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After Much Speculation, Fantasia Says She’s Expecting

After much speculation, rumor and Internet innuendo, Fantasia recently announced that she was pregnant with her second child.

The announcement came as the former American Idol singer was performing at the opening of the Riverview Apartments in Jacksonville, FL (Why she was there? I have no idea).

Last month, the blogs lit up with speculation about Fantasia’s weight gain and her vacation with former beau, Antwaun Cook. Last year, Fantasia and Cook were involved in a very public relationship that left her in the middle of Cook’s nasty divorce scandal, and so depressed she attempted suicide. After kicking Cook to the curb (or so it seemed), many of Fantasia’s fans were shocked to see the two of them frolicking on the beach in Barbados.

As she started to perform over the weekend, Fantasia told the crowd she was pregnant, and she didn’t have to hide it anymore.

“I share this with you, because I can relate to you. For a while I walked around figuring out what will they say, and what will they think of me. But now I tell you I don’t live my life for folk. So, this child that I carry…God has given me this child, and I don’t have to hide it from none of y’all,” she said.

Although I wish her the very best, part of me wishes Fantasia would get it together. I’d hate for her to jeopardize her career, squander her amazing voice, and end up on an episode of “Unsung,” because her personal drama brought her down.

I’m rooting for you, Fanny

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Rehab For Gays And Lesbians Opened in Accra, Ghana

An Accra based man of God is blazing the trail with an innovation which he believes is the antidote to curbing the rapidly emerging trend of homosexuality in the country.

Prophet Dominic Ackah Manlenzie says he has set up what he refers to as a “special solution center for gays and lesbians” at his church to help people who so wish to break the habit.

The founder and General Overseer of Heaven’s Embassy located at SCC junction on the Kasoa-Winneba road, like many other concerned clergy told DAILY GUIDE, homosexuality is the by-product of satanic influence and an abomination to God.

He said to suggest that homosexual tendencies were genetic and therefore natural, is a big mistake. He noted that God created us to be heterosexual in our sexual leanings and desires and that is the more reason why gays and lesbians need divine spiritual intervention to save them from harmful physical and spiritual effects of the practice.

“The truth is that this thing is not from God and I know there are many out there who got themselves entangled in it rather innocently and now want to get out but don’t know how because it has become an addiction very much like smoking or alcoholism. The forces behind homosexuality are powerful so you need a higher power, God’s power to break their hold over the lives of their victims,” Prof Manlenzie said.

The man of God explained the center is manned by himself together with several of his other deliverance ministers and counselors.

“We have had some people referred to us for help through their friends and family and some are now living their lives normally. Some are still in the program. Let me state here that the process to recovery does not always happen at once. It may take days, maybe even weeks or months depending on the individual involved and the unique circumstances and severity of each case. Just like they didn’t hooked on homosexuality in a day, deliverance most likely won’t take place in a day.”

He said after completing the program, participants are counseled to maintain their new healing by keeping a close relationship with God through regular prayer and bible study as well as fellowship with other believers.

They are also cautioned to avoid places and people that could re-trigger their old habits, Prophet Dominic noted saying “when an unclean goes out from a man he will hang around to see whether there are any loopholes he can exploit to gain access into his victim’s life once again (Matt 12:43).

Asked to talk more about the center he said it offers tailor-made prayer, fasting and counseling sessions. He said since he is a prophet, he gives his clients prophetic direction relevant to their situation as well.

“We are careful to take down the client’s family and relationship/sexual history and lead them to Christ if they are not already born again. There is a family, relationship counselor who will talk with them and offer them sound biblical guidance.”

Prophet Manlenzie believes his center will help people get out of homosexuality even if not everyone can be saved. It is not enough to constantly condemn it, he said.

“What pastors, health personnel as well as civil society and government need to do is get on board and actually do something about the problem.”

If you like this article, I’d recommend my book “If I Was Famous, I’d Have a Lot to Say”

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SOMALIA’S FAMINE: WAY FORWARD FOR THE AFRICAN CONTINENT

It is no longer making headline news that Somalia, a country located to the east of the African continent is presently besieged by an unprecedented famine in the history of the country. Media reports have confirmed over twenty thousand children dead out of malnutrition and associated aliments. Many residents have been forced to desert the country to neighboring nations for succor. Both local and international organizations, especially the United Nations have intervened by shipping and flying into Somalia tons of relieve materials ranging from foods, drugs, clothing, and other basic commodities necessary to improve the living condition of the people. The focus on Africa in the global community is centered on Somalia. The famine spreads across the shores of Somalia like an inferno as if with no obvious solution in sight.

In my view, its high time African leaders strategically position themselves to address human related issues facing the continent such as Somalia’s famine. Effort of African leaders in this wise should not be ‘politicized’. I mean to state there is an urgent need for African leaders to partner with appropriate bodies such as the Private sector in the continent, economic experts, the civil society groups,  forecasters and any other relevant institution that can be collaborated with in forestalling and managing a future re-occurrence of the ‘social epidemic’ ongoing in Somalia. This brings to fore, the readiness and responsiveness of African Leaders towards economic and other social crisis confronting the continent. As stated earlier, African leaders should come to appreciate that governance the world over especially in democratically entrenched nations, comprises both the public and private sectors. The economic and social developments of the West and East today are facts to the aforementioned. Government in these regions of the world out of recognition to the developmental roles of the private sector either partners or provide an enabling business environment for the private sector in facilitating economic and social growth.

Therefore, African leaders and policy makers should consolidate efforts aimed at managing the challenges peculiar to the continent as recently observed in Somalia. To this end, the major private players in Africa’s economy should be identified. African leaders under the auspices of the African Union can draw up a memorandum of Understanding (M.O.U) with these organizations. Both short and long term measures aimed at managing and proffering workable solutions real time will be drawn. These measures can be made to be part of an organization’s long-term goal, which will often be a subject of discussion during an organization’s board meeting or her Annual General Meeting. By this, an organization is made to integrate into its plans and programs- short or long term, the measures adopted to address any challenge confronting the continent out of its social responsibility.

As a case study: the A.U in collaboration with five major organizations operating in the continent on food security.  A short and long term plan is drawn on this. The government provides the enabling environment such as subsidies and incentives to the organizations involved in areas such as the importation of machineries for an intensive agricultural project, availability of raw materials, land amongst others. A committee comprising of both body’s representatives is constituted to supervise and provide necessary assistance in the actualization of the set goal. This supervisory body can constitute experts in the area identified. Out of the provision above, an emergency relief committee (E.R.M) should be in place for prompt action in the event of an emergency.

From the foregoing, African leaders should re-awaken there zeal and commitment to the people. The A.U should strengthen regional bodies such as SADC, ECOWAS in the drive towards achieving the stated objectives addressed above.  The ability of China being the world’s second largest economy today, a country that started the race to nation building few decades ago with African ‘giants’ such as Nigeria, South-Africa, Ghana, has demonstrated that Africa like the Asian Tigers can equally attain the same level of economic and social development. Sharing the sentiment of Chester Higgins, Jr..” We are not Africans because we are born in Africa, We are Africans because Africa is born in Us.. Yes, that Africa is born in Us should compel us a people despite our present challenges to believe in a bright future for our dear continent. It is our collective responsibility, both the government and the governed. We need to be the ‘CHANGE’ required to move Africa to the next level in the Comity of Nation in our respective ‘corridors’

If you like this article, I’d recommend my book “If I Was Famous, I’d Have a Lot to Say”

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DEVELOPING AFRICA FROM WITHIN

Whenever Africa name is mentioned, it’s either for hunger, conflict, corruption, underdevelopment or poverty. All these are clear manifestations of social dislocation that characterized almost all the continent’s countries, with the exception of South Africa and Botswana. The continent is blessed with abundant human and natural resources. It is the new bride for foreign investors as the ‘mad rush’ by Eastern and Western strongest economies have shown in the last one decade. But one wonders whether foreign investments would translate into abundance of food, cessation of conflict, curtail corruption, bring about development or reduce poverty. Foreign aids, borrowing as well assistance have not really changed anything in the lives of the people in Africa. Rather they are sowing the seed of the problems that bedeviled the continent.

Most of the conflict situations in Africa are being caused by the foreign investors’ mismanagement of resources in connivance with foreign investors who derive pleasure from playing one party against the other in their dealings with the local people. Mismanagement gives way to marginalization which fester poverty and hunger – cocksure channels to civil conflict. The so called foreign investors procure arms for factionalized groups to kill themselves, making these countries unstable and further underdeveloped. Yet, they negotiate peace deal for them later. But, does these cease-fires cum peace agreements for the interest of the people or for the invetsors’?

It leaves no one in doubt that land deals or concessions between foreign investors and the local people have always been very unfavorable to the latter with little or no long-term benefits. The same thing goes for mining or oil exploration deals/licenses as the examples of Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Kenya, Liberia etc. have demonstrated.  How long will it takes the government of African countries to learn that it is not worth these deals where they cede larger percentage of into foreigner hands?

One of the basic lies that cajole African leaders into these empty deals is the promise of job creation for their teeming unemployed young population and the vain-gain foreign direct investment (fdi) their countries stand to benefit. From experiences round the whole continent, the local people mainly end up in dead-end odd jobs with meager monthly take-home pay that cannot take any of them home. This has always led to in-work poverty among the very few who work with them. Workers in these so called multinational corporations work under severe inhuman conditions.

Juicy job openings are the exclusive reserves of the foreign experts who receive whooping sum as salary, as they live in sheer affluence in tastily furnished and well-secured apartments and ride in expensive jeeps, while the local people trek their way to and fro their work stations, or scramble for tattered and rickety taxis/motor-bikes that are hardly available. In most companies they spend more time in resolving labor-management impasse than they devout to business activities either due to pay increments or better conditions of service, or non-payment of salary.

The governments of African countries can plough the foreign borrowings and assistance into the same kind of business ventures and manage them with foreign experts in their employment, to take charge and transfer knowledge and skills to the local people. What stops the government from investing in the mining of, say, iron ore or the exploration of crude oil or planting and running cash crops farms? Part of the problem has been personal interest over public interests.

Most of these government officials, especially legislators who collect jumble pay in the name of salaries and allowances, while the people they represent, live in abject poverty; negotiate and corner percentage deals for themselves as kick-backs. They pass laws that give dubious foreign investors the leverage to operate with impunity and pay scanty attention to best labor and environmental practices that engender sustainable development.

Certainly, the development the continent of Africa yearns for would hardly come from outside if the people are not ready. Just few things the government and people of the continent need to do and the development will drive hunger, poverty, conflict, underdevelopment and corruption underground. One, our orientation must change from viewing development as always coming from outside. This is why all the big economic policies from the World Bank (WB), International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other foreign initiated bodies have repeatedly failed. Two, our government must sign concession deals or issue exploration licenses that have long-term benefits to the people not for themselves. This they can do by making these investors adhere to responsive labor issues that have do with good minimum wage and good working condition as well sustaining the environment they carry out their operations.

Times have changed, land lease should attract handsome amount of money and good employment prospects for those leasing their lands. Three, government can set up ventures to tap their resources with foreign technical know-how that would be transfer later.  When national governments own and run the companies with similar interest as the foreign ones, there will be keen completion and plentiful job opportunities. Five, national governments must make it a priority to develop their infrastructure especially good network of roads/rail system and electricity. Four, the people must learn to save for private investments in order to build a middle income group that compel development from within.

Africa has a great future! The future cannot come if we continue the way we do things right now. The kind of development we see in other countries cannot take the same trend in our case. If it is not home-grown, it will be not be our own and the few who have access to government will not be committed to the nation’s development well-being. Only when Africans are ready to embrace the change from within that they can conquer all the negative things the continent is being associated with.

If you like this article, I’d recommend my book “If I Was Famous, I’d Have a Lot to Say”

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Elections in Africa and its Impact on Development

Democratization has produced a mechanism of election through which decision can be made by people in the state, community etc. The process of election in Africa can be so tense and charged, because most of the political leaders can use the process to come to power to get ill-gotten wealth off the state. It is unfortunate to note that most of the political leaders that participate in election in Africa do not understand the nature of state-building; rather it is about “Personality”. In essence, most of the elections in most parts of Africa are beclouded, with the “culture of Self aggrandizement”. The culture of poverty and the greed of power have stimulated this kind of “Personality attitude.  Many times in African elections, conflict can develop because the process is marked with fraud and those who are mandated to manage the elections fail repeatedly because they are frighten to disappoint their entrenched interests. Only reputable Election Commissions’ Heads who care for state-building can ensure that the process is transparent, credible, free and fair. The Independent National Election (INEC) Chairman of Nigeria Prof. Attahiru Jega, ensures that the general elections held recently in Nigeria were transparent, even though there were some pockets of minute irregularities. When elections are transparent, it strongly helps the developmental process of the state.

The process of electioneering in Africa seems to be a difficult culture because Africans are accustomed to the traditional ways of selecting their leaders. The elder who has rich cultural heritage will always be given the mantle of authority. Since the introduction of this democratic process of choosing leaders, there have always been problems. For the incumbent leaders on the continent, every strategic frame work must be adopted to ensure a “must win scenario” in spite of their poor governance performance. Laurent Gbargbo of Ivory Coast could not accept the election results because he had conceptualized that he must win. Sometimes based on the poor performance of the incumbent, the chances for the opposition to win can be high, but the failure to manage this opportunity has become a great challenge. Opposition failure to accept the results of the election which were internationally acclaimed to be transparent can also create problem for development. Election has become complex for African politicians and has continued to pose the problem for development.

Today, in Kenya, there is an inclusive government and some are undergoing investigation as well as trial in The Hague, based on post-election violence. According to BBC news, in 2008, approximately 600 persons were reportedly killed in the post-election violence in Kenya, following disputes over the results of the December 2007 presidential elections. The country is gradually evolving from the election nightmare after a government of national unity was negotiated which saw power being shared between President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga. In another development, the opposition leader in Uganda, Dr. Kizza Besigye claimed that President Musovini used intimidation to win the 2011 election. Dr. Kizza Besigye was beaten and hospitalized because of his stance of the election result in which he commented that it was marked with fraud. In Liberia, there was violent demonstration after the 2005 Presidential elections. The scenario was not different South Africa where Thiabo Mbeki and his Defense Minister, Mosiuoa Lekota resigned from the African National Congress (ANC) to organize a new political front-the Congress of the People (COPE), after Thiabo was defeated in the ANC convention in 2008.

The high quest for Mbeki to win could not be realized thus leading to the fragmentation of the ANC.  In 1992, following disputes over the election results in Angola, the National Union for the Total Liberation of Angola (UNITA) returned to war, which lasted almost a decade.

Unfortunately, the time for election is considered by most African politicians as the time for wielding and dealing wherein they can benefit from the process. It was reported in some major dailies in Liberia that the Congress of Democratic Change’s (CDC) political leader, George Weah, took some money from the Liberty Party Executives for the purpose of alliance. The deal was not successful and Weah benefitted from the deal. It is always good for the political parties to take election as the conduit of building a more democratic state than using the process to breakdown the reason for which it is intended. Wielding and dealing can corrupt the democratic process.

Notably, some political parties cry foul when they have not developed any logical ways of winning the elections. Sometimes, opposition parties used this tactics to negotiate with regional or international organizations to be included in the government. For elections to be transparent in Africa, the incumbent should stay out of any process that would influence umpire body- the election commission. On their part, the electoral commissions should develop the managerial capacity void of outside influence to ensure a prudent management of the elections. Africans politicians must get use to participating in election that is devoid of violence. Every politician must understand that losing elections serves as one of the mature ways of developing statehood. The Judiciary must be respected and they must look beyond party lines to protect the stability of the state. The traditional African practice of selecting leaders has become past reality, therefore every democratic electoral procedure must be professionally respected. It is my hope that the Liberian Politicians and the Election Commissioners will ensure that the 2011 elections will be void of conflict. When Africans developed a respectable practice for election, it will help the continent to develop its socio-economic fabrics. The time is now!!

If you like this article, I’d recommend my book “If I Was Famous, I’d Have a Lot to Say”

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Bumps, But Africa’s Democracy Rises

After much misunderstanding, with all the anarchic one-party ordeals and self-serving dictatorial military juntas, it appears Africa is nearing a turning point in its democratic grasp. There may be divergent signs, some incredibly disturbing as Guinea Bissau and the Central African Republic indicate, but it looks like a turning to democracy as the best option to solve Africa’s development challenges. This is Africans new trust, for cultural, historical, moral and material reasons, in resolving decades of political mix-ups, contradicting irrational international exuberance and governance deficits, in relation to Continue reading “Bumps, But Africa’s Democracy Rises”

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Strong Link Between Exercise and Life Expectancy

Just 15 minutes of exercise a day can boost life expectancy by three years and cut death risk by 14%, research from Taiwan suggests.

Experts in The Lancet say this is the least amount of activity an adult can do to gain any health benefit.

This is about half the quantity currently recommended in the UK.

Meanwhile, work in the British Journal of Sports Medicine suggests a couch potato lifestyle with six hours of TV a day cuts lifespan by five years.

The UK government recently updated its exercise advice to have a more flexible approach, recommending adults get 150 minutes of activity a week.

This could be a couple of 10-minute bouts of activity every day or 30-minute exercise sessions, five times a week, for example.

Experts say this advice still stands, but that a minimum of 15 minutes a day is a good place to start for those who currently do little or no exercise.

The Lancet study, based on a review of more than 400,000 people in Taiwan, showed 15 minutes per day or 90 minutes per week of moderate exercise, such as brisk walking, can add three years to your life.

And people who start to do more exercise tend to get a taste for it and up their daily quota, the researchers from the National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan, and China Medical University Hospital found.

More exercise led to further life gains. Every additional 15 minutes of daily exercise further reduced all-cause death rates by 4%.

And research from Australia on health risks linked to TV viewing suggest too much time sat in front of the box can shorten life expectancy, presumably because viewers who watch a lot of telly do little or no exercise.

England’s Chief Medical Officer Sally Davies said: “Physical activity offers huge benefits and these studies back what we already know – that doing a little bit of physical activity each day brings health benefits and a sedentary lifestyle carries additional risks.”

She added: “We hope these studies will help more people realise that there are many ways to get exercise, activities like walking at a good pace or digging the garden over can count too.”

Prof Stuart Biddle, an expert in exercise psychology at Loughborough University, said a lot of people in the UK now fall into the category of inactive or sedentary.

He said that aiming for 30 minutes of exercise a day on pretty much every day of the week might seem too challenging for some, but starting low and building up could be achievable.

“You can get good gains with relatively small amounts of physical activity. More is always better, but less is a good place to start.”

By Michelle Roberts
Health reporter, BBC News
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From South Africa with Hope

Thank God there is Africa. We the people of this beautiful planet should be glad we are so located. The world sees our continent as the virgin land, which indeed it is and our friends across the globe have concurred that we shall be greater. I was recently in South Africa, the Africa’s most ‘complex country’ and the world’s ‘rainbow nation’. My one month in South Africa (SA) was for research but I got more than research from the love and care, the ready hands of all people I met, white, black, coloured and Asians. Even from my conversation with tourists I saw a fundamental hope for Africa and Africans. Our continent might have been brutalised in the past but we cannot afford to continue to agonise about the past. We must appreciate our past while forging ahead with what lies ahead in the future, in the present. And South Africans are showing the way: reconciliation is on-going and development wheel is moving fast, while contradictions in governance and service delivery remain as in any part of the world, developed, semi-developed or developing.

My recent one month in South Africa was not my first time there. I was there first in 2009, for a Democracy and Diversity Institute Programme of the Transregional Centre for Democratic Studies of The New School for Social Research, New York, which took place at the postgraduate school of the University of Cape Town. The city of Cape Town is a seductive city. You don’t ever want to leave there. There are people, from across the world, and there are buildings that would make you think you are still somewhere in Europe. Faces of different people as well as the splendid tourist taste make Cape Town tick.  Everywhere you turn, there is an interesting thing going on. People like to dance and eat, they like to hug and gist, and if you are there all alone, like I was, you would want to wish you had come with your partner. But I missed nothing. My friends and associates made the whole period memorable enough.

I am further increased in knowledge of South Africa and Africa. I also discovered once again that a number of African countries have a lot to learn from South Africa. One, you cannot develop if you cannot boast of 24/7 electricity.  I understand there could be occasional power outage in certain parts, but through the one month, split and spent between three cities of Nelspruit, Johannesburg and Cape Town, electricity did not winkle, not even for a second. Nigeria in particular needs to set up a panel to go to SA and ask for advice on how it is done there. It is abysmally unbearable for Nigeria, with all its resources, not to boast of 24/7 power supply in the twenty-first century. Two, you cannot develop without social security for the poor and the unemployed. The government of South Africa has built millions of houses for the less privileged and raised the hope previously disadvantaged groups. Education fees, where not free, are subsidised. What is Nigeria waiting for? We need a Youth Development Fund Board, which will give loans to indigent students and young entrepreneurs so as to educate, engage and empower them. Three, you cannot develop without good roads, modern rail system and good airports. All major roads on which I travelled in South Africa were as good as those in the UK. Nigerian governments need to do something urgent about the state of our roads. Four, you cannot develop if there is no security. South African Police are well equipped, and their efforts are complemented by City and Community Policing. Nigeria, with 150 million people and 36 states must professionalise its Police and consider a regulated community policing system. The truth is, there is a big correlation between security of lives and property and development.

All said and done, I see hope. I see hope that Africa will rise above the poverty of its majority and that our people will use what is most valuable in our cultural values and ethics to power the Africa of our dream. Africans alone cannot do it. We will need the collaboration of folks across the world, but the effort would have to be home grown. If South Africa can give a positive sign of a stable political economy and continues to march on, despite occasional skirmishes here and there, I see hope.

I see hope that Africa will be greater.

Tunde Oseni is a Doctoral candidate at the University of Exeter, UK.