Open Heavens devotional Sunday 1 January 2017:- Starting a New Year

 

STARTING A NEW YEAR - Sunday 1^st January 2017

Memorise: Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. Ecclesiastes 7:8

 Read: Job 8:5-7 (King James Version)

^8:5 If thou wouldest seek unto God betimes, and make thy supplication to the Almighty;

^8:6 If thou wert pure and upright; surely now he would awake for thee, and make the habitation of thy righteousness prosperous.

^8:7 Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.

Bible in one year: Matthew 1-3, Isaiah 1:1-17, Hymn Sing hymn 1

MESSAGE:

Welcome to this New Year! It is always good to experience something pleasantly new. At the dawn of a new year, hopes are renewed, aspirations are born and expectations are high. But when the ups and downs of life take their toll in the course of the year, many people are not able to sustain the zeal and zest that they started the year with. Does this sound familiar? For some, it appears as if the events they experience in the course of the year are set up to completely dash their hopes. If this has been your experience, it shall be different this time around in the mighty Name of Jesus. 1 January 2017 open heavens message

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”

Jeremiah 29:11

As you take in the fresh New Year breeze, know for sure that God has something great in store for you which will unfold in the course of this year. Something huge is coming your way, so let your hope be fixed on the Lord. God wants you to end this year big and great, and to have your heart overflowing with joy. Open Heavens Sunday 1 January 2017:- Starting a New Year. Remember that in the Kingdom of God, the end of a thing is always of greater significance than its beginning. Hence, the Holy Ghost in Job 8:7 said:

“Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.”

Because some people start a new year with little or nothing, they don’t expect anything great to come their way that year. If you find yourself in such a situation, know that if you settle some key issues in your life, you can be assured of a greater, bigger and glorious year. First, start the year with God (Proverbs 8:17). If you are still living in sin, the greatest way to start this year is by going on your knees, confessing your sins to God, asking for His forgiveness and inviting Jesus Christ to be your captain and pilot from now onwards. Also, you need to cultivate a personal relationship with God by studying the Bible regularly, fellowshipping with other believers in a Bible-believing Church, worshipping God and taking time to pray on daily basis. In addition, daily ask God for direction, wait to receive it, and be sure to follow as He leads. Utilise all opportunities that come your way and give your best to God and His work. If you do all these, I assure you that this year will end very well for you.

Action Point: Thank God for granting you access to this New Year. Let your thanksgiving be a daily offering to God this year.

Open Heavens Daily Devotional, written by Pastor E.A Adeboye,

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Buhari: I’ll Resist Naira Devaluation, Fuel Price Hike

 

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari.

• I’ll Resist Naira Devaluation, Fuel Price Hike

President Muhammadu Buhari has restated his resolve to oppose the devaluation of the naira and increase in fuel price.

According to TheCable, the president stated his resolve in Abuja on Friday night at the 2016 regimental dinner organised by the presidential brigade of guards.
The annual event is organised to mark the end of drilling year of the commission – and it is also an opportunity for officers to “mingle” with their commanders.‎
Buhari said that his stance against the devaluation of the naira and fuel price increase precipitated his overthrow as military head of state in 1985.
“I have resisted the devaluation of the naira, increase of the petroleum products, among others,” he told the soldiers and officers.
“When I was military head of state, I rejected similar advice by the IMF and World Bank to devalue the naira.
“I refused and gave my reasons and the next thing I knew I was removed and detained for three and a half years.
“As a civilian president, I will do my best and I’m telling you all these because you are part of the leadership of this great country and God willing we will remain great,” he added.
At present, the official exchange rate of the naira is N300/$1, while it is N495/$1 at the black market. It was officially N197/$1 when Buhari assumed office in May 2015.
The pump price of petrol was N86.50 and has increased to N145.

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Ban Ki-moon bids farewell to United Nations

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon waves as he departs from UN Headquarters on December 30, 2016, in New York. Former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Guterres assumes the reins of the United Nations on January 1, 2017.KENA BETANCUR / AFP
UN Secretary Ban Ki-moon paid an emotional farewell to the United Nations on Friday, wistfully describing his two-term stint at the helm of the global body as something of a fairy tale.

“I feel a bit like Cinderella. Tomorrow at midnight, everything changes!” he joked to staff and colleagues as he wrapped up a decade leading the United Nations.
Beginning Sunday, former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Guterres, 67, takes over from Ban.

Guterres is the first former head of government to lead the UN, succeeding Ban for a five-year term. Ban, in a more serious vein, said it has been a “privilege” to have been at the head of an organisation that endeavored to tamp down global conflict and end suffering — and said it was an honor to have shared that mission with his co-workers.
“You should be very proud — just as I am so very proud to call you my colleagues,” the South Korean diplomat said.
He added that in his decade at the UN, he has endeavored “to never give up. To keep dreaming, to keep believing, and to keep working hard until we achieve progress,” he said.
Ban added that as UN chief, he also has been guided by a desire “to keep the focus on people — on people’s rights and people’s dignity… and to stand up for those who are left behind.”
As a first act after leaving the pinnacle of global diplomacy, Ban will ring in the new year at Times Square by formally launching the traditional New Year’s Eve ball drop, to be attended by hundreds of thousands of revelers.
“Tomorrow night, on the eve of the New Year, I will be in Times Square for the ball drop — millions of people will be watching as I lose my job!” the outgoing UN leader joked.

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Alexis Ohanian Net Worth 2016: How Much Does Serena Williams’ Fiancé And Reddit Co-Founder Make

Serena Williams and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian

• How Much Does Serena Williams’ Fiancé And Reddit Co-Founder Make

Tennis legend Serena Williams announced her engagement to Reddit co-founder and boyfriend Alexis Ohanian on the perfect platform — the website itself.
This year was a good one for Williams, 35, who made almost $29 million, placing her 40th on the list of world’s highest-paid athletes, up from 47th in 2015. According to Forbes, her net worth stands at $150 million in 2016.

Ohanian, on the other hand, is a tech entrepreneur, investor and activist with a reported net worth of $4.5 million, approximately 3 percent of Williams’ net worth. The most important source of this is Ohanian’s position on the board of Reddit, an online social news website that he founded along with Steve Huffman after graduating from the University of Virginia in 2005. Just a year later, the duo sold their pet project to Conde Nast.
With a personal motto of “making the world suck less,” Ohanian is a self-proclaimed “activist for the open internet” and railed against the Stop Online Piracy Act proposed by Congress in 2011, which he said would jeopardize the future of the internet. Ohanian’s proactive position also led to Forbes crowning him as “the Mayor of the Internet.”
According to his personal website, Ohanian has been the brain behind the logos of numerous startups, including Reddit, which he doodled while he was in college. He took a break from his role in Reddit to invest in a number of ventures — like Breadpig and travel website Hipmunk. During this period, Ohanian also moved to Armenia to work in the sphere of microfinance.
Ohanian, 33, and Williams met at a lunch in October 2015, and the tech entrepreneur has cheered her on from the stands at a number of instances. The tennis star announced their engagement with a poem describing the proposal:
“I came home / A little late / Someone had a bag packed for me
And a carriage awaited / Destination: Rome
To escort me to my very own “charming” / Back to where our stars first collided
And now it was full circle / At the same table we first met by chance
This time he made it not by chance / But by choice
Down on one knee / He said 4 words /And I said yes.”
Ohanian replied with: “And you made me the happiest man on the planet.”

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Donald Trump praises Putin for delaying any retaliation against the US after Pres. Obama's sanctions

Russian president Vladimir Putin has decided not to retaliate against the US for expelling 35 Russian diplomats and imposing sanctions on two of the country's intelligence agencies on Thursday. He made this statement after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the country planned to expel 35 U.S. diplomatic staff from Moscow and close two facilities used by the U.S. embassy in Russia.

The RIA news agency quoted Putin as saying that he would consider the actions of President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office next month, when deciding on further steps in Russia-U.S. relations. A move President-elect Trump approved.

He took to his Twitter account to Praise Putin for his decision, saying he was a smart man.

He then tweeted later in the day mocking CNN and NBC News.

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7 Things Buhari Must Do In 2017 To Win Nigerians Back

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Southern Kaduna killings: SERAP drags FG to UN

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has petitioned Ms. Agnes Callamard, Special Rapporteur on extra-judicial, summary or arbitrary executions, urging her to “prevail on the Nigerian authorities to halt further killings of innocent citizens in Southern Kaduna.”

The group also demanded investigation into recent alleged killing of over 800 citizens, mostly women, children and the elderly in that part of the country by suspected herdsmen, and to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice, and to provide reparations to victims.

The organization also asked Ms. Callamard to “request to visit Nigeria to conduct fact-finding mission into the circumstances surrounding the killings.”
In the petition dated 30th December, 2016 and signed by SERAP executive director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, the organization expressed “concern that the killings of citizens in Southern Kaduna of Nigeria amount to serious violations of the rights to life; to security of the human person; to the respect of the dignity inherent in a human being; and right to property guaranted by not only the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended) but also the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Nigeria is a state party.”
The petition reads in part: “SERAP contends that Nigerian authorities have failed and/or neglected to respect these human rights and to exercise due diligence to ensure that these rights are not violated by private individuals such as herdsmen and other unknown perpetrators. Nigerian government should therefore be held to account for failing or neglecting to guarantee and protect the rights of the people in Southern Kaduna, regardless of whether such violations are directly or indirectly attributable to the state or its officials.

“SERAP is concerned that the Nigerian government has failed and/or neglected to create an environment in Southern Kaduna to end the unlawful killings by failing to move their legal and institutional machinery towards the actual realisation of these rights. It is in fact the failure by the government to take adequate measures to prevent the violence which has contributed to the increasing number of victims.
“SERAP believes that the killings would not have taken place if the Nigerian authorities have taken measures to prevent their happening and to address persistent impunity of those responsible for the violations and abuses. The lack of accountability for the attacks by herdsmen and other unknown perpetrators across the country has continued to create a culture of impunity which clearly is not compatible with the rule of law in a democratic society.
“According to the leadership of the Catholic Diocese of Kafanchan in Kaduna State, a total of 808 people were killed in 53 villages across the four local governments areas in the state ridden by crisis. The church leaders also said that 57 people were injured; farm produce estimated at N5.5 billion were also destroyed, and a total of 1,422 houses and 16 churches were burnt during the attacks. The affected communities are spread across Kaura, Sanga, Jama’a and Kauru Local Government Areas where there had been persistent attacks on communities by gunmen believed to be Fulani herdsmen.”
SERAP therefore urged Ms. CALLAMARD to prevail on the Nigerian authorities to: “Take measures to urgently secure the right to life, right to security and dignity of the human person and right to property of citizens in Southern Kaduna, and to prevent further attacks and killings by herdsmen and other unknown perpetrators;
“Carry out an effective investigation into the circumstances surrounding the killings and to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice, and to provide reparations to victims;
“Provide a framework of security for the protection of life, and to protect the lives of those individuals at risk from unlawful attacks in Southern Kaduna;
“Provide for an effective remedy and reparation for the victims.‎”

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Police make 50 arrests after raid on Nigerian drug ring in Vienna, Austria

Police in Vienna on Thursday, December 29th, arrested 50 people in connection with a Nigerian drug ring which operated in the Austrian capital. Investigators said they had been on the trail of the gang for the past three years, and that in that time it has netted a profit of over €6 million. 21 kilos of illegal drugs, mainly cocaine and heroin, were seized during the raids.
However, police told a press conference on Friday that the gang would probably cut the drugs with other substances to increase the amount that could be sold on the street to around 100 kilos. The drugs were mainly sold in Vienna by Nigerian dealers. Detective Georg Rabensteiner said that 100 kilos of drugs would "cover" demand in Vienna for a few months.

Police first became aware of the gang's existence at the end of 2012, when a Nigerian man was caught smuggling €250,000 in cash hidden within cars which were brought from Vienna to Nigeria. An investigation revealed that the money came from drug trafficking. Gang members regularly sent over large amounts of drugs to Austria via ten people who acted as drug mules.

The couriers would swallow between one and one and a half kilograms of drugs, which were then sold in Vienna. Police said that the cocaine and heroin which was seized was 80 percent pure.

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Buhari crippling opposition over 2019 – Fayose

Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of fighting his perceived political foes under the guise of fighting corruption.
He said Buhari was trying to make sure that no opposition politician would be strong enough financially to contest against him in 2019.

Fayose’s aide on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, quoted his principal, who spoke on AIT Kaakaki program, Friday, as questioning the President’s directive to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami to investigate the Department of State Services (DSS) report on the acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu.
He said: “Magu was indicted by their own DSS and they are still saying the AGF should investigate- is AGF the police? After Magu had been indicted by the DSS, what are they investigating again? Are they saying DSS report is no longer credible?
“As far as I am concerned, President Buhari is not fighting any corruption. He is fighting his political foes. They are just trying to make all Nigerians paupers so that when they share N1,000 at the polling units, it will be like N1m.
“God is a God of single-standard, not double-standard. This Buhari’s government is a govt of double-standard.”

He lamented that President Buhari had returned the country to 1984, saying, “When you see my past, you can project my future. There can be no future without the past. What is happening in Nigeria now are the same as 1984.
“May be we should even return to that past because in that past, Dollar was N200 and one bag of rice was N8,000. If nothing was wrong with the Old Testament, there would not have been any need for the New Testament.They promised us a new testament, let it be a new testament indeed.
“Nigeria and Nigerians don’t need blackmailers in government. Most of those in the APC now have been in the PDP. Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, who is their landlord was president for eight years under the PDP. My brother, Aminu Tambuwal who is now the governor of Sokoto State was Speaker of the House of Representatives as PDP member.
“What then are they talking about? “He who lives in glass house should not throw stones. Nigeria is a country where the common man knows when you are deceiving them. When Nigerians are suffering, you are spending N2 billion on entertainment at Aso Rock. It is amazing that the president is still complaining close to two years that he won election.”
On payment of workers salary, the governor said, “Apart from Lagos, I’m the next governor owing less in terms of salary. I’m conscious about the well-being of my people. If I have the resources of most states, I will turn Ekiti beyond what we are doing now.”

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Lack of Forex Threaten tomato paste industry

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Buhari removes Magu as EFCC boss

Ibrahim Magu

*As AGF directs he hands over to Director, Operations
The Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, may have finally been removed from office.

A source close to The Guardian said his redeployment back to Nigerian Police Force (NPF) was to pave way for a fresh person to be presented by President Muhammadu Buhari as the nominee to head the anti-graft agency before the Senate.
The Guardian gathered to make the situation look like a routine exercise, some senior Police officers would be re-deployed by the Police hierarchy to resume as conventional Police officers.
It was equally reliably gathered yesterday that the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has already issued a leter to Magu on the development and directed that he hands over to the Director of Operations in the Commission.
Magu’s nomination was recently rejected by the Senate following allegation of graft levelled against him by the Department of State Security Service (DSS).


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CAN Expresses Concern about Buhari’s Silence on Southern Kaduna Killings

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Open Heavens Devotional 31 December 2016:- Acceptable service

 

ACCEPTABLE SERVICE – Saturday December 31^st 2016

Memorise: Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. James 1:27

Read: Romans 12:1-2 (KJV)

1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

² And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Bible in one year: Numbers 7:84-10:10, Psalms 140

The major difference between David and the other soldiers at the war front was simply the fact that David could not stand the insult and blasphemy against the God of Israel. He knew God so well, and he feared and honoured Him so much that he decided to confront the giant warrior called Goliath without any fear of losing his life. David, in this case, took the meaning of acceptable service to another level. It can be very painful when the authority of God is so challenged, you will want to do anything to defend Him even if it means doing so with your life. In 1^st Samuel 17:23-26, Goliath came out, boasted exceedingly and asked; “Where is the God of Israel?” For as many as had no intimate relationship with God, this threat, challenge and disgraced meant nothing to them. But then, one day, a little boy who loved the Lord was there, he heard Goliath talk against his God and he got very angry. His love for God propelled him to dare this giant that was bringing shame on God and His people.

It can be very painful when you have problem that has persisted, especially when you know that your God is more than able to solve it. Open Heavens Saturday 31 December 2016:- Acceptable service. People may even ask, “Did you not say your God can do all things? Why has He not done yours?” Yes, it can be painful, but you must be prepared to love God to the extent of not minding what people say about your condition.

In Psalms 115:1-3, when the unbelievers where asking the psalmist: “Where is your God?” instead of being embarrassed or wallow in self-pity, he was not bothered. In fact, he began to make excuses for God because of his love for Him. He replied them: “Are you asking of my God because of this little problem? My God is still in Heaven. He is still on the throne and He cannot be dethroned. If you must know, my God does whatever He pleases and is not accountable to anyone. Whether He does it or not, you cannot take Him to court. He knows the right time to solve this problem because your time and mine may not be His. Is it not for me? I am prepared to wait for His time; I am not in any hurry”. With that kind of answer, the mouths of the enemies will be stopped. How much do you love God? The proof of your love for God against all odds in the mark of an acceptable service unto Him! 31 December 2016 open heavens devotional

Prayer Point

Father, I commit my life to You wholeheartedly.
Open Heavens Daily Devotional, written by Pastor E.A Adeboye

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MMM Will Run Smoothly Until Jesus Comes, I Can’t Wait To Continue In January 2017, Alleged Owner, Pastor Mbanefo, Says

After refuting claims he is the owner of popular Ponzi money doubling scheme, MMM Nigeria, a self-styled Nigerian pastor, Ernest Chigozie Mbanefo has said MMM will run smoothly until Jesus Christ comes and that he can’t wait to continue in January 2017.
Recall that before the alleged crash of the scheme, the media was awash with reports claiming that Mbanefo was behind the Ponzi money doubling scheme.

Reacting to the report, Mbanefo insisted that he was an “Ordinary Participant” like the over 2 million Nigerians who are participants of the MMM Nigeria.”
In a statement on Wednesday, Mbanefo recalled that on the 2nd of December 2016, majority of Nigeria media houses posted unfounded, unverified, misleading articles about him being the owner/founder of MMM Nigeria.
He wrote: “I found the articles to be hilarious and wish to use this opportunity and platform to declare the following facts:
“I am neither the Owner nor the founder of MMM Nigeria.
“I do not have any contact or acquaintance with the owner(s) or Founder(s) of MMM Nigeria.
“I did not introduce MMM to Nigeria, but am glad it came.
“I am an Ordinary Participant like the over 2 million Nigerians who are participants of MMM Nigeria.
“I registered to join MMM Nigeria on the 2nd of June 2016.
“I registered to be a guider (knowledgeable participants), and became a guider after fulfilling the requirements of the course.
“I registered and own the domain mmm-nigeria.net which expires on the 7th of June 2019 (could be extended).
“I make financial contributions (provide help) to the MMM Nigeria community like everyone else and accept all the benefits and risks like everyone else. On the 13th of October 2016, i provided help of N3,000,000. I am also a super guider (not even in the top 100) committed to helping tens of thousands of participants in the community with solution to their operational problems, including logging issue, account blocking, lifting of both temporary moratorium and removal of Google authenticator, to mention a few.
“Let me also say this; MMM by itself and left alone will run smoothly until Jesus Christ comes, but the negative attacks by the media creates unnecessary bias and fear in the minds of innocent and responsible participants, thereby breaking the organized, well thought out operational structure of any targeted MMM community, which inevitably leads to a temporary or in some cases permanent damage.
“Honestly speaking, no bank anywhere in the world can survive the nature of attacks thrown at MMM anywhere. Throw 10 percent of these attacks at any bank and see how the dawn of the next morning of the next working day will record chaos at the front gate, with thousands of account holders demanding to withdraw all their money.
“Even then the respective bank will have to manage the chaos and expectation of its disgruntled customers, by creating and presenting a structured approach toward any withdrawals. So the current freeze in place in MMM Nigeria is a structured approach towards maintaining a healthy community.
“I am a proud participant of MMM Nigeria and cannot wait to continue in January 2017. Since I joined MMM Nigeria, like the over two million Nigerians who are participants, I have benefited a lot from this divine arrangement. I am not moved of fazed by what the media say and how they have chosen to attack and destroy MMM Nigeria.
“Long Live MMM Nigeria. Long Live MMM Global. Long Live federal Republic of Nigeria, Together we change the world,” he stated.

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Putin refuses to expel US diplomats, looks to Trump

President Vladimir Putin on Friday ruled out any tit-for-tat expulsion of Americans after Washington turfed out dozens of Russian diplomats over alleged interference in the US presidential election.
The Kremlin strongman’s decision came despite the foreign ministry asking him to send home 35 US diplomats in retaliation for the expulsion of the same number of its staff by President Barack Obama on Thursday.

“We will not create problems for American diplomats. We will not expel anyone,” Putin said in a statement, also inviting children of US diplomats to a holiday party at the Kremlin.

Putin’s move confirmed that Moscow is pinning its hopes on President-elect Donald Trump to help rebuild ties — which have plunged to their lowest point since the Cold War — when he takes office next month. “We evaluate the new unfriendly steps by the outgoing US administration as a provocation aimed at further undermining Russian-American relations,” Putin said.
He said Moscow would plan its next steps “based on the policies pursued by the administration of president Donald Trump” while warning that the Kremlin reserves the right to respond.
Putin ended his message by wishing Obama and Trump a Happy New Year and separately congratulated the incoming US president in his New Year’s message to heads of state around the world.
A State Department official said: “We have seen President Putin’s remarks. We have nothing further to add.”
– ‘Grizzly Steppe’ –
Obama on Thursday unleashed a barrage of sanctions against Russia over alleged cyberattacks aimed at tilting the election in Trump’s favour.
The move came after years of bad blood with Putin that has seen Washington slap sanctions on Moscow over its interference in Ukraine and Syria.

In response to the alleged hacks, dubbed “Grizzly Steppe” by US officials, Obama announced penalties against Russia’s military and domestic intelligence agencies, and gave the 35 suspected “intelligence operatives” 72 hours to leave. The Kremlin said it is sending a special plane to fly diplomats and their families from the United States, following reports they are not able to purchase plane tickets at such short notice.
Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Russian news agencies that 96 people would be leaving the US, but she declined to give details on their flight.
US intelligence has concluded that the Kremlin ordered a hack-and-release of Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton campaign staff emails in a bid to put Republican real estate mogul Trump in the Oval Office.
Obama’s moves put him at odds with his successor, who has expressed admiration for Putin as well as a desire to improve ties with Russia.
Moscow has repeatedly denied the hacking allegations and Trump too has questioned whether Russia tipped the electoral scale, painting Obama’s accusations as a thinly veiled effort by a Democratic president to cover up for his party’s loss.
Trump said that while he believes the US should “move on to bigger and better things,” he would meet intelligence leaders next week for a briefing on the situation.
Obama — who has also clashed with Trump over his Israel policy in recent days — pointedly stated that “all Americans should be alarmed by Russia’s actions”.

– ‘Unprecedented’ –
It remains unclear whether Trump will move to roll back the sanctions, with many leading Republican lawmakers publicly warning him to stay tough on Putin. Obama also linked the fresh sanctions to harassment of US diplomats in Moscow, which Washington described as “unprecedented” in the post-Cold War era.
US officials, meanwhile, played down the impact sanctions against the GRU and the FSB could have on intelligence-sharing on issues like counterterrorism, saying cooperation was already limited.
Both agencies will face penalties, along with GRU agency chief Igor Korobov and three of his deputies.
In addition, the US Treasury hit two individuals, Evgeniy Bogachev and Aleksey Belan, with sanctions for “involvement in malicious cyber-enabled activities”.
The sanctions freeze any assets they may have in the United States and block US companies from doing business with them.
The US government is also declassifying technical information on Russian cyber activity to help companies defend against future attacks.
Obama also urged the US and its allies “to oppose Russia’s efforts to undermine” international norms and resist attempts to “interfere with democratic governance.”
The remarks reflected concerns that Russia could target elections next year in France, Germany and the Netherlands.

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Excitement As N-Power Beneficiaries Gets December Salary

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Nigerian Conjoined Twins Celebrate Christmas With Family After Surgery (Pics)

The formerly conjoined Ayeni twins celebrated their first Christmas as separated twins after a successful operation in the United States of America. Miracle and Testimony Ayeni, from Nigeria, were conjoined at the pelvis.

The girls, who turned one today, underwent an 18-hour operation at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, on November 7 and 8.

They arrived in the US on June 28 with their parents Samuel Olusegun Ayeni and Mary Abiodun Ayeni, their older sister, and their pastor after being offered free flights from a Nigerian airline Arik Air.

It was their only hope at separating the girls, after trying and failing to find a hospital nearby that could carry out the operation. Finally, after months of research, they were referred to Le Bonheur, whose surgeons offered to do the life-saving operation free of charge.

The incredibly delicate operation to separate Jadon and Anias McDonald took 27 hours, and the lead surgeon has admitted he considered stopping halfway through.

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2017: "MMM To Dupe More Nigerians, A Minister Will Die, Poison For Mrs Buhari": Suleman

Apostle Suleman explodes with 50 Prophecies, says Aso Rock forces planning to poison Aisha Buhari ...Osinbajo 'll survive two impeachment attempts ...Recession 'll become depression in 2017 ...Buhari will be bereaved

...A great man of God 'll die

...FG will fight the Church like never before in January

President of Omega Fire Ministry, Apostle John Suleman has released 50 shocking prophecies for the year 2017.

The Prophecies were contained in a statement signed by his Advisor (Public Communications), Phrank Shaibu, on Friday in Abuja.

The cleric said "forces" in Aso Rock were "planning to poison the current First Lady (Aisha Buhari)."
According to him, the same "forces" would "alienate Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) and make attempts to remove him from office but God will humble Buhari in 2017."

"A former First Lady of Nigeria needs prayers over her health. Forces in Aso Rock are planning to poison current First Lady (Aisha Buhari).Two times, Nigeria’s Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, will face removal from office. They will alienate him and they will make attempts to remove him. But God will humble Buhari in 2017", Suleman stated.


Details of the Prophecies below....

1. I see terrorism on the increase


2. Federal Government of Nigeria should not relax yet on Book Haram. It's a deception.


3. Buhari to face impeachment threats.


4. America and China to have major face-off


5. Crude Oil to flow in Northern Nigeria.


6. Abuja to experience major Fire explosion.


7. Donald Trump to face impeachment attempt as members of Congress will be divided on his style of leadership.


8. I see an airplane that has Nigeria's logo (National Carrier)


9. Things will pick up a bit in Nigeria but hunger will persist.


10. I saw people crying over Bamanga Tukur


11. Buhari will be bereaved in 2017


12. Ecobank, Diamond, Fidelity, GTB to retrench staff.


13. President Buhari's health needs attention


14. 2017 budget will have crises


15. More judges to be humiliated


16. MMM to dupe more Nigerians and I see court cases.


17. Dollar to exchange for N615


18. Recession in Nigeria to become depression in 2017


19. MTN and GLO to face hardship


20. A former First Lady of Nigeria needs prayers over her health.


21. Forces in Aso Rock planning to poison current First Lady (Aisha Buhari)


22. I saw huge number of Chibok girls released; some of them with kids


23. Nnamdi Kanu's detention to cause international crises. God is angry with Buhari for the continued detention.


24. Donald Trump to favour Israel. American Embassy in Israel to be moved to Jerusalem.


25. Liberian election: CONTINUITY


26. Ghana's new president to send many to jail.


27. Buhari and Senate to have crucial disagreement.


28. Nigeria's Budget will be delayed


29. I see killings in Ekiti


30. EFCC to come after National Assembly members in Nigeria in a politically motivated arrests because of their refusal to confirm Magu


31. I see kidnappers entering schools


32. Nigeria will lose a great man of God and the New Year is when the Nigerian government will fight the Church like never before.


33. Some terrorists will be arrested in Lagos


34. Traditional Rulers indicted and arrested for corruption


35. Lufthansa, Dana air, Ghana Air, Aero Contractors; I see staff protests.


36. America to have financial crises.


37. A serving Cabinet Minister in Nigeria will die


38. Nigeria to secure foreign funds


39. Doctors will embark on strike in Nigeria


40. A new Mega party in Nigeria will swallow up APC


41. I see a new leadership for the APC in Nigeria.


42. I see the DSS being taken to court


43.France, Spain, Russia to pray against train going off the rail.


44. I saw a huge school building collapse.


45. Nollywood to pray. They will get help but will lose two major people. The Yoruba movie industry too but prayer can avert it.


46. Fulani herdsmen again! Taraba, Benue, IMO and Jigawa state.


47. Kogi state to organize state prayers to avoid major deaths and natural disasters.


48. Edo state; major celebration but pray against road crashes.


49. I see presidents being removed in Africa, I see presidents being installed.


50. Two times, Nigeria’s vice president, Yemi Osinbajo, will face removal from office. They will alienate him and they will make attempts to remove him. But God will humble Buhari in 2017.


ENDS...

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Why Emmanuella May Never Make Her Hair - Mark Angel Reveals (Pics, Video)

The Mark Angel Comedy group has grown with Little Emmanuella doing exploits with her Uncle Mark.


What is the relationship between Uncle Mark and the little comedienne? How was she discovered? What is her worth now having won several awards at home and abroad and was featured on CNN recently and has the most shared video on Youtube.

Emmaneulla and Uncle Mark were NAIJ.com’s guests and they bare it all in this exclusive interview.

Two awards in Australia, crowned the Princess of comedy and highest video view on YouTube

It's all God and we feel so excited.

What's special about Emmanuella

Emmanuella is talented and then she has grace. Those are the two things that I think is working for her.

Relationship between Mark Angel and Emmanuella

She is a distant cousin.

Emmanuella's talent discovery

I just found out that she could act and I started training her and now here we are.

Living in same neighbourhood

Yes, we live in this same house.

Parents’ reactions to her acting

They were happy. We didn’t even know that this was going to go big like this when we started. We liked what we were doing and we were doing it for the fun of it. After shooting the comic skits all we do then was to share it with our friends on Whatsapp and they will tell that was funny and that will be the end of it. But later I started to build social media handles to see how more people can view what we are doing. We found out that when people see Emmanuella their moods just change. We want her to affect more people.

Parents’ reaction now that she’s a superstar

Just the same way I feel. They are like wow this has gone big. It came as a surprise that we are going this big, when we noticed we told ourselves we have to be serious about it so that we will not disappoint our viewers and followers. That is how we turned our hubby into something serious.

Emmanuella’s remuneration

It’s no longer family-family thing but now business. Emmanuella’s family and I realized that she is a minor now though a celebrity but she is going to grow up. So we need to save for her future. Together with her parents we have put things in place for her.

Comedy and travelling effect on Emmanuella’s education
It’s affecting her. Before now she was attending a public school and when the stardom started setting in we have to move her to a private school. Even at the school because she is Emmanuella they gave her preferences such that if she said she is not ready to learn they will take it from her. When I learnt about this development I went mad. One day, I took it out on the principal for allowing her to have her ways. Despite the warning they still kept doing that so I changed her school. Despite telling them why I moved her to the school some teachers still give her special attention, it’s a battle. And when we travel outside the country we always look for a teacher even before our landing in that country. And since their curriculum is quite different from our own we go extra length to break it down to her. We always tell her foreign teachers to try to synchronise Nigerian school curriculum with theirs so we can get a balance. And the good thing is that she has learnt some things her classmate has not learnt before.

New things learnt while abroad
There was a time she learnt something about aviation where they told her that at times the pilot does not see what is in front and they rely on map and she came home telling me that pilots do magic and they can go and hit someone.

Emmanuella’s real age

She is six.

People says she is older than six

Looking at her now does she look older than six? Emmanuella looks big on screen like 12 years but when you see her live you know.

What class is Emmanuella

I am in primary two.

Emmanuella's hairstyle

She will make her hair sometime when she is older and can decide for herself.

No earrings

Yes.

No earring, low haircut, why
Maybe religion by not only that, it’s in the family too. In our family we all cut our hair, both male and female and Emmanuella in particular doesn’t like it. If you try making her hair she can’t carry it for long as she will tell you it hurts her. There was a time we wanted to travel and I told her fans want her to make her hair, she was like, if I make my hair now my fans will not recognize me again. You know her hair also has something to do with her brand.

Emmanuella relationship with her age mates

Answering herself she said: “I feel happy but that does not mean I am special than them. Some kids also have talents and I have mine. Some said they want to be like me but I tell them be yourself and do anything you love to do from there God will use you to be a blessing to your family.

Emmanuella looks playful

Emmanuella is very playful and easily distracted.

Grasping her lines

That is the magic. That is one part of Emmanuella that is a mystery. At times while on set, she might not want to learn and might keep us waiting for hours. When you think all hope is lost she will come up and deliver her lines excellently well.

Poor camera quality

We are still working on improving our equipment every day. We change camera often as we are still in the testing period. By 2017, we will be coming up with a movie and we don’t want people saying it does not meet international standard. Also, we don’t want to be too serious with the comedy skit. We try to be as natural as possible because if we try to polish it too well it might look fake and the message will be lost. But in the movie we are working on we want to be as professional as possible.


Emmanuella brought change to Mark Angel comedy skits

The aim is to create interesting contents and whatever it will take to create such contents we will do. I realized that people love what we create with Emmanuella as the country is hard so we put in more efforts. But people are telling me that I am killing my career by promoting the Emmanuella brand. That is what people want to see and some people don’t understand that. They need to understand what you are out for, is it for fame or work? Do you want to touch people’s lives? However you achieve it as long as it is in line with the word of God just do it. Watch the video:

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TB Joshua's Prophetic Message For 2017 (Video)

PROPHETIC MESSAGE FOR 2017 | Prophet T.B. Joshua
What does the future hold for you in 2017? What will happen around the world? Is there going to be change? In what way - positive or negative?

Prophet T.B. Joshua warns us in this inspiring message that satan uses our difficult circumstances to draw us into sin but as a Christian, 'Your Faith Will Not Fail'.

Watch the video:


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Ex Miss Anambra, Chidinma Okeke, To Co-Host Slimshady Invasion Show (Photo)

A friend sent me this picture saying that the former miss Anambra will be co hosting and event in Anambra.

I contacted the organizers and they said its true.
What do you guys think?

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"$4.2 Billion Missing In NNPC Under Buhari" – US Governance Report

A new report on Thursday said despite President Muhammadu Buhari’s attempt at ensuring transparency in the oil sector, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, still withholds billions in oil revenues from the government account.

The report by the Natural Resource Governance Institute, titled “NNPC still holds blank check” said that within the first six months of the Buhari administration, the NNPC withheld over $4.2 billion (about N824.7 billion) out of a total of $6.3 billion (N1.24 trillion) revenues realised from crude oil sales in the second half of 2015.

The withheld revenues represented about 66 per cent of the total revenue – $1.4 billion earnings from Nigeria’s regular crude oil exports for the period; $3.4 billion from domestic crude oil sales, and $1.5 billion from oil sold from the corporation’s upstream subsidiary, the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, NPDC oil fields.
The report said only $2.1 billion (about N413.7 billion) was transferred to the Federation Account.

The group said the unremitted revenues for the six months was about 14 per cent more than the amount withheld by the corporation under the Goodluck Jonathan administration in the first half of 2015, and about 12 per cent higher than the share withheld in 2013 and 2014.

The report said the figure of unremitted oil revenues in 2015 contrasted sharply with 2005 figures, which showed the NNPC remitted about 68 per cent of its total oil sale earnings to the Federation Account and kept only 32 per cent that year.

The report said while part of the withheld funds was used for servicing Nigeria’s share of the joint venture operating obligations, the NNPC did not fully explain what the other retained revenues from domestic crude and NPDC oil sales were used for.

In general, the report said despite the on-going reforms in the oil sector, the NNPC under the present administration was still retaining a major share of oil sale earnings and spending at will.

Some of the reforms by the Buhari government, the report noted, have cut the number of passive, well connected middlemen that pocketed billions of oil revenues, while the administration has cancelled costly, unbalanced NNPC swap contracts as well as seek more efficient replacements.

The report lamented that recent announcements on NNPC reforms and the latest drafts of the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, failed to adequately address how NNPC and the government would share future oil revenues
“Until government establishes a clear, legally enforceable rule governing which revenues NNPC can keep and how they can be spent, oil sector corruption and waste could return to their prior devastating levels once the president (Buhari) leaves, or prices rise,” the report noted.

While encouraging government to push ahead with its reform plans for the oil sector, NRGI stressed the need for NNPC to adopt new financial controls and transparency measures for its subsidiaries, especially bordering on the several billion revenues retained each year from NPDC operations and its oil trading and marketing subsidiaries.

The Institute also called for the immediate replacement of the 445,000 barrels per day crude oil allocation for domestic refining with a fit-for-purpose mechanism for supplies to the country’s four refineries.

“The government should move to curb the corporation’s discretionary, unaccountable use of much-needed public funds. Until the government instates clear rules for NNPC financing, both the controversies and the underlying revenue leakages will persist,” the report said.

Describing the NPDC as one of the Nigerian petroleum sector’s “great black boxes”, the report said some of the oil from the company’s fields went to its strategic alliance partners, two of which were paid in oil for purportedly shouldering the company’s financial obligations.

From the production of an average of 30,000 barrels per day of Okono grade crude during the period, the reportsaid some of the oil from the company’s fields went to its strategic alliance partners, two of which were paid in oil for purportedly shouldering the company’s financial obligations.

From the production of an average of 30,000 barrels per day of Okono grade crude during the period, the report said NNPC retained all earnings ( about $12.3 billion over the past decade) from the offshore Oil Mining Lease (OML) 119 owned wholly by NPDC.

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