Johan Cruyff: Netherlands great dies of cancer aged 68

Johan Cruyff, who made his name as a forward with Ajax and Barcelona, was European footballer of the year three times.
He won three consecutive European Cups with Ajax from 1971, coached Barcelona to their first European Cup triumph in 1992 and helped the Dutch reach the 1974 World Cup final, where they lost 2-1 to West Germany.
The Dutch FA said: "Words can hardly be found for this huge loss."
It added that Cruyff was the "greatest Dutch footballer of all time and one of the world's best ever" and wished everyone "a lot of strength in this difficult time".

King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands said the country had "lost a unique and brilliant sportsman".
He added: "He was a Dutch icon. He belonged to us all."

Drug tunnel discovered between Mexico and California

U.S. authorities discovered an underground tunnel that ran the length of four football fields from a restaurant in Mexicali, Mexico, to a newly built house in Calexico, California. The tunnel was the 12th completed secret passage that U.S. authorities have discovered along California's border with Mexico since 2006.
During an investigation that netted more than a ton of marijuana and resulted in four arrests, U.S. authorities discovered an underground tunnel that ran the length of four football fields from a restaurant in Mexicali, Mexico, to a newly built house in Calexico, California.
The tunnel was the 12th completed secret passage that U.S. authorities have discovered along California's border with Mexico since 2006. They also have found more than 75 along the entire U.S.-Mexico border in the last five years, mostly in California and Arizona, many of them incomplete.
Drug traffickers allegedly purchased the Calexico property in April for $240,000 and finished building a three-bedroom house on the parcel for $86,000 by December. Prosecutors say the first tunnel shipment occurred Feb. 28, leading to the seizure of 1,350 pounds of marijuana in Los Angeles.
The tunnel extended about 300 yards in Mexico from El Sarape Mexican restaurant and ran about 100 yards on U.S. soil to the house in a quiet residential area.
Calexico is a city of about 40,000 people located 120 miles east of San Diego.

THE EVOLUTION OF MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKING

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Interestingly, motivational speaking in Nigeria began in the church.And authoritatively, I can tell you that Bishop David Olaniyi Oyedepo pioneered in the late 80s and early 90s.He had been heavily influenced by Dr. Mike Murdock’s books and teachings and began infusing Murdock’s style of preaching and philosophy into his faith-based teachings.Do you remember the era of ‘quotes and inspirational rhymes’ by the Bishop in the 1990s?In the early 1990s when Oyedepo arrived Lagos from Kadunna, one of his huge selling points was his Business and Motivational Seminars that attracted thousands of people to his Inyana Paja auditorium in Lagos.
About that same period, a certain young man broke out from Rhema Chapel pastored by Rev. George Adegboye, popularly called the walking bible. That young man’s name was Sam Adeyemi. Rather follow the conventional pattern of preaching up a storm or dazzling people with scriptural quotations like his former boss, he went motivational .
In 1994, he began a 15 minutes program on Eko FM Lagos sponsored by Mutual Alliance, an insurance company. One would not forget that lovely intro when he would say: “Hello, I am SAM ADEYEMI”
Even till today a lot of people still don’t know that Sam Adeyemi runs one of the fastest growing churches in Nigeria with over 5 services and 20,000 members. Later, he reduced the radio program to 5 minutes and took over sole sponsorship.
By 1995, a journalist by the name Sunny Obazu-Ojeagbase began a monthly magazine called SUCCESS DIGEST. It focused on business development for start-ups and small scale business owners. Later, he began to run business and internet based seminars. Through that platform, a lot of Business and Motivational speakers emerged.
People like Akin Alabi, Olatunde Samson, Henry Omenogor, Iyabo Oyawale and many more can be traced to the SUCCESS DIGEST wave. This wave lasted from 1999 to about 2009. Today, though still operational, the move has dwindled.
In 1999, a third class Biology Education student of the University of Ilorin started a publication called Achievers’ Manual. It contained several motivational stories, especially of top Nigerian  figures like Larry Izamoje, Pat Utomi, Bunmi Oni, Christopher   Kolade and many others. This young man is Ubong Essien.
Ubong Essien’s magazine became an instant success with distribution all over Nigeria. It was he who began to help people see the professionalism of motivational speaking. He went on to become a top motivational speaker and consultant to many companies in Nigeria.
Ubong Essien made NSA, National Speakers Association, in America come to Nigeria. NSA is a body that has Brian Tracy, late Zig Ziglar,Late Jim Rohn Les Brown, Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE- Award Winning Speaker, Executive… and many others as members
It was Ubong Essien that clearly distinguished between motivational speaking and preaching.
Today, Ubong Essien is the only CSP(Certified Speaking Professional) in Nigeria, as at the time of this writing. That means he classed with motivational greats like Les Brown – Mamie Brown’s Baby Boy , Willie Jollie, Brian Tracy and all the greats we know of.
About that same year, a young man started working with a consulting firm called PHILIPS CONSULTING. His name is fela DUROTOYE . After serving for a while there and learning the ropes, he went solo and started moving from banks to banks, companies to companies plying his motivational speaking trade.
Perhaps he is the most successful, non-pastor, motivational speaker in Nigeria. According to him, in 2011, he had 1,100 speaking invitations and had to reject many. One organization actually bought 55,000 copies of his motivational books at N2500. That was when he made his first $1 million dollars(N150 Million).
Fela Durotoye became the commercial success of the motivational speaking industry.
He also has influenced a number of young speakers today, worthy of mention is the instant success Steve Harris. Steve Harris, a 2 times university drop out yet corporate sell out, is a protege of Fela Durotoye.
These people have also built the motivational speaking industry in Nigeria.  Mentionable is pastor Matthew A. Ashimolowo. He brought Dr. Mike Murdock and Dr. Myles Munroe  in 2002 to Nigeria. The twosome, though with obvious religious tilt, created a massive wave back then.
Also to be mentioned is Pastor Bimbo Odukoya In 1992, she began a singles and married motivational program on TV that was a massive success.Her motivational style was relational and she pioneered that area in Nigeria.
Praise George also made a name with small motivational and relational books in the late 1990s into the early 2000s. When I interviewed him earlier this year in Lagos, he told me that he had published more than 50 books!
Other motivational speakers who have shaped this industry are : Leke Alder, the brand guru and speaker; Niyi Adesanya, the leadership consultant(a protege of Sam Adeyemi) ; Uju Onyechere, one of Nigeria’s most syndicated columnist and speaker; Adeolu Akinyemi, the network marketing guru and speaker and many others
Today, there are very many motivational speakers in Nigeria. Most of them run churches, only a selected few do it the way it is done in America.
It is important that I  note that the motivational speaking is an industry just like the comedy, acting and music industry. Of the four:it is the least developed. Mostly because most motivational speakers turn mostly to religion…and corporate organizations rarely invite religious ministers to give motivational  talks.
Unfortunately, there is no association – credible or nationally recognized association – of motivational speakers in Nigeria. Other industries have. Perhaps because most people who get into motivational speaking think it is preaching or don’t clearly understand it.
I hear some people say : “we don’t need motivation in Nigeria”. How so myopic. The motivational speaking industry in America is about 200 years old. Ralph Waldo Emerson, Orison Swet, Napoleon Hill, Norman Vincent Peale, Earl Nightingale and many others pioneered it in America, and America’s success is because they are a highly motivated society.
Nigeria needs more motivation, more motivational speakers.
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Written by G.Essien
If you want to know how to be one, send SPEECH POWER to +2348187133153 or to drgeorgeessien@gmail.com and I will get back to you.
Stay motivated!

WHEN POLITICIANS BECOME OUR SUCCESS MODEL

At the moment I live in the city of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, South-South of Nigeria and it is sad to say that the typical to say that the typical young person in the state sees politicians as their success model. It is indeed baffling.

Let me put this straight on record: I do not have any issue with politicians or anyone involved in politics yet when a Nigerian youth is asked, “What do you do for a living?” and he replies, “I am a politician” something admittedly is fundamentally wrong. For goodness sake, how can politics be a career?
Politics only give you the opportunity to serve. You should be doing something other than politics before you are called upon to serve.
Cletus Joseph has now become my friend for a number of years. We were discussing the other day and he told me of a certain man who was very prominent in Governor Victor Attah’s tenure but who today now walks on the streets of Uyo and jumps from one Keke to the other.
So I asked Cletus, “What was he doing before he got into the Government?” Cletus said he did not know exactly. But he said that when the new Government of Godswill Akpabio came into power and did not favour him, he took some of the money he had gotten and ventured into business. His fingers, however, got burnt.
“Yeah they would get burnt because he didn’t know anything about business, and secondly, the money he invested in the business was ill-gotten and so Life rejected that investment”, I said.
I am known as someone who is involved in capacity building and human development from my present base in Uyo. Some time ago, a group of young people came to my office to inform me about an entrepreneurial conference they were putting up. It seemed to me like a brilliant idea. But then I looked at the list of their major invitees and resource persons and noticed that they were all politicians and political appointees! So I asked, “Abeg, what does a Politician know about business?”
Was it the money from these politicians that these young men were looking for? Of course it seemed that way. Or had they so considered these politicians as role models whose wisdom on business everyone had to hear?
I had to decline my involvement.
The challenge is that the only successful models most Nigerian youths see are politicians. They are the ones constantly in the news and the media. They are the ones that build the best houses in the area, drive the sleekest of cars, and put together the most lavish weddings and celebrations; they are the ones who sit in the front seat in our modern churches. Now there is supposed to be nothing wrong with that. Or is there? Problem is that most of the extravagant display of wealth is gotten from public funds embezzlement and diversion. Most of the money is stolen funds.
The level of corruption in Nigeria is crazy. In fact, you are considered a fool if as a politically elected person or political appointee, you don’t build a palatial home, buy a choice car, and ‘settle’ your people. Most politicians go into public office for their personal gain and self-aggrandizement.
Look at the recent case of the suspended Executive Secretary/Director General of The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), Mrs. Nellie Mayshak, who paid herself N60 Million every month. When I read through the story I almost went nuts.
Our national values orientation is, whether we admit or not, distorted. The current Administration’s strategy to fight corruption may amount to little or nothing. Throwing people in jail will not stop corruption, blocking the leaks by strengthening the institutions will. Devising tactics and using computer technology will block the leakages and fight corruption more than the witch-hunting done by the Buhari led Government. People should not have access to funds the way they do now. The Treasury Single Account(TSA) is perhaps one of the right steps in the right direction.
To get our values to change, the media should begin to show us better models. Not politicians with their ill-gotten wealth, but entrepreneurs who we all know work hard to build their businesses.
Thank God for what people like Tony Elumelu is doing. He is a model young people should emulate. Haven built a multi-billion Naira bank, he has now delved into financially empowering youths in Africa. In the last two years, he has given more than 1000 African entrepreneurs $100 Million to begin their businesses. Look at Linda Ikeji the multimillionaire blogger. Through her I WILL RATHER BE SELF MADE initiative, she is giving out millions to empower young women who have laudable business plans to start their business and become financially independent. Hundreds of young ladies have benefited from this scheme. People like this should be celebrated more. These are the real role models.
This is also a clarion call to entrepreneurs out there who are doing great to show up. To save this Nation from this rut we are experiencing, you have to shine more. Our youths need to realize that there is a better and cleaner way, that hard, creative work pays.
And if you are a politician reading this, abeg no vex, tidy up the mess associated with Nigerian politics and transition from just being a politician to being a statesman

 Written by George Essien
 www.facebook.com/george.essien
www.georgeessien.com

German airports on high alert after Brussels explosions

German federal police are tightening security at airports, public spaces and borders following a series of explosions in Belgian capital Brussels.
 The confirmed death toll from the two explosions at around 8:20 am at Brussels airport had reached 14 by mid-afternoon on Tuesday,but Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said that there was so far no indication German citizens were involved in the attacks, either as victims or perpetrators. Germany's federal police "has intensified its protective measures on the borders, including on the borders of the Benelux [Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg] states and around critical infrastructure such as train stations and air transport,"a statement from Potsdam read.
Officers at Frankfurt airport were immediately placed on high alert and additional patrols were ordered for sensitive areas,according to reporters.
Many flights heading to Brussels are likely to be rerouted to Frankfurt after the Belgian capital's airport was closed completely.

Residents Protest Herdsmen Attacks in Benue

The attacks on nine council areas of Benue State by herdsmen have continued to attract reactions from the Agatu community.
 Civil rights activists and survivors of the attack have gone on a protest in Makurdi, the Benue State capital to air their grievances.
They are calling for the intervention of the state and federal authorities in the crisis.
The children of the community also joined their parents to protest against the violence which had left hundreds of people dead and others displaced.
One of the protesters accused the Benue State Police Command of bias, an allegation the Commissioner of Police denied.
“We invited the young man to this office and I told him (that) from the security information we had at hand, he should postpone this disposition until next week because hoodlums are going to catch down on the situation,” the Police Commissioner said.
As the residents of Agatu community drew attention to the situation to prevent re-occurrence, they also requested for the deployment of special security forces to maintain peace in Benue State in Nigeria’s central region.

Source: www.channelstv.com

The Cancer of Racism must not destroy America

Famous literary stalwart James Baldwin once said, “I love America more than any other country in this world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.”

As the words “not guilty” fell from the lips of the six jurors in the Trayvon Martin murder case on Saturday night, I thought to myself how those two words have never been applied to African-American humanity in America.

This opprobrious verdict reaffirmed everything African-Americans thought about this country that our humanity and citizenship isn’t recognized under the laws of the United States. I’ve never been more disappointed in the country of my birth. The American justice system continues to set a double standard when it comes to dishing out prison sentences to African-Americans and whites.

As a young African-American man living in the south, it made me pause and realize that this ruling can give anyone the opportunity to take my life whenever they feel threatened because of my skin color or how I walk, talk or dress. What is a black life worth? The answer was already abundantly clear from history, but those six jurors confirmed our deepest, darkest suspicions.

Since arriving on the shores of Jamestown, Virginia in 1619, African-Americans have been convicted in the court of white supremacy as being less than human. Our hellacious suffering provided whites the capital to build a country based on the principles of white hegemony. African-Americans were never part of their equation other than providing a consistent source of free labor. When the founding fathers were writing the Declaration of Independence and Constitution, they couldn’t fathom the humanity of their slaves and their offspring. For 394 years, we’ve been America’s doormat and punching bag.

The cancer of racism thrives in America because the ones with the power refuse to acknowledge minorities as their equals. Race was devised as a social construct in order for whites to establish and maintain their dominance in political and economic affairs in America. The truth is we’ve been living in two Americas based on race and class. The United States of America is in name only. If we were truly united, African-Americans wouldn’t have to endure systematic subjugation and degradation on a daily basis.

The cancer of racism thrives in the halls of Congress, state legislatures, educational institutions, judicial proceedings, and the evidence can be seen in the refusal to work with the first African-American president to pass laws to uplift minorities out of their perilous conditions. If it’s not gerrymandering or redistricting to dilute our voting power, it’s constructing private prisons and using the War on Drugs as a conduit to incarcerate African-Americans at an astronomical rate. If it’s not closing schools in impoverished neighborhoods across the nation, it’s cutting social programs that ease the strenuous burden put on our households every day.

Racism is as American as Uncle Sam and his red, white, and blue outfit. Then, you wonder why African-Americans have the highest rates of high blood pressure, prostate and breast cancer, diabetes, among other ailments. It’s because we’re stressed out and tired of being confined in an unjust system that was never intended for us to become successful. But it’s a testament to our character of how we’ve been able to rise above it and achieve numerous successes.

There have been countless examples ranging from police brutalities, murders, and passage of laws that continue the troubling trend of psychological and physical oppression. This white hegemonic system has stalled the progression of African-Americans for far too long. These latest atrocities of Jordan Davis, Marissa Alexander, and Gabby Calhoun are an extension of this system, which is pervasive throughout our culture. Most of our white brethren still refuse to acknowledge these facts as well as the statistics proving black disenfranchisement. Before we can fully progress as a society, this ignorant denial has to cease.

The cancer of racism fools poor whites into voting for a political party that has no interest in solving their financial and social ills. The cancer of racism makes voting damn near impossible in the south after the Voting Rights Act was dismantled. The cancer of racism has the Republican Party wanting to turn the clock back to 1913 through their divisive policies. The cancer of racism allows defense attorneys Don West and Mark O’Mara and jurors to exercise their privilege in portraying Trayvon Martin as a criminal when he was an innocent child. The cancer of racism provides the opportunity for police militarized states to stop and frisk young African-American men every day.

For every person in this society to begin receiving a fair shake, each one of us has to become proactive in fighting on the side of right and not on the side of privilege. America will never be a post-racial society unless serious dialogue and actions to reform these inadequate measures begin. The work needs to take place in American homes and to a larger extent our schools and lawmaking bodies. The responsibility of tackling this dreaded disease falls at the feet of Generations X and Y.

To my white brothers and sisters, it must begin with you all. The time has arrived for racism to be discussed, denounced, and deposed of. No more standing on the sidelines. If our country is to become truly united, these unlawful injustices and practices must be addressed and policies must be enacted to curtail the centuries of damage already done. African-Americans have been fighting on the battlefield of justice for as long as you’ve been conspiring against us. While you hold the cards, we’ve more than earned our seat at the playing table to start this process of gaining racial conciliation and economic empowerment.

The future of our society is contingent upon this potential of mutual respect. Now,the Presidential election is close, and there is a racist who is contesting for the Presidential seat but already,he has brainwashed the whites against blacks.If that racist becomes the President of America,his racist supporters will start treating us like strangers in our own land instead of treating us as brothers and sisters.we are like families. Otherwise, the cancer of racism will destroy this country.

 Written by Chris Williams

 Twitter.com/@iamchriswms,www.chriswilliamswrites.com

Chris Williams is an internationally published writer who has written feature articles covering the topics of politics, race, culture, entertainment, and world events. His work has been featured on the BBC, National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), PopMatters, and Black America Web. He is a frequent contributor to Ebony. He is working on his first book.