Muslim Barred From Marrying Christian Burns To Death

A 21-year-old man, Mansur Tanko, a muslim, on Friday, burnt himself to death in Jalingo, capital of the northern Nigerian state of Taraba, after a disagreement with his father, Tanko Mijinyawa, over marriage.

Tanko, according to an eyewitness, Alhaji Jibrin Bala, set himself ablaze because his family refused to approve his wedding with a girl, Blessing, a Christian. The eyewitness told sympathisers that Tanko introduced Blessing to his father as his proposed wife, but the father kicked against the union, describing it as a bad choice.

Bala said efforts by the father to convince his son to look for another girl failed, as he insisted that he could not survive without Blessing. The eyewitness added that Tanko suddenly left his father and went to a corner in the compound, where he poured petrol on his body and set himself ablaze.
“When we suddenly saw fire, everybody ran toward the corner of the compound, only to see Tanko burning.

“The father and other people in the compound tried to rescue Tanko from the fire, but failed as the flame was much and we could not move near,” he said. Tanko’s father is currently receiving treatment at the Federal Medical Centre, Jalingo, for injuries sustained while trying to rescue the son from the fire. The Taraba Police Public Relations Officer, Mr Joseph Kwaji, confirmed the incident and said the Jalingo Division of the police has commenced investigation into the matter.

Credit: PM News Nigeria

France President Threatens Over Rumour of Love Affair

 French President Francois Hollande is threatening legal action over a magazine report saying he is having a secret affair with a French actress. Hollande, in a statement obtained by The Associated Press, says he "deeply deplores the attacks on respect for privacy, to which each citizen has a right."

It says he is weighing possible action, including via the courts. He did not address the alleged affair.

Rumors have long circulated that Hollande might have a lover. The magazine Closer published images Friday showing a bodyguard and a helmeted man it says is Hollande visiting what Closer says is the actress' apartment.

Hollande has never married. He had four children with politician Segolene Royal, and has been living in recent years with journalist Valerie Trierweiler, considered France's first lady.

Alleged certificate forgery: St. Paul says Oduah only bagged her first degree from the school not Masters

Authorities of St. Paul’s College in Lawrenceville, Virginia, in the United States have cleared the air on the alleged certificate forgery scandal of Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah.

Online news portal, Sahara Reporters had earlier reported that her acclaimed Masters from the said institution was fake.The school authorities had on Thursday confirmed that the embattled Minister only bagged a first degree in Business Administration at the institution in 1982, with a major in Accounting.Confirming the development, St Paul’s registrar, Ms. Helen Jackson, said Ms. Oduah was alumnus of the school.She reiterated however, that the school has never had a postgraduate program as earlier claimed by the Minister.

 

It would be recalled that Sahara Reporters on Monday night broke the news of Oduah’s fake certificate scandal. The news sparked controversy on the blogosphere.

The Minister who is yet to respond to the allegation as at Tuesday, expunged any mention of St. Paul’s College, the institutions where she initially claimed in citations, on Wikipedia and several personal websites that she earned a Masters Degree from. The Minister has also claimed to have obtained an “honorary Ph.D” from Christian Pacific University in Glendale, California. That claim has equally been found to be false.

The Minister’s claim to an MBA in 1983 also conflicts with the year in which she supposedly served in the National Youth Service Corps. It was observed that the Ministry of Aviation had since disabled her profile page which claimed she had “Bachelors and Masters Degree (in Accounting and Business Administration respectively) in the United States.

The Lord’s Chosen Church and An Abracadabra Resurrection Miracle

VICTORIA OHEARI BLOG – The book of Matthew 24:24 says: “For false christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. 25“Behold, I have told you in advance”.

This Biblical injunction freely and clearly offers an advance warning that many Christians are yet to heed. It warns about the rise of false prophets masquerading as men of god that use God’s name to swindle, deceive and hypnotize the gullible. That was exactly what happened in Umuezii, Nguru Mbaise where the Chosen Church of God prophets embarked on a failed mission to resurrect the dead. This is not the first time the Chosen Church is directly fingered in fake miracles and spiritual hocus-pocus.
A young man, from Umuezii community died in Burkina Faso in November last year under mysterious circumstances. A month after, his sealed body was brought back to Nigeria and was buried the same day in his family compound in Umuezii, Nguru Mbaise, Imo State.

Trouble started when prophets and seers of the Chosen Church of God prophesied that the dead-and-buried young man was still alive (six feet beneath the earth) as his soul has persistently approached them via telephone calls and other spiritual means, requesting immediate exhumation. His elder sister, who is a member of the Chosen Church, communicated this prophecy to the entire family, leading to a family resolution insisting on the “divinely ordered” exhumation.
The decision to exhume the dead body did not go down well with the community as such act was considered an abomination both under the native tradition and under the prevailing Catholic norms deeply established within the community. All entreaties to the family made by the traditional ruler and parish priest of the St. Luke Catholic Church, Umuezii to refrain from such religious charade fell on deaf ears. It got to a point that the deceased family representatives openly accused the church and community leaders of killing their late brother, and preventing his “god-ordained” resurrection.
As a lasting solution to the impasse, the traditional ruler of the community invited the Chosen Church seers and prophets to sign an agreement of performance failing which they will be handed over to the police authorities for prosecution. The second condition was that the miracle will be performed in full public glare and in the presence of other independent witnesses. Proudly beating their chests and boasting deafeningly about their “majestic powers”, the seers and prophets signed the agreement and a date was mutually agreed for the resurrection miracle.
On the appointed day, a horde of prayer warriors, choristers, singers, speaking-in-tongue experts, seers, prophets and the like stormed the village as early as 6 a.m. The traditional ruler also invited the police, radio commentators, reporters and correspondents from local newspapers and the state-owned Imo Broadcasting Corporation. Chosen Church of God seers boastfully started with an early morning prophecy that the dead young man will “resurrect” by 12 noon prompt. The digging up of the grave followed immediately until the body was exhumed.
Then the singing, violent shaking, screaming, cursing, loud yelling and other theatrical displays in the name of deliverance prayers ensued while the large crowd of keen onlookers watched with deep interest. From 6.a.m till 12 noon, there was no sign that the young man was preparing to wake let alone resurrect. Seeing that the 12 noon deadline had passed, the seers quickly issued another prophecy shifting the hour of resurrection to 3.p.m. By this time, the prayer and singing sessions became even more intense and violent. 3 p.m came and went. No sign of life. The Chosen Church prophets again, quickly handed down another prophecy declaring 6.p.m as the divine resurrection hour. 6.p.m also went by, and the dead man remained still, lifeless and unresurrected till this day!
Understandably impatient and angry after the 6p.m deadline, the policemen on standby arrested all the prophets, dancers, singers, clappers and everybody that accompanied them to the community. But before then, the Chosen Church prophets had forwarded messages to their head office requesting for spiritual reinforcement. Undeterred by the arrest of their team members, an additional team that arrived around 6 p.m continued with the prayer sessions even more aggressively and vociferously. They prayed and sang all through the night till the following morning. Still, no sign of resurrection! The police officers, who had then totally run out of patience, arrested the remaining Chosen Church members, and everyone connected to the resurrection miracle including the deceased’s family representatives.
Some of the arrested Chosen Church members are currently on bail, while a lot more are still in custody till date. The dead body was deposited at the morgue at the Federal Medical Center, Owerri, as exhibit, pending further police investigations and prosecution of the false prophets.
I was present at the New Year church service held at St Lukes Catholic Church, Umuezii, Mbaise where the parish priest’s sermon harped on the infiltration of false prophets into the Christendom, warning parishioners to be wary of them. He then invited the members of the deceased family to tender an unreserved apology to the community for the abominable acts they committed. (PICTURED ABOVE) The deceased’s elder sister tendered what seemed like a half-hearted apology on the family’s behalf.
What happened in Imo State is reminiscent of the stories that feature on Nkan ‘Nbe, a popular Yoruba TV Program that features latter-day mystical occurrences. The Imo incident provides a compelling and cogent rationale for the effective regulation of the nefarious activities of churches whose stock in trade is to constitute public nuisance and to deceive and hypnotize the gullible. As a direct result of this incident, some Mbaise communities have proscribed the activities of Pentecostal churches in their localities.
All eyes are on the Imo State Police Command to see how they would handle this issue, and ensure that measures are put in place to deter future sinister activities perpetrated under the banner of religion. Perhaps, its time to ban the churches and their abracadabra miracles. That time is NOW!

Deputy Governor's Aide Slumps and Dies While Chasing An Okada Man

The Aide De Camp, ADC, to the Deputy Governor of Kwara State, Peter Kishira reportedly slumped and died while pursuing a commercial motorcyclist, popularly known as Okada. The Okada was said to have allegedly obstructed the convoy of his boss.

However, the Chief Press Secretary to the Deputy Governor, Timothy Nathaniel, in a statement stated that the ADC, Inspector Gaiya Mark, died as a result of health related complications contrary to the rumour that the commercial motorcycle operator used charm on him.

Timothy admitted that the okada rider breached the convoy of the Deputy Governor who was on his way to the office which led to the attempt of the ADC to arrest and warn the rider.

 

It added that the ADC slumped moments after stopping the rider at U.B.A. area of Murtala Muhammed Way, Ilorin, as there was no confrontation between him and the okada rider. He was rushed to the Civil Service Clinic, Ilorin, where he was confirmed dead on arrival.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Okesumi Ajayi who confirmed the incident said there was no scuffle with the commercial motorcycle rider before the ADC died. He described the late ADC as a gentle and gallant officer who lost his life on duty.

Pix of Gov Adams Oshiomole With The Plantain Chips Seller

Gov Adams Oshiomole & Little Girl that hawks plantain

This is the brave little girl that received N1million cheque from Gov. Adams Oshiomole.

‘Oyo police recorded 365 rape cases in 2013’

The Oyo State Police Command on Tuesday said 365 cases of rape and indecent assault were reported and investigated in the state in 2013.

It also said that 60,997 ammunitions were recovered during the same period.

Commissioner of Police in the state, Mohammed Ndabawa, said the figure  was an improvement on the 2012 record.

Ndabawa, at a press briefing in Ibadan, said his men and officers were able to overturn the high crime rate in the state, saying that the state used to be a favoured destination for bank robbers and vicious criminals.

He said, “In line with the action plan of the command for the year 2013, it embarked on an operational plan that evolved from a realistic appraisal of the crimes, threats and challenges the command has experienced. It is important to note that threat to security situation in the state included property crimes, Fulani herdsmen/farmers’ friction, market leadership tussle, chieftaincy dispute, rivalry between transport workers and trade union dispute.

“With intelligence policing and proactive approach to the provision of security in the state, the command embraced a crime prevention strategy, which included patrol of vulnerable black spots in the state, constant community policing, sensitisation campaign, stop and search at notorious flashpoints, aggressive information gathering and intermittent show of force.”

The statistics released by the commissioner also showed that 59 robbery cases were reported in 2013 while 103 arms and 198 stolen cars were recovered.

It also showed that the command charged 161 cases and 789 persons to court while 1078 convictions were recorded.

Ndabawa said the border line from Shaki leading to Benin Republic was mostly for the smuggling of ammunitions into the state, adding that there were less police casualties because proper intelligence gathering and other policing strategies led to easy arrest of criminals instead of arms confrontation with them.

Credit: The Punch News Paper

Nigeria Needs Two Trillion Naira For Road Network In Four Years

The Federal Government, Wednesday, said it needed N2 trillion to achieve sustainable road network in the country by 2018.

Minister of Works, Mike Onolememen, said in Abuja that N500billion would be invested on roads annually starting from now year to 2018.

He said, "There are some arterial roads that are affected by lack of required funds. If you ask me, for us to be able to drive these roads to the level Nigerians want, we need to be investing about N500 billion in road development in the Ministry of Works every year in the next four years. Insufficient funds continued to be the major challenge faced by the ministry and this had led to the slow pace of some arterial road projects. It is like you have have maybe N70 to N80 billion to play with.

"So funding, no doubt, is a limitation, but even within that limitation we are doing our utmost best to ensure that such critical fate section of the federal road are tackled within the little resource that is available to us."

Onolememen lamented that the budgetary allocation alone was not enough to stimulate the road development that would sustain the economy of the nation, pointing out that this was why it was mandatory for every country to have a special fund set aside for infrastructural development.

He said, "That was what the National Development Plans were doing in the post-independent era and that was why they succeeded the way they did."

Jude Okoye Apologises for Firearms Pix

Jude Okoye (Psquare)

The ‘Social Media’ People’s parliament has won another milestone. Jude ‘engees’ Okoye who we earlier reported fans had blasted for posting pictures of firearms on his Instagram page has apologised for his conduct and taken down the photo.

His apology comes barely three days after comedian Basket Mouth was also forced to make his own statements after a joke gone sour on rape.

Jude had on Tuesday uploaded pictures of his pistols and bullets enraging a lot of people on social media who had demanded he took it down.

I am Not Going On Pre-retirement Leave – Sanusi

Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has cleared the air on allegation that the Presidency may have forced him to commence pre-retirement leave from April 1, 2014, two months before his tenure is expected to expire.

Sanusi who spoke during a meeting with staff of the apex bank yesterday in Abuja, said he is stepping down as CBN governor on June 1, 2014 and he is not being forced to embark on a pre-retirement leave as widely reported in the media.

LEADERSHIP reliably gathered that he told the staff at the meeting that “There is no pre-retirement leave for me, at least I haven’t applied for one, but I will be stepping down by June 1; I always put this nation first.”

Sanusi also told his staff that he had done nothing to apologise for.

“For the past four and a half years that I’ve been in the bank, I don’t think I’ve done anything to apologise to anyone for; I’m not saying sorry for anything and I don’t see myself saying sorry.”

Holy Hitchhiker: Pope Francis Gives Friend A Ride On The Popemobile

Pope Francis greets the Rev. Fabian Baez in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican on Wednesday

CNN) - In yet another breach of normal papal protocol, Pope Francis on Wednesday gave a pal a lift on the world's most exclusive ride: the Popemobile.

According to Catholic News Service, the holy hitchhiker was the Rev. Fabian Baez, a priest from Francis' former Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, whom the pope spotted in the crowd at St. Peter's Square.

As he helped the priest onto the Popemobile, Francis told Baez, "The picture will go around the world,” CNS reports. The beaming priest rode around St. Peter's Square and was given a special seat at the Pope's speech to the crowd.

During the Pope's speech, he urged the crowd to remember their baptism.

"Many of us do not have the slightest memory of the celebration of this Sacrament, obviously, if we were baptized shortly after birth," Francis said. "It is important! It is important to know what day you were immersed in that current of salvation of Jesus!"

Baez later tweeted in Spanish, “I’m going to change my biography. The poor priest who got on the popemobile today with #PopeFrancis”.

Padre Fabian Baez @paterfabian

Follow

voy a cambiar mi bio. el pobre cura que hoy subió al papamovil con el #PapaFrancisco

2:05 PM - 8 Jan 2014 from Rome, Italy

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• Mark another point for the "Pope of the people."

Chris Brown Rejects Plea Deal for Hotel Assault

Frederick Brown, Getty, Pool / ASSOCIATED PRESS

                                                  R &B singer, Chris Brown, left, is shown with his attorney Mark Geragos during a                                                                            hearing Wednesday Nov. 20, 2013 in Los Angeles.

Chris Brown has rejected a plea deal after allegedly hitting a man outside a Washington hotel, his lawyers say.

He appeared in a D.C. court Wednesday afternoon to face a misdemeanor assault charge after an October dispute outside the W Hotel, where he allegedly told his victim that he “felt like boxing” before punching him, according to police reports acquired by CNN. Brown was on probation in California for a 2009 attack on singer Rihanna, then his girlfriend.

He will have a trial date set at another hearing, scheduled for Feb. 20, reports the Associated Press.

“Chris Brown’s not guilty,” Brown’s lawyer Danny Onorato said outside the court.

Southern African Pastor Makes Members To Eat Grass

The pictures below will shock you. As Pastor Lesego Daniel of Rabboni Centre Ministries makes his church members to eat grass. Some of the eye witness has explained on twitter that he did to show that it is the spirit that controls the body that human being can feed on anything. Find below some tweets of eye witnesses.

@claysonMonyela Tweeted

An Eye witness “@ah_qu_uh: basically he was trying to prove that humans can be controlled by the spirit & yu can eat anything to feed yu”

Dear @SpecialAssign & @carteblanchetv please go visit this Rabboni Centre Ministries at Zone 2 Ga-Rankuwa. This madness must be stopped.

Road Safety Corps Violates Road Traffic Law

This Road Safety Corps pick-up vehicle was seen on a major road in Nigeria with it trunk over loaded. A country where the defenders of the law break the law with impunity. Too bad

Gov. Oshiomole Gives One Million Naira To A Child Hawking Plantain Chips

Edo State Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomole has again given a one million naira cheque to a child hawking plantain chips on a major road in Benin City. Just recently he dolled out cash in a similar manner to widow in the ancient city.

 

According to Stella Dimokokorkus, the Governor and his entourage were passing by and as usual, he was on foot ,while his cars were on the move when some children hawking (with their goods on their heads), got scared and took to their heels.

However, a little girl hawking Plantain chips stood still and greeted the governor instead of joining  

                                                                               others to escape.

Stunned by her boldness, Gov. Oshiomole allegedly walked up to her,  brought out his pen and wrote her a cheque of one million naira.

Excitedly, she threw her plantain chips away and began to scream with joy, and at same time thanking the governor for his kindness and generosity

O.J. Simpson allegedly confessed to killing Nicole Brown Simpson

O.J. Simpson USA Today

O.J. Simpson allegedly confessed to the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson, according to a WebNewsPro report on Tuesday evening. Thirteen years ago, Simpson was acquitted of murdering Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman. In the grisly case, the two victims were found slashed to death just outside of Brown Simpson’s condominium in Los Angeles, California.

 

The case was so widely covered and watched in 1995 that it became labeled the “Trial of the Century.” Indeed, it was as it lasted nine months – longer than any other trial in California’s history. Additionally, the fight and defense of the case Simpson case cost in excess of $20 million.

 

The verdict in the case was delivered on October 3, 1995. At that time, 91 percent of the television audience watched the acquittal being announced. Quite incredibly, there were reportedly 142 million people listening to hear the verdict announced on radios, as well. Most persons believed that Simpson was guilty of the murders.

 

There were a total of 12 charges against Simpson. The charges against him included kidnapping and robbery. Though he isn’t up for parole for another four years, he has requested clemency from President Barack Obama for health reasons. It was recently revealed that Simpson has an advanced form of brain cancer caused by a tumor which has been discovered on his brain.

 

Reportedly, Simpson had been repeatedly asked by prisoners if he killed Nicole Brown Simpson, and he allegedly said that he had. The witnesses to his admission of guilt also say that if he were faced with the same situation again, he would have done the same thing. The witnesses also say that since he sees himself as near-death, he doesn’t really care what people think anymore. Again, all of this is alleged by prisoners incarcerated with Simpson. He has not given an official confession.

Kim Kardashian fakes selfies to look skinnier and prettier?

Kim Kardishian's Twitter

Kim Kardashian is known for her curves but it sounds like she may lose lots of credibility now, because someone has found some mistakes in her recent selfie that is making people question whether she is being honest about her curves or whether she is editing all of her pictures to stand out. It sounds like many are questioning her honesty after her newest selfie. According to a new Radar Online report published on Jan. 7, Kim Kardashian has now been caught cheating with her pictures, as her selfies have been altered. Or at least that’s the theory.

 

“Now, before I begin, I must say this is all purely speculative, [since] I actually heard Kanye might have brought curved doors to Ikea over six years ago,” Instagram celebrity Peeje T. jokes. He has been analyzing Kim’s pictures and he thinks she is cheating. “In the first pic, which I’ll call the Booty Pic, I have diagrammed with a red line how the door should look if it was a normal, straight-edged door. You can definitely see a gap at the same level as Kim’s chest. This would be caused by using a tool to expand her breasts.”

He offered Radar Online some pictures that points out what he is talking about, but if people look closely, they can see that the door is slightly wobbly. “There also seems to be a more subtle distortion on the floor,” Peeje continues. “The underlying red line shows how the tiles should be where the blue line follow the actual markings on the floor. You might notice how it follows the same contortion as Kim’s waist and hips.”

It sounds like Kim may have some troubles on her hands. She has not spoken out about the accusations, but she may just ignore this because she has been criticized so much over the past year.
What do you think? Do you think she is altering her photos?

I never said Akufo-Addo should retire from politics – Isaac Osei

A member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Isaac Osei, has denied calling on the 2012 presidential candidate of the party, Nana Akufo-Addo to retire from politics.

He said his comment about the political future of two-time failed presidential hopeful, was misconstrued to suit the house style of the media house which reported the issue.

Accra based radio station Radio XYZ reported that Mr. Isaac Osei in an interview with its Breakfast Show host said: “Nana Akufo-Addo is better off retiring from politics now to avoid sullying his statesmanship” position after the election petition.

To set the records straight, Isaac Osei on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem Wednesday, stated: “I never said Akufo-Addo should retire from politics”.

According to him, what he said was “I think, at the moment, Nana Addo has transcended politics and has moved into the realm of statesmanship. He’s become a statesman. If I was to advise Nana Addo, I’ll say that let his legacy be that”.

The Subin MP noted that, he is in no position to decide the political future of Nana Akufo-Addo whom he says has the development of Ghana at heart. “I cannot force Nana Addo to retire from politics, he is an elder and knows what is good for him,” he stressed.

The former Ambassador to the UK and Ireland expressed shock at how his comment has been misinterpreted by the media house.

He noted that Akufo-Addo has moved beyond partisan politics given the maturity that he showed by accepting the verdict of the Supreme Court even though he disagreed with the ruling.

Mr. Isaac Osei said the party will support Nana Akufo-Addo if he decides to contest NPP’s flagbearership position for the third time.

Ghanaian Minister Congratulate Nadia Buari & Jim Ike On New Movie

Nadia & Jim Iyke

Ghana’s celebrated movie star, Nadia Buari, successfully premiered her first self-produced movie titled ‘Diary of Imogen Brown’ across three regions of Ghana.

In Accra, she was able to invite lots of dignitaries, including; Hon Collins Dauda – Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing. Hon Dauda showed a very noble interest in the movie and sent a congratulatory message to Jim Ike and Nadia Buari for their wonderful performance in the movie, a day after the premier.

In a separate chat with the Hon Minister, he revealed that, he was invited to the premiere by Nadia Buari and Jim Ike. After examining the theme of the movie which talks about the effects of ‘hard’ drugs usage, he gave them his words to attend the premier.

He revealed that, though he’s not a fan of movie premieres, he did not regret attending the premiere because the end product of the movie is perfect; which best fits the African cinema.

Talking about the state of West African films, he said that the Ghanaian films are his favourite movies and thus, he watches them a lot. He really appreciates the efforts of Ghanaian filmmakers.

C/SUPT Hamza Yakubu, Commanding Officer of Police (F.P.U) also added his voice by saying, ’I like the creativity with which the film is narrated. It’s a memorable life guide for the youth and also very inspiring.”

‘Diary of Imogen Brown,’ which features the likes of Soraya Mensah, Heba Khaled, Kevin Boateng, Prince Mingles, Beatrice Dadson, Jim Iyke and Nadia and was premiered at the Accra International Conference Centre, Takoradi at Akroma Plaza and In Kumasi at the Golden Tulip Hotel. ‘Diary of Imogen Brown’ is a Nadia Sidiku Buari Production.

Nigerian TV/Radio Stations May End Music Ban

Chief Tony Okoroji

After nearly a month of cold war, a truce may be imminent in the feud between the Copyright Society of Nigeria, COSON and the Nigerian broadcasting industry under the auspices of Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria, BON, and independent Broadcasting Association of Nigeria, IBAN.

 

Chief Tony Okoroji, Chairman, COSON, confirmed this in his New Year message to the music industry made available to P.M.NEWS. “I am happy to announce that we are now in a position to bring to an end the dispute between COSON on the one hand and Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) and independent Broadcasting Association of Nigeria (IBAN) on the other,” Okoroji said.

 

According to Okoroji, any moment from now, the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission will announce a framework which if fully implemented will bring to an end the era of the ban of the broadcast of the music of Nigeria’s artistes on the nation’s airwaves.

 

He explained that the implementation of the framework should also make it unnecessary for COSON to continue to deploy multiple-litigation to compel broadcasting stations to pay appropriate copyright royalties for the musical works and sound recordings they broadcast.

 

“There is no question that if we follow through with the process, we would have unchained the music industry in Nigeria and set it on a part of growth hitherto unknown. The broadcast industry should also benefit because it will operate in an atmosphere of stability and certainty,” the COSON boss said.

 

In his statement titled “2014 – A Year Of Unprecedented Boom For The Nigerian Music Industry”, Okoroji described 2013 as a watershed year for the music industry in Nigeria.

 

“We finally began a much needed and much postponed open conversation with the Nigerian broadcasting industry. Fierce as the engagement may have seemed, I believe that it was absolutely necessary and a lot of lessons have been learnt as a result. Both the music and broadcasting industries in Nigeria will be better for it over the long run,” Okoroji added.

 

He disclosed that all through the end of year festivities, the conversations continued on several fronts with the engagement of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) and several well-meaning Nigerian institutions and individuals.

 

He assured that COSON is ready to work conscientiously with the different partners in the broadcasting industry and the regulatory agencies to ensure that the framework is successfully implemented and that the Nigerian nation benefits from the episode.

Credit: PM News Nigeria