The Nation Newspaper

Tag: New Year

  • The New Year we want

    The annual greetings of Happy New Year to herald the beginning of every new year obviously comes with the assumption that the new year will be better than the former.

    Surviving 365 days in a country like ours with the dire economic situation we are going through calls for celebration and expectation of a better tomorrow. As 2017 draws to a close, many Nigerians are looking forward to a 2018 that will be a lot better and a truly happy one.

    This year, I remember writing a piece on how tough the economic situation is for the majority who according to the United Nation’s statistics live under a dollar per day. I lamented how I, like some others who are just a little better than the majority, have to cope with endless calls for assistance.

    When you get a call or text from someone you have not heard from for some time or others who you know are victims of our precarious economy, you can guess what it is about. You must be stone hearted not to part with some amount, however little.

    Except you don’t have yourself, how do you ignore a request from someone who has not eaten for a day or not sure what the family will eat?  How do you pretend not to be bothered when you are told by some old-time colleagues that their children may be sent out or school or deny admission because they cannot pay the required fee?

    For those who have managed to pay their children’s fees and have been eagerly waiting for the children to get employed and be relieved of the burden of taking care of them, their hopes and expectations have been dashed.

    At various government levels and in the private sector, workers are owed salaries and their entitlements for months without any assurance of when they will be paid.

    December is supposed to be a festive period, with the signs of celebration being in the air from at most the beginning of the month, but that has not been the case for some years now. One does not have to wonder much why only a few can celebrate the way it should be. Town is hard, to put it colloquially!

    It is against this background that my prayer like that of most Nigerians is that 2018 has to really be a happy new year for the greeting to make any sense. If not, we need to begin to think of why we should be greeting ourselves happy New Year when the new years are turning out to be worse than the previous ones.

    Already, the signs of yet another tough year are there considering the observation of the Senate on the proposed federal budget which may make it impossible to pass the document early enough. When budgets are not passed early enough, many things get stalled and the average Nigerian who is battling hard to make ends meet suffer for it.

    More than ever before, the Buhari government and those at the state and local government levels must take necessary steps to ease the economic hardship in the country and make 2018 worth our expectation of better days ahead.

  • Indians celebrate New Year

    Indians celebrate New Year

    Overseas Friends of BhartiyaJanta Party (OFBJP), Nigeria chapter, a social community of non-residence Indians living abroad, has celebrated Hindu NavVarsh, Indian New Year 2074.
    OFBJP Nigeria is a voluntary and community organisation of Indians in Nigeria. It is in 41 countries.
    The event held at the Geeta Ashram temple premises in Lekki Phase 1, Lagos.
    About 500 Indians and Nigerians witnessed the celebration.
    The event started with the seting of the lightening lamp, an Indian traditional way of inaugurating an event. ‘’It means taking people to light of wisdom from darkness,” an official of the body explained.
    The occasion featured Indo-Naija cultural performances. An Indo-Nigerian art fusion was performed by a student group, Lightyear Entertainment of the Department of Theatre Arts, University of Lagos.
    The theme of the event was India’s patriotic persons and regional heroes who have contributed towards a better society in the field of Independence War, Art, Science and Culture.
    Mr. Vijay Chauthaiwale of the Foreign Affairs Department of BhartiyaJanta Party, India spoke to the audience on online trade and cultural relations between India and Nigeria.
    He highlighted the similarity and appealed all community and diplomatic missions to work together for a better world and rich the society.
    According to him, friendship and good governance are key to achieving development.
    Convener and President of OFBJP Nigeria Chapter Mr. Sanjay Srivastava highlighted the recent transformation in projects and policies of the Indian Government to reach out to society in the last three years.
    They are on health, hygiene, safety, industrial development, Save Girl Child, Peoples Participation in Projects, demonetisation, digitalisation of India, good governance and a corruption-free government.
    Other Indian social leaders at the event were: Dr. AnielPulikan; Chief Anil Gopwani; Mr. Manu Lalwani; Vikas Kane; Dr Bharat Pandey; Mr Abhishek Srivasastav; SadyojatShastri; Mrs Dipti Kane and Chief J. Duggad.

  • Kalu celebrates New Year with the elderly

    Kalu celebrates New Year with the elderly

    Every year, the elderly in Igbere, the home town of the former Governor of Abia State, Dr Orji Uzo Kalu, have something to hope for. Either it is his celebrating Christmas with them or the New Year.

    May be because of his busy schedules, the business mogul could not celebrate Christmas with them; a situation that kept them guessing. They had been asking among themselves whether “our son had forgotten us?” But they never knew that something big was being planned for them in the New Year.

    So, when the news got the round that the former governor was planning to host some elderly people in his community, their ears wagged. Yes, the “rumour” became a reality.

    The former governor had resolved to host 100 elderly women from his community.

    Any wonder the elderly women ambled to the Camp Neya” at Umuizi Igbere venue of the event in an indescribable number.

    At 3:00 p.m. on Friday, January 6, women whose ages ranged from 60 and above arrived at the venue in their droves.

    As soon as the philanthropist, Dr. Kalu arrived at the venue, there was jubilation, with the women whose frames are fragile singing his praises.

    At 4:00 p.m., the atmosphere was already charged as the women who had returned from their farms and having completed other domestic chores sang melodiously to the admiration of people who came to witness the event.

    The women, numbering over 100 from “Ndi Oji Ogo”; the 13 villages that made up Igbere in Bende Local Government Area of the state were not invited to the “Camp Neya” for any political meeting, but to have a pleasurable and jovial moment with one of their illustrious sons (Kalu), who have been hosting the women at his country home for over 24 years.

    In this year’s celebration, Dr. Kalu wasn’t alone with the women; he was with the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state led by its chairman, Hon. Donatus Nwankpa and his other political associates.

    While interacting with the women, Dr Kalu thanked them for finding time to come and also thanked God for keeping them alive. He promised that the exercise will continue to be a yearly event.

    Dr Kalu, who donated food items, drinks and cash to the women, said the celebration was part of his efforts to touch the lives of the aged in the society. He described old age as a blessing and grace that everyone prays to witness.

    The Abia business mogul didn’t stop at the food and cash donations; he used the opportunity to preach to the women about the APC, what the party would bring to bear if voted into power in the state in 2019. He also urged them to support President Buhari’s administration which he said was putting Nigeria on a good path.

    Kalu urged the women to take the message of change being preached by President Buhari to their friends and households even as he (Kalu) has strong belief that the country will come out of the current economic recession.

    He also debunked the claims that the APC is a Northern party, adding that “APC is that party that will give the Igbo the platform to produce the president that will succeed President Buhari at the expiration of his tenure in office.

    Responding, the leader of the women group, Mama Lydia Igbokwe, thanked Dr Kalu for his generosity over the years, even as she urged him not to relent in his good work.

  • In this New Year

    In this New Year

    Last year died five days ago. A New Year is here. It is 2017. This year promises to be interesting for the people of the Southsouth. Rivers State will certainly be a state to watch out for. This is not downgrading the importance of Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Edo and Delta. The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), where Nsima Ekere and Victor Ndoma-Egba are in charge, is one agency to watch out for in the New Year.

    Rivers closed the year on a controversial note with leaked tapes, which suggest that human lives mean little or nothing.

    Omoku, a Rivers town which used to be busy, looks forward to a New Year free of killings. Not a few have relocated from the town to avoid being victim of the blood-letting going on there. It was in this vicinity that Alkali Mohammed, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), and his orderly were beheaded. Some days back, their uniforms and riffles were recovered in this violent town.

    Mohammed and his orderly met the waterloo at Ujju community near Omoku in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers. The agents of death waylaid the DSP and his junior colleagues from the Mobile Police Unit 48. After the hoodlums took off the duo’s heads, they snatched their patrol vehicle and weapons.

    For Mohammed, his orderly and other policemen, their nation gave them an assignment. On the face value, the assignment looks simple: provide security during the legislative rerun election in Rivers. But Rivers is like no other state. This assignment that is simple and routine in other places is similar to going to war in dear Rivers, where commissions of inquiries have established that politicians outsourced killing of their opponents and their supporters.

    Before Mohammed, many a policeman had gone. Many a soldier was killed. Some people have ‘justified’ these men’s fate by saying it was a reprisal attack because the police were terrorising the people to give advantage to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the rerun legislative election. Governor Nyesom Wike accused some policemen of killing three Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members in Bodo-Ogoni in Gokana Local Government Area and Tai-Ogoni Local Government Area. Soldiers, he said, were involved in ballot box snatching, illegal escort of politicians, arrest and detention of voters. The army has denied the allegations.

    Even if Mohammed and others broke any law, jungle justice is also a crime. It is akin to replacing ringworm with leprosy.

    In Mohammed’s death, we see a society where values have collapsed, where everything is falling apart and where money makes man.

    Are we likely to see a Rivers with reduced violence? It appears too close to call.

    In the case of Akwa Ibom, many are waiting for the findings and recommendations of the Commission of Enquiry set up by the state government to investigate the end-of-the-year collapse of the Reigners Bible Church Int’l Inc in Uyo, the state capital.

    The founder of the church was to have his ordination as a bishop. He is not a small fry. So, the church was jam-packed. Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel came with some of his commissioners and aides. Some of the commissioners are new in the State Executive Council. They were sworn-in December 1.

    Thirty minutes into the governor’s arrival hell literally came down. No thanks to human error, the church’s iron pillars gave way and the blue roofs came thumping down. Of course on people! An account said someone was cut into two by iron pillars. A policeman who reportedly saved the governor is now six feet below. And some others broke their necks, their limbs and their back. The founder of the church, Pastor Akan Weeks, had his leg broken.

    Coming to terms with the tragedy is a task that is still defying many. Pastor Weeks believes the tragedy is the devil fighting back and he urged Christians to unite and not see it as his battle alone. But we must give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and give unto God what is God’s. The contractor must account for this tragedy, which the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) said was caused by shoddiness. We sure await what will come out of the commission of enquiry.

    The people of the region will also closely monitor the activities of the Ekere-led NDDC. Since the 50s, the need for a special treatment for the Niger Delta, as a result of its difficult terrain, dawned on the authorities. As such, the region has had interventionist agencies, such as the Oil Mineral Producing Area Development Commission (OMPADEC), attending to the needs of the area. It was the OMPADEC that gave way for the NDDC.

    OMPADEC achieved next to nothing. One of the first things the NDDC thought of was a Masterplan for the region. It was done about decade and a half ago. This is a long time for change to take place. In that period, a new city can spring up, a small company can become a conglomerate and a toddler can become a teenager. ?

    The Niger Delta worked with other stakeholders in the region to design this plan whose dream was to turn the creeks around by 2020, which is just three years away.

    Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, in his preface to the Masterplan, was so optimistic that with the plan, the Niger Delta would get back its groove.

    But the NDDC, which is supposed to drive the development of the area, has been bogged down by internal and external factors.

    At a point, the commission owed its contractors over N1trillion on existing contracts. At a point, contracts, we were told, were awarded with no design and no specific location but with the sole purpose of collecting advance payments.

    There were instances where one contract was awarded to two or three contractors. Many were just interested in taking money meant for a road, hospital or other projects and did not care to do the job.

    There were allegations that members of staff of the NDDC were colluding with outsiders to institute legal actions against the commission and later come and push for out-of-court settlement, after which they shared the settlement money from NDDC. The commission, at a point, had over 400 court cases against it in courts.

    Things were so bad in the commission at some point that an insider said if it were a private sector firm, it would be regarded as insolvent.

    A presidential report on the commission showed that it also got into projects with nothing to do with its mandate as an interventionist agency. What on earth was NDDC doing renovating Port Harcourt Club and commissioning a study on the generation of electric power from gully erosion sites?

    A former Chairman of the Governing Board, Senator Bassey Ewa-Henshaw, at a management retreat in Uyo, spoke from the heart about how the commission had not lived up to expectation. It was a session where he let out some home truths and declared: “It can no longer be business as usual. Substantial and immediate changes for the better must take place. We must root out impunity from NDDC.”

    It was admitted during the retreat that the people of the Niger Delta had not received the value they expected from the commission.

    The quality of some of the infrastructure projects fell below acceptable standards. The commission was seen as a ‘contract cow’, whose award letters were being hawked in the major cities of the country.

    I must also point out that the blame for the non- realisation of the dream of the Masterplan four years into 2020 is not just NDDC’s. Other stakeholders, such as the Federal Government, Southsouth state governments, Southsouth local government areas and the oil giants, have not done their parts as envisaged in the Masterplan. The Federal Government, for instance, has not released all cash due to the commission. Several trillions statutorily due the commission are held by the Federal Government, the state governments, the local governments and the oil giants. So, the commission has far less than it needs and to make matters worse, people still stole the inadequate cash using all kinds of tactics.

    Mrs Ibim Semenitari lay a foundation which not a few are waiting to see what Ekere will do with it. This will sure be an interesting year for NDDC.

    Another interesting development to watch out for may be the relationship between Governor Emmanuel and federal appointees from his state. One of them is Ekere. Another is the MD/CEO, Oil & Gas Free Trade Zone Authority (OGFZA), Umana Okon Umana, who was the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the election Emmanuel won. The governor some days back warned the federal appointees not to take his Christianity for granted. He will bite if he has to. Interesting times lie ahead!

    My final take: In this New Year, my wish is that God will force the leaders in the Niger Delta to put the interest of the people first. Against their will, God will give them no room to serve personal interest as public interest. It will be the people’s year. Or, am I asking for too much?

  • Sean Tizzle enters New Year with Thank You

    Sean Tizzle enters New Year with Thank You

    Coming off his soon-to-be release extended play (EP) Moving Forward volume 1, versatile musician, Sean Tizzle welcomes the New Year with Thank You.

    Though he has been off the music radar for some time working underground, Sean made a comeback mid last year with Hit and Run employing the craftsmanship of Canadian singer, Tory Lanez on the track.

    A source from the singer’s camp said Sean realised that God has been faithful to him, so he had to say Thank You. The visuals to Thank You which was shot in the United States and directed by Africalabash was also released the same day with the song.

    The album, Moving Forward volume 1, is expected to drop on January 20.

  • The euphoria of new year

    The year 2016 will go down in history as one of the most difficult years for Nigerians. It was a year when the nation’s economy passed through severe turbulent waters that nearly sank the whole nation. In 2016, inflation rate peaked at 17.1%, the GDP contracted by 2.06% and the economy by 0.36%. Oil price crashed to less than $50 per barrel while production output tumbled by over 400,000 barrels due to militancy activities in Niger Delta region. Oil production plummeted to 1.69 million barrels per day in the second quarter of 2016, down from 2.11 million barrel per day in the first quarter, with oil – based GDP contracting by 17.5% in quarter two compared to 1.9% in the first quarter. Naira was at a record low of N480 per dollar in the black market, as dollar exchanged for 365.25 in the interbank market.
    The nation’s groaning unemployment situation also grew worse. Unofficial data puts the unemployment figure at about 20% (about 30million), but this number still did not include about 40million other Nigerian youths captured in a recent World Bank statistics. By implication, it means that if Nigeria’s population is 140 million, then 50% of Nigerians are unemployed, or worse still, at least 71% of Nigerian youths are unemployed. This is particularly disturbing and counterproductive because at least 70% of the population of this country are youths. According to reports, in 2016, the unemployed in the labour force increased by 1,158,700 persons, resulting in an increase in the national unemployment rate to 13.3% in Q2 2016 from 12.1 in 2016, 10.4% in 2015 from 9.9% in Q3 2015 and from 8.2% in Q2 2015.
    Workers in both the public and private sectors were worst hit by the troubling economic situation. In order to make ends meet, some firms opted to downsize, thus complicating the already bad unemployment situation. For those who work in the public sector, the situation is a bit different. Though, they have the sheer luxury of keeping their jobs, it is only a few of them that can boast of receiving their wages as at when due. Except for Lagos State and a few others, most states in the country owed their workers outstanding salaries that sometimes run into months. The whole distressing episode is reinforced by the counsel of a particular governor in the South-east that public workers in his state could actually skip work twice or thrice a week to embrace subsistence farming in order to escape the excruciating claws of hunger.
    One obvious consequence of the ranging economic recession in the country is depression. Medically, depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest in things that the victim is ordinarily usually passionate about. It is also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression and it affects how the victim feels, thinks and behaves. It can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems which include finding it difficult to embark on daily activities. It can also lead to marital troubles as depression victims find it very hard adjusting to family values and ethics. Indeed, coping with the stress of family life cause more difficulties to victims of depression who often want to be left alone. Perhaps, the worst of it all fallouts of depression is the feeling that life isn’t worth living which eventually makes depression victim contemplates suicide.
    From all indications, the nation’s tough economic situation has increased the number of citizens who run the risk of experiencing the agonizing incident of clinical depression. According to reports, the rate of marital break ups has increased while matrimonial violence occasioned by economic woes has equally multiplied significantly. Indeed, there has been incidence of husband killing wife and vice versa. There have been reports of men absconding from home for weeks in order to escape growing economic responsibilities at home. Therefore, we now have more women who are over burdened with excruciating domestic pressures. Cases of pronounced mental health condition have also unsurprisingly increased. Along major cities in the country, you are likely to come across clean and beautifully dressed compatriots who talk and walk alone, actually without any destination in mind. This, to medical workers is a vital sign of depression induced insanity, which if not quickly attended to could lead to serious psychiatric condition.
    Ironically, in the midst of all these uncertainties and stress comes the exciting hope of a better New Year. Not that there is any concrete rationale for the euphoria about the New Year. It is a natural feeling that does not need to be subjected to any empirical analysis. Here, the belief is that New Year would naturally bring with it good tidings. That is the nature of hope. Hope is hope. No more, no less.
    However, one is of the view that for hope not to be mere hallucination, it must be anchored on more solid platforms. For instance, it is generally believed that the world is subjected to the authority of the Almighty God whom many anchor their hope, faith and trust in. This is good enough, especially if the one anchoring his hope on the Almighty has sufficient capacity to understand the nature and ways of God. Nevertheless, as good as placing one’s hope in God is, for hope to transcend the stage of expectation and move into the realm of reality, necessity places it on man to play key roles in speeding up the process of divine intervention.
    The truth is that we would continue to live in the realm of delusion until we make bold to collectively change our ways as a people. For our hope not to be dashed this New Year, we need to embrace new ways of doing things. We need to stop cutting corners. We need to stop living in lies, deception and hypocrisy. It is only when we collectively embrace sacrificial change that we could boldly hope that the New Year would usher in our desired change.
    •Ogunbiyi is of the Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.

  • New Year: We’ll not disappoint, says Ambode

    New Year: We’ll not disappoint, says Ambode

    •Aregbesola: no abandoned projects
    •2017 for positive change, says Akeredolu

    Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode yesterday expressed optimism that the New Year will present limitless opportunities and happiness for residents.

    He restated his commitment to initiate programmes and policies that will further showcase the state’s progress.

    “Our vision remains the same: to create a smart mega city where business and creative opportunities abound; where physical and social amenities are world class; and where lives and property are safe and secure.”

    The governor spoke at the grand finale of the 2016 One Lagos Fiesta held at the Bar Beach front in Victoria Island to usher in the New Year.

    “Welcome to 2017, our anniversary year as Lagos will be 50. Lagos is the smallest, oldest, richest, most populous and most prosperous state in Nigeria.

    “We are undoubtedly the world’s largest and most celebrated black city-state.

    “We also recognise the need to reflect and be strategic and this is why our approach to governance has been low in hype and flop but high in performance.

    “We promise not to disappoint you in this New Year,” he said.

    Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, in his New Year message, said: “This year, 2017, is going to be our year of consolidation.

    “We are going to consolidate on all our programmes, especially in education, agriculture and road infrastructure.

    “We are not going to abandon any of our projects. It is going to be our busiest year so far.

    “We have great hope and faith that 2017 will be the best year for us and all the people of Osun.”

    The governor admitted that last year was full of  trials, travails and tests but “it was also a year of great victory and accomplishments”.

    Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose reassured the people of his administration’s  determination to provide more dividends of democracy for them.

    The governor, in his New Year message, urged Nigerians to hope for a better nation in 2017.

    He urged leaders to be fair and equitable in the way they treat Nigerians.

    Fayose said: “Within available resources, we can boldly say that we have tried our best in the provision of projects and services for our people.

    “We have also touched every part of the state and we are not relenting.

    “Despite the financial challenges we are facing, our administration is assuring the people of more quality leadership. We are undaunted.

    “Our hope in God for a better tomorrow for the people of Ekiti State is not shaken and we are assuring the people that we are on course.”

    Ondo State Governor-elect Rotimi Akeredolu said the New Year will mark the beginning of new thinking and new actions in Ondo State.

    He assured the people of a New Year of all-encompassing positive changes.

    Akeredolu urged the people to support the incoming administration to implant a culture of integrity in public service.

    He called on politicians and public servants to be prepared to make sacrifices.

    In his message titled: “Ondo State Will Rise Again” signed by his media adviser, Yemi Olowolabi, the governor-elect said the state has natural endowments and abundant human resources waiting to be harnessed.

    He reiterated his determination to run a transparent government that is irrevocably committed to developing the state.

  • New Year: Fun seekers flock Whispering Palms

    The Whispering Palms at Iworo in Badagry, Lagos State, yesterday recorded a large turnout of fun seekers who came to celebrate the New Year.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nigerians from Lagos and some other states of the federation visit the resort to have a good time

    Mr Ayobami Badejo, who came to the resort with his family, said he took advantage of the holiday to spend time with his family there.

    “I have heard so much about this place; so, I decided to use this public holiday to come here to have fun with my family and I must confess, I am having a great time.

    “The environment is so good and there are so many activities to do here; like you can see, my kids are using the swing and after that, we would go to the pool.

    “It is really fun here and I would definitely come back here when I am chanced,” Badejo said.

    Mr Ademola Akano, who came with his girlfriend, could not hide his excitement.

    “This place is so lovely, I didn’t even know that there is a mini zoo here and the animals are so friendly and clean.

    “The view of the seaside is a joy to behold, the environment is so friendly. This place is so wonderful.

    “I am going to tell my friends about this place so that they too can enjoy what I have enjoyed,” Akano said.

    Mr Olumide Olaomoju, who came from Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, said he didn’t regret his trip.

    “I am going to be here for the rest of the week and I am glad I chose this place for my vacation.

    “Everything I want and need is here and the environment is fantastic,” Olaomoju said.

    Mr Deji Femi-Pearse, the owner of the resort, attributed the large turnout to the constant rebranding of the resort.

    “Every time, we keep on bringing in new things to keep on attracting people here because we don’t want them to keep seeing the same thing over and over again.

    “We hope that in a few months, we would be able to bring some dolphins and we are already creating an environment for them.”

    He appealed to the government to improve power supply in the area.

    “We spend millions on running our generators because we have no power supply here and this is not good for business,” Femi-Pearse said.

  • HAPPY NEW YEAR!

    HAPPY NEW YEAR!
    I’m just as excited as everyone else to be witnessing another New Year -2017, hale and hearty. Many people want to know what the New Year will hold for them and their loved ones; they want it to be a better year for them, much better than year 2016. I also care to know God’s mind about the New Year.

    The truth remains that God does not change, the New Year cannot change God, His word remains the same. Yes, it’s a new year but it’s still the same Bible we have; God’s word doesn’t change despite the changes in times. To have the understanding of the times that we are in, we need to read/study the Bible; all that the times hold for us has been written in the word of God if you care to study it.

    Above all let us be reminded of the second coming of our Lord Jesus which will mark the end of all things and the events that will precede His coming.

    God’s Word about the Signs of the Times and the End of the Age:
    Jesus’ disciples asked Him to tell them the sign of His coming, and of the end of the age?”
    And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumours of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.
    “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come”.
    Jesus Christ is coming again to judge the whole world and in His mercy He has graciously given you and me this admonition: “…Take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
    As we approach the end of age, things will become tougher, Sin and lawlessness will be on the increase just to make our love for God to grow cold but God has promised His ever abiding presence and help to those who put their trust in Him and remain steadfast. Many will be persecuted for His name sake just as His word made us to know but we are not to give up but to be strong and courageous to live righteous despite every opposition to the truth.

    You need to put on THE FULL ARMOUR OF GOD to be able to stand safe against all strategies and tricks of Satan to make your love for God grow cold.

    PRAYER: Lord please help me to trust You with ALL of my heart and never to lean on my own understanding, that in ALL my ways I will acknowledge and honour You, direct my paths through year 2017 and beyond in Jesus name- Amen.

    TEXT: Matthew 24:3-14, Luke 21:8-36.

    FROM: Faith Nwachukwu

  • Oyedepo urges Christians to obey God’s word to be successful in 2017

    Oyedepo urges Christians to obey God’s word to be successful in 2017

    The presiding Bishop of the Living Faith Church Worldwide, David Oyedepo has urged Christians to obey God’s word to be successful in the New Year.
    Oyedepo said this on Saturday ‎during the cross over night service to usher in 2017, which held at the church’s headquarters, Otta,Ogun State.
    The service was attended by members of all branches of the church nationwide by hooking to the headquarters through satellite broadcast.
    According to Oyedepo, children of God who obey God’s commandments succeed in hard times.
    “In 2017, the quality of life of any Christian is dependent on the level of his obedience to God.
    “The obedience of any child of God can silence every opposition on his life,” Oyedepo said.
    The presiding Bishop stated that Christians do not need to make noise to be relevant in the society, adding that they were distinguished by being obedient.
    He stated that every commandment of the scripture was applicable at all times and to all children of God, irrespective of the denomination.
    Oyedepo, however, took to the scriptures to declare God’s blessings on worshippers present at the ser‎vice.
    Some worshippers at the church, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) also expressed their expectations for the New Year, fairness and disappointments in the past year.
    Mr Monday Kpumkapa, a worshipper in the church said he expected that country’s leadership had taken note of the loop holes in governance in 2016 in order to make amends in the New Year.
    Kpumkapa said “we all know that the year 2016 was not a favourable one for Nigerians, it was a year of hunger and so many issues with our government.
    “It will not be nice if the government still allows this hard economic situation to persist, they should do something and alleviate the plight of the masses.”
    Miss Silvia Dominic, another worshipper, said she was grateful to God for the year 2016, adding that it was smooth for her.
    Dominic noted that it was well with her economically, health wise, and each time she had issues, help always came to her.
    She, however, expressed her desire to get married in the New Year.
    Destiny Kindness, a boy of nine years and also a worshipper, said he hoped that the educational system of the country improves.
    “In my school, we don’t really have good facilities that make learning easier, and I wish that things can change so that education can improve in my school and in the country.
    “I also want God to provide for my parents so that they can cater ‎for my siblings and I,’’ Kindness said. (NAN)