Drogba faces police, FA probes

Didier Drogba is facing police and FA investigations after throwing a coin into the crowd during Chelsea’s Carling Cup fourth round defeat to Burnley.

The Chelsea striker apologised for his actions which followed his 27th-minute goal but could still be in trouble.

In a statement on Chelsea’s website, Drogba said: “I tried to celebrate the goal and I received some things at me.

“The big mistake I did was to throw it back so if someone was hurt I just want to apologise for it.”

There were no reports of any spectators being injured. However, the Metropolitan Police confirmed on Thursday that it is looking into the incident.

A spokesman said, “An inquiry is being conducted by the Football Unit at Fulham police station. No-one has been arrested.”

The incident happened after the Ivory Coast forward put the Blues ahead in his first match since returning from injury.

Drogba, 30, made a single-finger gesture before throwing a coin back into the Burnley section of the crowd.

He said, “This is not something I should show in a football match.

“It was an incident in the heat of the moment and I regret it. It was just a mistake and nothing more.”

A Chelsea spokesman said, “We will deal with this in the usual way. We are aware there is an incident. But we will not discuss it further until we have seen the referee’s report.”

Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari said, “I have not spoken with Didier about any problem. The referee gave him a yellow card but I did not see what happened.”

Oshiomhole freezes Edo accounts

Edo State Governor, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, on Thursday, froze all the state government’s accounts in banks until further notice.

He directed them to stop honouring cheques issued by the ousted administration headed by Prof. Oserhiemen Osunbor.

The government’s decision, which was contained in a statement signed by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Orientation, Mrs. Betty Igbeyi, urged all the ministries and parastatals to give due attention to the directive.

The governor also relieved all political office holders in the state of their positions.

Barely 24 hours after he was sworn in, Oshiomhole on Thursday, visited President Umaru Yar’Adua at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He explained that he was at the villa to pledge his loyalty to the President despite the fact that was not a member of the Peoples Democratic Party.

He disclosed that even when he had not been declared governor by the courts, and despite their political differences, he had a privileged relationship with the president.

Oshiomole disclosed these to State House correspondents shortly after meeting the president.

According to him, Edo State needs the president’s support or intervention to enable him face squarely, the arduous challenges ahead.

Furthermore, he said that he was overwhelmed with joy that the president was very anxious to see how the Federal Government could contribute in arresting what he described as, “the drift and to restore the glory of Edo State.”

In Benin, a statement signed by the newly appointed Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Pally Iraise, shortly after his inauguration on Thursday, directed the affected people to hand over government property in their possession to the Permanent Secretary, Central Administration, Governor‘s Office, Benin.

The governor said that the choice of Iraise, an accountant and banker, as the SSG, was based on merit, as demonstrated by his contribution to the development of the Owan East Local Government Area, where he was chairman from 2004 to 2007.

Oshiomhole, who spoke at Iraise’s inauguration at the Government House, also urged the 18 local government chairmen in the state not to use public funds to place congratulatory advertisements for him in the media.

He said that such funds should be effectively utilised to bring the desired change and development to the people of the state.

The governor said that the Edo citizens had great expectation that the new administration had the capacity, and was determined to take advantage of the resources of the state to bring new hopes to them

Why Can't James Bond Catch Jason Bourne?

Compared to James Bond, Jason Bourne is a punk.

As a movie franchise, the Ian Fleming-conceived spy has it all over Robert Ludlum's in volume, longevity, international appeal, and sheer number of bedroom scenes.

True, the Matt Damon Bourne films have been almost universally hailed by critics, while the Bond series has been hit and miss.

And, oh, yes, there's one other thing: The last two Bourne movies have made more money, domestically, than any one Bond movie, domestically.

Ever.

Quantum of Solace, your move.

Opening Friday, Quantum of Solace is the 22nd Bond adventure, and the second to star Daniel Craig.

Already an international blockbuster, the movie has grossed some $160 million in two weeks outside the U.S. And while reviews here have been mixed (unlike the ecstatic reception that met Craig's first Bond), Casino Royale, expectations are for Quantum of Solace to be a U.S. superpower.

With MovieTickets.com reporting nearly 400 sold-out screenings as of Wednesday, Exhibitor Relations was projecting a franchise-best $55-60 million opening weekend. Lee Tistaert of LeesMovieInfo.com was more bullish, calling for a $63 million debut.

Which still wouldn't be as big as the biggest Bourne opening.

Inflation is, of course, a factor, if not the overriding explanation. Movie tickets cost considerably more in 2002, when the first Bourne was released, than in prehistoric 1963, when the first Bond was released.

But even in a fairer fight—2007's The Bourne Ultimatum versus 2006's Casino Royale—Bourne still comes out on top: a $227.5 million domestic gross compared to $167.4 million; a $69.3 million opening weekend compared to $40.8 million.

"I think cast is an issue," says filmmaker Richard Schenkman, who founded and formerly ran the James Bond 007 Fan Club. "I think the Bourne movies hit at a very good moment in [Damon's] career."

Beyond that, Schenkman thinks the Bourne trilogy tapped into something often underestimated in box-office discussions: Quality matters.

"The Bourne movies are just so good, everyboy tells everybody you just have to see this thing," Schenkman says.

Quality paid off for Casino Royale, which cashed in its four-star buzz for the franchise's biggest domestic gross, and a nearly $600 million worldwide overal take, a number far bigger than any put up by the Bourne movies.

What was not missed on audiences of Casino Royale, however, was that the grimmer, new-look Bond looked an awful lot like the Jason Bourne. The resemblance was especially striking in action sequences that were revved-up—or too "violent," as Bond alum Roger Moore recently put it.

So, can Bond ever top Bourne if he's trying to be Bourne?

A recent Fandango poll would seem to make the task difficult. Fifty-two percent of respondents said they prefered Damon's Bourne to Craig's Bond, compared to 48 percent who sided with 007. (Fandango and E! Online are both owned by Comcast.)

But to Deborah Lipp, author of The Ultimate James Bond Fan Book, the question is all wrong. The Craig Bond, she says, is what Bond has always been.

"Everything changes the James Bond series. They're very in touch with the moment," Lipp says. "Just the way Live and Let Die was influenced by blaxploitation, just the way Moonraker was influenced by Star Wars. So, sure [Bourne] is an influence."

"But it's not an imitation."

Although presumably Bond wouldn't mind imitating a $69.3 million opening.

Naval ratings go wild again, kill policeman

Two naval ratings have been arrested by the Ogun State Command Police for allegedly killing a policeman and severely wounding another in a scuffle at a hotel in Ota.

The policemen Mr. Oladiran Abanikanda and – Adewale Nureini, were said to have been stabbed on Wednesday night after an argument over a female attendant at the hotel.

Abanikanda reportedly died at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital on Thursday morning after a spirited attempt to save his life. Nureini is said to be responding to treatment at the Ota General Hospital.

The Ota incident occurred less than two weeks after six naval ratings attached to the convoy of the Chief of Naval Logistics, Rear Admiral Harry Arogundade beat up and stripped a 27-year-old lady, Miss Uzoma Okere, in Lagos.

Arogundade and the six naval ratings were on Wednesday summoned by the authorities of the Nigerian Navy to the Defence Headquarters over the attack on Uzoma, who is the daughter of the National Assembly Sergeant-at-Arms.

About three years ago, a naval officer, Lt. Felix Odulami, shot dead a commercial motor cycle (Okada) operator in Ikeja, Lagos, for allegedly hitting his Mercedes Benz 190E.

The naval authorities set up a board of inquiry to investigate the killing, but up till now the outcome is yet to be made public.

The Police Area Commander of in Ota, Mr. Adeoye Oyelola, who confirmed the incident on Thursday to our correspondent on the telephone, said the two policemen were first rushed to a private hospital before being transferred to different health institutions.

The area commander, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, alleged that the ratings, after committing the crime, tried to escape.

He said, “A medical doctor alerted me that two of my men had been rushed to his hospital after they were stabbed. So, I had to rush there. I was told that one of the ratings objected when one of the policemen asked a lady attendant to serve him a drink. He (rating) was said to have told the constable, who was not in uniform, not to send the lady on an errand because she was his girlfriend.”

“It was during the argument that followed that one of the naval ratings brought out his knife and stabbed the policeman at the back. In an attempt by another police officer to seize the knife from the rating, his colleague brought out his own knife and stabbed him.”

Oyelola, however, said while one of the ratings was arrested on the spot, the other was caught ”loitering around the police station in an attempt to call for re-inforcement.”

He added that some naval personnel were in the area command on Wednesday night for consultations over the incident.

Oyelola‘s claims, however, differed from the uncoordinated accounts of the two ratings. They had said during a preliminary interrogation that their attempt to report an assault on them by the late Abanikanda and Nureini was frustrated by other policemen.

Our correspondent in Abeokuta learnt that the case had already been reported to the office of the Inspector – General of Police, Mr. Mike Okiro.

The ratings are believed to have been detained in separate cells in one of the police stations in the state capital.

The Deputy Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Bassey Inyang, also confirmed the incident but said the case was still with the State Criminal Investigation Department.

”I have heard the case but you know it has to be properly investigated. I will not be able to say much on it now, ” Inyang said.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bar Association on Thursday demanded sanctions against Arogundade and the six ratings that attacked Uzoma.

It also deplored the detention of a magistrate and some lawyers by policemen in a court at Oji-River, Enugu State.

The NBA, in a statement by its National President, Chief Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN), called for a stop to what it called “despicable violence against civilians inherent in the culture of our armed forces and the police.”

The statement reads in part, ”We condemn the barbaric act against Uzoma and call on the naval command to immediately sanction the errant ratings and the naval officer under whose watch she was beaten and stripped naked in addition to paying her adequate compensation for the damages, which resulted from their action.

“The senseless and horrible treatment meted out to Okere in Lagos on November 3, 2008 is one case too many. The barbarism witnessed in this case is certainly not an aberrant act.”

On the Oji-River incident, the association said, “We also note and condemn the action of a detachment of the Nigeria Police Force, which detained a senior magistrate for carrying out her judicial function.

“The detention of Senior Magistrate Mrs. Uche Mogboh and lawyers in her court at the behest of an Assistant Superintendent of Police, Ashabua, for making a formal order of discharge and acquittal of an accused person in the course of the performance of her judicial function is condemnable.”

Michael Jackson Lets Neverland Fly Away

The fairy tale is really over now.

Michael Jackson has turned the deed to his financially plagued Neverland Ranch over to a company that he has a partial stake in, effectively ending his reign as the King of the House That Pop Built.

Then again, one could wonder what took so long. Jackson hasn't spent any time at the Los Olivos, Calif., estate he bought in 1988 since being acquitted of child-molestation charges in 2005—crimes he was accused of committing on his 2,500-acre property, which in its heyday featured a working petting zoo, amusement park and various other kid-friendly attractions.

According to paperwork filed Monday with the Santa Barbara County Clerk-Recorder's Office, Neverland's new owner is the Sycamore Valley Ranch Co., LLC.

Jackson nearly lost the whole kit and caboodle to foreclosure in May, but an eleventh-hour reprieve from L.A.-based real estate company Colony Capital, which bought a $23.5 million loan that the Thriller artist had been unable to pay back, saved Neverland from the auction block.

Jackson most recently reared his reclusive head to shoot down reports of an original Jackson 5 reunion, saying that he wishes the best for his brothers but has other creative fish to fry.

"My brothers and sisters have my full love and support, and we've certainly shared many great experiences, but at this time I have no plans to record or tour with them," he said through a rep.

"I am now in the studio developing new and exciting projects that I look forward to sharing with my fans in concert soon."

Navy summons Rear Admiral to DHQ over assault on lady

ndications emerged on Wednesday that the naval authorities had summoned Rear Admiral Harry Arogundade to Abuja over the assault on a lady, Miss Uzoma Okere, in Lagos on November 3.

The victim of the recent naval ratings’ assault, Miss Uzoma Okere

Uzoma was beaten up and stripped half naked by six naval ratings attached to Arogundade, the Flag Officer, Commanding Logistic Command of the Nigerian Navy, Oghara, Delta State.

The summon comes exactly three days after the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Paul Dike, ordered the Navy to thoroughly investigate the incident which attracted widespread condemnation from within and outside the country.

Our correspondent in Warri gathered from a very reliable source in the Navy that a team had been constituted to drill Arogundade on the assault.

Our source, who is with the command in Oghara, said Arogundade left for Abuja through Lagos on Tuesday.

It was learnt at the command that Arogundade was directed to come in company with the ratings who assaulted Uzoma, the daughter of the National Assembly Sergeant-At-Arms, Col. Emmanuel Okere (rtd.).

The source said, “The FOC (Arogundade) has left the command in response to the summons of DHQ over the alleged assault on a lady in Lagos by the ratings attached to him. You can go to his office and you will discover that he’s not around.

“The man just packed his bags and baggage en-route Lagos for Abuja on Tuesday. The order asking him to report in Abuja came suddenly on Monday.

“You know that the incident has discredited the armed forces and the CDS was very disturbed by the negative publicity it has attracted both in the local and international media.

“The FOC was billed to return to Oghara when the order came and he had to put things in order immediately and departed from Lagos . He left in company with the six ratings who caused the trouble for him in Lagos as directed by the DHQ.

“They will appear before the in-house board of enquiry set up by DHQ on the matter before Friday. It is unfortunate that these ratings caused the problem for the FOC.

“The incident has rubbished the image of not only the Navy but the armed forces in general. It has especially eroded the gains of the campaign for better military/civil relationship by the present leadership of the armed forces.”

Efforts on Wednesday to get official confirmation of Arogundade’s summon at the Public Relations Unit of the command were futile.

The Head of the unit was not around when one of our correspondents called at his office. He also could not be reached on the telephone.

However, a senior officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that the summon was in line with the position of the CDS that the incident should be investigated.

Meanwhile, the Centre for Human Rights and Ethics in Development has demanded the immediate retirement of Arogundade for allegedly allowing the naval ratings to assault Uzoma.

The group, in a statement by its Senior Programme Officer, Mr. Akin Salvage, on Wednesday said that the incident was an indication that some security officers in the country were yet to learn to be tolerant.

It described as barbaric, “a situation whereby a defenseless lady would be physically assaulted on the street of Lagos, chained and taken into unlawful detention by some uneducated, untrained and unenlightened naval ratings while transporting their boss home.”

The group commended President Umaru Yar’Adua’s order of full investigation into the incident and advised that the report of the probe should be made public.

“Admiral Arogundade, if found culpable, should be retired out-rightly from service to serve as deterrent to other erring officers who always trample the rights of innocent members of the public, while the ratings should be dismissed,” it added.

CHRED said part of Arogundade’s retirement benefits should be set aside, to pay compensation to the victim.

It said, “The fact that Arogundade blared siren was another offence he committed against the land, because he is not covered by traffic laws to make use of it on the roads.

“If Arogundade were to have behaved this way in a western country , he would probably be cooling off in jail.”

Oshiomhole takes over in Edo

Mr. Adams Oshiomhole formally assumed office as the Edo State governor on Wednesday with an admonition to his associates and supporters to shun vengeance and be at the vanguard of reconciliation in Edo State.

Oshiomhole, who was inaugurated at the Sam Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin, by the state’s Chief Judge, Justice Michael Edokpayi, however, said his administration would prevail on the police authorities to probe the death of three youths that were killed while waiting to cast their votes for him on April 14, 2007.

His journey to the Government House was made possible on Tuesday by the Court of Appeal, Benin Division, which upheld the March 20, 2008 verdict of the state Election Petitions Tribunal that he and not Prof. Oserheimen Osunbor won the April poll.

Delivering his inaugural speech at the crowded stadium, Oshiomhole, who wore his trademark Khaki shirt and trouser, said that his administration would not embark on a mission to settle scores even though a good number of his supporters might be thinking in that direction.

He said that the verdict of the tribunal indicated that if he was denied his right, the judiciary had been able to redress the injustice, thereby making vengeance unnecessary.

Oshiomhole, a former Nigeria Labour Congress president, argued that since the battle to retrieve his “stolen mandate” had been fought and won, reconciliation, friendship and the readiness to forgive were imperative.

He said, “I am aware that there are many of our supporters who are angered and pained by what we have had to go through in the past 19 months. Some of them may even be nursing the spirit of vengeance. My friends, there is so much to be done. Hate and vengeance can only suffocate and impede the clarity of thought and purpose.

“The battle has been fought and won. It is now a time for unity and reconciliation. The spirit of forgiveness will open up our minds to the challenges that lie ahead. Let us blaze the moral heights by stretching our hands of forgiveness and friendship.”

Oshiomhole said that his administration would set up a committee to decide on how to immortalise the three youths who were shot dead at the Akenzua Primary School, Benin, while waiting to exercise their civic duty on April 14, 2007.

He said that with his inauguration as governor, Edo was witnessing a new dawn where the votes of the people would be sacred.

Oshiomhole was inaugurated alongside his running mate, Dr. Pius Odubu, by 11.20am amidst fanfare and celebrations.

The turnout at the stadium was unprecedented as the joint team of policemen, soldiers and men of the Nigeria Civil Defence and Security Corps had a tough time controlling the surging and jubilant crowd.

Among prominent AC chieftains that graced the occasion were the National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande; the vice-presidential candidate of the party in the April 2007 elections, Senator Ben Obi; a former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; his successor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN); the National Vice-Chairman in the South-South, Chief Tom Ikimi, and a former Edo State Governor, Chief John Oyegun.

A former Chief of General Staff under the regime of Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, Vice-Admiral Mike Akhigbe (rtd); the Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Mr. Zakawanu Garuba, and the representatives of the Oba of Benin, led by Chief Sam Igbe, the Iyase of Benin, and traditional rulers were also present.

Shortly after the inauguration, the governor made his first appointments.

He named Mr. Pally Iriase the secretary to the State Government; Mr. Omorodion Ogie, Chief of Staff; and Mr. Eric Osagie, director of publicity.

Ogie, according to an announcement by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information, Mrs. Betty Igbeyin, was the secretary of the Oshiomhole Campaign Organisation.

Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission has said that it will study the lapses in the governorship election in Edo State which led to the removal Osunbor as governor by the Court of Appeal.

The commission also said that it would investigate the source of tabulation error that affected the election in order to determine if there was willful negligence or mischief.

It further said that anyone found to have had a hand in such laxity would not go unpunished.

The INEC National Commissioner and Chairman Legal Services and Clearance Committee, Mr. Victor Chukwuani, told journalists in Abuja that the commission was awaiting a copy of the appeal court judgment.

Chukwuani, who said the judgment was a demonstration of the ideals of democracy, added that the courts and tribunals provided avenues for persons aggrieved by the decisions of the INEC to air their grievances.

On Tuesday, the INEC Chairman, Prof. Maurice Iwu, reiterated that electronic voting remained the best balloting system for the country.

Iwu, at a workshop in Abuja on balloting method for future elections in Nigeria, said the system reduces the time voters spend at polling centres.

He said, “It holds out tremendous prospects, one of which is the capacity to minimise human influence and therefore enhance confidence in polls.

“With the existence and application of the electronic voters register as well as the capacity for electronic transfer of data and results, the adoption of electronic voting machine will usher in a full use of the electronic voting system.

“There is no doubt that the nation and its electoral system will record a positive leap in advancement of this voting option comes the existence.”

Iwu, who picked holes in the Option A4 and the Open Ballot System, said that both exposed voters to danger.

Sightings: Becks, Boys and Basketball

BOYS LIFE: David Beckham, taking his Brooklyn and Romeo to an L.A. Lakers game after spending the weekend at the Hard Rock Hotel in San Diego.

Assault: Admiral not fit to hold rank –Victim’s father

The father of the victim of the naval ratings‘ brutality in Lagos, Col. Emeka Okere (rtd), has said that the conduct of Rear Admiral Harry Arogundade was unbecoming of a military officer of his rank.

The victim of the recent naval ratings’ assault, Miss Uzoma Okere

He criticised the naval officer for watching his men beat and strip his daughter, Uzoma.

Okere, the Sergeant-At-Arms of the National Assembly, in an exclusive interview with our correspondent on Monday in Abuja said that all he wanted was justice, irrespective of who was involved.

He also said that claims that he tendered apologies to the admiral when he spoke to him on the phone was unfounded.

He said, “The issue of apology cannot come up because it is something I did not witness. I was in Abuja here and she was in Lagos; I just saw my daughter‘s name as my phone rang.

“She was not the one that initiated the call; and I tried to speak to her, it was impossible. I was only hearing her crying from a distance, ‘leave me alone, leave me alone, I have done nothing.‘

“Apparently, it appeared to me that she was besieged by some people. Her friend who held the phone told me that she was being beaten by some naval people, that was when I pictured what was happening.”

He said Arogundade had painted a very wrong picture to him about what was happening.

Okere said, “He tried to tell me that he knew me, that I was his senior; but I told him it was not the issue, but that somebody was distressed.

“How can I apologise for somebody being beaten, even beaten to death; where on earth would such a thing be done?

“If a senior officer of the level of an admiral, whose boys did the battering and he was watching, that person should not wear the rank he is wearing. Because it takes a lot; a rear admiral is equivalent to a major general; if you cannot control six ratings at his level, then I don‘t think he is fit to be an admiral.

“Yes, because he watched the whole drama unfold and he was in a position to control the incident; he would have told the boys to stop the act, knowing that they were under the public glare.

“People were watching; I am sure if that person did not use his secret camera to take the pictures, everything would have been denied. I did not know that the battering was to that extent.”

Okere added that the fact that the admiral knew him and they were colleagues should have caused him to end the matter quickly.

“So there was nothing he did to show any relationship. I read in the papers where he said I taught him in the military school and that we were colleagues and so on, but the espirit des corps was completely missing,” he said.

He also disputed the notion that it was a military culture to deliver corporal punishment to civilians at any time there was a disagreement with them.

He added that no right- thinking officer would maltreat a civilian he was being paid to protect.

He said, “I wore the uniform for so many years; and I don‘t think I went out of my way to humiliate anybody. The mere fact that you are in uniform should make you humble because you are one out of so many.”

Lagos bans governors, others from use of siren

The Lagos Government on Monday barred visiting governors and top government officials from using siren in the state.

The Lagos State Governor, Mr.

The state Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, announced the ban in Lagos just as the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshall Paul Dike, ordered the naval headquarters to thoroughly investigate the alleged assault on a 27-year-old lady, Miss Uzoma Okere, by some naval ratings in Lagos.

Although Fashola did not attribute the ban to the assault on Uzoma by the ratings attached to the convoy of Rear Admiral Harry Arogundade, he however said the use of siren by those in authority was a way of terrorising taxpayers whom they were supposed to serve.

The governor, who does not use siren, added that those who do had “continued to constitute an unacceptable slur on the state’s traffic management system.”

He said, “ I have successfully demonstrated that you need patience and not the siren to negotiate through the traffic in Lagos. I seek the cooperation of all and sundry to demonstrate its benefit, including visiting governors and other public officers.

“Let us all get rid of these nuisance on which we spend millions of our hard-earned money to keep the producers in Europe and America in business while we use it to terrorise the taxpayers who we serve.”

Fashola also announced the ban on commercial motorcycles, popularly known as Okada, in some parts of the state from 7pm.

The affected areas are Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Ikeja.

He said that commercial motorcycles had become a major tool for criminals in facilitating their nefarious activities.

He also pointed out that while government recognised the fact that commercial motorcycles had become a major means of transportation in the state, there was the need to strictly guide their operations.

Fashola said, “For the avoidance of doubt, the provision of the Road Traffic Law, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority Law, the Bus Rapid Transit ‘Lite’ Regulation and the Motor Vehicle Registration and Administration Authority Law all regulate the operation of Okada in the state.

“In keeping with my constitutional duties, particularly section 5 (2) (b) of the Constitution, I have given an executive order restricting the movement of motorcycles during certain hours in specified areas, namely Ikeja, Ikoyi and Victoria Island. This will be strictly and rigorously enforced.”

Meanwhile, the CDS, Air Chief Marshall Dike, on Monday ordered that a report on the assault on Uzoma, daughter of the National Assembly’s Seargeant-at- arms, Col. Emmanuel Okere (rtd.), be sent to him in order to ensure that the law was followed to the letter.

Dike, in a three-paragraph statement by the Director of Defence Information, Col. Chris Jemitola, described the incident as ‘embarrassing and worrisome.’

He expressed the regrets of the Defence Headquarters, saying the assault on the lady had brought odium to the military.

The statement reads, “The Defence Headquarters regrets the embarrassing incident involving a naval convoy and Miss Okere in Lagos on Monday, November 3, 2008.

“The incident is more worrisome especially now that efforts are on to change the poor perception the civil populace have of the military.

“The Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Paul Dike, has directed Naval Headquarters to carry out a full and thorough investigation into the incident and report to him immediately as he assures all that the rule of law will be fully observed.”

Uzoma was reportedly beaten and stripped to her underwear by the ratings for allegedly refusing to give way to the convoy of Rear Admiral Harry Arogundade on Muri Okunola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The Senate Committee on Navy had on Thursday asked the Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Isaiah Ibrahim, to explain the reasons why the ratings assaulted Uzoma.

The Senate committee‘s action was sequel to a petition by the victim‘s father, urging it to look into the matter with the view to bringing his daughter‘s attackers to justice.

The Director of Defence Information had in his initial reaction to the incident claimed that Uzoma provoked the ratings when she allegedly snatched a horsewhip from one of them to beat him.

But Uzoma, at a press conference in Lagos on Sunday, said the naval spokesman was being economical with the truth.

But an associate of Arogundade, Mr. Lanre Osodi, who claimed to have been with the Rear Admiral when the case was reported to him claimed that Uzoma confirmed to the senior officer that she snatched a rating’s horsewhip.

Already, Uzoma has sued Arogundade and the naval ratings for the alleged assault, demanding N100m. She has been offered free legal counsel by the Lagos State Government.

Britney's Son Out of the Hospital

Britney's little boy is back with his family tonight.

The pop star was spotted carrying son Jayden James out of Southwest Mississippi Regional Medical Center and into a waiting SUV Monday at about 6 p.m., a little more than 24 hours after the two-year-old was taken to the emergency room after suffering a "bad reaction" to something he ingested.

A police and security escort guarded Spears, who, according to one eyewitness, "looked totally exhausted."

The 26-year-old mother of two took her youngest son directly back to her family's "Serenity" compound in nearby Kentwood, La. Britney, dad Jamie Spears, Jayden and 3-year-old Sean Preston just arrived in town on Friday.

Kevin Federline had said that if Jayden was not released today, he would fly from Los Angeles to Mississippi to be with him. There's no word yet whether he still might be making the trip.

MTN Project Fame: Eviction continues

Sopriye Opusunju finally proved that he was not a cat with nine lives as he was eventually kicked out of the ongoing MTN Project Fame talent hunt, after becoming a probation ‘veteran’.
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Benedicta

Even the presence of his mother at the show, last Saturday, could not help him as nobody saved him from being evicted.

The viewers at home voted for Nii from Ghana to remain in the house while the teachers chose to save Caroline from Nigeria. Fellow contestants favoured Dorcas from Ghana as such, Sopriye was left on his own.

Although he did not make it to the top, his widowed mother, Mrs. Elizabeth Opusunju, believes her son is a star.

“I feel very elated with my son’s performance. I am proud of him. Now that he is out, his career would go up and I am going to support him in every way,” she said.

Meanwhile, Dorcas, Kojo, Benedicta and Praise are on probation. One of them will be out of the show before the end of today.

Madagascar, Role Models: Box Office Animals

Better late than never for Hollywood.

At the weekend box office, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa was the animated blockbuster Jerry Seinfeld's Bee Movie never quite became last year, while Role Models was the R-rated comedy hit Kevin Smith's Zack and Miri Make a Porno didn't quite qualify as last week.

The Madagascar sequel ruled with $63.5 million, per studio estimates compiled today by Exhibitor Relations. The raunchy Role Models was a distant but unexpectedly big second with $19.3 million.

In short, it was a good weekend for animals, CGI and otherwise. Some other findings from the first leg of the holiday box office season:

* Madagascar scored the biggest weekend gross since Dark Knight's $75.2 million in late July. It scored the biggest debut since Dark Knight's crazy $158.4 million bow in mid-July. And it scored the biggest debut for a CGI toon since 2007's The Simpsons Movie.
* In the sequel tradition, the new Madagascar outgrossed the first weekend of the "old" Madagascar (released in 2005) by 35 percent.
* The new Madagascar outdid the debut of Bee Movie, last holiday season's lead-off CGI family comedy, by a whopping 67 percent.
* In addition to Zack and Miri, Seann William Scott and Paul Rudd's Role Models opened bigger than fellow recent R-rated flicks Forgetting Sarah Marshall, the Harold & Kumar sequel and Sex Drive.
* In its third weekend, High School Musical 3 ($9.3 million) fell to third, but otherwise held up okay (thanks, sing-along version), and pushed its overall gross past $75 million.
* In its second weekend, Zack and Miri ($6.5 million) held up okay, too, even without the benefit of a, um, er, intimacy-along version.
* The late Bernie Mac's Soul Men ($5.6 million), co-starring Samuel L. Jackson, opened soft.
* Beverly Hills Chihuahua ($2.5 million) is mortal, after all. It's also out of the Top 10 after shedding nearly 700 screens.
* Max Payne ($1.8 million) departed the Top 10 after three weekends. With $38.7 million already in the bank, it should soon wind up in the Top 10 of all-time videogame-movie grossers.
* Anne Hathaway's Rachel Getting Married ($1.7 million) has grossed $5.6 million overall, without ever playing at as many as 400 theaters.
* With Barack Obama's election, George W. Bush is officially a lame-duck president, and W. ($1.1 million, per Box Office Mojo) is officially a lame-duck movie. It's stalling at about $25 million overall.
* JCVD, the Jean-Claude Van Damme art-house flick—seriously—did serious business at two theaters: $23,346.
* The Auschwitz-set The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas ($255,000 from 17 theaters) was a star—and tearjerker—in limited release.
* Alexa Vega's slasher/rock musical hybrid, Repo! The Genetic Opera ($51,578), was strong but not stellar at eight theaters.

Here's a recap of the top-grossing weekend films based on Friday-Sunday estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations:

1. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, $63.5 million
2. Role Models, $19.3 million
3. High School Musical 3: Senior Year, $9.3 million
4. Changeling, $7.3 million
5. Zack and Miri Make a Porno, $6.5 million
6. Soul Men, $5.6 million
7. Saw V, $4.2 million
8. The Haunting of Molly Hartley, $3.5 million
9. The Secret Life of Bees, $3.1 million
10. Eagle Eye, $2.6 million

By NICOLE CARTER Monday, October 27th 2008, 2:02 PM Manuel Uribe, who was once the world's heaviest man, tied the knot with girlfriend Claudia Sol

Manuel Uribe, who was once the world's heaviest man, tied the knot with girlfriend Claudia Solis Sunday in a white wedding in northen Mexico.

The forme Guinness world record-holder, who once weighed 1,230 pounds and has been bedridden for six years, was dressed all in white and reclined in a white canopy bed during the ceremony. The 43-year-old's wedding was attended by 400 guests.

"I have a wife and will form a new family and live a happy life," Uribe told reporters after the ceremony, which was closed to the press.

The couple have been dating nearly four years, and with the help of Solis, 38, Uribe has lost 550 pounds and is now under 700 pounds. The happy groom even resisted his own five-tier wedding cake.

"He didn't break his diet. His doctors are here and they are watching him very closely," said Uribe's mother, Orquedia Garza.

Congress Gets Ready for the Obama Era

Cabinet appointments and plum White House staff picks grab headlines during a transition. But the fate of the Obama presidency will be shaped just as much — if not more — by the messy behind-the-scenes process already under way in Washington: the reorganization of power on Capitol Hill. Three key elements to that process are still being sorted out: the final party-line composition of the Senate; the new GOP leadership in the House and how it reflects the new Republican mission and message; and the ability of House and Senate Democratic leaders to control crusading members who read Obama's win as a green light for a revolution.

Fox Counts Down to 24 Premiere

For those suffering from Jack Bauer withdrawals, Fox has the cure for what ails you: a firm premiere date for the long-awaited, delay-plagued seventh-season premiere of 24.

The network today announced that Kiefer Sutherland and his terrorism-fighting costars will return to kick off their new run with a two-night, four-hour premiere Jan. 11 and 12.

The fourth hour of the premiere will mark the series' milestone 150th episode. The season will run without interruption through to May.

Jessica Simpson's BFF Injured by Paparazzi

He's the hairstylist to the stars, but Ken Paves just took one for the team.

E! News has learned that Paves was rushed to the hospital early this morning after being injured by paparazzi while leaving a popular restaurant with Jessica Simpson and her entourage.

"There were so many paparazzi waiting for Jessica and trying to get a picture of her that they all started pushing," says an onlooker. "Jessica was ducking down and Ken Paves and her other male friend were trying to cover her and that's when Ken was hit in the face with a camera."

The perfectly coiffed group was leaving Madeo restaurant at 12:15 a.m. Sunday morning when they were mobbed by waiting paparazzi. Paves' face was cut during the melee.

A source close to Simpson tells E! News that it seemed like Paves didn't really think much of the blow to the eye at first. "He seemed shocked at first," says a source. "He said something to the photographer like, 'Dude, you just hit me,' but that's all he really said before getting into the car."

Once Simpson was safely in the backseat and Paves was in the front passenger seat, the other male in Simpson's entourage went around to the driver seat. Before getting inside, he tangled with another paparazzo.

"It seemed like Jessica's friend was just really frustrated because the photographers were overstepping their bounds and had just hit Ken in the head," says another eyewitness.

Once Paves got into the car, "blood was running down his nose," the bystander continues. "I guess that's when Jess and the driver realized Ken might need to get stitches, because they went straight to Cedars-Sinai [Medical Center]."

As of 1:15 a.m., Simpson and Paves were still inside the hospital.

McCain's No Palin, But SNL's Not Complainin

On Saturday Night Live, as at campaign rallies, John McCain gets outdrawn by Sarah Palin.

Last night's show, featuring a QVC-pitching McCain, pulled a 9.0 in the overnight ratings, per Nielsen stats, about 15 percent off last month's Palin-powered SNL.

Overall, the McCain show was another winner for SNL, which saw the combination of the presidential candidate, wife Cindy McCain, faux running mate Tina Fey (as, natch, Palin) and host Ben Affleck (as Keith Olbermann, among others) boost ratings 27 percent over last week's show.

Total viewer figures were not available, although, using last week's numbers as a guide, a guess could be made that as many as 12 million tuned in. (About 14 million watched the Palin SNL.)

For the season, SNL is up nearly 70 percent over last season.

Family, Friends Mourn at Hudson Memorial Service

Hundreds of mourners lined the street in front of Pleasant Gift Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago this afternoon to mourn the loss of Jennifer Hudson's slain mother, brother and nephew.

While Hudson herself did not attend the public memorial—a private, invite-only service is scheduled to take place Monday morning—she was clearly on the minds of those who did come to pay their respects.

"She has been doing good," Demitrias Jackson, a cousin of the Oscar winner who attended the community memorial, told E! News. "She's very strong and she's holding the family together."

In order to do so, Jackson said, Hudson will temporarily be putting her career on the back burner.

"She is going to take a break from acting," Jackson said. "She'll be taking time for herself and to be with her family."

As it is, relatives weren't the only ones who came out for the memorial held on the city's South Side. Friends, neighbors and well-wishers alike were out in full force to pay their respects to the Hudson family.

"I came here because I had a mother and a son die, so I have been hit by a double tragedy as well," local resident Alice Ghant said. "For Jennifer to have all that success and then have this happen, makes me cry."

Ghant wanted to show her support for the whole Hudson family and offered them advice for their trying times: "Keep your head up and it will get better with prayer, faith and time."

Joseph Murphy, who says he worked as a security guard for the onetime American Idol contestant back in 2006, said he too is praying for the Hudsons.

"The reports of Jennifer being the strength of the family are definitely true," Murphy said. "I contacted her through MySpace to tell her I'm always praying for her."

Chicago residents were lined up an hour before the doors for the memorial opened at 4 p.m., after a private service for relatives had concluded. The church was simply decorated with white flowers and photos of the slain family members.

During the service, several churchgoers spoke, sang and offered various recollections of 57-year-old Darnell Donerson, 29-year-old Jason Hudson and 7-year-old Julian King. Donerson and Hudson were found dead of multiple gunshot wounds in their Englewood home on Oct. 24; King was found in an SUV on Oct. 27 and declared dead of the same cause.

Outside the church, mourners left flowers, cards and other offerings, with one guest leaving a teddy bear, ostensibly in memory of Julian.

The community memorial lasted several hours, with the last of the mourners leaving the church around 6 p.m.

As for Hudson, she remains holed up with her sister Julia, Julian's mother, and various other family members at the Trump International Hotel & Tower. The family is expected to attend a private memorial service at Chicago's Apostolic Church of God at 9 a.m. tomorrow morning.

The family has asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the newly formed Hudson-King Domestic Violence Protection Fund.

Dancing Drops to Six

Another celeb had to go Tuesday on Dancing With the Stars. No, really. Someone absolutely had to go.

Find out if Julianne has reason to kick her recovery up a notch, whether Brooke and Susan's injuries hurt them in the eyes of America, and if the cynical folks over at Vote for the Worst finally gave it a rest last night.

Did your least favorite get the boot, or will you be Houghing and puffing next week, as well?

Sorry, folks. It was bound to happen eventually.

Cloris Leachman took her final funny bow and, well, we'd say that she made her final quips, as well, but she'll probably be back for the finale.

"You know, I'm not leaving," said the 82-year-old Oscar winner, who made Samantha Harris and Tom Bergeron conduct the first-ever seated goodbye Q&A. "I should get a pretty costume and be here next week. I'm going to sit right over there. I can't go home—are you serious?"

Besides, "I can't get up now," she joked.

But she managed to right herself again, of course. "Thank you, everybody," she said, giving the crowd a wave.
Cloris Leachman, Dancing with the Stars ABC/KELSEY McNEAL

Also, to quell further controversy, she told Carrie Ann Inaba, "I know you didn't mean what you said, and I love you," in reference to the judge's remark last night that she was sad because Toni Braxton was eliminated before Leachman.

In the bottom two for the second week in a row, meanwhile, was Susan Lucci, who will need all of everyone's children to vote for her next week if she wants to stick around.

Figuring there wouldn't be much drama in making them sweat it out, Lance Bass and Lacey Schwimmer were the first declared safe tonight after a 27-caliber jive left them at the top of the leaderboard Monday.

"It's nice to know that our hard, hard work paid off," Bass said backstage.

Also not made to quake in their boots (or hospital gown) was Cody Linley and the absent Julianne Hough, who underwent an appendectomy today and will miss about a week of DWTS preparation. Edyta Sliwinska will let Linley twirl her around in rehearsal while Hough recuperates.

Afterward, the always amusing Tom Bergeron weighed in with an update on Hough's health: "She's just completed the bicycle portion of the Ironman Triathlon," he quipped. And more seriously, "Come back soon, my dear."

Following a performance by elimination-show staple Pussycat Dolls, this time joined by Missy Elliott, Warren Sapp, who toned down the bounce for his sensual rumba, and Kym Johnson were ushered to safety.

Then, after guest judge Michael Flatley had tapped up a firestorm, Brooke Burke and Derek Hough got the good news.

Finally, Maurice Greene and Cheryl Burke (the latter pair actually had the second-lowest score last night—a 22—after the judges were way too generous to Lucci) learned that they were safe for another week.

Next Monday, each star will be judged on a team dance, as well as on their partner numbers.

Well! Was tonight's elimination positively weeks in the making, or were you kinda sad to see Cloris go? Better yet, who's next? Do share—and there's no need to accentuate the positive or eliminate the negative!