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(1) • A family member of one of the passengers onboard the ill-fated AirAsia after watching news reports showing an unidentified body floating in the Java Sea, inside the crisis-centre at Surabaya, Indonesia... on Tuesday. (2) Members of the Indonesian Air Force show items retrieved from the Java Sea during search and rescue operations for the victims... on Tuesday. | credits: AFP ‘PAPA, please come home. ‘I still need you.’ This was the heartbreaking message posted on the social media on Tuesday by Angela Ranastianis, the daughter of Captain Iriyanto, the pilot of the ill-fated AirAsia plane   which disappeared on Sunday morning. Angela certainly was not aware that rescue teams had retrieved and tallied a grim inventory of bodies and debris from the plane off the coast of southwestern Borneo in Indonesia. She had also posted Iriyanto’s picture on the social media hours after her grandfather, said the last time he saw his son was at the funeral of ...

Oyo gov candidates As Nigerians prepare for the February 2015 governorship election, Punch Online serves you the profiles of the governorship candidates of dominant parties in different states.   OYO STATE AJIMOBI (APC) FOLARIN (PDP) ALAO-AKALA (LABOUR PARTY) LADOJA (ACCORD PARTY)

Director of Defence Information, Maj.-Gen. Chris Olukolade Seven suspected Boko Haram terrorists were on Monday killed when an Improvised Explosive Device hidden in a Toyota Pick-up van they were driving in exploded before they could get to Biu Market, Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. A security source, who spoke on condition of anonymity with our correspondent from Biu, said the suspected terrorists hid the explosives among bags of beans and maize to create the impression that they were traders going to the market. But the IEDs exploded before they could get to the market, which the source said was their main target. He said, “A Toyota pickup van loaded with maize and beans with IED hidden under it belonging to Boko Haram insurgents exploded near Chikwarkir village of Biu killing all its seven occupants. “The insurgents must have intended to sneak into Biu Market to detonate the explosives and thereby kill many people. As you know, it is harvest period an...

Drinking water pipes at Ijora-Bad In the second part of his report, KUNLE FALAYI takes on the Lagos State Water Corporation armed with the report of a chemical analysis done on a sample of the contaminated water which some Lagos residents drink oblivious of the dangers they face At Ijora-Badia, one of Lagos’ most notorious slums, living around dirt is obviously not strange to the residents. But the water they buy from vendors who get their supply from the Lagos State Water Corporation may be doing them more harm than good. A sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, which is Target 10 under Goal Seven of the Millennium Development Goals, continues to be an illusion to people like the residents of this area. According to the United Nations, at least 783 million people the world over lack access to clean water. Our correspondent noticed that many residents of the Ijora-Badia community dispose of their human wastes in open sewers while most ...

The missing AirAsia’s Airbus A320-200PK-AXC and some relatives of the 162 passengers on board There was grief across the globe on Sunday as two separate disasters in Indonesia and Greece put the lives of 562 air and sea passengers   at high risk. The first disaster was the disappearance of a Singapore-bound AirAsia commercial jet carrying 162 people from the radar in Surabaya, Indonesia. Just as the news spread, a ferry carrying nearly 500 people caught fire off the Greek island of Corfu in Greece. The   AirAsia plane disappearance comes nearly 10 months after   Malaysia Airlines Flight 370,   dropped off radar over Southeast Asia   with 239 people on board. The AirAsia   Flight QZ8501 was said to have flown at 38,000 feet over the Java Sea between the islands of Belitung and Borneo — a heavily traveled shipping channel with shallow waters when it lost contact with the radar. The search operation for ...

President Goodluck Jonathan President Goodluck Jonathan on Sunday admitted that Nigeria’s problems were increasing, instead of abating. Noting that the situation would have been worse if not for the prayers of Nigerians, Jonathan said he was optimistic that God would, in the same way he tackled the problems of the Israelites, do same for Nigeria. The President spoke   at the last Sunday of the year service by   the Christ Apostolic Church, Area 1, Durumi, Abuja. He said , “One of the reasons I go round churches, at least in Abuja, is to   thank my brothers and sisters for the prayers they have been having for the country, the government and I. “We are facing a lot of challenges now as a nation.   The challenges did not start today but somehow, instead of abating, the problems started increasing for one reason or the other. “But I am convinced that it would have been worse than this but for your prayers. With the prayers ...

Peter Odili THE former governor of Rivers State, Dr. Peter Odili, has expressed regret that he supported Mr. Rotimi Amaechi to become the governor of the state in 2007. Odili said Amaechi dismantled the structure of the Peoples Democratic Party through his (Amaechi) defection to the All Progressives Congress. He explained that but for the quick intervention of a former Minister of State for Education and PDP governorship candidate in Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, the party would have gone into oblivion. The ex-governor, who spoke on Saturday during Wike’s campaign tour in Ndoni Local Government Area on Saturday, said Amaechi worked against the PDP structure put in place by the founding fathers of the party. Odili pointed out that the PDP, in the past, supported Amaechi’s political career with good intentions, adding that he and the PDP had accepted their mistake and were poised to correct it in 2015. It was the first time the former governor would spea...

Archbishop Chukwuma and Chime In this write-up, IHUOMA CHIEDOZIE examines the demand by the Anglican Church to have its member pick the deputy governorship ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party in Enugu State It was understandable that the prospect of a Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian presidential ticket would be a cause for grave concern in Nigeria, given the country’s multi-religious nature. Before the All Progressives Congress eventually settled for Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, a senior pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church, as the running mate of its presidential candidate, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd.), not a few Nigerians were worried that the opposition party would field a Muslim-Muslim team. A former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, had to take it upon himself to voice the feelings of most Nigerians when he warned the APC against a Muslim-Muslim ticket. Obasanjo, who is not known to be a card-carrying member of the APC, waded into the matter after B...

Vice-President Namadi Sambo Ahead of the 2015 general elections, Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sambo has told the Independent National Electoral Commission that his Bachelors and Masters degrees certificates in Architecture from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, have been consumed by fire. Sambo, who is the Vice Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, made the declaration in the documents he filed with INEC and displayed on the commission’s office in Abuja although the details of the fire that consumed the certificates were not given. Sambo’s papers were received and stamped in INEC headquarters between December 10 and 18, 2014. The VP’s declaration was validated by two letters from the ABU, a copy of which was obtained by The PUNCH on Sunday. The first letter, signed by one Alhassan Garba for the institution’s registrar under the title, “To Whom it may Concern: Mohammed Namani Sambo,” read, “I certify that the above-named person having com...

Former Head of State, Gen.Muhammadu Buhari The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), and his running mate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), have declared war on corruption. They, therefore, called on President Goodluck Jonathan to showcase his achievements on the war against corruption in the face of allegations of a missing $20bn. Buhari said this in a statement by the Director, Communications Buhari Campaign Organisations, Mr. Dele Alake, on Sunday. He said, “In the spirit of the war against corruption, we demand the release of the audit report of the missing $20bn. “Clearly unable to oppose us with an equally clean and unassailable ticket, we can understand why our opponents are running from pillar to post digging graves in search of rumours in the impossible hope of misinforming unsuspecting voters and spinning a web of blackmail and deceit. “In this electoral contest of vision and moral stature, only the g...

The suspects The police have arrested four suspected robbers at a Lagos market who claimed they did not steal from the traders, but only came to collect their dues. PUNCH Metro learnt that the suspects- Onyenge Osanie, Azuka Eboh, Ezelonwu Michael and Afolabi Shakiru- were nabbed by the police while they were looting some shops and robbing traders at the Alaba International Market, Ojo, Lagos. Our correspondent gathered that the suspects, who are four members of a ten-man gang, were arrested by operatives of the state Special Anti-Robbery Squad on December 20. According to the police, the gang, which is led by a runaway suspect identified simply as Friday, made use of locally-made guns in their operations. Our correspondent also learnt that most of the gang’s victims were phone dealers, and the gang allegedly carted away about 70 smartphones and Ipads which were worth about N1.5m. Speaking with PUNCH Metro , 35-year-old Osanie said the gang robbed the tr...

President Goodluck Jonathan has told Nigerians to endure the hardship that the current drop in global oil prices will bring to the country. Speaking on Sunday, at the Christ Apostolic Church in Abuja, where he attended the last Sunday service expressed optimism that the country will survive it. He explained that the oil price drop is nothing compared to 2008 to 2009 when oil was sold for $40 per barrel. The President agreed that the recent drop in oil price will affect the country in one way or the other, and urged Nigerians to bear with the government. He recalled that it happened before in 2008, 2009 that was almost about $40, but Nigeria survived as a nation. Jonathan said by all predictions, oil price will not even go as low as $40, as the economic team is already working very hard to stabilise it in order for it not to bring the economy down. Mr. President told the congregation that he decided to go round churches in Abuja to thank them for their prayers, add...

Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo has reportedly sent an urgent message to Nigerian entrepreneurs. Olusegun Obasanjo Obasanjo, while addressing participants at 2014 edition of leadership insight and experiences seminar organized by Entrepreneurs Organization of Nigeria (EON) in Abeokuta, Ogun State, urged entrepreneurs in the country not to be deterred by the myriad of challenges facing businesses today, particularly in Nigeria. The elder states man further advised entrepreneurs to always see the abundant opportunities in the country waiting to be explored. He used the medium to blame poor leadership for the nation’s economic plight, adding that the three factors majorly responsible for effective and responsible management of the economy or any worthy institution is leadership, leadership and leadership. READ ALSO: See How Much Illegal Copies Of Obasanjo’s Book Are Sold For “We are witnessing a downturn in the economy now because the leadership has failed in ...

A 38-year-old mother of five suffers from a rare condition which makes every move dangerous for her life. Jojo Meadows Jojo Meadows, a victim of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), has her bones  painfully dislocating up to 10 times a day, Daily Mail reports. Thus, opening a door, driving and even yawning contains risks for the woman. “My bones pop out so often, that sometimes I don’t even notice it. The worst one was when I dislocated my jaw so I could barely speak. My four-year-old son was shouting down the phone to 999 telling them that my mouth had fallen out.” READ ALSO:  PHOTOS: Man Suffering From Rare Condition Visits Children Affected By Same Syndrome “My kids were doing handstands and I decided to join in – before I even thought about what I was doing I broke both my wrists.” A 38-year-old mother of five suffers from a rare condition which makes every move dangerous for her life. Jojo Meadows Jojo Meadows, a victim of Ehle...

Who knew Nigerian Journalist, motivational speaker businessman, CEO and publisher of Ovation International, Dele Momodu was this romantic? Dele Momodu The 54-year-old Ile-Ife descent whose wedding anniversary is today has been on Instagram all day, gushing about his marriage and his life with his wife. He shared their best moments in photos on instagram all day…and you know what?? they are really cute! READ ALSO: Nigeria Could Not Vote Me, Because I Am Not A Thief – Dele Momodu Enjoy viewing the photos and the beautiful captions below: Dele Momodu and wife Dele Momodu and wife Dele Momodu and wife Some of the captions say:” The celebration continues; happy birthday to my sweetheart, after our wedding anniversary days ago; one more to go on Dec 25…”…..” Thanks for being a fantastic wife and wonderful Mummy…” “ When you have a prayer warrior behind you all shall be well…” “ A humble woman melts the heart of her husband in a special way…” “ Behold Th...

The Peoples Democratic Party has advised Nigerians not to vote for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, because he is “semi-illiterate.” APC presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari Sahara Reporters made it known that the statement was made by the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Prof. Wale Oladipo during a meeting of the party in the diaspora at the party’s headquarters in Abuja on Monday. READ ALSO: Pastor Tunde Bakare Reveals Suprising Revelations About Buhari In New Video Oladipo was quoted saying: “But I know that God loves this country so much. “God has decided that this country will remain indivisible and has decided that this country will continue to wax stronger.”God has decreed it that we continue to pilot the affairs of this country and continue to implement the transformation agenda. “They have passed through a motion and endorsed their perennial candidate. We have beaten him three times, we...

“The most important thing to me about the online retail outlets is that they deliver the goods right at your doorsteps and they are of high quality. “Apart from those two things, my brother, they are not as cheap as we are made to believe with their price slash and all the advert strategies we read on the internet,” Adeola Olukunle, a regular user of Jumia had explained. Many users of the different online retail outlets vis Konga, Jumia, Deal Dey, Kaymu, et al, have in the past, stated their consistent usage of the medium to get their wares, but have not succinctly disclosed whether or not they are as cheap as people are made to believe. In this survey carried out by Naij.com, many users would rather continue with their use of the online retail shops, especially as they are often busy at work or even outside the country on official assignments. Emmanuel Opeyemi, a Computer Engineer, explained that, “it depends on what you want to get from the shops. I personally...