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A Maine high school teacher is complaining that she was forced to remove a small pink Christmas tree festooned with the character Hello Kitty from her classroom. Catherine Gordon is a math teacher at Bangor High School. She wrote on her Facebook page that "everything offends everyone all the time" and that it "just sucks the joy out of everything." The news of the pink tree's removal took off on social media Monday. Even Republican congressman Bruce Poliquin weighed in, saying the school went too far in ordering the tree's removal. WLBZ-TV reports the school superintendent issued a statement saying culture, traditions and holidays must have an educational component and must be tied to curriculum.

Mr James Faleke, running mate to late Abubakar Audu of All Progressives Congress in Nov. 21 governorship poll in Kogi, has filed a petition at the State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal. Faleke, accompanied by Mohammed Audu, son of Abubakar Audu, and lawyers, submitted the petition to the clerk of the tribunal at about 12.20 p.m. in Lokoja on Monday Hundreds of party members and supporters converged on the state High Court premises, venue of the tribunal, to witness the event. However, reports that the Secretary of the tribunal, Mr Akanji Akinlabi, who received the petition, said the contents were yet to become public. Faleke is challenging the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC), decision which declared the election inconclusive. Faleke told newsmen that he was confident justice would be done in the matter pointing out that he did not join his party, the APC as a respondent in the suit. He said he challenged INEC’s decision in declaring the election...

Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo has said that there’s no justification for any person from the North-Eastern region of Nigeria to remain in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Osinbajo made the comment on Sunday, December 20, 2015, during an All Progressives Congress (APC) rally in Dutse, Jigawa State. “There is no justification for anyone in the north-east to remain in PDP. Therefore, I call on all my brothers and sisters in north-east to join our great party –APC,” Osinbajo, who was represented by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, said. “This is because we want all hands in building Nigeria, our great nation. You can never be too late in joining the APC. “I want assure those who are saying that they are tired of waiting to see the change. The change is coming soon as discussions are ongoing. “The President will soon reveal the programmes of the APC when he presents the 2016 budget on Tuesday. “You will see the mind-set of the president who is ready to re...

With the growing list of names of being implicated in $2.1bn arms con­tract scandal involving Sambo Dasuki, the former National Security Adviser,President Muhammadu Buhari’s Personal Assistant, Sabi’u Yusuf may have been fingered as one of the beneficiaries of the loot by some of Dasuki’s associates. According to a report on The Sun, some of Dasuki’s associates on Saturday, December 19, 2015 spoke to newsmen threatening to expose proof that those de­nying to have benefitted from the money had collected the amounts ticked against their names. Speaking further, they expressed shock that some politicians would deny ever having anything to do with the Dasuki when there is proof that they received the mon­ey, threatening to release re­corded video of all transac­tions. They said: “Some people are shamelessly telling in­defensible lies. We have witnesses and recordings of these visits. A man re­ceived two retired army of­ficers in his private sitting room, called his nephew to collect...

There are indications that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, may summon the immediate past President, Goodluck Jonathan, to explain what he knows about the ongoing probe into the scandalous arms procurement deal. The ant-graft agency is said to be contemplating writing the former President because his name has consistently been mentioned during the interrogation of some suspects, The Punch reports. Former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), is currently being prosecuted by the EFCC for illegally disbursing to top politicians funds meant for the procurement of arms for the military’s fight against Boko Haram insurgents in the North-east. This, Daskui had alleged was in line with the directive of Jonathan, who was the then President. Also, former Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had recently claimed that she transferred funds to the former NSA as a result of a decision reached at a meetin...

The fuel subsidy scam probably broke the ceiling in a room crammed with some of the worst corporate perfidy. Nothing could more sabotage the economic interest of a nation, many Nigerians thought. But then came the rice import quota scheme, an unholy romance between politicians and businessmen, at the moment stretching corporate bad practices in Nigeria to an incredulous length. About N117 Billion is there for the pick. A total of 26 companies are involved; two of which are owned by a former Attorney General of the Federation and a former civilian governor of Kebbi State respectively. Predictably, in the all-too-familiar Nigerian fashion, not all of the 26 companies selected for the scheme made the list on merit. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2014 disclosed that Nigeria spent an average of N800 Billion annually on the importation of rice. Unofficial import receipts through the Cotonou corridor was not captured in the CBN figure. But the business of importing rice, a stapl...

Leaders of the Delta APC, led by its 2015 governorship candidate, Olorogun Otega Emerhor (OON) and State Party Chairman, Prophet Jones Erue has formally received the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu into the Party. This was on the occasion of the thanksgiving service and reception for Kachikwu on Sunday December 20th at Onicha Ugbo when the Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum celebrated his appointment.  According to the APC Chairman Prophet Erue, the “Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum has been fully integrated into the APC National and State structure, describing him as a man of peace, full of humility and with a performance promise.” Olorogun Otega Emerhor also commented that “As the State Leader of our great party in Delta State, I earnestly look forward to a brotherly and cordial working relationship with the Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum Resources. His kind and friendly dispensation is heart warming and I have no doubt in my mind ...

Armed gunmen abducted one of former president Goodluck Jonathan‘s relatives on Sunday afternoon, Sun reports. Reports state that the abductee’s name is Otazi,  and she was kid­napped in Ewoi community, Ogbia Local Government area of Bayelsa State. Police Public Relations Of­fice (PPRO) of Bayelsa State police command, Ansim Butwats, confirmed the incident, stating that po­lice officers are investigating the mat­ter to  ascertain the exact identity of the woman.

Itse Sagay, a legal scholar, has denied ever granting an interview to the Nigerian Tribune to deride President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption efforts. Speaking with a correspondent of SaharaReporters by telephone from Lagos, Mr. Sagay, a professor of law, well known constitutional lawyer and head of President Buhari’s advisory committee on anti-corruption, said he was shocked to read a report concocted by the newspaper, crediting him with sharp criticism of the current administration’s anti-corruption strategy. According to him, the newspaper’s report on his purported interview represented a desperate attempt to discredit President Buhari’s anti-corruption war. Mr. Sagay told our correspondent that he had stopped granting interviews to the Tribune after the paper’s editors had twisted an interview he granted them in August. According to him, the paper’s account of his August interview was tailored to suit the devious agenda of its editors hence his rejection of all efforts by th...

Every team serious about ‘change’ starts with a clear identification of the baseline from which it measures deviations/progress. Nigeria has had 16 uninterrupted years of democracy with the PDP controlling the federal government as well as majority of the states. APC is now in charge at both the centre and majority of the states. A minimum standard for measuring ‘change’ is the extent to which APC government beats the record of the PDP in measurable terms. As the saying goes, if you can’t measure it, you can’t improve/change it! Government must strengthen the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and preserve its independence to produce and publish credible national statistics. It needs serious funding. I really wish our policymakers can be a little less careless or casual about the use of official statistics. I criticised the last government for relying on ‘estimates’ by World Bank staff instead of the NBS statistics. When I hear the narrative so far in the media by the new government...