Don’t rely on military, defend yourselves against Boko Haram – Sanusi    Published on November 18, 2014 by pmnews   ·   Emir of Kano, Muhammed Sanusi II One of Nigeria’s most powerful Muslim leaders, the emir of Kano, has voiced support for vigilantes fighting Boko Haram, urging others to form civilian militias and questioning the competence of the military. The comments were made by Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, who became emir earlier this year after being sacked from his post as the central bank governor, where he was one of the government’s most high-profile critics. It is extremely rare for Nigeria’s clerics to speak explicitly about political and military affairs, but many expected Sanusi to defy convention and inject himself into public debate after assuming the highly influential post. “People should be sensitised on the importance of being on the alert. And they should prepare, they should acquire what they will defend themselves w...

Ladi Kwali (c.1925-1984) was a Nigerian potter . She was born in the village of Kwali in the Gwari region of Northern Nigeria, where pottery was a common occupation among women. She learned to make pottery as a child using the traditional method of coiling. She made large pots for use as water jars and cooking pots from coils of clay, beaten from the inside with a flat wooden paddle. They were decorated with incised geometric and stylised figurative patterns. Following the traditional African method, they were fired in a bonfire of dry vegetation Her pots were noted for their beauty of form and decoration. Several were acquired by the Emir of Abuja , in whose home they were seen by Michael Cardew in 1950. In 1954, she joined Cardew's pottery training centre in Abuja, its only woman potter, where she learned to throw pots on the wheel. She made dishes, bowls and beakers with sgraffito decoration but also continued to produce pots using her traditional hand buil...

Some weeks back we started some articles aimed at exposing 25 Commonly mispronounced words. Here is the concluding part  16. Curse/cause/course. Many Nigerians have a hard time distinctly pronouncing the words “cause,” “course,” and “curse.” They are all pronounced “kos.” British English speakers pronounce “curse” like “kes,” except that the “e” sound (which is kind of like the “e” sound in “met”) is long. Americans pronounce it “keRs,” also with a long “e” sound. “Cause” is pronounced “koz” with a short “o” sound (which is close to the “o” sound in “all”), and “course” is pronounced “kos” with a long “o” sound. In American pronunciation, the “r” in “course” is, of course, articulated to have something like “koRs.” 17. Debris . A lot of Nigerians I know pronounce the last letter in this word and render the “i” sound like it’s a short one. But native speakers pronounce it like “debree.” That means the last “s” is never sounded and the “i” sound is long. But there a...

The APC has ruled out the possibility of the Governor of Lagos state, Babatunde Fashola as a possible running mate to any of the Presidential aspirants in the party. According to a chieftain of the party who spoke on condition of anonymity to  Punch , Gov. Fashola's religion has disqualified him as a possible running mate since the party would be fielding a Muslim as its Presidential candidate. The chieftain said the party was not going to be fielding a Muslim-Muslim ticket hence the decision to drop Gov Fashola as a possible running mate. "You know that the South-West is a base for the APC and it also contributed immensely to its formation. We would have preferred Fashola because of his pedigree in the state. Moreover, of all the APC governors from the zone, he is the only one doing his second term. But this issue of religion is the problem" the Chieftain said. Out of the four contenders for the Presidential ticket of the party, three of them...

Dan Walter-Kpodoh is one of the most prolific and outstanding stage and film director in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. He is a choreographer, dancer, catwalk instructor, festival curator and an experimentalist. He studied dance, music and choreography at Obafemi Awolowo   University (Great ife), Ile-Ife. He also studied Directing and Community Theatre at the University of Port Harcourt (Unique uniport) He   has also won several artistic awards. Dan has a   unique style and technique in directing, and he masterly renders his   works to achieve the best result Presently, he is the artistic director and   choreographer for the institute of Arts and Culture University of Port Harcourt. His recent works includes. 1.  The Great Pond - Written by Elechi Amadi and adapted for stage production by Dr. Imo Edward 2.  Ake – (Childhood)   Written by Adiela Onyedibia 3.  Purple Hibiscus. Written by Chimamanda Adichie. Adapted by Ju...