The landlord of a two-storey building, Mr Joseph Nwachukwu, escaped death by whiskers as his property was gutted by fire inAba, Abia. Mr Chizoba Nwachukwu, the eldest son of Nwachukwu, made this known to newsmen in Aba Friday. Nwachukwu told newsmen that his mother was on her way back home when she saw the house in flames. ``She rushed to see my dad alone in the roomand saved him first before calling for help from the neighbourhood,’’ he said. He said that the fire, which started from a tenant’s apartment, razed the building at 17 Joe Express Street, near Ariaria International Market on Thursday. The eldest son said that his father who had been suffering from stroke before the inferno was rescued while the property, including cash was gutted by fire. ``Every other thing in our flat was completelyburnt. All I have laboured for in life are no more. The only thing I have is this cloth I am wearing.’’ He said that the people who came to their rescue could not enter their flat because of electric shock from the boiler and gave the cost of the damage including cash to be over N3 million. He alleged that the fire outbreak was causedby their neighbour , who allegedly left an electric boiler on. http://www.leadership.ng/nga/articles/43177/2012/12/21/wife_saves_husband_burnt_2storey_building_aba.html

Gunmen Kill Six In Yobe Christmas Church Service by kakakibuy : 4:03pm Gunmen attacked a church in volatile northern Nigeria during a Christmas Eve service, killing six people including the pastor, before setting the building ablaze, residents and police said Tuesday, as the pope deplored "savage acts of terrorism" against Christians in Africa's most populous nation. The raid in Yobe state is the latest violence likely to be blamed on radical Islamist sect Boko Haram, which has repeatedly targeted churches during times of worship, including multiple attacks last year on Christmas Day, during its deadly insurgency. In his traditional Christmas message from theVatican, Pope Benedict XVI prayed for"concord in Nigeria, where savage acts of terrorism continue to reap victims, particularly among Christians". Boko Haram attacks have often targeted churches, as well as police and other symbols of the establishment in Nigeria. Violence linked to the insurgency is believed to have left some 3,000 people dead since 2009, including killings by the security forces. "A group of gunmen came into the village at midnight and went straight to the church," said Usman Mansir, a resident of Peri village near Potiskum, the economic capital of Yobe. "They opened fire on them, killing the pastor and five worshippers. They then set fire to the church," he added, specifying that a branch of the Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA) was targeted. A senior police official in Yobe confirmed the details of the attack to AFP, but declined to be named, while Yobe's police chief Sanusi Rufa'i said "this is a security issue" and refused to comment further. The head of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Yobe, Idi Garba, told AFP that manyworshippers at ECWA "are still missing." "I have been informed that six bodies have been recovered," Garba said, adding that some who lived near the church "fled their homes during the attack and it is assumed that they are still hiding in the bush." Residents reported that the gunmen also set fire to several of the homes surrounding the church. http://uk.news.yahoo.com/nigeria-gunmen-kill-six-midnight-church-140457125.html

SIDI BOUZID, Tunisia (AFP) – A young unemployed teenager has killed himself in Sidi Bouzid, the marginalised town in centralTunisia where the country’s revolution erupted two years ago, witnesses said on Tuesday. Wissem Hani, 17, died on Sunday from a massive electric shock after clinging to an electric pylon in protest at his bleak circumstances, the witnesses told an AFP journalist. The number of people committing suicide or attempting to take their own lives has multiplied since a young Tunisian street vendor set himself on fire on December 17, 2010, in a drastic act of protest against police harassment. Mohamed Bouazizi’s death ignited a mass uprising that toppled ex-dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali the following month and touched off the Arab Spring. Limited economic prospects, especially in the neglected interior, were key factors behind Tunisia’s revolution. Two years on, nearly a quarter of the population lives in poverty, with unemployment at around 18 percent. Last week in Sidi Bouzid, protesters angry at the government’s failure to improve living standards hurled rocks at President Moncef Marzouki after a speech he gave to mark theanniversary of the uprising. Culled from Vanguard.

Dear friends, I want to seize this opportunity to wish you and your loved ones a merry Christmas and a happy New Year in advance. I feel the pains of Nigerians and that is why this yuletide period I have personally instructed that our roads should be worked on to enable you and your loved ones travel safely for the holidays knowing that this season brings with it the highest volume of traveler traffic of the year. This administration also made sure that mostof our airports received a facelift with the terminals rehabilitated and the runways upgraded. Not done, we ensured that for the first time in decades, the cross country services (Lagos to Kano with stops in cities along the route) of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) were revived just prior to the holidays to provide Nigerian masses with an inexpensivealternative to road and air transportation. Nigerians traveled on these coaches which took them from Lagos to Kano beginning on Friday the 21st of December, 2012 at a very affordable rate of 1,500 Naira, with stops at many cities along the route. This administration also took steps to increase power generation by remaining trueto the Timelines of the Roadmap to Power Sector Reforms which has seen history made on Friday the 21st of December 2012, when Nigeria’s power generation hit an all time high of just over 4,500 MW which I know is still not good enough, but which neverthelessis an improvement of what we met on ground to the end that as many Nigerians as possible can celebrate the holidays with power in our homes and communities. I reaffirm to you that, God willing, Nigeria will witness a better year in the coming year. Once again, on behalf of my family and I and the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, wishes every Nigerian a very Merry Christmasand a most prosperous and Happy New Year. GEJ https://www.facebook.com/jonathangoodluck/posts/489372214446491.

LAGOS— The Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Command of the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS, Monday arrested a passenger, Mr. Ikebude Akoma, with $456,000 during the outward clearance of passengers of Qatar Airways flight to China en route Doha. Speaking on the arrest, the Public Relations Officer of the Airport Command of Nigeria Customs Service, Mrs. Thelma Williams said that the passenger was apprehended for notbeing able to explain to the Customs authorities the source of the foreign currency with either bureau de change or bank slip which was a prerequisite for a proper documentation of the currency. Mrs. Williams noted further that the passenger with the passport number A04073478, was arrested at the ‘E’ wing section of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport screening hall from where he was interrogated by officials on duty before being handed over the Economicand Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). According to her, the passenger was guilty of the law for his inability to convince relevant authorities over the source of the money as well as his defiance of rules concerning the movement of huge sum of foreign currency outside the country. She said: ”During the outward clearance of Qatar Airways flight to China via Doha, our officials reported that one passenger identified as Ikebude Akome with passport number A04073478 declared f$456,000 at E Wing screening hall of the Lagos Airport. “On further investigation, it was discovered that the passenger had no proper document like the bureau de change or bank slip.” she added. Williams, however, pointed out that the passenger had been handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for further investigations and necessary actions. Culled from Vanguard.