MAN MARRIES A BEAUTIFUL PLUS-SIZED LADY AND GET WILD REACTIONS ONLINE. SEE REACTIONS (PHOTOS)

A man and his plus size wife have been trending online since after they tied the nuptial knot together. See their wedding photos and how people reacted 

POLICE SIEGE: IS SENATOR MELAYE LYING ABOUT NOT BEING AT HOME?

Since the Nigeria Police laid a siege at the Abuja residence of Senator Dino Melaye, the action of the force has drawn reactions from Nigerians.

The police had since Friday been keeping vigil at the residence waiting to arrest Mr Melaye who has claimed he is not in the building.

This is despite earlier alarm he raised, notifying the public of plans by the Police to abduct him and inject him with poisonous substances which will lead to his dead.

The lawmaker who hinted the public of every moves made around his residence on Friday told journalist that he was out of town and that he learnt of the development through surveillance cameras around the area.

The police said the lawmaker was wanted for homicide he allegedly committed in July. The force said it had no option than to move against Melaye after the accused refused to honour its invitation.

We could not independently verify the police claim as well as reach the lawmaker wether he received any invatation demanding his presence at the force headquarters.

Bukola Saraki, Senate President, had on Saturday dismissed the police claim of inviting the Senator. The top lawmaker also called for the immediate vacation of the siege laid at Melaye’s residence.

Speaking to Channels Television, Melaye said he was not in Abuja at the time the siege was launched. He promised to present himself to the police next week.

“Presently I’m outside Abuja. I’m a Senator of the Federal Republic of Abuja, I cannot run away. I will make myself available as soon as I’m back to town next week. I am not a criminal; I have not done anything wrong,” he said on telephone when contacted.

The Police personnel laying the siege have refused to buy into the idea of the lawmaker believing he is hiding in the building.

On Saturday, in a bid to force the lawmaker out of the residence, the police disconnected some basic amenities in the building. This did not yield the desired result.

On Sunday, Senator Ben Murray-Bruce, a close associate of the accused hinted of a new plan by the police to force out Melaye from his hiding place.

“#HappeningRightNow The @PoliceNG are currently at @dino_melaye’s residence and are threatening to fire tire gas into the building,” Mr Bruce alleged.

“And this is intentional. They know he is asthmatic and if these gases go into his house, they’d kill him. Enough is Enough!” he tweeted on Sunday.

One wonders the need for the alarm since the lawmaker has already claimed he is not in the building.

It is either Melaye lied about his whereabouts or that his collegue at the Senate has some clarifications to make.

VIRAL PHOTOS CHURCH MEMBERS KNEEL DOWN TO WELCOME THEIR PASTOR.

Photos of church members kneeling down to welcome their pastor have gone viral.The pastor arrived in a car with his driver.His driver came out,knelt down and opened the door for him.The pastor came out of the car,walked majestically and entered the church while his congregation knelt down even along the road and hailed him.

See photos below...

FG TEST RUN OF TRAINS COMMENCE AT AGBOR FOR THE ITAKPE WARRI RAIL PROJECT. (SEE PHOTOS)

This is the Uromi Train Station heading towards Agbor. 

All is now set for the official kick-off of the Itakpe Warri Rail. The train did a test run today to see the effectiveness and also to see how well the contractors have faired.

It may be recalled that the 327km Standard-Gauge Itakpe Warri Rail links Itakpe in Kogi State To Ajaokuta and then to Warri, Delta State (Itakpe to Ajaokuta, 50KM; Ajaokuta to Warri, 277KM).

The Itakpe Warri Rail Line was started by President Babangida circa 1987, it was planned as a freight-only Rail, serving the Iron Ore / Steel belt between Aladja and Ajaokuta. It is now being reconfigured as a PASSENGER + Freight Rail, to maximize usefulness.

These are photos from the site at Uromi Train Station.

MINIMUM WAGE: ECONOMY TOO FRAGILE TO WITHSTAND LABOUR STRIKE IN JANUARY, NECA WARNS

~ Begs FG to send draft bill on N30,000 minimum wage to NASS

THE Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association, NECA, yesterday, pleaded with the Federal Government to immediately send a draft bill on the N30,000 new national minimum wage to the National Assembly, NASS, for passage into law to save the nation from the consequences of the strike planned by Organised Labour in January 2019.

Timothy Olawale, Director General Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA)

The umbrella body for private employers in the country, while decrying the indecisive disposition of the Federal Government towards concluding the process leading to the implementation of a new National Minimum Wage, insisted that “this delay in the completion of the process has led to the proposed strike by Labour, which is totally undesirable and should be avoided.”

In a statement its Director General, Mr. Timothy Olawale, NECA said: “Globally, there is a recognized and acceptable process of setting a National Minimum Wage as enshrined in the International Labour Organisation, ILO, Convention 131.

This process had been adopted in previous National Minimum Wage setting in Nigeria and was meticulously applied by the National Minimum Wage Committee inaugurated by the President in December, 2017. It was expected that following the submission of the National Minimum Wage Committee’s Report to the President on Tuesday, 6th November, 2018, expedited action would be taken in transmitting a bill to the National Assembly as promised by President Muhammadu Buhari.

“The President had promised to transmit an Executive bill to the National Assembly for its passage within the shortest possible time. It is, therefore worrisome that seven weeks after the submission of the Committee’s Report, Government is planning to subject the Report to another Technical Committee, unknown to the process of setting minimum wage. This delay in the completion of the process has led to the proposed strike by Labour, which is totally undesirable and should be avoided.”

Concerned about the negative implication of the proposed strike in January 2019, he continued: “It is worrisome that as a nation whose economy is still reeling under the effects of recent recession, Government would needlessly further drag the economy into avoidable abyss. The colossal loss borne by businesses during the warning strike in September, 2018 was yet to be recovered and further disruption of business activities might sound the death knell for many enterprises.”

He averred that with the rate of unemployment as recently released by the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, it was expected that all hands would be on deck to ensure the continuous survival of businesses.

To avert Labour strike and the attendant consequences, he urged that “the President should, without delay, transmit an Executive Bill to the National Assembly as promised to enable it finalise the process leading to the enactment of a new National Minimum Wage Act. Businesses and the economy at large cannot afford another avoidable strike.”

He noted that the Private Sector, which is supposed to be the engine-room of national development, is usually the victim of such strikes. “Businesses are presently encumbered by several challenges and any avoidable Labour action at the beginning of the year or any time whatsoever would be counter-productive, disruptive and would not be welcomed.”

BREAKING: NIGERIA'S EX-PRESIDENT SHEHU SHAGARI IS DEAD

Shehu Shagari

The first executive president of Nigeria Shehu Shagari, is dead. He died this evening.

He was 93. Shagari was Nigeria’s president in the second Republic that started in 1979. He was reelected in 1983.

Shortly after that, General Muhammadu Buhari, now President of Nigeria overthrew him in a military coup.

Details later:

RAT MEAT TOPPLES CHICKEN AND PORK IN INDIA

Freshly-caught rat is at the top of the holiday menu for crowds flocking to a market in northeastern India that specialises in rodents from local fields.

Destined to be boiled, skinned and then cooked in a spicy gravy, rat is more popular than chicken and pork with customers at the Sunday market in the village of Kumarikata in Assam state.

Shoppers buy hundreds of freshly caught and skinned rats that local farmers say are hunted to avoid damage to their fields in the state which borders Bhutan. The ready-roasted kind also goes down well.

Rat has become a valuable source of income for the poor “Adivasi” tribal people who struggle to make ends meet working in Assam’s famed tea gardens.

In the winter months when tea picking slumbers, the Adivasis go to rice paddies to trap rats for the market.

A kilogramme (2.2 pounds) of rat meat, which is considered a delicacy, sells for about 200 rupees ($2.8) — as much as for chicken and pork.

Farmers say the region has seen growing numbers of rats in recent years.

“We put traps in the fields as the rats eat people’s paddy,” Samba Soren, a rat vendor at Kumarikata, told AFP.

The rodents are hunted at night during the harvesting season with traps made from bamboo.

The traps are placed at the entrance of the rat-holes in the evening and the rodents are caught as they come out to scavenge.

The vendors have to work at night to make sure other predators do not get to the dead rats first. Some of the rats weigh more than a kilogramme and the market traders say they get between 10 and 20 kilogrammes a night.

THE FRIGHTENING RECORD OF HUMAN FLESH EATERS (CANNIBALISM) IN NIGERIA (GRAPHIC PHOTOS)

CANNIBALISM- the act and profession of eating human flesh- as disgusting as it sounds, is practiced by some societies today.

While one cannot say with absolute certainty that cannibalism is still being practiced in some parts of Nigeria today, it would be, also, too risky to assume that it is not. Cannibalism strikes the human conscience like few other taboo acts, eliciting mix of dread, disdain and plain old nausea.

The earliest humans in Europe, 32,000 years ago, practiced ritual cannibalism, according to a study published in 2011 in the journal, PLoS One. The oldest evidence of cannibalism suggests that humans ate other humans not for nutritional purposes but rather as a part of funeral rites. Up until the Middle Ages, cannibalism was primarily practiced as a means to supplement nutrition.

Starting around the 12th century, the practice of incorporating human remains into medical remedies was common practice. The deceased, who unwillingly donated their bodies to medical science, were stolen from Egyptian tombs or abducted from Irish burial sites, according to Smithsonian Magazine. The use of “corpse medicine” started to fall out of favor in the 16th century, but remained in use until the late 18th century. In some parts of Africa, a similar but much more severe form of cannibalism still occurs, with albinos in particular murdered and butchered for magical protections and remedies.

In Nigeria, perhaps, that is why the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) recently issued a warning to the public to be wary of some hotspots, where heinous crimes thrive across the country. In a statement, which has gone viral on the social media, the police advised Nigerians, especially travellers, to avoid these areas, especially at night, in order not to fall victim.

The areas include; Ota, Lambe, and Mowe, in Ogun State; Toyota Bus Stop along Apapa/Oshodi Expressway, Ikorodu, bridge linking Abiola Garden with Otedola Estate, and Isheri Olowo-Ira (under bridge), all in Lagos State. Others are waterfront, in the River Niger area of Onitsha, Anambra State; Isiala-Ngwa in Abia State, and Igwurita, Rumuokoro, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The police also listed Oro Road, in Ilorin, Kwara State; Lokoja-Abuja Expressway in Kogi State; Kaduna Eastern By-Pass, Bank of River Kaduna, Kaduna/Abuja Expressway in Kaduna State, and Abuja Motor Park, Kawo Motor Park, and railway tracks in Abuja. The NPF enjoined victims/members of the public to send sms/pre-text message to any of the Police Control Room mobile lines- 07055350249, 07035068242 and RRS Control Room 2, Alausa-08065154338 and 07055462708. Control Room 3, SHQ, – 08079279349, 08063299264 and 767 (toll free line).

The Supreme Court of Nigeria (SCN) on Friday, the 18th day of December, 2009 had reason to hear and decide on this tragedy of eating human flesh. That was in the case of Mbang v The State. The facts of the case are so gory that the current Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Walter Onnoghen, then a Justice on the bench of the Supreme Justices who heard the case said, “The facts of this case is a sad commentary on our level of civilisation with regard to the continued existence of the practice of cannibalism in modern day Nigeria.”

“At first it may sound far-fetched but as the truth of the situation sinks in, one is left with his mouth gaped. That is the reality of our situation despite the practice of Christianity over the years,” he lamented. The case revolves around a curious occurrence: A confession by Mbang Mbang (appellant) that he and his co-accused ate human flesh.

The appellant and three others were arraigned before the High Court of Cross-River State sitting at Ugep for the offence of murder contrary to section 319 (1) of the criminal code. It was alleged that the accused persons on 7/10/89 murdered one Baba Okoi of the Nigerian Army at Nko Village of Cross River State. Each of the accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charge.

At the conclusion of hearing, the trial Judge, Obasse J, in his judgment found each of the four accused guilty of the offence and accordingly sentenced each to death. The three others convicted by the High Court were Obeten Leko Essien, Mbang Efoli Mbang and Fidelis Onen Obeten. The prosecutor said Okoi was murdered and his “human meat” was “butchered” and “shared” by the accused persons.

Although the Supreme Court upturned the murder conviction of the appellant on the basis that cannibalism was the offence he was charged with, Justice George Adesola Oguntade, who read the decision of the court, noted, “the revelation made before the trial Court during the hearing is unnerving". “The accused persons, all from Cross River State of Nigeria as at 1989 were freely eating human flesh as snack,” he lamented.

“Cannibalism in Nigeria in 1989, this was a strange occurrence. It is directed that the proceedings and judgment in this case be sent to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Cross Rivers State to enable them take necessary steps to stop the continuation of this barbaric practice,” he said.

According to Justice Onnoghen, JSC as he then was, “it is unfortunate that in the present century, acts of cannibalism usually associated with our barbaric past, still rears its ugly head in some communities.

However sordid or nauseating the facts of this case are, the point remains that appellant and his co-accused persons were not charged with an offence of cannibalism, which they admitted, but murder.” In fact, according to the book, Folk Stories From Southern Nigeria, by Elphinstone Dayrell, many years ago, before the oldest man alive at the present time can remember, the towns of Ikom, Okuni, Abijon, Insofan, Obokum, and all the other major towns were situated round and near the Insofan Mountain, and the head chief of towns was called Agbor.

The Insofan Mountain is about two days’ march inland from Cross River and agriculture was the biggest industry with yams taking the pride of place. At the end of each year, when it was time to dig the yams, there was a big play held, which was called the New Yam festival. At this festival, there was always a big human sacrifice, 50 slaves being killed in one day.

These slaves were tied up to trees in a row, and many drums were beaten; then a strong man, armed with a sharp machete, went from one slave to another and cut their heads off. This was done to cool the new yams, so that they would not hurt the stomachs of the people. Until this sacrifice was made no one in the villages would eat a new yam, as they knew, if they did so, they would suffer great pain in their insides. When the feast was held, all the towns brought 100 yams each as a present to King Agbor.

When the slaves were all killed, fires were lit, and the dead bodies were placed over the fires to burn the hair off. A number of plantain leaves were then gathered and placed on the ground, and the bodies, having been cut into pieces, were placed on the plantain leaves. When the yams were skinned, they were put into large pots, with water, oil, pepper, and salt. The slaughtered human remains were then put in on top the cut yams, and the pots covered up with other clay pots and left to boil for an hour.

The king, having called all the people together, then declared the New Yam festival had commenced, and singing and dancing were kept up for three days and nights, during which time much palm wine was consumed, and all the human flesh and the yams, which had been provided for them, were eaten by the people. The human heads were given to the king for his share, and, when he had finished eating them, the skulls were placed before the Juju with some new yams, so that there should be good crop the following season.

But although these natives ate the dead bodies of the slaves at the New Yam feast, they did not eat human flesh during the rest of the year. That’s it for this folktale, however plausible or mundane it might sound. The truth is, many Nigerians today don’t believe stories. True, it is not easy to stomach the fact that humans and our ancestors practiced cannibalism for hundreds of thousands of years.

“The cannibal thing is a rumour that missionaries had blamed all Igbo and Ibibio peoples of. The origin of these myths comes from the slurs the neighbouring peoples threw at each other. Till today, Ibibio people say Annang people are cannibals, Annang people probably feel the same, Igbo people used to call Ibibio cannibals, and the Ibibio said the same to the Igbo,” Ezeagu Chinedu, a resident of Abuja said.

He explained the point as being that there has never been any evidence of cannibalism in eastern Nigeria. “It’s just a stupid colonial rumour that’s been used to demonise the people of Isiala Ngwa. People in this day and age still fear going there despite the fact that there has never been any confirmed case of someone being kidnapped to be eaten. Now, being kidnapped for human sacrifice is a different story because probably all groups in southern Nigeria did that,” he noted. 

Indeed, in this life, the story of human flesh eaters, in some instances when they are told, may be mere stereotypes and among the dangers of a single story, but the reality of Mbang v The State creates pangs for the doubting mind here. And, no matter the trepidation and how sordidly the story of human cannibals may sound, let us not bury the reality of this gruesomeness in the nauseating appeal of the act.

Carefulness and personal vigilance cannot be overemphasised at this time of the year. Let us be so careful and conscious of our environments.

KWARA STATE PEOPLE SEND INSULTING MESSAGES TO BUKOLA SARAKI WHILE ON LIVE RADIO

Kwarans bombarded Saraki with "OLE" "THIEF" "OTOGE" on live radio

Kwara Must Change reported that on the live radio programme held today in Ilorin, the Kwara State Capital, Kwarans in their numbers bombarded Saraki with all derogatory remarks ranging from criminal, ole, thief and otoge.

See some of the screenshots-

RIVERS LAWMAKER DESCRIBED GOV. WIKE’S 2019 BUDGET AS ANOTHER SCAM

The lawmaker representing Ahoada East Constituency one in the Rivers state House of Assembly, Martins Mannah has described the 2019 budget of the State as a scam.

Mannah, who addressed newsmen after the budget presentation, said little or nothing was achieved with the 2018 budget.

He further said the newly presented budget may face the challenge of implementation, adding that there is a misplaced priority in the budget because security is expected to lead.

“The 2019 budget of the Wike Government is another scam. N480bn?

“The Governor is presenting N480billion when the 2018 budget has achieved nothing. All we have been seeing are patching of roads. No major project anywhere in the state.

“A state that claims to be generating employment is giving only 4billion naira to Agriculture.

“Let me tell you, during the budget 2018 defence here, one on the Ministries got 6billion naira in 2017 and we asked them what they did with their allocation, the Commissioner of that Ministry said they did not receive one naira from the Rivers state government. So, this 2019 will be the same.”

Governor Nyesom Wike on Monday presented the 2019 Appropriation Bill of N480.42 billion to the State House of Assembly for consideration.