Nigeria:Corruption massive under Jonathan – US

Goodluck Jonathan

Not that it was anything new but The United States government on Friday indicted the President Goodluck Jonathan led Federal Government of massive and widespread corruption.

According to the United States Department of State, government officials and agencies frequently engage in corrupt practices with impunity. They went ahead to state instances as follows;

“The law provides criminal penalties for official corruption; however, the government did not implement the law effectively, and officials frequently engaged in corrupt practices with impunity. Massive, widespread, and pervasive corruption affected all levels of government and the security forces. The constitution provides immunity from civil and criminal prosecution for the president, vice president, governors, and deputy governors while in office.

“Police corruption remained rampant. Reports of checkpoint bribery and shooting incidents decreased in February after newly appointed Inspector General of Police Mohammed Abubakar announced the closure of all police checkpoints across the country; however, illegal checkpoints remained common in some regions. Police routinely stopped drivers who did not commit traffic infractions, refusing to allow them to continue until they paid bribes,”

Highlighting events that occurred in the country in last year that portrayed lack of transparency and probity, the US government listed the escape of the suspected mastermind of the Boko Haram 2011 Christmas Day bombing from custody, noting how the police commissioner, who aided the suspect went unpunished; the conviction of former Delta State governor James Ibori in the Southwark Crown Court in London of charges of money laundering and other financial crimes totaling N12.4bn, after he was acquitted by a Nigerian court; and the N1.067trn fuel subsidy fund lost to “endemic corruption and entrenched inefficiency”

 “In July, the government released a list of those who had benefited illegally from the subsidy program, which included relatives and colleagues of key government officials. In late July, the EFCC began arraigning suspects, first with a group of 20 indictments, including six oil companies and 11 individuals. By  year’s end, the EFCC initiated prosecutions of approximately 50 cases related to the subsidy scam. The majority of these cases involved companies and individuals who had fraudulently received subsidy revenue. Investigations and trials had not produced any convictions by year’s end.”

The US document also faulted the refusal of public officials to declare their assets as stipulated by law.

The list went on and on......every person of age in Nigeria would not find any of these statements new but do we need outsiders to tell us? and now that they have?

I know that this Government in its usual fashion would defend itself but there is no gainsaying that corruption pervades the land.

North Korea: Organises Marathon for a change

Having threatened to bomb the United States and warned foreigners to leave South Korea due to an impending thermonuclear war, North Korea returned to domestic matters today by holding its annual marathon in Pyongyang.

The North’s state news agency said a big contingent of foreign runners were expected from countries including Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Ethiopia as well as 600 North Koreans at today's race.

The marathon celebrates tomorrow's 101st anniversary of the birthday of the country’s founder Kim Il Sung, grandfather of the current leader Kim Jong Un.

The world needs to do something about North Korea. Some guy just sits somewhere and keeps talking about bombs when the populace suffer from lack of basic amenities

US confident it can intercept North Korean missiles

Navy Admiral Locklear

The United States could intercept a ballistic missile launched by North Korea, the top US military commander in the Pacific said Tuesday, as the relationship between the West and the communist government hit its lowest ebb since the end of the Korean War.

Admiral Samuel Locklear, commander of US Pacific Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that Pyongyang's pursuit of nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles represented a clear threat to the United States and its allies in the region.

But he said that the US was "ready" if North Korea attempted a strike and that it had the capability to thwart a North Korean missile.

Wesley Snipes released from prison

The actor Wesley Snipes has been released from a US prison in Pennsylvania after serving more than two years for tax evasion.

Snipes was convicted in 2008 after failing to pay any federal taxes despite earning a reported $37m (£24m) between 1999 and 2004. However, the star of Blade and Demolition Man failed to report to prison until December 2010, during which time he lodged a number of appeals.

He was originally sentenced to three years in jail but will now serve the remainder of his time under home confinement. A spokesman for the US Bureau of Corrections told the Associated Press Snipes would be overseen by the New York community corrections office until 19 July.

Snipes, 50, argued in court that he was being unfairly targeted by prosecutors because of his fame and cited his college education, family and charitable activities as mitigating factors. However, United States district judge William Terrell Hodges ruled the actor had shown a "history of contempt over a period of time" for US tax laws. Snipes reportedly belonged to a group that challenged the government's right to collect taxes. Prosecutors said he failed to file returns for at least a decade.