Nigerian Officials Banned 'Half Of A Yellow Sun' Movie Because Of Biafran War

The most awaited movie of this year in Nigeria, “Half of a Yellow Sun,” has been banned by the country's film censorship board because the movie partially takes place during the Biafran War. 

According to the director, Biyi Bandele, the movie scheduled to open in Nigeria last Friday was essentially banned as the country’s film censorship board has refused to issue the movie a certificate. Earlier, Half of a Yellow Sun's premier has been postponed in Nigeria. 

Though, the movie which is unites some of Nigeria’s major cultural figures of civil war (also known as the Biafran War) is already showing in Britain and is scheduled to open in the United States next month. It also had its premiere last year at the Toronto International Film Festival. And Nigerian actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, who starred in the Academy Award-winning film “12 Years a Slave” is one of the stars in the movie.

The censorship board could not be reached for comment about the film, but Mr. Bandele said officials seemed to be “jittery about its content.” He continued: “That it deals with the Biafran War (from 1967 to 1970). That it might incite people to violence.” Even today a remnant of the old Igbo independence movement persists in the country’s south, which is largely Christian. And in the north, where Muslims are in the majority, many people attribute the Nigerian Army’s frequent large-scale killings of civilians, in its campaign against the Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram, to southerners’ lingering fury over their treatment during the long-ago war.

On Friday, Mr. Bandele denounced what he characterized as a blatant attempt to suppress discussion about a crucial if painful episode in Nigeria’s coming-of-age. “It is seriously shocking that someone would presume to be this arbiter of what Nigerians want and don’t want to see,” he said. Mr. Bandele suggested that the war remains largely taboo in the country’s classrooms, making his film all the more important as a discussion point. “To say the way to heal is not to talk about it is disingenuous,” he said.
The civil war is the central episode in Ms. Adichie’s ambitious book, which is widely available in Nigeria. Yet the real subject is less the war itself than its formative stages — a sweeping portrayal of Nigeria’s nouveaux riches, pan-Africanist intellectuals, colonial remnants, and an increasingly belligerent officer caste. Mr. Bandele said his film was faithful to that orientation as well. Yet the large-screen portrayal of violence, at a time when real-life violence has dominated the country’s newspapers and airwaves, appears to have touched a nerve.
Nigeria is now traversing an especially unsettled and anxious period, with frequent killings of civilians by Boko Haram — a bombing in the capital, Abuja, last week killed at least 75 people — and the unsolved kidnappings of schoolgirls in the north. “We went out of our way to reassure the government that we were not trying to stir up trouble,” Mr. Bandele said. “The ironies in this are just so many. It is just surreal.”

Borno Women Give Jonathan Ultimatum On Abducted Schoolgirls

More than a week since 230 secondary school girls were abducted in Chibok, Borno State, women in the volatile north-eastern state of Nigeria on Wednesday gave President Goodluck Jonathan-led federal government an ultimatum to secure the release of all the girls from their abductors.
According to the women, failure to secure the kidnapped girls from captivity would make them tag the federal government as an accomplice in the abduction of their children.
It could be recalled that parents of the kidnapped girls had on Monday cried out about their missing daughters saying 230 girls as against the earlier announced 129, were still missing.
The schoolgirls have now spent 11days in the jungle enclaves of the insurgents.

* President Jonathan and his cabinet given ultimatum to find missing schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno
One of the leaders of the women, Aishatu Ngulde, while speaking at a press briefing organised by the Baobab for Women’s Human Rights in Maiduguri, said they are not impressed by the silent attitude being put up by leaders in Abuja since the abduction of the final year secondary school girls.
Also, Hauwa Biu, spokesperson of the women’s group, said the kidnapping of the schoolgirls can be described as “acts considered inhuman and affects efforts to enhance girl child education and development in the state and country at large”.

She added that “the abduction of innocent young girls violates their human rights, is a crime against humanity and is prohibited under international humanitarian law.

* Nigerian soldiers in search of abductors/terrorists 
“We women in Borno state condemn it in totality, as such acts of violence, attacks on schools deny children their rights to learn in a safe environment, thereby jeopardising their future."
Other women, who spoke at the occasion, expressed their sympathy to all families affected by the insurgency. They implored the insurgents and their sponsors to go to the dialogue table and sought out their differences with government rather than perpetrating violent crimes.

SOURCE >>>>> NEWS.NAIJ.COM

Father Caught Smuggling 8-Year-Old Daughter In Suitecase

A desperate Moroccan father, Ayham Kanaan, has been arrested by Spanish custom officers after he was allegedly found hiding his 8-year-old daughter, Haniya Kanaan, in a suitcase.
According to police reports, Ayham, 38, was caught trying to smuggle his daughter into Spain so that she can stay in the country.
 It was gathered that Customs officials found Haniya curled up inside a small suitcase after her single father entered Spain on a legal work permit through the Andalusian port of Tarifa.

Although Kanaan faces a fine for trying to smuggle his daughter into the country in the hope of giving her a better life, a judge has ruled that she can live with her father for as long as he works in Spain,
The judge also added that she will also be allowed to enrol at a local school.
Reports said that Customs officers were shocked to find the little girl hidden inside a suitcase while searching her father's car following his return to Spain after a family visit to Morocco.

Haniya was discovered inside a purple suitcase on the back seat of the vehicle.
The eight-year-old was taken to hospital after being released from the luggage, with doctors saying she was lucky to be alive following the dangerous stunt.
They said she could easily have been left with brain damage after being shut in the suitcase, and had already started showing physical signs of a lack of oxygen.
The report stated that had there been delays at the border crossing, it is possible she may even have died.
Kanaan has reportedly been told he faces a fine for trying to smuggle his daughter into Spain illegally, but that there are unlikely to be any other punishments.
Tarifa is on the coast of southern Spain and has regular ferry services to and from North Africa.

Abuja Bomb Blast: Patience Jonathan Donates Medical Items To Hospitalised Victims

The First lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, on Friday in Abuja distributed medical items to the hospitalised victims of Nyanya bomb blast.

The blast which occurred in April 14, in Nyanya, a suburb of the FCT, was officially reported to have claimed 75 lives.

The First Lady was represented by the National Coordinator of her NGO, the Women for Change and Development Initiative‎, Mrs Rabi Ibrahim.

According to reports, the items were distributed at the National Hospital, which is one of the hospitals, where the injured victims are undergoing treatment.

"We want to show love in the spirit of the Easter to aid our brothers and sisters recuperate well. We also want to use this opportunity to call on the perpetrators to embrace dialogue and shun violence, she said.

She pledged to go round the government hospitals, where the victims are receiving treatment, to monitor and check their progress.

The Director, Medical Services, Dr Jaffe Momoh, who received the items on behalf of the hospital, thanked the First lady for the kind and humane gesture.

Man Escaping From Police Dies In Pond

A 26-year-old man, reportedly fleeing form policemen on patrol has drowned in a pond at Umuoka, Amakohia in Owerri west local government area of Imo state.
According to report, the yet-to-be identified man was smoking a substance suspected to be Indian hemp with his friends when they suddenly heard the blaring siren from a police vehicle.
The deceased and his friends were said to have taken to their heels, running in different directions.
Unfortunately for the deceased, he fell into a deep pond which had been overgrown with weeds and died before help could come to him.
However, he has been buried at his country home, Umuoka, the community where the incident occurred.

READ MORE:  http://news.naij.com/64506.html

Explosion In Abuja Leaves Scores Killed And Many Injured (Photos)

Pandemonium struck this morning in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja when an explosion rocked an outskirt of the city and according to reports, scores of people were killed and hundreds injured in the incident.

*Some of the images we have are too offensive. We decide not to post them here.
Latest reports from authorities confirmed that the blast actually took place at the Abuja urban mass transport company limited garage under the bridge at Nyanya.

This is contrary to earlier reports that the explosion sounded in an unnamed highly populated motor park less than five minutes drive from the Abuja city centre.

* Ambulance moving victims from the scene of the incident to hospital
It is not clear yet how the bomb was ferried into the park, but witnesses suspect it was planted by a suicide bomber.

* Fire fighters at the scene of the explosion in Abuja
It was gathered that several dead bodies now litter the blood spattered park and the expressway leading to the city.
Some of the dead victims and the injured are being taken to the hospital by ambulances and vans belonging to the Nigerian Police, the Vehicle Inspection Office, Federal Road Safety Commission.

* Abuja residents and passengers seen gathering at the scene of the explosion that rocked the capital city this morning
Newsmen at the scene of the tragic incident reported that they counted more than 50 bodies that are yet to be evacuated.

 * Picture from the scene of the blast
Several vehicles including about 12 government owned high capacity buses were destroyed in the attack.
Reports say some of the buses were loaded with passengers when the explosion occurred.
According to the spokesman of the National Emergency Management Agency, Manzo Ezekiel, the incident happened during Monday's rush hour at the park.
“This morning there was an explosion at the Nyanya Motor Park,” Ezekiel said.
“Rescue teams are already on ground. There were so many people there at that time, so we think there must have been some injuries,” he added.
Some of the dead victims and injured were seen taken to hospital by ambulances and vans belonging to the police, the VIO, FRSC, NSCDC and NEMA.
Other witnesses said more than 150 bodies may have been moved before newsmen's arrival.
Some of the bodies are mangled beyond recognition.
Millions of Nigerians have gone on social media to comment on the tragic incident.
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar on his twitter handle tweeted: Atiku Abubakar ‏@atiku "I am angered and saddened by the news of multiple explosions that occurred in Nyanya bus park in Abuja this morning."
Also, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Goodluck Jonathan, Reuben Abati tweeted this: "President Jonathan directs the medical services to do their very best to save the lives of those injured in Nyanya bombing."
Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, aslo went on twitter to condemn the tragic incident.
He tweeted: "Not again! Another bomb blast, another bloody day in Abuja. Horrifying! My thoughts and prayers are with the victims & their families."
Meanwhile, NEMA has warned citizens living around where the blast took place to steer clear the scene of the explosion.

"The explosion occurred at 6.30am local time," the Senior Information Officer, NEMA, Mr. Sani Datti said. "The agency has found it necessary to also warn ordinary citizens to keep off the bomb explosion scene."

According to Datti, Search and Rescue officers as well as other response agencies “are now at the scene and have cordoned off the area, adding that more details would be updated soon.”

It was reported that the explosion had caused intense apprehension in Nyanya, Mararaba and its environs as many residents stayed in doors.

“Me and my family are still in doors and may not go out today because there are frightening rumours of another possible attack,” Chidi James, a resident who lives close to the scene of the explosion,  said over the phone.

Datti however assured that NEMA and other government agencies were doing their best to condone the area in order to douse the already heightened tension.

“Our men are there and we are doing our best to calm issues. I will update you as we go on,” he said.
Residents have been advised to check for relations at hospitals.

Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, and Interior Minister, Abba Moro have been reported to have visited the scene of the blast.

President Goodluck Jonathan has also visited the scene of the terrorist attack. The area was cordoned off for evidence collection, as well as for passage of the presidential convoy.
As at the time of filing this report, there was no immediate claim of responsibility but suspicion is likely to fall on the militant group Boko Haram.
The Islamists have been waging an increasingly bloody insurgency in the northeast.
The Boko Haram militants killed at least 135 people in attacks on several villages in northeast Nigeria late last week.
Eight people were killed in a separate attack at a teacher training college, witnesses said.
Yesterday, in Bama area, another 60 people were killed by the militants.

White Widow Linked To Abuja Bombing

World wide terrorist, 'White Widow' Samantha Lewthwaite, has been linked to the huge terror attack which occurred today in Abuja.
 The huge explosion destroyed forty buses and left a sickening trail of death and destruction as fuel tanks on nearby vehicles also exploded amid the heat of the blast.
But while nobody has officially claimed responsibility, security sources, according to reports fear the bombing may have been a revenge attack for the death of Lewthwaite's mentor two weeks ago - al-Shabaab terror chief Makaburi, aka Sheikh Abubakar Shariff Ahmed.

A senior security source said agents across Africa were on high alert after the assassination of Makaburi - reportedly by the UK and US funded Kenyan Anti-Terror Police Unit (ATPU) 14 days ago. Adding that Lewthwaite and her associates "wanted revenge".

The source said:

 

"Makaburi was always believed to be at the very top of the hierarchy of terror organisation al-Shabaab. Intelligence suggests he introduced Samantha Lewthwaite to many influential figures within the al-Shabaab network. He guided her on her path to Jihad. His murder was seen as yet another act of war."

Lewthwaite, 30, is believed to be in Nigeria, Kenya or Somalia, where Islamist terror networks are closely linked, making it far easier for her to evade detection than in Europe.  The daughter of a British Army soldier, she is already on Interpol's Most Wanted list in connection with seven murders as well as the siege of the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya in September last year which left 67 dead and nearly 200 injured.
She was reportedly caught at a checkpoint in Nigeria just six months ago - but managed to bribe her way to freedom.
She is also believed to have widely used the alias ‘Natalie Webb’ and travelled on a forged South African passport. She has been on the run since January 2012 and is now one of the most wanted international fugitives in the world, officially being hunted by 190 countries!
Local police, however, have linked today's bombing to the Boko Haram terrorist network.

(PICZ) Delegate At National Confab Playing ScrabblE And Sleeping

This is as obvious as it gets, this old men don’t care about all this, all they want is for the money to get to their pockets. With some sleeping and playing games!!! Like seriously? Smh

2015 Presidential Election: Jonathan Steps Down For David Mark

Few months before the 2015 Presidential election hold next year, it has been revealed that President Goodluck Jonathan has decided to hand over the mantle of leadership to Senate President, David Mark.

 * Senate President David Mark tipped to take over from President Jonathan
According to a report, Jonathan's decision to back out of the race is unconnected to the ongoing activities in some parts of the country.
A dependable source within the PDP caucus informed that the president was forced to accept the decision because some persons had vowed to make his government ungovernable if he returns in 2015.

“I can assure you that the president has accepted to step down for the senate president, David Mark. He has accepted to support him during and after the election,” the source said.

The source also said, “this decision came after several meetings and consultations with party leaders. It is obvious some people don’t want Jonathan. The ongoing activities in some parts of the country tell it all and the only option left is for him to pull out of the race.”
Asked if the incumbent president would be given any federal appointment, the source said the president has agreed to return to his Otueke home, from where he will go back to classroom.
 A media aide to the President, while debunking the news, said there was no element of truth in it. 
READ MORE:  http://news.naij.com/63436.html

Electricity Employees Threaten Nationwide Strike

The National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) yesterday alerted the federal government of plans to cripple operations in the power sector over alleged unfair labour practices by operators.The union in a statement listed some of its grievances to include de-unionisation and casualisation of workers, under-payment of workers remunerations, retrenchment of union leaders and continued manipulation associated with increase in fixed tariff.
NUEE, in a statement by its Secretary, Joe Ajaero decried the non-payment of entitlements of disengaged staff, stressing that the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE)  misinformed the public on alleged payment of terminal benefits of the defunct PHCN employees.
“BPE has been fielding Nigerians with lies that they have finished paying workers in the Power sector, whereas, the BPE, Ministry of Power and the Accountant General of the Federation are unable to explain the whereabouts of over N100 billion meant for the payment of the workers entitlements,” the union stated.
It further noted that the 10 per cent equity shareholding for workers as collectively agreed had been jettisoned by government.
According to the union, the issue of biometric of workers had been a broad day racket as the consultant engaged for this purpose had continued to use endless biometric exercise to siphon the finances of the sector.”
It lamented that most of the disengaged workers are yet to collect their entitlement since November 2013.
“We are constrained to inform the general public of the anti-workers stance of some of the new Investors who took over the privatized units of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN). The anti-union activities of these new investors have been a source of concern to the Union and other progressive Nigerians. Given that workers and Nigerians at large are badly affected by these illicit actions, some of which are listed below, we have decided to engage them with the aim of restoring normalcy in the system sector.
“We therefore consider it highly imperative to inform Nigerians that picketing of these companies will commence any moment from now. We hereby solicit the understanding of the general public towards arresting this act of unpatriotic and second slavery of Nigerians by these new companies,” the statement added.

READ MORE:  http://news.naij.com/63452.html

MULTIPLE BOMBS SHAKE MAIDUGURI

Borno State - Defence Headquarters in Abuja have issued the statement saying four suspected suicide bombers were killed in separate explosions while trying to attack a NNPC facility along Maiduguri-Damboa federal highway.
According to the statement signed by Director of Defence Information, Major General Chris Olukolade, three of the four explosives-laden vehicles were demobilized by soldiers' gunfire at a major checkpoint in Mulai, a community along the Damboa-Biu road. Five soldiers have been reported injured.
Speaking to Agence France-Presse, Borno State police spokesman Gideon Jibrin reported that one car exploded at 7:50 a.m., killing 3 civilians. Ten minutes later, a bomb hit a police vehicle, killing 5 officers and 3 another persons who are yet to be determined either as civilians or Boko Haram insurgents.
Sources at the scene say that the suicide bombers, driving four Volkswagen golf cars laden with improvised explosive devices rammed into two military patrol vehicles. Others indicate the attackers were trying to speed past the checkpoint to set off the blasts at the petrol station, which was backed up with vehicles because of fuel shortages across Nigeria.
Immediately after the blast, 7 Division men of Nigerian Army, mobile policemen and vigilante youths mobilized to the scene and cordoned off the area to prevent any further attacks. Residents of Molai and Damboa road are fleeing their homes.
It would be recalled that an emergency rule has been imposed onto the Northern states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe in May, 2013. Recently, the Nigerian military reclaimed the Maiduguri Giwa Barracks, capturing and killing several members of the Boko Haram sect insurgents.
READ MORE:  http://news.naij.com/63399.html