of times. But he said she died in his house and he now took her corpse to Marina Bridge and abandoned it. We want him to produce that corpse so that we can bury her appropriately.”

The family said Akanbi might have dumped Kareem’s corpse in the lagoon as they could not find it on the Marine Bridge where Akanbi claimed he had dropped it. After contacting all relevant agencies in the state, the family said the corpse had yet to be found.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Kenneth Nwosu, said,

 “The case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigations Department, Yaba, for further investigation.”

Pandemonium as Cultists Hack Man to Death in Lagos

Scene of the incident

There was pandemonium in a community market on Johnson Street, Somolu, Lagos State, on Wednesday as some suspected cultists shot and hacked to death a 22-year-old resident, identified only as Ahmed, aka Bobo.

And according to PUNCH Metro, the killers were suspected members of the Aiye Confraternity.

A trader, Tawakalitu Omosebi, told Punch on Friday during a visit to the market that Ahmed was trailed to the area by a three-man gang. She said:

 “It was around 8.30pm on Wednesday when those men stormed the market. They have been coming here for some time. On that day, they met him at a lotto kiosk. He was trying to check the result and he was alone. When he realised that he had been surrounded, he tried to escape, but they trapped him. They first shot him in the chest
before they started hacking him with cutlass. They later left, fearing that his friends might show up.”

Omosebi said the gang also attacked some of the traders and dispossessed customers of phones and money when they were leaving. Some minutes after the cultists left, Ahmed’s friends came and took him to a private hospital in the area.

“When they took him to the private hospital, the management of the hospital asked them to produce a police report, but since they were also cultists, they were afraid and that was how he died. It took about 30 mintues before he finally gave up,” she added.

Findings by PUNCH Metro showed there had been a series of cult clashes between some Eiye gang members on Johnson Street and their rivals in Aiye confraternity from Kusa Street, a neighbouring community. A source in the area said Ahmed was killed as a reprisal for an earlier attack he allegedly led. He said:

 “A few days earlier, Ahmed led an attack on Kusa Street and attacked a rival cult member. He thought the man was dead, but the man’s friends rushed him to the hospital and he survived. Those people now mobilised and killed him on Wednesday.”

Investigations further revealed that Ahmed was shot by a teenage gangster, identified only as Ibrahim, aka Elede. A resident, Kola Oyedapo, explained to PUNCH Metro that Elede had been responsible for some deaths in the area in recent times.

When their correspondent approached the owner of the lotto kiosk where Ahmed was reportedly killed, he declined comment, saying he was not around at the time of the incident. A resident, who was scanning through a printed paper, queried him on his interest in reporting the incident.

“Why do you want to report it? You should just leave the matter to rest,” he said.

Meanwhile, some traders in the market have lamented the spate of cult attacks in the street, pleading with the government to intervene.

A vegetable seller, Ibukun Matthew, said:

“We have been living in fear here. Some parents are even too scared to send their children to the market because of the rate at which these cultists strike. Anything can happen at any time.”

The Police Public Relations Officer, Kenneth Nwosu, confirmed the incident, adding that the corpse of the deceased had been deposited in the mortuary. He said:

“At about 8.30pm, two cult groups engaged one another in a rivalry clash at Johnson Street, Pedro, and in the process, a yet-to-be-identified male, suspected to be a member of one of the groups lost his life. Corpse has been deposited at the Gbagada General Hospital Morgue for autopsy.”

Beyonce & Jay Z were Drunk in Love at Solange's Wedding Reception

Aww this couple has made it through all the rumours..They were the perfect picture of love at Solange's wedding reception and couldn't keep their hands off each other..

Doesn't this make you want to shed a tear of joy...

See Photos: Will Smith & Wife, Jada Pictured with Will's Ex-Wife Sheree Fletcher

Will Smith and Sheree Fletcher divorced nearly 20 years ago, but Will's current wife Jada Pinkett Smith is still very protective of her man. The 46-year-old actor and Jada came out to celebrate the 22nd birthday of Will and Sheree's son Trey Smith, also known as DJ AcE, last Saturday at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. And Jada, 43, made sure to stake her claim by placing her hand gently on Will's left thigh, as he sat in between the two ladies. See more pics after the cut.

Will & Sheree before their divorce

Jada, Trey, and Will get together to pose for a picture

Happy birthday son!

LOL! An Ungrateful Guy Returns N100 Sound Sultan Gave Him

So this happened to Sound Sultan yesterday. And according to him, he had given N100 to a 

young man who was begging him for money only for the guy to rudely stuff the cash on 

Sultan's car as he drove off. Post continues after the cut.

FG introduces austerity measures as drop in oil price in int'l market poses threat to Nigerian economy

Following the continued drop in oil price in international market, the Federal government yesterdayannounced the introduction of some austerity measures such as tax introduction on luxury goods such as champagne, jets, amongst other, to be implemented to reduce the effect of the continued oil price decline on the Nigerian economy as Nigeria is largely an oil dependent economy.


Addressing newsmen in Abuja yesterday November 16th, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, said as part of measures to cushion the hardship that is to come due to the continued drop of oil price in the international market, government would henceforth collect “tax on luxurious goods,” and that this was part of measures aimed at increasing revenue from non-oil sectors.

"We all know the definition of luxury goods, we are still compiling the lists and one of the things we can tax is champagne, alcoholic beverages, jets, luxury cars- we will look at the engine capacity, and yachts. We are putting the list together but we intend to do a surcharge going forward on these items. The principle is that those who are better off in the society and I hope they won’t mind will be willing to share a bit more in remitting a little bit more to the treasury than what they normally do on these things.” she said

She revealed that another austerity measure being put in place by the government is the reduction of international travel within the public service

“We are not talking about (cutting) salaries and benefits. We are talking of trainings and travels and these will be only for critical and essential items which will be pre-approved by the Head of Service and the Director-General of the Budget Office and then if someone invites you for overseas course, you can go provided they pay for your training and your stay and you have to furnish evidence that they are paying before you will be allowed. The purpose of this is to tell you what we are doing and this team is calm and will be effective and we are working with the monetary policy authorities and together we will manage the economy in a transparent manner so that people need not have any fear.” she said

The Minister said that after studying the trend in the drop of oil price in the international market, the economic team approved a $5 per barrel reduction in the 2015 budget benchmark price for oil from $78 to $73 per barrel.

“As part of the response, the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and the Budget 2015 proposal to the National Assembly have been revised. Government is now proposing a benchmark of $73 dollars per barrel to the National Assembly compared to the earlier proposed benchmark of $78. Given the nature of the oil market, we needed to see the extent and trend of the oil price in order to take the right measures. Panic is not a strategy. It’s important that our strategies are based on facts and a clear understanding of both the strengths of the economy and the challenges posed by the drop in oil prices which is currently at $79 for our premium Bonny Light Crude. The drop in oil prices is a serious challenge which we must confront as a country. We must be prepared to make sacrifices where necessary".

On the advise from some scholars to print more Naira notes so as to reduce the effect of the oil price drop on Nigerians, the Minister said such an action if implemented would be disastrous to the nation as it would increase the inflation rate of the economy

"Printing money without adequate revenue support will lead to serious consequences for the country. It will spur inflation as the experiences of Germany in the early part of the last century and more recently, Argentina and Zimbabwe demonstrate. This prescription will victimise the poor and the middle class that it is supposedly protecting.” she said

She said one of the best ways of managing the situation was to create more jobs. She announced that President Jonathan would today November 17th launch the 4th edition of the You Win youth empowerment programme.

“To show how serious government is about job creation, President Jonathan will tomorrow, (Monday) November 17 launch the 4th edition of YouWin to support another 1,500 entrepreneurs along with a private equity fund for entrepreneurs. That is an expression of government’s commitment and seriousness to job creation.”

Dr Okonjo-Iweala said the reduction in price of the oil prices in the international market may continue but that government would do everything possible to make sure Nigeria is not adversely affected.

She said from the $4.1bn (N656bn) in the Excess Crude Account, the government would be withdrawing $2bn (N320bn) between now and the end of this year to take care of critical expenditure.

“We will work in such a way that we won’t deplete the ECA because we have to leave something for next year but we might go to tap about a half of it ($2bn) or slightly less than half to be able to meet expenditures that are crystalizing at the moment that we need to make.” she said

She also stated that infrastructural expenditure would still continue as the economy can only improve when infrastructural development is in place.

See Photos: Pregnant Kourtney Kardashian Shows off Bump at 2nd Baby Shower Party

Her sisters threw her a baby shower earlier in the week and on Sunday, Kourtney Kardashian 

was spotted headed to a SECOND baby shower party, though this time hosted by her friends 

in Calabasas, Los Angeles. It was pyjamas themed and the 35-year-old reality star stunned in a 

red onesie with devil's horns to match. Someone asked why the Kardashians are always having 

a party. lol. See more after the cut.

Gallant Soldiers recapture Chibok Town from Boko Haram

The authorities of the Nigerian military have said that the Special Forces have liberated the town of Chibok in Borno State from the control of Boko Haram. The troops had returned normalcy to the town.

Some insurgents, who were allegedly fleeing from the military offensive in the Mubi axis of Adamawa State, had moved into Chibok to take control of the embattled town on Thursday night.

The insurgents had earlier abducted over 200 girls, who were sitting for WAEC at Government Secondary School, Chibok, on April 14, 2014.

However, the military authorities said in an unsigned statement posted on the official website of the Nigerian military that troops had recaptured the town from the rampaging terrorists.

It was stated that the troops carrying out a mop-up operation are now in pursuit of fleeing insurgents.

The statement said, “The terrorists who attacked Chibok town early yesterday (Saturday) have been effectively flushed out of the area. The subsequent mopping up operation is still ongoing, as troops continue the pursuit of fleeing terrorists and arrest of the wounded.

“Meanwhile, normalcy has been restored and the town is now secured. Further details will follow later please.”

Also, the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig. Gen. Olajide Laleye, in a telephone conversation with a Punch correspondent, confirmed that the troops had liberated Chibok by 6.30pm on Saturday.

Investigations, however, revealed that the military authorities had deployed helicopter gunships and a large number of troops at Gombi Local Government Area to contain a surprise turn-out of large number of insurgents in the area after the recapturing of Mubi from them.