“President Is Human”: Why Jonathan Decided To “Come Down Hard On ASUU”

Leaders of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) yesterday moved from Abuja to their respective campuses expecting crackdown, as the Federal Government has issued several threats.

President Goodluck Jonathan might no longer be directly involved in negotiation with the lecturers: he is angry for the ASUU leaders’ contempt for the office of the President, their decision to issue new conditions and theim being allegedly backed by some external forces.

After spending almost a week in Abuja in hopes of resuming talks, the ASUU leaders were eventually left with no other option but to go back to their campuses.

A top leader of ASUU said on conditions of anonymity: “Our leaders have returned to their campuses. They were disappointed with the Area Boy or Agbero method adopted by the Minister.

“The military style of the Minister of State for Education will only compound the situation.

“So, we are back to our trenches as it was the situation during the military era. We are ready for the worst now. If the situation becomes uncontrollable, we will also go underground and resort to guerilla tactics.”

Meanwhile, a source within the Federal Government said: “We hope that they will not overreach their bounds, because what they have done in the last four months amounted to economic sabotage.

“If they continue to take the law into their hands by paralysing activities in the universities, we may try them for economic sabotage. This is also the extreme end the government may go too.

“Let them study the enabling laws to see what they have been violating. We are not yet disposed to wielding the big stick, but if the government is pushed to the wall, it will invoke relevant laws to manage the situation. We are waiting for what they will do.”

A different source added: “”ll the security agencies have been directed to protect lives and property on all the campuses nationwide, especially in the universities that have reopened.

“Union leaders are also under watch to prevent recourse to self-help, which may lead to wanton destruction of property.

“The government will not tolerate any intimidation or harassment, and any violent union leader risks being arrested. But those who restrict themselves to the confines of the law have nothing to fear.”

On Jonathan’s position, a government source said: “We are trying to insulate the Office of the President from further negotiation with ASUU if at all the union will allow such or there will be room for such.

“We think relevant ministers and the Committee of Pro-Chancellors/Vice-Chancellors should be able to handle the rest of the talks/negotiation.”

According to investigation, the December 4, 2013 ultimatum given by the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, followed the directive of the Presidency.

The government source added: “The President is angry because he over-indulged ASUU leaders. It is only in Nigeria you see the President sitting for 13 hours with union leaders on any issue and at the end of the day, there will be no courtesy from the union.

“While the President was expecting feedback from ASUU leaders within 72 hours, they kept him in suspense for two weeks or more.

“And instead of feedback on where the talks stopped, ASUU leaders came up with fresh conditions when even during the negotiation, they admitted that some of the clauses in 2009 agreement cannot be implemented.

“The President is human. He now has every cause to believe that the strike action seems to have the backing of external forces seeking to bring his administration down. That was why he decided to come down hard on ASUU, too.”

We Didn’t Give ASUU Ultimatum, Their VCs Did – Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan has denied giving the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, an ultimatum to resume work or be sacked, adding that the strike embarked upon by ASUU has gone beyond being just a trade dispute, but a subversive action.

The president said this while fielding questions from newsmen at the expanded caucus meeting of the Bayelsa State Peoples Democratic Party held at the Government House, Yenagoa, noting that the Supervising Minister of Education who made the announcement only passed on the decision of the Committee of Vice Chancellors.

“We didn’t give them ultimatum; it was the Committee of Vice Chancellors that took that decision. The Supervising Minister of Education only passed on the decision.”

He added, “What ASUU is doing is no longer trade union. I have intervened in other labour issues before now, once I invite them they respond and after the meeting they take decision and call off the strike.

“At times we don’t even give them a long notice, unlike, in the case of ASUU that was given four days notice before the meeting. As you are meeting to resolve trade disputes, you expect the trade unions to get their officials ready.

“What was expected having met with the highest authorities in the land for long hours, was for ASUU to immediately issue a statement within 12 or latest 24 hours, to state their position whether they were accepting government’s offer or not. And if they are not accepting they should state the reason for that.”

“But despite the fact that I had the longest meeting with ASUU in my political history, we did not start that meeting until around 2:00pm and the meeting ended the next day in the early hours. As far as the government of Nigeria was concerned, all the critical people that should be in a meeting were there, so what else do they want?

“After that they didn’t meet until one week, despite the fact that you met with the highest authority. It was unfortunate one of them, Prof. Iyayi died.

“The way ASUU has conducted the matter shows they are extreme and when Iyayi died, they now said the strike was now indefinite, our children have been at home for over five months,” Jonathan lamented.

PHOTO: Why I Don’t Have Mercy On Policemen – Notorious Armed Robber

A wanted robbery suspect, Abiodun Ogunjobi, aka Abbey Godogodo, who was said to have been terrorising the South-West for some time, has been arrested by the Lagos State Police Command.

According to police authorities, the suspect led the gang that killed seven people, including the owner of 04 Hotel, Ajah, Lagos, Olanrewaju Subair, on July 7, 2013.

They also killed two other security guards at a popular hotel along Apapa Road, Ebute Meta area of the state on the same day.

The suspect, who was paraded on Thursday, told PUNCH Metro that he killed many policemen, adding that he had been into robbery for over 10 years and had built houses.

Ogunjobi said, “I started robbery in 1996 but in 1999, I was charged for fighting. I spent about seven years in prison. My prolonged stay in prison for minor crime of fighting hardened me and I vowed to pay back the police for that injustice. After I was released, I went to Katangowa in Iyana-Ipaja area of Lagos to meet my friend, Odun.

“Odun was an armed robber, so, we started operating together. We worked with several gangs and I invested lots of my money in arms buying. I also built five houses in Ifo, Ilaro, Ikorodu and Ibadan.

I usually kill policemen and take their rifles because policemen have killed several of my boys and taken most of my rifles from them.

“I have no regrets for all I have done. I have no advice for young people, who want to become armed robbers like me. I have three children from three women. The police should take all my properties.”

The 36-year-old suspect was arrested by men of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad at his home in the Egbeda area of Ibadan, Oyo State, after he had been monitored for three weeks.

Policemen attached to SARS, said the suspect narrowly escaped arrest on July 14, 2013 when he and members of his gang engaged SARS operatives in a shoot-out along Eko Bridge, Lagos Island, after they killed two policemen at Ebute-Ero and Ajao Estate respectively.

According to police authorities, the suspect had been evading arrest because he hardly used the same gang members twice.

A police source said, “He is the most notorious armed robber we have had in the South-West in the past 14 years.

“We arrested him 11am on Thursday at his mansion at the Olowu area of Egbeda LGA Ibadan Oyo State and recovered two AK47 rifles and 10 loaded AK47 magazines in his house.

“Godogodo has killed many policemen and civilians. His most recent activity was at Ajah, where he killed the owner of 04 Hotel and eight others, including two policemen few weeks ago. He has also led several bank robberies in Kwara, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti and Oyo states.”

The Commissioner of Police, Umar Manko, described the suspect as a notorious criminal, who had been on the radar of the police for some time.

He said the suspect would be given medical treatment and charged to court.

Technology: Rethinking Safety in the IoT World

When everything is online, security is everyone's job.

What is in this article?:

• Technology: Rethinking Safety in the IoT World
• Changing the Security Game

"For organizations to thrive in this connected market, they need to be connected... That transcends even the security concerns. You need to be connected to do the job you need to do."

At this point, car hacking is practically a sport. 

A quick YouTube search pulls an endless stream of videos depicting grinning researchers and pranksters hacking into their cars' steering and operation systems with old school Nintendo controllers or custom iPhone apps. There are even some virus-encrypted audio CDs floating about that can hijack a car's total software system to gain remote access and control of everything from dashboard readings to anti-lock brakes.

See Also: Manufacturing Industry Technology News & Trends

And these are just a few of the techniques being explored on some already outdated car models. As the industry moves more toward the next generation of self-driving cars and vehicle-to-vehicle communication, carmakers are starting to worry about the risks that are accompanying all of the perks of the technologies driving it: the Internet of Things (IoT). 

And they're not the only ones. 

Securing IoT

"By 2020, we expect to see 20 billion smart objects connected to the Internet," says Rob Soderbery, senior vice president and general manager, Enterprise Networking Group, atCisco (IW 500/30).

Of those billions, he says, the connections with the most to gain are in manufacturing and industrial automation. And that puts the whole industry at risk. 

Just as hackers are drawn to the unprotected architectures of automobile software, other nefarious agents are attracted to unprotected connected control systems, smart tools and online architectures of massive online manufacturing enterprise systems. But security breaches in the manufacturing space can have much greater consequences.

On the financial side, studies indicate that even mild attacks cost the industry $40 to $80 billion each year, escalating as the threats target operations. 

And beyond that, "there are lives at stake," Soderbery says. "There are societal issues; there are compliance and regulatory issues. The threat diversity is fundamentally different in this field." 

Japanese Airlines Stop Obeying China's Air Zone Rules

The reversal comes after pressure from the Japanese government, which insisted China's announcement was invalid, and after governments around the world lined up alongside Tokyo.

JAL has stopped submitting flight plans since 12 a.m. Wednesday," a spokesman for former flag carrier Japan Airlines said

TOKYO - Japanese airlines said Wednesday they had stopped following rules set by China when it unilaterally declared the right to manage the skies over the East China Sea.

The reversal comes after pressure from the Japanese government, which insisted China's announcement was invalid, and after governments around the world lined up alongside Tokyo.

Japan's two major airlines had previously said they had been submitting flight plans to Chinese authorities for any plane that was due to pass through the area, a key demand Beijing set out on Saturday when it said it had established an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

The move heightened tensions in the region, where temperatures were already running high over the ownership of the Tokyo-controlled Senkaku islands, which Beijing says it owns and calls the Diaoyus.

On Tuesday, it was roundly condemned by Japan and its allies, including the United States, which flew two U.S. B-52 bombers over the disputed islands in a show of force.

"After the Japanese government said private airlines don't have to follow Beijing's claims on Tuesday, our industry body held a meeting on Tuesday and decided we won't follow" Beijing's demands any more, a spokesman for former flag carrier Japan Airlines said.

"JAL has stopped submitting flight plans since 12 a.m. Wednesday (1500 GMT Tuesday)," he said.

JAL's rival All Nippon Airways also said it has stopped complying.

"The Scheduled Airlines Association of Japan, an aviation industry body, made the decision after it received assurances from China, through the Japanese foreign ministry, that Beijing has no intention of obstructing the flights of commercial airline carriers," the JAL spokesman said.

Top 10 'Most American' Vehicles [SLIDESHOW]

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Ford (IW 500/6) eked out a win in the road race to produce the “Most American” vehicle.

With its F-150 model, the Michigan automobile maker secured the No. 1 spot in Cars.com’s annual American-Made Index, knocking Toyota’s Camry out of first place for the first time in four years.

Vehicles are ranked based on: domestic-parts content; final vehicle assembly point; and vehicle sales.

“Ford’s top ranking this year is a good indicator of how pickup trucks are dominating auto sales so far in 2013, and how the domestic automakers are bouncing back,” said Patrick Olsen, Cars.com’s editor-in-chief.

“While the assembly point and domestic parts content of the F-150 didn’t change from 2012-2013, vehicle sales are responsible for bumping the F-150 to the top spot.”

Despite its fall from the spotlight, Toyota (IW 1000/8) still dominated the top 10 list with four vehicles represented: the Camry, Sienna, Tundra and Avalon. 

Nigeria’s Challenges Will Only Make It Stronger – Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan has expressed optimism in the unity and survival of the country, saying that the present challenges of the nation would only strengthen her.

Speaking, Friday, at Umuida, Enugu Ezike, Enugu state during the funeral of Mrs Paulina Eze, mother of Senator Ayogu Eze, Jonathan said he was not deterred by challenges confronting Nigeria as according to him “every country in the world has crises and challenges”.

“The world is facing crises including Nigeria. These days once you hear breaking news, its all about crises. I urge clergymen to continue to pray for the country.

“The nation has challenge no doubt about that, in the world there are challenges everywhere. When you put on the television, they will always talk about crises here and there, there is always breaking news and whenever you hear this breaking news, it is never a good news.

“It is always sad, no good breaking news. All the breaking news I have seen for the past period are crises. The world is in crises. We are also having our own share of the crises but I am convinced that with your prayers, the prayers of men and women of this country, God will see us through,” the president said.

Jonathan who noted that how long one lived was not as important as what he/she was able to impact on others, asked the family of Eze to emulate the good virtues of their mother.

Senator Eze described his late mother a hardworking and courageous woman saying she brought up her family when the husband died by her dint effort.

In his homily, Catholic Bishop of Nsukka, Revd. Godfrey Onah called on the leaders of the country to be focused.

He said that the present challenges in the country were not insurmountable, adding that it should strengthen the resolve of the people in service of God.

He charged politicians to continue to look unto God especially in difficult situations.

Among the dignitaries present at the ceremony were Senate President, David Mark, his Deputy Ike Ekweremadu, Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo state, Peter Obi of Anambra state and Sullivan Chime of Enugu state.

Others were National chairman of APGA, Victor Umeh, former Anambra governor, Chukwuemeka Ezeife, former minister of power, Barth Nnaji among others.

UNBELIEVABLE!! Dr Fashakin Arrested for Criticizing President Jonathan?

UNBELIEVABLE!! Dr Fashakin Arrested for Criticizing President Jonathan?

  Wow This Country Never Cease To Amaze ME..When did President Jonathan start arresting people for criticizing him?

Governor Oshiomhole Apologizes over ''Go And Die'' Comments to a widow!

Governor Oshiomhole Apologizes over ''Go And Die'' Comments to a widow!

Gov. Adams Oshiomhole of Edo today Friday November 29th apologized for the comments he made to a widow in Benin during an inspection tour on Mission Road, in the state capital, a fortnight ago. 
Oshiomhole said that he now regretted the comments which had become the subject of discourse in the social media. The Governor said that he made the comments in anger. 
The governor’s apology was made when the leadership of the Federation of Muslim Women’s Association of Nigeria (FOMWAN), paid him a courtesy visit in Benin. 

He noted that though the challenge of modern times had bestowed on the shoulders of some women and single mothers the status of bread winners of their homes, such should not be used as an accuse to flout the laws. 
The Governor urged the Muslim women leaders to use their offices to propagate the essence of healthy living among children and women in the nation and the need to maintain proper sanitary conditions in their neighbourhoods. 
Oshiomhole lamented that the challenge of widowhood had also exposed children to different temptations, adding that there was the need for society to be careful, to avoid unwittingly creating more problems for the nation. 
He noted that money was not the best thing that guaranteed ones happiness, “but honesty and selfless service. 
The Governor added that if Muslims and Christians were adequately committed to their religious doctrines, the world would be a better place. 
He urged the women to propagate the message of Islam through the nooks and crannies of the nation, and to also inculcate the values of honesty in their followers. 
Oshiomhole, however, assured the association of government’s support in ensuring that its present leadership made remarkable progress and also consolidated on the successes of their predecessors. 
Earlier, the FOMWAN National President, Hajia Amina Omoti, urged the state government to look into the issue of the teaching of Islamic Religious Studies in public schools in the state. 
Omoti also solicited for government’s moral and financial support for the effective running of the association. 
 News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

Video: Fights, Stabbing At Walmart Black Friday Discount Sales In America

Fights have erupted in more than one Walmart discount department store during its Black Friday sales promotion.

Fights over items greatly reduced have taken place at Walmart stores in Beaumont, Texas; Jordan Creek in Iowa; Johnson City in Tennessee and Rialto in California. There was also a stabbing in a Walmart car park outside Walmart in Claypool Hill, Virginia.

Tazewell County Sheriff Brian Hieatt told WVVA in West Virginia that two men, 61-year-old Ronnie Sharp and 35-year-old Christopher Jackson were arguing over a parking space.

The argument ended when Sharp used a knife to cut Jackson in the arm, slicing down to the bone, Sheriff Hieatt said.

Sharp was charged with malicious wounding and brandishing a firearm. Police also confiscated a rifle from him.

Tweets on Walmart fights

Amanda Sanchez @Amanda__Sanchez: “Witnessed a fight at walmart over a $29 tablet…..”

Brad Panovich @wxbrad : “42″ TV’s aren’t worth this! Wal-Mart Black Friday fight for TV 2013″.

siena♔ @beautybysiena : “lol there was a fight at walmart over a toaster and the ambulance came I’m crying”

Becky Carrizales @bcarrz : BlackFriday shoppers stand w/ #WalmartStrikers! Why get hurt or injured over @Walmart cheap crap? Horrific video”

Walmart spokesperson Brooke Buchanan told The Huffington Post the reported fights did not accurately depict what she said was a successful Black Friday for the retailer.

“We’ve got great feedback from customers and associates across the country,” Buchanan told The Huffington Post. “A few tweets aren’t representative of what’s actually happening at 4,600 stores.”

Stores make up to 20 and 40 per cent of their annual sales during the US thanksgiving holiday shopping season, according to the American Retail Federation.

Watch video below

Abductors In Army Uniform Execute 18 In Iraq

The victims were taken from their homes early on Friday by men wearing military uniforms, police sources said. Two of the abductors were dressed as army officers.

Police in Iraq have discovered the bodies of 18 men who were abducted from their homes and shot in the head in a town near Baghdad, the deadliest this year in a spate of execution-style killings across the violence-ravaged country.

“It is definitely al-Qaeda because this is the area where they are operating,” a senior official in Iraq’s federal police told the Reuters news agency, declining to be named. The victims may have been chosen because they were seen as supportive of Iraq’s Shia-led government, the source added.

The corpses were found grouped together in an orchard in Meshahda, a predominantly Sunni Muslim area around 32 km north of the Iraqi capital.

Such killings are on the rise in Iraq, alongside a growing insurgent campaign of bombings and gun attacks targeting security forces and civilians.

Abductors dressed as soldiers have often carried out such killings in this area north of the capital.

Although al-Qaeda-linked armed groups in Iraq mainly carry out attacks on Shia, they also target fellow Sunnis through kidnappings, killings and extortions.

Security officials, government employees from both sects and government-backed Sunni Sahwa armed group members are all seen as prime targets for al-Qaeda.

On Wednesday, police found the bodies of 13 people around Baghdad, the apparent victims of execution-style shootings. It did not appear that Friday’s killings were linked to those earlier in the week.

Among those killed on Friday were a police officer and an army official, the headmaster of a school and a mayor from the neighbourhood. The victims also included a Sunni tribal sheikh and his son.

21 Women Sent To Jail For Holding Peaceful Protests To Get Pardon

The convicted protesters, who are supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi, received the harsh sentences for forming a human chain and passing out flyers in the city of Alexandria. The youngest member of the group is 15-years-old.

Following protests over the sentence of 21 women and girls who were sent to 11 years in prison for engaging in a peaceful protest, the presidential office has said Egypt’s interim president will issue a full pardon to the group.

“President Adly Mansour will issue a full pardon to the Alexandria females after the final judicial process is completed in accord to the constitution,” a presidential advisor said in a statement circulated to journalists on Friday.

The legal process will still go through the appeal and cessation court processes, the statement added.

Images from the Alexandria courtroom where they were sentenced on Wednesday showed the group, wearing white headscarves and prison uniforms, handcuffed in the defendants’ cage, provoking fury in many Egyptians.

A demonstration against the sentencing turned violent on Thursday and one student was killed in clashes with police outside Cairo University.

Human rights organisations had heavily critcised the ruling, saying it marked a tougher resolve by the military-backed government to stifle dissent.

The government had earlier this week passed a law that restricts demonstrations. But hundreds of Egyptians defied the ban on Friday by taking to the streets in cities across the country.

See What Femi Fani-Kayode & Bianca Have To Say About Governor Oshiomhole “Heartless” Words To A Widow

A video of Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole went viral yesterday where he told a widow that “if she is a Widow, she should go and die”.

Well it looks like it did not go down well with many as outspoken former Aviation Minister, Femi Falana-Kayode and actress, Bianca Johnson have shared their opinionsApparently the Governor had ordered the woman’s goods be seized but she begged him to save her only means of Livelihood as she is a widow and that was when he blasted her.

See what actress, Bianca has to say below;

What do you think of Governor Oshiomhole’s statement?

ASUU STRIKE: ‘The Minister Wants To Start A Fight He Cannot Finish’ – UNN ASUU

The Chairman of ASUU at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Dr Ifeanyichukwu Abada, on Thursday said that the lecturers were not bothered by the federal government’s one week ultimatum to return to class which it issued yesterday.

Speaking with journalist yesterday in Nsukka, Abada said the union has no business with the minister who issued the order but with President Jonathan, adding that the order cannot work.

“It is unfortunate that the minister thinks that he can use his office to threaten lecturers. The December 4 ultimatum to lecturers to resume work or risk being sacked cannot work,’’ Abada said.

According to Abada, the minister was issuing a ‘military order’ rather than seek ways of settling things amicably with the lecturers.

Also reacting to the ultimatum, the immediate past chairman of the branch, Prof. Aloysius Okolie, described the ultimatum as unfortunate and an act of over-zealousness.

“Let the minister go ahead and sack all the lecturers in the country if he has such powers.

“The minister wants to start a fight he cannot finish,” said Okolie, who is also a senior lecturer in the department of political science.

He said it was against labour laws for the government to use the instrument of starvation on striking workers by invoking no-work, no-pay policy.

PHOTOS: Nigeria’s Got Talent Judge Falls Off Chair During Auditions

Nigeria’s Got Talent season 2 premiered last weekend and people have been flooding the audition centres to display their talent.

During the audition in Calabar, Cross Rivers state, one of the judges, Dan Foster, Inspiration FM On Air personality fell on the fall laughing at one of the contestant’s comedy presentation.

According to Dan Foster:

“I haven’t laughed this hard in quite a long time. Your jokes are almost as good as the ones that the professional comedians we have in the industry tell.”

See photos below: