South Africa unveils Mandela ‘unity’ statue

A statue of Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first black president, has been unveiled in the capital, Pretoria, a day after he was buried. The nine-metre (30ft) bronze statue has been erected at the Union Buildings, the government headquarters, BBC reports. The statue, with Mandela’s hands reaching outward, was intended to show that he had embraced the whole nation, President Jacob Zuma said. Mandela was given a state funeral at his ancestral home on Sunday. African National Congress members, veterans of the fight against apartheid and foreign dignitaries – including several African presidents and the Prince of Wales – attended the funeral ceremony in the village of Qunu in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province. It followed a 10-day period of mourning and celebrating Mandela’s life after his death at the age of 95. The national flag was raised on Monday from its half-mast position, and was flying as normal. The statue was unveiled on South Africa’s Day of Reconciliation, a public holiday which marks the end of racial conflict in South Africa. “Former President Mandela is associated with the promotion of reconciliation which is why the day was chosen for the unveiling,” said the government. During white minority rule, 16 December was called the Day of Covenant to honour the victory of Afrikaners over a Zulu army in an 1838 clash known as the Battle of Blood River. More than a century later, on 16 December 1961, Mandela launched an armed group, Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation), to fight South Africa’s white minority rule. It led to his arrest and imprisonment for 27 years. After he became president in 1994 at the end of minority rule, he used the day to urge South Africans to set aside their differences and to unite. During his address at the funeral on Sunday, Zuma pledged to build on Mandela’s legacy. “As your journey ends today, ours must continue in earnest… South Africa will continue to rise because we dare not fail you,” he said. Mandela’s body lay in state at the Union Buildings for three days last week, at least 100,000 people filed past his open casket to pay their last respects.

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The War between Iconic Emeka Ike and Segun Arinze

The war between iconic actors Segun Arinze and Emeka Ike seems to have no end in sight. In a recent interview, Arinze had said Ike should stop embarrassing the Actors Guild of Nigeria by parading himself as its president. According to Segun: ‘Emeka should grow up. As far as I am concerned, Ibinabo Fiberesima is the bonafide president. Even in the recent judgement that came out recently telling us to return to the status quo, what does it mean? We were told to go back to the way we were. There was no time Emeka Ike was pronounced the president of AGN. Let him bring out the copy of the judgement and show us if he is man enough. He should wake up and stop embarrassing the guild.” Well, these words did not go down well with Ike who believes Segun Arinze “is an illiterate who should have been in jail.” He told Saturday Beats: “I heard Segun Arinze was interviewed and he said so many things about me and nobody asked me for my own side. I don’t think it was a balanced report. Se...

Jonathan, Abiara ask Nigerians to pray for 2015 polls

President Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday felicitated with Nigerian Muslims as they commemorate the birth of Prophet MuMuhammad. In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, the President urged Muslims to use the opportunity offered by the Eid-el-Maulud to offer special prayers for successful and peaceful elections in the country next month. Also, the General Evangelist, Christ Apostolic Church Worldwide, Prophet Samuel Abiara, has appealed to politicians to embrace peace and avoid any act that could lead to violence ahead of the 2015 general elections. The clergy, who spoke in Lagos during the crossover service, decried insecurity and economic decline as a result of falling oil prices. He said, “We are deeply concerned over the continuous killing of the innocent people of Nigeria. The land is becoming...

400-YEAR Old Church Emerge From Receding Water

No biggie, but a Colonial-era church has emerged from receding waters in Mexico. Leonel Mendoza fishes every day in a reservoir surrounded by forest and mountains in the southern Mexico state of Chiapas. But in recent days, he has been ferrying curious passengers out to see the remains of a colonial-era church that has emerged from the receding waters. Pretty impressive, right? A drought this year means the level of the Grijalva River, which flows into the Nezahualcoyotl reservoir, has dropped by 25 meters (82 feet). It is the second time a drop in the reservoir has revealed the church since it was flooded when the dam was completed in 1966. In 2002, the water was so low visitors could walk inside the church. ‘The people celebrated. They came to eat, to hang out, to do business. I sold them fried fish. They did processions around the church,’ Mendoza recalled. The church near Quechula was built by a group of monks headed by Friar Bartolome de l...

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