BIG TROUBLE! Lamido, Dickson, Other Govs Shun Jonathan’s Campaign Inauguration

There was apprehension among members of the Peoples
Democratic Party in Abuja following the absence of some of
the governors of the party at the inauguration of the
Presidential Campaign Organisation of the party in Abuja on
Tuesday.

The organisation, headed by a former National Chairman of
the party, Sen. Amadu Ali, is saddled with the responsibility
of selling the candidacy of President Goodluck Jonathan
and his deputy, Alhaji Namadi Sambo, to Nigerians for the
February 14 presidential election.

Only a handful of the governors were in attendance, while
about half of them did not show up for the occasion.

Among the governors at the event were Emmanuel
Uduaghan(Delta), Gabriel Suswam(Benue), Isa Yuguda
(Bauchi), James Ngilari (Adamawa), Babangida Aliyu(Niger)
and Ibrahim Dankwambo( Gombe State).

However, governors Theodore Orji(Abia), Dr. Olusegun
Mimiko(Ondo), Sullivan Chime(Enugu), Seriake Dickson
(Bayelsa), Martin Elechi(Enugu) were absent from the
inauguration.

Also not part of the inauguration were Idris Wada(Kogi),
Ibrahim Shema(Katsina), Sule Lamido(Jigawa) and Jonah
Jang(Plateau).

One of our correspondents saw many of the bigwigs from
the party discussing the developments, especially when
some of the absentee governors were put in charge of the
campaign in their zones

Lamido is saddled with the responsibility of coordinating the presidential campaign in the North-West, while Mimiko is in charge of South-West and Orji, South-East.

No reason was given for the absence of the governors.

However, the President later met behind closed doors with
the PDP governors at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The meeting, which was also attended by ministers from
states where there are no PDP governors, was meant to
strategise ahead of the commencement of the presidential
campaign.

Former Governor Sentenced to 2 Years Imprisonment!

ZERO TOLERANCE FOR CORRUPTION:

Bob McDonnell, the former Republican governor of Virginia, was sentenced to two years in prison by a federal judge Tuesday after being convicted last year on multiple corruption charges. McDonnell was charged with trading favors for $177,000 worth of loans, vacations, and other personal gifts from a family friend looking to promote his vitamin-supplement business.

McDonnell’s wife, Maureen, was also convicted on corruption charges and will be sentenced Feb. 20. “I stand before you a heartbroken and humble man,” McDonnell told the judge in court, adding that he had repeatedly apologized for his interactions with the family friend. “I renew that deep expression of sorrow to the people of Virginia today,” he said. Prosecutors sought a minimum of 10 years behind bars for McDonnell, who was once considered to be a potential vice-presidential candidate for the GOP.

Source: THE DAILY BEAST

Obasanjo Lays Into Jonathan As Autobiography Faces Nigeria Libel Ban

Former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo slammed a Nigerian politician who has held up publication of his autobiography by suing him for libel in an exclusive interview with RFI. He criticised President Goodluck Jonathan for working with a man charged with drug-smuggling in the US.

A court in Nigeria has banned the sale and distribution of Obasanjo's autobiography, citing libel. The book criticized President Goodluck Jonathan and some of his entourage.

My Watch may not now make it into bookshops before the 14 February presidential elections in Nigeria.Obasanjo ran Nigeria as a military ruler between 1976 and 1979 and again as a democratically elected president from 1999 to 2007. He has become a revered elder statesman since then, offering advice to leaders and rebels across Africa and beyond.

At 77, Obasanjo is showing no sign of slowing down. This week alone he attended two launches of his autobiography.

But for now My Watch is banned in Nigeria and Obasanjo could be ordered to pay compensation for defamation of character.

Buruji Kashamu has filed two libel cases against Obasanjo over his book.

Kashamu, who is a campaign director in the president's ruling People's Democratic Party, is unhappy about references to him in Obasanjo’s book.

There is a warrant out for Kashamu's arrest in the US, where the Chicago City Police Department say they have evidence of his involvement in a multi-million-dollar heroin-smuggling racket.

Interview by Rosie Collyer:

RC: Why have you chosen to publish your autobiography now, when Nigeria is politically charged ahead of February's general election?

OO: You used the word politically charged. There is no time Nigeria is not politically charged. One thing one can say about Nigeria is, since independence we have had some high ebbs or low ebbs but Nigeria has been very, very politically active. So the question of which is the opportune time or auspicious time for a book to be published, it is entirely up to the publisher and of course the reading public.

I completed writing the book, which took me about 18 months, about four months ago and I gave it to the publisher. And the publisher decided that after reading the book that he would like to publish it before the elections.

RC: Who is Buruji Kashamu and why do you mention him in your autobiography?

OO: He is someone who has been indicted in America […] And for a political party and for the president to be hobnobbing with him I believe leaves much to be desired, and I said that [in my autobiography].

RC: You are apparently critical of President Goodluck Jonathan in your autobiography. Why?

OO: Whatever I have said in my book, I have said it to President Jonathan one-on-one. I have said it in public statements that I have made over the past two or three years. So there is nothing in my book that is new that I have said about President Jonathan.

RC: One area where you have criticised President Jonathan is his handling of the kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls. What advice did you give the president?

OO: It is unfortunate. What I have said to Jonathan before and what I have said also in my letter - and I have said it several times - is that, once active and concrete action was not taken within 48 hours, a period of 72 hours was already too late. We will never be able to get those girls again. And the story of those girls will go on for the next 30 years. Some of them will come out when they are adults or they will be sent back when they are pregnant by those who have captured them. If anyone is thinking of being able to get those girls released intact, he must be day dreaming.

RC: Your autobiography is called My Watch in reference to your presidencies. What were you most proud of during your time as president?

OO: Well what was I proud of, is when I came in [as president] many people thought that I would be the last president of Nigeria, because after me Nigeria will be no more. I was proud that I was not the last president of Nigeria because after me there have been two presidents and there will always be presidents of Nigeria and Nigeria will continue to exist.

And then, of course, we fought corruption.

RC: Can you give some examples of corrupt people who faced justice.

OO: Oh yes, we took an inspector general of police to court. We took the 
president of the Senate to court. We took my minister for secondary schools and my minister of internal affairs to court. We took a few permanent secretaries to court. And we took a few governors to court.

And then of course we recovered well over 1.25 billion dollars from the Abacha family.

RC: Could you have done more to fight corruption?

OO: No, I did all that could be done. Fighting corruption is not a one-day affair or a one-night affair, it must be continuous. 

Why Messi Will Be king In English Premier League

 Messi not being great because all his achievements have been in Barcelona and he his only successful because of the players that make up the team, most especially Xavi and Iniesta. Well, before I react on why I believe he will be big in England, I’ll like to ask, why should Messi leave Barcelona just to prove you wrong? Messi is not the only player in the history of football that has dedicated his entire career to a football club. The likes of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Paolo Maldini, Tony Adams, Totti, Steven Gerrard, etc. all dedicated their entire career serving one club and if they had indicated they wanted to leave their respective clubs, clubs would have jumped on the offer to land them a lucrative deal, even bigger than what they earn. I call this LOYALTY.

Why I'm I so certain of Messi being a big hit in the premier league? Well, the past three seasons has witnessed a lot of foreign players heading to England due to the lucrative deals offered by English clubs and most of these players come from Spain, with over 80% from lower ranked clubs like Valencia, Malaga, Atletico Madrid, etc. These players were not king in their previous clubs nor in Spanish football and yet when they arrive England they turn out to be gods for their clubs. Manchester City largely depends on Silva, Yaya Toure, and Kun Aguero. Without these trio playing then the team is as good as useless. Arsenal in the past relied on French players but since the success of Cesc Fabregas and the Spanish national team, they have constantly bought players from Spain. Last season, the arrival of Ozil was massive and it steered them to winning the FA cup. This season has seen the arrival of Sanchez and instantly he is the main threat that pushes forward to get the goals. Chelsea finished without a trophy last season with no reasonable investment to get Spanish players but since the arrival of Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas, the fans now feel very confident in winning not just the EPL but the UEFA champion’s league as well. Manchester United are developing now and the arrival of Angel Di Maria, has brought a breath of fresh air in the theatre of dreams with the midfielder scoring goals that fans only see when watching La Liga. Among the top 5 clubs, Liverpool remain the only club that didn't invest in Spain and we can see how their season is getting on after losing a great player in Luiz Suares that players like someone in La Liga. Torres was massive when he newly arrived, same with Mata and the only flop so far from La Liga is the arrival of Soldado, who may pick up subsequently as the season goes on.

Owing to the assumptions above, I can rightly draw up my conclusion that Messi will not only shine in England, if at all he decides to leave Barcelona for the EPL but will be the first man to win the Ballon D’or while playing in England, as Ronaldo won it after he left Manchester United for Madrid despite being judged on his performance with Manchester United and also the massive sum Madrid paid to acquire his services.

He’s like Jesus Christ,President Jonathan He’s bearing the burden of everybody,”by okupe

People do not understand the burden this president is bearing. He’s like Jesus Christ. He’s bearing the burden of everybody,” Okupe said while commenting on the state of the nation.

According to him, the efforts of the government in fighting the Boko Haram insurgency as well as in power were being hindered by external factors, even as the nation gears up for the 2015 elections, which Okupe said would be impossible for Jonathan to lose.“I can’t see GEJ losing this election; It’s not possible.”

On managing serious challenges in Nigeria and also campaigning for a second term in government, Okupe noted that “the beauty of executive is being able to multitask,” which he said was one quality the President had.

However, there have been complaints concerning two major issues – security and power.

On electricity, Okupe explained that Nigeria has been “under-powered” for many years, noting that in Ikeja, Lagos State, the electrical infrastructure on ground is about 35 years old.

He admitted that “power is a problem”, which was why the government was working to improve generation and distribution, through the power reform.

He also noted that the equipment were expensive which had caused the private owners to borrow billions of dollars. “We are not there yet but we are certainly on an irreversible road to better power supply,” he further insisted.

Asked why the government did not first work on changing equipment before increasing generation, which also costs money, Okupe said that there was a limit the government could do as power was controlled 100% by the private sector.

“In the power situation, we are not there yet. We are definitely on a road that cannot change,” he emphasised, hinting that the government is working on huge dam projects to allow the private owners work effectively on distribution.

He also claimed that government efforts were being sabotaged by politicians who sponsor vandals to attack gas pipelines.

“We noted that there were 10 NIPP projects which were performing below 50 per cent”, he disclosed, alleging that some persons were making sure they underperformed so as to make the government appear incompetent.

He, however, added that the rate of sabotage had reduced in the past year.

On the state of security in Nigeria’s North East region, Okupe commended the government’s efforts, noting that all aspects of the war against terror, including funding, administration were being worked upon.

“Today, the Nigerian Army is in total and perfect control,” of North East, he added.

On the recent comments made by Governor of Borno State, Okupe said the governor “never fails to amaze me”, adding that majority of problems of insurgency was situated in his state but he was travelling to Lagos, London and other nations, to discuss insurgency but failed to meet the President on the matter.

Okupe argued that Boko Haram was a “multinational, international insurgency arrangement in Nigeria” as the group had links with ISIS, Al Qaeda, and other international terrorist groups.

He also said he did not know about the identity of the sponsors as he was not working with security.

He also claimed that there were huge political considerations in the fight against Boko Haram, making an example of General Buhari, who Okupe said had polled over 12 million votes in the North in the last election.

Okupe alleged that Buhari had said any attack on Boko Haram was an attack on the North and that Buhari’s recent condemnation of Boko Haram was as a result of his fourth bid to become Nigeria’s president.

#BringBackOurGirls Not Time Bound

Speaking about the 219 schoolgirls in Boko Haram captivity, Okupe said “the issue of Chibok girls was (an) emotional tragedy but it is a tragedy that we must bear with fortitude,” noting that issues such as rape, murder and other atrocities were common in war.

“Chibok girls are a major thorn in the flesh of the administration,” he explained, stating that “If it was possible to get them yesterday I know that this government would have done it”.

He also called for caution in the rescue mission, noting that “any mistake will lead to their death” and that there’s no time limit for returning the girls alive.

"Why We Could Not Defeat Boko Haram"- Army Commander Writes A Powerful Letter To President Jonathan

In a desperate letter to President Goodluck Jonathan and Senate President David Mark leaked to SaharaReporters this past weekend, a commanding officer stationed in  Nigeria's northeast  details several troubling issues plaguing troops combating Islamist terror group Boko Haram  in the region. 

The officer stated that, corruption, maladministration, lack of resources and troops motivation has mitigated against a successful campaign to end Boko Haram's deadly reign of terror in the northeast. 

The officer's lengthy complaint which he claims would lead to a threat to his life forewarns that if his pleas continue to be ignored by the country's leadership that both the Nigerian Army and the country will crumble under the insurgency. 

"If all issues raised in this letter are not urgently addressed, the Nigerian Army will soon be history and by implication there will be no country called Nigeria," the officer gravely states. "No country without a strong army will survive."

Below is the full text of the officer's letter addressed to President Goodluck Jonathan

 PLEASE MR PRESIDENT SAVE THE MILITARY AND NIGERIA FROM COLLAPSING
 
1.    Sir, I am constrain to write you this letter which I consider it a matter of more than great importance for me to inform you and put to record issues that are happening in the North East (Operation Zaman Lafiya). I choose this medium to write you this open letter because I have written similar letter but no action was taking which I believe some forces have blocked it are now after my life. Sir I have served in 7 Division as staff officer and presently I am the commanding officer of 103Bn in the field. My combined wealth of experience as a staff officer and now commanding officer are the disturbing fact that necessitated me to write you this letter. While as a staff officer, I was among those who believed that the commanders in the field are not doing well. But presently, as a commander in the field, I found out that it is not the fault of any commander that the defeat of the so called BOKO HARAM (BH) has not been achieved.

2.    First and foremost sir, the Nigerian Army is poorly equipped in the North East, if all the battalions are well-equipped as required; it will not take the Army more than two weeks to flush out the BH. Presently there are four units in my location here in KONDUGA including 21 Armoured Brigade HQ. If all the units are provided with all their requirements, we can advance and flush out BH out of North East. Mr. President sir, the Nigerian Army is well-trained and capable of defending our nation. It has demonstrated the capacity to even successfully enforce peace in other nations. Why not in our own country Nigeria?

3.    The fact about NE operation is that we are poorly equipped, understaffed, high corruption from Army Headquarters down to battalion level. Commanders see it as opportunity to make money. My predecessor has complained of the same problem. Instead of ASA addressing the issue raised by him, the army authorities decided to Court Martialled him. All the units in NE are understaffed, but on payroll their strength are complete just to collect more allowances than what each unit is supposed to. The commanders see it as a personal money making venture rather than taking care of men and equipment. This ugly trend led to loss of many officers and soldiers and thereby having adverse effect on the moral (sic) of troops. Majority of soldiers in the operation area wear mufti (civil cloths) under their military uniforms in case there is an attack and the troops cannot withstand the BH, they found it easy to disguise as civilians to enable them escape. This is not the traditional practice in the NA. Though it is lack of adequate equipment and poor administration from the higher authority that resulted to this ugly trend by our troops

4.    Sir, another bad and unprofessional act is that soldiers don’t take to orders from their superior officers because they have lost confidence/trust from them. The case of former General Officer Commanding 7 Division Major General A. Mohammed is enough evidence to show that all is not well in the Nigerian Army. It will interest you to note that worse cases has been recorded before that of the former GOC and more are still happening, but nobody is ready to investigate the root cause of problems facing the troops in the field.

5.    This brings me to a recent occurrence which is my main purpose of writing this letter. As I mentioned earlier, due to the failure of the authority to address issues that I made mentioned, when a unit is attacked and overran by the BH not because the soldiers are unable to fight, but lack of weapons, ammunitions and communications equipment, the soldiers on many occasions will ran away, and a commander cannot stand and fight alone as a result of this. Presently seventy percent of commanders in the NE are facing Court Martial due to the reasons mentioned. We the commanding officers are very worried over this development. This is because we many soon find our self as victims of this maladministration from our higher authorities.

6.    There is no sincerity in this operation; this is because the present acting GOC has never visited any location outside Maiduguri town not to talk of principal staff officers in Army Headquarters or even the COAS. But we keep on hearing all sorts of lies that Generals are leading the fight against BH. These are facts that can be confirmed from officers and soldiers in this operation including those in the 7 Division Headquarters. The GOC is so afraid that even with the Divisional Headquarters; he doesn't go out and always locked himself inside his office. In Fact it is a common knowledge among officers and soldiers in this operation that the acting GOC is here to make his money and earn his promotion to the detriment of the operation. The completion of his mansion at No 8 Gwamna Road in Kaduna which the GOC ignorantly disclosed that when he completed it, will be among the best houses in Kaduna, has turned to be a subject of discussion among troops.

7.    The former 21 Armored Brigade commander is facing Court Martial today because the acting GOC does not want to see him and his garrison in Maiduguri town simply because of the huge monthly allocations from the Borno State government to the brigade garrison. He wanted to be collecting his money by using 7 Div Garrison, but in reality 7 Div Garrison does not have troops to claim such money. It is worthy to note that the GOC received 33,000litres of AGO and PMS each, 600 bags of rice monthly from Borno State government. All these items are diverted for his personal use.

8.    Recently the newly appointed 21 Brigade commander lead 3 units to flush out the BH, that operation was successful, almost 300 BH were killed, weapons and vehicles were recovered from them, in the process the troops exhausted their ammunitions from the Div, the GOC simply replied that there was no ammunition this made all the troops to withdraw back to KONDUGA.

9.    Presently more than 3000 officers and soldiers are either killed in action, deserted, captured as POW or on AWOL. But due to lack of proper administration the army directed that their salary should be stopped. This affect the families of those that are either genuinely killed in action or captured as Prisoners of War. It has also affected some of the troops that are still participating in this operation.

10.  Mr. President sir, if all issues raised in this letter are not urgently address, the Nigerian Army will soon be history and by implication there will be no country called Nigeria. No country without strong army will survive. I decided to write you this letter because the life of officers and soldiers trusted in my care are no longer save. My life is also at the stake because the NA authority as usual will say I have communicated directly to you as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and may sanction me. As a citizen of this country and a commander in the operational area, with all the points I have mentioned in this letter, it is clearly that the Military authorities have failed the country, as such they should be held liable for their misdeeds. I have consulted seasonal constitutional lawyers if writing you this letter will be an offence, but they said it is my constitutional right to inform the C in C about what is happening in the NE and within the military which if not address will affect the survival of Nigeria.

Rights group calls for ICC probe of Nigerian presidential candidate

Amsterdam - A Nigerian human rights group on Monday asked the International Criminal Court to bring charges against Nigerian presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari for post-election violence in 2011.

The Northern Coalition for Democracy and Justice said in a statement Buhari should face justice over the violence, when 800 people were killed and many churches and schools were destroyed.

The ICC has been looking into possible war crimes in Nigeria since 2010, but few believe it would be keen to take on another powerful politician after being forced to drop charges against Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta earlier this month.

Buhari's All Progressives Congress party denied the claims, saying they were politically motivated.

"They will not stop at anything to try to derail General Buhari," said spokesman Lai Mohammed. "I can see the hands of the government behind it."

Nigerian officials were not immediately available to respond.

The court's prosecutor receives dozens of such submissions each year, of which very few ever result in investigations.

The NCDJ alleged the violence included acts of murder, torture and rape systematically directed at perceived non-supporters of Buhari.

The NCDJ had previously referred Buhari to the ICC in 2011, but said it decided to submit more evidence after the former military ruler emerged as the main candidate in February's presidential elections.

"We have a lot of very strong evidence we are submitting to the prosecutor," said Goran Sluiter, a Dutch law professor acting for the NCDJ, adding he wanted to ensure Buhari did not escape justice by winning political office.

Earlier this month, the ICC withdrew charges against Kenyatta, who was accused of orchestrating a wave of deadly violence after the 2007 Kenyan elections, due to insufficient evidence.

Observers say the ICC charges were a key factor in helping Kenyatta secure the presidency two years ago, from which position he was able to lead Kenya and its African allies in a campaign of lobbying against the court's charges.

Buhari, 71, has been an influential political figure in Nigeria for much of its post-independence history, leading a military government for two years until 1985.

The ICC was set up 12 years ago to try those suspected of serious international crimes in cases where local authorities are unable to do so. It has been criticised for bringing weak cases and securing just three convictions.

Oshiomhole may emerge Buhari’s running mate

Abuja - Barring any last minute change of plans, the leadership of All Progressives Congress (APC) may pick Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State as the running mate to the party’s presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, reports Opinionvoices.

Oshiomhole’s choice follows the decision of the former Lagos State governor and national leader of the party, Bola Tinubu to drop  his ambition to run with Buhari.

Amaechi loses out as APC zones VP to South- westThe party settled for Oshiomhole when the APC governors insisted that Buhari’s running should be chosen from amongst them.Oshiomhole will be formally presented to a meeting of party leaders in Abuja on Monday.

Oshiomhole serves President Jonathan quit notice

Benin City - Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State on Sunday served President Goodluck Jonathan and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) a quit notice for what he described as their crass incompetence to fix Nigeria’s problems, reports opinionvoices



Oshiomhole, who poke shortly after attending the 22nd convocation ceremony of Auchi Polytechnic, said the time is ripe for the PDP and President Jonathan to quit governance because the party has failed the nation since its 15 years of incompetent leadership.

Oshiomhole, who is being tipped as the running mate of the Muhammadu Buhari, the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, noted that the PDP’s mismanagement of the country has also affected the power sector, which is vital for the growth of any country.

2face, Lagbaja, Olamide, others to light up ‘K1 Live Unusual’ concert..

There is palpable excitement in the land as the Convention Centre of Eko Hotel & Suites gets set to host the biggest selection of Nigerian artistes in the country next month. The event, put together by the management of music legend and Fuji king, KWAM 1, is tagged ‘K1 Live Unusual’ and music lovers around the country can begin to mark their calendars for Friday, November 21. K1 Live Unusual, the first concert of its kind, will be hosted by the King of comedy himself, Ali Baba while popular comedian, Buchi is expected to add comic bites to the large dose of entertainment to be served at the event. 

Expected to be an avenue to feel and enjoy an aggregate of favourite records like ‘Baby mi show colour re,’ ‘Talazo system,’ ‘Omo Naija,’ ‘Eyo’ and many others from the 57-yr old behind some of the country’s most celebrated hits, the concert is billed to attract thousands of music lovers. With celebrity disc jockey, DJ Jimmy Jatt live on the turntables and performances from multiple award winner, 2face Idibia; vocal powerhouse, Omawumi; Afro-beat and Jazz icon, Lagbaja and distinguished Fuji star, Adewale Ayuba, it is surely a concert deep in rich yet diverse tunes. 

Others on the bill include rap sensation, Olamide, who was inspired by KWAM 1 and collaborated with the King of Fuji music on his hit single, ‘State of the Nation’ while he also sampled his tunes in ‘Anifowoshe,’ will also be performing at the event in which legendary Sir Shina Peters and Sir Victor Olaiya are also to feature. 

More artistes and sponsors are also expected to be revealed in due time for the all-star concert to be followed by an exclusive after-party to hold at Quilox Nite Club. The event is fully supported by the Lagos State Government, Lagos State Signage & Advertisement Agency (LASAA) and media partner, HipTV.... 

2015 Nations Cup: Equatorial Guinea to host tournament

Equatorial Guinea have been named as the hosts for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, the Confederation of African Football has confirmed to the BBC.

Caf selected a replacement for Morocco after rejecting their request to delay the 17 January to 8 February finals.

Morocco were concerned over the spread of the outbreak of the Ebola virus.

Caf subsequently expelled Morocco from the relocated tournament, which will now be held in the country which co-hosted with Gabon in 2012.Confederation of African Football's Junior Binyam , they have "no doubt" that it will be "a beautiful tournament" and one "up to the same standards of what we've seen in past years".

Equatorial Guinea will now take on sole responsibility for holding the 16-team event.

Caf said the decision was made after a meeting in Malabo on Friday between Equatorial Guinea's president Teodoro Obiang and Caf president Issa Hayatou.

African football's governing body also announced that Equatorial Guinea will play in the tournament - despite the team being disqualified in July for fielding an ineligible player in a preliminary qualifier against Mauritania on 17 May.

Hayatou said in a statement:  "The head of state of Equatorial Guinea agreed to host the competition.

"As a result, the Caf executive committee confirms that the tournament will go ahead and Equatorial Guinea will compete as the host nation.

"Caf wishes to express its sincere thanks to the Equatorial Guinean people, its government and particularly president Obiang."

Matches will be held at four venues in Bata, Ebebiyin, Mongomo and the capital Malabo. In 2012, only Malabo and Bata were used.

The draw for the finals will be in Malabo on 3 December.

2015 Nations Cup: South Africa among teams to reach finals

South Africa are among six teams on Saturday to have booked their place at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations after each won their penultimate qualifier.

Cameroon, Zambia, Burkina Faso, Gabon and Senegal are the others to have sealed their progress.

The six countries join the already-qualified trio Algeria, Cape Verde, Tunisia, and new hosts Equatorial Guinea at next year's tournament which will be be played from 17 January to 8 February.

SUPER EAGLES FAIL TO QUALIFY FOR NATIONS CUP.

Reigning champions Nigeria will not defend their title in Equatorial Guinea after failing to qualify from Group A.

In Wednesday's final round of matches, Nigeria were held 2-2 by South Africa in Uyo, meaning they finished outside of their group's top two automatic qualification spots with eight points - a total that also put them out of the running to be the best third-placed team.

South Africa had already assured their place at the tournament, which will be played from 17 January to 8 February, and only one spot remains outstanding.

Congo, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea and Mali all claimed their tickets to the continent's showpiece event with their results on Wednesday.