12 National & International Highlights To Know For Saturday, October 4, 2014

GRAPHITTI NEWS collates national and international highlights from late-breaking news, up-coming events and the stories that will be talked about Saturday:

1. 2015: FACTORS THAT WILL GUIDE MY DECISION —JONATHAN

President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday assured that his decision to run for second term will be guided by national harmony, cohesion, unity, security, political stability, progress, equity, justice and fairness, agency reports.

Pentagon To Deploy Upwards Of 4,000 Troops To West Africa Amid Ebola Epidemic

Blood samples from patients suspected of having the Ebola virus disease are prepared for transportation to Freetown for testing, at the Port Loko District Hospital September 27, 2014. (Reuters/Christopher Black)

The United States may send nearly 4,000 troops to West Africa in the coming weeks in an effort to contribute relief in the fight against the Ebola virus outbreak in the region, according to the Pentagon, RT reports.

Can He Dribble Past The Tax Man? Barcelona Star Lionel Messi To Face Tax Evasion Trial

Lionel Messi at a news conference in Barcelona on Thursday

Barcelona and Argentina star Lionel Messi is to face trial for alleged tax evasion, a Spanish judge has ruled, BBC reports.

Change Looms For Nobel Peace Prize As Chairman Risks Coup

(Source: xenatisch)

The head of the Nobel Peace Prize committee risks an unprecedented demotion after announcing the 2014 winner next week, part of wider changes that could both tilt the award to the right and dim chances for future U.S. presidents to win.

FIFA Recognizes Nigerian Football Federation Elections

Sepp Blatter, FIFA President

FIFA has recognized this week’s Nigeria Football Federation elections and said Thursday it had sent a letter congratulating new president Amaju Pinnick, AP reports.

Messi Serene Over Looming La Liga Scoring Record

Lionel Messi is not thinking about breaking Telmo Zarra's La Liga scoring record of 251 goals despite having closed to within three of the former Athletic Bilbao and Spain forward.

Messi has scored five times in Spain's top flight this season, including two against Granada last weekend, taking his overall tally to 248, and has a chance to add to his haul in Saturday's match at Rayo Vallecano.

Infostrada Sports has further broken down the Messi 400; 331 left foot, 52 right foot, 15 headers, 1 body, 1 hand.

Four-time World Player of the Year and four-time Ballon d’Or winner is also just four goals away from tying the legendary Telmo Zarra’s all-time La Liga goal-scoring record of 251, a record that has been held by the Athletic Club Bilbao star for 59 years (dating back to 1955).

"Right now I am not thinking about the record," Messi said at a promotional event in Barcelona on Thursday.

"But it is nice to be the record top scorer in one of the best leagues in the world," added the Argentina captain. "It will come when it comes."

Telmo zarra - all-time top goal scorers in Europe and international football

Zarra, who died in 2006, had a career which spanned the 1940s and 1950s, while Messi made his Barca debut in 2004 at the age of 17 and turned 27 in June.

His scored his first La Liga goal against Albacete Balompié on May 1, 2005, making him at the time the club and La Liga's youngest scorer at 17 years, 10 months and seven days. The record was later broken by Bojan Krkic.

This News Is Making Some Americans Mad! – Piers Morgan Has A New Job

The Daily Caller carried this story!

BREAKING NEWS: 80 People Were In Contact With Dallas Ebola Patient – NBC Cites Health Officials

The Dallas Ebola patient, Thomas Eric Duncan had come into contact with as many as 80 people, according to Texas health officials, NBC News reports. This figure is significantly higher than initially thought.

NIGERIA SELLS GAS TO GHANA BUT Ghana Plans To Export Electricity To Nigeria

Ghana President John Mahama

Can you imagine that Ghana which buys gas from Nigeria is planning to generate enough electricity to start exporting its excess capacity? No wonder those who did have any reason to celebrate the country’s 54th independence anniversary appear to have a point.

Liberia Says It “Regrets” US Ebola Case

Patient zero: Thomas Eric Duncan, a Liberian national who had traveled to the U.S. from Liberia on September 20 to visit family, has been quarantined at a Dallas hospital after contracting Liberia. It was revealed that he helped carry an infected pregnant woman to a hospital, just four days before boarding a flight out of the Ebola-stricken country (Photo credit: Facebook)

GRAPHITTI NEWS gathered Liberia expressed regret on Thursday over one of its nationals carrying the Ebola virus from Monrovia to the United States.

LOW-KEY: Nigeria's 54th Independence Day Anniversary - October 1, 2014

President Goodluck Jonathan (fourth left), First Lady Patience (fifth left) with (from left) Vice President Namadi Sambo, Former Head of Interim Government Chief Ernest Shonekan, Former Head of State Gen. Yakubu Gowon, Senate President David Mark, Deputy Speaker House Representatives Emeka Ihedioha, Minister of Defence General Aliyu Gusau and Chief of Naval Staff; Vice Admiral Usman Jibrin clapping after the cutting of Nigeria’s 54th Independence Anniversary cake at the Forecourt of the Presidential Villa in Abuja...yesterday. PHOTO AKIN OLADOKUN

HISTORICAL NEWS: 1960 Independence Day speech

Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, KBE, OBE, CBE (December 1912 – January 15, 1966) was a Nigerian politician, and the only prime minister of an independent Nigeria.  He was described as a ‘cool figure’ who pre-occupied himself with holding together Nigeria’s more than 250 ethnic groups when duty was entrusted to him to became Nigeria`s independent prime minister for the federation.

Designer of Nigeria National Flag Appointed Special Assistant, Placed On Salary for Life

President Goodluck Jonathan and Michael Akinkunmi, the designer of the Nigerian flag.(Credit: PREMIUM TIMES)

Years of neglect of the designer of the Nigerian Flag, Mr Taiwo Akinkunmi came to a dramatic end Monday as President Goodluck Jonathan while conferring him with a national honour award also announced his appointment as a Special Assistant with a salary for life.

GRAPHITTI GUEST COMMENT: Leaving African Heroes Behind To Die

By Karen Attiah

I had a chance to attend Thursday’s high level emergency meeting at the United Nations on the Ebola outbreak. For two hours, world leader after world leader pledged solidarity with the countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the three West African countries hardest hit by the Ebola virus. From Japan to France, Cuba to the United Kingdom, many speakers used the opportunity to announce their government’s intentions to ramp up their donations to the disease-stricken countries and to urge their fellow world leaders to do the same.

What A Man Can Do...? These Two Men Married The Same Woman

Peter Sherratt (left) and Chris Thomas (right), became friends when they found they shared the same wife

A pair of drinking buddies became friends after discovering they were married to the same woman. 

Messi: I Never Imagined I'd Score 400 Goals; Scores 400th and 401st In A 6-0 Drubbing Of Granada

Messi during live action. (Credit: Goal.com)

The Barcelona and Argentina talisman netted his 400th and 401st career goals during his side's 6-0 thrashing of Granada on Saturday and is delighted to have reached the milestone, Goal.com reports

Is This OBT or VIP? Anger Over SURE-P, FERMA N1bn Rip-Off

Thousands of job seekers across the country are alleging a massive rip-off by two agencies of the federal government which lured them into parting with over N30,000 each.

Scientists Grapple With Ethics In Rush To Release Ebola Vaccines

Professor Adrian Hill, Director of the Jenner Institute, and Chief Investigator of the trials, holds a phial containing the Ebola vaccine at the Oxford Vaccine Group Centre for Clinical Vaccinology. Credit: REUTERS/Steve Parsons/Pool

Normally it takes years to prove a new vaccine is both safe and effective before it can be used in the field. But with hundreds of people dying a day in the worst ever outbreak of Ebola, there is no time to wait.

Spanish Police Arrest 10 Graffiti Painters

Spanish train with graffiti (Credit: world'sbestever.com)

Spanish police say they have arrested 10 of the country's most active graffiti painters on suspicion of being responsible for over 600,000 euros (US$760,000) worth of damage to subway rolling stock, AP reports.

Crises By Instalments In Ekiti: Soldiers Take Over State Capital

A detachment of Mobile Security men in front of the Federal High Court/Fajuyi Park, Ado-Ekiti...yesterday

Soldiers yesterday took over the streets of Ado-Ekiti to restore order after 24 hours of arson and bloodletting by thugs, The Nation reports.

KENYANS HOT ON THE TROT! Dennis Kimetto Sets World Mark At Berlin Marathon

Champion: Kimetto holds up his national flag as he celebrates winning the 41st Berlin marathon. Dennis Kimetto set a new fastest time ever at the Berlin Marathon on Sunday morning, beating the previous record by 26 seconds. (Photo: Reuters)

Dennis Kimetto set a new fastest time ever at the Berlin Marathon on Sunday morning, beating the previous record by 26 seconds, GRAPHITTI NEWS reports based on AP and Mirror newspaper accounts.