African Gist and News

      ALHAJI SANI AHMED SALISU The date was the 2nd of February 2012 and it was an auspicious day and the morning was filled with the harsh haze of harmattan. Abuja was usually cold as ice in the morning around this time of the year and today was no exception. What was surprising about the harsh weather of Harmattan was that even though it was always cold in the Morning, by Noon it was always so hot like the Whole of Abuja was placed in a furnace. It was a day that held much anticipation in the air as the ThisDay Dome Event Centre was bubbling with activities with event organizers going in and out in preparation for the event of the day. Everyone was talking of how the big wigs in the country will be attending the retirement party of Alhaji Sani Ahmed Salisu, the outgoing Director of Finance of the State Security Service. Alhaji Salisu decided to hang his boots at the age of 60 to focus on his family and businesses. It was an event that most were looking forward to. Cross-section of SS

Troops of Operation DELTA SAFE said it discovered four militant shrines with 23 human skulls in various stages of decomposition, one complete human skeleton, and several other human body parts in Bakassi and Akpabuyo Local Government Areas of Cross River State. According to official statement issued on Thursday, October 27th by the group?s Acting Commander, Brigadier General Kevin Aligbe, the shrines were destroyed as troops continue the search for the perpetrators of these heinous acts. In a related development, other troops of the command in Bayelsa State arrested 44 members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) at Lakeview Club on Mabinton Estate, who were planning to establish the Bayelsa State Chapter of the group and disrupt public peace within the Joint Operations Area of Operation DELTA SAFE. "They were duly arrested and have been handed over to relevant authorities for further investigations. The unity of Nigeria is non?negotiable and sacrosanct. Hence any

Some aggrieved members of APC in Ondo state have turned the party's Secretariat in the state into a shrine. The party members are at loggerheads over who would be their governorship candidate in the state's gubernatorial election come November 26th.    Photo credit: Sahara Reporters ...

After 14 months run at the Broadway and London?s Royal National Theatre, FELA! succeeded in turning all its critics to fans but the crew admitted after meeting the press in Nigeria that they were yet to meet their toughest critics ever. Bent on proving to Nigerians amongst whom Fela lived and died that they know Fela as much as any other Nigerian, the FELA! cast took on the  concert space of the The New Afrika Shrine on Thursday night, 14 th  April, 2011, and presented a tribute concert version of the show. More pictures after the cut...

Ukolo Uga, according to him is an Oracle.

By Sam Eyoboka, who was in Warri NIGERIAN politicians, at every level, always try to justify their ineptitude each time the international media portrays any aspect of our national life in bad light by accusing them of imperialism. They(Nigerian leaders) never deny the existence of problems so portrayed but go out of their way to even charge the local media to fight their international counterparts who, they claim, specialise in reporting only the bad aspect of the continent. It is always such a great delight to return to the oil city of Warri and so it was last Thursday night. It was even more delightful as Uncle Justus Esiri, who was also in town for the interment of Senator Fred Ayo Brume, reminisced about his times in the oil city. He told me a story of their days in secondary school: While the late Brume was doing long jump for Government College, Ughelli, he was doing same for Urhobo College, Warri and he had an opportunity of defeating the late senator but something happened. Hea

Promptly Prosecute Offenders, Address Underlying Causes (Dakar) - Deadly election-related and communal violence in northern Nigeria following the April 2011 presidential voting left more than 800 people dead, Human Rights Watch said today. The victims were killed in three days of rioting in 12 northern states. Nigeria's state and federal authorities should promptly investigate and prosecute those who orchestrated and carried out these crimes and address the root causes of recurring inter-communal violence. The violence began with widespread protests by supporters of the main opposition candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, a northern Muslim from the Congress for Progressive Change, following the re-election of incumbent Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian from the Niger Delta in the south, who was the candidate for the ruling People's Democratic Party. The protests degenerated into violent riots or sectarian killings in the northern states of Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Ka