Whoopi Goldberg shared a family wedding invitation via Instagram on Friday. The actress and talk show host announced that her daughter's dog - Filmore Dean - is getting married to a fellow French Bulldog - Instagram star Izzy Hendrix.
'Heads up! There’s a wedding in the family!!! My granddog is getting hitched!! What has the world come to? Lol,' the 63-year-old hilariously captioned the snap.
The loved up couple have known each other for a few years but only recently have taken their relationship public.
Alex Martin-Dean's pup Filmore met Izzy (aka Izzy The Frenchie) after Izzy's owner Rick Hendrix worked with Whoopi for Hilary Clinton's campaign according to TMZ.
The website reported that the families came up with the marriage idea after 'hanging out over the holidays'.
A celebrity photographer - Timothy White - will be snapping the newlyweds as they chow down on a cake from legendary baker Juanita Lane of Dulce Desserts.
A young woman has made a miraculous recovery in hospital despite doctors failing to detect a heartbeat for 72 hours.
The unnamed patient was taken to the First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University in China's eastern Fujian Province.
Her husband carried the 26-year-old over his back for emergency treatment at 7.58pm on New Year's Dayas she had no heartbeat and was unconscious.
Medics said she suffered from ventricular fibrillation, which is when the heart quivers instead of pumping blood around the body.
She was eventually diagnosed with acute myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle.
The team of doctors performed chest compressions for 20 minutes before switching the young woman to life-support system ECMO - extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation - replacing her heart and lung functions with the device.
Doctor Yang Chengbin said: "ECMO is a substitute for the patient's cardiopulmonary functions, allowing us to maintain her blood supply following cardiac arrest."
Two hours later, however, she remained unconscious, her pupils dilated, and her vital signs failed to return.
By clinical standards, the woman was dead, but the doctors refused to give up.
Doctor Zhang Minwei explained: "I felt that her illness happened too suddenly. At 26 she was still in her prime, and she had no history of diseases.
"It was my opinion that we needed to create the conditions for even the slimmest chance of survival."
The patient was kept in hospital's Intensive Care Unit and various other instruments were used to regulate her bodily functions, including respiratory devices and renal replacement therapy.
The 'miracle', as it has been described, happened after 72 hours, when her heart restored partial function.
By January 7, it was beating on its own.
She is now in stable condition and is able to eat by herself. She remains in intensive care as medics continue renal therapy and help her restore full function of her limbs.
Fatima Timbo, a four-feet model, says dwarfism poses no challenge to her hence, she would not allow negativity to define her.
The 21 year old British model spoke to bbcnews recently about building her confidence as well as her work in inspiring others to feel comfortable in their own skin.
Timbo said she would not allow negative comments get to her or stop her from promoting body positivity for people with dwarfism.
“I won’t be defined by my height,” she says.
Timbo says she can’t change the way she looks or what people say about her – but she has changed the way she looks at herself.
She said modelling boosted her confidence, and now she wants to inspire others to feel comfortable in their own skin.
Timbo who is also a finance trainee, revealed that after being bullied throughout high school, she learned to finally accept her condition and in 2017, she kick-started her modelling career.
She has more than thirty-one thousand followers on instagram, says it has been difficult for her to have a relationship.
She was later spotted by some reality TV producers and was offered a slot on the popular British reality show, `The Undateables’.
Timbo admitted that she felt that her height had no limit and as such the sky was her limit, has already built lots of fan base for herself as a budding Instagram model.
Timbo happens to be the only one suffering from the condition in her family.
Dwarfism is a medical or genetic condition that causes someone to be considerably shorter than an average-sized man or woman.
The average height of an adult with dwarfism is 4 feet, but dwarfism could apply to an adult who is 4’10” or shorter.
Nollywood actress, Angela Okorie has met the President of Liberia, Dr George Maneh Weah. Sharing a photo of them, Angela wrote;
"It takes a Leader no stress to discover A Hero, His Excellency Dr George Maneh Weah,The president Of The Republic Of Liberia.Having my signature on the progressive wall of Liberia Film Industry will be An Honor Your Excellency.Thank you Sir
An agency headed by President Muhammadu Buhari's in-law has been caught in yet another massive procurement fraud, it has been reported.
No fewer than 815 contractors were recently shortlisted by the Border Communities Development Agency (BDCA) for hundreds of constituency projects despite failing to meet federal contracting requirements,
an ongoing investigation by PREMIUM TIMES has revealed.
It is the second time in less than a month that the agency has been exposed for procurement irregularity.
Being shortlisted presupposes that an applicant has satisfied all criteria contained in the procurement guidelines published by a government agency for the award of contracts.
But a fresh trove of procurement documents analysed by PREMIUM TIMES revealed that the bulk of the prequalified contractors for the 2018 intervention projects by lawmakers did not meet the most basic criteria spelt out in the invitation to tender advert released by the BDCA in August 2018.
The agency advertised nearly 400 self-enrichment projects of lawmakers for which funds were earmarked in the 2018 budget.
The Nigerian government’s anti-corruption posturing could be undermined if officials at the BDCA are allowed to go ahead with the flawed contracting process in brazen defiance of the country’s extant procurement regulations.
The value of the contracts ranges between N10 million and N200 million.
President Muhammadu Buhari’s son-in-law, Junaid Abdullahi, is the executive secretary of the federal interventionist agency established in 2003 to develop the country’s border communities.
The agency has the mandate to provide social and infrastructural amenities to international border communities in 21 states of the federation, spanning over 105 local government areas.
2018 Constituency Projects
A list by a technical evaluation team constituted by the BDCA to select qualified contractors for the award of the constituency projects contracts showed that 987 bids from various contracting firms were prequalified.
The list seen by PREMIUM TIMES contained names of companies shortlisted for over 390 contract lots for the procurement and supply of various goods, works and services in various locations across the country.
The BDCA had invited bids from prospective experienced and competent contractors/suppliers. They were asked to submit bids for the projects in line with the criteria laid out clearly in the invitation-to-tender advertisement published on July 29, 2018, for the execution of the projects between late July and early August.
Bid guidelines
Submission of bids by prospective contractors was to be accompanied with a three-year tax clearance certificate validated by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), with a cumulative average annual turnover of a minimum of N50 million for the period 2015, 2016 and 2017.
Also, prospective bidders were requested to submit their current Industrial Training Fund (ITF) compliance certificate and Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) compliance certificate, all valid till December 31, 2018.
The companies were required to produce evidence of registration on the National Database of Federal Contractors, Consultants and service providers by submitting the Interim Registration Report (IRR) expiring January 1, 2019, or valid certificate issued by the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP).
Besides, submitted bids must be accompanied by the company’s audited accounts for 2015, 2016 and 2017, along with other documents attesting to their professional and technical competences.
Guidelines breaches
PREMIUM TIMES had earlier reported that BDCA procurement officials disregarded some key criteria for selection of prospective contractors, as well as some requirements for the award of contracts, in a potential violation of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) 2007.
Section 23 (1) of the PPA (2007) does not allow federal agencies or their management to manipulate procurement guidelines to favour any party during a contracting process.
The law says: “Where a procuring entity has made a decision with respect to the minimum qualification of suppliers, contractors or service providers by requesting interested persons to submit applications to prequalify, it shall set out precise criteria upon which it seeks to give consideration to the applications and in reaching a decision as to which supplier, contractor or service provider qualifies, shall apply, only the criteria set out in the prequalification documents and no more.”
Therefore, the BDCA appeared to have violated Nigeria’s procurement law by disregarding its published guidelines for the selection of contract applications in favour of unqualified companies.
Fresh findings
A further review of the procurement documents obtained by PREMIUM TIMES exposed how only about 173 bids could be considered to have met the minimum threshold for the award of the contracts advertised, out of around 988 bids received from various contractors and prequalified by the BDCA technical evaluation team.
The 173 bids were the only applications accompanied with both evidence of current Pension Compliance Certificate (PCC) and the Company Incomes Tax Clearance Certificate validated by the FIRS, both valid till December 31, 2018.
Of these, about 13 that did not have company income tax clearance certificates were from companies that were already enjoying tax holiday incentives granted by the Nigerian government covering the three-year period.
Still, further analysis by this newspaper showed that about 815 of the prequalified or shortlisted bids (or over 83 percent) failed to meet at least one or the two key criteria that define the minimum threshold specified in the bid guidelines.
At least 94 of the bids were accompanied with neither the pension compliance certificate nor tax clearance certificate, the two key documents required to qualify to even enter a bid, our findings show.
Where the bids were accompanied with tax clearance certificates, the cumulative average turnover of the companies fell far below the specified benchmark of N50 million average annual turnover.
Biding without valid documents
For instance, Arcad Projects Limited (Lot 110) prequalified to bid for the N200 million contract for the rehabilitation of selected rural roads in Ekiti/Irepodun/Idi/Oke-Ero Federal Constituency was not qualified.
The company’s bid was accompanied with its PENCOM certificate only without the requisite tax clearance document.
Similarly, SMV Nigeria Limited and Young Stallion Group Nigeria Limited (Lot 83) submitted bids for the N150 million contract for the construction of a mini-stadium at Kashere in Gombe Central Senatorial District, but both were shortlisted despite not meeting the requirements on tax clearance certificates.
Aicon Residential Limited (Lot 84) also submitted a bid for the N150 million contract for the rehabilitation/maintenance of water infrastructure in Yobe East Senatorial District without submitting its tax clearance certificate.
ABG Synergy Limited was prequalified for the N50 million contract to supply tricycles, popularly called “Keke NAPEP” in Monguno/Marte/Nganzi Federal Constituency of Borno State despite not attaching any of the two vital documents to its bid.
Budmusdru Hill Nigeria Limited and Khamz Intercontinental Limited (Lot 386) shortlisted for a N100 million contract to train youth and community leaders in Niger North Senatorial District also did not meet the requirements.
De Poor Shall Rich Nigeria Limited and Dankole Global Services (Lot 281) were shortlisted to bid for the N60 million contract to supply motorcycles in Edo Central Senatorial District without their tax clearance certificates.
Yalele Farms Limited (Lot 315) was shortlisted for the N60 million Strategic Empowerment and Training of Women and Youth in Zaki Federal Constituency with absolutely no requisite documentation.
Equally, Al Nady Multi-Services Limited (Lot 23) bided for the Solar lights contract in Gada/Goronyo Federal Constituency; Nitux Engineering Services Limited (Lot 68) for the provision and installation of solar street lights in Abia Central Senatorial District, and AIAG Energy Limited (Lot 135) for the supply of Toyota Hilux pick-up vans at Kaga/Gubio/Magumeri Federal Constituency (each worth N50 million), without either pension or tax clearance certificates.
Yet there bids that met all the requirements but were deliberately excluded from the list of those prequalified or shortlisted by the agency.
A history of violation
PREMIUM TIMES had on December 14, 2018 revealed how BDCA) shortlisted 18 unqualified companies for constituency projects of federal lawmakers advertised between late July and early August.
About 33 companies were prequalified for eight zonal intervention projects worth over N1.3 billion that were reviewed by this medium at the time.
In shortlisting the firms, procurement officials at BDCA overlooked tax clearance certificate, one of the top two requirements which any interested firm must present to meet the basic requirement of contract award.
In its invitation to tender published on July 29, the BDCA had said all firms must have a minimum annual turnover of N50 million in taxes over three years — but officials prequalified at least 18 firms whose annual taxes were substantially below N50 million, according to tax documents obtained by this newspaper at the time.
Estivus Nigeria Limited, the last of the 33 companies reviewed, did not qualify for the contract because it obtained its tax clearance on August 16, 2018, three days after the bidding process closed on August 13, 2018. It remained unclear how the firm was smuggled into the list of companies whose bids were received as of deadline.
A BDCA official claimed that may have been an error which would could still be corrected before the final companies are announced.Fresh procurement documents obtained by PREMIUM TIMES have revealed how the Border Communities Development Agency (BDCA) shortlisted unqualified companies for a slew of federal contracts across the country.
BDCA reacts, defends process
Regardless, the BDCA defended its handling of the bid process. The agency in a statement said its interventionist activities have always been carried out strictly, guided by the provisions of the BCDA Establishment Act.
“Our activities have given a sense of belonging to those living in border communities and boosted their confidence in the present administration,” the agency insisted in its statement.
However, it noted that not meeting the cumulative average turnover of N50 million over a three-year period does not disqualify any company for further considerations for the award of the contracts.
“Each requirement is assigned a weighted score and cumulative score of each contractor determines their prequalification or otherwise,” the agency said.
Group writes procurement office, demands probe of agency
A group of anti-corruption campaigners has petitioned the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), demanding an urgent probe of ongoing procurement activities at the Border Community Development Agency (BDCA).
“We hereby request for the intervention of the BPP in the ongoing BCDA ZIP 2018 procurement process,” the group said in the letter to BPP. “Please assist in the fight against corruption.”
A leader of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) faction, Mustapha Adekunle aka Seigo, has denied involvement in the violence which erupted at the governorship rally of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State on Tuesday.
The police in Lagos have declared Seigo wanted in connection with the APC rally violence which reportedly claimed three lives.
The union leader, who spoke with journalists, denied being the person who masterminded the violent attack. Seigo said he was at the campaign ground with other members of the union to drum support for the APC gubernatorial candidate, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, but was surprised when the fight broke out.
He, however, said that going by the faces of the people behind the attack on Musiliu Akinsanya aka MC Oluomo, the violence might not be unconnected with intractable leadership tussle within the two factions of the union in the state. He, therefore, called on the state Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, to remain impartial in the matter, just as he charged him to handle the investigation with utmost professionalism so that justice can be done in the matter.
He said: “I don’t have anything to do with the clash at the rally. I went there like any other member of the union to show solidarity and give support to the governorship candidate. Police should investigate the matter properly before coming to conclusion. I was not involved in the clash.”
Today embattled Senator Dino Melaye was whisked away fro mthe Police clinic in Garki, Abuja to the SSS medical center.
According to the spokesperson of the Nigeria Police Force, Jimoh Moshood, Dino was brought to the medical cemter so he can face trial. Recall the police on Wednesday asked that Dino be discharged from the police clinic, but he refused saying he wasn't medically fit yet. More pics below...
Lol. So some bloggers wrote Tonto Dikeh is pregnant because she over fed, lol. Tonto has now decided to reply them, saying she isn't pregnant and it was nothing but food. Tonto who just revealed she is seeing a man then went on to say she is CELIBATE. Which simply means, she isn't having s-x with her new man. CLAPS!
R.Kelly's career is NOT taking a hit from the release of the Lifetime documentary last week! Just last
night he sold out a Chicago appearance.
R.Kelly made a scheduled appearance at the popular nightclub V75 and less than an hour after it
opened, the club was so packed, they had to turn people away.
The club was filled to capacity with R Kelly's fans hoping to show support to him after the devastating allegations in the Lifetime documentary. And the singer played it up for his fans. While he didn't perform outright, he lip synched along with many of his songs.
The club was filled with 80% women - who were all there to support the controversial R&B artist with many screaming "Take Me Hostage"
The Nigerian troops say they have arrested a suspected Boko Haram terrorist. The suspect, the Army claims, was arrested at Bulabulim Ngarnam community on the fringes of Maiduguri in Borno State.
In an electronic release signed by the Director of Army Public Relations, Brig-Gen. Sani Kukasheka Usman, and tweeted via the Nigerian Army’s verified Twitter handle @HQNigerianArmy, the Army said:
“Gallant troops of 7 Division Garrison, carrying out cordon and search operations in conjunction with troops of 195 Battalion, Mobile Policemen and CJTF in some parts of the fringes of Maiduguri, today (Friday) discovered and arrested a wanted Boko Haram terrorists group member called Babagana Abubakar (aka Alagarno), hiding at Bulabulim Ngarnam community.
“He was found hiding in a room in possession of two military ballistic helmets, a pair of military desert boot, a fragment jacket, a jersey pull over, military backpack, camouflage design shorts, two voter identification cards, national identification card, amulets, camouflage T-shirts and military jungle hat.
“He has since been moved out of the area for further interrogation.”
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board today warned prospective candidates to adhere strictly to the registration procedure for the 2019 UTME to avoid creating issues for themselves.
The Board’s Head, Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin gave the warning in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos.
“No two persons must use a single GSM number in commencing the registration process as it will not be acceptable.
“The way it is configured is one individual to one telephone number that will remain exclusive to that single individual for the purpose of the entire examination process.
“Not even siblings are allowed to share a particular telephone number for this purpose.
“For instance, if candidate A had used a telephone number to send his name to the code in the past, candidate B, who is a sibling to A cannot use that number for that purpose again.
“But candidate A, who probably might not have been able to pass the examination, can still use that particular line again to send his name to that code whenever the need arises,’’ he explained.
Masked police operatives have stormed the hospital where Dino Melaye, the Senator representing Kogi West, was receiving treatment.
The officers forced the lawmaker, who was on the hospital bed, into an unmarked vehicle and drove him to an undisclosed location, witnesses told Premium Times.
Mr Melaye was arrested last week after police laid siege on his home in Maitama, Abuja, for eight days.
He turned himself in after hiding in the house for days. Mr Melaye has been in the hospital since then. Police accuse the senator of being involved in the shooting of an officer in his native Kogi State. More to come later.
Taylor and Selena are back together for their first public photo since May 2018, as the besties shared a selfie with Cazzie David joining the fun and smiles.
It was only a matter of time before Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez hooked up again and it is a happy reunion after Selena's spell in rehab.
Peter Davidson's ex Cazzie, was a new inclusion to 29-year-old Taylor's squad as they enjoyed a wine night with 26-year-old Selena.
It would seem that the wine had been flowing generously by the looks of their grinning faces, which Taylor captioned, "20wineteen," as she shared the pic with her 114 million Instagram followers.
Taylor and Selena have been surprisingly quiet since the latter sought treatment at a mental health facility but fans of the duo can rest at ease that they haven't grown apart due to the absence.
The last time they were seen together was on stage, when Selena joined Taylor at the Rose Bowl, Pasedena during Taylor's Reputation Stadium Tour.
Two sisters aged 12 and 14 have been accused of fatally stabbing and shooting their mother in southwest Mississippi.
Pike County police say relatives found 32-year-old Ericka Hall lying drenched in blood by the family's mobile home in Magnolia just before midnight on Friday.
She had been stabbed multiple times and shot once in the chest with a small-caliber handgun inside the home before staggering outside.
'She was stabbed in the back. The knife was still in her back,' Robin Coney, the victim's aunt, told WLBT.
'The girls, when I drove up, they were like: "Tee Tee we didn’t do this." And I was like: "OK, if y'all didn't do it, where were y'all when the people that was doing it did it?"'
Sheriff Kenny Cotton said deputies and paramedics tried to resuscitate Hall but were unsuccessful.
'They found out the daughters — two teenagers, juveniles — allegedly did it,' Cotton said.
The 14-year-old daughter, Amariyona Hall, has been charged with murder as an adult and is being held on $150,000 bond.
The 12-year-old, who is not been named because she is a minor, is being held at Adams County Juvenile Detention Center in Natchez.
Both girls will receive mental evaluations, authorities say. It wasn't immediately clear whether either has a lawyer.
Funke Akindele’s husband, JJC Skillz has shared lovely photo of himself and his twin boys on his Instagram page.
Isaiah 61:7
Instead of your shame you will have a double portion, And instead of humiliation they will shout for joy over their portion Therefore they will possess a double portion in their land, Everlasting joy will be theirs. #thankgoditsfriday #doublejoy ❤️ love you my queen 👑 @funkejenifaakindele ✊🏾Thanks for all the love and prayers 😘 May God answer your prayers 🙏 #pray&work2019 that’s the new hashtag, he wrote.
A Chinese surgeon has been hailed as a hero after working about 20 hours non-stop to save urgent patients.
A poignant picture shows orthopedic surgeon Luo Shanpeng falling asleep by the operating table after re-attaching the severed arm for a migrant worker.
He was sleeping while squatting down by the table, still holding the arm he had just re-attached for the patient.
He had performed five operations and his sixth surgery lasted for eight hours.
'Seeing this makes my heart ache,' said the nurse who took the picture of her colleague out of respect. The picture has gone viral after appearing on WeChat, a Chinese messaging platform.
Luo works for the No. 6 People's Hospital of Guiyang in south-eastern China's Guizhou Province.
He told Guiyang Evening News that he had already performed five operations when a patient was rushed into the hospital at around 6pm on January 3.
The patient's right arm had been mangled in a meat mincer and nearly torn off from his body.
Luo decided to carry out emergency surgery for the patient despite the fact that he had already worked over time.
'Otherwise, the patient would lose his arm.'
Commenting on the picture, Luo said: 'I wanted to shut my eyes and have a rest. I didn't expect to fall asleep.'
The picture was taken at around 4am the next day.
He told the local newspaper that he had worked nearly 20 hours without a break by then. He held the patient's arm because the patient was still undergoing general anesthesia, and the arm couldn't touch anything until the cast on it dries up.
Therefore, he held the arm for the patient. This also kept the blood circulating in the arm for the patient.
Speaking to video platform Pear, Luo said though he was tired at the time, he agreed to perform the surgery as he felt he could still concentrate.
He said as a surgeon it was important for him to keep his body healthy and his mind clear.
Luo added that it was an honour to become a surgeon and the happiest thing for him was to see his patients recovering.
The daughter of reality star, Bisola was snapped during a visit to the tailoring office of Wizkid’s first babymama, Shola Ogudugu, where she spent time playing with Bolutife, Wizkid’s first fruit.
Kevin Fret, a Puerto Rican rapper billed as the first openly gay Latin trap artist, has been shot dead.
The 24-year-old, an outspoken advocate for the LBGT+ community, was gunned down on Thursday as he rode a motorbike in the capital San Juan.
Police said he was shot eight times and was taken to Rio Piedras Medical Centre, where he was pronounced dead.
His murder is the 24th in Puerto Rico in the first 10 days of the year, according to El Vocero, one of the largest newspapers in the US Caribbean territory.
In a statement, Fret’s manager said: “Kevin was an artistic soul, a big-hearted dreamer. His passion was music, and still had a lot to do.
“This violence must stop. There are no words that describe the feeling we have and the pain that causes us to know that a person with so many dreams has to go.
“We must all unite in these difficult times, and ask for much peace for our beloved Puerto Rico.”
