Facebook's WhatsApp adding voice calls

WhatsApp co-founder and CEO Jan Koum addresses the Mobile World Congress on Monday in Barcelona, Spain.

(CNN) -- WhatsApp, the globally popular texting app that Facebook just acquired for a whopping $19 billion, is adding phone calls to its list of services.

At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum said the voice service will be free and begin rolling out to users within the next few months.

Currently, WhatsApp offers unlimited text and voice-mail messages between users. Its service is free for the first year, then costs 99 cents annually.

Why did Facebook buy WhatsApp?

"We want to make sure people always have the ability to stay in touch with their friends and loved ones really affordably," Koum said in a speech at Mobile World Congress.

As reported by multiple news outlets, Koum also announced that WhatsApp now has 465 million monthly users and 330 million daily users. The latter is 15 million more than what was made public last week when Facebook announced the purchase.

Voice service will come first to Apple devices and Google's Android operating system, with Windows phones and Blackberry to follow.

WhatsApp now has more than 330 million daily users and is popular in places such as India, South Korea and Germany.

The move puts WhatsApp in competition not only with other messaging apps that offer voice but chat tools such as Skype and even mobile carriers. WhatsApp's unlimited texting has already helped establish it in places where smartphones and fancy data plans are less common.

It has 40 million users in India and another 38 million in Brazil, two countries highly coveted by tech companies such as Facebook for their large populations and emerging mobile customer base. WhatsApp hasn't released figures for the United States, where it is less popular.

Last week, Facebook shocked the business world when it announced it was buying WhatsApp for up to $19 billion in cash and stock -- by far the social network's largest acquisition to date.

The FAWEHINMI Family Rejects The FGN CENTENARY AWARD..

Chief Anyim Pius Anyim,
Secretary to the Federal Government of Nigeria,
Presidency,
Abuja

Dear Sir,
RE: CENTENARY AWARD TO OUR LATE FATHER, CHIEF GANI FAWEHINMI (SAN)
We acknowledge the receipt of your letter, dated February 24, 2014, which was routed through Mr Tony Akiotu, Group Managing Director, DAAR Communications, Abuja, wherein our late father, Chief Gani Fawehinmi(SAN) was chosen as one of the awardees of the Centenary celebrations of Nigeria by President Goodluck Jonathan.

We want thank the Federal Government for considering our late father for this HONOUR.

However, for reasons stated here under, our family has decided it would be inexpedient to accept the award:

1. In the list of the awardees published by the Federal Government, was the name of former military dictator, General Ibrahim Babangida, who as military president, severally detained and tortured our late father. In the course of one of such illegal and inhuman detentions, our late father's cell was sprayed with toxic substances while in Gashua prison in 1987. The cumulative effect of that dastardly action led to our father, a non- smoker, contracting lung cancer which eventually led to his death on September 5, 2009. We therefore, find it morally incongruous and psychologically debilitating for our family to stand on the same podium with General Babangida to receive awards.

2. Our late father was empathetic to the sufferings of our people, particularly students. In the last 72 hours, 59 innocent students were mowed down by the blood- thirsty Boko Haram terrorists in Yobe state, while 20 other girls were similarly abducted by these same band of terrorists. These girls are still in captivity while their fate is unknown. If our late father were to be alive, would he be wining and dining with all the glitterati at a Centenary celebration under these circumstances? Certainly no.

3. In the past few weeks, the polity has been assaulted with putrid odour of corruption with the alleged $20 billion missing in NNPC, a development that became the Archilles heel of Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the suspended Governor of Central Bank. As an anti-corruption activist, if he were to be alive, our late father would have confronted the issue head-long and possibly gone to court. With the issue still raging, would our late father have accepted this award at this critical moment? Certainly no.

4. Our late father was unrepentantly for the UNITY of Nigeria. However, with the level of profligacy in some of the events celebrating NIGERIA'S Centenary, our late father would have preferred these multi- million Naira expenditures channeled to our decrepit Teaching hospitals, than unproductive razzmatazz that do not improve the socio-Economic well being of our people.

Sir, for these reasons, our family respectfully declines to receive the award about to be conferred on our late father by the government.
Please, accept the assurances of our highest consideration.
Long live Federal Republic of Nigeria.
(Signed)
MOHAMMED FAWEHINMI, ESQ.
(For and on behalf of late Gani Fawehinmi family)

'Kill the Witch' Miracle Crusade in Calabar By Leo Igwe

By Leo Igwe

The world may not have seen the last in terms of the inane witch hunting campaign being waged by Pentecostal pastors in Nigeria. New christian witch hunters-pastors and churches- are emerging with force and ferocity. Another 'Kill the Witch' miracle crusade has just been announced to take place next week. It will be held in Calabar, the capital of Cross River State in Southern Nigeria.
According to a poster being circulated in the city, the event :''Ikot Ishie/Ikot Ansa Miracle Crusade I AM THAT I AM'' is to be held on March 3-5 with a 'Tarry Night' on Friday March 7 at AB Martins Field by Ikot Ishie Market in Calabar.
The theme of the event 'That Witch Must Die' is a clear indication of what the program is all about- an event to incite violence and hatred against innocent citizens.
The poster has this telephone number '08161257384' as the 'prayer line'. Prophet Bassey J. Udosen is the main organiser while Pastor Zack Orji, a Nollywood actor and Pastor Larry Koldswaet, one of the actors in Helen Ukpabio's notorious movie 'The End of the Wicked' will be preaching at the event.
Calabar is the headquarters of Helen Ukpabio's Liberty Gospel Church. Belief in witchcraft is very strong in the city. Vulnerable persons particularly children are often targeted and abused in the name of sorcery. The activities of penticostal churches and pastors have been linked to the persecution of child witches in the region. Efforts to bring these dark age minded evangelists to book have proved ineffective as demonstrated in the recent announcement of this 'Kill the Witch' crusade.

Organising church programs that literally say: 'That Witch Must Die' expressly undermine efforts to end child witch hunting in the region. Nigeria will not win the war against witchcraft related abuse of children if it continues to turn a blind eye on church programs like this that sanction the killing of witches.
This is because these programs reinforce the link between misfortune, sorcery and these vulnerable innocent members of the population. They recharge the superstitious notion that witchcraft is evil and any alleged witch is dangerous to the society,deserves no mercy and should be killed.
Witch hunting is a traditional practice which has been appropriated by penticostal church entrepreneurs in their quest for evangelical relevance and capital.
The theme 'That Witch must die' is inspired by the Biblical injunction in Exodus 22.18 which says 'Suffer not a witch to live'. So, the christian connection to this modern day witch hunt is evident.
A 'Kill the Witch' miracle crusade is not an exercise in freedom of religion as many people may think. It is actually an abuse of the right to freedom of religion. Such a crusade promotes witchcraft accusations which is illegal in Nigeria. It incites hatred and violence against accused persons, which is a criminal offence. Unfortunately, we have yet to see any church or pastor prosecuted for this offence in Nigeria.
That notwithstanding, we shall not let up the pressure on the authorities in Calabar, Cross River State and Nigeria to take action and bring these witch hunters to justice. We shall not abandon the campaign to protect children from the vicious and virulent campaign of Nigeria's penticostal pastors who are trapped in a medieval mind warp.
We shall continue to shine the light on the schemes of these charlatans who are masquerading as pastors, using churches as fronts and witchcraft belief as a power base to demonize innocent children and exploit poor ignorance members of the community.
So join efforts with us to stop this 'Kill the Witch' Miracle Crusade in Calabar. Contact the organisers through their face book or tweeter accounts or better through the telephone/prayer line contact on the event poster. Let these evangelical con artists know that the world is watching, and will hold them accountable someday.
Witch hunting by Pentecostal churches in Nigeria must stop.

Missing $20 billion: Dr. Okonjo-Iweala Don't Play Pontius Pilate

By Mr. Osita Okechukwu

Conference of Nigerian Political Parties(CNPP) was outraged with the defeatist statement of the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and accordingly challenges her to resign forthwith with the scant honour which lingers with her; instead of playing dangerous Pontius Pilat.
We are at a loss of what type of economy she has been coordinating that it was only when the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Malam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi blew the whistle and opened the Pandora-Box of the monumental corruption inside the Nigeria National Corporation (NNPC) that she woke up?
How can she insult our collective intelligence by claiming that her position on this matter has been clear from the start; which start? The loot predates the Malam Sanusi's letter of September 2013 to President Goodluck Jonathan. Does it mean that the Coordinating Minister was not coordinating the golden goose of the economy - NNPC until the scam was exposed?
To worsen matters, Dr Okonjo-Iweala has unfortunately remained deafeningly silent on the allegation that N700 million is daily being siphoned to subsidize Kerosene.
Can the economy she coordinates sustain such drain of the economy from a single item? The kerosene scam from all indications remains the greatest threat to our democracy and by extension the security of our dear country.
In sum, Dr Ngozi Okonjo- Iweala should stop playing Pontius Pilat and resign forthwith with the scant honour left.


Mr. Osita Okechukwu
National Publicity Secretary
CNPP

Murder Of 43 Yobe Students: Again, President Jonathan Promises

As pressure mounts on President Goodluck Jonathan over his government’s seeming disarray before the Boko Haram menace in the Northeast of Nigeria, the government on Tuesday announced the president had received, “with immense sadness and anguish,” reports of the latest murder of at least 43 students in Yobe State by the militants.
A presidency statement said Mr. Jonathan extended condolences to the grieving families of the murdered students.
In what has become standard and routine language, the statement said, “The President wholly condemns the heinous, brutal and mindless killing of the guiltless students by deranged terrorists and fanatics who have clearly lost all human morality and descended to bestiality.
“He assures the nation that his administration will not relent in its ongoing efforts to end the scourge of terrorism in parts of the country which has sadly claimed more innocent lives today.”
It stated that the armed forces and other security agencies will continue to prosecute the war against terror with full vigour, diligence and determination until the dark cloud of mass murder and destruction of lives and property is permanently removed from our horizon.
Yobe is one of the three States that have been under emergency rule since May 2013. Long before then, the military and all the security agencies were present in those states under the Joint Task Force arrangement.  Despite and daring them all, as well as exploiting their weaknesses, the militants have simply continued their gruesome task of murdering both innocent civilians and heavily-armed troops, and making it look very easy.  

Heineken® Set To Unveil UEFA Champions League Trophy To Nigerians

As the UEFA Champions League 2013/2014 season hits the knockout phase, the stage is now set for Heineken®, the World’s leading international premium lager beer to give Nigerian football fans the opportunity to feel and experience the UEFA Champions League Trophy.

The trophy - which will be in Nigeria from March 13, 2014 with the brand ambassador Ruud Gullit, an ex-international and football star and coach, will remain in the country till March 16, 2014.

The UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour has been presented for eight consecutive years by Heineken® international, a UEFA Champions League partner. In 2013, Heineken® will give football fans in Nigeria, Argentina and Vietnam the chance to see and get up close to the prestigious trophy. Like Heineken®, the trophy is a true global icon. It represents the excellence of the UEFA Champions League worldwide and the ultimate achievement in European club football.

In order to make the event memorable, various events and activities have been lined up by the brand to give consumers, trade partners as well as the media first hand contact with the trophy which is making its tour of Nigeria for the second time after  it did so in 2009.

In a statement, Mr. Walter Drenth, Marketing Director Nigerian Breweries Plc, said “the Champions league trophy tour is an activity unique to Heineken®. No other brand is capable of holding the trophy tour outside of Europe.”

He promised football fans that the brand - in consonance with its tagline of “Opening Your World”- would provide an experience that only Heineken® can deliver its consumers.

On August 31, 2013, Heineken® announced the extension of its sponsorship with the UEFA Champions League. The new agreement means that the brand will continue as an official partner of the world's most prestigious club football competition up to and including the 2017 / 2018 season.

Consumers could also text TrophyTour, Name, Age, and State to 20388 to participate in the Heineken UEFA Champions League Quiz (SMS Game) to win prizes including chances to Meet the Trophy, Ruud Gullit, Christian Karembu and other Football legends.

For more details visit  www.meetthetrophy.com .

Twitter audience could follow the trophy tour experience with #meetthetrophy and @Heinken_NG

I Won't Be Surprised To Be Jailed For Speaking Out And I Am Not Afraid – Sanusi Tells Al Jazeera (VIDEO)

Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has spoken exclusively to Al Jazeera following his sacking last Thursday by President Goodluck Jonathan.

He said he would not be surprised if he is jailed for speaking out. 

"I'm not afraid ... the only way this country will change is if people stop being intimidated

by the state," he said.

Sanusi, who was suspended by the President Jonathan over allegations of misconduct, has rejected
 the claims against him, insisting he was removed for highlighting alleged widespread corruption in
 the oil and gas sector

Husband killed wife on her birthday and then himself

Margaret and Donald Knight were described as "a couple who loved each other's company"

A man shot his wife dead on her birthday and then took his own life, an inquest has heard.

The bodies of Donald Knight, 78, and his wife Margaret, 77, were found at their home in Loddington, Northamptonshire, last May.

The coroner recorded a verdict of unlawful death in the case of Mrs Knight and suicide in the case of Mr Knight, who was her main carer.

The inquest heard Mr Knight had been feeling ill and believed he had cancer.

The couple were found dead in their home in Loddington, Northamptonshire

The inquest in Northampton heard Mr Knight, former chairman of Kettering haulage firm Knights of Old, used a rifle to kill his wife and also shot the couple's Dachshund Daisy.

Coroner Anne Pember said in her closing remarks: "I believe when Mr Knight was feeling low and depressed, not only did he take his own life. I believe he made a decision that his wife, of whom he was the main carer, should die as well, on her birthday."

Found by daughter

The inquest heard the couple were devoted to one another and enjoyed going on three-month round-the-world cruises together but, in the run-up to their deaths, Mr Knight had been feeling low.

The inquest heard Mr Knight was his wife's main carer after a back operation five or six years previously meant she had mobility problems and used a motorised scooter.

In April last year he visited his GP, Joanne Warcaba, and told her he was feeling down, had no appetite and had lost a lot of weight, was unable to sleep, and had experienced thoughts about killing himself, albeit fleeting ones.

The couple's daughter found Mrs Knight dead in a chair in the lounge. Mr Knight's body was found outside on the patio, with a single fatal shotgun wound to the head.

Professor Guy Rutty told the inquest Mrs Knight's injuries were not caused by the shotgun - evidence from other witnesses explained that Mr Knight also owned a rifle - she was shot four times; twice in the abdomen area and twice to the right hand side of her head.

In a statement family members said: "We are devastated by this tragic news and thank people for their kind words.

"Donald and Margaret were a couple who loved each other's company. They were lovely parents and grandparents whose passing is a massive loss to our lives."