Welcome to CHRISTIAN NEWS FRONT'S Blog: January 2016

Saturday, 30 January 2016

Americans Want More God Talk From Politicians This Year, Pew Finds

PHOTO: REUTERS/MARK KAUZLARICH)

Republican U.S. presidential candidates Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and Rick Santorum pray at the Presidential Family Forum in Des Moines, Iowa November 20, 2015.

A growing number of Americans believe that there has not been enough discussion by political leaders about religious matters during this election cycle, found a recent Pew Research Center survey.

Pew's Forum on Religion & Public Life reported that, compared to the 2012 presidential election season, this year more Republicans and Democrats say that there has been "too little" discussion about faith by political leaders.

"Currently, 27% of Americans say there has been too much discussion of religious faith and prayer by political leaders, while 40% say there has been too little religious discussion," wrote Pew.

"At a similar point in the 2012 presidential campaign, the balance of opinion on this question leaned in the opposite direction — 38% thought there was too much religious discussion occurring, and 30% thought there was too little."

Chevron hands over assets to Seplat, Belemaoil

Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), operator of the joint venture (JV) between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and CNL (the “NNPC/CNL JV) has formally handed over the producing assets in OMLs 53 and 55 to Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc. (Seplat) and Belemaoil Producing Limited (Belemaoil) respectively Friday in Lagos.

A similar handover and induction exercise was conducted at the Jisike Flow Station, near Owerri, Imo State.

These events conclude the asset sale transaction between CNL and Seplat for OML 53, and between CNL and Belemaoil for OML 55. Clay Neff, Chairman and Managing Director, CNL, who received Austin Avuru and Nedo Osayande the CEOs of Seplat and Belemaoil respectively at CNL’s Lekki headquarters said:

FG, states, LGs share N387.8bn for December

ABUJA— The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun said N387.8 billion was shared among the federal, states and local governments as revenue for December, 2015.

Adeosun, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Mr Mahmoud Isa-Dutse, announced this while addressing newsmen on the outcome of the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting.

She said the shared amount comprised the month’s statutory revenue of N315 billion.

“Also, there is the exchange gain of N4.5 billion which is proposed for distribution. Adeosun also said that the money shared included the N6.3 billion refunded to the federation account by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Buhari sends money laundering, criminal activities bills to Senate

President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday requested the National Assembly to consider and approve Money Laundering Prevention and Prohibition Bill 2016 and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Bill 2016.

The bills are believed to parts of efforts to improve Nigeria’s legal framework to combat corruption.

The president of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, read the letters covering the bills at plenary on Wednesday.

Quoting the president’s letter, Mr. Saraki said the bill on money laundering sought to repeal the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011, and re-enact a more comprehensive legislation.

“This bill seeks to make comprehensive provisions to prohibit the laundering of the criminal activities, expand the scope of money laundering offences,” Mr. Saraki said.

We're More Divided As A Nation Than Ever, And This Poll On Obama's Legacy Shows It

ALEX WONG VIA GETTY IMAGES
President Barack Obama returns to the White House after taking his January State of the Union messages on a two-day trip to Omaha, Nebraska, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Democrats are largely receptive to his message; Republicans are not.

When President Barack Obama delivered his final State of the Union address last week, he was speaking to two very different countries.

One of them he leaves happier and better off than it was when he started his tenure in the White House nearly eight years ago, with an improving economy and a dominant international position. The other is, by almost every measure, worse.

The restaurant is located across the street from the local police station.

If you're one of the world's most wanted men, where do you hide out? Apparently a Subway restaurant in the U.K. According to the Mirror, 28-year-old Piotr Kupiec was arrested at a Subway in Wiltshire after the restaurant was raided by police last week. Polish officers had been investigating Kupiec in crimes related to theft, violence, gangland killings, and the murder of a soccer fan. Investigators tracked him down and found him working at the sandwich shop located feet away from the Wiltshire Police headquarters.

An oil and gas drilling rig owned by Transocean Ltd sits idle in the Grand Harbor in Valletta, Malta October 22, 2015. REUTERS/Balazs Koranyi

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) - Oil extended its gains and soared about 8 percent on Friday, as a cold snap boosted demand for heating oil, bringing with it a welcome break to the extremely bearish sentiment that had gripped oil markets this year.

The recovery stopped Brent oil prices heading toward a near 17-percent drop in January, the largest slide in the first month of the year in at least a quarter of a century.

"I think panic took over common sense and now we're starting to get a grip on reality," said Phil Flynn, analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.

Scrapping of fuel subsidies to save Nigeria $5 billion

Financing budget deficit remains challenge, Osinbajo says

Nigeria’s government, which relies on oil for about two-thirds of its revenue, sees a silver lining to the plunge in crude prices because it will no longer have to subsidize fuel, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said.

“Lower oil prices also mean there is some advantage,” Osinbajo said in a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday. The decline “means that we are not paying any subsidies, which frees up something in the order of about $5 billion.”

Richest 62 people own same as half world’s population – Oxfam

An international charity said on Monday that the wealthiest 62 people on earth now own as much as half the world’s population. Oxfam said in a report released in London ahead of the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland that some 3.5 billion people have grown poorer as the super-rich have grown richer. It said the wealth of the richest 62 people has risen by 44 per cent since 2010, while the wealth of the poorest 3.5 billion fell 41 per cent.

CBN blames declining non-oil revenue on low export loans

THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has blamed the country’s low revenue from non-oil export on stumpy loans to that sector.

Governor of the apex bank, Mr Godwin Emefiele made this known at the opening ceremony of a one-day conference organised by the Apex Bank in conjunction with the Nigeria Export Import Bank (NEXIM) on Non-Oil Export Simulation in Abuja yesterday.

Represented by the Director, Development Finance of the CBN, Dr Mudashiru Olaitan, Emefiele blamed the decline of non oil revenue on the low level of loans to exporters which invariably contributed to the decline in non oil export revenue receipts from $10.53billion in 2014 to $4.39billion in 2015.

“It has been observed that while credit to non oil export is declining and currently at an average of 0.6 percent of total domestic loans to the private sector in the past five years, the domestic credit to the economy has been on the rise, Emefiele stated.”

NLNG: Shell, Total, ENI fleece Nigeria of $3.3bn —ActionAid

Not true, we’ve generated $33bn—NLNG

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu

Abuja—International advocacy group, ActionAid, yesterday, accused Shell, Total and ENI of fleecing Nigeria of $3.3 billion in seven years, through their investments in the Liquefied Natural Gas, operated by the Nigeria LNG Limited, NLNG.

NLNG is a joint venture, JV project owned by four shareholders, namely, the Federal Government of Nigeria, represented by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, which has a 49 per cent stake, Shell Gas BV, SGBV, 25.6 per cent; Total LNG Nigeria Limited, 15 per cent; and Eni International (N.A,) N.V. S. A, 10.4 per cent.

Accordingly, based on their equity holding, the JV partners owe as follows:

NNPC – 49% – $1.62billion

Shell – 25.6% – $845 million

Total – 15% – $495 million

Eni – 10% – $330 million

However, in a swift response to the allegations, the NLNG debunked the claims, saying that the tax incentives and Federal Government’s investment in the NLNG had yielded $33 billion in the form of dividends, taxes and feed gas purchases for Nigeria over the past 16 years. It added that an additional $5 billion had accrued through corporate spend on local goods and services during the same period.

PHOTO: Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babtunde Fashola

Last weekend’s attack on the Nigeria Gas Company’s pipeline connected to Chevron Nigeria Limited’s facility at Escravos in Delta State is costing the economy a daily loss of N470m and has also resulted in the shutdown of two of the country’s refineries.

According to the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, the vandalism of the gas pipeline would impact negatively on the Olorunsogo National Integrated Power Project plant, which has capacity for 600 megawatts of electricity, and other power plants across the country.

The Special Adviser on Media to the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Hakeem Bello, said in a statement on Wednesday that although security agencies had intensified the search for those behind the attack on the pipeline, their action would slow down the country’s power supply system.

President Muhammadu Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday rewarded members of the nation’s Under-16 Football Team that won the 1985 FIFA Championship when he was military Head of State.

He announced a reward of N2m each to the players that included Fatai Atere, Nduka Ugbade, Jonathan Akpoborie, Baldwin Bazuaye, Victor Igbinoba and late Kingsley Aikiobare among others.

Buhari announced the rewards at a presidential reception organised for outstanding athletes/officials who did Nigeria proud in recent sports competitions held inside the old Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He also announced a reward of N1.5m each for the team’s coaches.
Buhari however caused a stir when he first mistakenly announced rewards of N200m each for the players.Amidst excitement in the hall, Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, mounted the podium to correct the error.

Akos Stiller | Bloomberg | Getty Images. EU is on "verge of collapse" over migrant crisis

Billionaire financier George Soros has warned that the European Union is on the "verge of collapse" over the migrant crisis and is in "danger of kicking the ball further up the hill" in its management of the issue which has seen more than a million migrants and refugees arrive in the region in 2015

In an interview with the New York Review of Books, Soros added that the German Chancellor Angela Merkel is key to solving the crisis.

Merkel led Europe's response to the migrant crisis, opening Germany to the refugees that had travelled from the Middle East, in particular Syria, to try and find a new home in Europe. The decision by the German leader marked a sea-change in her policy. In the interview, Soros said he welcomed Merkel's move.

PHOTO: (REUTERS/Scott Morgan) Donald Trump.

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump was asked Wednesday to weigh in on the Rev. Al Sharpton's call for a boycott of this year's Oscars.

Sharpton is one of several critics who have blasted the Academy Awards because, for the second year in a row, they feature all-white acting nominees.

"Well, I think it's a tough situation," Trump said on "Fox & Friends" when asked about the issue. "I think it's really sad. And Al is just a guy who wants to get publicity for himself. And I understand him very well."

Trump then apparently alluded to Stacey Dash's "Fox & Friends" interview earlier in the morning, in which the actress criticized the Black Entertainment Television channel for giving awards only to black recipients. ("Just like there shouldn't be a Black History Month," Dash said. "You know? We're Americans. Period. That's it.")

Human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), said on Wednesday urged the President Muhammadu-led Federal Government to sponsor a bill for the creation of special anti-corruption court for speedy determination of graft cases.

He said though the Federal Government deserved commendation for its renewed fight against corruption, the anti-graft war could not be won in the regular courts which he said were already congested and prone to adjournment of corruption cases to the delight of the high profile suspects.

Bureaux de Change owners fighting Naira - CBN

CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele

ABUJA — Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, yesterday, told the Senate that the bank will not go back on restrictions placed on Bureaux de Change (BDCs) as he described them as waging a relentless war on the Naira. He said that the activities of operators of BDCs were mainly responsible for the dwindling value of the Naira as they embark on rent seeking speculation of the local currency.

He also told the senators that some 2,837 BDC operators were leading the speculations against the Naira in the parallel market, adding that since stoppage of allocations to BDCs, they have been sourcing their dollars from oil companies and other foreign exchange earners.

Nigeria signs agreements with UAE on recovery of stolen funds

ABUJA — Determined to recover Nigeria’s stolen funds stashed in foreign banks, the Federal Government, yesterday, signed different bilateral agreements with the United Arab Emirates, UAE.

President Buhari being received by Sheikh Sultan Bin Zayed- 3rd Deputy Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates.

The agreements were essentially on trade, finance and judicial matters.

While the agreement on trade was to promote investments and business dealings amongst the two countries, the judicial bilateral agreement will enable the country to extradite, or transfer persons serving jail terms.

The signing of the agreements which took place at Abu Dhabi was witnessed by President Muhammadu Buhari and the Crown Prince of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

German Chancellor Merkel attends a session of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin

German Chancellor Angela Merkel attends a session of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany, January 13, 2016. REUTERS/Fabrizio BenschBERLIN (Reuters) - A group of conservative lawmakers urged Angela Merkel to reverse her open-door refugee policy as a poll showed a slide in support for her bloc on Tuesday, raising the stakes for a German chancellor exposed by deep rifts in her right-left coalition.

With three closely watched regional elections looming in March, Merkel is facing the toughest spell of her 10-year chancellorship over her handling of the refugee crisis.

Conservative allies in Bavaria, the entry point for most migrants, are regularly breaking ranks and criticism is also mounting from her Social Democrat (SPD) coalition partners. Some media have even started to speculate about Merkel's future.

Paris (AFP) - The oil price is set to fall further this year as supply vastly exceeds demand, with major oil exporter Iran's return to the market offsetting any production cuts from other countries, the IEA said on Tuesday.

"Can it go any lower?" the International Energy Agency asked in its monthly oil market report.

"Unless something changes, the oil market could drown in over-supply. So the answer to our question is an emphatic yes. It could go lower."

The oil price this week hit lows not seen in 12 years, and is currently trading at or below 29 dollars per barrel.

U.S. violent crime ticked higher in first half of 2015: FBI

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Violent crime in the United States increased 1.7 percent in the first half of 2015 as murders rose, but property offenses fell 4.2 percent, initial FBI numbers showed on Tuesday.

The FBI's Preliminary Semiannual Uniform Crime Report, grouping data from almost 13,000 police agencies, reported increases in murders, manslaughter, two definitions of rape, aggravated assaults and robberies. The uptick came after U.S. crime rates declined steadily over the past two decades.

Murders rose 6.2 percent in the first half of last year, compared with the same period in 2014. The year-on-year upturn was the first since 2012, the earliest date for which figures were made available.

The differences between Shia and Sunni Muslims are at the center of the Iran-Saudi Arabia conflict

REUTERS/Faisal AlNasserSaudi Arabia's Deputy Foreign Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz (R) and Bahrain's Foreign Minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmed al-Khalifa arrive for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) meeting in Riyadh February 14, 2015.

The Middle East is in the midst of ever-increasing tension, as conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia is spiraling to involve more countries in the region.

Saudi Arabia severed all diplomatic ties with Iran on Sunday. On Monday, Saudi Arabia moved to cut off all commercial ties, saying it would ban its citizens from traveling to Iran.

"The move comes after Iranian protesters attacked the Saudi embassy in Tehran, ransacking and setting fire to the building in retaliation for Saudi Arabia's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric and 46 others on Saturday," Business Insider's Natasha Bertrand reports.

Notably, Saudi Arabia is governed by a Sunni Islamic government, while the majority of Iranians are Shiite Muslims, also known as Shia.

‘Get Windows 10′ notifications and upgrade pressure is has now been increased to business users. Image credit: Gordon Kelly

Windows 10 is perhaps the most polarising operating system Microsoft has ever released. It’s adoption rate is both lauded for its speed but mocked for only matching Windows 7 given it is free. Similarly its user tracking is both attacked a privacy invasion and defended as a necessary evil. But there is one place where consensus exists: Microsoft’s Window 10 upgrade tactics – and now a key rule for them is changing…

Taking to its TechNet blog, Microsoft has announced it will step up the intensity of its ‘Get Windows 10’ campaign for Windows 7 and Windows 8 users. The nagware has already been heavily criticised for its persistent attempts to push consumers to upgrade (including automated downloads and reducing choices) but now business users are going to get the same treatment.

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu

•Crude production cost almost equals selling price

With crude oil trading around $30 per barrel in the international market from a peak of $114 in June 2014, production from Nigeria now faces a decline as some fields face an imminent shutdown if the low oil price persists.

Industry players say operating some of the fields in the country is becoming uneconomic, with the selling price of oil being driven down close to the production cost level.

The price of the Nigerian crude oil, Bonny Light, has fallen to $29.47 per barrel, according to the latest data obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria.

NDIC unveils protection measure for mobile money subscribers

The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation has released deposit insurance guidelines on the mobile payment system, known as ‘Pass-Through Deposit Insurance scheme’.

The NDIC said the move followed the introduction of mobile banking in Nigeria by the Central Bank of Nigeria, which issued operating licences to many Deposit Money Banks and telecommunications companies to provide mobile banking services.

According to a statement from the corporation, the Pass-Through Deposit Insurance scheme is the protection provided by the NDIC to mobile money subscribers, whereby the corporation insures funds that are deposited by a mobile money operator in the DMBs.

Karin Siebrecht-Janisch, a bar owner in the the picturesque Austrian spa town of Bad Ischl, has barred asylum-seekers

Vienna (AFP) - A bar owner in Austria said Wednesday she had banned "all asylum-seekers" after the alleged harrassment of guests, sparking strong criticism from human rights groups.

Karin Siebrecht-Janisch, who runs Charly's Bar in the picturesque spa town of Bad Ischl in Upper Austria state, said she took the decision after male migrants had repeatedly harassed her female clientele in recent months.

Things escalated on New Year's Eve when "several asylum-seekers" groped a waitress, according to Siebrecht-Janisch.

Drilling continues at the H&P 532 rig near Karnes City where Encana is continuing its oil production.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices gave oil companies a scare on Tuesday after dipping below $30 per barrel for the first time in more than 12 years.

The record low prices sent stocks downward and although crude oil prices managed to stay above $30 per barrel on Wednesday, experts say short-term prices do not look good.

University of Texas at San Antonio Economics Professor Thomas Tunstall said prices could fall to $25 per barrel or even lower if global supply continues to grow and worldwide demand continues to fall.

A woman holds a sign reading "Sexual harassment against women will not be tolerated" during a demonstration in front of the cathedral in Cologne on January 9, 2015 (AFP Photo/Roberto Pfeil)

Berlin (AFP) - A town in Germany has banned male asylum seekers from public swimming pools after complaints from women that they were being harassed by migrants, AFP learnt Friday.

A spokesman for the local government of Bornheim said the ban on male asylum seekers above the age of 18 came after six people filed complaints "over the sexually offensive behaviour of some migrant men at the pool".

The measure aimed at "making it clear to the men that the right of women in Germany is inviolable", he added.

Ericsson’s ConsumerLab recently published its first-ever Television and Media Report for Nigeria, which indicated that Nigerians spent about N54bn on Video on Demand streaming in 2015.

The VoD is a system that allows consumers to select and watch abridged video content of their choice and on the spot on Personal Computers, tablets, smartphones and television, using Chrome.

The company stated that from a possible population of about 100 million people living in the country, findings from its study showed that only 27 per cent (27 million) of them stream videos.

Industry experts, therefore, estimated that if 27 million Nigerians yearly subscribed to iROKOtv, a leading video-streaming platform in the country, and other VoD platforms at N2,000 yearly Average Revenue Per User, they definitely spent about N54bn at the end of the year.

Saeed Abedini Freed From Iranian Prison After Three Years

(PHOTO: ACLJ.ORG)

U.S. Pastor Saeed Abedini in this undated photo.

Pastor Saeed Abedini has been released from prison in Iran after more than three years in captivity for his Christian faith.

Abedini, a U.S. citizen who has attracted high-profile advocates for his release including President Obama and members of Congress, was released on Saturday along with three other detained Americans: Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian; former Marine Amir Hekmati, and Nosratollah Khosavi-Roodsari, The Washington Post reported. Senior U.S. administration officials also confirmed the release of the four prisoners, according to CNN.

Abedini's wife, Naghmeh, who has tirelessly campaigned for his release since his imprisonment, said in a statement, "This has been an answer to prayer. This is a critical time for me and my family. We look forward to Saeed's return and want to thank the millions of people who have stood with us in prayer during this most difficult time."

(PHOTO: REUTERS/WOLFGANG RATTAY)

Women shout slogans and hold up a placard that reads 'Against Sexism - Against Racism' as they march through the main railways station of Cologne, Germany, January 5, 2016.

The sale of pepper spray and non-lethal guns has registered a "huge spike" in the city of Cologne in Germany after it witnessed an unprecedented spate of sex attacks on women and robberies allegedly by "Arab or North African" immigrant men on New Year's Eve, resulting in the term "rapefugees" being coined.

"We saw a huge spike of sales numbers after January," NBC News quoted Ingo Meinhard, head of the German association for gunsmiths and weapons dealers, as saying. Meinhard was referring to the sales of "so-called deterrents and defensive small arms."

"CS gas spray, stun guns and pepper spray are especially in great demand," he said.

(PHOTO: FACEBOOK/NORWAY, RETURN THE CHILDREN TO BODNARIU FAMILY)

The Bodnariu family.

International protests are being planned throughout the month of January after the Norwegian government removed five children from their Christian parents under accusations of "religious indoctrination."

Protests are planned for the rest of January in the Czech Republic, Latvia, Austria, Romania, Spain, Ireland, India, Poland, and Australia, along with several other countries to speak out against the recent separation of five Christian children from their parents at the hands of government officials.

In November 2015, Norway's child welfare services, known as Barnevernet, removed five children, including three sons and two daughters, from parents Ruth and Marius Bodnariu, residents of Naustdal and members of the Pentecostal Church.

The five children were removed from their family and separated into two foster homes after their school's teacher and principal alerted the authorities that the children were being raised in a Christian household that taught "God punishes sin."

Anglicans sanction US Episcopal Church over gay marriage

FILE - In this Sunday, Nov. 1, 2015 file photo, Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop-elect Michael Curry speaks to churchgoers as he arrives at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington.

NEW YORK (AP) — Anglican leaders on Thursday temporarily restricted the role of the U.S. Episcopal Church in their global fellowship as a sanction over the American church's acceptance of gay marriage.

Episcopalians have been barred for three years from any policy-setting positions in the Anglican Communion while a task force is formed that will try to reconcile conflicting views over sexuality in the 85-million-member family of churches. The Episcopal Church is the Anglican body in the United States.

The announcement came near the end of a weeklong meeting in Canterbury, England, called by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, to heal rifts over same-sex relationships and keep the Anglican Communion from splitting apart. Welby, the Anglican spiritual leader, does not have the authority to force a compromise. He set a news conference Friday in Canterbury to explain the leaders' decision.

You see, most people are totally confused and brainwashed into thinking that whole eggs are "bad" for you and that egg whites are somehow the epitome of health. And while there is nothing necessarily "wrong" with egg whites (they're a quality protein source), the YOLKS are where the majority of an egg's nutrition lies.

-The yolk contains more than 90% of vitamins, minerals, and anti-oxidants contained in an egg

-The yolk contains ALL the fat, and it's super healthy, hormone-balancing fat (fat is not bad for you)

I just finished up a great workout very early this morning but intense! After my workout I mixed up my high energy giving fruits like watermelon and apples and sat down briefly on my stair way to eat them and to chat with my husband. Well, my kitchen also offers healthy meal options. So I requested for egg and my son offered me only egg whites. You see, I like eggs and tend to eat a lot of them. I mean, who doesn't love a good omelet, right?

Now, I’m sure you’ve heard a time or two before that you should be mindful of consuming too many eggs as their cholesterol content is rather high.

(Photo: Getty Images)

BERLIN — As a backlash against a flood of migrants spreads, Europe's most welcoming country on Wednesday weighed legislation to make it easier to deport refugees and foreigners found guilty of serious crimes.

The legislative move by the German Parliament underscores the anti-immigrant public outcry since allegations surfaced about sexual assaults by migrants against hundreds of women in Cologne and other cities on New Year's Eve.

Police have received 561 criminal complaints related to the Dec. 31 assaults that include two rape allegations. At least 19 men are being investigated in the attacks, including asylum seekers and foreign nationals from Algeria, Morocco, Iran,Syria and Germany, the federal police said.

We have never had it this bad; calls don’t sail through again, text messages are truncated; yet, MTN targets call credits with unusual promptness,” that was the lamentation of a subscriber over what he described as the declining quality of service being rendered by MTN Nigeria.

Most of the subscribers on the network, who spoke to our correspondent on Wednesday, lamented that they were losing huge sums of money to MTN services like borrowing of airtime and data subscription.

They stated that borrowing airtime on the MTN network had become a nightmare, adding that whenever they borrowed airtime credit, the service provider usually made them to pay back more than once.

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. Chief James Dimon said the U.S. economy is likely to worsen after growing for the past five years.

“It’s as good as it’s ever been,” he said on an earnings call with analysts after the company released fourth-quarter results Thursday morning. “Obviously it’s going to get worse.”

Mr. Dimon said he wasn’t ready to forecast a recession, but said the latest data suggest the economy is near the top of a cycle and could trend downward soon.

CBN reports a depressed manufacturing sector in 2015

LAGOS— Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has indicated sluggish growth amidst adverse operating environment across manufacturing sector at year end 2015.

CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele

But the apex bank’s report shows non-manufacturing sector at steady growth during the same period.

CBN Manufacturing PMI Index for the month of December 2015 shows production level and new orders are growing at a slower rate, raw material inventories (unused raw materials) increasing at a faster rate, supplier delivery time declining at a faster rate, and employment level decreasing at a slower rate.

The Statistics Department of CBN conducts on monthly basis, the survey of purchasing and supply executives of manufacturing and non-manufacturing organizations in 13 states in Nigeria, two states in each of the six geo-political zones, and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT. The survey result is used to compute the monthly Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI).

An Air France Boeing 747. Photographer: Fred Dufour/AFP via Getty Images

Air France marked the exit of the last of 68 Boeing Co. 747s that have graced its fleet over 40 years with a valedictory tour spanning Normandy to Mont Blanc and the Mediterranean -- while saying that the aviation icon could survive until 2020 at Dutch arm KLM.

Replaced at the French carrier by smaller Boeing 777s and a handful of Airbus Group SE A380s, the jet still numbers more than 20 examples at KLM, where the priority has been to retire Boeing MD-11s, Alexandre De Juniac, president of parent Air France-KLM Group, said in an interview Thursday.

“It’s just a question of age,” De Juniac said from his seat in the distinctive upper deck of the 747-400, which was allocated the commemorative flight number AF744 and carried a dozen former Air France jumbo-jet pilots among the 432 people aboard. “The KLM fleet is younger than Air France’s.”

AEROBICS: 15-Minute Bootcamp Workout | Class FitSugar

BIOGRAPHY: JOSEPH AYODELE BABALOLA: A notable General in Nigeria's Church History - Part 3

The tidal wave of Babalola's revival spread from Ilesa to Ibadan, Ijebu, Lagos, Efon-Alaaye, Aramoko Ekiti and Abeokuta. No greater revival preceded that of Babalola. It was popularly held in Christ Apostolic Church (C.A.C.) circles that at one revival meeting, attendance rose to about forty thousand. Among the men of faith who came as disciples to Babalola were Daniel Orekoya, Peter Olatunji who came from Okeho, and Omotunde, popularly known as Aladura Omotunde, from Aramoko Ekiti. These men drew great inspiration from Babalola. Orekoya went on to reside in Ibadan where a great revival also broke out at Oke-Bola through him. It was during his Oke-Bola revival that Orekoya reportedly raised a dead pregnant woman.

Friday, 15 January 2016

7 Things to Avoid at All Costs If You’re Trying to Slim Down

Trying to lose weight but having a tough time? Here are seven common roadblocks that often thwart progress.

1. You’re searching the Web.

It’s sad but true: The World Wide Web is filled with misinformation. Google the words “weight loss” and you’ll get over 220 million results. For reliable weight loss and fitness guidance, rely on credentialed sources like registered dietitians. To find a R.D. in your area, visit www.EatRight.org.

2. You’re skipping meals.

It may seem counterintuitive, but trying to push off meals to “save” calories for later will backfire, leading to overeating later in the day. Stick to a schedule of properly spaced meals and snacks to avoid spiking and crashing energy levels.

3. You’re not cooking enough.

Meals prepared away from home have more sodium, fat and calories than what you can make at home, where you control the ingredients. Start cooking more and your waistline will thank you.

Rev. Franklin Graham. (FNC)

“We are perilously close to the moral tipping point for the survival” of America and it is “open season on Christians” now, said Reverend Franklin Graham, who added that “sin is openly celebrated and flaunted by the highest office in our land,” the White House, and “men and women of deep and sincere faith are publicly scorned.”

In his January 2016 commentary for Decision magazine, published by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, Rev. Franklin Graham listed some of the major moral and spiritual problems crippling the country, and explained why he is launching a 50-state Christian revival, the Decision America Tour, next month.

America, since its founding, has enjoyed the blessing that comes with a people who freely acknowledge and practice their belief in God, but in recent decades that heritage has “been under relentless and vicious assault,” said Rev. Graham.

“Christians now find themselves constantly on the defensive from a progressive, godless culture that seeks to diminish and eradicate any religious influence in our society,” said Rev. Graham.

As an example, he cited how the New York Daily News mocked people of faith for offering prayers for the victims of the Islamist attack in San Bernardino that killed 14 people – the Daily News ran a headline, “God Isn’t Fixing This.”

Researchers reveal a new mechanism to create hydrogen fuel that could power environmentally clean cars.

Koji Sasahara/AP/File

Scientists have cleared one hurdle on the path to deriving hydrogen fuel from water affordably, a breakthrough that could drastically change the way we power vehicles.

Hydrogen has the potential to fuel incredibly environmentally-clean cars. But making that fuel hasn't been so efficient or economical. Pure hydrogen gas does not occur naturally on Earth, so scientists must devise ways to separate hydrogen from naturally-occurring compounds, like H2 O.

Until now, cars that run on water have been out of reach. Electrolysis, the process of breaking H2 O into hydrogen and oxygen gases by passing an electric current through water, and other possible methods have been prohibitively expensive or difficult.

But a team of scientists have come up with a different mechanism to produce hydrogen fuel from water. These researchers have created a biomaterial that catalyzes the splitting of the water elements, which they describe in a paper published in the journal Nature Chemistry.

The mechanism goes both ways. P22-Hyd breaks the chemical bonds in H2 O to produce hydrogen and oxygen, but it can also combine the two gases to generate power. The biomaterial, called P22-Hyd, is made up of a modified enzyme, hydrogenase, protected within the protein shell of a bacterial virus. Taken together, the material forms a nano-reactor that catalyzes hydrogen formation 150 times more efficiently than the enzyme would in its original form.

Millions of Muslims are leaving Islam as they watch the extremism of Iranian & ISIS leaders, says a top Iranian Christian leader.

The violent, fanatical, and apocalyptic actions and rhetoric of the Iranian regime and the leadership of the Islamic State are causing millions of Muslims to rethink whether they want to be part of such a religion, and many of them are turning to faith in Jesus Christ.

This is the assessment of Dr. Hormoz Shariat, a former Muslim who came to faith in Christ himself in the early 1980s. Today, Dr. Shariat is one of the the most prominent Iranian Christian pastors and evangelists in the world.

Last month, I had dinner with this dear friend, a man I call the "Billy Graham of Iran" because he is preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ to millions upon millions of Iranians through his 24/7 Farsi satellite television network.

We were talking about the trends he's seeing in the Islamic world, and I left the conversation surprised by how encouraged he is. Yes, the Iranian regime and ISIS are engaged in horrific evil. But Hormoz told me he sees unintended consequences of the cruelty of the Iranian and ISIS leaders, that such actions are causing confusion among many Muslims and drawing them to consider the claims of Christ.

I so wish I'd had a notebook that night because what Hormoz was telling me was so fascinating. Instead, when I got home to Israrel, I emailed him and asked him to write up his analysis and send it to me. Graciously, he did just that. The notes he sent me are below. Please read them to the very end, and please share them with others. And let's keep praying that the Lord would continue to pour out His Holy Spirit on the world's 1.6 billion Muslims.