FULL LIST..... Nigeria's new Ministers and their portfolios

This present this after announced his ministers and their portfolios. Find full list below...



Abubakar Malami- Minister of Justice
Geoffrey Onyeama- Minister of Foreign Affairs
Mohammed Dan Ali- Minister f Defence
Adamu Adamu- Minister of Education
Anthony Anwuka- State minister of Education
Kemi Adeosun- Minister of Finance
Okechukwu Enelemah- Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment
Aisha Abubakar- State minister Industry, Trade and Investment
Chris Ngige- Minister of Labor and Employment
James Ocholi- State Minister of Labor and Employment
Mohammed Bello- FCT Minister
Abdulrahman Dambazzau- Interior Minister
Udoma Udo Udoma- Minister of Budget and National Planning
Zainab Ahmed- State Minister Budget and National Planning
Emmanuel Ibe Kachiukwu- State Minister Petroleum resources
Babatubde Fashola- Minister of Power, Works and Housing
Mustapha Shehuri- State minister Power, Works, and Housing
Audu Ogbeh- Minister of Agriculture and Rural development
Heineken Lokpobiri- State minister Agriculture and Rural Development
Chibuike Amaechi- Minister of Transportation
Hadi Sirika- State Minister Aviation
Isaac Folorunsho Adeoye- Minister of Health
Osagie Ehanire- State Minister Health
Aisha Alhassan- Minister of Women Affairs
Usani Uguru- Minister Niger Delta Affairs
Claudius Omoyele Daramola - State minister Niger Delta Affairs
Adebayo Shittu- Minister of Communication
Lai Mohammed- Minister of Information
Amina Mohammed - Minister of Environment
Ibrahim Jibrin- State Minister of Environment
Suleiman Adamu- Minister of Water Resources
Solomon Dalong- Minister of Youths and Sports
Kayode Fayemi- Minister of Solid Mineral
Abubakar Bwari- State Minister Solid Minerals
Ogbonnaya Onu- Minister of Science and Technology

Lateefat seeks N0.9m to walk again

By Gabriel Olawale

Mrs. Lateefat Bashiru on her sick bed.

Lateefat Bashiru, a petty trader has been bedridden for several months as a result of a road accident in which she suffered severe limb fracture. It all began when she boarded a commercial bus on January 18, 2014, but got involved in the road mishap. Lucky to escape with her life, she has however, been unable to walk due to the injury she sustained.

Presently, Lateefat who hails from Ogun state and is the breadwinner for her family, requires corrective surgery but is unable to raise the required N904, 780 for the surgery. She has cried out to kind-hearted Nigerians for assistance. In a narration, she recalled: “I was conscious when the accident happened. I was on my way to Sango in Ogun State to visit my mother but the accident occurred around Iyana Ipaja.

I was rushed to a nearby hospital and later transferred to Aisha Hospital from where I was referred to National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, for x-ray. I was told I had to undergo surgery to walk again.

“When I made enquiry about the cost, I was told to return, but my next appointment fell within the health workers’ strike. When the pain was much,  I visited some other places but the situation remains the same. After the strike, I went back to Igbobi, where I was given a bill of N904,780 for the surgery.”  A document signed by Dr. Taiwo Aofolajuwonlo revealed that Lateefat will require signature hip prosthesis, surgical pack, anaesthesia, physiotheraphy, drugs among others.

Appealing for support, Lateefat said she had sold all her tools.  “People of Nigeria should help me, I want to walk again and continue with my business. I was a fashion designer before the incident.”

If you are motivated to assist, kindly send your donation to GT Bank, Lateefat Bashiru, 0140674241 or contact 08025224425.

DON'T MISS IT....The Coming of Buhari’s Change Agents, By Garba Shehu

Ololade Bamidele PREMIUM TIMES


Before a skyscraper rises out of the ground and becomes a towering edifice, the foundation must go deep into the ground, sometimes as low as 150ft. Month after month, the labourers continue to dig and build, their diligent work taking place completely out of sight. In the same period it takes to complete the foundation of a skyscraper, several duplexes may spring up nearby. Concerned onlookers may wonder about all the time invested in an unseen structure and ask, “But why can’t we see the building you say you are building?”
During the past few months since he took on the mantle of CHANGE, President Muhammadu Buhari has been restructuring the foundations of the Nigerian government, which have disintegrated and putrefied over decades of mismanagement. He has been busy cleaning out debris and plugging loopholes, before laying new and fresh blocks. When he spoke to them at the three-day retreat welcoming them to the cabinet, the President told the new ministers that “we have already taken deliberate measures to plug leakages of government revenue and resources.”
The Treasury Single Account (TSA) is one example. Under this new system, all government revenue, income and payments are being handled via one single account which will be maintained by the Central Bank. This way, the government will have direct supervision of inflow and outflow. Cases such as that of Nigerian Maritime and Security Agency, NIMASA (currently under investigation by the EFFC) where billions of dollars were channelled for questionable purposes will be a thing of the past. Nigerians can expect more transparency and less misappropriation of funds by agencies of government. Government will begin to realise her revenue in full measure and agencies will be able to spend only within their budgets.
Still on the issue of government revenue, the prospect of the Nigerian government generating more money through the Nigerian Customs Service is set to increase with the change of management that was effected recently by the Buhari administration. With accountability and integrity at the top, Nigerians can expect that revenue from that agency will double or triple.
The Ministry of Finance just got the customs to repair broken down scanners at the ports to ensure maximum generation of revenue. Officers had left the scanners unrepaired, and in some known cases deliberately sabotaged them so that assessment is done manually to satisfy greed on their part.
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has also begun to implement a programme of increased awareness among Nigerians regarding the payment of taxes. This is being followed by a strict programme of persuasion and enforcement. Within a short while, the Nigerian government will begin to realise a marked increase in revenue from VAT.
All these foundation blocks have been laid to ensure that the Nigerian government has enough revenue with which to make life better for every Nigerian, especially as the price of oil continues to look precarious.

These measures, taken together, represent a major push by the President to increase internally-generated revenue, reduce over-dependence on crude oil earnings in a way that will bring stability and predictability in the financing of government programmes.
The situation of the economy is not an ordinary one. It is a crisis, a crisis itself inherited by the Buhari administration, and one that cannot be ignored. Two weeks ago, the International Monetary Fund, IMF predicted that the GDP growth in sub-Saharan Africa would fall to 3.75 percent in 2015 which is the lowest in the last six years.
Nigeria along with Angola, the leading oil economies on the continent have been hit hard by oil prices which have gone down by more than 50 percent in the last 12 months.
It is on account of this that the President warned the new ministers of what to expect: “The work of restoration and renewal is urgent and immense. The expectations of Nigerians are high. Our determination to succeed and change the fortunes of our country must be equal to the challenge.
“I have invited you to join me in this urgent mission for our country. I am convinced that in accepting this invitation you are also equally determined to take part in this patriotic undertaking.”
So finally, the underground work is coming to an end. With the inauguration of ministers taking place on Wednesday, it is now time for Nigerians to watch the edifice of CHANGE begin to rise out of a new and strong foundation. Our country’s season of austerity is coming to an end. Life will get better for every Nigerian, in every geopolitical zone of our country.
As President Buhari said in the opening address during the retreat that took place last week, “You are coming on board the ship of governance at an interesting time. So much has been said about the state of our economy. It is expected that we make the running of Government at all levels as lean as possible, avoid waste and conserve resources. As ministers, you must be the vehicle that will administer the change.”
President Buhari, who shrugged off “experts”and their “scientific” predictions to receive a historic mandate – the first time that an opposition candidate defeated an incumbent administration since independence has been speaking of the huge popular expectation of Nigerians who gave this mandate. They are waiting, impatient and agitated.
The new ministers will do well to pay heed to the President’s call for prudence, austerity through the avoidance of the type of extravagance that had weighed down the finances of government in the past. Under the past administration, some ministers had as many as 15 special assistants and so many policemen in tow.
Let the new ministers learn from the President who game a recent directive that he didn’t want have more than eight vehicles in his convoy.
Nigerians should get set to see and experience more of the CHANGE for which they voted overwhelmingly for the Buhari administration if the cabinet avoids micromanaging specifics and kowtowing to Godfather interests to join the President in putting policies in place to make the country a favored destination for investors both global and local.
There is little doubt that there is light at the end of the tunnel although it will take much hard work to make it a new dawn.

Cadbury Donates Food, Classrooms To Centre

In continuation of its global employee volunteer month of service, Cadbury Nigeria visited the Vocational Training Centre of the Nigeria Society for the Blind in Oshodi, Lagos, with food and cleaned its classrooms. Speaking with journalists during the visit, Cadbury’s Managing Director, Mr. Roy Naaman, commended the management of the training centre for the good work they are doing as a group committed to make life better for the visually impaired.

He said, “Our visit comes at a very special time for Cadbury Nigeria, and our parent company, Mondelez International, because this is our company’s global month of service.

We do this each year as part of a celebration of our company’s founding, and it helps us live our company’s values – such as leading from the head and the heart. READ MORE

WOOOOOW....Ighalo Named English Premier League African Player of the Month

Odion Ighalo has been named as October’s English Premier League African Player of the Month. He beat off stiff competition from Sadio Mane of Southampton who ran him really close in the votes, and Manchester City’s Yaya Toure.

Announcing the award, New African Soccer’s Award Director ‘Tunde Adelakun stated that ‘Odion Ighalo has been tethering on the periphery of this award since the season started. He has come into the Premier League with a rich scoring form from the Championship, and carried it on as if it was normal”.

Tunde Adelakun also expressed satisfaction at the progress of the Awards, saying “the rate at which more and more people are taking to this concept is a strong motivating factor for us to continue this drive, aimed at recognizing our stars,” while thanking all who made their contributions through votes, comments and other means in making the Awards worthwhile.

Receiving his award,  Ighalo said: “It is a great honor for me to be given this award. I thank God, through whom I achieved most of what I have, and my team mates for making it possible for me to score the goals that I score”.

Odion Ighalo while receiving the Award said; “that it can only motivate him to continue to do more, and set a good positive benchmark for others like him from Africa, to make them see that the sky is the limit for anyone who works hard”.

Odion Ighalo is the highest scorer in English leagues in the 2015 calendar year so far, with 23 goals (dating from his Championship days with Watford to the Premier League) and he attributes it to hard work. “I work hard for the goals I score and I spot opportunity and grab it. The secret is always to work hard and to have self belief, and I think I have both” he said.

Omolara Adegoke.... BREAKINGTIMES

APC FIGHT BACK ON Taraba judgement: "Blame yourself", APC tells PDP

The All Progressives Congress , APC, has said Saturday’s judgement of the Taraba State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal is the clearest indication yet that the PDP has started harvesting what it sewed in its years of “impunity and recklessness”, hence it should blame itself for whatever tragedy has now befallen it.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, the party said the PDP has always been a party of anything goes, hence it is a matter of time for the party to come to grief, first by tumbling from the pinnacle of power and now by losing, incrementally, whatever remains of its crumbled empire.

The PDP had in its reaction, Saturday, said the judgment of the tribunal is the “clearest indication” yet that the Nigerian judiciary is being manipulated by the governing APC.

Mr. Mohammed, however, said the PDP was only trifling by attributing the judgement to a supposed manipulation from the Presidency.

”President Muhammadu Buhari as well as his party, the APC, are strong believers in the rule of law, as against the rule of impunity, hence will never manipulate the judiciary for whatever reason.

”The PDP is clearly aware of this, but has chosen to blame everyone but itself for the fate that has befallen it. The PDP should have known that it will pay for its years of impunity and recklessness. For this party, the chicken has now come home to roost,” APC said.

The party said if the PDP is not blaming the judiciary, its favourite whipping boy, it is blaming the APC, the Presidency or even Nigerians for its plight, warning it to stop shifting responsibility.

”PDP should leave the judiciary, the Presidency and the APC alone and accept responsibility for its actions. From the judgement of the Tribunal, it is clear that the impunity of the PDP cost it the election. Not only did the party breach Section 78 (b) (1) (2) of the Electoral Act concerning the organization of party primaries, it was not even deemed to have participated in the April 11th 2015 governorship election in Taraba State in the eyes of the law.

”Apart from not complying with the Electoral Act, the election of the PDP candidate, Mr. Darius Ishaku, in the purported primaries in Abuja was done after the stipulated time for party primaries had elapsed, according to the Tribunal. It is thus clear that the election result in Taraba was not annulled for any other reason but the impunity and recklessness that permeated the life and times of the cadaverous PDP.

”It is noteworthy that this is not the first time the court is ruling against PDP’s impunity of violating its own constitutional provisions and the Electoral Act with regards to ensuring internal democracy in the conduct of primary elections.

”The first landmark judgment came from the Supreme Court when it ruled against PDP’s impunity in 2007 and ordered that Rotimi Amaechi be installed as Governor of Rivers instead of Celestine Omehia who was illegally imposed. Secondly, the Supreme Court had also ruled against PDP in the case of Ifeanyi Ararume when the party took his mandate as validly elected Governorship candidate and handed it over to another aspirant.

”It is instructive to note that these judgments took place while the PDP was in control of the Presidency. The opposition parties then never questioned the integrity of the judiciary by making wild and weighty allegations as the PDP is doing now,” it said.

The APC also said that the PDP should blame itself for its gross impunity with regards to the conduct of primary elections for Taraba State. For instance, if all political parties, including the APC which was then in opposition, could hold their primaries in the state, why would the PDP that was in control of the State Government come down to Abuja for its primaries against the provisions of the Electoral Act and the PDP constitution?

”The impunity was not only in the case of Taraba State because the PDP also moved its Governorship primaries for Borno and Adamawa States to Abuja in breach of the Electoral Act.

The irony was that whereas the PDP claimed the primaries where shifted to Abuja because the capitals of Taraba, Borno and Adamawa States where not safe for primary elections, the PDP held Presidential campaigns in the same capitals of the affected states (Jalingo, Taraba State, Maiduguri, Borno State and Yola, Adamawa State).

”Now that the PDP’s chicken has come home to roost, the party must be courageous enough to accept full responsibility and stop seeing enemies everywhere. The PDP is its own enemy,” the party said.

Chai... Chai...Chai....Report names Wada, Emmanuel, Uwahi, others as worst performing Governors

A comparative performance analysis of governors in Nigeria carried out by Lagos-based Centre for International Advanced and Professional Studies, CIAPS, has rated Governors Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom), Abdulaziz Yari
(Zamfara), Idris Wada (Kogi), Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe) and Dave Umahi (Ebonyi) as the worst performing governors in the country.

This is as Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna and his Sokoto counterpart, Aminu Tambuwal were rated as the
first and second best performing governors with 72 per cent and 64 per
cent, respectively.

In a statement issued on Friday by the CIAPS Coordinator, Mr. Olumuyiwa Ayoola, the report noted that the
variables used as indexes for performance were “mathematically
calculated.”

Ayoola stated that the variables had been skewed to place emphasis on “payment of salary, new projects,
education, security and leadership by example.”

According to him, activities of each state governor were monitored and studied from their first day in office
and the findings were graded and compared to that of fellow governors across the country.

The statement noted that in October, the CGPI results showed that Emmanuel, Yari, Wada, Geidam and Umahi
were the least performing governors in the country.

The CGPI report indicated that the five governors finished in the bottom places with not more than a score of 35 per cent.

The CIAPS Director and the CGPI Chair, Prof. Anthony Kila, while commenting on the study, said that the, “CGPI is a useful tool for democracy and good governance as it allows government to be objectively measured against their peers and compels all in power to be mindful of accountability.

“The variables used for measuring governors performance this month (October) takes into account that
most of the state governors are new to office while some have been there for a longer period of time.”

Kila said he hoped that the CGPI monthly reports would allow governors to sit up, improve their performances during their tenure and engage in healthy competition among themselves for the benefit of their states and the country as a whole.

The study tagged, ‘Governors Performance Index,’ is a monthly performance review of what governors across the country are doing in their offices.

By Sylvester Ugwuanyi DAILY POST

WOW....SO HOT...!!! 10 things you need to know this Sunday morning..

By Ali Adoyi on dailypostng

Good morning! Here are 10 things you need to know this morning:

1. The Taraba State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja yesterday nullified the election of Governor Darius Ishaku of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), and declared Aisha Abubakar of the All Progressives Congress, APC, winner of the election. The tribunal in its judgment held that Ishaku was not validly nominated as candidate of the PDP, therefore was not qualified to contest the governorship election.

2. Troops of the Nigeria Army on Saturday recorded a major success in Konduga and Bama on Saturday when they conducted 23 kilometers wide clearance operations. Report says four Boko Haram enclaves along the route of the operations were cleared and some terrorists killed, while two were captured alive and currently undergoing investigation. 20 people were also rescued alive.

3. Report has claimed that a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Chief Olu Falae has been flown to the United Kingdom for a thorough medical treatment. This is coming after he was kidnapped by some suspected Fulani herdsmen on his farm in Ilado village, Akure. North Local Government Area of Ondo State on his birthday.

4. What appears like landslide has killed four children of same father on Saturday. The incident happened in Orisha area of Isheri-Magodo, Ojodu, Lagos State. According to report, three of the children were of the same mother, while one belonged to the man’s second wife.

5. As the Nigerian Golden Eaglets prepare for today’s showdown against Mali, President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday afternoon spoke via telephone with members the team ahead of the encounter. The President urged them to repeat the feat of 30 years ago when the country became the first African country to win a FIFA tournament.

6. The ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, yesterday announced that ‎President Muhammadu Buhari will swear in his ministers next week Wednesday. He is also expected to announce their portfolios almost immediately.

7. Following the Tribunal’s judgment that nullified his election, Governor Darius Ishaku of Taraba State has assured his supporters across the State that he will appeal the verdict of the Elections Petitions Tribunal, and expressed hope that he will get his mandate back.

8. The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osin­bajo has assured Nigerians that the country’s economy will be fixed by the current government, mainly through the instrumentality of the President, himself and other ministers in the government.

9. An emerging report has it that British flag carrier, Virgin Atlantic Airways, has stopped its operation on Nigerian routes.
According to an unconfirmed report, the airline has sacked all Nigerian cabin crew and shut its call centre in Ikeja, Lagos.

10. A comparative report on governors’ performance in Nigeria carried out by a Lagos-based Centre for International Advanced and Professional Studies, CIAPS, has rated Governors Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom), Abdulaziz Yari
(Zamfara), Idris Wada (Kogi), Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe) and Dave Umahi (Ebonyi) as the worst performing governors in the country. Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna and his Sokoto counterpart, Aminu Tambuwal were however rated as the first and second best performing governors with 72 per cent, 64 per cent, respectively.

LOBATAN: Professor indicted by court for sexual assault, forgery appointed Vice-Chancellor of Nigerian federal university

The man designated the next vice chancellor of the University of Uyo, a federal government-owned institution, Prof. Enefiok Essien was indicted in 2005 for forgery and sexual assault by the Court of Appeal, court papers obtained exclusively by PREMIUM TIMES have revealed.
Mr. Essien, a 55-year old professor of commercial law and the current dean, faculty of law, Uniuyo, has been tapped to succeed Prof. Comfort Ekpo as the next vice chancellor of the university on December 1, 2015.
The Court of Appeal, Calabar, Cross River State, handed down the indictment on Mr. Essien on July 14, 2005 while affirming the judgment of the Federal High Court, Calabar, which nullified Uniuyo’s expulsion of a female student, Linda Onyebuchi Essell, from the university over her alleged involvement in examination malpractice.
Uniuyo didn’t appeal the judgment and Ms. Essell went on to complete her first degree in law and graduated from the university.
She was represented at the Court of Appeal proceedings by Obiora A. Obianwu, SAN.
Ms. Essell, as at the time she was accused of examination malpractice in March, 1995, was in her second year, while Mr. Essien was a senior lecturer then.
The fact of the case, according to court papers, is that Mr. Essell submitted unstamped and unsigned answer booklet during her examination in Constitutional Law (PUL 211), and for this reason the university accused her of having pre-knowledge of the examination questions and of bringing pre-written examination answers into the examination hall.
She was eventually expelled from the university, although she pleaded that she was innocent of the allegations.

“I did not even notice (that the answer script was unstamped and unsigned). I explained that I was thoroughly searched by the invigilators like any other student before I entered the examination hall and that I was served with the answer script in the examination hall. I did not go out of the hall throughout the duration of the examination,” Ms. Essell had told the court in her affidavit.
Ms. Essell’s legal victory at both the federal high court and the Court of Appeal was secured on the strength of her argument that she wasn’t given fair hearing by the two panels – Examination Malpractice Panel and the Senate Appeal Panel – set up by the school.
She supported her argument with an affidavit telling how Mr. Essien, the man who several years later would be appointed Uniuyo’s vice chancellor, manipulated the university system against her because she had refused to accede to his love overtures.
Interestingly, it was Mr. Essien, who invigilated Ms. Essell in the PUL 211examination. It was him who accused her of examination malpractice. It was also him who chaired the Examination Malpractice Panel that tried Ms. Estell.
The panel had two other lecturers – Goddy A. Umoh and G. S. Akpan – drawn from the faculty of law as its members.
But Mr. Akpan “dropped out without any explanation and no effort was made to replace him in the panel thereby reducing it to a two-man panel instead of three as originally established,” the court said. “This gives room to doubt the impartiality and independence of the panel as constituted.”
Mr. Umoh, besides being a member of the panel at the faculty of law level, was also a member of the Senate Appeal Panel which was an appellate panel that looked into the recommendations of the former.
The court held that that was a travesty of justice and a serious breach of the rule of natural justice.
But Mr. Umoh told PREMIUM TIMES that he never sat on the Senate Appeal Panel when Ms. Essell’s READ MORE

Nigerian Police Emergency Numbers.... SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS..

====================

STATE COMMAND EMERGENCY NUMBERS
Abia ==== 08035415408 08079210003 08079210004 08079210005
Adamawa 08089671313
Akwa Ibom 08039213071 08020913810
Anambra 07039194332 08024922772 08075390511 08182951257
Bauchi 08151849417 08127162434 08084763669 08073794920
Benue 08066006475 08053039936 07075390677
Bayelsa 07034578208
Borno 08068075581 08036071667 08123823322
Cross Rivers 08133568456 07053355415
Delta 08036684974
Ebonyi 07064515001 08125273721 08084704673
Edo 08037646272 08077773721 08067551618
Ekiti 08062335577 07089310359
Enugu 08032003702 08075390883 08086671202
Gombe 08150567771 08151855014
Imo 08034773600 08037037283
Abuja (F.C.T) 07057337653 08061581938 08032003913
Jigawa 08075391069 07089846285 08123821598
Kaduna 08123822284
Kano 08032419754 08123821575 064977004 064977005
Katsina 08075391255 08075391250
Kebbi 08038797644 08075391307
Kogi 08075391335 07038329084
Kwara 07032069501 08125275046
Lagos 07055462708 08035963919
Nassarawa 08123821571 07075391560
Niger 08081777498 08127185198
Ogun 08032136765 08081770416
Ondo 07034313903 08075391808
Osun 08075872433 08039537995 08123823981
Oyo 08081768614 08150777888
Plateau 08126375938 08075391844 08038907662
Rivers 08032003514 08073777717
Sokoto 07068848035 08075391943
Taraba 08140089863 08073260267
Yobe 07039301585 08035067570
Zamfara 08106580123

BABA BUHARI call his boys: Put Nigeria On The World Map Of Soccer Again, Buhari Charges Eaglets In Video Call

President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday evening spoke with the Golden Eaglets and their officials for about 24 minutes, urging them to go for victory in Sunday’s final of the Under-17 FIFA World Cup holding in Chile.

The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, said this in a statement last night.

According to Adesina, Nigeria first won the inaugural edition of the U-17 tournament in China in 1985 when Buhari was military head of state.

Buhari was quoted as urging the team to repeat the same feat today against Mali to make it the fifth time Nigeria would win the trophy.

Nigeria defeated Mexico 4-2 in a thrilling encounter while Mali also fought back from a goal down to earn a 3-1 victory over Belgium in the semi-finals.

The African sides will go head-to-head for the trophy on Sunday at the Estadio Sausalito in Vina del Mar.

Starting with the head coach, Emmanuel Amuneke, Buhari congratulated him for leading the team to the final, and then said: “Your victory tomorrow will remind Nigerians of what happened in China 30 years ago, and it will raise the morale of Nigerians, especially the youths. We’re praying for you. We are anxiously waiting to receive the cup. Please put us on the world map of soccer again”.

The president also spoke to Udoh Akpan, the goalkeeper, whom he described as a very strategic member of the team, noting that “If you don’t let in the goals, then none will be scored against us. We look forward to lifting the cup”.

To John Lazarus, a defender, Buhari said: “Don’t allow anybody to penetrate the defense”, while charging Tobechukwu Ibe, another defender to “rest well today (yesterday), because a lot of Nigerians will be depending on you tomorrow (today)”.

To top striker, Victor Osimhen, who has nine goals to his name so far in the tournament, Buhari said: “Strike like thunder tomorrow. I believe you will bring us victory”.

To the team captain, Kelechi Nwakali, President Buhari charged him to maintain his winning leadership; while Joel Osikel, a midfielder, was told by the president that he was “the jewel of the team”, and challenged him to contribute his quota towards victory.

Adesina said apart from the 21 players and head coach, the president also had encouraging words for other members of the technical team, the team doctor, physiotherapist, media officer, and other officials.

He quoted both Coach Amuneke and the team captain as thanking President Buhari for his support, and promised not to let him and the country down.

PUNCH

LADIES NEWS: 22-year-old Pamela Peter-Vigboro Leesi crowned Miss Nigeria

Miss Cross River, Pamela Peter-Vigboro Leesi was last night crowned the new Miss Nigeria beating 35 other contestants to the crown.

The new queen, who was rewarded with N3M, a brand new Kia Rio salon car and a Lagos home was victorious among the last five which included Miss Oyo, Miss Jigawa, Miss Anambra and Miss Osun. Miss Anambra who initially tied with the eventual winner was declared 1strunner up.

The judges for the night included Audu Maikori, Adebola Williams and Mai Atafo. The Miss Nigeria pageant which is the oldest beauty pageant in Nigeria held at the Oriental Hotel in Lagos.

© NET Newspapers 2015