Did you know that .....

A one minute kiss burns 26 calories. (another good reason to kiss your boo!!!)

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Did you know that .......

Ralph Lauren’s original name was Ralph Lifshitz

( Yeah don’t blame him for changing that one, I would too.)

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Africa Rising: Is The Middle Class The Solution?

“Deconstructing the fashionable discourse that a middle class will cure all region’s ills is necessary to understand long-term growth trajectory“.
SINCE the turn of the century the middle classes of the global South have taken centre stage in economic policy circles. Animated by diversification of some countries’ economies, a handful of economists from international agencies and think-tanks began a discourse that then entered African and development studies.
This in turn led to calls for policies to be redirected. Countries were urged to strengthen their middle classes. The leading proponents were the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) followed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The OECD’s view is evident in its Global Development Perspectives 2012 report and the UNDP’s in its 2013 Human Development Report.
The main economists behind this push included World Bank chief economist Martin Ravallion, his former colleague, William Easterly, Nancy Birdsall from the Centre for Global Development in Washington, and Homi Kharas from the OECD Development Centre.
They define middle class as a group of people with a minimum of anything from US$2 to $10 monetary income/expenditure a day.
But such a reduced approach misses much of what is required for a proper analysis of a class – its character, and its positioning in and impact on society. Rather, the discovery of the middle class was linked to its anticipated role in promoting social change to which those in the “business of development” could pin their hopes.
This, however, shifts the debate away from the critical assessment of obstacles to development. It thereby gets in the way of a proper diagnosis of the real challenges to promoting more social equality and justice in some of the most unequal societies in our world.

The problem with the definition

Defining the middle class as a group of people with a minimum of anything from $2 to $10 monetary income/expenditure a day is itself fuzzy.
With reference to the $2 threshold, the African Development Bank declared one-third – 300 million – of the continent’s population as middle class in 2011. A year later it adjusted its size up to 500 million. It considered this a key factor for development.
It takes quite some fantasy to imagine how, based on the living costs in Africa’s urban centres, a $2-a-day threshold catapults someone from the $1.99 margin as criteria for poor into a middle-class existence. And then into playing a pioneering role in the continent’s future transformation. It seems, therefore, that all those not starving are nowadays considered “middle class”.
Limiting the debate to purely monetary categories also ignores a range of other important aspects. These include employment or social status, sources of income, lifestyle-related attributes, cultural norms, and religious or ethnic identities as contributing factors.

A Gabonese Middle Class family

Rigorously explored differentiations – not to mention any substantial class analysis – have been largely absent. This turns the “middle class” into a “muddling class”, devoid of any true meaning in terms of social analysis that seeks to identify a social agenda and the role members of society can play in transforming societies.
The new demand for supporting the middle classes within developmental policy therefore remains a vague appeal. Who, after all, should be supported for what purpose?
African studies have more recently offered much more nuanced assessments from the point of view of social anthropology and cultural studies, political science and economics.
These offer a better diagnosis of how certain segments within societies change, adapt and adjust. And how a higher income, combined with other factors, might have an impact on policy orientations and social positions.

Misplaced expectations

A closer look at the widely held assumption that middle classes by definition play a positive – meaning socially progressive – role is not convincing. History suggests a rather mixed balance, if not mainly opportunistic behaviour, of middle class members. They usually do not tend to bite the hand that feeds them.
The new Chinese middle class is anything but known for its opposition towards an authoritarian state. The Chilean middle class of the early 1970s in its majority did not side with Salvador Allende, but supported the military coup by General Augusto Pinochet.

Politically, middle classes seem not as democratic as many of those singing their praises believe. According to a recent Afrobarometer survey, a majority of those with higher education argue that the less educated should not have the same say in democratic elections, as they would not know what is best for their country.
In South Africa the black middle class is no more likely to hold democratic values than other black South Africans. But it is more likely to want government to secure higher-order survival needs over basic ones.
It is also dubious that African middle classes by their sheer existence promote economic growth. Their increase was mainly a limited result of the trickle-down effects of the resource-based economic growth rates during the early years of this century. Their position and role in society hardly has the economic potential and dynamics to induce further productive investment that contributes to sustainable economic growth.
And there is also little evidence of any correlation between economic growth and social progress, as even a working paper of the International Monetary Fund admits.
Even the African Development Bank concedes that income discrepancies as measured by the Gini-coefficient have increased, while six among the ten most unequal countries in the world are in Africa. Real sociopolitical influence is hardly owned by a growing middle class.
While the poor partly became a little bit less poor, the rich got much richer.

Myth of Africa’s growing middle class

The celebrated growth of the African middle class(es) is also questionable. The UNDP’s 2013 Human Development Report predicted that by 2030 80% of middle classes would come from the global South, but only 2% would be from sub-Saharan Africa.
Recent assessments suggest that it is not the middle of African societies that expands, but the lower and higher social groups. According to a report by the Pew Research Centre only a few African countries had a meaningful increase of those in the middle-income category.
Multinationals in the retail and consumption sector have already reacted to the dwindling purchasing power of the middle class. They have reversed earlier investments. The world’s biggest food producer, Nestlé, has reduced its presence in Africa by 15% of its employees.

Debate shows signs of shifting

Fortunately the discussions following the middle-class hype have created sufficient awareness to trigger a debate separating fact from fiction in the assumed transformative power of a middle class.
This includes challenging the myth that a middle class is the cure for the social woes of countries considered “less developed” and affected by massive poverty. Rather, its variety of members will most likely continue to act in their own best interests.
Deconstructing and demystifying the trendy discourse, and thereby dismantling the proclaimed middle-class torch bearers, brings back the sobering need to properly analyse and assess social structures. The aim would be to offer a more realistic diagnosis of where the dividing lines between a policy for the rich and one for the poor should or could be drawn.
If we are serious about the need for social change and transformation, we should be as serious about class analysis.

Henning Melber, Extraordinary Professor, Department of Political Sciences, University of Pretoria
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

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5 Women Giving Africa’s Entrepreneurs A Helping Hand

On a continent well known for making the news for all the wrong reasons, there are thousands of African women who are not only creating successful businesses, but leaving inspiration and change in their wake, and in a small way helping to change the narrative of Africa’s headlines. The five women below are still making massive strides in their respective business sectors, changing their industries and improving business for other women in Africa.

All these women are members of the Graça Machel Trust, a pan-African advocacy organization that focuses on women’s rights, children’s rights and governance and leadership in Africa. Their Multiplying Faces, Amplifying Voices campaign aims to build a network of highly qualified, active and effective women across the continent to become a voice in areas where they are currently underrepresented. This includes the Network of African Businesswomen (NABW), Network of African Women in Agribusiness (AWAB) and New Faces New Voices (NFNV), a programme that focuses on expanding the role and influence of women in the financial sector.

Joy Ndungutse: Founder and CEO of Gahaya Links (Rwanda)
Changing economies by commercializing culture

Joy Ndungutse spent her childhood and early adult years in exile due to political instability in Rwanda. Driven by ambition, Joy’s strong desire to work towards the empowerment of women translated into a weaving initiative when she moved back to Rwanda after the genocide. While running a hotel and the country’s first furniture store, she trained local women in rural areas and designed baskets, modern in style and shape, that these women could make using traditional weaving skills and techniques. This journey gave birth to Gahaya Links, a successful social enterprise in Rwanda that works with over 4,000 weavers to make traditional baskets that are exported to the US and Japan and sold through leading department stores.

Joy notes that, “It is a delight to see the fruits of this project and to see an increase in the number of women in Rwanda achieving financial independence.”

She continues: “It is also encouraging to see that the local culture is alive and vibrant, and that using what we have, we have managed to make such an impact on the lives of others, and on creating awareness of what Rwanda has to offer to the world.”

However, she highlights that although some progress has been made in Rwanda, a lot still needs to be done to increase financial inclusion of women, educate women on taxation and business practices, as these still remain big challenges for women in business. She identifies certain key issues such as geographical access to financial institutions, information on financial information and products, and access to capital as barriers for women to enter into business.

According to Joy, “most rural women in Rwanda lack the knowledge to organize businesses in a formal way. It’s critical to educate them on key issues such as new business taxation policies and the simplified tax regime that exempts them from to allow them kickstart and build sustainable businesses.”

She highlights that a lot more work needs to be done to educate and create awareness of the importance of formalizing and growing informal women owned businesses.

Hadia Gondji: Managing Director at Hadia Seed Production, Hadia Flowers and Hadia Supermarket (Ethiopia)
Challenging the status quo to create opportunities for women

Hadia is the country director of the New Faces New Voices Ethiopia Chapter and is a pioneer in the transportation, agriculture and horticulture industries in Ethiopia. In agriculture she is involved in hybrid grain multiplication and through her business she teaches farmers in the country to improve their yields.

Hadia says: “We normally work with small-scale farmers to help them improve their production and we teach female farmers free of charge.”

As president of the Ethiopian Women Exporters Association, she has seen production by female farmers increase, and exports of different produce such as coffee, fruit, vegetables and flowers improve. Hadia is also one of the founders of Enat Bank, the only financial institution in Ethiopia that specifically targets women.

She explains, “In Ethiopia it is still very difficult for women to get into business and politics. Although things are getting better, it remains hard for women to do business, as the environment is not conducive, banks want collateral before giving financial support and women do not own any property. The houses and farms belong to men.”

“Enat Bank was launched to assist women by getting money from investors to deposit as collateral for women in business, and we see that the bank is making a great difference to women business owners.”

Hadia highlights that creating a strong business network for women in Africa is essential in ensuring that business opportunities improve for women on the continent. As evidenced by the Graça Machel Trust, the role of such networks and advocacy groups is invaluable in connecting likeminded businesswomen across the continent.

Elizabeth Swai: Managing Director of AKM Glitters Company Limited (Tanzania)
Driving the agenda for women in business

A self-starter, Elizabeth Swai runs a thriving poultry business that has expanded its operations to include small-scale farmers in its supply chain. Her business model makes a conscious effort to include those parties that would normally find themselves excluded from the formalized market.

Elizabeth says that although the Tanzanian government has expressed commitment to supporting female entrepreneurship, women still face a great number of obstacles. Challenges such as cultural barriers, the right to property and decision making, stiff competition, corruption and bureaucracy, and a lack of awareness from women themselves, make it extremely hard for women in Africa to build a successful business.

She also serves as lead and coordinator of African Women in Agribusiness, holds a seat in the Network of African Women in Business, is a founder member of the African Agriculture Academy, and is an active member of the World Poultry Association.

According to Elizabeth, her involvement with the women’s networks and associations is aimed at representing the needs of women in Tanzania.

She says: “I am involved with all of these organizations in order to represent other women. Defragmentation is a poison, so women need to partner with other women, networks, associations, men and their gigantic enterprises with muscle to be able to achieve the achievable.”

She notes: “I created a business model that is inclusive in order to enable ease of access to finance and technical expertise, but also to work with more women in rural areas and create employment for the youth.”

Elizabeth Magaya: Managing Director of Blissford Investments (Zimbabwe)
Taking giant steps, one step at a time

Elizabeth Magaya became an entrepreneur at the age of 10 to help look after her siblings after her parents’ divorce. She went from vegetable vendor to owning a group of companies that includes a booming construction business, and has recently diversified into horticulture, landscape and interior design. At the age of 52, she went back to school to finish what she wasn’t able to start as a child and graduated at the age of 56.

She is the epitome of self-made success and attributes this to hard work, sheer determination and a constant drive for perfection.According to Elizabeth, “the biggest challenges with women in business in Africa are the women themselves.”

She explains: “Most women are still marginalized and still depend on men to make decisions for them and give them permission to do things. I believe women should be aggressive, start networking and start to expose themselves. They should see every situation and challenge as a bull and take it by the horns.”

“To empower themselves, women must realize that it is possible to start, and you can start small, you don’t need to be great or big to start, begin where you are and the rest will follow. Never mind your background, where you started or where you came from. If you use your hands and mind you will reach your destiny,” she says.

Grace Mijiga-Mhango: Director of Agriseed and African Women in Agribusiness (Malawi)
Building businesses that transform lives

Grace specializes in commodity trading and seed multiplication and has built successful businesses that trade in Malawi and across the continent. Having been with the Graça Machel Trust since 2011, she is one of the pioneers that help shape the Trust’s vision. She conceptualized the African Food Basket Project that promotes the growing of indigenous seeds led by women farmers to raise the yields of staple crops like maize, soya beans and pigeon peas. The overall project aims to benefit 50,000 women across grain production value chains in five countries over the next five years.

Grace has incredible vision which she shares passionately with those interested in her work and those that share similar interests and beliefs. She sees herself as an agent of change, and is committed to working to support others to reach their full potential and achieve meaningful change in their lives.

The Graça Machel Trust, through its advocacy work, seeks to continue in extending its arm to more women across the continent, to effect and influence a change in thinking about women-owned businesses as a channel for Africa’s economic development. The trust seeks to grow women-owned businesses across Africa, and to empower female entrepreneurs to realize their full potential.

BY: Graca Machel for the  World Economic Forum on Africa.

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Young, African And Building An Empire

This is the best time in history to be young and African. We live in an era characterised by an abundance of opportunities and young people starting sustainable businesses across the continent. The conversation about Africa is gradually shifting from that of poverty to one about creativity, business, and investment.

“Entrepreneurship is having a transformative effect across the continent as more and more young people are starting their own businesses rather than waiting to be employed by someone,” notes Marcello Schermer, Regional Manager for Africa at Seedstars World, a global startup competition. “Many governments, corporates, investors and ecosystem builders have understood that, which is why you’re seeing co-working spaces, accelerators and all kinds of startup programmes pip up everywhere from Morocco to Mali, to Ethiopia and Mozambique, and anywhere in between.”

Countries like Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and many others have taken centre stage as some of the fastest growing economies in the world. Contributing to the continent’s economic growth is a vastly growing number of hungry young entrepreneurs doing wonders across various sectors. Let’s get to know some of them:

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Put on the gbedu cos TGIF!!!!!!!!!

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Put on the gbedu cos TGIF!!!!!!!!!

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Put on the gbedu cos TGIF!!!!!!!!!

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Shopping mall.

Africa's largest online shopping mall.

This is Africa's largest online shopping mall. Nueras is a Nigerian company which specialises in bridging the gap between Africa and the UK and USA. It allows its African clients to shop from over 180 listed stores in the UK and USA, including Debenahms, Macys, Marks and Spencer, Wallis, Next etc, from the comfort of their home in Africa and have it delivered to their door.

They also have a personal shopping service for clients that need that need a little help navigating through the stores or are pressed for time.

Visit www.nuerasshoppingmall.com for all you shopping needs

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NIGERIAN STUDENTS DEVELOP HUMANE APP TO MAKE ANY PHONE ACCESSIBLE FOR BLIND

Four Nigerian engineering students have developed software that can turn any windows phone into a smartphone accessible to visually impaired. The application software (unavailable for public download) called Humane is brainchild of Victor Shoaga, Ayodele Obasegun, Oyatope Blessing and Otaru Babatunde – engineering students at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU). The app uses a compatible manual controller to make a smartphone more accessible and easy to use for blind.

We have previously seen customizable phone for blind, touchscreen Braille Phone, 3D printed Braille smartphone and even a Braille smartwatch. But this is for the first time someone’s developed a software to help convert any phone (currently Humane works with Windows phones only) into a Braille phone, convenient for the visually impaired to use.

How does the software work?

The application is not available for public download; it is made available for download only on demand.

Once downloaded onto a visually impaired user’s phone, the user is provided with a manual controller (and a unique identification number). The person is required to enter provided unique ID into the app to set it working – one controller can only work with one handset. Humane features a voice assistant that notifies once the app’s successfully activated.

The controller

The controller is basically a device with two joysticks and a button in the center. While joysticks are used by the user to scroll, the button makes selection of a function easy.

Humane works with the controller via Bluetooth allowing the visually impaired user to carry out various functions on the phone including surfing the web, playing music or audio in videos and or setting and checking time.

Current limitations

Presently the app and controller are both in prototype stage. The controllers have been produced in a very limited quantity. Moreover, the controller despite being durable and easy to use, it’s slightly on the bulkier side.

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Better to start them young!!!

The Zuckerbergs read quantum physics book to baby Max. I think this picture is so cute, I couldn't not post it. Congratulations again guys. She's one lucky baby girl.

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Travel Hack - How to pack wine safely in your suitcase.

Have you ever packed a bottle of wine in your suitcase and gone to unpack and bam the bottle breaks? Well I have. My dad once gave me a bottle of wine to give to my tutor as a thank you. I wrapped the bottle in my towel and it was safe until I went to unpack and as I took my towel out the bottle went flying across the room and shattered needless to say I was quite peed off because I now had to go and buy a replacement which wasn’t cheap. So when I came across this neat little trick I thought I’d it give a try and it worked.

Basically you get a pair of socks, I used my daughter’s knee high socks but you can use any thick long socks, put the bottle in it. Put each sock from each end of the bottle to give it a double layer of protection and then you can put in between your towel.

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Food Expiration Date Labels Explained

Everything is becoming modernised in Nigeria including the way we shop. With the introduction of Shoprite and online food shopping we are gradually moving away from the traditional markets. But do we understand the labeling on the food that we buy from the supermarket regarding expiration???? Some labels have a sell-by date, others a use by and others a best before date. What do they all mean?

• Sell-by date- This is for the store, letting the shop owners know how long a certain product can be displayed on the shelf. You should buy the food item before this date passes to make sure it’s fresh.
• Best Before/By date - This date helps specify when a product is at its peak freshness. Buy and use the item before this date for best quality. However even if it has passed this date you can still use the item but the quality will be reduced. I think at this point I should add that I have eaten many products that have gone past their best before date and they taste just fine to me. I even feed my family with it sometimes, I just don’t tell them and they don’t even notice a difference in taste.
•  Use-By date – Like the best before, these dates tell you when a product will start deteriorating in quality and flavor. Again, it’s best to buy and use products before this date for best quality, but consuming the product a few days late won’t kill you.
• Closed or coded dates. These are packing codes that track the product when it is being shipped. These codes are typically a series of numbers and letters that indicate dates and times the container was filled, and places of manufacture. (They look something like this: 045B97 04112008.) They should not be interpreted as use-by dates.

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Terrorist attack in London tube station.

Three people have been stabbed in a London tube station. The incident occurred on Saturday evening in Leytonstone tube station east London. No one was fatally injured but one man was stabbed in neck and his condition has been described as serious but not life threatening. The attacker was allegedly heard shouting ‘this is for Syria’ as he stabbed his victims.

Unarmed police tasered him and arrested him. The incident has been labelled a terrorist attack and I am afraid this might not be the last of these sorts of attacks. God help us all who use the underground regularly.

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Tony Elumelu set to empower Africa's next 100 entrepreneurs

The second annual round of the $100m Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme (TEEP) for emerging African entrepreneurs is set to take off on 1^st January 2016.

Serial entrepreneur, Tony Elumelu, personally committed $100 million to empower African entrepreneurs through the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme.The vision of this project is to identify and help grow 10,000 start-ups and young businesses from across Africa over the next 10 years, targeting the creation of 1,000,000 new jobs and $10 billion in annual revenues.

“I set out to institutionalise luck with the Foundation and give back to the Continent that made me”, said Tony O. Elumelu, the serial entrepreneur investor and philanthropist, who established the Tony Elumelu Foundation in 2010.  “Entrepreneurship can chart a new course of development for Africa, with Africans taking responsibility for wealth creation, creating value adding businesses here in Africa and this is why I encourage applications from across the Continent, regardless of age, gender, religion or color.” TEEP is driven by Elumelu’s philosophy of Africapitalism, which calls for the African private sector to focus on long term investments that create social and economic prosperity in Africa, and take the lead role in Africa’s transformation.

In 2015, TEEP empowered 1,000 African entrepreneurs, selected from over 20,000 applicants, with start-up investment, active mentoring, business training, an entrepreneurship boot camp and regional networking across Africa. The Tony Elumelu Foundation invested a total of $4,860,000, including $1,405,000 in agriculture; $410,000 in education and training; and $365,000 in manufacturing.  The sector-agnostic programme funded start-ups across a further 20 industries, all based in Africa.

Entrepreneurs, with an average age range of 21-40, from 51 African countries completed the programme and received $5,000 in seed capital for their start-up businesses. Tony Elumelu Entrepreneur, Stella Nakatudde, founder of ICT company, Ella Solutions Ltd, based in Uganda, said of her experience: “Since being selected for TEEP 2015, I have learned invaluable life and business lessons, expanded and enriched my business network, opened our first office, hired two staff and closed two web development deals.  TEEP is not just a means to start or propel your business, it is the torch that will light your entrepreneurship journey for life and the pen that will script your story in the new African Narrative.”

In addition to directly supporting African entrepreneurs with “Empowerment Capital”, the Tony Elumelu Foundation uses data gathered to conduct research and advocate for policy improvements to the enabling environment. Earlier this year, the Foundation released a report titled “Unleashing Africa’s Entrepreneurs: Improving the Enabling Environment for Start-ups”, which includes insights based on the most comprehensive and diverse data set on African entrepreneurs ever compiled.

Tony Elumelu Foundation CEO Parminder Vir OBE stated “Africa does not need aid alone, it needs investment and it needs entrepreneurs.  TEEP brings both and our ability to bring capital and the necessary support, for those who will help Africa harness its enormous potential is creating extraordinary opportunities across the Continent.”

The Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme is open to citizens and legal residents of all 54 African countries. Applications for 2016 open on 1^st January and can be made by any for-profit business based in Africa in existence for less than three years, including new business ideas.

Author

Felicia Omari Ochelle

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Buhari to enter into high speed railway agreement with chinese Xi Jingping

CHINA may be commissioned to build a high speed rail link across Nigeria over the coming week as President Muhammadu Buhari plans to finalise agreements with Chinese premier Xi Jinping at an economic summit in South Africa next week.

Today, President Buhari leaves for the Forum on China/Africa Cooperation (Focac) taking place in Johannesburg where he will discuss a coastal railway project stretching for 1,402km linking Lagos with Calabar. It is expected to be financed with a $12bn Chinese loan and which will create about 200,000 jobs. 

Last month, President Buhari discussed the matter with Premier Jinping on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly Summit in New York. At the meeting, President Buhari indicated that he wanted China to resume stalled rail projects under new terms that would see the Asian country providing nearly all the financing required.

Another rail project that will be up for renegotiation is the $8.3bn Lagos-Kano standard gauge modernisation project, of which only a segment, the Kaduna-Abuja route, has reached completion stage. President Buhari is also expected to discuss ways of removing all obstacles in the way of the 3,050 megawatts Mambilla Power Station, considered a strategic project which was conceived in 1982 but yet to taken off. 

Premier Jinping had informed President Buhari of his country’s willingness to finance the whole project through a special loan agreement. In President Buhari’s entourage to help negotiate the deal will be foreign minister Geoffrey Onyema, transport minister Rotimi Amaechi and the minister of industry, trade and investment Okechukwu Enelamah.

– See more at: http://www.nigerianwatch.com/news/8316-buhari-to-enter-into-high-speed-railway-agreement-with-chinese-premier-xi-jinping-this-week#sthash.VSbz8kne.dpuf

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Second Largest Diamond In World Found In Botswana

The second-largest diamond (pictured) in the world was recently discovered in the South African country of Botswana, reports BBC.

Located in the Karowe mine in northern Gaborone, which is mined by Canadian diamond producer Lucara Diomond, the stone is 1,111 carats.

Of the find, Lucara Diamond CEO William Lamb said, “The significance of the recovery of a gem quality stone larger than 1,000 carats, the largest for more than a century…cannot be overstated.”

An 813-carat stone and a 374-carat stone were also found at the mine, with Lucara calling those diamonds “exceptional.”

Lamb added, “I am truly at a loss for words. This has been an amazing week for Lucara with the recovery of the second largest and also the sixth largest gem quality diamonds ever mined.”

The largest diamond ever found was in South Africa in 1905. The diamond was 3,106 carats and was cut into nine stones that are now a part of the British Crown jewels.

With Botswana being the largest producer of diamonds, it is now ranked as a middle-income nation

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Blade Runner- Oscar Pistorius charge changed to murder

A South African appeal court changed Oscar Pistorious’s charge from the lesser charge of culpable homicide to the higher charge of murder which carries a minimum charge of 15 years.

Oscar shot his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine ’s Day 2013, killing her. He said he thought she was an intruder but after reading the whole story I found it difficult to believe his version of events. He claims he was woken up by a noise in the middle of the night by someone in the toilet and he shot through the door after yelling to Reeva, who had come over for valentine’s day, to call the police. My issue with it is this, if I’m in the house with someone, sleeping in the same bed and then get woken up at night by a noise my first instinct will be to see if it’s the person in the house with me that’s making that sound not to shoot through the toilet door repeatedly.

He is currently under house arrest after serving one year of his original 5 year sentence in jail. He will be sentenced in the New Year and is expected to return to jail as South African does not make provision for someone to be placed under house arrest for more than 5 years.

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Sugabelly: Victim of rape or Woman scorned??????

For those of you that haven’t heard or that don’t really know the ins and outs of this story let me fill you in. Basically Lotanna aka Sugabelly claims that the son of the recently deceased governor of Kogi state Mustafa Audu, raped her repeatedly and got his friends and brother to rape her too when she was 17 over a period of time. She gives a detailed account of the various incidents with names of her alleged abusers. Her account is pretty graphic but has holes in my opinion. I couldn’t help getting a sense that something was missing from her story. I found it very difficult to identify with her or see her as a victim. Firstly she never said that she was held against her will and she kept coming back. She claims she kept coming back because he threatened to release kinky pictures of her naked and videos of her being raped. But this was back in 2007 and as far as I remember back then it wasn’t that easy to upload and share things on social media, but I guess if one was determined they could make it happen.  I don’t think this story is black and white. I also cannot understand why she went about it the way she did with all this media frenzy.

I don’t know what to make of the story. Is it a young girl trying to make a name for herself at the same time as exacts revenge on the guy who jilted her or is it a young man trying to cover up the fact that he took advantage of a young messed up girl’s infatuation with him.

I think lots of people are as confused as me because the petition calling for justice for her has only received 170 signatures even with all the coverage.

Decide for yourself

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Ice T and Coco welcome first baby together.

The couple welcomed their first child together after 15 years at the weekend, a baby girl who they named Chanel Nicole. 

This is Ice T’s third child he already has two grown daughters, Tracy and Letesha. There was a lot of criticism about the size of Coco’s bump being too small but as you can see all the fuss was about nothing as baby was a healthy 5.7 pounds and 18 inches. 

Proud daddy

Checkout the baby's Instagram account @babychanelnicole.

Congratulations guys. She’s gorgeous and looks more like dad sorry Coco. Also 5 days after giving birth Coco shows off her amazing figure whilst holding Chanel.

Coco & baby Chanel

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