Make Una Get Dream - Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday

..."I have a dream" ~ MLK



...and see now o, tomorrow the dream go come true.

Zimbabwe Hyperinflation: Z$100tr note

Make we talk true...Zimbabwe's hyperinflation is far beyond "getting out of control" Chei!

Zimbabwe is introducing a Z$100 trillion note, currently worth about US$30 (£20), state media reports.

Other notes in trillion-dollar denominations of 10, 20 and 50 are also being released to help Zimbabweans cope with hyperinflation.

However, the dollarisation of the economy means that few products are available in the local currency.

On Thursday, the opposition leader said he was still committed to power-sharing intended to rescue the failing economy.

Since September, when the deal was signed, talks have stalled over who should control key ministries.

Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai said he was due to hold talks with President Robert Mugabe "within this coming week" to try to resolve the political crisis.

He described Mr Mugabe as "part of the problem but also part of the solution".

The latest annual figure for inflation, estimated in July last year, was 231m% - the world's highest.

"In a move meant to ensure that the public has access to their money from banks, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has introduced a new family of banknotes which will gradually come into circulation, starting with the Z$10 trillion," Zimbabwe's state-run Herald newspaper quotes a bank statement as saying.

But previous issues of new banknotes - and the dropping of several zeros from the currency - have done little to help Zimbabweans cope with inflation.

On Tuesday, a 50bn Zimbabwean dollar note was issued, less than a month after a Z$500m bill was released.

Correspondents say prices can double every day, and food and fuel - for those without US dollars - are in short supply.

Last month, the daily bank cash withdrawal limit - which at one stage was only enough for several loaves of bread - was abandoned.

However, most banks do not have enough cash to meet demand.

Some shops are licensed to sells goods in foreign currency but everyone from vegetable sellers to mobile phone service providers peg their prices to the US dollar.

Most groceries are brought in by Zimbabweans from neighbouring South Africa, Botswana or Zambia, further driving up prices.

There is more than 80% unemployment in the country and those with jobs find their salary is worthless unless they are paid in foreign currency.

Tears

Mr Tsvangirai is expected to return to Zimbabwe on Saturday after two months abroad.

At a press conference in Johannesburg, Mr Tsvangirai again appealed for prominent human rights activist Jestina Mukoko, who appeared in court on Thursday, and other such detainees, to be released.

"Those abducted and illegally detained must be released unconditionally if this agreement is to be consummated," Reuters news agency quotes Mr Tsvangirai as saying.

Ms Mukoko - director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project - denies charges of organising military training to topple President Mugabe.

She broke down in tears in court as she spoke about her ordeal when she was abducted from her home by armed security agents at the beginning of December.

She described how she was beaten on her feet during questioning.

"The experience was frightening. I would not wish it upon anyone," she said.

Under September's power-sharing agreement, Mr Tsvangirai is to become prime minister while Mr Mugabe remains as president.

But the deal faltered after the MDC accused Zanu-PF of keeping the most powerful ministries - including the one that controls the police - to itself.

As the political wrangling continued, Zimbabwe has been hit by a cholera epidemic that has claimed more than 2,000 lives, made worse by the collapse of the water, health and sanitation systems.

Mr Tsvangirai, and Western nations, accuse Mr Mugabe of not being sincere about power-sharing.

Mr Mugabe insists he welcomes the power-sharing deal, and has resisted growing international pressure to resign.

SOURCE: BBC

Buses Built in Ivory Coast

Commuters in Ivory Coast can now travel around town on the first ever buses designed for and built in the region.

The engineering arm of the national transport company, Sotra, decided it could save money and create a bus better suited to African conditions.

"We want the transfer of technology in Africa, and we want to build our own buses with our own specification," says Sotra's director Mamadou Coulibaly.

"In Europe the technology is very sophisticated with lots of electronic devices. In Africa we don't need this.

"We just need robust buses because our roads are not very well done like in Europe. This is an African design for Africa."

The first three buses hit the streets on Thursday, and more of the vehicles are rolling off the production line.

Squash

Public buses in Abidjan are extremely popular and are frequently tightly packed despite the sweltering heat and lack of air-conditioning.

The new urban bus has fewer seats than a Western bus, meaning up to 100 people can be squeezed inside.

"I think it's a good thing. It'll help students to move about in more comfort," says Isaac Gueu, who is studying accountancy in Abidjan.

But not all bus users are in favour of this launch.

"If we import buses it's better because we already know their endurance, the pros and cons, so really, I'm a bit hesitant about making buses here," Ahmed Wague said.

The buses are designed and built in the main city of Abidjan on a chassis and engine base that is supplied in parts from European truck-maker Iveco.

What is intriguing is that almost all the work on this project was done while Ivory Coast has been in a political crisis prompted by the civil war.

Continental

In 2003, a year after the conflict started, Sotra started producing its own boat-buses which speed up and down the lagoon on which Abidjan is built.

"We tried to launch these projects because we can prepare for the post-crisis period by launching such projects," said Mr Coulibaly.
"It's not true that if you're in a civil war you can't do things because you see yourself that during the crisis we tried to build big projects."

The Ivorian company has designed three types of buses - a coach, an urban bus and a tourist bus.

The tourist bus will make weekly trips from Abidjan to one of the world's biggest churches in the capital, Yamoussoukro.

Orders are already coming in from other countries in Africa.

The company plans to build 100 buses this year and scale up to producing 300 a year.

"I think that we have to begin one day because it's not very difficult. We have been to school in Europe and we think that we are able today to build our own buses; there are no special difficulties," Mr Coulibaly said.

SOURCE: BBC

In Terms of Soccer, Cameroon Dominates...

According to the latest FIFA/Coca Cola World Ranking

Cameroon, The Indomitable Lions lie at the 14th spot while Egypt climbed one place up to the 15th position to be the first-runner up in Africa. Nigeria moved up two places to the 17th spot trailing Egypt as the third best.

Ranking / Team
1 Spain
2 Germany
3 Netherlands
4 Italy
5 Brazil
6 Argentina
7 Croatia
8 England
9 Russia
10 Turkey
11 France
11 Portugal
11 Czech Republic
14 Cameroon
15 Egypt
16 Ukraine
17 Nigeria
18 Paraguay
19 Israel
20 Greece

Upcoming South African Election: Drama in the making...

Don't you just hate it when a photographer catches you in a very awkward moment?


Let's call this picture "the finger".



This one..."I'm ready to whoop some ass"



...this one is too easy. I'll let you provide the title

Jacob Zuma appears likely to be South Africa's next President, but this brotha comes with some drama.

THE BACKGROUND:

* South African President Thabo Mbeki's decision to sack Zuma in June 2005 after he was implicated in a high-profile graft trial in which his former financial adviser was convicted, provoked outrage among rank-and-file ANC members who alleged a political plot within the party to deny him a shot at the presidency.

-- Zuma won leadership of the ANC on Tuesday which almost certainly assures him of the South African presidency in the 20O9 general election because of the ANC's electoral dominance.

* THE 2005 CHARGES:

-- Zuma's former financial adviser Schabir Shaik was found guilty of trying to solicit a 500,000 rand ($72,500) a year bribe for Zuma from French arms company Thint in return for protecting it from an investigation into an arms deal arranged by South Africa in the late 1990s.

-- Another corruption count on which he was convicted said Shaik had paid Zuma 1.3 million rand ($187,100) in bribes to induce him to use his political influence to further Shaik's business interests. The fraud conviction related to accounting for these payments.

-- Prosecutors later filed charges against Zuma himself, accusing him of receiving bribes from Thint. The case was dropped but prosecutors have reopened their investigation of Zuma in that case.

* NEW ALLEGATIONS:

* Zuma's case was thrown out on a technicality but a high court ruling earlier this year cleared the way for evidence to be used against him in any future prosecution. In a separate case, Zuma was acquitted of rape charges in May 2006.

* Last week the Directorate of Special Operations filed an affidavit in the Constitutional Court containing what it called substantial new evidence that Zuma had received larger payments in a corruption case than originally thought.

* The affidavit said that payments based on the old and the new evidence are more than three times greater than those based on the old evidence alone.

* If Zuma is re-charged with graft, it raises the prospect South Africa's future president could be jailed long before he is sworn in. Zuma has said if he wins the ANC'S top job, he would step down only if a court proves he is guilty.

SOURCE: Reuters

FAST FORWARD TO PRESENT...

However, the reinstatement of the charges of corruption, fraud, racketeering and money-laundering against Jacob Zuma are certain to be an unwelcome distraction for the ANC president during the election campaign.

The ANC is facing a significant challenge from the newly-formed Congress of the People (Cope) which has emerged from bitter in-fighting within the ANC over the past three years.

The ruling party is going to have to work hard for every vote in this year's elections, in the knowledge that it could easily lose its two-thirds majority in parliament.

Not since it took power in 1994 has the ANC faced such a test from the ranks of the opposition.

Political analyst Steven Friedman says Jacob Zuma is the frontrunner to become the next president of the country.

"Some in the ANC leadership would prefer not to have to support Zuma. But as we draw closer to the elections, Zuma's position is strengthening all the time," he said.

"The ANC will try to make the corruption charges go away politically. One way is to appoint a national director of public prosecutions who won't prosecute Zuma.

"Another way is to… pass a parliamentary resolution indemnifying Zuma. If we get to a situation where Zuma is president and facing charges, there will be an attempt to make this go away politically."

A date for the elections has still to be announced, but the Johannesburg-based newspaper The Star says 15 April is one possibility.

What is not in doubt is that unofficial campaigning has already begun.

'Robust and interesting'

"We are now fully in election mode," says ANC spokesman Carl Niehaus.

"We respect the law and the decisions of our courts, but at the same time the ANC will vigorously exert its right to have Jacob Zuma as our candidate (for president).

"It is our right in terms of freedom of association and does not impact in any way on the legal processes," he added.

The ANC is certain to win at the polls, albeit with a reduced majority.

However, the corruption charges against Jacob Zuma have not yet gone away in the manner in which the ANC leader might have hoped. That makes an appeal to the Constitutional Court, and an application for a permanent stay of prosecution, increasingly likely.

Jacob Zuma was spot on when he told a gala dinner in East London last Friday: "This year's election campaign will be robust and interesting."

SOURCE: BBC

Which is better: to be Madoffed or 419ed

"cough" "cough"...do the naija 419 guys need to step up their game? I wasn't gonna bring this up but haba...$50 Billion scheme, still sending out gifts worth millions to friends, transferring millions overseas and has the privilege of waiting for trial in his $7 Million crib. Chei...pensions have been wiped out, some guy has committed suicide, and some charities have to fold up shop...

for over ten years...

whereas there are "taskforces" still pursuing 419 aka yahoozee ala peckam guys. Perhaps those taskforce efforts would be better served by focusing on the "ogbologbo" scam artists.

I'm just saying

Another Made in Africa Model - Camilla Barungi

Meet Camilla Barungi from Uganda. You might recognize her from Project Runway

The Very Best (Esau Mwamwaya & Radioclit), "Kamphopo"

Enjoy...

Ghana's New President-Elect: John Atta Mills

Ghana's President-elect, John Atta Mills, is to be sworn in after his cliff-hanger election victory.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate beat the ruling party's Nana Akufo-Addo in a hotly contested poll by a margin of less than 0.5% of votes.

A BBC reporter says there is a carnival atmosphere in the capital with tens of thousands packed into Independence Square for the inauguration.

President John Kufuor is standing down after serving the maximum two terms.

He will be the second elected head of state in Ghana's history to hand over to an opposition politician.

Crowds began forming at the stadium before dawn - decked out in the national colours of green, yellow, red and black - amid an air of intense excitement after one of the closest election races in Africa's recent history.

Dignatories have begun arriving for the ceremony, although the BBC's Will Ross in Accra says that in their excitement people broke through to the area reserved for VIPs.

Click here for full story.

SOURCE: BBC

Through the Glass

Stephanie Okereke is stepping behind the camera for a change and has offered her movie "Through the Glass"
I haven't seen it yet so I can't really render any insight, but judging from the trailer...

I'll let you be the judge.

Cheers!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Some Holiday Humor

Nigerian Preacher Named #49 in Newsweeks' Top 50 Most Powerful People in the World

E. A. Adeboye

A Pentecostal preacher from Nigeria has made big plans to save your soul.

You may never have heard of E. A. Adeboye, but the pastor of The Redeemed Christian Church of God is one of the most successful preachers in the world. He boasts that his church has outposts in 110 countries. He has 14,000 branches—claiming 5 million members—in his home country of Nigeria alone. There are 360 RCCG churches in Britain, and about the same number in U.S. cities like Chicago, Dallas, and Tallahassee, Fla. Adeboye says he has sent missionaries to China and such Islamic countries as Pakistan and Malaysia. His aspirations are outsize. He wants to save souls, and he wants to do so by planting churches the way Starbucks used to build coffee shops: everywhere.

"In the developing world we say we want churches to be within five minutes' walk of every person," he tells NEWSWEEK. "In the developed world, we say five minutes of driving." Such a goal may seem outlandish, but Adeboye is a Pentecostal preacher: he believes in miracles. And Pentecostalism is the biggest, fastest-growing Christian movement since the Reformation.

One of the strangest images from the 2008 campaign was the YouTube clip of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin in church, head bowed, palms turned up toward heaven, standing silently as Thomas Muthee, a Pentecostal preacher from Kenya, prayed for her freedom from witchcraft. The clip (and a NEWSWEEK article about it) triggered its own little culture skirmish, with secular observers calling Palin a "wack job" and conservative Christians responding "There's nothing wrong with her church!!!" Few commentators on either side noted how normal that scene was to hundreds of millions of Christians around the globe.

The world now has about 600 million Pentecostals, the largest group of Christians after Roman Catholics. In Asia, the number of Pentecostals has grown from about 10 million to 166 million since 1970, according to the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. In Latin America, Pentecostals have expanded from 13 million to 151 million; in North America, from 19 million to 77 million; and in Africa, from 18 million to 156 million. By 2050 most of Africa will be Christian, estimates Grant Wacker, professor of Christian history at Duke University—and most of those Christians will be Pentecostals.

Modern Pentecostalism was born in America in the early 20th century, when a former Methodist minister named Charles Parham began teaching that Christians who were filled with the Holy Spirit could, like the disciples of Jesus, speak in tongues. (The sound, for those who have not heard it, is extraordinary: like crooning or keening or jibber jabber.) From the start, the faith appealed across ethnic lines to the poor and the marginalized. Its lack of denominational structure meant "you didn't have to have a highly trained and educated clergy with a long graduate education," says Vinson Synan, dean emeritus of the divinity school at Regent University. "Common people [were] pastoring common people." Televangelist healers like Oral Roberts helped keep the movement growing.

Pentecostals believe that the Holy Spirit is always at work in the world and that certain people possess its gifts: speaking in tongues, the healing touch, the power to cast out demons and witches. An emphasis on prosperity and healing attracts converts without savings accounts or health insurance. The emphasis on Biblical inerrancy and on rigid social rules—no drinking, no smoking, no premarital sex—offers structure for people whose lives have been devastated by addiction or illness. In places like Africa (and indeed, like Palin's Alaska at the turn of the last century), Pentecostalism finds fertile ground among adherents of native religions who already believe the world is alive with spirits.

By Pentecostal standards, Adeboye is mainstream. Formerly a mathematics instructor at the University of Lagos, he began working at RCCG translating the previous pastor's sermons from Yoruba to English. He took over the congregation in 1981. His success, he says, is rooted in his message. "Pentecostals have such an impact because they talk of the here and now, not just the by and by, he says. "We pray for the sick, but we pray for their prosperity, for their overcoming of evil forces and so on. While we have to worry about heaven, there are some things God could do for us in the here and now." At a recent revival meeting in London, Adeboye and his ministers preached 12 hours straight to a crowd of 30,000. At the altar call, hundreds of people rushed toward the stage from every corner of the arena, visibly filled with euphoria. They call their pastor "Daddy."

Behind Adeboye's extraordinary success is his reputation for honesty. While other Pentecostal pastors (including some Nigerians) have been accused of financial misdeeds or faking supernatural powers, Adeboye remains above the fray. Nigerian government leaders seek his input on pressing social issues. He recently made a public-service announcement condemning discrimination against people with HIV. He distributes his message globally through Facebook and MySpace, a self-published magazine called "The Mandate," and a digital-cable channel called Open Heavens TV. His appearance is straitlaced: he always wears a pinstriped suit, a gleaming white shirt and a bow tie.

Adeboye experienced a miracle recently on a long and dangerous stretch of highway near Lagos, he says. His car was out of gas, and the gas stations were empty. Then God spoke to him, clearly, and said to keep driving. Adeboye drove 200 miles on empty. Could his gas gauge have been broken? No, he insists, God intervened "because of the need … in a crisis." Adeboye knows well what some in the West have forgotten: in today's world, everyone needs a Daddy.

SOURCE: Newsweek

African Music Original

Here's a nice music video. For translation please contact....

Empower 10,000 Students to Launch Social Businesses

I know some of you are looking at the photos and this takes you back to the time you were in "Grammar" school.
It's that time of the year, times are tough no doubt, but with a small donation you can make a difference.
For a worthy cause log on to http://www.globalgiving.com/pr/2500/proj2470a.html

Made in Africa - Super Models

Drink your garri and eat your vegetables O!




Peter Kortenhoven of Sierra Leone



Aminata Niaria of Senegal

Miss ECOWAS 2008 Peace Pageant

For those going home, this is something to check out.

Log on to http://missecowas.org for more information.



The winners of the Miss Ecowas regional beauty contest pose for photographers on Saturday in the Ivorian capital, Yamoussoukro. Source: BBC

South African Companies Unlock sub-Saharan Africa

Versed in the highs and lows of emerging-market development, SABMiller, Standard Bank, and others are expanding across the continent and beyond.

Name a global economic woe, and chances are Charles Needham is dealing with it. Market turmoil has knocked 80% off the shares of South Africa's Metorex, the mining company he runs. The plunge in global commodities is slamming prices for the copper, cobalt, and other minerals Metorex unearths across Africa. The credit crisis makes it harder to raise money. And fighting has again broken out in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where Metorex has a mine and several projects in development.

Such problems might send many executives to the window ledge. Yet Needham appears unruffled as he sits down at a conference table in the company's modest offices in a Johannesburg suburb. The combat in northeast Congo, he notes, is far from Metorex's mine. Commodity prices are still high, in historical terms. And Needham is confident he can raise enough capital, drawing on relationships with South African banks. "These are the kinds of things you deal with, doing business in Africa," he says.

For the full article log on to BusinessWeek

It's A New Day O!

I took another personality test as part of the "Reinvention of me" program and I'm still "the glass is half full" kind of guy. I know things look bleak...credit crunch, mortgage crisis, massive layoffs, and the price of suya has gone up 500%.

Well, I thought I'll serve up this music video by Will.I.Am.



Never let up!

Femi Kuti's Day by Day album teaser...

Can't wait to get my hands on this album!! By the way, he is on tour. And will be hitting DC early January.