Gist Arena

The United States is flying manned surveillance and reconnaissance flights over Nigeria as it aids the country in seeking more than 200 school girls kidnapped by the Boko Haram Islamic militant group in April. Speaking to reporters on Monday, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said roughly 27 officials – including some from the State Department, the Pentagon, and FBI – are already in Nigeria, ready to assist the government’s search. “The scope of that assistance has been outlined, and it includes military and law enforcement assistance, advisory assistance, as well as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support,” Carney said. Additionally, the Washington Post reported that an unnamed senior Pentagon official said the White House is also considering whether or not to deploy drones in the search. If the US chooses to do so, it would reroute some of the drones currently being used to hunt Lord’s Resistance Army warlord ...

During his sermon this past Sunday May 11th, pastor Tunde Bakare of Latter Rain Assembly, went hard on the American government and their offer to assist Nigeria to fight Boko Haram.   Watched the video and here's a summary of what he said.  According to Bakare, CNN media crew coming to Abuja a few weeks ago to cover the Chibok girls story took him back to a vision God showed him during a conference he had in 2005 at Adebola House in Lagos.  He said in the vision, he rode on God's back into former US President Bush's war room and saw the former president plotting on how to destabilize Nigeria. He said he immediately started praying at the conference declaring that Nigeria is not Iraq and that Bush would be burnt in the bush while Condolezza Rice would end up in the cooking pot. He played the video of his preaching in 2005 where he shared the vision to the conference attendees.   About Isha Sesay of CNN, pastor Bakare said she's been very...

Four parents of missing Chibok girls are said to have identified their missing daughters in the video released by Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, yesterday. According to Sahara reporters, Mrs Esther Mutali, one of the mothers of the missing girls say some parents of the abducted girls in their community have been able to identify their daughters in the video.   According to Madam Esther, those identified include two senior students from Askari Uba Secondary School and Wuyo Secondary School respectively. Both schools are near Chibok. A third girl, whose name was given as “Abdu Hauwa”, has also been identified by her mother. The source added that a fourth girl, Adiza Isah, has also been sighted in the video, making the total of identified girls four. Continue...   A Community leader in Chibok, Allan Manessah, however says most parents whom he visited in the community were not able to identify thei...

Nigeria is ready to talk to Islamist militants Boko Haram for the release of more than 200 abducted schoolgirls, a minister has told the BBC. Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau said on Monday that captured girls who have not converted to Islam can be swapped for jailed fighters. Special Duties Minister Tanimu Turaki said that if Shekau was sincere, he should send representatives for talks. The girls were abducted last month from a school in north-eastern Nigeria. A video emerged on Monday showing about 130 of the girls reciting Koranic verses. Mr Turaki - who is chairman of a committee set up by President Goodluck Jonathan to find ways of reconciling with Boko Haram - said that Mr Shekau should send people he trusts to meet the standing committee on 

President Jonathan today May 13th sent a request to the National Assembly seeking an extention of the State of Emergency rule in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states by six months. In a media chat on May 4th, the president had hinted that there would be an extension of emergency rule in these states since peace has not been restored there. Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states have witnessed high rates of attacks by Boko Haram and have been placed on emergency rule since May 1st 2013. The new proposed extention if implemented would elapse in November 2014, three months before the general election. There has been some criticisms in some quarters against the extension. Some people believe the emergency rule earlier implemented had not reduced or stopped the killings in the states and so this new extension would still have no effect.   The National Assembly however has to debate on it before the President can en force an extension

The pic above showing rapper Phyno and good friend Kcee talking closely at the MAMA nominees party in Lagos went viral yesterday. Fans went crazy with the photo saying that the two men were kissing but Phyno says its the camera angle. C'mon, if they wanted to kiss, will it be in public? See another tweet below

What could have led a happily married pastor into such big mess? You guess is as good as mine: According to EEW magazine, Pastor Charles Jenkins, a Grammy award-winning songwriter, author and a senior pastor at Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago, has unpleasant photos of himself, displaying his bare body, floating around the internet. EEW states that the photo of the multi-Stellar award-winning recording artist was posted online by a woman who is attempting to force the pastor to pay her money that she says he owes her. Jenkins appears in the picture completely nαkéd, brushing his teeth in front of a mirror and apparently unaware that his picture is being taken, according to EEW. This is the first time that the recording artist, music producer, and senior pastor has stolen the limelight for anything except proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom of God. See the photo... In a recent Black Entertainment Television (BET) interview, Jenkins said that it was im...