December 26, the day after Christmas, is also the 48th birthday of Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Several years ago when Mercy Okafor Onanwa got married to her hearthrob, Christopher, hopes were high they would live happily thereafter and raise kids that would in turn take care of them in their old age.

With the judiciary already handling allegations by the present Federal Government that a huge portion of the funds for fighting insurgency was diverted by its predecessor, the subject is hardly ripe for comments by columnists who appreciate the rule of law. In the meantime however, there are a number of instructive statements in the public domain which we cannot ignore. A good example of such statements is the one credited to Dr. Peter Odili, a former governor of Rivers State.

For the 66 soldiers sentenced to death for mutiny and other offences in the fight against Boko Haram terrorists in the North-East, the good news is that they will no longer face the firing squad.

The Chairperson of Ibom Deep Seaport Implementation Committee, Mrs. Mfon Ekong Usoro, who is also the pioneer Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA and the current the Secretary General of the West and Central Africa Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control, spoke to Sunday Vanguard’s Godfrey Bivbere, of efforts at the completion of the deep sea port, challenges so far and many more.

Five days from now, it would be Christmas once again, an indication of the cyclic nature of time. As usual with the weeks and days leading up to it, preparations for the celebrations are gathering momentum in all the nooks and crannies of the globe. In the major cities of Nigeria, Santa Claus’s white-bearded cheery face is emblazoned at shop entrances and windows.

President Muhammed Buhari’s appointment of Babatunde Fashola as Minister of Power, Works and Housing was recently described as a “masterstroke” in one of the daily newspapers.

Abia Warriors Football Club of Umuahia have unveiled the immediate past Chief Coach of Sunshine Stars of Akure, Kennedy Boboye as its new Manager.

Gone are those days when church signposts bore just the name of the church. These days, the average church billboard is incomplete without a conspicuous picture of the pastor and his wife. The remaining space is left for the name of the church and time and days of meeting.

Former Chelsea star Didier Drogba joined new interim boss Guus Hiddink in Roman Abramovich’s Stamford Bridge box yesterday.
Drogba, who now plays for MLS side Montreal Impact, is currently enjoying his off-season break and sat in between Hiddink and Abramovich for the match against Sunderland.