Greg Nwoko Historic Blog
Friday, 13 February 2015
Eze Nri Òbalíke is the 15th recorded Eze Nri of the Kingdom of Nri in modern day southeastern Nigeria. He is said to have ruled from around the year 1889 till 1936.
Accompanied by British colonial authority, Christian missionaries, saw the existing ritual system of administration, based on traditional religious faith, as a barrier to the spread of their gospel. When the British continued to take over the administration of the Igbo in 1907, both the forces of the colonial authority and the Christian missionaries focused on destroying the Nri traditional authority. Military attempts to capture Nri and the Eze Nri ended in complete failure. However, forcing Eze Nri Obalike, against a long-standing tradition, to leave Nri town to attend the native at Awka by threatening to commit genocide against the Igbos, was one of the acts designed to achieve this end. Eze Nri Obalike agreed to leave Nri in order to save innocent lives. The government anthropologist, Northcote Thomas, confirmed that when Eze Nri Obalike appeared in the court, ‘the whole assembly rose and prepared to flee’. This is because, that was the first time an Ezenri was seen in person.
The final act of destruction, after the British introduced the warrant Chief system in 1911, was to force all chiefs and community leaders to denounce the Eze Nri. But before then, Eze Nri Obalike was also forced to annul all codes of taboo and abomination still binding the towns to Nri. It was as the result of this hostility that the ritual influence of Nri narrowed to the nearest relations of the kingship. These were made up of Nri (Agukwu, Akamkpisi and Diodo), Enugwu-Ukwu, Nawfia, Enugwu-Agidi and Oruora jointly referred to as Umunri. Though the five towns mentioned above are said to belong to Umu-Nri clan, they are not direct descendants of Nri Ifikuanim.
Photo taken by Northcorte Thomas in 1910 as Obalike sounds his bell.
Labi Siffre (born 25 June 1945) is a British poet, songwriter, musician, and singer.
Born the fourth of five children, at Queen Charlotte's Hospital in Hammersmith, London to a British mother of Barbadian–Belgian descent and a Nigerian father, Siffre was brought up in Bayswater and Hampstead and educated at a Catholic independent day school, St Benedict's School, in Ealing, west London. Despite his Catholic education Siffre has stated that he has always been an atheist.
Siffre played at Annie Ross's club in Soho in the 1960s as part of a house band.
He released six albums were released between 1970 and 1975, and four between 1988 and 1998. In the early 1970s, he had UK hits with "It Must Be Love" (No. 14, 1971) (later covered by and a No. 4 hit for Madness, for which Siffre himself appeared in the video); "Crying Laughing Loving Lying" (No. 11, 1972); and "Watch Me" (No. 29, 1972).
1985: retirement
Siffre came out of self-imposed retirement from music in 1985 when he saw a television film from South Africa showing a white soldier shooting at black children.He wrote "(Something Inside) So Strong" (No. 4, 1987)
Tiwatope Savage-Balogun (born 5 February 1980), better known by her stage name Tiwa Savage, is a Nigerian singer-songwriter, recording artist, performer and actress. She is currently signed to Sony/ATV Music Publishing and Mavin Records
She co-wrote the track "Collard Greens & Cornbread" on Fantasia Barrino's Grammy-nominated album Back to Me. Savage was featured on Solar Plexus, a compilation album that was released a day after the establishment of Mavin Records. On 3 July 2013, she released her debut studio album Once Upon a Time. Savage sings in English and Yoruba. As a singer, her achievements include one MTV Africa Music Award, two The Headies Awards, one Channel O Music Video Award, one Nigeria Music Video Award, and two City People Entertainment Awards, among others.
Tiwa Savage was born in Lagos, Nigeria. Her family relocated to London from Nigeria when she was 11 years old. Whilst attending high school, she was a trombone player for her school's orchestra band. Savage had a healthy upbringing; she grew up in a multicultural setting due to her migration from Nigeria to the United Kingdom, and from the United Kingdom to the United States. After graduating with a degree in Business administration from the University of Kent, Savage started working at The Royal Bank of Scotland. She did backup vocals for George Michael at the age of 16, and lent vocals to other musicians such as Mary J. Blige, Chaka Khan, Blu Cantrell, Emma Bunton, Kelly Clarkson, Andrea Bocelli, and Ms. Dynamite, among others. Furthermore, she has performed on stage with Sting, 50 Cent, The Black Eyed Peas, Eminem, Robbie Williams and Destiny's Child, to name a few.
Savage enrolled at Berklee College of Music and graduated with a degree in professional music at the age of 27. While reminiscing about her experiences there, she said she was motivated by the drive and passion of the younger students. She also said she needed the school's atmosphere. Savage spoke briefly on the challenges musicians face during their transition from backup to lead, and said that artists face more scrutiny when their performances are mediocre. Her business background has helped her fully understand the scope of the Nigerian music industry. Savage spoke about her business background and said that her level of professionalism does not make her susceptible to deception.
In 2006, Savage participated in the UK edition of The X Factor and advanced to the final 24 while attending the aforementioned music school. While participating in the popular music competition franchise, she had difficulty dealing with the limelight. "You have to always realize that people are watching. When I got the bad news that I wasn't getting through [to the final 12] it was a really painful time. But you still have to learn how to hold that until you get home. Because you don't want to just let everything out. People admire you and want to see that you're strong; they don't want to see you breaking down"
Tiwa Savage was born in Lagos, Nigeria. Her family relocated to London from Nigeria when she was 11 years old. Whilst attending high school, she was a trombone player for her school's orchestra band. Savage had a healthy upbringing; she grew up in a multicultural setting due to her migration from Nigeria to the United Kingdom, and from the United Kingdom to the United States. After graduating with a degree in Business administration from the University of Kent, Savage started working at The Royal Bank of Scotland. She did backup vocals for George Michael at the age of 16, and lent vocals to other musicians such as Mary J. Blige, Chaka Khan, Blu Cantrell, Emma Bunton, Kelly Clarkson, Andrea Bocelli, and Ms. Dynamite, among others. Furthermore, she has performed on stage with Sting, 50 Cent, The Black Eyed Peas, Eminem, Robbie Williams and Destiny's Child, to name a few.
Savage enrolled at Berklee College of Music and graduated with a degree in professional music at the age of 27. While reminiscing about her experiences there, she said she was motivated by the drive and passion of the younger students. She also said she needed the school's atmosphere. Savage spoke briefly on the challenges musicians face during their transition from backup to lead, and said that artists face more scrutiny when their performances are mediocre. Her business background has helped her fully understand the scope of the Nigerian music industry. Savage spoke about her business background and said that her level of professionalism does not make her susceptible to deception.
In 2006, Savage participated in the UK edition of The X Factor and advanced to the final 24 while attending the aforementioned music school. While participating in the popular music competition franchise, she had difficulty dealing with the limelight. "You have to always realize that people are watching. When I got the bad news that I wasn't getting through [to the final 12] it was a really painful time. But you still have to learn how to hold that until you get home. Because you don't want to just let everything out. People admire you and want to see that you're strong; they don't want to see you breaking down"
1st edition cover of Things Fall Apart written by Chinua Achebe
Since its publication in 1958 it has become the most popular African novel in history selling over 8 million copies in 50 different languages. Mr. Achebe died on March 23, 2013 at the age of 82.
SWEET POTATOE
Fifty percent of the sweet potatoes in the U.S. are produced in North
Carolina. The states of California, Louisiana, and Mississippi harvest
most of the remaining fifty percent. One cup of cooked sweet potatoes
contain 377 percent of our daily requirement of vitamin A. Many
people are confused about the difference between yams and sweet
potatoes. Nigeria leads the world in yam production, and yams are seldom
found in the U.S. They contain only a meager amount of vitamin A, and
are drie.
Amina Sukhera was a princess of Zazzau (now Zaria)
The great African woman called Amina Sukhera was a princess of Zazzau (now Zaria), in what is now northern Nigeria. She was born near the year 1533 and died about the year 1610. The Arabic name Amina means truthful, trustworthy and honest. Amina Sukhera was a fierce warrior. According to tradition, as a child, Amina’s grandmother once caught her holding a dagger. As an adult, Amina refused to marry, and helped Zazzau (Zaria) become a focal point for trade and commercial activity. She also expanded its territory. The introduction of kola nuts into cultivation in the area is attributed to Amina. A statue at Amina at the National Arts Theatre in Lagos, Nigeria, honors her, and numerous educational institutions bear her name.
Thursday, 12 February 2015
VISIT KAJURU CASTLE NIGERIA.
Kajuru German Castle. Kajuru, Kaduna State, Nigeria. Built in 1978 by
Hermann Huebner, an eccentric and visionary German businessman.
HON AENEAS GOWONO. (OLDEST MEMBER HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE NIGERIA 1979-83)
Hon M. G. Aeneas Gowono was born in Numan, Gongola State on January 5th, 1918. His father, Mr Gowono Nzobargie, a farmer, has eleven children. His mother, Mrs Myarnoro is a full time housewife.
A devoted Christian, Hon Gowono attended the Boys Boarding School, Numan in 1927. He trained as a teacher in 1935, attended the British Council Course in Zaria in 1952 and was at the Institute of Administration Zaria in 1955. He worked as a revenue officer in 1957.
Hon Gowono taught at the S.U.M School Numan between 1938 and 1943. He was at the Numan Local Authourity between 1946 to 1961. From 1962 until he went into politics, he was a full time farmer.
He has three wives with well over eighteen children.
He is keenly interested in fishing and hunting.
Wednesday, 11 February 2015
Sir Albert Ernest Kitson KBE, CMG (21 March 1868 – 8 March 1937) was a British/Australian Geologist and Naturalist, winner of the Lyell Medal in 1927.
Albert Kitson joined the Public Service in Victoria in 1886 as a clerk. Whilst still employed in this function he also carried out geological field work. This fired a passion and encouraged him to take up part-time studies in geology at the Working Men's College (now the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology) and subsequently at the University of Melbourne. By 1903, he had risen to become second-in-command of the Geological Survey of Victoria of which he subsequently became senior geologist and for a time acting director. He contributed a number of studies on the mineral resources of Victoria and the Glacial beds of Tasmania. In 1907, Albert Kitson recommended that the Buchan Caves in Gippsland, Victoria be set aside as a reservation to protect them from vandalism.
After his initial work in Victoria, Kitson spent much of his subsequent professional life in Africa. Recognising his geological talents Professor J. W. Gregory recommended him for a post as Principal mineral surveyor in Southern Nigeria where he went on to discover coal and lignite. In 1909 he discovered black bituminous coal along the Enugu-Udi escarpment in Nigeria and high hopes were placed in such a potentially important coal deposit. The town of Port Harcourt was built in 1912 as an outlet for this Nigerian coal and was linked with Enugu via a railway line that extended northwards to Kaduna. The Enugu coal fields went into production in 1915 and caused an important immigration of population to Enugu earning the town the nickname of the 'Coal City'. The Nigerian coal turned out to be of poor quality and was used mainly for domestic consumption within the colonies, providing an important power resource for the railways and electricity.
Although Kitson's mission was to discover mineral deposits which might be exploited by the British Colonial authority he always combined this with a paternalistic concern to improve the material situation of the local populations. In 1912, after hearing a lecture by J.P. Unstead about the climatic conditions for wheat cultivation in North America, Kitson's response was to ask whether Unstead's findings might be applied to Nigeria. Kitson argued: "Could a wheat-growing industry be established it would be a great boon to the people of West Africa". In paternalistic tones he went on: "It might in Northern Nigeria replace to a large extent the less valuable millet now grown there, while in Southern Nigeria it could materially supplement the staple foods- cassava, yams and maize".
After Nigeria, Kitson continued his explorations in Africa, along with Edmund Thiele, working particularly in the Gold Coast (now Ghana) between 1913–30 where he was first Principal of the Mineral Survey and afterwards Director of the Geological Survey. Kitson travelled round the colony by train and bicycle and discovered sizeable mineral deposits including bauxite and manganese.The first manganese ore which he discovered was in May 1914 when he found occurrences near the Sekondi-Kumassi Railway about 6 miles (9.7 km) from Tarkwa.These deposits were important to Britain's war effort, as supplies of these minerals from other locations had become difficult. During the last year of the war 32 000 tons of manganese, used in munitions production, were shipped to Britain from the deposits Kitson had found in the Gold Coast.[4] Then in February 1919, together with his colleague E.O.Teale (formerly Thiele), he discovered on the Birrim River the first deposits of diamonds to be found in the Gold Coast. The diamonds were of small size but high quality. Kitson observed that they were good crystals showing octahedron and dodecahedron. This proved to be a particularly valuable source of diamonds and the exportation of diamonds grew spectacularly. In 1934 the 2,172,563 carats (434.5126 kg) of diamonds exported from the Gold Coast accounted for 39% of the world's supply that year.
Kitson is also associated with the development of hydro-electric power in the Gold Coast/Ghana. In 1915 he was the first to recommend building a dam at Akosombo on the Volta River to generate hydro-electricity, hoping to use this to process the bauxite deposits which he had discovered in the Kwahu plateau the previous year. It was not until 1965 that the idea of the dam was put into effect when Ghana's first black president, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, decided to generate hydropower as a means of modernizing the economy. This development created Lake Volta, the largest man-made lake in the world.
Israel Idonije, O.M. (born November 17, 1980) is a Nigerian-Canadian defensive end who is currently a free agent.
Idonije was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Cleveland Browns out of the University of Manitoba. A draft pick of the now defunct Ottawa Renegades of the Canadian Football League, for whom he never played, Idonije spent the start 2003 season on the Browns' practice squad prior to his release in September. He was subsequently signed to the Chicago Bears' practice squad for the final six weeks of the season.
He has also played for the Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears, and New York Giants.
Idonije was born in Lagos, Nigeria and immigrated with his family to Brandon, Manitoba, Canada, when he was four years old. He attended Vincent Massey High School in Brandon and, though he had never played football and was reluctant, coach Kevin Grindey convinced him to play when the school restarted its Canadian football program in 1997, when Idonije was a senior in high school. He went on to play CIS football for the Manitoba Bisons. During this time he worked as a daycare teacher in Winnipeg, Manitoba, played in the East-West Shrine Game, and was drafted 17th overall by the Ottawa Renegades in the 2003 CFL Draft. At Manitoba from 2000–02, Idonije recorded 16 sacks which stands fourth all-time in Bison history. He helped lead the Bison to the 2001 Vanier Cup where Manitoba was defeated by the Saint Mary's Huskies. In 2002, Idonije was named 2002 Manitoba Male Athlete of the Year. His goal, however, was to play in the National Football League.
He has also played for the Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears, and New York Giants.
Idonije was born in Lagos, Nigeria and immigrated with his family to Brandon, Manitoba, Canada, when he was four years old. He attended Vincent Massey High School in Brandon and, though he had never played football and was reluctant, coach Kevin Grindey convinced him to play when the school restarted its Canadian football program in 1997, when Idonije was a senior in high school. He went on to play CIS football for the Manitoba Bisons. During this time he worked as a daycare teacher in Winnipeg, Manitoba, played in the East-West Shrine Game, and was drafted 17th overall by the Ottawa Renegades in the 2003 CFL Draft. At Manitoba from 2000–02, Idonije recorded 16 sacks which stands fourth all-time in Bison history. He helped lead the Bison to the 2001 Vanier Cup where Manitoba was defeated by the Saint Mary's Huskies. In 2002, Idonije was named 2002 Manitoba Male Athlete of the Year. His goal, however, was to play in the National Football League.
Jarome Arthur-Leigh Adekunle Tig Junior Elvis Iginla.born July 1, 1977) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player and an alternate captain for the Colorado Avalanche in the National Hockey League (NHL)
Iginla was born in Edmonton, Alberta, but raised in St. Albert, Alberta. His father, a lawyer, was born in Nigeria and changed his first name from Adekunle to Elvis when he arrived in Canada. His surname means "Big tree" in Yoruba, his father's native language. Iginla's mother, Susan, is originally from Oregon, and has worked as a massage therapist and music teacher. Iginla grew up with his mother and grandparents after his parents divorced when he was a year old. While his mother is a Buddhist, he identifies himself as Christian, his father's faith.
Jamal Dasuki Idris (born 6 July 1990) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Penrith Panthers of the National Rugby League.
An Australia national and New South Wales State of Origin representative centre, he previously played NRL clubs the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and Gold Coast Titans, as well as the Indigenous Australian representative side.
The son of an Aboriginal mother and a Nigerian father, Idris spent two years growing up in an Aboriginal mission in Forster on the New South Wales Mid North Coast with his younger brother, Isaac, and mother, Alana. The family moved to Sydney, where Idris now lives, because of Jamal's interest in athletics, especially javelin throwing . Following several representative seasons in athletics, Idris took up rugby league in high school. His junior clubs were Chester Hill Hornets, Merrylands Rams, Fairfield Patrician Brothers, Bankstown Sports, Guildford Raiders, Berala Bears and Forster Tuncurry Hawkes.
Due to his physical size (199 cm height, 115 kg weight), his looks and his dreadlocked hairstyle, Idris has been confused for Lote Tuqiri by even his own family.
Before the start of the 2014 NRL season, the Penrith Panthers signed Idris on a three-year deal. In a return deal, the Panthers released Brad Tighe from the final two years of his contract to join the Titans.
The son of an Aboriginal mother and a Nigerian father, Idris spent two years growing up in an Aboriginal mission in Forster on the New South Wales Mid North Coast with his younger brother, Isaac, and mother, Alana. The family moved to Sydney, where Idris now lives, because of Jamal's interest in athletics, especially javelin throwing . Following several representative seasons in athletics, Idris took up rugby league in high school. His junior clubs were Chester Hill Hornets, Merrylands Rams, Fairfield Patrician Brothers, Bankstown Sports, Guildford Raiders, Berala Bears and Forster Tuncurry Hawkes.
Due to his physical size (199 cm height, 115 kg weight), his looks and his dreadlocked hairstyle, Idris has been confused for Lote Tuqiri by even his own family.
Before the start of the 2014 NRL season, the Penrith Panthers signed Idris on a three-year deal. In a return deal, the Panthers released Brad Tighe from the final two years of his contract to join the Titans.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE 1979-1983: HONOURABLE MICHAEL ASHIKEDI AGBAMUCHE
Honourable Michael Agbamuche was born on the 16th
August 1920 at Akwukwu Igbo, in the Oshimili Local Government Authourity in
Bendel State.He attended St Johns C.M.S School, Akwukwu Igbo from
1930-1936 and Jos Government School, Plateau State from 1937-1940.
He moved unto the North Western Polythecnic in London and
graduated LL.B Hons at the Kings College, University of London in 1956.
The Honourable member passed his bar final exams and was
called to the Bar by the Honourable society of the Middle Temple. The Honourable
is a Barrister-at-law and a Solicitor of the Supreme Court.
Honourable Agbamuche was a Principal State Councel in Bendel
State Ministry of Justice from the 1st December 1966 to May 1968. He
went into private legal practice in Kano from 1958-1966 and moved to Lagos in
1968 to set up another private legal practice which is still in operation.
Hon Agabmuche was a Councillor in the Oshimili Local
Government Area, 1977-1979. A Christia by faith,
Honourable Agbamuche has two
wives, Mercy and Love, and has several children.
He is a member of the National Peoples Party and
represents Oshimili Federal Constituency in the House of Representative
Tuesday, 10 February 2015
Ely Calil (born 8 December 1945 in Kano, Nigeria) is a Lebanese businessman holding a British citizenship.
He is one of the richest men in Britain; The Sunday Times Magazine estimated his wealth in 2010 to be around £350 million.
Ely Calil's original source of wealth was inheritance. His father, George Calil (Kano), founded a ground oil empire and the Nigerian Oil Mills (NOM) which was later managed by Ely's younger brother Bernard Calil. After his father's death in 1970 the wealth was bequeathed to Ely and his brother Bernard. Later on Ely expanded his wealth in property and finance. He successfully negotiated a number of oil mining deals in Nigeria in the 1980s.
His powerful circle of friends includes Britain's First Secretary of State Peter Mandelson, the son of the former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Baron Mark Thatcher and Lord Archer. Calil was also a very close friend to late tycoons as Sir James Goldsmith, John Aspinall and Mark Birley.
In 2002, Calil was arrested in Paris in connection with the Elf Aquitaine scandal which reached into the heart of French government. He denied taking bribery of £40 million and was released without any charges.
Ely Calil's original source of wealth was inheritance. His father, George Calil (Kano), founded a ground oil empire and the Nigerian Oil Mills (NOM) which was later managed by Ely's younger brother Bernard Calil. After his father's death in 1970 the wealth was bequeathed to Ely and his brother Bernard. Later on Ely expanded his wealth in property and finance. He successfully negotiated a number of oil mining deals in Nigeria in the 1980s.
His powerful circle of friends includes Britain's First Secretary of State Peter Mandelson, the son of the former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Baron Mark Thatcher and Lord Archer. Calil was also a very close friend to late tycoons as Sir James Goldsmith, John Aspinall and Mark Birley.
In 2002, Calil was arrested in Paris in connection with the Elf Aquitaine scandal which reached into the heart of French government. He denied taking bribery of £40 million and was released without any charges.
Attia Nasreddin is a businessman of Eritrean origin who currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Nasco Group in Nigeria.
The Nasco Group was established in Jos in 1963 by Nasreddin's father, Ahmed Idris Nasreddin. The company grew from its small roots to become a major conglomerate with four major manufacturing units and other investments in the service sector. The company has a strong focus on agro-business and is involved in backward integration in this sector.
In 1981, Nasreddin became the Managing Director of Nasco Estate Company Limited, Lagos, Nigeria. By 1983, he had become Vice President of Nasco International, Milan Italy. In 1990, he assumed the office of President of Nasco Group Nigeria Limited, until 1999, when he was elevated this time as the Vice Chairman of Nasco Group International Milan Italy. Since 2004 Nasreddin has served as Chairman/CEO of Nasco Group Limited Jos.
Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey, DBE (born 8 January 1937)
Shirley Veronica Bassey was the sixth and last child of Henry Bassey and Eliza Jane Start and was born in Tiger Bay, Cardiff, Wales, of paternal Nigerian and maternal English descent.
Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey, DBE (born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer with a career spanning more than 60 years. Originally finding fame in the mid-1950s, Bassey has been called "one of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the 20th century.
In the US, in particular, she is best known for recording the theme songs to the James Bond films Goldfinger (1964), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), and Moonraker (1979).
Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey, DBE (born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer with a career spanning more than 60 years. Originally finding fame in the mid-1950s, Bassey has been called "one of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the 20th century.
In the US, in particular, she is best known for recording the theme songs to the James Bond films Goldfinger (1964), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), and Moonraker (1979).
Cudjo Lewis (1841–1935) is considered the last survivor of the last slave ship to enter the United States.
He was born around 1841 to a Yoruba family in the Banté region of Dahomey (today Benin). At age 14, he began his training as a soldier & was inducted into oro, the Yoruba secret male society; by age 19, he was undergoing initiation. His initiation training was cut short, however, in the spring of 1860 when soldiers from Dahomey raided his town, killing townspeople & taking prisoners.
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street, colloquially known in the United Kingdom as "Number 10", is the headquarters of the British Government and the official residence and office of the First Lord of the Treasury, an office now invariably held by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Situated in Downing Street in the City of Westminster, London, Number 10 is over three hundred years old and contains approximately one hundred rooms. There is a private residence on the third floor and a kitchen in the basement. The other floors contain offices and conference, reception, sitting and dining rooms where the Prime Minister works, and where government ministers, national leaders and foreign dignitaries are met and entertained. There is an interior courtyard and, in the back, a terrace overlooking a garden of 0.5 acres (2,000 m2). Adjacent to St. James's Park, Number 10 is near to Buckingham Palace, the official London residence of the British monarch, and the Palace of Westminster, the meeting place of both houses of parliament.
Originally three houses, Number 10 was offered to Sir Robert Walpole by George II in 1732. Walpole accepted on the condition that they be a gift to the office of First Lord of the Treasury rather than to him personally. Walpole commissioned William Kent to join the three houses together. It is this larger house that is known today as "Number 10 Downing Street".
The arrangement was not an immediate success. Despite its size and convenient location near to Parliament, few early Prime Ministers lived there. Costly to maintain, neglected, and run-down, Number 10 was close to being razed several times. Nevertheless, the property survived and became linked with many statesmen and events in British history. In 1985 Margaret Thatcher said Number 10 had become "one of the most precious jewels in the national heritage.
Situated in Downing Street in the City of Westminster, London, Number 10 is over three hundred years old and contains approximately one hundred rooms. There is a private residence on the third floor and a kitchen in the basement. The other floors contain offices and conference, reception, sitting and dining rooms where the Prime Minister works, and where government ministers, national leaders and foreign dignitaries are met and entertained. There is an interior courtyard and, in the back, a terrace overlooking a garden of 0.5 acres (2,000 m2). Adjacent to St. James's Park, Number 10 is near to Buckingham Palace, the official London residence of the British monarch, and the Palace of Westminster, the meeting place of both houses of parliament.
Originally three houses, Number 10 was offered to Sir Robert Walpole by George II in 1732. Walpole accepted on the condition that they be a gift to the office of First Lord of the Treasury rather than to him personally. Walpole commissioned William Kent to join the three houses together. It is this larger house that is known today as "Number 10 Downing Street".
The arrangement was not an immediate success. Despite its size and convenient location near to Parliament, few early Prime Ministers lived there. Costly to maintain, neglected, and run-down, Number 10 was close to being razed several times. Nevertheless, the property survived and became linked with many statesmen and events in British history. In 1985 Margaret Thatcher said Number 10 had become "one of the most precious jewels in the national heritage.
Michael Ani (1976-1979) Chairman of the Federal Electoral Commission (FEDECO).
Michael Ani (1976-1979) Chief Michael Ani also from
Cross River State was appointed in 1976 by the General Olusegun Obasanjo
regime as the Chairman of the Federal Electoral Commission (FEDECO).
Ani’s commission conducted the election which ushered in the Second
Republic government of Alhaji Shehu Shagari. on October 1, 1979.
However, the defunct Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), led by late Chief
Obafemi Awolowo, rejected the outcome of the election and challenged
Shagari’s election in court but lost.
Afeni Shakur
Afeni Shakur was rounded up along with the rest of the Panther 21 in 1970 as part of a government raid intended to break the Black Panther Party. She and the others were found innocent after spending several years in prison. In 1971, while incarcerated, she gave birth to Tupac Shakur.
ONLY BLACK FAMILY ON THE TITANIC 1912
Joseph Philippe Lemercier Laroche (26 May 1886 – 15 April 1912) was a Paris-educated Haitian engineer. He was the only passenger of known African ancestry on the ill-fated voyage of the RMS Titanic. He put his pregnant French wife and their two daughters onto a lifeboat; they survived, but he did not. Joseph's daughter, Louise Laroche (2 July 1910 – 28 January 1998) was one of the last remaining survivors of the sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 15, 1912.
Monday, 9 February 2015
Major Daniel Idowu Bamidele (1949 - March 5, 1986)
Major Daniel Idowu Bamidele (1949 - March 5, 1986) was a Nigerian army officer who was executed by the government of Major General Ibrahim Babangida for failing to report an alleged conspiracy against the government, what is popularly referred to as the "Vatsa Coup". Bamidele was charged with conspiracy to commit treason.
In October 1983 during an official trip to Kaduna to print his Divisional brief for the Chief of Army Staff Conference, Daniel Bamidele heard of rumors about a planned coup against President Shagari. When he returned to Jos he promptly reported to his General Officer Commanding (GOC), Major General Muhammadu Buhari (who, unknown to Bamidele at that time was in the thick of the plot). A week later, Bamidele found himself on a plane to Lagos, detained by the Directorate of Military Intelligence at Tego Barracks and accused of plotting a coup against Shagari. Fake witnesses were paraded and a mock interrogation contrived, while reports were being made to the NSO (then under Umaru Shinkafi) to mislead the Shagari regime. Meanwhile the real plot continued underground with the full involvement of the same Military Intelligence group that was interrogating him.Finally, on November 25, 1983 with no credible witness to nail him, and no legal basis to charge him for a one man conspiracy, Bamidele was released. He returned to Jos, befuddled about what had actually transpired, until on January 1, 1984 his own GOC, Buhari, to whom he had reported the plot emerged as the new Head of State!
In early 1984, Bamidele's name was listed for retirement. However, when the list got to Buhari for approval, he crossed Bamidele's name out - recognizing that the officer was caught in a complex vortex and web of intrigue. After being saved from retirement at the last minute he got deployed to Jaji as a Directing Staff.
Bamidele was implicated in the conspiracy because of a meeting at a guest house in Makurdi with Lt Col Michael Iyorshe and some other officers (Lt Col Musa Bitiyong, Lt Col Christian Oche, Wing Commander Ben Ekele, and Wing Commander Adamu Sakaba) where political criticisms of the Babangida Administration were made but no seditious nor operational coup details were discussed.
Though the connections to any coup are arguable, Bamidele, learning from his ordeal in 1983 kept quiet about any coups, was arrested, tried by a Special Military Tribunal and was executed by firing squad on March 5, 1986 along with others such as Major General Mamman Vatsa. Bamidele's words to the tribunal were
I heard of the 1983 coup planning, told my GOC General Buhari who detained me for two weeks in Lagos. Instead of a pat on the back, I received a stab. How then do you expect me to report this one? This trial marks the eclipse of my brilliant and unblemished career of 19 years. I fought in the civil war with the ability it pleased God to give me. It is unfortunate that I'm being convicted for something which I have had to stop on two occasions. This is not self adulation but a sincere summary of the qualities inherent in me. It is an irony of fate that the president of the tribunal who in 1964 felt that I was good enough to take training in the UK is now saddled with the duty of showing me the exit from the force and the world
In October 1983 during an official trip to Kaduna to print his Divisional brief for the Chief of Army Staff Conference, Daniel Bamidele heard of rumors about a planned coup against President Shagari. When he returned to Jos he promptly reported to his General Officer Commanding (GOC), Major General Muhammadu Buhari (who, unknown to Bamidele at that time was in the thick of the plot). A week later, Bamidele found himself on a plane to Lagos, detained by the Directorate of Military Intelligence at Tego Barracks and accused of plotting a coup against Shagari. Fake witnesses were paraded and a mock interrogation contrived, while reports were being made to the NSO (then under Umaru Shinkafi) to mislead the Shagari regime. Meanwhile the real plot continued underground with the full involvement of the same Military Intelligence group that was interrogating him.Finally, on November 25, 1983 with no credible witness to nail him, and no legal basis to charge him for a one man conspiracy, Bamidele was released. He returned to Jos, befuddled about what had actually transpired, until on January 1, 1984 his own GOC, Buhari, to whom he had reported the plot emerged as the new Head of State!
In early 1984, Bamidele's name was listed for retirement. However, when the list got to Buhari for approval, he crossed Bamidele's name out - recognizing that the officer was caught in a complex vortex and web of intrigue. After being saved from retirement at the last minute he got deployed to Jaji as a Directing Staff.
Bamidele was implicated in the conspiracy because of a meeting at a guest house in Makurdi with Lt Col Michael Iyorshe and some other officers (Lt Col Musa Bitiyong, Lt Col Christian Oche, Wing Commander Ben Ekele, and Wing Commander Adamu Sakaba) where political criticisms of the Babangida Administration were made but no seditious nor operational coup details were discussed.
Though the connections to any coup are arguable, Bamidele, learning from his ordeal in 1983 kept quiet about any coups, was arrested, tried by a Special Military Tribunal and was executed by firing squad on March 5, 1986 along with others such as Major General Mamman Vatsa. Bamidele's words to the tribunal were
I heard of the 1983 coup planning, told my GOC General Buhari who detained me for two weeks in Lagos. Instead of a pat on the back, I received a stab. How then do you expect me to report this one? This trial marks the eclipse of my brilliant and unblemished career of 19 years. I fought in the civil war with the ability it pleased God to give me. It is unfortunate that I'm being convicted for something which I have had to stop on two occasions. This is not self adulation but a sincere summary of the qualities inherent in me. It is an irony of fate that the president of the tribunal who in 1964 felt that I was good enough to take training in the UK is now saddled with the duty of showing me the exit from the force and the world
Michael Ani (born 30 November 1917) was chairman of the Federal Electoral Commission (FEDECO) 2ND IN OFFICE.
established by General Olusegun Obasanjo to conduct elections leading to the Nigerian Second Republic, which was inaugurated on October 1, 1979. He held office from 1976 to 1979.
Michael Ani was a civil servant. In 1966 he had been appointed a Commissioner by Ironsi to assist in reviewing unification of the regional public services. His 1976 appointment followed his retirement from the Civil Service. The functions of his 24-man Federal Electoral Commission established on 15 November 1976 included the conduct of elections, delimitation of constituencies and registration of political parties. The August 1979 presidential election was won by Alhaji Shehu Shagari, although his victory was disputed since it was based on Ani's interpretation of the ambiguous electoral decree which said "a candidate must obtain one quarter of votes cast in at least two thirds of the states of the federation".
Michael Ani was a civil servant. In 1966 he had been appointed a Commissioner by Ironsi to assist in reviewing unification of the regional public services. His 1976 appointment followed his retirement from the Civil Service. The functions of his 24-man Federal Electoral Commission established on 15 November 1976 included the conduct of elections, delimitation of constituencies and registration of political parties. The August 1979 presidential election was won by Alhaji Shehu Shagari, although his victory was disputed since it was based on Ani's interpretation of the ambiguous electoral decree which said "a candidate must obtain one quarter of votes cast in at least two thirds of the states of the federation".
HE POURED ACID INTO THE SWIMMIMG POOL TO AVOID BLACKS SWIMMING THERE IN 1964. James E. "Jimmy" Brock.
On June 18, 1964, black and white protesters jumped into the whites-only pool at the Monson Motor Lodge in St. Augustine, Fla. In an attempt to force them out, the owner of the hotel poured acid into the pool.
Martin Luther King Jr. had planned the sit-in during the St. Augustine Movement, a part of the larger civil rights movement. The protest — and the owner's acidic response — is largely forgotten today, but it played a role in the passing of the Civil Rights Act, now celebrating its 50th anniversary.
J.T. Johnson, now 76, and Al Lingo, 78, were two of the protesters in the pool that day. On a visit to StoryCorps in Atlanta, the pair recalled the hotel owner, James Brock, "losing it."
"Everybody was kind of caught off guard," J.T. says.
"The girls, they were most frightened, and we moved to the center of the pool," Al says.
"I tried to calm the gang down. I knew that there was too much water for that acid to do anything," J.T. says. "When they drug us out in bathing suits and they carried us out to the jail, they wouldn't feed me because they said I didn't have on any clothes. I said, 'Well, that's the way you locked me up!'
"But all of the news media were there, because somehow I guess they'd gotten word that something was going to happen at that pool that day. And I think that's when President [Lyndon B.] Johnson got the message."
The following day, the Civil Rights Act was approved, after an 83-day filibuster in the U.S. Senate.
"That had not happened before in this country, that some man is pouring acid on people in the swimming pool," J.T. says. "I'm not so sure the Civil Rights Act would have been passed had [there] not been a St. Augustine. It was a milestone. We was young, and we thought we'd done something — and we had."
J.T. went back to St. Augustine 40 years later, he tells Al. By then, the Monson Motor Lodge had been replaced with a Hilton Hotel.
"I sat and talked with the manager. I said to him that, 'You know, I can't stay in this hotel. You don't have any African-Americans working here,' " J.T. recalls.
"He said, 'Well, I promise you that next time you come down here it'll be different.' He immediately got busy," J.T. continues. "But he was one of the few people in St. Augustine, I think, that did some of the things that we had been talking about."
"So, to go back to St. Augustine, and it's still somewhat the same — now, that does make me feel bad. The lifting is still kind of heavy, but I'll continue to work as hard as I can, as long as I live," J.T. says. "I won't ever stop, and I won't ever give up."
Martin Luther King Jr. had planned the sit-in during the St. Augustine Movement, a part of the larger civil rights movement. The protest — and the owner's acidic response — is largely forgotten today, but it played a role in the passing of the Civil Rights Act, now celebrating its 50th anniversary.
J.T. Johnson, now 76, and Al Lingo, 78, were two of the protesters in the pool that day. On a visit to StoryCorps in Atlanta, the pair recalled the hotel owner, James Brock, "losing it."
"Everybody was kind of caught off guard," J.T. says.
"The girls, they were most frightened, and we moved to the center of the pool," Al says.
"I tried to calm the gang down. I knew that there was too much water for that acid to do anything," J.T. says. "When they drug us out in bathing suits and they carried us out to the jail, they wouldn't feed me because they said I didn't have on any clothes. I said, 'Well, that's the way you locked me up!'
"But all of the news media were there, because somehow I guess they'd gotten word that something was going to happen at that pool that day. And I think that's when President [Lyndon B.] Johnson got the message."
The following day, the Civil Rights Act was approved, after an 83-day filibuster in the U.S. Senate.
"That had not happened before in this country, that some man is pouring acid on people in the swimming pool," J.T. says. "I'm not so sure the Civil Rights Act would have been passed had [there] not been a St. Augustine. It was a milestone. We was young, and we thought we'd done something — and we had."
J.T. went back to St. Augustine 40 years later, he tells Al. By then, the Monson Motor Lodge had been replaced with a Hilton Hotel.
"I sat and talked with the manager. I said to him that, 'You know, I can't stay in this hotel. You don't have any African-Americans working here,' " J.T. recalls.
"He said, 'Well, I promise you that next time you come down here it'll be different.' He immediately got busy," J.T. continues. "But he was one of the few people in St. Augustine, I think, that did some of the things that we had been talking about."
"So, to go back to St. Augustine, and it's still somewhat the same — now, that does make me feel bad. The lifting is still kind of heavy, but I'll continue to work as hard as I can, as long as I live," J.T. says. "I won't ever stop, and I won't ever give up."
HON MRS ABIOLA BABATOPE: Member House of Representative 1979-1983
Hon Mrs Abiola Babatope was born on 27th September `1947, at Mushin, Lagos State.
She started her early education at the Yaba Methodist School, yaba Lagos from 1953-1955,
Wesley School Oko1, Shagamu 1956-59, Remo Secondary School, Shagamu 1960-61, St Annes School, Ibadan from 1967070.
Mrs Abiola Babatope obtained her West African School Certificate in 1964, the Higher School Certificate in 1966 and a bachelor of Science degree in 1970.
Her working career started as a junior geologist from 1971-71, she was a scouting geologist from 1972-74 and as a petroleum geologist between 1974 and 1979.
A christian by faith, Mrs Babatope got married in 1972 to Chief Ebenezer babatyope and they have five children. She is a firm beleiver in the right of the common man to meaningful existence and the preotection of women's right under the constitution. To her, egalitarianism' is the watch word.
She has written several articles in many of the Nigerian dailies, and is very much influenced by her parents.
her hobbies are writing and traveling. She has taveleld to England, germany and the United States of America.
Her parents, Mr John Olabisi Odeyele, a teacher from Ewu, Lagos State and Mrs Phebean Ademola Odeyale, a trader from Ijebu Igbo, Ogun State have six children.
She represented Mushin Central 11 on the platform of the Unity Party of Nigeria in the House of representative 1979-1983
SPEAKER HOUSE OF REP 1979 SESSION: HON EDWIN UME EZEOKE
Hon Edwin Ume Ezeoke, is the first politician to occupy the exalted seat of Speaker in the House of Representatives in the New Presidential form of Government in the country 1979.
Born at Amichi his hometown in Nnewi Local Government Area, Anambra State on September 8,1935, he is one of the over One hundred children of the traditional ruler of the town, Chief Ezeoke, the late Obi Amichi. His late mother was madam Elizabeth Uzeoke.
He was enrolled at St. Eugenia's School Amichi in 1943 for his education which he completed in 1951. He went to St Patricks College, Calabar between 1952 and 1956 for his secondary education after which he worked briefly as a customs officer at Port Harcourt between 1957 and 1959.
He left Nigeria in 1960 for his further studies abroad and untill 1962 he was at the Inns of Court (Middle temple) , London for his bar examinations. he later went to the Hilborn College, London, from 1962-1966, from where he obtained the LL.B. (London) degree. He returned to Nigeria in 1966 during the crisis which led to the civil war.
Immediately after the war, he attended the Nigerian law School, Lagos and was enrolled as a barrister and Solicitor of the Federal Supreme Court of Nigeria in 1971. he then set up a legal practice in Lagos same year.
he was elected a member of the Federal House of Representative for Nnewi federal Constituency, Anambra State on the platform of the Nigeria peoples party. he was elected Speaker of the House on the 9th October 1979.
he got married on the 6th April 1969 to the former Miss Ngozi Agba and they have five children-three boys and two girls.
he has traveled to most parts of the world. his hobbies are athletics, tennis and football.
Born at Amichi his hometown in Nnewi Local Government Area, Anambra State on September 8,1935, he is one of the over One hundred children of the traditional ruler of the town, Chief Ezeoke, the late Obi Amichi. His late mother was madam Elizabeth Uzeoke.
He was enrolled at St. Eugenia's School Amichi in 1943 for his education which he completed in 1951. He went to St Patricks College, Calabar between 1952 and 1956 for his secondary education after which he worked briefly as a customs officer at Port Harcourt between 1957 and 1959.
He left Nigeria in 1960 for his further studies abroad and untill 1962 he was at the Inns of Court (Middle temple) , London for his bar examinations. he later went to the Hilborn College, London, from 1962-1966, from where he obtained the LL.B. (London) degree. He returned to Nigeria in 1966 during the crisis which led to the civil war.
Immediately after the war, he attended the Nigerian law School, Lagos and was enrolled as a barrister and Solicitor of the Federal Supreme Court of Nigeria in 1971. he then set up a legal practice in Lagos same year.
he was elected a member of the Federal House of Representative for Nnewi federal Constituency, Anambra State on the platform of the Nigeria peoples party. he was elected Speaker of the House on the 9th October 1979.
he got married on the 6th April 1969 to the former Miss Ngozi Agba and they have five children-three boys and two girls.
he has traveled to most parts of the world. his hobbies are athletics, tennis and football.
INAUGURATION OF PROF KENNETH DIKE AS VICE CHANCELLOR UNIVERSITY OF IBADAN 1963
I took this rare photo in November 1963 on the University of Ibadan campus. Left is Prof Kenneth Dike, the first Nigerian Vice-Chancellor of the University. With him is Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, the Nigerian Prime Minister, who was on campus for his installation as Chancellor of the University. Balewa was killed during the first military coup in February 1966; Dike returned to eastern Nigeria at the start of the Biafran war.
SOURCE: BOB GOLDING
SOURCE: BOB GOLDING
Eyo Ita Esua: 1st Chairman of the Federal Electoral Commission.
Eyo Ita Esua (14 January 1901 - 1973) was a Nigerian teacher and trade unionist who was at the helm of the Balewa government's Federal Electoral Commission in the Nigerian First Republic.
Esua was a school master and a founder member of the Nigerian Union of Teachers. He was the first full-time general secretary of the union from 1943 until his retirement in 1964. He was an Ibibio ,Calabar man, renowned for his dedication to duty and uprightness.
The Esua-led commission organized the December 1964 election, which was mired in controversy. Two members of the commission disagreed with the chairman and resigned from the commission. Esua also conducted the 1965 Western Region election, which was violent and was disputed by the opposition United Party Grand Alliance. A few days before these elections Esua acknowledged that his organisation could not guarantee a free and fair poll. The widespread electoral abuses may have been a factor in the success of the military coup of January 1966 in which Major General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi came to power
Esua was a school master and a founder member of the Nigerian Union of Teachers. He was the first full-time general secretary of the union from 1943 until his retirement in 1964. He was an Ibibio ,Calabar man, renowned for his dedication to duty and uprightness.
The Esua-led commission organized the December 1964 election, which was mired in controversy. Two members of the commission disagreed with the chairman and resigned from the commission. Esua also conducted the 1965 Western Region election, which was violent and was disputed by the opposition United Party Grand Alliance. A few days before these elections Esua acknowledged that his organisation could not guarantee a free and fair poll. The widespread electoral abuses may have been a factor in the success of the military coup of January 1966 in which Major General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi came to power
Saturday, 7 February 2015
Flight Officer Johnny Smythe, from Sierra Leone
Flight Officer Johnny Smythe, from Sierra Leone, enlisted in the RAF in 1939. He was one of four out of a class of 90, to complete the tough training to be a Navigator. On his 28th bomber mission, in November 1943, he was wounded, shot down, and captured by Germans who could not believe they were looking at a Black officer. In Stalag Luft One, Smythe worked on the escape committee, but couldn’t break out himself: "I don’t think a six-foot-five black man would’ve got very far in Pomerania."
Exterminated kids
On 2 July 1942, most of the children of Lidice, a small village in what was then Czechoslovakia, were handed over to the Łódź Gestapo office. Those 82 children were then transported to the extermination camp at Chełmno 70 kilometers away. There they were gassed to death. This remarkable sculpture by by Marie Uchytilová commemorates them.
Friday, 6 February 2015
HON VERONICA OGECHI NNAJI
Mrs Veronica Ogechi Nnaji represented the Isu Constituency in the House of representatives as a member of the Nigeria peoples Party (NPN).
Mrs Nnaji was born on the 10th of january 1940 in Umuaka, Nkwerre in Imo State. She is one of the seven children of Mr Mathias Ezendu, a trader amd Madam Theresa Ezendu, a farmer.
She attended Umuaka Primary School from 1948-1955 where she obtained a first school leaving certificate.
she proceeded to our lady of Lourdes Hospital, Ihiala from 1956-1960 to train as a nurse.
In 1961, she went to the School of Hygiene, Aba, from there, she went on to the Health centre, Nsukka where she obtained a Community Nursing Certificate in 1963.
Mrs Nnaji worked as a Nurse at Amaigbo Joint Hospital, Nkwerre in Imo State from 1963 to 1965. She worked in the Motherless Babies Home, Okwelle Isiukwuato from 1965-1970 and at the Sick bay at Ekwe from 1970-1972.
In 1974, Mrs Veronica Nnaji opened her private maternity home. married to Mr basil Nnaji, Veronica is a Christain by faith and has five children.
Prof Deborah Enilo Ajakaiye
Prof Deborah Enilo Ajakaiye (born 1940) is a Nigerian geophysicist. She is the first female physics professor in Africa and her work in geophysics has played an important role in mining in Nigeria.
Ajakaiye became the first female professor of physics in Africa in 1980. She has taught at Ahmadu Bello University and the University of Jos, serving as the dean of natural sciences at the latter. Her work with geovisualization has been used to locate both mineral deposits and groundwater in Nigeria. She has also created a map of the topography of Nigeria, working with several of her female students.[1] Ajakaiye stated that many male scientists had changed their perception of women scientists after interacting with her and her students.
Ajakaiye has been recognized for both her scientific advancements and her aid to the nation of Nigeria. The Nigerian Mining and GeoSciences Society honored her for her work, making her the first woman to receive the award. She was also the first black African to be named a fellow of the Geological Society of London.
Ajakaiye became the first female professor of physics in Africa in 1980. She has taught at Ahmadu Bello University and the University of Jos, serving as the dean of natural sciences at the latter. Her work with geovisualization has been used to locate both mineral deposits and groundwater in Nigeria. She has also created a map of the topography of Nigeria, working with several of her female students.[1] Ajakaiye stated that many male scientists had changed their perception of women scientists after interacting with her and her students.
Ajakaiye has been recognized for both her scientific advancements and her aid to the nation of Nigeria. The Nigerian Mining and GeoSciences Society honored her for her work, making her the first woman to receive the award. She was also the first black African to be named a fellow of the Geological Society of London.
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