FROM WHERE DID THESE ABUSERS OF A NATION COME FROM?- DR MALCOLM FABIYI (OPINION)

I was 17 when I joined my first protest march against the excesses of military rule as a first-year student at the University of Lagos in 1990/91. In the years to come, there were many more struggles for social justice that would tug at the hearts of the young men and women of my generation.

By the time I turned 20 in 1993, I was already a veteran of many struggles.
I rallied with Segun Maiyegun, the dreadlocked, indefatigable President of the University of Lagos Students’ Union and leader of the National Association of Nigerian Students when he led Nigerian students to protest Babangida’s draconian rule.

I fought side by side with Omoyele Sowore, another dogged fighter who as President of the University of Lagos Students’ Union (ULSU), led Nigerian students in putting up principled opposition to the annulment of the June 12 elections in 1993.

By the time I turned 21, I was President of the University of Lagos Students’ Union. Like those who had gone before me, I fought battles big and small. I fought for the rights of students to walk and live without fear on their own campus. As a Senator of the National Association of Nigerian Students, I joined with other student leaders to continue the fight for the actualization of the June 12 struggle and put up principled opposition to General Sani Abacha, when he began to take Nigeria down the path of tyranny, perfidy and dictatorship.  By the time I graduated from University with a First Class Degree in Chemical Engineering in 1996, I had seen my fair share of detentions, torture, rustication and harassment.

Every person of conscience who was in Nigeria’s schools in the twenty years between 1979 and the return of democracy in 1999 had a lot of battles to fight. Whether it was the struggle against the excesses of a corrupt civilian regime, draconian military rule, the menace of cultism on campuses, dilapidated infrastructure in tertiary institutions, the annulment of the June 12 1993 elections or the emergence of a brutal dictatorship, my generation had no lack for struggles and fights of principle.

My activism took me across Nigeria. I was on campuses across the nation – organizing, mobilizing, protesting, and picketing. I joined with principled men and women in the labor movement and the human rights community to push Nigeria’s struggle for democracy a little further. The faces and names of the people that I met along that journey have remained with me, etched forever in my memory and my consciousness.

Like the activists of my day, I was a familiar face at the law offices of both Gani Fawehinmi and Femi Falana – who were both Senior Advocates of the Masses, long before their peers recognized them as Senior Advocates of the Nation (SAN). When the Abacha regime put out a capture order on me because of my role in leading the student movement against his government, I was forced to go underground and had the opportunity to live in one of several safe houses for activists in Lagos, run by one of the most consistent men that I know, Aremu Abiodun – a labor leader that remains active in struggle till this day. I met many more activists there.

As I read the names of those who have raped and plundered Nigeria in the last 20 years, I am struck by the fact that these men and women are of my generation. We could have been in school together. Some might have been ahead of me, some behind. Even those who are older than me are of the same generation as the labor activists and the human rights crusaders that were with me in the trenches, fighting for the soul of Nigeria.

But I do not know them.

I do not know them because as young people, they were not on the picket lines. They were not participants in any of the struggles that consumed my generation. They never sacrificed for Nigeria – not a year of schooling, not a day of freedom, not the pain of torture - nothing.

And because we do not know them, we could not tell their character when they appeared as adults on the national scene, pretending they were here to serve. You see, character is like body odor. It is formed early, and it sticks to you and follows you everywhere you go. It lingers even when you are gone. If these men and women who now plunder Nigeria had been with us in the trenches, we would have known their smell.

But they were not there. They were absent from the theater of struggle.
Yet, somehow, someway, these men and women who lived their youths in blissful ignorance of the challenges of Nigeria, are now being called upon in their adulthood to nurse an injured nation back to health. These men and women who did not deem Nigeria worthy of their youthful vigor are being asked to revive her in their waning years.
  Dr. Malcolm Fabiyi is a former President of the University of Lagos Students’ Union (ULSU). He is the coordinator of the Governance Advancement Initiative for Nigeria (GAIN).

THE NATIONALIZATION OF STATE PERFIDY- MODIU OLAGURO (OPINION)

As Nigeria slides into recession, countrymen have come to ask where the rain began to beat them. As if our condition was not bad enough, the Nigerian State has further made gloom of an already dark situation.

Sullen by the amplification of economic woes and an attendant castration of the potentialities of the people, nationals appear to have found solace in the instruments of the sodden in labyrinthine defiance to the economic reality in the land. In a feel of natural aberration, the drunkard's progress moves in consonance with the grim consequences of a drunken leadership.
How Nigeria with abundant human and material resources fell into recession in less than a decade oil sold for over $100 a barrel should ordinarily compel the least enamoured to political participation to engage the leadership of the country.
With brilliant minds littered across the land, the mind that is yet to situate his or her citizenship in the right perspective must be a lost soul--not with the ubiquitousness of extra-judicial killings of men who are paid to protect us nor the renewed onslaught of the annihilatory criminals who shed limbs on the crescent!


In light of this development, every Nigerian left with an atom of consciousness ought to have been moved by that unseen part of man to query his place in this geographical expression. For no nation, not even those known for spiritual condemnation in Hoggish and Aping terms ever had it this bad.
For the tradition of dolce far niente of Nigeria's (s)elected representatives appears to have spiralled into an audacious orgy of madness in recent times.
With the plan to go to Germany for vocational training (what kind of training is vocational training?), our governors have taken impunity and democratic distortions to an all-time high.
No one seems spared in this shameless show of crass exhibitionism, not even the somewhat cerebral governor of Kaduna, Nasir el-Rufai.
And you read this in the news yet sees Nigerians go about their daily chores as though it concerns them not is in fact what makes the whole scenario perplexing. Where do one begin to instill consciousness in the minds of Fanon's wretched?
What kind of spell did the Nigerian hegemonic forces cast on the people that make them indifferent to the treacherous acts of the authority thieves? "A dumb populace,"Ọ̀wọ́adé Akinadé noted, "is the joy of a bad government".


With the president mincing no word to inform hegemonic irritants on the non-negotiability of the unity of the country, it is noteworthy to inform the stoic man from the forest of Daura that this country (his country) is nothing but a contraption of the slavemaster; a geographical expression carved by a pale-skinned boyfriend, christened by his pale-skinned girlfriend and left on the streets only for her diapers to be consistently changed by elements who prey on her vulnerability to supplant colonialism with neo-colonialism.
An orphan belongs to the orphanage. This is why Buhari’s dream of the inviolability of the Nigerian State is nothing short of a wet dream, an illusionary hold on to a virtual state of hopefulness of the betterment of an already battered civilian barracks.
At this time when states’ map are continuously redrawn in both soil and suffrage terms, the world watches in outstanding bewilderment at 21st century Nigerian leadership as it preaches the indivisibility of a country whose unity exists only in name.

With every tribe wanting every other in the cesspool of hate and scatterbrained religious mob doing theirs for the hereafter’s recompense, one wonders what motivates and keeps the president going in his drive to preserve the Lugardian legacy.
For a president who rode into the villa on a bank loan, the country still finds itself enmeshed in a festival of doddering confusion as three of the borrower’s children recently completed their studies beyond the blue ocean and red sea.
To Nigerians who see beyond the present, the mind pricks one to ask what is left of patriotism when a former head of state and four-time contestant for the presidency puts his ward outside of the Nigerian school system!
And this is why the nation revolves in a state of spiralling animation. The pictures of the Buharis being splashed on our collective consciousness is indicative of nothing but Mr. Buhari's non-belief in the redemptive power of the Nigerian state in both educational and pedagogic terms.
It is this isolationist tendency ingrained in the hearts of the elite that sprouts a hubristic character indicative of what Fanon calls "black skin, white mask".
Had Candidate Buhari reflected on the contradictions in celebrating the graduation of his foreign-schooled children at a time he sits as the visitor of at least forty universities, public shame would have restrained him from ditching our citadel for that of the white man. When you believe in the redemptive power of a system, you will stick to it in the spirit of faith and struggle in whatever capacity--leader or follower.

Unfortunately, had Dino's manhood not been busy in search of Remi's hymen, one would have asked him to moot a bill mandating public office holders (including aspirants) to consume our schools and teachers.
The institutionalized nature  of the perfidy which has already consumed the CBN and FIRS now takes centre-stage in the guiding principles this government cajoled the people with--anti-corruption.
With the shielding of Minister Dambazzau, Chief of Army Staff Buratai, and a host of other political masturbaters, President Muhammadu Buhari has further retrenched Nigeria into a pit where the rules do not apply. Any surprise why the Ape has suddenly come in defence of the Goat?
Sandwiched between alcoholic tide and exhaled smoke during the Prohibition Era in the United States, Margaret Shrouder, a character in Terence Winter's Boardwalk Empire, whose fall into wholesome confusion over the vivid contradictions in the political prostitution and impunity amongst Atlantic City's leadership sought to box her hubby, County Treasurer Enoch Thompson into the moral corner. She got more than what she hoped for:
"... Knucky Thompson: If we'd only elected good men we never have leaders.
"Margaret Shrouder:  If not good then what should they be?
"Knucky: Useful. To those who support them."
This is the summary of the change Nigerians voted for. The revolution is lost.
Modiu Olaguro writes from Badagry.
Email: dprophetpride@gmail.com
Twitter: @ModiuOlaguro

SHONDA RHIMES GLOATS OVER PRODUCTION OF DNC FILM TITLED "HILLARY"

 

Before Hillary Clinton made history at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night as the first woman to ever accept a major party's nomination for president, viewers got to know a little more about the former Secretary of State with the moving, biographical short film, Hillary.

The in-depth look at the candidate's life, which was narrated by Morgan Freeman and created by Shonda Rhimes, gave an intimate look inside the Democratic nominee's life and legacy.

While making the documentary, Rhimes sat down with Clinton for hours, drinking coffee together at the presidential hopeful's kitchen table, and the Scandal creator recently opened up about the fascinating sit-down.

"I wanted everyone who sees it to feel like they were sitting with a friend, drinking coffee, so that had to be authentic," Rhimes explained in an interview with People.

According to Rhimes' producing partner, Betsy Beers, the toughest part of putting the film together was humanizing a public figure who's been in the harsh media spotlight since her husband, Bill Clinton, became president in 1992, and figuring out which of the many elements of her illustrious political career needed to be included.

"There were so many stories that one of the massive challenges for us initially was, honestly, sifting," Beers said.

"It was a mini-series when we first started. It could have been three hours," Rhimes added.

STEPHEN KESHI'S SON DELIVERS A STINGING MESSAGE TO FG DURING FATHER'S BURIAL

Stephen Keshi Junior, son of former Super Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi, took to his IG page yesterday to express his disappointment at the Federal government’s unfulfilled promises to honor his father at his father’s funeral rites which kicked off in Benin city Edo state yesterday July 28th.

 What He said;

“I sat in front of the federal government on national television a few weeks ago and they promised they would honor pops the way he deserves. They said that he has done too much for the country for them not to. They made us change dates to fit the federal governments schedule. But they didn’t do as promised, we aren’t mad, nor sad, just disappointed, they should be ashamed of themselves.

This sends a terrible message to our youth that are striving to do great things for Nigeria. The good thing is that We was raised not to ask for handouts. There will be no more postponements, today the funeral ceremonies began in Benin, the place he loved, where his career started. My sisters, brother and I held it down, with the help of a few others, and now we are putting our pops to rest. We don’t owe anyone shit and we can say they owe pops everything. No salt, it is not the people’s fault, we still love Nigeria as pops did”

Credit: Ak Praise.com

ADIEU, EL CAPITANO- SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO COACH STEPHEN KESHI- Steve Austin Nwabueze

As at the time of writing this piece the remains of  Nigeria's legendary footballer, former Captain and Coach of the Super Eagles of Nigeria would have been interred at his hometown of Ilah,   a small sub-urb of Delta state. While this development came as a rude shock to many given the fact that the Big Boss as he was fondly called by friends and family was a man enamored by the challenges to survive both as a player and much later in his glittering soccer career as a manager. Having plied his trade at a time when traveling to Europe in search of greener pastures for footballers was seen as a stupendous privilege,  Stephen Keshi alongside the legendary Algerian International, Raba Majah and Ghana's Abedi Pele were the pioneers of Africa's footballing export to Europe. Keshi distinguished himself both as a leader and strict disciplinarian. his man- management skills also came to the fore during the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013 where he led the country to glory against all odds with unknown faces like Sunday Mba who memorably scored the winning goal for Nigeria in the final against Burkina Faso  

Born on 23 January 1962 . He was one of only two people, along with Egypt's Mahmoud El-Gohary, to have won the Africa Cup of Nations as both a player and a coach

 COACHING CAREER
 

Keshi's early footballing career started with the likes of the defunct New Nigerian Bank, ACB Lagos, Stade D'Abidjan , Ivory Coast, Africa Sports, Ivory Coast and later to Anderlecht, Belgium and Strasbourg. Keshi's leadershisp qualities were tapped early on in his career when he was made the Captain of the National Team in 1984 with the likes of Sylvanus Okpala, Ndubuisi Okosieme, Yisa Sofoluwe, Peter Rufai Sebastian Brodericks et al , a position he held till the maiden appearance of the Super Eagles at the 1994 mundial in the United States of America where Nigeria emerged the second most entertaining team after Brazil despite crashing out to eventual finalists, The then Arrigo Sacchi-tutored Azurris of Italy. He had earlier on in the same year led Nigeria to her second Africa cup of Nations triumph in Tunisia. a fluent speaker of the three major Nigerian languages of Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba,Keshi's professional career traversed the length and breadth of this country. From the Samuel Ogbemudia stadium, Benin City to the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos to the Ahmadu Bello stadium, Kaduna down to the Asaba Township stadium, Keshi was more than just a household name in Nigeria football.

 

MANAGERIAL CAREER

  Keshi's managerial career  commenced  shortly after his International retirement after US 94 where he embarked upon a caoching course after a short playing stint in the North American country. In 1996 he was joined by Augustine Eguavoen, who once coached the Nigerian national team. They played together in California as the backbone of the defence for the short-lived Sacramento Scorpions. Keshi has been a part of the coaching staff for the Nigerian national team, most notably as head coach for the Junior Eagles at the 2001 African Youth Championship which also served as qualification for the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship, without success.

Between 2004 and 2006 Keshi coached the Togo national football team, surprisingly bringing them to their first World Cup tournament, Germany 2006. Having secured Togo's unlikely qualification, he was promptly replaced by German coach Otto Pfister prior to the World Cup finals, after Togo showed a dismal performance and failed to advance to the knock-out stage in 2006 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt. However, Pfister did not last beyond a controversial World Cup campaign that nearly resulted in a player's strike over pay and Togo remained without a manager until February 2007 when they re-engaged Keshi in time for a friendly against Cameroon.

He worked as manager of the Mali national football team, after being appointed in April 2008 on a two-year deal.^[3] Keshi was sacked in January 2010, after Mali's early exit in the group stages of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations.^[4]


Keshi became coach of the Nigerian National Team in 2011^. He led Nigeria to qualification for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, which they went on to win, defeating Burkina Faso 1–0 in the final. The following day Keshi handed in his resignation, only to reverse his decision the day after.^[ Keshi led Nigeria to the 2013 Confederations Cup, defeated Tahiti 6–1, and lost 1–2 to Uruguay in the second game, and also lost 0–3 to World Cup winners, Spain in their final group game.

On 16 November 2013, Keshi's Nigeria secured qualification to the 2014 World Cup by beating Ethiopia 4–1 on aggregate in a play-off. Keshi set a record in African football by being the first African coach to successfully qualify two African nations (Nigeria and Togo) to the World Cup Finals. He also helped Nigeria become the first country to achieve an African Cup of Nations trophy and World Cup qualification, both in 2013.

Nigeria progressed to the knockout stage of 2014 World Cup. They started the tournament with a 0-0 draw against Iran, followed by a controversial 1-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. They lost the final group stage match 2-3 against Argentina, but progressed to the knockout stage, courtesy of a 3-1 win by Bosnia and Herzegovina over Iran. The Super Eagles lost to France in the first knock-out round. After the match, Keshi announced his resignation as Super Eagles coach but later reversed the decision after the Nigerian Football Federation renewed his contract.

His team failed to win a single game in the Morocco 2015 African Cup of Nations qualifying series and he announced he would move to another job if pressure continues to mount because of certain people, whom he refused to name, were trying to "sabotage" him. However, he stated that he will continue to coach the Super Eagles because he loves the team and he loves his country.

In July 2015, following Nigeria's exit from the World Cup, Keshi's contract with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) expired and was not renewed. A statement by the NFF Executive Committee said the decision was made, having thoroughly reviewed the reports/findings of the NFF Disciplinary Committee and NFF Technical and Development Committee, as well as having reviewed the actions and inaction of Stephen Keshi, in the performance of his duties as Super Eagles' Head Coach, which NFF found to lack the required commitment to achieve the Federation's objectives as set out in the Coach's employment contract.

 

AND DEATH STRUCK

 

Precisely on the 7th day of June, 2016, the cold hands of death snatched the amiable and jovial tactician who had just barely six months earlier buried his beloved wife, Kate who succumbed to the ravages of cancer. This was indeed a bolt from the blue since he was reportedly in talks to take over the vacant Orlando Pirates  coaching job in South Africa. He never betrayed any symptoms of someone sick much less dying although the story about town was that he never really recovered from the shock from his wife's death. Keshi was said to have been withdrawn after the loss of his partner who was until her death his backbone. 

 

Much maligned and misunderstood, Keshi never quite synced with his employers after failing to qualify Nigeria for the last African Cup of Nations. It was always from one row to the other and the NFF took a convenient advantage of the development to arm-twist him into a revised contract that took away all the privileges he enjoyed after the Cup of Nations triumph in 2013 before he was ultimately booted out. Keshi was reportedly close to getting the sack prior to  the Cup of Nations  quarter finals clash with Cote D'ivoire where he triumphed against all odds. As a fact, the story then was that he was going to be dumped in South Africa after crashing out to Cote D'ivoire. Fate however, had other plans for him. 

 

His Legacies

 

An unforgettable legacy left behind by the well decorated late gaffer is his knack for giving home grown players a chance to prove themselves having developed from the local league himself. This quickly brings to mind his selection of Sunday Mba who was at the time playing for Rangers International of Enugu preferring him to the likes of John Mikel Obi and Nosa Igiebor. Keshi in fact took six home based players to that tournament and was handsomely rewarded by Sunday Mba's heroics in the Quarter finals clash against Ivory Coast who were pre-tournament favourites and Burkina Faso in the final where he scored the lone goal. Keshi also discovered Godfrey Oboabona who was at the time playing for Sunshine stars of Akure in the local league. Godfrey and Kenneth later formed a formidable defense partnership in that tournament. Such courage and belief is yet to be shown by any of his successors so far .

 

Before the Quarter finals clash with Ivory Coast, Keshi knew about the evil plots of his traducers in the name of the NFF but kept his focus and his team's shape all through to their ultimate humiliation. Immediately after winning the championship, Keshi announced his resignation from his job. Whether this was a publicity stunt or just a ploy to get an improved contract or not, this singular action earned him the audience from the Presidency who wondered why a man that just achieved such  feat would throw in the towel. If he was seeking attention he surely got it because not only did he successfully negotiate a new deal, both himself and the team were lavishly rewarded for their achievement.

 

Keshi commanded so much respect from the continent and beyond. The likes of Nii Ordatey Lamptey of Ghana among so many other African stars owe their success in part, to Keshi who was always eager to facilitate the transfer of any african player worth his salt to Europe. Keshi was one of the earliest Africans to ply their trade in Europe following his move to Belgian side, Anderlecht. His move would certainly explain the subsequent transfers of players to clubs like Lokeren, MSV Molenbeek, club Brugge and his own club, Anderlecht.  Keshi was a father figure to many Nigerian players. He was reputed to be very vocal in the dressing room when his team's back is against the wall. To illustrate, Nigeria was 3-1 down to Morocco during the CHAN tournament in 2014 at half time. Keshi was reported to have told the players during his team talk that their destiny was firmly in their own hands and that failing at that crucial stage would gravely affect their careers. the rest as they say; was history as the team came from behind to turn the game on its head and win. Although the team eventually lost in the Semis and came home with the bronze medal, Keshi's imprints were all over the team's performance.

 

As captain of the National team, Keshi would always insist on the fulfillment of the promises made his team and never allowed such trivial issues as players' allowances and bonuses distract the team. This always usually pitted him against the football administrators. Vociferous , vocal and an influential leader, Keshi was always the coach's voice on the pitch. He never shied away from  expressing his displeasure with any unfavourable decisions against his team and would always do it in a civil manner. Having handled the National team at a time where wily football agents carry fat envelopes to bribe National team coaches to play their clients in major tournaments, he still had the courage to take home grown players to major tournaments. Upon the announcement of his demise, Ghana's flag was flown at half mast in recognition of his contribution to Ghanaian and African football. Mali and Togo  where he coached released statements celebrating this fallen hero. It took the Nigerian Sports Ministry over four days to issue an official statement. The promises made to his family by the government to handle his funeral formalities have not been fulfilled. The footages i watched did not show a simulacrum of any government presence at the event. Makes you wonder whether we really appreciate the size of the man in question. Be that as it may, let us all extol the virtues of this fallen hero, the CAPTAIN OF CAPTAINS. His sterling leadership qualities cannot be forgotten in a hurry.

Adieu Keshi! Adieu, The Big Boss.

Ije-Oma

MAN EXECUTES BRUTAL SCISSOR TACKLE ON GIRLFRIEND DURING A KICKABOUT IN THEIR GARDEN THAT LANDED HER ON THE GROUND

AN unsuspecting girlfriend was left in a heap after her other half sent her flying with a vicious two-footed tackle.

Daniel Hammond, 26, and Eleanor Martin, 22, were having a kickabout in the garden with friends in Goole when the Sunday League player let fly with a challenge Pepe would be proud of.

 

Daniel sees his girlfriend Eleanor is through on goal and comes charging into shot

The lad takes off – and launches into a brutal tackle

Eleanor goes flying as her hubby comes crashing in

As Eleanor turns and is ready to shoot, the shirt and shorts of Daniel comes into shot at pace – and there’s only one thing on his mind.
He executes a flying tackle from behind on his sandal-wearing partner, sending her flying into the air and leaving her in a heap on the ground.

Credit- The Sun UK

MOHAMMED ALI'S SON REPORTEDLY DUMPS WIFE AND KIDS AFTER INHERITING LATE FATHER'S FORTUNE

 

RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned Muhammad Ali’s heirs have avoided a heavyweight brawl over his $80 million fortune! The late champ’s nine children and widow, Lonnie, met in California on June 28 to divvy up his estate.
Though the meeting went smoothly, with the boxing legend’s seven daughters, his natural son, Muhammad Ali Jr., and his adopted son getting an equal share and Lonnie keeping the Ali estate, not everyone may be pleased with the result.
A source revealed 44-year-old Ali Jr. has dumped his wife and their two children and is moving out of Chicago’s tough South Side to a home in a better neighborhood.

“Ali Jr. went to California, and now he’s got some money all of a sudden,” dished the source.
It’s a huge change for Ali Jr., who’d been estranged from his famous father  —who passed away on June 3 at age 74 — for years. For the past decade, he and his family — wife Shaakira and their children, Ameera, 8, and Shakera, 7 — have been relying on food stamps and handouts to get by, insiders said.
While Ali Jr. is moving from Chicago’s blighted West Englewood area to a middle-class neighborhood near Midway Airport, “his wife and children won’t miss out,” insisted the source.

“He gave his wife $75 to buy herself something nice, and bought the kids new shoes. He also wants to set up a trust fund for his kids,” added the source of Ali Jr., who has struggled with marijuana addiction and other issues.
Family members now hope to keep him on the straight and narrow, said the source, but Ali Jr. is more focused on starting a business and helping people in the community.
“He wants to do landscaping stuff and help people,” said our mole. “He doesn’t need much. He’s a simple dude.”

RIO OLYMPICS FIESTA MARRED BY A BIZARRE SIGHT OF A FLOATING CORPSE IN THE ISLAND CITY OF RIO D'JANEIRO

CRIME-plagued Brazil is heading for the most shambolic Olympic Games in history, a Sun investigation can reveal.

Rotting corpses have been spotted floating at the rat-­infested sailing and wind-surfing venue as officials try to clean it up before the opening ceremony a week today.

 

 

 

 

The body was found last month in the latest case of human remains being discovered near Olympic venues

Athletes have been robbed at gunpoint and even allegedly kidnapped by gangs of rogue cops on the streets of Rio.
Meanwhile the Olympians’ “Disneyland for Athletes” accommodation has been rendered virtually uninhabitable by a putrid open sewer gushing through the village.
Swimmers and sailors have been warned not to open their mouths when competing in case they pick up infections from waters poisoned by human excrement.
Team GB has been forced to employ its own Rio plumber after discovering blocked toilets and leaking sewage pipes at their digs.
Roads are clogged with traffic while a new Metro line is due to be completed just four days before the £10billion Games begin, allowing no time for vital testing.
Visitor numbers are set to be hugely down on previous Games with more than a million tickets still unsold.

PAUL POGBA FLIES IN FOR LA MEDICAL AS MAN UNITED CLOSE IN ON RECORD DEAL

MANCHESTER UNITED are on the verge on completing a world record deal to sign Paul Pogba with the player set to undergo a medical in Los Angeles.

Pogba’s deal to Old Trafford has been the ongoing transfer saga of the summer but it looks likely that the deal will soon be tied up after Juventus accepted a £112million bid.

Paul Pogba is finally set to sign for Manchester United in a record deal

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Manchester United will pay all of Mino Raiola’s agent fees

Pogba was spotted in LA on Thursday and will remain there to complete medical

According to Gazzetta, the Frenchman who is set to earn £290,000-a-week, could complete his medical in LA on Friday before putting pen-to-paper on a long-term deal.
The move had been put on hold after Mino Raiola demanded £20m in agent fees but it is believed that United will stump up the whole cost.
The midfielder has been spending his time off in America and recently published a cryptic post on his Instagram filling his supercar with petrol before heading down Route 66.

BOOM!- 43 YEAR OLD CHRISTIAN VIERI IS COMING OUT OF RETIREMENT AND IS HEADED FOR THE LUCRATIVE CHINESE LEAGUE

CHRISTIAN VIERI is creeping out of retirement at 43-years-old to lace up his shooting slippers for a Chinese side.

The former Juventus, Atletico Madrid, Lazio and Inter Milan man hung up his boots in 2009 but has been lured back in to action for the crazy money on offer in the Far East.

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Christian Vieri has been enjoying his retirement by the looks of his social media posts but is getting back into professional football

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Vieri was once the world’s most expensive football and judging by his beauty regime he still thinks he’s worth it

In 1999 he became the world’s most expensive player when Inter paid Lazio £32million for his goal-scoring services. And he repaid the San Siro side with 103 Serie A goals in 143 appearances.
The forward won his only Serie A title at the end of the 1996-97 season with Juve and the 1998-99 Uefa Cup Winners Cup with Lazio.
In his nomadic career the frontman played for 12 clubs and will be making it a baker’s dozen when he moves to the Chinese Super League.
Since giving up the beautiful game the prolific finisher has run his own fashion label with former team-mate and Italy legend Paulo Maldini and opened a handful of restaurants.

Christian Vieri lines up alongside another genius former striker in Brazil icon Ronaldo who is not returning to the game

GENEVA AIRPORT BOMB HOAX WAS RAISED BY A SCORNED WIFE WHO WANTED REVENGE ON HER CHEATING HUBBY

A hoax bomb threat which caused a scare at Geneva's airport was phoned in by a woman who was trying to get revenge on her husband and his mistress, a prosecutor says.

Police heightened security and treated the anonymous call as a serious threat in the wake of several terror attacks in Europe.

Prosecutors said the woman later admitted to making a false bomb threat in which she told Swiss customs a woman would be carrying a bomb in the French sector of the airport, which straddles the Switzerland-France border.

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Police officers set up roadblocks and conducted checks on cars at the entrance of Geneva's airport

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Once passengers arrived at the terminal they underwent an additional identity checks by police

Swiss authorities traced the phone number to the alpine town of Annecy in France, around 28 miles from Geneva, where French police officers raided an address under powers granted to them by the current state of emergency following terror attacks in Paris and Nice.

Swiss prosecutors said in a statement: 'They found a woman who admitted to having made the call and explained that she wanted thereby to prevent her husband from leaving.' 

Geneva's Tribune newspaper reported that the woman phoned in the bogus threat because she wanted revenge on her husband and his mistress.

FRENCH SINGER, DAVID GUETTA AND SASSY GIRLFRIEND , JESSICA LEDON PACK ON THE PDA AT A HOLIDAY RESORT IN IBIZA

They are rarely seen in public together. 

But David Guetta and Jessica Ledon put on a loved-up display as they frolicked on the beach in Ibiza on Thursday.

The French superstar DJ, 48, and his 23-year-old Cuban model girlfriend packed on the PDA as they enjoyed a sun-soaked break on the Spanish island. 

Cute couple! David Guetta and Jessica Ledon put on a loved-up display as they frolicked on the beach in Ibiza on Thursday

Showing off her long lithe frame and pert posterior in a tiny black bikini, Jessica beamed as she played around with her hitmaker boyfriend. 

Going make-up free, the natural beauty showed off her stunning bone structure and bee-stung lips, leaving her wet hair loose. 

David showed off flaunted his toned body  in blue swimming trunks, smiling at his flame fondly. 

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PDA: The French superstar DJ, 48, and his 23-year-old Cuban model girlfriend packed on the PDA as they enjoyed a sun-soaked break on the Spanish island

THIS 22 YEAR OLD RUSSIAN WOMAN WAS BEHEADED BY A MAN SHE MET ON A DATING SITE ON THEIR 1ST DATE

A Russian woman seeking love on the internet was beheaded on her first date with a new man she met online.

Kristina Medvedeva, a shop assistant in the Russian city of Ekaterinburg, described her relationship status as 'actively searching' on one social media site.

The 22-year-old was known to be active on at least one dating website, but police have not said if they have been able to track the man she was with from her internet history.

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Kristina Medvedeva, a shop assistant in the Russian city of Ekaterinburg, described her relationship status as 'actively searching' on one social media site

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The 22-year-old was known to be active on at least one dating website, but police have not said if they have been able to track the man she was with from her internet history

Her badly mutilated body was found on the shore of a lake close to a residential area called Michurinsky on the outskirts of Ekaterinburg, Russia's fourth city.

Her head was almost totally severed, said police. The macabre discovery was three days after she was last seen and last online.

Police said there was no evidence that she had been raped. She had moved from her provincial hometown Talitsa in search of love and a new life.

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Her badly mutilated body was found on the shore of a lake close to a residential area called Michurinsky on the outskirts of Ekaterinburg, Russia's fourth city

Police said there was no evidence that she had been raped. She had moved from her provincial hometown Talitsa in search of love and a new life. She is pictured above with her brother

She shared a flat with a girlfriend, and it is known she had gone on a first date with a stranger on 24 July, the day she was murdered.

Her tragic death was being highlighted by the Russian media today as evidence of concern over the lack of security for women in using online dating.

A formal murder probe has been launched by police. 

*Sigh*

KHLOE KARDASHIAN LASHES OUT AT BODY-SHAMERS WHO CLAIM SHE IS TOO SKINNY IN TWITTER RANT

Khloe Kardashian now claims that body-shamers have accused the 32-year-old reality star of over compensating on her new fit physique.

'Never would I have ever thought I would be in the media for being "too skinny". What on earth?!?!' the E! star tweeted on Thursday.

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'What on earth?!?!': Khloe Kardashian took to Twitter on Thursday after alleged body-shamers accused her of being 'too skinny'

The Keeping Up With the Kardashians star added: 'First I'm too fat and now I'm too skinny. I love this game!!'

Khloe has documented her transformation and proudly flooded her social media accounts with snapshots of her post-breakup bod.  

'If you had asked me two years ago if I would have the body I have now I would have said "No way," she told People magazine.

'First I'm too fat and now I'm too skinny': The 32-year-old KUWTK star has lost 40 pounds and hit the gym regularly since splitting from her ex Lamar Odom in 2013

'It's a healthy addiction. It's like buying your sanity!' the Strong Looks Better Naked author added.

Khloe's trainer Gunnar Peterson told the publication, 'Khloe gives as much to the gym as the gym gives to her. She's in love with fitness.' 

She is known to get in a rigorous workout on a regular basis, after previously describing herself as being the 'fat one' in her family while growing up.

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THIS 2 YEAR OLD KANSAS TODDLER SENDS HIS PET PIT BULLS TO BED BY READING THEM BEDTIME STORIES

This is the adorable moment a pair of pit bulls fall asleep after a toddler reads them a bedtime story.

Bookworm River Bearde, 2, of Mission, Kansas, USA, was caught reading to sleepy pooches Ronnie, 4, and Macy, 6.

As the inseparable trio lie side by side with their legs splayed on a bed, River recites pages from the children's book 'Farm Friends Giant Flap Book'.

 

 

River Bearde, 2, sends his dogs to sleep  while reading a book to them

By the end of the video - captured by mum Jenna - both Ronnie and Macy were out for the count with their eyes closed and head's back on the pillow.

Mrs Bearde said: 'I was with River when he laid down and was planning on reading to him.

'But he wanted to read to Macy and Ronnie and they quickly started falling asleep.

'By the time he finished reading the book their eyes were shut tightly.

'Only then would River let me read to him and pretty soon he was snoozing next to them.

'River will read to anyone who will sit down with him.

BREASTFED INFANTS ARE SMARTER, FASTER, STRONGER AND HAVE HIGHER IQ - NEW STUDY CLAIMS

Infants who breastfeed are smarter, faster and stronger, according to a new study. 

The research found babies brought up on formula milk performed worse in mathematics, memory, IQ, and motor function tests at the age of seven compared to their breast-fed peers.

They also had a smaller volume of grey matter in their brains, an area important for processing and transmitting neural signals to other parts of the brain.

New mothers are advised to breastfeed for the first six months to protect their babies against infections and allergies.

But more than 70 per cent of mothers in America stop early. 

Breast is best! New research found babies brought up on formula milk performed worse in mathematics, memory, IQ, and motor function tests at the age of seven compared to their breast-fed peers (file image)

Publishing this study in the Journal of Pediatrics, the research team at Brigham and Women's Hospital is urging women to consider nursing for longer.

They also implore the medical community to more efficiently investigate ways to help women who struggle to produce milk. 

'Our data support current recommendations for using mother's milk to feed preterm babies during their neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) hospitalization,' says lead author Dr Mandy Brown, a physician in the hospital's newborn department. 

'This is not only important for moms, but also for hospitals, employers, and friends and family members, so that they can provide the support that's needed during this time when mothers are under stress and working so hard to produce milk for their babies.' 

Researchers studied infants born before 30 weeks gestation that were enrolled in the Victorian Infant Brain Studies cohort from 2001-2003. 

They determined the number of days that infants received breast milk as more than 50 per cent of of their nutritional intake from birth to 28 days of life. 

Additionally, researchers measured the children's brain volumes using MRI scans - first at six months, then at seven years old. 

Once they reached seven, the children underwent a series of tests - IQ, reading, mathematics, attention, working memory, language, visual perception and physical movement.

The findings show that infants who received predominantly breast milk on more days during their NICU hospitalization had larger deep nuclear gray matter volume at six months.

By age seven, these breast-fed children performed better in IQ, mathematics, working memory, and motor function tests.

 

 

By age seven, breast-fed children in the study performed better in IQ, math, memory, and motor function tests

Overall, ingesting more human milk correlated with better outcomes, including larger regional brain volumes at term equivalent and improved cognitive outcomes at age seven.

'Many mothers of preterm babies have difficulty providing breast milk for their babies, and we need to work hard to ensure that these mothers have the best possible support systems in place to maximize their ability to meet their own feeding goals,' says Belfort.

'It's also important to note that there are so many factors that influence a baby's development, with breast milk being just one.'

Researchers note some limitations on the study, including that it was observational. 

Although they adjusted for factors such as differences in maternal education, some of the effects could possibly be explained by other factors that were not measured, such as greater maternal involvement in other aspects of infant care.

Belfort adds that future studies using other MRI techniques could provide more information about the specific ways in which human milk intake may influence the structure and function of the brain. 

Future work is also needed to untangle the role of breastfeeding from other types of maternal care and nurturing on development of the preterm baby's brain.

Credit- Daily Mail

MEET THE "RADFORDS" BRITAIN'S LARGEST FAMILY WHICH JUST WELCOMED BABY N0 19

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The family posted these photographs of their latest arrival on their website, including one of Phoebe Willow with her older sister Hallie, who was born last summer

Mrs Radford told The Sun: ‘Phoebe is so beautiful and I am happy to have her here safely for now — but never say never.

‘Our friends and family keep saying I should have one more child to get an even number, rounding the family off at 20.

‘I can’t rule it out. At the moment I am happy to have Phoebe with us. She is healthy and a little stunner. We are over the moon to have her here.

‘The rest of the kids are lining up to have a cuddle with her. I find it easy to run the family because they muck in so much.’

The couple, who rose to fame on Channel 4 documentary series 16 Kids And Counting, run a successful family-owned bakery and pie business and do not claim benefits.

Phoebe, who was born after a 40-minute labour, joins siblings Chris, 27, Sophie, 22, Chloe, 21, Jack, 19, Daniel, 17, Luke, 15, Millie, 14, Katie, 13, James, 12, Ellie, 11, Aimee, ten, Josh, nine, Max, seven, Tillie, six, Oscar, four, Casper, three and Hallie, 13 months.

Noel and Sue Radford from Morecambe, Lancashire pictured with their large family last year before the birth of their new daughter Phoebe Willow. The family now live in a large £240,000 Victorian house that they bought 11 years ago

The family said they were 'thrilled to announce the safe arrival of our precious baby girl Phoebe Willow Radford', who was born on Sunday

Mrs Radford, who takes care of the family at home while her husband works at the family bakery, has to make her way through nine loads of washing a day to keep her family in clean clothes

The couple, whose children’s ages range from a few weeks old to 27, are the parents of Britain’s biggest family

Writing on their website today, Mr and Mrs Radford said: 'We are so thrilled to announce the safe arrival of our precious baby girl Phoebe Willow Radford, who arrived on Sunday the 24th July at 3.37pm weighing 7lb 15oz she’s so gorgeous and so far a very chilled out little girl. The children are totally besotted with the newest member of the family.'

Though Mr and Mrs Radford consider themselves the parents of 19 children, the couple sadly lost their son, Alfie, in July 2014, 23 weeks into the pregnancy. They gave Hallie, who was born last summer, the middle name 'Alphia' as a tribute to her brother. 

Mrs Radford had noticed that Alfie had not been moving much, and she could not find his heartbeat. The couple went to hospital for a reassurance test, only to learn that their child had died.

Writing shortly after, Mrs Radford, said: 'I think losing a child changes you as a person, I’m not the same person I was before I lost Alfie.

'I will never be that person again but I’m learning to live life as an angel mummy and put a smile on my face when there’s times I really don’t feel like smiling.'

Speaking of the loss, she told the Mail last year: 'Your life simply shatters and nothing is the same ever again. When the doctor couldn’t find a heartbeat, I remember Noel grabbing me and I was screaming "No!" with tears running down my face. I gave birth to Alfie that night and we spent the next 24 hours saying goodbye and taking photographs. It seemed so cruel and unfair.

After falling pregnant with their first child when Sue was just 14-years-old, the couple decided to keep the baby as they were both given up for adoption at birth.

The family now live in a large £240,000 Victorian house, a former care home, that they bought 11 years ago and they pride themselves on having no credit cards or finance agreements. They also enjoy a holiday abroad every year.

The family, pictured last year after the birth of daughter Hallie, get through 20 loaves of bread and 28 toilet rolls a week

The Radfords enjoying a holiday in the sun. The couple run a family-owned bakery and pie business and do not claim benefits

Credit- Daily Mail