Boyfriend Fought To Save Soulmate

The boyfriend of an Albany teenager who drowned while fishing on rocks on Sunday has told how he desperately tried to save his "beautiful soulmate".

Angie Douglas, 18, slipped off rocks near Herald Point, east of Gull Rock, while fishing with her boyfriend Nick Kozlov.

In a Facebook post yesterday, Mr Kozlov said Ms Douglas slipped while throwing a fish in the water.

He described being thrown against rocks as he tried to swim to his girlfriend.

"I looked back and she was face down in the water," Mr Kozlov wrote. "I run across the rocks and jumped back in to the water. I swim to her trying keep her head up.

"But I started going under water so I pulled her by the bikinis to the beach."

Mr Kozlov said he did CPR but she "wouldn't come back to me".

"I lost my beautiful soulmate, my friend. My everything," he wrote.

Emergency services were called to east of Gull Rock beach just before 11am on Sunday.

Albany police are investigating Ms Douglas' death. They are yet to determine how she fell.

Marine rescue services including Albany Sea Rescue and Albany Surf Life Saving Club emergency response team arrived 30 minutes after getting a call for help.

By the time they arrived, Ms Douglas had been in the water almost an hour and could not be revived.

Albany Sea Rescue operations co-ordinator Chris Johns, who tried to resuscitate Ms Douglas while her parents and boyfriend watched, described the area between Gull Rock and Ben Dearg beach as innocuous but remote.

"I still can't work out how this happened," he said.

"This is not a cliche rock fishing death.

"It was just two young people having some fun.

"It's just so simple to lose your life - that is the absolute tragedy in this."

Ms Douglas' death comes after the double tragedy at Salmon Holes the previous weekend when two anglers were swept off rocks in dangerous conditions.

There have been five rock fishing deaths on the Albany coast in the past 16 months, including three at locations other than the notorious Salmon Holes.

Ms Douglas, who graduated from Albany's St Joseph's College in 2013, was described by her friends as "bright and bubbly" with a "kind heart".

"Growing up with you has been a huge part of my life and today I am truly crushed," her friend Taylor Hiltunen wrote on Facebook.

"I feel so blessed to have had you in my life for the past 18 years."

Voters Expect Budget Bad News

Tony Abbott continues to trail badly in the polls amid extraordinary pessimism about next month's Federal Budget.

According to the latest Seven West Media ReachTEL poll, just one in 20 respondents - 5.1 per cent - believe they and their families will be financially better off after the Budget. A clear majority of the 2532 - 54.1 per cent - believe they will be worse off, while just under 41 per cent said their circumstances would likely remain about the same.

The ReachTEL poll, conducted on April 23, shows that Australians have not heard - or are deeply sceptical about - the Prime Minister's promises of a "dull and boring" Budget that will not hurt households.

Asked about their voting intention, 39.8 per cent nominated the coalition, compared with 39.3 per cent for the ALP and 11.9 per cent for the Greens.

This translates to a 54-46 two-party preferred split favouring the ALP over the coalition, based on the flow of preferences at the 2013 election, and would see the coalition lose government and 37 of its 90 seats. Malcolm Turnbull continues to be preferred leader of the coalition, with 40.6 per cent favouring him compared with 28.2 per cent for Julie Bishop and 24.7 per cent for Mr Abbott.

On the Prime Minister's performance, 52 per cent rated Mr Abbott as poor or very poor, compared with 25 per cent who said he was good or very good, with 23 per cent saying he had performed satisfactorily.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten fared similarly, with 25 per cent rating him good or very good, 41 per cent poor or very poor and 34 per cent satisfactory.

Respondents have given Treasurer Joe Hockey the green light to adopt Labor's policy to increase the tax rate on superannuation contributions, with 57 per cent support, compared with 22 per cent against, including a majority of coalition supporters (48 per cent in favour compared with 28 per cent against).

And the idea of a so-called "Netflix tax" to impose GST on products and services bought overseas also got majority support, with 56 per cent in favour and 22 per cent opposed, including strong support among coalition voters (65 per cent to 18 per cent).

Buhari To Probe NNPC’s Missing $20bn

President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd) has said that investigations into the circumstances of an alleged $20 billion missing from the coffers of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, will be a priority for the incoming administration, Vanguard reports.

He made this known while receiving a delegation of political stakeholders from Adamawa State.

Noting the response of the outgoing administration to the allegation of the missing $20 billion raised by former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Alhaji Lamido Sanusi, the president-elect, who spoke in Hausa said: “I heard that some people have started returning money; I will not believe it until I see it by myself.

“Imagine a situation where the former CBN governor, who by God‘s grace, is now the Emir of Kano, raised an issue of missing billions of money, not in naira but in dollars, $20 billion”.

“What happened, instead of investigating whether it was true, they simply found a reason to remove him. So, these are the issues we are talking about”.

“This issue is not over yet. Once we assume office, we will order a fresh probe into the matter. We will not allow people to steal money meant for Nigerians to buy shares and stash away in foreign lands.”

Jonathan Orders Release Of Audit Report On Missing $20bn

President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday ordered the immediate release of the forensic audit report of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation’s (NNPC) account by PriceWaterhouseCooper (PWC), This Day reports.

This follows the threat made by President-elect, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) to investigate further into the $20bn allegedly missing from the NNPC’s account.  While briefing State House correspondents, the presidential spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, said the incoming administration of Buhari was free to review all actions and policies taken by the present administration which it deems necessary and also noted that the President had ordered for the PWC audit report to be released.

“President Jonathan is also deeply concerned by the continuing suggestions that his administration still has anything to hide about the unproven allegation that about $20 billion is unaccounted for by the NNPC during his tenure” he said.

“To lay the matter to rest, President Jonathan in line with Section 7(2) of the NNPC Act, has directed that the full report of the PWC Forensic Audit of the NNPC accounts be released immediately to the public so that all Nigerians will be properly informed on the matter” he added.

Police IG Sack: Rights Group Asks Buhari To Reject Suleiman Abba’s Removal

The Muslim Rights Concern has urged the Transition Committee of the President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari, to declare the sack of former Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, by President Goodluck Jonathan, as having no effect.

MURIC described the sack as curious.

Mr. Abba was sacked on Tuesday afternoon and his replacement, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, assumed duties immediately as announced by Mr. Jonathan’s media aide, Reuben Abati.

“President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has relieved the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Suleiman Abba of his appointment and duties with immediate,” Mr. Abati said in a statement. He gave no reasons for the sack.

MURIC, through a statement signed by its Director, Ishaq Akintola, condemned Mr. Jonathan’s action and said it was imperative for Mr. Buhari’s Transition Committee to “declare clearly, unequivocally and unambiguously that no unnecessary eleventh hour appointment can be made otherwise such will be declared ultra vires and of no effect whatsoever”.

“Emergency appointments by outgoing administrations, including those of state governors, are made with sinister motives, MURIC said.

“People’s mandate must be jealously guarded. Nigerians voted for change,” it said, while appealing to the incoming administration of APC’s Mr. Buhari to be “on its tip-toes of watchfulness”.

“The question here is should President Jonathan be preparing his handover note or strengthening his position? This singular act appears to have been taken to consolidate incumbency. Nigerians must be on guard. It is not over until it is over. Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty,” it stated.

Also, MURIC contended that the outgoing President owed Nigerians explanations, as the removal of Mr. Abba was done “without any justifiable casus belli”. 

The group said it found the development curious for two reasons.

“Firstly, Sulaiman Abba is not due for retirement until March 22, 2019. Sacking such a high profile service chief without any justifiable casus belli raises more questions than answers. Secondly, it is quite unusual for an outgoing regime to embark on this type of exercise like sacking service chiefs and appointing new ones.”

“The implication is that the hands of the incoming administration are being tied and its maneuvers being restrained. The incoming regime is being saddled with unnecessary and avoidable human liabilities,” it added.

MURIC then asked: “Is President Jonathan really getting ready to handover? If so, why is he in a hurry to appoint a new IG for the incoming regime? Why should an IG be sacked shortly after the ruling party lost a general election? Is it that he did not ‘play ball’ during the elections? Did he refuse to obey illegal commands?”

MURIC said these questions are vital because the opposition APC, whose presidential candidate in the March 28 election awaits inauguration on May 29, had accused the government of Mr. Jonathan of relying on security agencies to scuttle democracy.

The organisation therefore tasked Mr. Jonathan to reveal the “offence or offences” committed by Mr. Abba. 

“This matter must come to the public court of the Nigerian people who are the end-users and tax-payers,” it said.

Buhari Lobbies ECOWAS To Back Agric Minister, Adesina, For ADB President

Nigeria’s president-elect, Muhammadu Buhari, has requested the Economic Community of West African States to support the candidacy of Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture, Akinwunmi Adesina, as the next president of the African Development Bank (ADB).

Mr. Buhari has communicated his backing of Dr. Adesina’s candidacy to the Ghanaian President, John Dramani Mahama, who is the current chairperson of the ECOWAS.

In a statement in Abuja Tuesday, Mr. Buhari said that his support of Mr. Adesina’s candidacy was not just because he was Nigerian.

“Dr. Adesina has a proven track record in a career that predates his position as Nigeria’s Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development,” Mr. Buhari said.

He added that Mr. Adesina had years of experience of working in Francophone and Anglophone countries, and a passion to help eradicate poverty in Africa by reducing unemployment and inequality among African youth. 

Mr. Adesina is also an agricultural development expert with 24 years of experience in developing and managing successful agricultural programmes across Africa. 

Until his appointment as Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development in 2011, he was the Vice President, Policy and Partnerships Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). 

Additionally, he has held senior leadership positions in a number of agricultural institutions in the world.

LPG Prices Rise Due To Scarcity

LPG marketers, including NIPCO, Total, Forte Oil, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), among others have increased the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) also known as cooking gas because of its scarcity and are also rationing its supply in some places, The Nation reports.

The price of a 12.5 kg cylinder of cooking gas has increased from N2,800 to N3,200 depending on the area. Furthermore, many refilling outlets do not even have the product for sale.

The problem, it was gathered, was caused by hitches in the distribution among stakeholders in the value chain. A source in one of the oil marketing firms said the scarcity was caused by the usage of LPG distribution channels for other purposes than what they were originally built for.

The source said the government directed that two out of the three distribution channels be used to supply Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to make fuel available in the country.

The President, Liquifield Petroleum Gas Association of Nigeria (LPGAN), Dapo Adesina corroborated the source saying the scarcity was caused by the usage of LPG terminals for other purposes. He said the development has resulted in uneven distribution and scarcity of cooking gas in the country.

African Leaders To Meet In Bid To Crush Boko Haram

Abuja (AFP) - Central and west African leaders will hold a summit next week to fine tune their campaign to crush Boko Haram, who appear to be losing ground in the face of a regional military offensive.

The April 8 talks will be the first since Nigeria's election a week ago which was won by Muhammadu Buhari, a former military leader who has vowed to rid his country of the "terror" the Islamist militants have sown.

Boko Haram, whose rampage through northeastern Nigeria has left more than 15,000 people dead since 2009, is the region's most pressing security problem, having sent refugees fleeing across borders and displaced tens of thousands within Nigeria.

The west African regional bloc ECOWAS said in a statement Sunday that the meeting in the Equatorial Guinea capital Malabo came "in the face of the mounting and increasingly bloody attacks by the fundamentalists against Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and Chad."

The Malabo summit is being jointly organised by ECOWAS and the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS).

Experts from both groups held a preliminary meetings in Cameroon's economic capital Douala to prepare ground for the summit, ECOWAS said.

Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau speaks at an unidentified location

They tried to fine tune strategy to "eradicate" the group, the statement added, and discussed regional coordination of military strategy and other matters.

Buhari's historic election win was partly due to outgoing president Goodluck Jonathan's failure to tackle the insurgency, which has sparked worldwide concern.

"I assure you that Boko Haram will soon know the strength of our collective will and commitment to rid this nation of terror and bring back peace," Buhari said last week.

He later told the BBC: "With the co-operation of our neighbours, Cameroon, Chad, Niger and the international community, and the commitment we are going to get from the military, I think it will take us a much shorter time to deal with them."

Chad soldiers near Diffa airport on April 3, 2015, after the nearby Nigerian town of Malam Fatori

A coalition involving troops from the four countries has been battling the Islamists in a bid to crush the insurgency, which has now spread across borders from Boko Haram's stronghold in northern Nigeria. 

The general staff of the Chadian army last week said the nuisance capacity of Boko Haram has been severed reduced by the offensive, although their Nigerien colleagues believe the group still has the ability to wage an "asymmetric war" through suicide attacks and hit-and-run raids.

According to some experts, a major stumbling block in the fight against the group had hitherto been poor intelligence sharing between Nigeria and its neighbours, although this appears to have improved after a joint military force involving the four countries was launched. 

It was not immediately clear if Buhari would be attending the summit, as he will not be sworn in as president to succeed Jonathan until May 29.

UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein last week led an appeal for stronger international support in the fight against the group after the UN Human Rights Council unanimously adopted a resolution to this effect.

"Countless more children, women and men have been abducted, abused and forcibly recruited, and women and girls have been targeted for particularly horrific abuse, including sexual enslavement," Zeid said.

"This despicable and wanton carnage, which constitutes a clear and urgent menace for development, peace and security, must be stopped," Zeid said.

The group recently pledged its allegiance to the Islamic State group of jihadists fighting in Iraq and Syria.

Magnificent Scene: Buildings Amid Heavy Fog In Shanghai

Photo taken from the 121st floor of the Shanghai Tower on April 1, 2015 shows Shanghai World Financial Center (L), Jin Mao Tower (R) and the Oriental Pearl Radio and TV Tower (upper) amid heavy fog in Shanghai, east China. (Xinhua/Huang Weiguo)

Photo taken from the 121st floor of the Shanghai Tower on April 1, 2015 shows Shanghai World Financial Center (L), Jin Mao Tower (R) and the Oriental Pearl Radio and TV Tower (upper) amid heavy fog in Shanghai, east China. (Xinhua/Huang Weiguo)

Hayley Okines, Beloved Teenager Trapped In 104-Year-Old Body, Passes Away At 17

“My baby girl has gone somewhere better. She took her last breath in my arms at 9.39pm.” (Photo: Old Before My Time / Facebook) 

Hayley Okines, the courageous 17-year-old from England with a rare and fatal condition that prematurely aged her body nearly eight times faster than normal, passed away Thursday night. Her mother, Kerry, posted the announcement on Facebook: “My baby girl has gone somewhere better. She took her last breath in my arms at 9.39pm x.”

 

Hayley with other children with progeria, and posting with Justin Bieber. (Hayley Okines / Facebook) 

According to the Progeria Research Foundation, this disease is caused by a mutation in the gene called LMNA (pronounced, lamin - a). Children with progeria begin to display signs of this condition, which include growth failure, loss of body fat and hair, wrinkled skin and stiff joints at around 18-24 months and eventually die of heart disease (atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries). 

While the average life span of children with this incurable condition is 14 (Hayley was told she wouldn’t make it past her 13^th birthday and she lost her best friend to progeria at the age of 11), she surpassed the odds after taking part in a pioneer drug treatment in the United States. She also rose to international celebrity status after appearing in the British TV series “Extraordinary People,” which gave her and her family the opportunity to raised awareness about this disease. 

19-Year-Old Boy Impregnates Mother While Testing Love Charm

 

Residents of Asaba, Delta State are yet to recover from the shock of how a 19-year-old Godwin (not real name) allegedly impregnated his mother while testing his love charm.

 

According to report, the boy, famously known as Ekenem, was said to have gone to a native doctor, who allegedly prepared a love charm for him to use on his mother and one of the matrons in the college where he is a boarding student.

 

It was gathered that the husband of the woman, who has been away for some time outside his Port Harcourt operational base, denied being responsible for the pregnancy during interrogation.

 

But the victim, the suspect’s mother, while speaking to journalists said, “I did not know how it all happened, but all I can say is that a young man who looked like my son suddenly found his way into my room at the wee hours and I was speechless”, adding that the whole exercise had remained inexplicable.

 

Speaking at the police headquarters to journalists, the suspect said, “I am deeply sorry for all that has happened, I did not mean to do this. I saw myself falling in love with her after the love charm prepared for me. I have to confess because I know by so doing, God will touch her mind and I know she will forgive me. I suddenly found that I was making love to mum when I thought the charm will not work, and upon the revelation, I threatened to kill her and the matter was reported to the police”, he said.

 

DSP Celestina Kalu, Police Public Relations Officer in the state, who confirmed the report, disclosed that the boy had since been arrested over threat to life.