April 2017

Due to fear of extremism in the northwestern Muslim-majority region of Xinjiang, the Chinese government has listed dozens of 'extreme' Islamic names banned in the Xinjiang province.

The list titled 'Naming Rules For Ethnic Minorities' on the government document which was signed by the ruling Chinese Communist Party and disseminated by Uighur groups included 23 names related to historic religious, political figures and places that are deemed to be ‘overly religious’
The list includes ‘Imam,’ 'Hajj,’ 'Turknaz,' 'Mujahid,' 'Muhammad,  'Azhar' and 'Wahhab,' while 'Saddam,' 'Arafat,' 'Medina' and 'Cairo are also on the list.

According to the government ruling, if a parent chooses to name his/her child one of the barred names, the child will be denied government benefits in the country.

Confirming the ban, a government official told RFA. 
He said:‘You’re not allowed to give names with a strong religious flavor, such as Jihad or names like that. The most important thing here is the connotations of the name. It mustn’t have connotations of holy war or of splittism Xinjiang independence.
However, the World Uyghur Congress, an advocacy group from the ethnic minority operating outside of China, has condemned the new policy. 

‘In setting limits on the naming of Uyghurs, the Chinese government is, in fact, engaging in political persecution under another guise,’

Dilxat Raxit, a spokesman for the group, told RFA. 
“'They are afraid that people with such names will become alienated from Chinese policies in the region.'

Meets Media’ is a monthly interactive chat and networking circle for Media Professionals mainly from Nigeria. The media hangout creates an enabling environment for communication and marketing professionals to interact with leading media organizations on how their respective companies/organizations work. The platform also gives opportunity for Brands, Politicians, Actors, Musicians, others to interact and share information with the media on their respective projects, achievements, ambitions, and other topical issues. For the month of May, let’s discuss/talk Female Genital Mutilation at #MeetsMedia 12th edition with Nollywood actor Funke Akindele aka Jenifa. The #endcuttinggirls UNICEF-powered Frown Challenge targets using the agents of change (Young generation) to create information pressure and actions that will catalyse ending female genital mutilation with the use of catalytic photographs. A large population visits the social media for entertainment, information, news, fun, networking and so on whenever time permits, But then It is the real life situations that drive what happens on the social media. But close to 95% of all activities that happen on the social media are galvanized by youths as they share striking messages driven by interesting audios/videos, catchy photographs and attractive titles of links (webpage). This implies that for a full scale multimedia campaign, there must not only be a customised social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook. Youtube, Instagram and a website, but also a consistent real life intervention or activity to feed and populate those social media platforms. 2017 #endcuttinggirls FROWN CHALLENGE. May edition of ‘Meets Media’ networking and interactive chat event is scheduled to happen Sunday 7th, 2017 from 5PM to 7PM Nigeria time at The Emperor’s Place, #32b Ologun Agbaje off Adeola Odeku, Victoria Island, Lagos Nigeria. Contact: 08113299254 Email: meetsmedia@gmail.com Website: www.meetsmedia.com



The Nigeria Police Force has returned all the documents it collected from Senator Dajuma Goje's Abuja apartment during a search last Thursday April 20th. The police searched the apartment following allegations that some stolen funds were being kept in the house.

The police returned the documents today after the senate issued an order to the IGP, Ibrahim Idris, to do so. Senator Goje yesterday alleged that some of the documents seized were documents of the 2017 budget, an allegation the police has since denied.




Senate Majority leader, Ahmed Lawan, says the 2017 budget would hopefully be ready for President Buhari to sign into law next week. Lawan disclosed this when he spoke to state house correpsondents after he had a closed door meeting with President Buhari.
According to Lawan, the search carried out at the home of Senate Chairman on Appropriation, Danjuma Goje, and the allegedly carting away of some documents relating to the budget, are some of the factors that have caused the delay of the passage of the budget by the senate.
"This and other things that happened and essentially, the trauma that the Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation had to go through, affected the process of budgeting. When we were going on Easter recess, members of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, including that of the House, did not go on recess. They stayed back because that was the arrangement so that by the time we returned on April 25, that was Tuesday, they should lay the report of the budget. Unfortunately, that was not possible because of what happened. But the good news is that we are doing everything possible to ensure that we catch up with the lost time. By the grace of God, I am thinking that by next week, we should be able to finish our own work and and pass the budget for Mr President to sign"he said

Kim Kardashian while discussing Caitlyn's new memoir with Ellen DeGeneres, disclosed  that she felt hurt by the things Caitlyn wrote in the book, especially about the things she said of her mother, but revealed that she will always love Caitlyn in spite of how hard she makes it.

Speaking on how the book has affected her mother, Kim said Caitlyn is not being honest about certain things regarding her marriage to Kris. 

She said:
"My heart breaks for my mom, because I feel like she's been through so much...She's promoting this book and she's saying all these things and, you know, I just don't think it's necessary," she tells Ellen. "I just feel like it's unfair; things aren't truthful." 
"I mean, I feel like it's taken her a really long time to be honest with herself," she says of Caitlyn, who revealed she is transgender in 2015. "I don't expect her to be honest about my mom now, but it's just so hurtful. Like, I just wish her all the success in the world, but not at our expense."

Kim reveals thaKendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner are still close to Caitlyn and that for their sake, she is trying to be respectful. She also said that her mother is trying so hard to do same for the sake of daughters, despite how much Caitlyn has hurt her with the 'lies' in the book.

Kim adds:
 "I think my mom's been so respectful for so long and always wanting Caitlyn around and always wanting to have a great relationship with Caitlyn. But I think, you know, for the Kardashians—she doesn't like to say that word or she said that in her book; on Diane Sawyer, she purposely never said our name."
Ellen pointed out that Kim was always the one who was so accepting of Caitlyn's transformation and trying to get everyone to understand her and she asked Kim if Caitlyn's recent revelation will affect that relationship, to which Kim responded:

"I haven't talked to her in a couple of weeks," she says. "I'll always, always love her. That was my stepdad for so many years. She taught me about character and so much growing up, and I just feel like I don't respect the character that she's showing now. But, like I said, I'll still always have a major love for her, for who she was in my life. I'm really sentimental; I think my mom's that way. And I'll never say...you know, it's still Kendall and Kylie's dad, so I want to be respectful, but I just feel like there's no need for a book. You know, tell your story—but just don't bash other people. I just think, like, it's not tasteful."

The Presidency through Femi Adeshina (the special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity) has responded to ta news headline in a national newspaper of Wednesday, April 26, entitled: Buhari's Government Harrassing My Family, Says Jonathan.

The paper said former President Goodluck Jonathan made the allegation in a new book, "Against The Run of Play", written by the Chairman of ThisDay Editorial Board, Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi. 
The former president also reportedly disagreed with the style being used by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari in fighting corruption. 

The presidency says, 'we make bold to state unequivocally that President Buhari harasses nobody; he merely allows the law to take its course. For the umpteenth time, we say that anybody without skeleton in his or her cupboard, has nothing to fear about the bared fangs of the anti-corruption initiative. Fear belongs only to those who have abused trust while in office. Anybody who feels aggrieved is free to approach the courts to seek redress or justice. President Buhari believes in the rule of law and that is why his campaign against corruption is anchored on that plank. With regard to President Buhari's anti-graft style, which the former president deprecates, given the scale of revelations and recoveries so far by the anti-corruption agencies, it is obvious that corruption had an uninhibited course during our recent past. 

In any case, time will give the verdict on whose style of fighting corruption ultimately yielded the most dividends. For now, President Buhari is resolute and single-minded in the fact that his crusade against graft is not targeted at any individual or group. He firmly believes that national interest must always be placed above personal interest, no matter who is involved.


Three female suicide bombers were on Monday, April 24, intercepted in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

The suicide bombers had attempted to enter Mamanti village Jere local government area. One of the bombers detonated her bomb which claimed her life but the other two were shot dead while trying to flee. 
A statement by NEMA said:
"They were intercepted by Civilian JTF. In the process, one of the bombers detonated IED strapped to her body killing herself alone. The other two tried to escape but were shot dead by security personnel on duty. EOD mine drafted to the scene to sanitise and render the area safe. Normalcy is restored."
More photos below...




A fatal accident that occured over the weekend on the Ikot-Ekpene-Aba Expressway in Aba, Abia state, led to the death of many and several others injured. The accident, which involved a truck, a couple of tricylces, a commercial bus and a private owned car, was reportedly caused by the truck.
According to witnesses, the truck, heavily loaded with chippings, was speeding as it descended the Ogbor Hill Bridge, when it lost control and crashed into several vehicles and pedestrians. The bus and tricycles popularly called Keke Napep were loading passengers when the truch hit them, sending them through the rail of the bridge, and into the water below. 

The Nation reports that the truck driver and his conductor escaped the scene of the accident. Witnesses also disclosed that about 20 people were affected by the accidents with at least 10 dead.
“The man was coming down the bridge with speed and in the process, lost control of his vehicle. The bus and some keke were loading their passengers before the accident. The car down the bridge was hit and it destroyed the rail before landing there," a witness told The Nation.
“I am not sure anyone in that car survived. Another private car was also affected and I don’t think the passengers survived. The people affected were about 20 or more; about 10 persons died. Many people sustained injuries because it happened during the rush hour.”
 An FRSC personnel, who pleaded for anonymity, said 21 persons were affected in the accident – eight females and 13 males; three persons died. He said that the injured victims are receiving treatment at a private hospital on the Aba-Ikot Ekpene Expressway.


More photos below....





The Chief Security Officer to President Buhari, Bashir Abubakar, today expelled the State House correspondent of The Punch newspaper, Olalekan Adetayo, from Aso Rock over a report on the president’s health published in the Sunday edition of the paper.

Bashir who believed the report was an affront on the presidency, seized Adetayo's tag before ordering military officers to escort him to the Press Gallery of the Council Chamber to pick his belongings and then removed from Aso Rock.

Source :Lindaikejsblog

Niger state governor, Abubakar Bello, says the N6 bn found in various accounts operated by a former Commissioner of Local Government in the state and ex PDP governorship candidate of the state, Kantigi Liman, belongs to the state government.

On April 11th, EFCC disclosed it had found N4 billion in two company accounts linked to Liman and another N2 billion was yesterday found in a UBA account linked to Liman.

In an interview with state house correspondents yesterday, Bello said the money belongs to the state government. According to him, the recovered funds is believed to have been diverted by the suspect through inflated hajj subsidies offered by the state government to pilgrims when he served as the Chairman of the Niger State Pilgrims' Agency.
He said

"I'm aware that the EFCC is investigating the ecological funds. At the inception of this administration, we realised that the ecological funds disappeared. I did not have any evidence that it was utilised to address any ecological issues and we are faced with major ecological problems especially in Mokwa, Agaie, Bida, part of Minna, Rafin Gora and Mariga. We are doing our best to address the ecological problems. We need funds and unfortunately the N2 billion that was given to the state was not judiciously used to address the ecological challenges. If it had been used properly maybe our burden might have been reduced by now, but we are having sleepless nights over ecological issues and we are still approaching the Federal Government to assist us.



The Presidency has said that the Presidential Committee ordered earlier this week by President Buhari to probe certain allegations against the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Engineer Babachir Lawal, and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, NIA, Mr. Ayo Oke, will do its work with uttermost diligence and without fear or favor.

Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Laolu Akande, in a statement released today, said the committee had already commenced its work in earnest.
President Buhari on Wednesday established the 3-man panel headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, with Attorney-General & Justice Minister, Abubakar Malami and National Security Adviser, Rtd Major General Babagana Munguno as members, to investigate allegations of legal and due process violations made against the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF and the discovery of large amounts of foreign and local currencies by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, in a residential apartment in Ikoyi, Lagos. In the discharge of its work, the panel is expected to invite all relevant officials and private individuals who may be connected to both cases. It will also obtain and scrutinize documents that may throw some light on the issues raised in both cases. All its proceedings will however be in closed sessions to avoid speculations, allow for full disclosure and enhance the pace of proceedings. The panel which is expected to submit its report to the President at the expiration of the 14-day deadline, will conduct it’s work with utmost diligence and without fear or favour.

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