HEALTH CORNER - Five 'unhealthy' foods that are actually good for you

Potatoes, fat spreads and eggs are not as bad as you think and might actually be healthy, new research has found.
With fast changing nutritional guidelines, it is difficult to keep track of the latest health trend but a new study based on both old and current science breaks the stereotypes of what you should and shouldn't eat.
Nutritional sciences lecturer at King's College London Scott Harding re-assessed the health benefits of five food, known as the "villains" in a healthy diet.

Eggs

Eggs were long-believed to be bad for your heart.
A large egg contains 185mg of dietary cholesterol, which was believed to contribute to high blood cholesterol levels.
But for the last 20 years, research has shown a normal intake of dietary cholesterol has very little influence on a person’s blood cholesterol levels.
Now, nutrition experts are putting the record straight arguing eggs are a source of protein, healthy fats, and several vitamins and minerals.

Fat spreads

Fat spreads such as margarine and butter have had a confusing nutritional history.
Margarine, which is made of vegetable fat, has been used in most developed countries since the mid 19th Century to replace butter.
The new spread was made popular by being cheaper than butter and sales were driven by advice from health professionals, who recommended eating less saturated fat to prevent heart diseases.As a result, trans fat-free margarine hit the market.
But confusion over whether vegetable fat spreads are safe to eat seemed to have remained.
As long as "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil” is not listed as an ingredient, then these spreads are safe to eat. They enable to avoid dietary saturated fat and reduced the risk of coronary heart disease.

Potatoes

Potatoes are one of the few vegetables considered to be unhealthy because of their high glycemic index and are often associated with food made from refined carbohydrates - and therefore to avoid.
But potatoes are a rich source of carbohydrates, vitamin C, some B vitamins and trace minerals.The preparing and cooking of potatoes can also influence the aspects of the starches for the better.
Cooking and cooling potatoes increases the amount of resistant starch in the potatoes, which “resists” digestion in the gut, potentially having a positive impact on your gut bacteria.

Dairy 

Once a staple food in many people's diets, milk, butter, yoghurt and cheese are no longer consumed to the same extent because of conflicting health messages.
While dairy products contain high protein and calcium, which the body needs, they need to be chosen with care as some products contain high amounts of saturated fat per portion.
But although it is best to avoid a diet high in saturated fat, it is not a bad thing to regularly consume dairy products as long as this is part of reasonable calorie and fat intakes.

Raw nuts and nut butters

Some suggest nuts should be avoided by anyone trying to lose weight because they are high in fat and calories.
But research evidence show raw nuts are key to a healthy diet and while maintaining body weight, they also help to reduce death from heart disease and cardiac arrest.
Raw nuts contain protein, healthy fats, which are low in saturated fat, dietary fibre and micronutrients.
Peanut butter, can also be part of a healthy diet as a source of protein, fibre, vitamin B6 and magnesium. Evidence from recent research demonstrate peanut butter can  increase weight loss if it is used to replace less healthy protein sources such as processed meats.
High in calories, peanut butter yet needs to be consumed in moderation.
Mr Harding concludes: "All foods fit into a healthy diet. Don’t fall into the trap of believing in 'superfoods' or 'food villains'. Enthusiastic consumption of one particular 'superfood' can be worse than consuming a so-called 'food villain'.

Captain America Civil War: Early reviews are very positive for superhero film

With Batman v Superman having topped the box-office for two weeks now, attention has turned to the next big superhero brawler hitting screens: Captain America: Civil War.
Although there are still weeks between now and the film reaching cinemas, the social media embargo on reactions has dropped, with both fans and critics alike giving positive reviews.
Overall, the feeling seems to be that Marvel has once again triumphed, creating a fun film with incredible set pieces. Criticism has been levied at some pacing issues and villain Baron Zemo being ‘wasted’ (however, the director’s have previously said this film is meant to set him up for future evil doings).
Meanwhile, Spider-Man and Black Panther both seemingly fit well into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, both debuting in the film.
Of course, many have compared the flick to Zack Snyder’s DC film and for obvious reasons: both feature ‘good’ superheroes fighting each other, both introduce numerous comic book favourites and both have been released within a two month period.
In recent weeks, more and more information about the film has appeared online. We’ve rounded up everything you need to know in this article

Billboard Music Awards 2016: Nominations

 
Top Artist:
Adele
Justin Bieber
Drake
Taylor Swift
The Weeknd
Top New Artist:
Fetty Wap
OMI
Charlie Puth
​Silentó
Bryson Tiller
Top Male Artist:
Justin Bieber
Drake
Fetty Wap
Ed Sheeran
The Weeknd
Top Female Artist:
Adele
Selena Gomez
​Ariana Grande
Rihanna
Taylor Swift
Top Duo/Group:
Maroon 5
One Direction
twenty one pilots
The Rolling Stones
U2
Top Billboard 200 Artist:
Adele
Justin Bieber
Drake
Taylor Swift
The Weeknd
Top Hot 100 Artist:
Justin Bieber
Drake
Fetty Wap
Taylor Swift
The Weeknd
Top Song Sales Artist:
Adele
Justin Bieber
Drake
Fetty Wap
The Weeknd
Top Radio Songs Artist:
Justin Bieber
Ellie Goulding
Ed Sheeran
Taylor Swift
The Weeknd
Top Streaming Songs Artist:
Justin Bieber
Drake
Fetty Wap
​Silentó
The Weeknd
Top Social Media Artist:
Justin Bieber
Selena Gomez
​Ariana Grande
Demi Lovato
Taylor Swift
Top Touring Artist:
Madonna
One Direction
The Rolling Stones
Taylor Swift
U2
Top R&B Artist:
Chris Brown
​Jeremih
Rihanna
Bryson Tiller
The Weeknd
Top Rap Artist:
Drake
Fetty Wap
Future
Wiz Khalifa
Silentó
Top Country Artist:
Zac Brown Band
Luke Bryan
Sam Hunt
Chris Stapleton
Carrie Underwood
Top Rock Artist:
Fall Out Boy
Elle King
twenty one pilots
Walk the Moon
X Ambassadors
Top Latin Artist:
Banda Sinaloense MS De Sergio Lizárraga
Juan Gabriel
Nicky Jam
Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes del Rancho
Romeo Santos
Top Dance/Electronic Artist:
The Chainsmokers
DJ Snake
David Guetta
Major Lazer
​Zedd
Top Christian Artist:
Casting Crowns
Lauren Daigle
​Hillsong United
MercyMe
Chris Tomlin
Top Gospel Artist:
Anthony Brown and group therAPy
Tasha Cobbs
Kirk Franklin
Travis Greene
Marvin Sapp
Top Billboard 200 Album:
Adele, 25
Justin Bieber, Purpose
Ed Sheeran, x
Taylor Swift, 1989
The Weeknd, Beauty Behind The Madness
Top Soundtrack:
Empire: Original Soundtrack from Season 1
Fifty Shades of Grey
Furious 7
Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1
Pitch Perfect 2
Top R&B Album:
Chris Brown, Royalty
Rihanna, Anti
Bryson Tiller, T R A P S O U L
​Tyrese, Black Rose
The Weeknd, Beauty Behind The Madness
Top Rap Album:
Drake, If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
Drake & Future, What A Time To Be Alive
Dr. Dre, Compton
Kendrick Lamar, To Pimp A Butterfly
Meek Mill, Dreams Worth More Than Money
Top Country Album:
Chris Stapleton, Traveller
Luke Bryan, Kill The Lights
Sam Hunt, Montevallo
Zac Brown Band, Jekyll + Hyde
Carrie Underwood, Storyteller
Top Rock Album:
Alabama Shakes, Sound & Color
David Bowie, Blackstar
Coldplay, A Head Full Of Dreams
Mumford & Sons, Wilder Mind
twenty one pilots, Blurryface
Top Latin Album:
Juan Gabriel, Los Dúo
Juan Gabriel, Mis Número 1…40 Aniversario
​Mana, Cama Incendiada
Gerardo Ortiz, Hoy Más Fuerte
Romeo Santos, Formula, Vol. 2
Top Dance/Electronic Album:
David Guetta, Listen
Major Lazer, Peace Is The Mission
​ODESZA, In Return
​Skrillex & Diplo, Skrillex and Diplo Present Jack Ü
​Zedd, True Colors
Top Christian Album:
Lauren Daigle, How Can It Be
​Hillsong UNITED, Empires
Joey + Rory, Hymns That Are Important To Us
​TobyMac, This Is Not A Test
Chris Tomlin, Adore: Christmas Songs of Worship
Top Gospel Album:
Anthony Brown & group therAPy, Everyday Jesus
Tasha Cobbs, One Place Live
Kirk Franklin, Losing My Religion
Jonathan McReynolds, Life Music: Stage Two
Marvin Sapp, You Shall Live
Top Hot 100 Song:
Adele, “Hello”
Fetty Wap, “Trap Queen”
Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth, “See You Again”
The Weeknd, “Can’t Feel My Face”
The Weeknd, “The Hills”

Top Selling Song:
Adele, “Hello”
Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth, “See You Again”
OMI, “Cheerleader”
Rachel Platten, “Fight Song”
The Weeknd, “The Hills”
Top Radio Song:
Adele “Hello”
Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth, “See You Again”
Mark Ronson Featuring Bruno Mars, “Uptown Funk!”
Walk the Moon, “Shut Up And Dance”
The Weeknd, “Can’t Feel My Face”
Top Streaming Song (Audio):
Justin Bieber, “Sorry”
Justin Bieber, “What Do You Mean”
​Fetty Wap, “Trap Queen”
The Weeknd, “The Hills”
Drake, “Hotline Bling”
Top Streaming Song (Video):
​Fetty Wap, “Trap Queen”
Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth, “See You Again”
Mark Ronson Featuring Bruno Mars, “Uptown Funk!”
​Silentó, “Watch Me”
The Weeknd, “The Hills”
Top R&B Song:
Alessia Cara “Here”
​Omarion Featuring Chris Brown & Jhene Aiko, “Post To Be”
The Weeknd, “Can’t Feel My Face”
The Weeknd, “Earned It (Fifty Shades of Grey)”
The Weeknd, “The Hills”
Top Rap Song:
Drake, “Hotline Bling”
​Fetty Wap, “Trap Queen”
​Fetty Wap, “679” feat. Remy Boyz
​Silentó, “Watch Me”
Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth, “See You Again”
Top Country Song:
Sam Hunt, “Break Up In A Small Town”
Sam Hunt, “Take Your Time”
Little Big Town, “Girl Crush”
Thomas Rhett, “Die A Happy Man”
Chris Young, “I’m Comin’ Over”
Top Rock Song:
Fall Out Boy, “Uma Thurman”
Elle King, “Ex’s & Oh’s”
twenty one pilots, “Stressed Out”
Walk the Moon, “Shut Up And Dance”
X Ambassadors, “Renegades”
Top Latin Song:
J Balvin “Ginza”
Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes del Rancho, “Te Metiste”
Nicky Jam & Enrique Iglesias, “El Perdon”
​Maluma, “Borro Cassette”
Romeo Santos, “Propuesta Indecente”
Top Dance/Electronic Song:
The Chainsmokers Featuring ROZES, “Roses”
DJ Snake & AlunaGeorge, “You Know You Like It”
David Guetta feat. Nicki Minaj, Bebe Rexha & Afrojack, “Hey Mama”
Major Lazer & DJ Snake Featuring MØ, “Lean On”
Skrillex & Diplo, “Where Are Ü Now” with Justin Bieber
Top Christian Song:
​Hillsong UNITED, “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)”
​Hillsong UNITED, “Touch The Sky”
​MercyMe, “Flawless”
NEEDTOBREATHE Featuring Gavin DeGraw, “Brother”
Chris Tomlin, “Good Good Father”
Top Gospel Song:
Anthony Brown and group therAPy, “Worth”
Erica Campbell feat. Big Shizz, “I Luh God”
Kirk Franklin, “Wanna Be Happy?”
Travis Greene, “Intentional”
Brian Courtney Wilson, “Worth Fighting For”

Billboard Music Awards: The Weeknd leads nominations

R&B singer The Weeknd has received 16 nominations for this year's Billboard Music Awards.

The 26-year-old is recognised in categories including top artist, top R&B artist and top male artist.
Fellow Canadian Justin Bieber has 11 nominations, while Taylor Swift and Adele have eight each.
David Bowie is nominated for Blackstar, his last album released before his death in January at the age of 69.
The ceremony, which will be hosted by Ludacris and Ciara, will take place in Las Vegas on 22 May.
Billboard magazine is best known for publishing music charts, including the Billboard Hot 100 singles and Billboard 200 albums.
They are the US equivalent of Britain's Official Charts, and track the most popular songs and albums both overall and in different genres.
Many of the categories are based on these charts - such as top Billboard 200 artist and top Hot 100 song.
 
The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, will effectively compete against himself in some of the categories this year.
Can't Feel My Face and The Hills are both nominated for top Hot 100 song. They are also recognised in the top R&B song category alongside another of his hits, Earned It.
Elsewhere, Drake will compete against himself in the top rap album category with solo album If You're Reading This It's Too Late up against What A Time To Be Alive - his collaboration album with rapper Future.
Adele, whose last album 25 was became the fastest selling record of all time when it was released in November, is nominated for top artist and top female artist.
Her single Hello is up for top selling song and best radio song.
Adele is one of several British acts to receive nominations, with Ellie Goulding, Ed Sheeran, One Direction and of course David Bowie also being recognised.

Taylor Swift, who recently completed a world tour in support of her album 1989, is nominated for top touring artist.
The singer's popularity on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter also sees her nominated for top social media artist.
This award is one of several categories which reflect the changing face of the music industry.
Top streaming song and top streaming songs artist also refer to the new ways fans interact with music.
Taylor Swift swept the board at last year's ceremony, winning eight of the 14 categories in which she was nominated.
Billboard Music Awards hosts Ludacris and Ciara announced some of the nominees Monday on breakfast programme Good Morning America

Hollywood removes Netflix from its legal streaming site search engine

Netflix has been removed from the American film industry's search engine for legal streaming sites.
WhereToWatch, which was set up by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) in 2014, lets users search a range of legal streaming services for their favourite TV shows and films.
The idea was to provide internet users with a handy resource which would steer them away from illegal streams and downloads, protecting them from potential legal trouble and helping the studios at the same time.
 
However, as TorrentFreak reports, Netflix has been removed from the WhereToWatch search results, despite being the one of the most-used legal streaming services in the world.
Netflix results have also been removed from the UK equivalent of the site, FindAnyFilm, although some Netflix results are still available on GoWatchIt, the search engine which powers WhereToWatch.
FindAnyFilm will readily direct users to Amazon Instant Video, iTunes or Google Play links, but Netflix is notable in its absence.
The unusual absence is down to Netflix's retiring of its public API - as a spokesman said in 2014: "As Netflix continues to grow internationally, the emphasis of our engineering efforts is to satisfy a growing member base and a growing number of devices. To better focus our efforts and to align them with the needs of our global member base, we will be retiring the public API program."
That leaves the search engines slightly incomplete - if users want to find legal streams fast, they still have to visit multiple sites to conduct searches. Netflix's changes will no doubt be a thorn in the side of companies trying to build up good databases of legal content.

Facebook, Google and Amazon to be forced to open up tax books by the European Union

The European Commission is bringing forward plans to make major multinationals such as Google, Amazon and Facebook disclose exactly where and how much tax they pay across the continent.
The draft legislation being tabled on Tuesday was proposed before the latest Panama Papers scandal, but comes amid a growing clamour to force the biggest companies to pay their fair share.
The plan was expected to include rules requiring businesses earning more than £600 million a year to open up their tax affairs to public scrutiny, revealing their profits and accounts in every country in which they operate within the EU.

Since the Panama Papers, a new clause has reportedly been added to require the companies to say how much money they make in so-called “tax havens”. A final, more general statement would reveal profits in the rest of the world, treated as a single item.
According to The Guardian, commission president Jean-Claude Juncker is said to be in favour of pushing through the initiative.
But is has come under early fire from both campaigners who say it will be toothless and business groups warning some multinationals could be put off operating in Europe altogether.
There are also some concerns surrounding the fact that there is no common view between EU members states on what constitutes a tax haven.
The plans will be presented by Britain’s EU Commissioner, Lord Hill, who told the BBC: “This is a carefully thought through but ambitious proposal for more transparency on tax.
"While our proposal on [country-by-country reporting] is not of course focused principally on the response to the Panama Papers, there is an important connection between our continuing work on tax transparency and tax havens that we are building into the proposal.”

With banks, mining and forestry companies already covered by similar reporting rules, the new proposals would see transparency brought to around 90 per cent of corporate revenues in the EU.
It remains to be seen what powers the EU would have to actively tackle tax minimisation, beyond the process of naming and shaming.

Syria conflict: Russian helicopter crashes, killing two crew

Two Russian military pilots have died after their helicopter crashed near the central Syrian city of Homs.

The aircraft, an M-28H attack helicopter, was not shot at, Russia's defence ministry said.
The crash happened in the early hours of Tuesday, the ministry said. The bodies were recovered and brought to Russia's Hmeimim air base.
Russia joined the Syrian conflict in September, launching air strikes in support of President Bashar al-Assad.
A "cessation of hostilities" came into force in February including the Syrian government and nearly 100 rebel factions, but not the so-called Islamic State (IS).
Russia withdrew most of its forces from Syria but officials said in March they would continue air strikes.
More than 250,000 Syrians have been killed in nearly five years of civil war. Millions more have been displaced.

Boko Haram crisis: 'Huge rise' in child suicide bombers

Boko Haram's use of child bombers has increased over the last year with one in five suicide attacks now done by children, the UN's child agency says.

Girls, who are often drugged, were behind three-quarters of such attacks committed by the militant Islamist group in Cameroon, Nigeria and Chad.
It is an 11-fold increase with four attacks in 2014 compared to 44 the next year, including January 2016.
The change in tactics reflects the loss of territory in Nigeria by the group.
The seven-year insurgency, which has mainly affected north-eastern Nigeria as well as its neighbours around Lake Chad, has left some 17,000 people dead.
Unicef says up to 1.3 million children have been forced from their homes across four countries: Cameroon, Chad, Nigeria and Niger.
The UN report has been released as Nigeria approaches the second anniversary of the kidnapping by Boko Haram of more than 200 girls from their boarding school in the Nigerian town of Chibok.
Their abduction sparked the global campaign Bring Back Our Girls, but none of the girls have yet been found.
The report, Beyond Chibok, says that boys abducted and recruited into Boko Haram's ranks are forced to attack their own families to demonstrate their loyalty.
Girls are exposed to severe abuse including sexual violence and forced marriage to fighters.
The girls who are used for bombings are often drugged and then explosives are strapped to their bodies.
According to the report, Cameroon has the highest number of child suicide attacks, involving children who are as young as eight.
Boko Haram, which means "Western education is forbidden", has often targeted schools during its insurgency.

Unicef says more than 1,800 schools have been closed, damaged, looted, set on fire or used to shelter those left homeless in north-eastern Nigeria and Cameroon.
Children have also been separated by from their parents during the conflict, with Unicef putting the figure at more than 5,000.
Over the last 15 months, most of the areas controlled by the militants have been retaken by a multi-national force and the militants are now thought to operate from hideouts in Nigeria's Sambisa forest, near the border with Cameroon.
The report says the frequency of all suicide bombings increased from 32 in 2014 to 151 last year, giving this breakdown:

• 89 in Nigeria
• 39 in Cameroon
• 16 in Chad
• Seven in Niger.                                
  

  Boko Haram at a glance

   

• Founded in 2002, initially focused on opposing Western-style education - Boko Haram means "Western education is forbidden" in the Hausa language
• Launched military operations in 2009
• Thousands killed, mostly in north-eastern Nigeria, hundreds abducted, including at least 200 schoolgirls
• Joined so-called Islamic State, now calls itself IS's "West African province"
• Seized large area in north-east, where it declared caliphate
• Regional force has retaken most territory last year

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE BUILD UP

PSG VS MAN CITY                          
  Ahead of the Champions League quarter-final between PSG and Man City we pick out 15 match facts.

1. Only once (in six games) has an English club beaten Paris SG at the Parc des Princes in European competition. It was José Mourinho's Chelsea in September 2004 (3-0).
2. The last three Champions League knockout encounters between Ligue 1 and Premier League clubs have all seen the French team eliminate their English counterpart.
3. Manchester City have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time in their history. They have won only one of their six games in the Champions League knockout stages (D1 L4).
4. Manchester City have kept fewer clean sheets than any other of the 2015/16 quarter-finalists in this season's Champions League (1 in 8 games).
5. No team has scored more goals than Manchester City in the final 15 minutes of games in the Champions League this season (6).
6. Manchester City have picked up six cards in eight games (all yellows), the lowest total of any team in the Champions League this season.
7. Paris SG have been eliminated in the quarter finals in each of the last three campaigns. Their last (and only) Champions League semi-final appearance to date was in 1994/95.
8. Paris SG have lost only one of their last 38 home games in European competition (W25 D12), that was against Barcelona in April 2015 (1-3).
9. Paris SG have the joint-best defensive record in this season's Champions League (3 goals conceded in 8 games, level with Atlético & Real Madrid). PSG are also the only team yet to concede a goal in the second-half of a Champions League game in 2015/16.
10. Zlatan Ibrahimovic has scored in each of his last four Champions League games. Only twice before has he gone five in a row in the competition.
11. Kevin Trapp has made more saves in this season's Champions League than any other goalkeeper among the remaining quarter-finalists (30 saves out of 33 shots on target faced).
12. Thiago Motta has completed 171 more passes than any other player in this season's Champions League.
13. If they play, it will be David Luiz and Thiago Silva's 50th appearance in the Champions League. Bacary Sagna could also reach that milestone in this game.
14. Sergio Aguero has scored 16 goals in his last 18 Champions League starts.

     15.  The only previous encounter between Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain was in December 2008, in the Uefa Cup group stages. It ended 0-0 at the Etihad. It was Man City's only previous competitive game against a French club.                                                                                                                 

             REAL MADRID VS VFL WOLFSBURG
           

Only Real Madrid would follow their best result of the last two years with their worst, but that is what happened to them last week. Three days after Zinedine Zidane’s side fought their way back into the La Liga title race, by overturning Barcelona at the Nou Camp, they risked throwing away a generous draw in the Champions League by losing 2-0 at Wolfsburg.
For a team which defines itself by how it does in the Champions League, and which went to Germany heavy favourites to put one foot into the semi-finals, it was a catastrophic result. All of the optimism built up by the Clasico win was undermined, all the hope that Madrid were back on the right path was under threat.
What that game was, as Madrid were picked apart by a far cleverer, humbler team, was a simple reminder of what a mess that club has become during the second Florentino Perez era. This is a team who put a club legend with no relevant coaching experience in charge half-way through a season in which they were still expecting to compete on all fronts. This is a team which, in the seven years since Perez returned to the presidency in 2009, has won one slightly fortunate Champions League and one pyrrhic La Liga title.

But with so much riding on tomorrow’s game – it is hard to see how Zidane will survive the summer if Madrid lose – the coach could only sound optimistic about his team’s chances. This is a side, after all, who won at Barcelona. “We were 13 points behind Barcelona when they scored against us, now it is four,” he pointed out. “Anything is possible in football, that is its beauty. This club has produced extraordinary comebacks before, here at the Bernabeu.”
The problem for Madrid is that 2-0 is such an awful first-leg score. They cannot concede, or else they will have to score four goals to go through. So they must attack against a side who has every incentive just to sit in and play on the break. If Real throw too many men forward then Julian Draxler and Andre Schurrle will be ready to pounce.

 
“We know that we have got a better chance if we keep a clean sheet,” Zidane said, with some understatement. “But more than anything else, we have just got to play our game. It's going to be an intense game, we're going to fight, we're going to run but most important is playing football.”
The game may become a tactical battle in which Madrid have to up the ante on Wolfsburg without leaving themselves too exposed at the back. This is not something Madrid have excelled at since allowing Xabi Alonso to leave two years, taking much of their tactical balance with them. Casemiro is the closest they have found to a replacement, which says a lot.
 
“We have to play this game with our heads,” Zidane said. “We're not going to win this game in 10 or 15 minutes, whatever happens, whether they score or we score. It gets more difficult if they score but it's not over. We have to concentrate from the first minute until the end of the game.”

AWCON Qualifiers: Super Falcons held to a draw in Senegal

                                                                                                                                                                    
The Nigerian Women Football team, the Super Falcons played out a 1-1 draw with host Senegal in the African Women Cup of Nations (AWCON) qualifying match on Friday.
The reigning Africa Champions had hoped to secure victory away but it was not to be as they were forced to share the spoils with their hosts.
The Nigerian ladies went on the score sheet first in the encounter which went down at the Stade Léopold Sédar Senghor before the Teranga Lionesses of Senegal rallied for an equalizer to still keep the game open going into the second leg.
Substitute Chioma Wogu who replaced an injured Desire Oparanozie, netted on the brink of half time to hand the Super Falcons a narrow lead against the host going into the break.
However, seven minutes into the second half, Senegal found the back of the net to restore parity.
Hard as Nigeria tried to get back in front, they could not and would have to kill the game in the return leg billed for Tuesday, April 12 in Abuja.

FIFA Rankings: Nigeria’s Super Eagles slump to 67th spot

         The downward slide of the Super Eagles on the monthly FIFA rankings continued on Thursday as the Nigeria national football team dropped five places to 67th spot on the latest rankings released by the world football governing body.

The Super Eagles, who are three-time African champions, are now sadly ranked 14th on the continent to further drive home the declining trend in football in the country.
As reflected in the April Rankings, Africa’s top 10 are Algeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Egypt, Cape Verde, Tunisia, DR Congo, Guinea and Congo.
Cameroon, Morocco and Mali are also above Nigeria.
Already out of contention for a place in the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), the continuous slide by the Eagles is set to even put them even in a tough group as they go all out to make amends with qualification for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
CAF has already announced that the June World Cup qualifiers draws will be based on the rankings of the 20 teams in contention.
The 2018 World Cup qualifying tournament for Africa will begin in October with 20 teams drawn into five groups of four teams each with the overall winners advancing to the final tournament in Russia.
Since making her debut appearance at the USA 1994 FIFA World Cup, Nigeria has only missed out on one edition; featuring in the 1998, 2002, 2010 and 2014 editions.

Caf Champions League: Mfon Udoh scores a hat-trick for Enyimba

         Enyimba's Mfon Udoh has now scored 7 goals in this year's African Champions LeagueMfon Udoh scored a hat-trick as Nigeria's Enyimba beat visitors Etoile du Sahel of Tunisia 3-0 in the first leg of their last 16 African Champions League tie on Sunday.    
Enyimba International put up a sterling display on Sunday as they thrashed Tunisian club, Etoile du Sahel, 3-0, in their CAF Champions League tie played at the Adokiyie Amiesimaka stadium.
Mfon Udoh was the hero for Nigeria’s sole surviving team in CAF Club competitions as he scored all the three goals in Sunday’s encounter.
Udoh scored his first goal of the day in the 9th minute before he added two more goals in the second half. With this, he now has seven goals to his name in this season’s CAF Champions League.
Having failed to reach the group phase of the Champions League in their recent attempts, Enyimba did not want to leave anything to chance hence they set out for a big win that would take pressure off them going in for the second leg.
In a bid to actualize their mission this term, they hit the ground running in Sunday’s game from the blast of the whistle
Having gone quite close in early exchanges, Udoh finally set the ball rolling with his 9th minute strike and the Aba Elephants pushed more; but were not able to increase the tally until the 56th minute when Udoh was on hand to tap in from close range.
Udoh made sure his side had a healthy lead going for second leg when he completed his hat trick in the 80th minute.
The two-time African champions who are keen to rule the continent will hope they can at least protect their lead in the second leg tie billed for a fortnight.                                                                                                                              

Nigeria army captures more than 800 Boko Haram fighters

                                                           The Nigerian Army says 800 Boko Haram fighters have given themselves up in the last few weeks as part of Operation Safe Corridor, which aims to rehabilitate Nigerians who took up arms against the state.        The defence spokesman says the armed forces are committed to helping citizens who show remorse.

The repentant militants are housed in camps, and after being de-radicalised they are set to be trained in various skills to help them get a job.
As positive as this arrangement sounds, there are many here who doubt if society is ready and willing to accept the ex-fighters.
It’s likely that many victims of the cruelty of these former gunmen may find it difficult to forgive.
The north-east of Nigeria has been torn apart bu the Boko Haram insurgency, which has killed more than 10,000 people and displaced more than a million others since it began seven years ago. 

Federal Government bans government officials from flying first class

  The Federal Government in a bid to reduce the amount being spent on overheard expenditure on Wednesday night banned all top officials of government from flying first class while embarking on officials trips.
It said henceforth, all top officials of government such as ministers, permanent secretaries, Chairmen of Federal Government Committees, as well as Chairmen and Chief Executives of Parastatals and Agencies are to travel on business class.
The development was confirmed in a statement issued by the Media Adviser to the finance minister, Mr Festus Akanbi in Abuja.
In the past, some government officials who should have been on business class usually travelled on first class, while many others travelled business class instead of economy class.
Akanbi in the statement said the new directive has been captured in a circular on review of overhead expenses released by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
He said the development is one of the recommendations made by the Efficiency Unit which was set up by the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, last last year aimed at reducing overheard expenses.
The unit was set up to engender transparency and reduce government’s large expenditure through procurement in the various ministries, departments and agencies of the Federal Government.

 

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New video of Brussels airport attacker

Belgian prosecutors have released new footage of the surviving Brussels airport attacks suspect, showing the route he took after leaving the area.They have asked members of the public who saw the man to come forward. Officials said the man was tracked on CCTV footage until 09:50 local time and was wearing a hat and a light-coloured jacket.
They said he had discarded the jacket, and asked the public to report if it had been found.
The 22 March attacks by so-called Islamic State (IS) on Brussels airport and a metro station killed 32 people

BREAKING!! Panama Papers: Putin rejects corruption allegations

President Vladimir Putin of Russia has broken the ice on his alleged involvement in the Panama Papers scandal.

President Putin has denied "any element of corruption" over the Panama Papers leaks, saying his opponents are trying to destabilise Russia.

Mr Putin was speaking for the first time since the leak of millions of confidential documents from the Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca.
 
The papers revealed a number of offshore companies owned by close associates of Mr Putin.
They suggest the companies may have been used for money laundering.
Mr Putin said Russia's opponents "are worried by the unity of the Russian nation... and that is why they are attempting to rock us from within, to make us more obedient".
"There is a certain friend of the president, he did such and such a thing, and there is probably a corruption element there, but there isn't any," Mr Putin went on to say.

Hillary in the lead!

There’s only one candidate in this race with more votes than Donald Trump!

After competing across the country in 36 states and territories (and counting!), Hillary Clinton has built a nearly insurmountable lead when it comes to both delegates and popular votes.
She’s also the only candidate—Democrat or Republican—who has received more votes than Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.

There are a lot of reasons why Hillary should be the Democratic nominee and our next president. But the numbers alone make one thing clear: She is the only candidate who is ready to take on the Republicans in November.

Head of Austrian Bank, Grahammer resigns over Panama Papers scandal

Still on the Panama Papers scandal.....more ripple effects are coming in as the head of an Austrian bank resigns his position.
The Panama Paper scandal has claimed yet another casualty following the resignation of the Head of Austrian regional bank, Michael Grahammer on Thursday.
Announcing his resignation, the 51-year-old, however, denied any wrong doing.
Grahammer said, “At the end of the day, what made the difference in taking this step was the prejudgment through the media of Hypo Vorarlberg and of myself in recent days,”
“I remain 100-percent convinced the bank at no time contravened laws or sanctions,” he said in a statement, adding that he will remain in office until a successor is named.
Hypo Vorarlberg was mentioned in a document leaked on Sunday relating to a Panama law firm allegedly helping the wealthy people evade tax by hiding their assets and launder money.
Following the allegations by the Panama Paper, the Austria’s financial market authority, FMA, on Wednesday opened an investigation into the bank’s accounts, and those of fellow Austrian lender, Raiffeisen Bank International, FBI.

The Panama Papers expose how the global elite ruined the housing market and stopped you from buying a home!

Much of the most expensive London property is held by overseas investors Getty

Even before the leak of the Panama Papers this week, we knew it was happening. So widespread is the use of central London property as a safe haven for the spoils of the world’s elite that the government had already promised to do something about it. The problem is, it promised so little.
Last year, speaking in Singapore, David Cameron was forced to acknowledge that foreign investment in British housing stock was damaging to the housing market and provided a cover for illegal activities. He agreed to crack down on individuals and organisations using the mask of offshore companies to invest in the UK property market as a means to launder what he called “dirty money”. He described how London property was being snapped up with “plundered and laundered cash” and promised that the UK should not be a “safe haven for corrupt money”. But it wasn’t enough.
In making the speech, Cameron was responding to a growing realisation that, in ushering in foreign investment, the government had also welcomed in a wealthy elite that objected to transparency in its financial dealings. Did we really know what, or who, we were dealing with? More importantly, did we understand how significant an effect their secret spending with the global luxury real estate brokers of Mayfair was having on everyone else, right down to the family trying to buy a modest two-bedroom semi in Chelmsford?

Even Donald Toon, director of economic crime at the National Crime Agency, said the use of ‘corporate wrappers’ and other tactics to launder money had “skewed” the property market. “Prices are being artificially driven up by overseas criminals who want to sequester their assets here in the UK, ” he said last year.
UK property valued at a total of £170bn is held by overseas investors. Of course, not every purchase made by a company registered offshore is an attempt to launder dirty cash or conceal illegal activity. But buying a home through an offshore company structure is one way of escaping the taxes and costs of ownership which the rest of us all have to bear.
Now we know the scale of the influence these offshore sales are having, and it’s alarming. The Panama Papers, leaked this week, found that 2, 800 Mossack Fonseca companies are linked to the title deeds of 6, 000 properties in the UK, worth £7bn. It is estimated that 90, 000 homes in England and Wales are registered to overseas owners, the majority of which (75, 000 in total) are thought to be owned by companies registered within tax havens.
That looks like an awful lot of property tax dodging and wealth hoarding to me.
Wealthy elites, purchasing high end residential and commercial property, have pushed up the prices of housing for everyone. In the city centre, global high rollers compete aggressively for prime space, the solid investments that can weather a global financial crisis – and even a predicted future downturn. The fight pushes up the price, but when you’re finding ways to sidestep all the financial obligations that go with buying a home, perhaps that doesn’t matter quite so much. The buyers keep on coming.
The lack of property tax returns to the Treasury over the last decade is in part (though not entirely) to blame for the lack of money available to invest in new housing at affordable prices. Cameron and the Treasury attempted to deal with this sleight of hand by introducing charges on properties owned through offshore vehicles, but it might be too little too late. A consultation on whether to force buyers to disclose their identities won’t unpick the damage done.
For, elsewhere in the capital, the housing market is already distorted by this influx of foreign cash. While the international elite leave the apartments of central London sitting empty – a literal shell  - the otherwise wealthy move towards the capital’s fringes. Even in zones three and four, the greener suburbs, even at the comparatively (though, frankly, not at all) modest level of a three bedroom family home, the housing market is now controlled by the cash buyer.
What hope for an ordinary household, requiring two incomes to repay a mortgage? Even with a major deposit of, say, 40 per cent, the buyer with the readies will always take precedence. That causes a ripple effect. According to analysts at the Centre for Economics and Business Research, house price growth in the south east of England is predicted to hit 8.3 per cent, compared with just 5.8 per cent in London. For the elite, the costs are being capped; the clampdown from Cameron and his government might be weeding out the worst influences, but the rush to buy up London has already had its effect.
The cost of housing for ordinary Britons is creeping up and up. For many, the chances of ever owning their own home now look slim. A huge shift of life expectations is taking place.
Yesterday we learned that private renting is now cheaper than repaying a mortgage in half of British cities. That’s the case because mortgages are so hard to secure, and properties so expensive and hard to find.
But with rents still rising, that’s little succour to those who have no choice but to accept that they’ll be renting for life, thanks to the malign influence of the selfish hoarders who make up the 0.1 per cent.