Happy Birthday Sir Alex Ferguson

Sir Alex Ferguson, an eminent football manager, was born to
Alexander and Elizabeth on December 31, 1941 in Glasgow, Scotland.
He married Cathy and they have three sons; Mark and twins, Darren
and Jason. Of his sons, only Darren has followed his father’s profession
and is the manager of the Peterborough United FC.
He managed the Scotland national football team for a brief period in
1986 before he moved to the Aberdeen Football Club.
Between 1957 and 1974, Sir Alex Ferguson spent his playing career
with the Queen’s Park FC (1957-60), St. Johnstone FC (1960-64),
Dunfermline Athletic FC (1964-67), Rangers FC (1967-69), Falkirk
FC (1969-73) and Ayr United FC (1973-74). Being a talented striker,
he helped the Saints’ to win the Scottish First Division in 1962-63 and
the Bairns to secure the Scottish First Division in 1969-70. By the end
of the 1973-74 season, Sir Alex Ferguson completed his stint as a
player scoring 167 goals in 327 appearances that he made for various
clubs.
At the age of 32, Sir Alex Ferguson began his management career as a
part-time job in June 1974 with the East Stirlingshire FC. It was only
when he moved to the St.Mirren FC, that he started his full-time
management career. With him as the coach, the Saints’ team won the
Scottish First Division in 1976-77. During his stay at St.Mirren, Sir
Alex Ferguson coached the team and spotted young talents like Billy
Stark, Tony Fitzpatrick, Lex Richardson, Frank McGarvey, Bobby
Reid and Peter Weir.
In June 1978, when he joined the Aberdeen Football Club (FC), he was
younger than a few senior players of the team. Sir Alex Ferguson
earned the respect and trust of his team players only after the Dons
won 5-0 against the opponent team on the final day of the Scottish
league that season (1979-80). Being a strict disciplinarian with
brilliant managerial skills, he helped the Dons’ to become the runner-
up of the Scottish League Cup in 2 seasons, 1978-80, and clinch the
Scottish Premier Division title (1979-80). The outstanding team-
building talent of Sir Alex Ferguson helped the Dons’ team to take
the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Cup Winners’
Cup in 1982-83 and secure the UEFA Super Cup in 1983-84. With his
guidance, the Aberdeen FC bagged the Scottish Football Association
(SFA) Cup for 3 consecutive seasons, 1981-84 and also during 1985-86.
After his efficient training, the Dons’ performed well to fetch the
Scottish Premier Division titles for 2 consecutive seasons, 1983-85 and
the Scottish League Cup in 1985-86.
On November 6, 1986, Sir Alex Ferguson took up as the manager of
Manchester United. After a few initial disappointments from players,
he came back with a bang when his team won the League Cup during
1991-92 and the Premier League in 1992-93. His team-building tactics,
by bringing-in talent from other teams to the Red Devils’ squad
showed remarkable results. Sir Alex Ferguson worked with talented
players like Dwight Yorke, Ryan Giggs, Teddy Sheringham, Paul
Scholes and Ole Gunnar Solskjær and won the memorable the FA Cup
Final against Newcastle United (2-0) in 1998-99. In that season, the
Red Devils’ squad also bagged the UEFA Champions League and the
Intercontinental Cup. Under the efficient coaching of Sir Alex
Ferguson, Manchester United won the Premier League (10 times), the
FA Cup (5 times), the League Cup twice, the FA Charity/Community
Shield (8 times), the UEFA Champions League twice, UEFA Cup
Winners' Cup and UEFA Super Cup once each.
In 1983, Sir Alex Ferguson was honoured in 1983 with an Officer of the
Order of the British Empire (OBE), for his service to football. He
received the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in
1995 and the Knight Bachelor in 1999. In recognition to his
achievements with the Manchester United FC, Sir Alex Ferguson was
inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002.
Being the most successful league manager, Sir Alex Ferguson became
the Football Association (FA) Premier League Manager of the Year, 8
times (1993-94, 1995-97, 1998-2000, 2002-03, 2006-08). In 1996, he
received the Football Writers’ Association (FWA) Tribute Award for
his success with the Red Devils’ team. By winning the FA Premier
League Manager of the Month, 21 times, Sir Alex Ferguson became the
only manager in the history of English football to have accomplished
such a feat. He received the League Managers Association (LMA)
Manager of the Year in 1998-99, 2007-08 and the LMA Manager of the
Decade for the 1990s. When the Red Devils’ walked away with the
UEFA Champions League in 1998-99, the coach of the team, Sir Alex
Ferguson was awarded the UEFA Champions League Manager of the
Year for that season.
For his commendable contribution to the game of football, Sir Alex
Ferguson received a number of awards in 1999, including, the BBC
Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award, BBC Sports Personality
of the Year Team Award, World Soccer Magazine Coach of the Year,
Mussabini Medal, International Federation of Football History &
Statistics (IFFHS) Club Coach of the Year and Onze d’Or Coach of
the Year. Sir Alex Ferguson was conferred the Laureus World Sports
Award for Team of the Year (2000) and BBC Sports Personality of
the Year Lifetime Achievement Award in 2001.
The year 2007 was yet another successful year for the winning manager
of the Manchester United FC, Sir Alex Ferguson, who went on to
claim the World Soccer Magazine Coach of the Year, the Professional
Footballers’ Association Merit Award and Onze D’Or Coach of the
Year.
In 2008 Sir Alex Ferguson led Manchester United to his 10th Premier
League championship and his second European title. The club from
Manchester beat the club from London, Chelsea, in the UEFA
Champions League final held in Moscow, to lift the most prestigious
European trophy. It was speculated that Sir Ferguson will retire soon
after this incredible success, but these rumors were soon put to rest
when he vowed to stay on.
At the end of the 2008-09 United won the Premier League title for the
third consecutive time, a feat that made Alex Ferguson the first
manager in the history of the Premier League to win three titles in a
row. The English football empire also added to its trophy case the
2009 Football League Cup. It won the Football League Cup again in
2010.
In 2011 Ferguson's team won the championship once again, against all
odds and in convincing fashion. The 2011 championship was especially
meaningful for the Scot manager and for the team's fans, as it allowed
the club to move ahead of Liverpool on the all-time championship list,
with 19 trophies, compared to the Reds' 18. For many,turning
Manchester United into the most successful English football club in
history, has cemented Alex Ferguson's place in history, as the most
successful football manager of his era.

A speech delivered by Pastor ‘TundeBakare, Serving Overseer of The Latter Rain Assembly, at the church auditorium on Sunday, the 18th day of December, 2011

Fellow citizens of a potentially great country being daily dehumanised by leaders who hate us, I am here this morning in the normal course of duty, the duty of a shepherd, as stipulated in the book of Jeremiah the Prophet:
3. But I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.
4. I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking,” says the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:3 & 4, NKJV) God’s desire for His flock is fruitfulness and increase, but such flock require a different kind of ‘feed’ that will guarantee that they are not afraid, dismayed, or lacking anything. This special feed is “knowledge and understanding” as stated in Jeremiah 3:15 And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.

My objective in this presentation is to confute the confusion created by a government that is hell-bent on the removal of oil subsidy without due regard for the feelings/sufferings of a people being pushed to the wall.

Let me start this presentation from a definitive standpoint and move on to other issues that will bring light and illumination to this manufactured foggy issue.

To subsidise is to sell a product below cost of production. Up until this time, neither the federal government nor the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has told us the cost of producing a litre of oil in our Warri, Port Harcourt or Kaduna refineries, so the nation is not in a position to take an informed stand on whether or not oil is being subsidized.

However, according to statistics from the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPRA) and National Bureau of Statistics, getting petrol to Nigerian ports costs N117.74 per litre. And because of deliberated gross inefficiency at the Nigerian ports, an additional cost of N6.25 per litre is incurred. The petrol is usually stored at the ports. It is not transferred directly from the ships to the trucks and so the ports charge N3.00 for storage and an administrative cost of N15.00. Other costs include a bridging fund of N3.95 and then the dealers add their margin of N1.75 per litre. The transporters add their own margin of N2.70, while filling stations add a margin of N4.60. So the cost of fuel at petrol stations comes to N138.19 per litre, or approximately N140.00 per litre. And because it is sold for N65 per litre, the federal government pays the shortfall of N75.00 or thereabout on every litre of petrol. This extra N75.00 called subsidy, is what the government says will bankrupt the nation if it is not stopped forthwith.

If you have followed me so far, it will be clear to you that the federal government is not subsidising the cost of production of refined oil in our nation. What the government is subsidising is the alternative cost of importation. This shows clearly that our leaders have allowed their laziness to envelope the entire nation so that we have corporately become a lazy nation according to the biblical definition. In Proverbs 12:24, the Bible states that The lazy man does not roast what he took in hunting, But diligence is man’s precious possession. Simply put, due to laziness and lack of diligence, our leaders cannot refine enough crude oil for our consumption.

Furthermore, in addition to its exploration activities, NNPC was given powers and operational interests by enabling legislation in refining petrochemicals, transporting products and marketing. Between 1978 and 1989, NNPC constructed refineries in Warri, Kaduna and Port Harcourt and took over the 35,000- barell Shell refinery established in Port Harcourt in 1965 and expanded it to become a two-tier refinery.


Today, the four refineries in Nigeria currently operate at 21% capacity providing 93,450 litres daily, while, on average, Nigerians use 294,000 litres of fuel per day which means that an additional 200,550 litres is imported to meet the domestic need. If you multiply that figure of 200,550 litres by the N75.00 absurdity called subsidy, Nigeria spends N15 million daily to pay for our leadership failure and pathological laziness.

The federal government has been dangling the carrot of what enormous savings they stand to make and then invest in infrastructural development, mass food production, education, health services and minimum wage. These half truths and easy answers are weapons of mass deception as the government cannot save the entirety of the sum being touted for the simple reason that 40% of total fuel consumption is by the government itself.

Fellow citizens of Nigeria, by removing the subsidy – if we ever allow this to take place – Nigerians will be made to pay for the ineptitude of their leaders and the kleptomania of government functionaries. Like other nations, some less endowed, we have the opportunity to set up our own refineries, refine our products, sell and export refined products, and make money. Instead of doing that, both NNPC and the government “explore sleaze, refine roguery and market sharp practices.” They cannot complain that they import at a high price. It is their idiotic choice and Nigerians should not be made scapegoats for their poor choices.

I have other reasons why Nigerians at home and abroad, young and old, must stand against the removal of this absurdity called subsidy, so that the government can be compelled to look inward and stop fleecing the poor people of this nation.

Successive governments have failed to explain why the refineries have remained incapacitated despite humongous investments over the years on Turn Around Maintenance (TAM);
At present, the four (4) refineries in Nigeria operate at 21% of their total capacity and produce 93,450 litres per day. We have not been told the cost per litre as earlier mentioned and the reason is not farfetched – the disparity between local cost of production and cost of importation will glaringly show the cost of our leaders’ negligence and incompetence. To show the lack of foresight and unpardonable haemorrhaging of our national economy, if the refineries are made to run at only 66% capacity, they would produce more than the 294,000 litres needed domestically everyday; Nigeria under irresponsible leadership prides itself as the sixth (6th) largest producer of oil while wearing the shameful badge of being one of the highest importers of petroleum products, paying as much as N1.3 trillion to sacred fat cats that are untouchable because of compromises at the highest level of government in our nation. Whereas nations more or less endowed as we are, like Libya and Venezuela, refine their own crude oil. Venezuela does not even export a drop of crude. Why does our country continue to export crude oil to countries that then refine and sell it back to us at higher prices?

Why does NNPC leave its own storage facilities unused and proceed to incur additional costs from leasing third party storage facilities? The DPK tanks with a storage capacity of 18,000 cubic metres at the PPMC depots within the Mosimi area have not been used for three years, though they are in good condition. The cost of leasing third party facilities is passed to the government and entered as subsidy in the books. The owners of these third party facilities are not faceless people, they are part of the cartel siphoning the resources of our nation. They cannot do it without the collaboration of those in the corridors of power; The federal government of Nigeria does not tell the whole truth each time it trumpets and blows its propaganda machinery that the present N65.00 per litre we pay for petrol is the lowest in the world. Put side by side with the cost per litre of petrol in other oil producing nations, ours is one of the highest:
Iran sells for N58.40 per litre
Kuwait: N30.66 per litre
Qatar: N32.12 per litre
Saudi Arabia: N17.52 per litre
United Arab Emirates: N54.02 per litre
Libya: N15.95 per litre

This oil subsidy saga to me is the proverbial handwriting on the wall and this government has taken the toga of Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, to further concretise the suffering of our people in the midst of plenty. Rehoboam thought he could continue the profligacy of his father, but the people that were pushed to the wall kicked back because they could not comprehend why their nation had everything but the citizens paradoxically lacked everything.

A cursory look at this scandalous precedent in the Bible and the attendant consequence that ensued will show to the wise and discerning the end-product of taking the people you are meant to serve for granted.
The abundance the land of Israel experienced in the days of Solomon can be likened to the period of our oil boom when one of our military leaders exclaimed that Nigeria’s problem is not money, but how to spend it.
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The response of King Rehoboam is not different from that of President Jonathan who recently told us that rather than lightening the burdensome service of our people, he is ready for mass revolt. And, by the grace of God, mass revolt is what he will get. What brought him to power is powerful enough to flush him out of power. The power brokers pushing him to talk tough will back off and sell out when they are face-to-face with the rage of the poor and the resentment of those excluded, deprived, and robbed. Nothing calls for the barking of a leader at the people, except he has, in the words of King Solomon, become a wicked ruler over poor people whose demeanour is likened to a roaring lion and a charging bear (Proverbs 28:15).
In closing, let me give a cautionary word to those who think they can continue afflicting the people at whose expense they maintain past and present profligacy. I am talking about those at the different tiers of government who impose unnecessary tax burdens on poor people. Those who don’t learn from history either repeat the blunders of the past or they become history themselves. King Rehoboam assumed that it was business as usual, so he sent his revenue collector Adoniram to impose punitive taxes on economically deprived people. They responded to him with stones and he died – 1 Kings 12:8 –
Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was in charge of the revenue; but all Israel stoned him with stones, and he died. Therefore King Rehoboam mounted his chariot in haste to flee to Jerusalem. Let those relying on their ill-equipped, underpaid, and underfed police officers and political thugs.

Remember the words of President J.F. Kennedy: A society that cannot help the many who are poor, cannot save the few that are rich.

Until this government downsizes, cuts down on its profligacy, and leads by example in modesty and moderation, the poor people of this country will not subsidise the excesses of the oil sector fat cats and the immorality of the self-centred and indulgent lifestyles of those in government. No leader can survive for long in power without peace. And let no one dream of peace without justice and equity.

The words of President Dwight Eisenhower are very apt and I finally close with them: Though force can protect in emergency, only justice, fairness, consideration and co-operation can finally lead men to the dawn of eternal peace.

May the soul of oil subsidy and those who desire to inflict us with further injury rest in perfect peace. Amen and Amen.

Galaxy Tab 10.1- Some Apps To Make Life More Fun and Easy

Here are just some few apps you might want to add to make your device more fun and easier to solve your daily needs.

1. File Manager HD,

2. TweetCaster HD,

3. Friend Caster Tab (Facebook) or Friend Me, they are not that different,

4. Dolphin Browser Pad,

5. Kindle (excellent eBook reader, and it just got a major update for tablets, its filled with magazines, newspapers, books etc.. to buy),

6. CNN (and set the widget, excellent for browsing through news in your homescreen),

7. Angry Birds (looks amazing on the large display),

8. Adobe Flash 10.3 for your web browsers,
9. APT Notes for simple note taking,

10. Skype (takes advantage of the front facing camera),

11. QuickOffice HD if that's not already installed,

12. TubeMate to download YouTube vids,

13. BeyondPod for podcasts etc.

You might want to add more if you so wish. Have fun with your device.

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Philips GoGear 3 Connect Android

Philips electronics, an household name has unveiled a new portable media player, the GoGear Connect 3 at IFA 2011 in Germany. This Android 2.3 ( Gingerbread ) device sports a 3.2 inch touchscreen display, and can handle 720p videos out of the box.
This iPod Touch nemesis has got a few additional tricks up its sleeve. It can stream content to DLNA certified TV sets, music players, and photo frames. It can also be connected as mass storage device to computers for easy file transfer. Moreover, the presence of Android Market opens access to thousands of apps and games.
Created with the FullSound and Surround for Movies technologies, the GoGear Connect 3 is expected to go on sale by the end of this month. It is also speculated that the player will cost around $180 (approx Rs 8300), however there is no confirmation from the company regarding this rumour.

Love Is Not 'Real'

How Could Love Be Real
“i don't know about you or other people out there but i think "love" is such a load of crap....i mean anybody can say "i love you" but that doesn't make it real....i don't think you can really love some body because...well people change...and if you loved some one because they were beautiful or smart or funny, all that can go away and then what are you left with? someone one you liked and enjoyed, but don't anymore.....love cant be real, cause people hurt the people they "love" and don't care...and thats not real "love"...i think people are raised to think that love can fix anything so they really REALLY want to find it, and they want it so bad that they make themselves think that they found it in someone they don't really love....and if you think about it look at all the movies we were brought up watching....in 'snow white' she is a slave and someone tries to kill her...but as soon as she falls in "love" everything all better...i mean come on, that bull....and look at cinderella...no-one loves her and her life is hell, but as soon as she falls in love its all roses and daisies....i mean come on? get real....""LOVE" IS NOT REAL!!! ” by Aghogho aka Dubbz