Michael Abiodun
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Gone are the days when women endured horrible conditions in their marriage and forced a smile when their hearts burned with anger and bitterness toward their husbands. At the time, they continued to hope situations would get better year in and out. While the African woman is strong and resilient, she continued to cook for a man who has given her no upkeep for the month. She continued to sleep with a spouse who has been in someone else’s arms. She worked hard to pay the bills even when the man could no longer bring the bacon home.
It still baffles me, though, that two love birds who were head over heels with each other — who couldn’t wait to be with each other — would one day walk away and no longer be interested in the marriage. How do you spend so much on a lavish wedding celebration in Florence and a romantic honeymoon in Honolulu, then barely a few days in to your third anniversary, you wish each other were dead and gone?
- They Are Financially Empowered
With many girls going to school, the multiplier effect has seen many women pursue their careers, earn their own cash, and plan for their future. No woman wants to be at the mercy of a guy fending for her and walking out on her anytime. The joint account no longer seems attractive as more women want the right to make their choices. Many women won’t even consider a divorce if they’ve got no income; it’s not practical to return to their fathers’ houses so they hold on as long as they’ve got a roof over their heads and meals on the table.
Their staying married doesn’t mean they’ve got a fantastic marriage. With more and more couples signing pre-nuptial agreements, each party feels they could walk away anytime. Money can buy anything but it won’t cuddle and caress you on a cold lonely night. You walk away from a marriage because you can take care of yourself, but you’ll soon find out your heart aches and still needs someone. Many ladies have a big house, many cars, and credit cards at their disposal, but their teary eyes hide behind designer sunglasses as they ache for a soulmate.
2. They Don’t Think Single Parenting Is A Big Deal
Couples who have to raise kids are swamped with the Herculean task of keeping up with them. They are exhausted and almost running out of options to take care of the children. Single parents are doing a great job trying to keep their head above water by taking on twice the responsibilities and expectations of a regular couple and still being able to stay sane. But unfortunately, more women don’t think about the impact of divorce on the kids.
Often, the children will be unable to keep a long-term relationship because they’ve seen how you’ve responded to yours. Marriage is tough and lots of hard work but raising kids alone is harder. Many single parents are stressed out, and they wish they had help. And when the kids are older, they will have lots of unanswered questions and look to you to meet all their needs.
3. They Think There Aren’t Many Role Models of Long Lasting Marriages
Most of us get married thinking it’s a fairy tale, but we never seem to live happily ever after. There are different phases in a marriage, and once you skip out on the hard part, you lose the opportunity to grow and learn together. If you spoke to an older uncle or aunt about the struggles in your marriage, the first suggestion might be to file for a divorce and get some peace but we lose the art of compromise, negotiation, and forgiveness. If you go to those who have been divorced for advice, they will talk you out of even trying to resolve the issue.
4.4. They Are Influenced By Western Culture & Social Media
Will you join the statistics of those online who have decided they can no longer cope or exhausted all options to make it work? As long as we follow others — trailing their daily lives, feeding our minds on the decisions they make in their personal lives — we might find ourselves walking in their footsteps when we need to make a choice as serious as filing for a divorce.
5. They Don’t Think Marriage Vows Should Be Kept
Only a few couples take the time to think about their vows and how much commitment is required. These days the vows are being reviewed with the “strong” words being deleted and “lighter” ones added on. Most couples at the altar quickly recite those words repeated by some officiating minister without thinking through. We all want the better part of the vows, but it’s “for richer or poorer, in sickness or health.”
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A review of violent events involving militant Islamist groups in Africa in 2018 reveals the following trends:
- Militant Islamist group activity in Africa remains primarily concentrated in four theaters: Somalia, the Lake Chad Basin, the Sahel (Central Mali and border areas), and Egypt. However, the number of groups active in these theaters has been growing, largely due to splintering. Thirteen African countries are facing regular attacks by militant Islamist groups, roughly equivalent to the previous year.
- Reported fatalities linked to militant Islamist group events declined by 12 percent to 9,347 in 2018. This continues a 3-year trend and is a 50-percent drop from the 2015 peak of 18,728. This primarily has to do with a decrease in reported fatality numbers linked to Boko Haram (a 35-percent drop), as well as al Shabaab (15-percent drop) and ISIS (21-percent decline).
- 2018 saw a 25-percent decrease in violent activity linked to Boko Haram (444 events versus 595 in 2017). However, events linked to the Islamic State West Africa (ISWA), which splintered off of Boko Haram, more than tripled (83 events versus 27 in 2017). Likewise, fatalities linked to ISWA increased almost 58 percent to 687. This compares to 2,052 violent deaths linked to Boko Haram in 2018.
- Al Shabaab saw a 7-percent decrease in reported activity from 2017. However, the 1,515 violent events linked to al Shabaab still represent more than 3 times the number related to Africa’s next most active group, Boko Haram. Likewise, reported fatalities linked to al Shabaab accounted for almost 42 percent of all reported fatalities involving militant Islamist groups in Africa in 2018 (3,955 out of 9,347). Meanwhile, events linked to the Islamic State in Somalia (ISS) rose from 34 in 2017 to 49 in 2018.
- AQIM’s Sahelian affiliates showed the greatest escalation of activity in 2018. The number of violent events related to these groups doubled: from 144 in 2017 to 322 in 2018. Reported fatalities related to their activity rose more than two-thirds: from 366 in 2017 to 611 in 2018. Meanwhile, 2018 saw a rapid expansion in the theater of conflict for this region – from north and central Mali to parts of Burkina Faso and Niger. In Burkina Faso, activity related to AQIM affiliates and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS), rose from 24 to 136 in 2018. In Niger, violent events linked to the same actors grew from 5 to 29 in 2018.
- ISIS activity in North Africa remained roughly equivalent to 2017. The reported fatalities linked to ISIS, however, dropped from 1,478 to 1,170 in 2018. ISIS’ affiliate in Egypt’s Sinai accounted for 82 percent of all reported violent events linked to ISIS in Africa (283 out of 344 events).
- 2018 also saw the growth of militant Islamist activity in northeastern Mozambique. Called by locals “al Shabaab,” the group has been linked to 55 violent events in 2018 and 164 fatalities.:
*Source: africacenter.org
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Watch the video of the Deputy Commissioner of Police arrested by civilians, for snatching collated results on the order of the Gov. Of Bayelsa State, in Brass LGA.
Video of the Deputy commissioner of Police arrested by civilians, for snatching collated Results on the order of the Gov. Of Bayelsa State, in Brass LGA.#NigeriaDecides2019result
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A woman has been reportedly caught trying to dump her lover's dead body inside a bush in community in Ogun state.
Aderonke Ayinde
Operatives of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested a 45-year-old woman, Aderonke Ayinde, for allegedly dumping the corpse of her lover, Asimiu Abiodun, in the bush, Punch Metro reports.
The suspect was reportedly caught by a neighbour, Makinde Ishola, while trying to dump the corpse of her lover, who had passed the night in her rented apartment, in the bush.
Abiodun was said to have died in the middle of the night at the suspect’s No. 1 Asalu Compound, Abeokuta, residence.
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Abimbola Oyeyemi, discolsed this in a statement made available to PUNCH Metro on Thursday.
The PPRO said, “The arrest of the suspect followed a report lodged in the Oke-Itoku Police Station by one Makinde Ishola, who reported that he received information that a middle-aged man, whose name was later known as Asimiu Abiodun, came to visit the suspect at her No. 1 Asalu Compound, Abeokuta, residence.
“The said man died in the middle of the night in questionable circumstances.
“He (Ishola) stated further that the suspect took the dead body to a nearby bush that night and dumped it there, unknown to her that somebody nearby was observing the whole thing.”
Oyeyemi added, “On the strength of the report, the DPO, Oke-Itoku Division, SP Olatoye Kotonu, led detectives to the scene, where the suspect was promptly arrested and the corpse evacuated to the mortuary for autopsy.
“Upon interrogation, the suspect claimed that the deceased was her long time lover, who used to pass the night in her place, but on that fateful day, he came as usual, but suddenly developed a strange illness in the night and before she could call for help, the man died.
“She further stated that she decided to dispose of the body out of fear.”
The family of the deceased, according to Oyeyemi, has been contacted by the police for proper identification.
He added that the Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Iliyasu, had directed the homicide section of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department to take over the case for proper investigation and possible prosecution of the suspect.
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The EFCC is also on the trail of a vital suspect said to have questions to answer in respect of the payments into Onnoghen’s accounts.
Walter Onnoghen
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday seized the international passport of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria(SAN), Mr. Joe Agi, who is being investigated for allegedly paying $30,000 into a domiciliary account of the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen. The passport seizure is aimed at ensuring that he does not leave the country until the conclusion of his case.
Although Agi was granted bail yesterday by the EFCC, he has another date with the agency on Monday for further interrogation, The Nation gathered. Yesterday, detectives continued their scrutiny of the lawyer’s bank accounts and some documents retrieved from his residence when a search warrant was executed.
The EFCC is also on the trail of a vital suspect said to have questions to answer in respect of the payments into Onnoghen’s accounts. The suspect’s name is being kept secret for security reasons. A reliable source who confirmed Agi’s passport seizure said: “one of the conditions for admitting Agi to bail was the depositing of his international passport in order to restrict him from leaving the country.
“We have directed him to report to the EFCC intermittently, as may be scheduled, from Monday for more interrogation.
“Although Agi has made a useful statement, our detectives are currently screening his accounts following fresh clues with regards to his relationship with the CJN. “We have demanded for comprehensive details of Agi’s accounts and transactions which might take time to analyze or clarify with the suspect.
“The SAN has told our detectives that the CJN is his brother having come from Cross River State together.” For much of yesterday, detectives analyzed the documents retrieved from Agi’s Abuja residence. The source added: “We have isolated some issues for Agi to respond to when he comes around for another grilling. We are sieving some documents on which he ought to shed more light.”
Sources also said the EFCC team was on the trail of another suspect linked with the deposit. “We are hopeful that we will be able to locate and interact with this suspect in the next few days, “ the source said. Apart from the $30000 payment, detectives also said the SAN was Onnoghen’s referee when the suspended CJN was in the process of opening one of the domiciliary accounts traced to him.
Agi is the first suspect linked with some suspicious lodgments in Onnoghen’s accounts, which were effected between 2012 and 2016. The lodgments, amounting to $3million in five accounts, were undeclared in the Assets Declaration Form of Onnoghen.
The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit(NFIU) was mandated to restrict the operation of the five accounts Standard Chartered Bank coded as USD No. 870001062650; Euro account No. 93001062686; Pound Sterling A/CNo. 285001062679; e-Saver Savings (Naira) account No. 5001062693; and a Naira A/C No. 0001062667. An intelligence report on the CJN’s accounts reads in part: “Pattern of structured payments of $10,000.00 each in 2012.
For example, a total of $630,000.00 was credited to the accounts using this pattern. “Similarly structured payments of $10,000.00 amounting to $297,800.00, $50,000.00 and $36,000.00 were deposited in the account in 2013, 2015 and 2016 respectively.
“There was also a credit of $121,116.00 into the account from 2014 to 2016 from Life Friend Plc. The payments were in four installments, of $30,279.00 each. These payments suggest the suspect has investments “A payment at $482,966.00 from Alicia Redemption Pro and shortly after, $800,000.00 was invested in SCB Investment subscription. We are in the process of verifying these transactions; “Other suspicious transactions in the account are credit of $19,764.00 from Pur of Noble and seven payments of $3,250.00 each amounting to $22,750.00 from Lloyds TSB. On the pound sterling (GBP), the investigative team discovered “a self-transfer of £40,268.40 into the account on May 31 2016.”
“There were also self-deposits by the suspect of £49,760.00 from July 2015 to September, 2016 but the balance as at September 30, 2016 was £108,348.00,” the report added. Regarding the Naira account, the report said: “The following highlights some of the suspicious activities in the account: A transfer of N41,262.000.00 ($260,000) was made from the Dollar account.
The money was used to make payment of N41million to the Ad hoc Committee on the Sale of Federal Government Houses, suggesting that he bought a property with proceeds of the transfer; “The only other significant transactions in the accounts are six structured cash payments of N500,000.00 each and one payment of N700,000.00 amounting to N3.7million from November, 2013 to August, 2016.”
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Cigarette sales in most African countries are going up all the time. But smoking rates are much lower than in high-income countries. Because of these comparatively lower smoking prevalence rates – combined with the urgent need to address infectious diseases – tobacco control policies have largely not been prioritised.
Nigeria is a case in point. Preventing smoking rates from increasing requires a proactive response, including strong excise taxation policy change. The country has been slow to act. Last year it increased tobacco excise tax rates. But the increase was small and still falls well below the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended excise tax burden of 70% – that’s the percentage that the excise tax should make up of the average retail price.
Sufficiently increasing tobacco excise tax in Nigeria is crucial to bring about meaningful change. But to how much? To answer this question the Centre for the study of the Economies of Africa, with our support at the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Knowledge Hub on Tobacco Taxation, used a tobacco excise tax simulation model to evaluate the impact of various changes in the tobacco excise tax structure on government revenue and smoking prevalence.
The initial results show that targeting an excise tax burden of 75% – taking into account different economic growth rates and industry pricing response – would result in an approximately 20% drop in cigarette consumption. As tobacco is an addictive substance, consumers will continue to spend on cigarettes, but less so. The simulation also showed that once the higher tax burden is reached, government revenue from tobacco excise taxes would increase by more than 100%.
It’s reasonable to assume that this level of change would need to be phased in over a couple of years. For instance, in 1994 South Africa announced that it wanted to reach an excise tax burden of 50% by the late 1990s. This resulted in more than 100% increase in government revenue and 30% drop in aggregate smoking rates in 10 years.
Nigeria’s challenges
The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control is the first global health treaty created to address the tobacco epidemic and the burden of death and disease associated with it. One of the convention’s key articles to reduce demand is the use of excise taxation on tobacco products. But it remains underused in most African countries.
Nigeria ratified the convention in 2005, but only enacted comprehensive tobacco control policies in 2015 with the National Tobacco Control Act, after years of strong industry opposition. Researchers have emphasised the role of civil society organisations in Nigeria in culminating this change.
But the act is limited in the provisions it makes for the use of price and tax measures. These are brief and not explicit.
Last year Nigeria increased the excise tax on cigarettes. Although a step in the right direction, the tax change fell short of bringing meaningful change: it fell way below the excise tax burden of 70% recommended by the WHO.
The Nigerian Tobacco Control Alliance – a tobacco control advocacy group consisting of several civil society organisations – argues that, even after the increase, the tobacco excise taxes are still too low. And it’s called for an increase in rates that amount to the WHO’s recommendation.
Nigeria should also consider a proposal put forward in the International Monetary Fund country report. It has suggested a move from ad-valorem tax (levied in proportion to the estimated value of goods) to specific excise taxes (levied on the quantity of goods). This, it argues, is necessary to improve tax administration and revenue collection. It also suggests that real tobacco excise taxes be more than doubled over a three-year period.
Why Nigeria matters
A significant tax change in Nigeria is not only important for the health of Nigerians. It’s important for the continent because Nigeria is politically and economically important in Africa – and a strategically important policy trendsetter within the West African region.
It’s also been a magnet for investment by tobacco companies. Both British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco International have production facilities in Nigeria. The British American Tobacco facility in Nigeria is the regional headquarters.
The importance of Nigeria strengthening its tobacco excise tax policy is further increased by its strategic position within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a West African regional economic bloc.
In December 2017 the ECOWAS Council of Ministries adopted a new tobacco tax directive. It requires members to apply a minimum ad valorem tax of 50% on the factory price as well as specific tax on clearly defined quantities of tobacco products.
The next step for this directive is country-level implementation, of which Nigeria could set an example for the region.
What’s next
So what’s next? To bring about meaningful change, it’s crucial that tobacco excise tax be increased even further in Nigeria, something more in line with the levels proposed by the International Monetary Fund and the Centre for the study of the Economies of Africa.
Author: Laura Rossouw Senior Research Officer, Economics of Tobacco Control Project, University of Cape Town
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Click video for soundaddy Freeze, has now reacted after coming across the viral video of former President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, asking Americans to give $5000 as special seed for a mantle he would give to them so they would not miss God.
From the video, Pastor Oritsejafor could be heard asking members of the Morris Cerullo church to give $5000 so he can give them a spiritual mantle that would make them not miss God.
Reacting to the video on IG, Freeze wrote;
”Dear Ayo,
Did God tell you that he was hungry? If not, please stop making it look like the Lord of Heavens armies is broke or going through a recession!
–
Which god are you trying to attract with money? The god of 2 Cor 4:4?
An IG user, Jygga Collins, who initially shared the video wrote
Nigerian Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor was in Morris Cerullo’s church in America recently, looking for 90 people to give 5000USD each (450,000USD) for a mantle so they do not miss God. My question is, those that don’t have 5000USD to give, are they going to miss GOD? –
These charlatans have turned Yahweh into a God that needs money(mammon). Is it not written in 1 Peter 1:18 that we were redeemed without perishable things such as silver and gold but with the precious blood of Christ?? “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” –
Why then do people need to pay 5000USD so they don’t miss God???
I guess in America where poverty level is not has high as Nigeria and health care is top notch the only thing to sell to the gullible believers is Salvation. –
I don’t believe God has sent you to collect peoples money so they don’t miss HIM, and like you said in the earlier parts of this video you’re a crazy man Pastor Ayo. JC
Watch video below;
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"Greatness is not in Aso Rock but PMB took greatness there. You weren't great because you are President, you're President because you're great. Just like Awo, Zik, Ahmadu Bello, Aminu Kano, Uncle Bola Ige, Mko, they were great without being President. OBASANJO had been President three times, yet, he is still in desperate search for greatness....
He didn't write Buhari until Buhari honored MKO and June 12. He saw that as wickedness to his person. He said to himself "How can another man from the SW be greater than me?"...but the truth is even in death AWOLOWO and ABIOLA are by far greater than OBASANJO even if he lives for the next one thousand years....
OBASANJO has no conscience. He is the only President that disobeyed the Judgement of the SUPREME COURT on LAGOS Allocation. But today, he said he's fighting for the judiciary. What is he smoking.
From 1999 to 2007, Obasanjo didn't want to hear June 12 or ABIOLA. He never supported JUNE 12! And within 3 years of PMB Government, he recognized June 12, apologized to the Abiola Family, Yorubas, Nigerians for the annulment of June 12 and death of MKO. He went ahead to honor him and declared June 12 as Democracy Day.....Now tell me, who is a Democrat between OBASANJO and BUHARI?
According to Obasanjo, Abiola was not the messiah, Abacha was terrible, Yaradua was ineffective, Jonathan was worse, Buhari is awful & Atiku he once attacked viciously but now supporting is untrustworthy & a thief".
credit link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/357357637766270/permalink/1265752856926739/
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Husband to popular Nollywood actress, Funke Akindele has explained why he got married to the actress.
JJC Skillz said he approached Akindele in 2012 after he had a dream that he would get married to the actress.
According to him, though things did not work out between them in 2012, he followed his dream and 4-years later, in 2016, he got married to Akindele in August.
JJC further urged Nigerians to pay attention to their dreams because they could be telling you things you need to know.
He wrote: “I have to testify. God is great. I had a dream one night around Christmas 2012 that I will be married to Funke Aakindele and believing in the mighty God I trust, I approached and she didn’t believe me.
“A week of romance ended, we broke up and I wrote a song to send a message of what is to come.
“My God has never lied or lead me astray. A year later she had a calling to find me and so the story continues. The Master architect is at work.”
Recall that the couple who got married in 2016 recently welcomed a set of twin.
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