See Funke Akindele’s Personal Explanation On Her Break Up

Funke Akindele how do you feel now that your marriage has
ended after just a year?

You must be /I'll going through a
hard time right now….

People are laughing at
you.
Thank you for calling, Stella. First of all let me clarify that:

I have not replied any sms or spoken to anyone on this development before now and neither have I threatened to sue anyone, I do not know who sent out that sms denying that my marriage is over.

That was what necessitated me sending out a press release so as not to confuse the public, especially my fans whom I’m so passionate about. I’ve been unable to pick calls due to my busy schedule on set and I needed to settle down before picking any calls, so you called at the right time.

I will address this issue now and thereafter face my career and try to concentrate on the things I have on my plate at the moment…Yes
my marriage has crashed.

Let the people who are laughing at me continue laughing, my job afterall is to make people laugh. Let those who are without sins or mistake cast the first stone. Let them continue judging me. God is the overall judge, he is the one I look up to.

I am shocked Funke Akindele. Why the silence all these while why? Why facebook?

Its my private life, I know I am a public figure but I am entitled to some privacy at least. What has happened has happened; no one is beyond mistakes. I will take corrections from this and apply where necessary from now on…
I bear Mr Kehinde Oloyede no ill feelings.

- This is a chat Stella had with Funke Akindele over her failed marriage. So sad!

Omotola Jalade arrives Bayelsa State for MBGN 2013

Omotola Jalade Ekeinde,
touched down in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, last night, for the 2013 Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria (MBGN) beauty pageant.
The pageant takes place tonight at
the Banquet Hall, Government
House, Yenagoa. The actress is
rumored to be on the panel of
judges.

“Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago,” -President Obama

In a deeply personal reflection on race, President Obama today said the African American community is frustrated and pained by the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting of Trayvon Martin because of a “history that doesn’t go away.”

“Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 yearsbago,” the president said in his first on-campus response to Saturday’s verdict. “In the African American community at least, there’s a lot of pain around what happened here. I think it's important to recognize that the African American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history that doesn’t go away.”

Zimmerman, 29, shot Martin, who was 17, claiming it was in self-defense. The not guilty verdict triggered outrage in cities across the
country.

Making a surprise appearance in the White House briefing room, the president said African American men, in particular, have become accustomed to being viewed with
suspicion.

“There are very few African-American men in this country who haven’t had the experience of being followed when they were shopping in a department store. That includes me,” he said.

“There are very few African-American men who haven’t had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars. That happens to me, at least before I was a senator.

There are very few African-Americans who haven’t had thebexperience of getting on an elevator and a woman clutching her purse nervously and holding her breath until she had a chance to get off. That happens often,” he said.

A senior white house aide told ABC News that after watching the debate over the Zimmerman verdict for five days and talking about it privately with family and friends, including first lady Michelle Obama, the president called his senior staff into the Oval Office Thursday afternoon to say he wanted to “speak from the heart” and make some personal remarks about
Martin’s death and trial.

The president decided the best thing to do would be to come to the briefing room unannounced and deliver his heartfelt remarks directly to reporters.

The president said the African American community is not “naïve” to the fact that young African-American men are disproportionately involved in the criminal justice system, both as victims and perpetrators, but that a lack of context adds to the public frustration.

“We understand that some of the violence that takes place in poor black neighborhoods around the country is born out of a very violent past in this country, and that the poverty and dysfunction that we see in those communities can be traced to a very difficult history,” he said.

“So folks understand the challenges that exist for African American boys, but they get frustrated, I think, if they feel that there’s no context for it and that context is being denied.”

The president called for a review of the “stand your ground laws,” but stopped short of calling for a national dialogue on race relations, saying attempts by politicians to drive those discussions “end up being stilted and politicized.”

“For those who resist that idea that we should think about something like these ‘stand your ground’ laws, I just ask people to consider if Trayvon Martin was of age and armed, could he have stood his ground on that sidewalk?
And do we actually think that he would have been justified in shooting Mr. Zimmerman, who had followed him in a car, because he felt threatened?” Obama asked. “If the answer to that question is at least ambiguous, it seems to me that we might want to examine those kinds
of laws.”

As a nation, the president said, “We need to spend some time in thinking about how do we bolster and reinforce our African-American
boys.,''

“I’m not naive about the prospects of some brand new federal program. I’m not sure that that’s what we’re talking about here. But I do recognize that as president, I’ve got somebconvening power,” he said.

Finally, he urged Americans to do some “souls searching” and was optimistic that progress is
occurring.

“Things are getting better. Each successive generation seems to be making progress in changing attitudes when it comes to race. It doesn’t mean that we’re in a postracial society.

It doesn’t mean that racism is eliminated. But you know, when I talk to Malia and Sasha and I listen to their friends and I see them interact, they’re better than we are. They’re better than we were on these issues,” he said.

Obama underscored that “in a case such as this, reasonable doubt was relevant, and [the jury] rendered a verdict. And once the jury's spoken, that’s how our system works.”

On behalf of himself and the First Lady, the president offered his thoughts and prayers to the family of Trayvon Martin, saying they have dealt with the situation with “incredible grace
and dignity.”

“I can only imagine what they’re going through, and it’s — it’s remarkable how they’ve handled it,” he said.
Martin’s parents, Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin, issued a statement saying, “We are deeply honored and moved that President Obama took the time to speak publicly and at length about our son, Trayvon.”
They said the president’s comment that he
“sees himself in Trayvon … is a beautiful tribute to our boy.”

SOURCE: abcnews

FG Under Pressure To Legalise Homosexuality- Foreign Minister

The Federal Government has said it is. under pressure from the International community to sign the Gay Rights Bill into law in Nigeria.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru, stated this in Abuja on Friday at an interactive session with the diplomatic corps, even as he accused the international community of hypocrisy.
He insisted that Nigeria would not sign the Gay Rights bill or abolish the death penalty without reviewing the constitution.

The minister said that Nigeria does not impose its culture on other countries and as such it was wrong for anyone to attempt to impose a foreign culture on uthe nation.

He said, “This thing must be understood because we have been under pressure about this issue of Gay Rights. It is not part of our own culture, you need to understand that. It needs to evolve.

Let us get to that stage of understanding that two men can marry, then we will get to the bridge and cross it. But please let foreign diplomats educate their various governments that you cannot come overnight and impose values that are not part of our tradition on us. Don’t impose it on us that we must allow it in our constitution. If we are talking about democracy, democracy is about free choice, free association you don’t force values on others.

“For those who have Gay Rights, even when I look at the population of those countries, those opposing are high in number. In some countries, the churches are against it, why put pressure on Nigeria and other African countries that we must put it (in our laws). Respect for human rights of a minute minority cannot be at the expense of the larger societal values, well-being and orientation of the people. Even laws are rooted in culture which must be upheld for the good of the society. I therefore appeal to the international community to show a greater understanding of the culture and traditions of our people.

“We don’t tell other countries how to live their lives. We don’t impose values on any country. Other countries too should not come and impose their own values on us. We don’t oppose any country that has put in its constitution the Gay Rights to allow two men or two women to marry themselves. But for Nigeria and a number of other African countries; it is not part of our culture yet.’’

He said it was hypocrisy for the United States to be championing Gay Rights and while criminalising polygamy which is part of Africa’s culture and tradition.

“At times you see hypocrisy in some of these things. I must be frank. If we talk about human rights, how do we apply them? It seems they are being applied to favour some certain groups and not of wider application. There is hypocrisy in this issue of Gay Rights and polygamy,” he added.

Also at the meeting, the minister said the Federal Government had barred foreign ambassadors and diplomats representing their countries in Nigeria from commenting on political issues in the country.
The minister said the action constituted an undue interference in Nigeria’s internal affairs.

He explained that the meeting was
necessary to maintain the excellent
relationship between Nigeria and the international community, and to remove any potential irritant or misunderstanding in their interactions.

He said the government was aware of the activities of some embassies that had been funding human rights groups’ activities in the country.

He said, “We know in Nigeria we have some of the strongest human rights groups. We also know that foreign missions have been freely supporting them with funding. It is okay. We have no objection.

“But we object when ambassadors
conduct activities that are incompatible with their status as diplomats. If. ambassadors want to join the human rights groups, they may as well resign to join them, but they cannot use the platform of being a diplomatic agent to interfere in our domestic activities. The Vienna convention states clearly the activities that are incompatible with your functions as an envoy.

“I will want ambassadors to please
confine themselves to their traditional duties.

If you feel strongly about any issue, come to the foreign ministry, I will receive you. When there are things you want to take up with the government, come to the ministry. Even if you come as a regional body, I will receive you. But for you to go to the media and start talking is incompatible with the status of
your office.”
Ashiru lamented that oil theft in the Gulf of Guinea had remained a major challenge facing the country.

He warned that government would not release any foreign ship or crew member caught with stolen oil in the Gulf of Guinea because huge revenues had been lost to the activities of the criminals.

He said the Federal Government had raised a high-level committee headed by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Muhammed Adoke (SAN), to tackle the challenge.

“The Nigerian Navy and the NIMASA have been directed to take firm measures against any ship caught engaging in unwholesome activities, including oil theft, in Nigeria’s territorial waters.

“This is serving as a warning that
henceforth, I will not be willing to grant audience to people coming to plead for the release of their ships or crew members caught in illegal activities,” he said.

On the efforts to dislodge terrorists in Adamawa, Yobe and Borno states, Ashiru said the security forces had continued to operate under the rules of engagement, with full respect for the human rights of
the people.

Source

Dangote Pledges 1 Billion Naira To States Worst Hit By Boko Haram

Borno, which is the worst-hit, will get N500 million from Dangote's donation while Adamawa and Yobe will share the balance Aliko Dangote, the Chairman of Dangote Groups, has promised to assist the three states – Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe – worst hit by the Boko Haram insurgents with N1 billion.