Nine injured in another late night explosion

Yet to be identified assailants detonated an explosive device in an uncompleted building in Bayan Gari at Tudun Wadan dan Iya in Bauchi State injuring nine people around 10pm on Sunday.

There were hotels and brothels in the area where the blast occurred and it is a popular relaxation spot for many.

Bauchi State Police Commissioner Mohammed confirmed the incident to Daily Trust in a telephone interview that “some hoodlum’s detonated explosives in an uncompleted building in Bayan Gari. Nine people were injured and we have taken all the injured people to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital”

A security source in Bauchi state said “all the injured people were not affected by the blast they were injured when they heard the blast. They panicked and were injured in the resulting stampede. There was nobody in the building where the blast occured but it is a place we raid often for Indian hemp smokers."

An eye witnesses who spoke to Daily Trust said “the blast occurred near a hotel where we were dancing. We heard a loud sound explosion and the blast shattered  the glasses of our cars. We all panicked before soldiers came to our rescue. I counted at least 10 injured people. We were all trapped but God saved us."

On Friday, an explosive device was detonated near a popular night club in Abuja close to midnight. 

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Customs intercept poultry foods worth over N15m

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Operations Unit Zone ‘A’ have  intercepted about 2,590 cartons of different poultry foods with a Duty Paid value (DPV) of over N15 million.

Dan Ugo, controller of the unit, while taking some representatives osf the Nigerian Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) round the destruction site revealed that the command captured made use of intelligence based information to capture the smugglers and got hold of the contraband goods.

According to him, the urgent need to protect local farmers and create jobs for Nigerian youths informed the latest seizure, thus, “the unit is determined to enforce full compliance with the headquarters’ directive on zero tolerance for the importation of poultry products”.

He assured Nigerians that the unit will ensure the sustenance of the campaign aimed at suppressing smuggling to its barest minimum. He further advised importers of the poultry foods to venture into more reasonable enterprise in order to avoid financial losses from that may arise from seizure.

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Two million litres of fake diesel found in Lagos

The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) says it discovered vessels laden with two million litres of adulterated diesel in an illegal jetty in Lagos.


 The department discovered the product during a raid on the jetty on Monday.  According to a statement from the agency, some of the suspects arrested during the raid have been handed over to the police for prosecution.


  It expressed concern over the unwholesome practice, saying diesel consumers should source and purchase the product from only reputable retail outlets duly accredited by DPR.

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Arik Air passes second IOSA certification

Arik Air has scaled through the second audit of the Operational Safety Audit of the International Air Transport Association (IOSA) just as the airline said its airplanes are fitted with Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment that makes the aircraft to land with recourse to instrument landing system at airports.

The airline explained that with GPS, the aircraft in its fleet can land at zero visibility at any airport in the country.

IOSA is the benchmark for global safety management in airlines and all IATA members are registered and must remain registered in order to maintain IATA membership.

Presently, two domestic airlines; Arik Air and Air Nigeria are the only airlines on IOSA register.

Speaking with journalists during a facility tour of the airline headquarters at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos, the Senior Vice President, Operations, Arik Air, Rob Thomas, at the airline Operational Control Centre (OCC), where all it flights are tracked, disclosed that Arik Air airplanes can land with zero visibility, adding that however, the airline does not take off when there is adverse weather report or when there is zero visibility based on the safety ground.

The minimum approved visibility by Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) is 1,200.

He added that the GPS in Arik Air airplanes had been integrated into Auto Pilot System (APS) and Flight Management System (FMS), adding that these differentiate the new generation aircraft from the older ones.

Thomas stated that OCC in Arik Air could be comparable to the one in Emirates, adding that with this equipment, it is easier to track the airline’s aircraft, those delayed, gives the airline current global weather report, indicate when an aircraft is due for maintenance, where it will be maintained among others.

He stated that maintenance checks such as A and B are done at the airline’s maintenance hangar by Lufthansa Techniks but was quick to add that major maintenance such as C and D are done abroad.

He disclosed that the airline passed the second IOSA programme and that it was done three weeks ago.

This is coming just as experts are asking the Federal Government to make it compulsory for domestic airlines to belong to IATA, which would make the airlines go through IOSA following the Dana MD 83 aircraft crash which occurred on June 3, 2012, killing 153 passengers, six crew on board and six persons on the ground.

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Teenager survives spear through brain

A US teenager's survival after a spear was shot through his brain is a miracle, doctors say.

Yasser Lopez, 16, is recovering after he was accidentally hit with a spear gun by a friend during a Florida fishing trip this month.

Medics at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami said the 3ft (90cm) projectile entered his brain over his right eye and went out the back of his head.

He is now out of bed and speaking following a three-hour operation.

Medics said he was awake as he arrived at hospital, and became "agitated".

After sedating the teenager, part of the stainless steel spear had to be severed with a mechanical cutter so he could fit into the CT scanner.

Doctors said the teenager has no memory of the freak accident.

He was shot with the projectile as he swam in a lake near his Miami area home on 8 June when his friend set off the trigger of a spear gun he was loading.

While medics are not sure of the extent of the damage to his memory and other parts of the brain, they say his condition could have been much worse.

"It's a miracle the spear missed all the main blood vessels of the brain," neurosurgeon Ross Bullock told reporters.

Also helpful, doctors say, was the foreign object's trajectory into the right side of the brain, Mr Lopez's non-dominant lobe, missing the parts responsible for speech and other important functions.

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Nigeria violence: Pope Benedict XVI calls for peace

Pope Benedict XVI has used his weekly address to an audience at the Vatican to call for an end to "terrorist attacks" against Christians in Nigeria.

Suicide bombings of three churches in Kaduna state on Sunday, claimed by militant Islamist group Boko Haram, killed at least 16 people.

Revenge attacks between Christians and Muslims in Kaduna and Damaturu have killed dozens more.

The Pope urged Nigeria to build "a peaceful and reconciled society."

Speaking at the Vatican, Pope Benedict said: "I am following with deep concern the news from Nigeria, where terrorist attacks are continuing, especially against Christians.

"I appeal to those responsible for the violence to immediately stop spilling the blood of innocent people."

He urged Nigerians to "to cooperate in the construction of a peaceful and reconciled society in which the right to freely express faith is guaranteed."

Nigeria's main Christian body has said the attacks on churches suggested a "systematic religious cleansing".

The Nigerian authorities on Tuesday imposed a curfew in the north-eastern city of Damaturu, and reinstated a Kaduna state-wide ban on movements.

According to Reuters, at least 80 people have been killed in clashes in Kaduna and Damaturu since Monday.

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Pennsylvania mom injected 14-year-old daughter with heroin about 200 times

A Pennsylvania mother of two is accused of getting her teenage daughter hooked on heroin and injecting her with the drug hundreds of times when she was too weak to do it herself.

Authorities say that Brandi Baumgardner, 38, of Beaver Springs, began smoking marijuana with her daughter when the girl was 12 years old, The Daily Item reports.

The girl, whose name is being withheld due to the nature of the case, told police that she began using harder drugs, like heroin, when she was 14.

The now 14-year-old says that she has abused prescription pills and crack cocaine, in addition to heroin and marijuana.

Baumgardner allegedly injected the child with heroin about 200 times when she was too “sick” to do it by herself.A 22-year-old Beaver Springs man is also accused of shooting the teen up — in exchange for sex.

The girl says that Robert Thomas Hannick gave her suboxone, a drug prescribed for opioid dependence.Hannick denied that he provided the girl with drugs, authorities said.

It is unclear how Hannick came into contact with the teen, or what connection, if any, he has to Baumgardner.

Baumgardner admitted that she and her daughter had a drug problem when she was interviewed by state police, according to court documents obtained by The Daily Item.

The daughter told authorities that her mother would sometimes take her to the hospital with a fake illness to get prescription drugs.

The 14-year-old also says that she and her mother would share Fentanyl patches. Fentanyl is a prescription pain killer that is 100 times more powerful than morphine.

Investigators learned about the mother-daughter drug habit when the teen sought treatment in Aug. 2011 at Clear Vision, an addiction treatment center for young women in Montgomery, Pennsylvania.

Law requires the Clear Vision staff to report all allegations of sexual abuse to the state, according to the Daily Item.

Baumgardner is charged with child endangerment and corruption of minors. A preliminary hearing for Baumgardner is scheduled for June 21.

Hannick is charged with statutory sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault and corruption of minors.

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Army hands over 5,000 guns to civil defence corps

The Nigerian army has handed over 5,000 G3 guns and 25,000 7.2mm live   ammunition to the  Nigerian Civil Defense Corps to enhance security, check  terrorism and put an end to the Boko Haram menace.

The  Nigerian Civil Defense Corps was founded in 1967 as a voluntary corps providing   complimentary service to the Nigerian citizens and was inaugurated in 2003 as paramilitary yet with no arms, right to arrest or conduct  house search.

Speaking during the handing over ceremony at the I Division HQ of the Nigerian Army, Kaduna,the Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, said “I want to use this medium to let conflicts perpetrators, especially the Sect    known as Boko Haram to know that if they think that killing innocent people  is the only way to make a statement and press their demands, well I am happy  to inform them that no amount of war, bomb blast, suicide bombing would solve the problem as the Federal Government would continue to do all it can to  enhance security.”

The Nigerian Army offered to train the Nigerian Civil Defense Corps staff  to enable them meet up with the challenges of terrorism as some of its  personnel are retired military or police officers.

The Minister of Interior further dismissed the claim of Boko Haram   that the Federal Government was insincere and could not be trusted. “Time has changed and things have changed with time. The Federal Government has always opened the door for dialogue with Boko Haram, yet we hear of reports stating that the government is insincere, whereas Boko Haram never spoke with the Federal   Government. But if they choose to press their demands with violence, then, the government would do everything to improve security and bring an end to  terrorism.”

Moro stated that the Nigerian Air Force and    Navy would soon be armed to enable them meet up with the challenges of terrorism.
The General Officer Commanding 1 Division Army, who represented the Chief of  Army Staff, Major General Garba Wahab, said that the exercise of arming the Civil Defense was in line with the directives of the Federal Government in order to enhance security and fight “Modern Terrorism”.

“We are going to share intelligence with the Civil Defense Corps and we all know that terrorism is on the increase in Nigeria and the military and police alone cannot handle the situation,  that is why we have decided to   bring in the civil defense.No excuses would be accepted for the misuse of weapons as we    have reports of that, disciplinary action would be taken on such ground,” he said.

In his remarks,the Commandant General of Civil Defence Corps, Dr Olu Aboderin  assured that the arms handed over to them would be used according to international and local laws.

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Nigeria ranks 59th on global cyber threat list, says Symantec

Cyber security solution company, Symantec has ranked Nigeria 59th on its latest internet security report. Besides, Nigeria ranked 66th position at the same period in 2011.

The Symantec Internet Security Threat Report is one of the most comprehensive sources of Internet threat data in the world. Sheldon Hand, Territory Manager, Symantec Pty Limited in-charge of Indian Ocean Islands, West, East and Central Africa (IWECA), told news men in Lagos at the weekend that with this ranking, Nigeria’s has become more vulnerable to cyber attacks.

This, according to him is due to the growing number of underwater cable systems on the Nigeria’s shores.

Stressing that Nigeria’s position had actually increased on the list of countries vulnerable to cyber attacks, he further explained that the way the ranking works is that if a country is ranked first, it means it’s the most country with security threats.

Hand also adduced some reasons for the Nigeria’s position, listing the booming economy, advent of more bandwidth routes and explosion in mobile devices. For him, Internet security threats have actually tripled, due to avalanche of technologies, especially mobile devices.

According to him, Symantec recently released a report which is an analysis of all the threats on the internet, based on its deployment systems to scan over 8 billion electronic mails (emails) per day.

“We have more than 240,000 censors in 200 countries. These censors are networks in strategic places, and what this allows us to do, is gather a tremendous amount of information and intelligence about the threats that are happening in the world on the internet,” he said.

Hand also affirmed that Symantec has specific statistics for Nigeria, which show that in 2011 Nigeria was ranked the 66th, which means that it is the 66th highest country with internet threats, but this has increased.

He explained that this does not mean that security threat ranking of Nigeria has gone down. “No, If you ranks number 1, it means you have the most security internet threat, so Nigeria has gone from 66 to 59 which means security threats have increased,” Hand said.

As said by him, the reason for the aforementioned ranking based on Symantec perception are in three-fold, namely, the first one “is Nigeria’s economy is booming, it is estimated that about 2015 Nigeria’s economy will be bigger than South Africa’s economy, this is estimated by Morgan Stanley Research.”

He pointed out that over a couple of years, there have been an increase in the broadband capacity in Nigeria. “So, the internet with broadband is a platform for malicious activities for security threats in one of two ways,” he said. Lastly, he said, there is an increased security threat in Nigeria because of the adoption of mobile devices which has increased significantly as there is a lot of people using android, iPhone, blackberry, tablets and many others.

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Otedola releases statement on subsidy report and Farouk's bribery scandal

Following the inclusion of the two companies belonging to business magnate Femi Otedola, which were earlier cleared from the fuel subsidy fraud scheme, in the list of indicted firms; the Zenon Oil owner has released a statement saying he did not have anything to hide. I have stated the facts in my interview with Thisday newspaper and nothing but the facts. 

That Farouk Lawan demanded $3 million from me and because I refused to oblige him he included the name of Zenon amongst those who bought forex without importing petroleum products. He did this without even asking Zenon to produce a single document of the forex transaction. He clearly wanted to extort money for an offence I did not commit. That is why I went to report to the security agencies. If I had anything to hide I wouldn’t have gone to the agencies. There is an old adage that says “people who live in glass houses should not throw stones.”

Moreover it is not possible to purchase $232, 975,385.13 million from CBN without importing the product. The total figure is not even $232, 975,385.13 million as alleged but $372, 207, 990 million. They should go and amend the report to read $372, 207, 990 million which is the correct figure. It is not possible to purchase this volume of forex from the CBN with first class banks such as Access Bank, FCMB, GTB, UBA and an international bank BNP Paribas which is one of the biggest and most respected banks in the world.

If people at my level who have worked hard to build their businesses can be blackmailed this way all in a bid to extort money from them, I pity people that are just starting out in business in this country. In all my business dealings I have always been above board and the records are there to prove. As far as I know Lawan could not have been working alone in this extortionist plot. A tree does not make a forest. Let me also state for the records that we are not in any way affiliated to the other company, Synopsis Enterprises Ltd, also included in the report. Actions of today by the House is laughable, a mere celebration of corruption and a further indictment on their honorable member.

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FG approves new visa policy

 The Federal Executive Council (FEC) yesterday approved new visa policy aimed at attracting foreign investments and creating jobs in the country.Briefing newsmen after the FEC meeting, Information Minister Labaran Maku said the policy will improve tourism, direct foreign investments and secure the nation’s boundaries.

Also speaking on the new policy, Interior Minister Abba Moro said the new visa policy provides for issuance of entry visa at the point of entry into the country.He said, “We now have visa at entry point. 

So, if a businessman, a tourist or a business delegation or a government delegation has reason to visit Nigeria at short notice to do business with Nigeria and if by any coincidence we don’t have embassy in such country, such delegation or group can come to Nigeria and obtain their visas at port of entry particularly at international airports. This is without prejudice to ensuring our internal security,”

The council also approved a $1.4 million contract for the automated electronic platform for the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

The Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, said the platform would enable the scheme to function efficiently and effectively by reducing manual work.

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Gunmen kill Yobe Assembly member

Gunmen have killed member representing Ningere local government in the Yobe House of Assembly, Hon. Adamu Deguri.  The gunmen attacked the lawmaker at his residence at Unguwar Tandari in Potiskum around 9am on Tuesday June 12.

An eye witness said, "We were waiting to see him at his house located at Unguwar Tandari as usual. When he came out to attend to us on his way to Damaturu, the gunmen shot him twice and escaped. We all scampered for safety. He was rushed to hospital were he was confirmed dead"

A source with the Police confirmed the attack. "We received the signal but we don't have the details of the attack yet but we learnt that he is the chairman of the House Committee on Special Duties," the source told Daily Trust

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Ban Ki-moon appoints Nigerian as Special Adviser

Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon  has appointed Ms Amina J. Mohammed a Nigerian as his special Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning.

Ms. Mohammed brings to the position over 30 years of experience as a development practitioner in the public and private sectors as well as civil society, according to a statement issued by Mr. Ban’s spokesperson.

The Special Adviser is currently the Chief Executive Officer and founder of the Center for Development Policy Solutions, a think-tank focused on addressing policy and knowledge gaps within the government, parliament and private sector in development and civil society for robust advocacy materials.

She is also an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University, New York, and her past experience includes serving as the Senior Special Assistant to the President of Nigeria on the anti-poverty targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

In addition, she currently serves on numerous international advisory panels and boards, including the Global Development Program of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Secretary General’s Global Sustainability Panel.

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Bomb Blasts In Maiduguri Police HQ kills five

A suicide car bomb outside police headquarters in the north-eastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri has killed at least five people, police say.

Following the blast, security forces in the city stormed a suspected hideout of the Islamist Boko Haram group, prompting a fierce gun battle, police sources told the BBC.

There is a huge security presence in Maiduguri, which is the stronghold of Boko Haram.

No group has yet claimed the attack.

However, Boko Haram - whose name means "No to Western education" - has targeted police stations, schools and other government buildings in the last 21 months.

The group wants to impose Sharia law across Nigeria.

"Many people, mostly members of the police which include men and women were killed in the explosion," eyewitness Ali Alhaji told Reuters.

Security sources said the death toll may rise.

Five people were killed - the bomber, one policeman and three civilians, a police spokesman in Maiduguri told the BBC.

Twelve people were injured, five of them police, he added.

Boko Haram first came to prominence in 2009 when hundreds of its followers were killed when they attacked police stations in Maiduguri.

Its founder, Mohammed Yusuf, was arrested but died in police custody.

In 2010 the group started to stage drive-by shootings on government targets in revenge for his killing.

Last year, it carried out suicide bombings on high-profile targets such as the headquarters of the UN and police in the capital, Abuja.

Boko Haram said it carried out a suicide bomb attack last Sunday on a church in Bauchi city which killed 12 people, the BBC's Will Ross in Lagos reports.

A spokesman for the group issued a statement this week rejecting the idea of peace talks with the government, he adds.

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97-year-old gets high school diploma(VIDEO)

 Ann Colagiovanni, 97 years old, is finally receiving her high school diploma.The Depression-era student quit school at the age of 17, back in 1930s, to work in her father's market.

The Ohio resident never returned to finish her education but instead became a student of life. She worked at the family store until the 1960s when it closed. She got married and has two daughters and 11 grandchildren.

Daughter Emilia Colagiovanni Vinci told Fox 8 Cleveland, "When I told her she was getting a diploma, she sobbed as if a pain had been relieved from her heart," adding, "I never knew what it meant to her. She wanted this."

Emilia noted that during the Depression, work was more important than an education.

But receiving a diploma certainly seemed important to the nonagenarian. The oldest member of the class of 2012 appears in the news video in a white cap and gown, at a special ceremony at Shaker Heights High School, which presented her with an honorary diploma--in her name--dated June 1934. "Finally, I'm going to be a graduate," she says.

Grandma isn't the only graduate this year: Her grandson, Thomas Vinci, will also receive a diploma from the suburban Cleveland high school one day after his grandmother.

Emilia Colagiovanni Vinci said, "She did what her father wanted her to do, even though she wanted to graduate. She put her father, her family, before herself."

Seventy-eight years later, Ann Colagiovanni finally put herself first.

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Aircraft age inconsequential – Aviation Experts

Contrary to the belief that most Nigerian airlines fly old aircraft in the nation’s airspace, age of a plane is not to a barrier to its airworthiness, according to experts.Experts are of the opinion that older aircrafts are flying well even in the developed countries by some of the giant airlines in the world.

The likes of Delta, United, Lufthansa and other leading airline operators are flying 20-40 years old airplanes but with good maintenance schedule for those planes as well as the crew, they said.

Basically, what is important in aviation business globally is the non compromise of safety through the observation of continuous maintenance and certification of air planes and qualifications of the operating personnel both the pilots, flight officer, engineers and the cabin crew.

Captain Mohammed Joji, the Secretary General Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), said there was no correlation between safety and the age of an aircraft, saying a decision to retire an aircraft was basically economic.

He said “an ageing aircraft require more frequent maintenance than new aircraft and that a well maintained old aircraft is better than a poorly maintained new aircraft.”

Similarly, the Chief Executive of Zenith Travel, Olumide Ohunayo, said age of an aircraft was not as important as its maintenance and certification and the cabin crew.

People, according to him, were just making comments out of context with high emotion because of the unfortunate crash.

He said the ill-fated aircraft entered the country’s airspace at the age of 18 in August 2008, adding that the plane in question didn’t crash because of its age contrary to speculations.

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Fuel runs out at Manchester Airport

Passengers were left stranded at England's Manchester Airport, on Wednesday, after the airport ran out of aviation fuel.

Supplies were stopped in the early hours of Wednesday due to quality issues with fuel from the Essar refinery at Stanlow, near Ellesmere Port. Stocks were finally exhausted at around 6pm leaving up to ten flights facing cancellation, the airport said.

The airport said that this is the first time that it has ever run out - although it came close to doing so in 2008. It uses around three million litres of aviation fuel per day.

Fears were voiced that it could prompt a string of flight cancellations and delays if stocks were not replenished until early on Thursday morning. Thirteen flights were delayed because of the glitch, with 12 waiting for less than 30 minutes, while 17 departure flights also made a short stop at other UK airports to top up fuel before completing the onward journey.

The supply from the Essar refinery near Ellesmere Port was interrupted though for just 15 minutes after running out at 5.15pm. A total of three million litres of fuel was supplied overnight to the airport's fuel storage facility and meant operations returned to normal at 8.30am today, the airport said.

The airport uses around three million litres of aviation fuel per day. This is the equivalent of 79 road tankers, which carry approximately 38,000 litres per vehicle Chris Formby, operations director at Manchester Airport, said: "Although we initially warned about the potential for some cancellations and diversions based on the information from the fuel companies yesterday afternoon, disruption to passengers has been kept to an absolute minimum thanks to the airlines and the Essar refinery. "On behalf of the thousands of passengers travelling today and last night, we would like to thank our airline partners for the huge effort they put into contingency planning to mitigate the highly unusual problem with the fuel supply."

Fuel supplies at Manchester Airport have returned to normal, airport bosses confirmed on Thursday.

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Air Nigeria debunks ex-director's claims; calls him a thief

Air Nigeria has released a statement to debunk what they term 'negative and false information' being circulated by the dismissed finance director of the airline, John Nnorom (pictured above). The statement made available to journalists below...

The management of Air Nigeria wishes to draw the attention of the general public to the false and negative stories being spread by one of its ex- Finance Directors, John Nnorom, who is currently facing criminal charges of stealing and conversion. Mr. Nnorom is an illiterate in the maintenance of aircraft as he only worked in the finance department of the airline before he was dismissed. Mr. Nnorom after his dismissal was declared wanted by the police until his subsequent arrest and the recovery of the sum of $100, 000 from him.

The Nigeria Police authority has since charged him for stealing and criminal conversion while the court has admitted him to bail as his criminal trial continues.

The general public is advised to disregard any such negative stories and false information by Nnorom (either in the print, electronic or online media).

Air Nigeria has been flying the air space in the last 10 years with first class record of safety, without any accidents or even emergency landings.

This record remains the integrity of our existence which cannot be compromised. The airline is also a proud member of the IATA and the oldest member in West Africa and one of the oldest in Africa.

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Press Release From Office Of The First Lady: Politicizing The Dana Crash

Most of you probably heard the rumours yesterday that the Dana plane that crashed was distressed for a while but could not make an emergency landing because the airspace was closed for 2 hours for the Presidential Jet carrying Dame Patience Jonathan. Absolutely not true. 

Our attention has been drawn to the orchestrated plan to politicize the Sunday Dana Air crash in Lagos in which many people lost their lives, through rumours about the possible cause of the accident citing VIP movement involving the wife of the President.

We consider it callous, inhuman and devilish for anyone to have thought of wrapping such national calamity in political garb by insinuating that the plane crashed because the airspace was closed for the First Lady's movement in Lagos.

For the avoidance of doubt, the First Lady arrived Lagos at about 2pm on Saturday, 2nd June, 2012 for a private engagement and was billed to leave for Abuja on Monday, 4th June, 2012.

In compliance with her itinerary, the First Lady arrived Lagos on Saturday. She was at a public event on Sunday when the accident occurred and promptly abandoned the ceremony as a mark of respect for the victims and retired to the State House, Marina. She left Lagos at exactly 13.15hrs on Monday, 4th June, 2012, according to schedule.

It is therefore surprising that some mischievous persons will see this moment of National mourning as an opportunity to blackmail and impugn the First Lady's integrity.

This is the time for all Nigerians to be sober and pray for the repose of the souls of the victims and not a time to subordinate the interests of our nation to narrow self-serving interests.

Let us all put the interest of the Nation first in whatever we do.

Mrs. Jonathan had no intention to travel on Sunday and never did. Like all Nigerians, she has been mourning the dead.

Signed

Ayo Osinlu

Special Assistant to the President

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Swarms Of Killer Spiders' Invade Village

Experts are trying to identify the species of spiders that have invaded an Indian village, reportedly killing two people and injuring many others.

Panicked villagers in Sadiya, Assam, said swarms of the creatures began jumping at people and biting victims during a Hindu festival.

Indian media said a dozen people had been bitten and treated in hospital and two had died.

"Initially we thought it was a prank, but later on we saw swarms of this peculiar kind of spider biting people," Ranjit Das, a community elder said.

Authorities have swung into action by fogging and spraying insecticides in the area, 370 miles east of Assam's main city of Guwahati.

A team of scientists have been dispatched to investigate."We visited the spot and found it akin to the tarantula, but we are still not sure what this particular species is," said LR Saikia, a scientist from the department of life science of Dibrugarh University in Assam.

"It appears to be an aggressive spider with its fangs more powerful than the normal variety of house spiders," Mr Saikia said.

"It leaps at anything that comes close. Some of the victims claimed the spider latched on to them after biting," he added.

Specimens have been sent outside Assam for identification by arachnologists, he said.

The Times of India reported that a schoolboy has died, along with another unidentified victim.

It is unclear if the two victims died from the spiders' venom, as both were cremated before post-mortem examinations could be carried out.

Dr Anil Phatowali, superintendent of the town's hospital, said he could not be sure if the spiders were even venomous because he did not administer an antivenin dose.

The bite victims may have fallen ill because they went to witch doctors before seeking hospital treatment, Dr Phatowali said.

The witch doctors opened the victims' wounds with razors and drained their blood.

"That could have also made them sick," the doctor added

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