Messi receives Golden Boot as Europe's goals king

Barcelona forward Lionel Messi was presented with his second Golden Boot award on Monday in recognition for scoring the most goals in Europe's domestic leagues last season. The 25-year-old Messi scored a Spanish-league record 50 goals for Barcelona, edging out fellow Spanish league star Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid by four goals.

 Messi dedicated the award to his teammates, with Xavi Hernandez and Carles Puyol present for the ceremony in Barcelona.
 "It is a prize for scoring goals, but without my teammates I couldn't have scored them," Messi said. "I share this award with them as I always do.
 "I don't fight for individual awards, I fight for titles. My goals are reclaiming the league crown, winning the Copa del Rey and the winning the Champions League again. Those are my goals, team goals."
 The Argentina international won his first Golden Boot in 2010 for his 34 goals that helped Barcelona win the league title.
 Messi is among the favorites to win the 2012 Ballon d'Or for the world's best player.

 He scored an unprecedented 73 goals in all competitions for Barcelona last season, breaking the previous European club record of 67 goals set by Bayern Munich's Gerd Mueller in 1972-73 and the prior world club mark of 70 established by Archie Stark of Bethlehem Steel in the American Soccer League in 1924-25.

 In March, Messi passed Cesar Rodriguez's 57-year-old milestone of 232 goals to become Barcelona all-time leading scorer. He also scored a European Cup-record-tying 14 goals in the Champions League, where he netted a record five goals in one game.

 Messi has scored 17 goals in all competitions to start this season, and has his sights set on yet another milestone he is sure to reach very soon. He is just two goals away from equaling Brazil great Pele's feat of 75 goals for club and country in one calendar year, set in 1958.



Who do you think will win the 2012 Ballon d'Or ?

Green tone to mosque sermons

Imams across Qatar are using the UN Climate Change Conference to remind the community of their responsibility to care for the planet.

 

DOHA Faith leaders in Qatar are joining community efforts to become more involved in climate change action, as the COP18/CMP8 Conference, being held in Doha next month, draws near.

As part of the drive to raise awareness of environmental issues among the public, and to make the United Nations Climate Change Conference inclusive, more than 150 mosques in Qatar will be reminding the community of their responsibility to care for the planet.

The Holy Quran contains more than 1,500 verses that relate to the environment, and preachers in the country’s mosques will cite these and more in their effort to bring home the important role that everyone has in helping to save the planet.

According to Mohamad Al-Missifri, the administration affairs expert in the Minister’s Office at Qatar’s Ministry of Endowment and Islamic Affairs, verses from the Holy Quran will be used, as well as ‘sunnah’, or the words and actions of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), as imams urge people to abide by more environmentally friendly practices. These include urging people to use less water and not to fell trees.

On November 27, state mosques will host afternoon lectures about preserving the environment and natural resources, and limiting energy consumption. Mosques will host lectures on November 30 about climate change and preserving the environment. Advocacy groups will meet on December 4 to further convey the message.

 

The Ministry of Endowment and Islamic Affairs will also raise awareness among its employees, working at the same time to mitigate energy and water consumption internally and in Qatar’s mosques.

Evil Nigerian used witchcraft to terrify girls into sex slavery

LONDON Osezua Osolase, a 42-year old Nigerian described as an ‘evil’ people smuggler who used witchcraft rituals to force terrified children to work as sex slaves has been convicted of trafficking and rape at Canterbury Crown Court on Friday .

A detective inspector said after the case that Osolase was ‘evil’ and branded him a ‘predatory paedophile’. Osolase was convicted of five counts of human trafficking, rape and sexual activity with a child. He will be sentenced on Monday.

Osezua  wept as the jury returned its verdicts after deliberating for more than 14 hours – which included acquitting him on three further three rapes, one trafficking and one assault causing actual bodily harm charge. He had denied all the offences.

 Detectives discovered evidence that at least 28 victims were smuggled in and out of Britain by Osolase over a 14-month period, earning him up to £1.5million.

But the true figure could run into hundreds as the paedophile was overheard by one girl boasting he had been operating for 15 years as he tried to sell her for £60,000.

This was despite being deported back to Nigeria in 2007 after police caught him trying to use stolen credit cards.

Young victims were raped, sexually abused and subjected to voodoo-style rituals once in the clutches of the trafficking ring. One girl had hair cut from her armpits by a man wearing feathers. Others were slashed with knives, forced to drink foul-smelling potions and had blood taken with syringes to ‘cast a spell’ over them. The girls were told they would die or never bear children if they tried to escape or revealed what had happened to them.

The man responsible, Osezua Osolase was on the surface a recycling worker living in a terraced house in Gravesend, Kent. But he was in fact the British linchpin of a multi-million pound global child sex trafficking ring that used medieval ‘juju’ black magic to control its victims.

His home was a secret staging post for vulnerable teenage orphans as they were smuggled from Nigeria to several European countries.

The evil that men do lives with them….

Nigerian held for illegal stay in Pune

PUNE A Nigerian national was arrested for staying in the city of Pune, India on a forged passport and visa extension documents, police said on Wednesday.  
  Benjamin Babafemi was apprehended on Tuesday from a hotel in plush Koregaon park area in western Indian city of Pune after the hotel management found his visa details suspicious and informed the police.     An inquiry confirmed that Benjamin's passport was forged, police said.  
  The 38-year-old had procured forged visa documents after his business visa expired, they added.
Just wondering why a Nigerian would be holding a forged Nigerian passport?
 

Nigeria loses out on $29 bln on cut-price gas deals-report

ABUJA Nigeria lost out on tens of billions of dollars in oil and gas revenues over the last decade from cut price deals struck between multinational oil companies and government officials, according to a report.
A team headed by the former head of the anti-corruption agency Nuhu Ribadu produced the 146-page study on an oil ministry request. It covers the year 2002 to the present.
Nigeria is Africa's largest crude oil exporter, shipping more than 2 million barrels per day (bpd), and is also home to the world's ninth biggest gas reserves and one of its largest Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) export terminals.
The report provides new details on Nigeria's long history of corruption in the oil sector, which has enriched its elite and provided the oil majors with hefty profits while two thirds of people live in poverty.
Oil Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke said on Tuesday she had received the report last month but that it was a draft and the government was still supposed to give input. The one seen by Reuters was labelled "Final Report."
The report concluded that oil majors Shell, Total  and Eni made bumper profits from cut-price gas, while Nigerian oil ministers handed out licences at their own discretion. This, while not illegal, did not follow best
practice of using open bids. Hundreds of millions of dollars in signature bonuses on those deals were also missing, it said.
"We have not seen this report and are, therefore, unable to comment on the content, but we will study it if and when it is published," a Shell spokesman said.
The report alleges international oil traders sometimes buy crude without any formal contracts, and the state oil firm had short-changed the Nigerian treasury billions over the last 10 years by selling crude oil and gas to itself below market rates.
There was no suggestion that the oil majors or traders had done anything illegal, but the report highlighted a lack of transparency in their dealings in a nation rife with graft.
"It is a draft," Alison-Madueke said. "There will be some areas where the government ... may have a slightly different opinion ... (and) will put its point of view to the committee."
She said she expects the final report to be with President Goodluck Jonathan within two weeks.

DJ Jimmy Jatt Set To Thrill Ghana DJ Awards

Nigeria’s seasoned Disc Jockey (DJ), Jimmy Jatt  is expected to thrill music fans as well as stakeholders in the maiden edition of Ghana DJ Awards at the National Theatre in Accra on Friday October 26.

The event would witness performances from  DJ Hubert, DJ Mic Smith, DJ Young Joe, Kofi Dixon, DJ Mensa alongside  artistes including Vip, Okyeame Kwame, Asem, Kaakie, Tic Tac, Diamond Appiah, D3 (latest female group), RNM—winners of the maiden edition of the vodafone icon, Herty Borngreat and a host of other  international and local artistes.

Jimmy Jatt who has carved a niche for himself in the Nigerian showbiz industry is expected to thrill music fans as well as stakeholders in the music industry; he is the guest DJ for the Ghana DJ Awards after party at Club Invasion. The event would be hosted by Ghana’s untouchable DJ Mensa.

Born and bred in Obalende, Lagos Island, Jimmy Jatt, also known as Jimmy Amu came into the Nigerian music industry as a rapper, but the absence of a record label to sign him on made him reinvent himself.

Today, the award-winning DJ can be proud of what he has achieved in the Nigerian music industry as a professional DJ. He has groomed several talents like DJ Waxxy, DJ Funky J, DJ Oscar, DJ Tony Blaise, to mention a few.

The award is aimed at promoting, honouring and rewarding the best achieving Ghanaian radio, night club and “recognized” mobile disk jockeys (DJ). Produced by Merqury Republic Events, the event is expected to bring more excitement and add value to the DJ profession in Ghana. There are 21 categories covering major music genres in Ghana, from highlife to reggae, as well as scratch DJ of the year, popular DJ of the year, and artist DJ of the year amongst other exciting categories.

Ghana DJ Awards is sponsored by Globa, Stallion Ghana, and Scratch Studios and supported by Lynx Entertainment, Smooth Entertainment, Black Ink, Digital Gate, With YFm, Soundcity, 4syte TV, TV Africa, and Flex Newspaper as media partners.

Protesters shout slogans from inside Nigerian embassy in Berlin

Asylum seekers of Nigerian extraction in Germany were stunned on Monday as German police stormed the embassy premises in Berlin to arrest protesters.

Protesters were protesting against Nigeria's Government collaboration with German officials in deporting them.
 
The protesters shouted slogans from inside the Nigerian embassy. Police detained 14 protesters who briefly occupied the Nigerian embassy, a police spokesman reported on Monday.

"We protest against the Nigerian embassy's involvement in the deportation of refugees to countries that are not safe." one of the protesters said.

All of the detained men were asylum seekers, a representative of the refugees said

Nigeria's Independence Day Celebration in Qatar

Dear country people,

Are you contemplating where you'll be on October 11 (Thursday), look no further, Nigeria 52nd Independence Day celebration at Doha Marriot Hotel.

The important details are repeated below. To be in with a chance of winning this under-listed fantastic offers, all you have to do is buy QR10 raffle ticket at the gate to enter for the draws.

1.  Qatar Airways Economy Class return tickets to Lagos (2)

2. Fantastic nights stay & breakfast for two at Hilton Doha Hotel (2 nights for 2)

3. Luncheon vouchers from our host Doha Marriot Hotel (2)

Also you can pay the annual due & Independence Day levy at the gate.

                                        Independence Day Celebration!

Join us for the biggest Nigerian party of 2012! With live Naija music + Naija delicacies + DJ mixes of the latest Naija jams on October 11,  from 8pm-2am @Al Fayrouz Ballroom, Doha Marriot Hotel, Rass Abu Aboud Street.

(Main Nigerian delicacies on cue includes Pepper soup, Okro soup, Egusi soup and Jollof rice)

Special attractions to spice up the evening includes cultural performances and drama. 

Special performance from renowned music band 'BGYS MELODIUS'

Bring your dancing shoes and come to re-live the glory days in the company of Nigerians from across Qatar.

Admission is QR200 for couple and QR100  for single (Financial members)

(Non financial members) couple QR300 and QR200 for single.

Please pay promptly to any executive member or at the gate. 

Limited seats available! Avail yourself the opportunity.

Thank you

Ikoli Victor