Africa gets first white president in Zambia

Zambia’s President Michael Sata — nicknamed “King Cobra” for his sharp tongue and manner — has died, officials said Wednesday, making his vice-president Africa’s first white head of state in decades.



Sata, 77, died Tuesday while undergoing treatment in London’s private King Edward VII hospital for an unspecified illness, the Zambian government said.

Vice-President Guy Scott, 70, was named interim leader — making him the first white president of an African nation since FW de Klerk ruled apartheid South Africa more than 20 years ago.

The late Sata

Scott, whose parents were from Scotland, is not eligible to stand in the upcoming presidential election — which must be held within the next 90 days — because of a rule in Zambia’s 1996 constitution barring heads of state with foreign parents.

“Dr Scott will act as president of the Republic of Zambia until the country goes for a presidential by-election” said Defence Minister Edgar Lungu.

Scott issued a statement confirming his temporary promotion and the 90-day period for the elections.
He added that national mourning for Sata would begin Wednesday. “We will miss our beloved president and comrade,” he said,

– From train station cleaner to president –

Sata was elected in 2011 to preside over his landlocked, southern African nation of 15 million people.
It was a triumphant post for a man who rose from sweeping London railway stations, through to being a policeman and trade unionist.

Once in power, though, he proved to be an authoritarian populist who inveighed against political foes, the media and sometimes even allies, earning him his snakey sobriquet. His admirers saw him more as a no-nonsense man of action.

Rumours of him being seriously ill persisted during his final months in office. Frequent denials by the government — and legal action against activists claiming he was dying — did nothing to dispel them.
Sata had not been seen in public since returning from the UN General Assembly last month, where he failed to make a scheduled speech.

The announcement by cabinet secretary Roland Msiska on Wednesday that Sata had died created little surprise.

“It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing on of our beloved president,” Msiska said in an address to the nation.

Speculation was turning to who might become Zambia’s next president.

Even before Sata’s death, analysts had said a power struggle for Zambia’s top job was already well under way within the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) party.

When Sata flew to London just over a week ago for treatment he appointed his defence minister as acting president.

But Lungu, who also holds the justice portfolio, is seen as just one of several potential candidates within the faction-ridden party.

And outside the PF, former president Rupiah Banda, who is facing graft charges, has hinted at a possible return to active politics.

“I am legally eligible to stand,” he told AFP early this month, citing calls from his supporters to return to the political fray.'

– Tributes to Sata –

African leaders meanwhile paid tribute to Sata.

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta hailed him as an “outstanding son of Africa”.
“He was gifted with unique, admirable abilities and strong values,” Kenyatta said in a statement.
South Africa’s ruling ANC said: “Zambia has lost not only a president who prioritised the poor, but also led the Zambian government at a time when the continent is working to reclaim its place in the global governance and economy.”

Sata rode to power on the back of resentment against the Chinese resource firms that dot Zambia, describing them as “infesters”.

His government had recently cracked down on political opponents and critical journalists who reported on his long-suspected illness and frequent “working trips” abroad, apparently for medical treatment.

Man commits suicide over N1,000

A 32-year-old man, Mr. Simon Mbam, of Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State has committed suicide after he was tortured by some villagers for allegedly stealing N1,000 from a shop in the market.



1000 naira notesThe victim, who jumped into a pond in the area last weekend, found himself in the mess when he left his house in the evening of the fateful day to buy drinks with his friends.

While late Simon and his friends were busy sipping their drinks, the owner of the shop raised an alarm over a missing N1,000 in his carton of drinks, but no customer admitted to haven taken the money.

The alarm raised by the shop owner attracted villagers who stormed the scene and gave the suspects till the following day to return the money or face the consequences.

It was learned that the said missing money was found at the door step of the shop, but when the villagers who were determined to get to the root of the matter gathered, the owner of the shop insisted on knowing the person behind the act.
Vanguard further gathered that the suspect, who later confessed to the crime, was allegedly beaten by the irate villagers until he started bleeding and losing consciousness.

They demanded that he should be treated like a thief, even as he was fined two goats, two crates of beer and N5,000, which were immediately provided by the suspect’s mother (names withheld).

It was gathered that the village head rejected what the suspect’s mother brought, insisting that an additional N5,000 should be provided so that the matter would be completely resolved without involving the police.

This second demand by the villagers made the suspect, who felt humiliated by the entire process, escape from his captors and jumped into Aku Pond, which was not far from the market square.

All efforts to rescue him on time proved abortive as he drowned before his body was retrieved by the villagers.
Meanwhile, four persons including the village head, had been arrested by the police after the mother of the victim reported the matter.

Man kills friend for sleeping with wife

A Magistrate Court sitting in Isabo, Abeokuta, on Wednesday, remanded a herdsman, Mohammed Ibrahim, for killing his friend, who allegedly slept with the former’s wife.


According to the prosecutor, Moshood Hammed, a corporal, the accused allegedly committed the offence on October 11 at about 12.30am at Ojubu Village in Abeokuta.

He said, “The accused killed his friend, Abdullahi Saliu, by hitting him with a stick on his head for sleeping with his wife.

“The accused and the deceased are close friends and live together in the same apartment, when the accused learnt that the deceased slept with his wife while he was away from home.

“A fight ensued between the two men, which led to the murder of Saliu.”

He said the offence contravened Sections 316 and 319 of the Criminal Laws of Ogun.

Ibrahim, who had no legal representation and whose plea was not taken by the court, is facing a murder charge.

The Magistrate, Mr Martins Akinyemi, ordered that the accused be remanded in Oba Prison while awaiting Director of Public Prosecutions’ advice on the matter.

Prominent Igbo businessman shot dead in Bauchi

A prominent Igbo businessman in Bauchi State, John Udeh also known as John Bosco was Wednesday murdered in front of his house at Federal Low-cost.


John was said to have been shot right in the presence of his wife who was in the front seat of their car while her husband was driving when the gunmen accosted them.

“When I heard his horn, I opened the gate then I heard gun shots and I ran back. He was about to drive in when he was shot,” Chimezie Ugwu, one of the deceased apprentices narrated what happened.

Fiday Uwakwe, another apprentice who followed Chimezie to open the gate for their ‘Oga’ at about 6 in the evening, said he too ran away when he heard gunshots as soon as they had opened the gate to let their boss drive in.

According to him, “Our madam was with him and two other apprentices were also in the car with them. We went to open the gate for them when we suddenly heard gunshot. Then I ran away. Later we heard Madam crying but before I came out the Audi car had left. One of our neighbours had rushed him to the hospital”

Elder brother of late John Bosco Solomon Udeh, decried the killing saying that the family is not ruling out an assassination.

“I feel very bad about it. I don’t have anything to say about the security situation in the state. He left behind four children and a wife. I don’t know what will happen to his children now. All I know is that my brother was assassinated,” Solomon said.

Efforts to get the police to react to the killing of John Bosco failed at the time of filing report.
Several calls and text message sent to the Public Relations Office of the command were not returned or replied. When our reporter went to the PPRO’s office, he was said to have been in a management meeting with the commissioner of police.

Boko Haram , despite sieze fire, captures Mubi, Sack Army Headquarters, Kill Scores

The commercial town of Mubi in Adamawa state and border towns were thrown into a state of panic as several residents of the towns were attacked by rampaging Boko Haram members who also engaged Nigerian troops in a deadly shoot out, residents who fled the area have said.

Many of the soldiers and residents fled to neighbouring local government areas.

There are reports the group has hoisted its flag in the town.

Joshua Chinasa, a resident of Uba town which is about 30 Kilometres away from Mubi, said several people might have been killed during the shooting spree which was still going on at the time of filling this report.

“We are in serious trouble these boys have taken our towns. Some Boko Haram members have taken over Mararraban Mubi and Vintim the home town of Chief of Defense Staff, Alex Badeh, and the Nigerian troops are running for their lives.

“As I am talking to you now, residents are scampering for their lives for fear of imminent attack and uncertainty,” Mr. Chinasa said.

Also corroborating, Lamidi Kery, a female resident and a widow who lost her husband to a similar attack in Mubi, confirmed that people died during the attack.

“The town is deserted now, people have all fled into nearby bushes and hilltops. We have seen soldiers in their vehicles retreating,” she said.

Another source said that the Boko Haram insurgents overran Madagali down to Bazza both in Adamawa State.

“They are having a field day. Even yesterday I sneaked into Michika town to evacuate my aged mother, but surprisingly only insurgents could be heard around, there were no soldiers.”

“Mubi, has now become a shadow of its former self, people in hundreds are scampering for their lives.

“Even here in Maiha, we saw soldiers vehicles zoom-off towards Yola, the state capital,” said a local source in Maiha, another town in Adamawa.

Ahmad Sajor, the spokesperson to former Adamawa State governor, Murtala Nyako, revealed that his daughter was missing after news broke of the advance of the insurgents early Wednesday.

“This morning I got a call from my daughter who is a 200 level student of Adamawa State University, Mubi. She was hysterical. I was in Abuja for a meeting, but her information forced me to head back to Yola immediately,” Mr. Sajoh said.

“According to her, the insurgents were approaching the town which is the second largest in Adamawa State. I ordered her to leave the hostel and join her cousins to escape the town. I called my father who confirmed the story.

“By the time I arrived Yola airport, the town had fallen to the insurgents. My parents are trapped while my daughter and her cousins are missing. We lost contact for the past six hours.

“My colleague Mallam Iliyasu of the Bursary Department Adamawa State University, Mubi who is trapped in the town said by 2pm the Police Barracks in the GRA was overrun by the insurgents, the Prison was blown open while fighting was going on at the army Barracks.

“The IDP camp at Lamorde was thrown into confusion. The new rulers of the town had issued a decree banning all entry and exit to the town. Students who trooped to the motor park are now stranded with most taking refuge in any House that could welcome them.

“The barracks are the least safe locations in the town. So far there are no reported cases of killings or abductions. But fear and apprehension had taken over. No word yet on the incident either by Government or the Military.”

The state governor, Bala Ngillari, has asked the people of the state, particularly those in the affected areas to remain calm saying security agents are on the top of the situation.

“People should remain calm, security agents are on the top of situation,” P.P Elisha, the director Press and Public Affairs to the governor said on behalf of the gov

CAUGHT IN ACTION: See The Tanzanian Police Officers Fired For Kissing At Work

When is it OK to kiss a colleague? Two Tanzanian police officers, whose kiss was widely shared on social media, have prompted a discussion about just that - and both have also lost their jobs.

A relationship with a colleague can throw up any number of complications, but the two young police officers in the picture may not have thought it would end their careers. The photograph - taken in Kagera, north west Tanzania - shows the pair kissing whilst dressed in their work uniforms, and was considered grounds for dismissal. Residents of the country have taken to social media to voice their dismay.


The image was uploaded to the internet by a third officer, who also took the photo, and drawn to the attention of the authorities at the Kagera police force. Henry Mwaibambe, the regional police commander, spoke to the BBC about the steps taken, and defends his department's decision. "We followed all disciplinary procedures to make sure that they were given a chance to defend themselves," he says. "The officer looking at the case was convinced there was compelling evidence against them, and that they had breached police code of conduct. That's why they lost their jobs." In this case it wasn't the kiss itself that led to their dismissal, but the fact that that it happened in public, whilst in uniform, and was subsequently posted online. Indeed, the officer behind the camera also lost his job over the incident.

The story was picked up by the local press last week, and news of the punishment has surprised many on social media. Most believed the response was disproportionate. "They should have been reprimanded, sacking them is extreme, huuh!" posted one on Facebook. "I once saw a pic of former US President the late Reagan kissing his wife in the Oval Office... and nobody called for his impeachment," said another. "Police couple kissing taken more serious than bribery," wrote a third on Twitter.

Masoud George, a lawyer at the Tanzania Legal and Human Rights Center says that as severe as the punishment seems, the decision is unlikely to be illegal. "It is according to their code of conduct, so from a legal point of view we can't say their dismissal was unfair," he tells the media

EXPOSED: Nigerian Army Arrests Soldiers For Being Boko Haram 'Spies'

Military authorities prosecuting the war against terrorism in the North East states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe have arrested several soldiers, who were discovered to have leaked vital security information on the troops' strategies and tactics to Boko Haram that led to a series of ambush and killing of over 30 Nigerian soldiers in recent times.



Most of the arrested soldiers serve as orderlies or aide-de-camps, ADCs to Commanders of Troops on the field.

It was gathered that the alleged moles among the soldiers leaked the information on the deployment of soldiers from Barracks in April this year to the terrorists which led to an ambush and killing of so many soldiers of the 101 Battalion that consequently led to soldiers' mutiny and the shooting at the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 7 Division, Major General Ahmed Mohammed. His armoured official car saved his life.

Reporters further gathered that the activities of these moles may have been responsible for the recent shooting of the Nigerian Airforce Alpha Jet on September 12 which took off from Yola airport and was reported missing until Haram terrorists said they shot it down and killed one of its pilot, which was confirmed by the Facebook account of friends of the military.

Speaking under condition of anonymity, a reliable source said Commanders on the field had for long wondered how information on strategies for deployment, type of weaponry and fall back tactics easily filtered out to the terrorists to the extent that soldiers' movement, timing of deployment, and routes to take, became known to Haram insurgents.

"The situation became so bad that there was mutual suspicion among fellow commanders, the Brigade headquarters and even the Division headquarters. But at last, the moles were found out to be some of the orderlies and aides of Commanders. What they do is that after operational briefings and troops take off, these moles immediately pass on the information through calls."

Asked why it was difficult to discover the traitors before now, the source said, "Who will suspect that an orderly or the ADC of a Commander will be the one giving out information. He does everything for the Commander and he is with him all the time. He is the last person that would be suspected. But thank God, they have been exposed; the truth is now known".

Already, the source noted that a Board of Inquiry (BOI) has been set up to carry out further investigations into the activities of the traitors and to try to find out if there were fellow fifth columnists still existing among the troops, after which a General Court Martial will be constituted to try the soldiers for conspiracy among others.

Also, reports revealed that six officers taking part in the offensive to flush out the terrorists from the Adamawa axis recently shot themselves in parts of their bodies that were not life threatening with a view to escape being drafted to the battle field to confront Haram terrorists.

After allegedly shooting themselves in the arm, hip, foot and making sure that the bullets did not affect any bones in these parts of their bodies, the officers ran to a military hospital and claimed that they were shot by terrorists.

Medical experts attached to the hospital in Vintim, after carrying out several checks and x-rays on the gunshot wounds, discovered that the officers had 'clean gunshot wounds' which meant the injuries were 99% self inflicted.

Vanguard gathered that the Command ordered that further medical tests be carried out to be doubly sure and that the x-rays were sent to Abuja where experts did further analysis and came out with the same results of 'Clean Gunshot Wounds' .

"In one instance, an officer expertly shot at his arm from the front and the bullet came out from the back without touching any bone neither did it destroy any artery that would endanger the treatment of the hand. In another instance, an officer just opened fire on his foot but made sure no toe or dangerous part of the foot was affected," a source said.

Source: Vanguard

Dillish Matthews, BBA 8 Winner Opens Her Boobs In Namibian Cultural Wear

Dillish Mathews, winner of the 2013 edition of the Big Brother Africa reality TV show has appeared in a traditional Namibian wear when she recently visited women of the Namibian Himba tribe.



She went ahead to share photos from her visit to a tribe largely considered the last semi-nomadic indigenes of Namibia.


In a bid to fully understand their culture, Dillish found herself trying on some of the local wears, some of which left her boobs entirely bare.



Source: Nigerian Bulletin

BRAVERY: How Nigerian Woman Identified Boko Haram Member Who Kidnapped And Raped Her

A 43-year-old woman (names withheld) has identified an alleged Boko Haram who kidnapped and raped her.


According to reports, the woman who had gone to a bank in Maiduguri, Borno state, was able to recognize the 26-year old man in the queue and shouted saying:

“He is the one, he is the one! God will punish you, you will rot in hell!”

To the surprise of many she narrated how the recognized Boko Haram member abducted her and several others and used her like a dog while raping her over ten times.

Following the accusation, soldiers were immediately called to the scene, to which the man reportedly confessed to being a member of the Islamist sect, Leadership reports.

Confessing to the crime,  the  Boko Haram member said himself and other sect members had abducted several women, old and young, whom they raped on numerous occasions at the forest hide-out.

The woman was praised for her bravery for being able to identify the boko Haram member.

Nigerian military charges another 97 soldiers for mutiny, other offences

The Nigerian military on Thursday at the Defence Headquarters Garrison inaugurated a nine-man General Court-Martial to try 97 military personnel.

The personnel are being charged for different offences ranging from mutiny, assault and misconduct to tampering with military property.


Of the 97 soldiers, 66 have been accused of committing mutiny, a crime punishable under the military law by death sentence.

Highly placed military sources revealed that among the personnel set to face the General Court Martial include some senior officers: two colonels and some lieutenant colonels.

Fifteen of the accused being prosecuted in the second batch of Army personnel facing the General Military Court Martial at the Nigeria Army Headquarters Garrison, Abuja, are officers while 72 belong to the rank and file.

The officers are Lt. Col. SS Tilawan, Lt. Col. DB Dazang, Lt. Col. IC Ogunmanya, Lt. Col. SU Abubakar, Maj. II Sakaba, Captain Z Alhaji, Capt. M Hamadikko and Capt. MB Abdullahi.

Others are Capt. SY Musa, Lt. T Garba, Lt. F Ogunleke, Lt. A Abdullahi, Lt. IM Okoro, Lt. D Wunuji and 2nd Lt. JM Uweh.

The composition of the GCM include Brig. Gen. Musa Yusuf (President), Col. Rabe Abubakar, Col. Mohammed Ibrahim, Col. Umar Mohammed, Col. Godwin Ugwueze, Col. Jonathan Gontor, Col. BR Abimiku,and Col. MM Bunza (members)

The President of the Court, Brig. Gen Yusuf who announced the members of the court also named Col. At Ibrahim, Lt. Col Victor Olatunji as waiting members, and Lt. Col. Ukpe Ukpe, an Assistant Director Legal Services at the Army Headquarters Garrison, as the Judge Advocate.

The Prosecuting Officers are Capt. J A Orumor, Capt. Roseline Agwai, Capt. JE Nwosu, Capt. WF David, Capt VL William, Lt AM Sani, Lt. N Okorie and LCPl Chukwu Prince-Augustine.

The President of the Court said during the inauguration that the officers and men were being arraigned to face various offences which include mutiny, assault, absence without leave, house breaking, conduct prejudicial to good orders and service discipline, offences relating to service property.

He assured the accused who appeared in two batches because of space constraints at the Army Headquarters Garrison Conference Room venue of the trail, that the court would ensure a strict adherence to the principle of fair-hearing and justice in its treatment of the cases before it.

Yusuf said that the court would ensure a holistic examination of evidence brought before it to ensure that no innocent person was convicted.