![[Video] Crowd goes agog as Peter Obi’s presence was announced at Holy Ghost Adoration](https://thenewsguru.ng/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/peter-obi-3-556x312-1.webp)
The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, on Saturday was at the Holy Ghost Adoration Ministry, for the cross-over service into the year 2023.
Crowds went agog as his presence was announced by Fr. Ebube Muonso at the service.
The excitement was so high that the reverend father had to appeal for calm on several occasions in order for the service to continue.
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Search engine giant Google is wishing everyone a Happy New Year 2023 and it is celebrating it with a special animated doodle on its website.
To celebrate the new year, upon visiting Google website, the doodle shows 2022 turning into 2023 as firecrackers burst around Google’s logo.
Upon clicking on the new year doodle, a new web page loads showing search results for “New Year’s Day 2023” as confetti showers on the screen.
This New Year’s doodle features bright colours such as blue, red, green, and purple while the alphabets of the Google logo have been represented as new year decorations.
The digits of 2022 and 2023 also have eyes and mouths to personify them as humans.
“ Happy New Year! however you choose to ring in the new year, here’s to good fortune in 2023,’’ Google said.
Google also used the occasion to feature a segment “this day in history” to highlight other doodles that had been used to commemorate New Year’s Eve in the past decades.
Google Doodles are temporary changes to the Google logo on its homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and notable historical figures.
Tye Governor of Ebonyi state, David Umahi has rededicated his government’s social contract to the people of his state as they celebrate the new year.
This was contained in a new year message the governor personally signed declaring that:
“As we hope to mark this new year with renewed energy, zeal and unshaken determination to walk the glory road with resounding success, blessings and gratitude, I rededicate our administration to the social contract with the people of Ebonyi State and hope that the vistas of opportunities vested in our life changing projects will come to full manifestations this year and beyond.
“May the name of God Almighty be sanctified for the blessings of a new year 2023 and for granting us the opportunity to share the joy of a new year filled with prospects of divine interventions in our collective and personal aspirations as a people.
” We thank God for the grace to overcome the challenges that faced our developmental aspirations in the last fiscal year and for the victories we recorded in our efforts to give the people a God-fearing governance that is based on integrity and dignity.
“We again commend the people of Ebonyi State to the shadow of the Almighty and pray that the good times and treasures that follow the new year will become golden memories of the future of the various families that make up our dear State.
“I wish you all a wonderful New Year Celebration and pray for the favour of God upon you in all your endeavours.
Vice-Presidential Candidate of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Governor of Delta, Sen (Dr) Ifeanyi Okowa has said the worse thing the President Muhammadu Buhari government has done is divide Nigerians.
Governor Okowa said this in a New Year message broadcast on national radio and television on Sunday, stressing that 2023 is a pivotal year in Nigeria as he congratulated citizens on the new year.
Okowa said with the general elections a few weeks away, 2023 promised to be a great year for Nigerians as they prepare to elect new leaders for the country.
He remarked that Nigerians had a turbulent 2022, grappling with unabating insecurity, rising hunger and poverty and an economy plagued with huge debts.
As he congratulated Nigerians for entering the new year, he condoled with the family of Lagos female lawyer, Bolanle Raheem, killed by a police officer on Christmas day, and called on the police authorities to ensure that justice was done on the matter.
“First, let me say Happy New Year to all of us. Those of us that are alive to witness the birth of 2023 have every reason to thank God for His manifold mercies and sustaining grace.
“It is my desire and prayer that our hopes, dreams, and aspirations as individuals, families, and Nigerians will come to fruition in this pivotal year,” he said, and explained that the new year was pivotal because Nigerians would, in a few weeks, go to the polls to choose new leaders.
The governor said that the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government had plunged Nigeria and its citizens into untold hardship.
According to him, Nigeria needs to be rescued and rebuilt from the misrule of the APC-led administration.
“In all the indices of development, Nigeria has never had it so bad; insecurity is pervasive, inflation is skyrocketing daily, public infrastructure is in shambles, and over 133 million Nigerians are poverty-stricken, according to the latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics.
“Even worse is that this administration has done more to divide Nigerians than unite us. Our young professionals, angry and frustrated by the current climate of hopelessness, are leaving the country in droves. We just cannot continue like this.
“Nigeria needs to be rescued and rebuilt from the misrule of the APC-led Administration. For that to happen, I urge all Nigerians to think rationally, objectively, and dispassionately in our choice of candidate.
“Let us shun ethnicity, religion and nepotism. Instead, we should think of competence, experience and someone with a proven record of solutions. These are the qualities we need in the in-coming President,” he said.
The Vice-Presidential Candidate affirmed that Alhaji Atiku Abubakar “is the leader Nigeria needs at this time because he exemplifies all needed qualities”.
“He is detribalized, cosmopolitan, a unifying figure, a successful businessman and a pan-Nigerian.
“As a former Vice-President, his management of the economy was stellar, and Nigeria stands to gain from his wealth of experience.
“As his running mate, I also possess the requisite knowledge and experience to help him with the task of building the Nigeria of our dreams.
“I appeal to us to vote wisely and let us get Nigeria back on track urgently.
“Once again, I wish you all a very happy, productive, fruitful, and prosperous 2023,” he stated.
President Muhammadu Buhari has reassured Nigerians that under his watch, their collective will and votes in the 2023 general elections will be fulfilled.
The president gave the assurance on Saturday in his administration’s last New Year message released by his media aide, Malam Garba Shehu in Abuja.
Buhari thanked the almighty God who saw Nigerians through the year 2022 and had given them the opportunity to see another New Year, describing it as an opportunity to reflect on the past year, reposition, and move forward in the new year.
According to him, “all these electoral and democratic principles are working in concert because of the transcendent beliefs, beyond partisan politics of you the great citizen of Nigeria.
“In addition is my personal commitment and executive promise to see to the letter that the 2023 elections, being diligently conducted by INEC, will be free and fair.
The collective electoral will and votes of Nigerians will be fulfilled, even in the twilight moments of my watch,” he said.
President Buhari who lauded his administration’s landmark Amended Electoral Act, said it would ensure that “we have free and fair elections across the nation.”
“We as Nigerians must also take responsibility to ensure we participate in ensuring that the 2023 elections are free and fair by not engaging in anti-state activities and other nefarious acts that may affect the run of the polls,” Buhari added.
The president urged Nigerians to also resist every attempt to be used by politicians to create unrest in any form to disrupt the elections.
“We, as government will ensure such activities are met with the full force of the law, ” he further assured.
According to him, reflecting on the Year 2022 allows his government to examine its legacies of successes and challenges, as well as celebrate its wins and review its obstacles.
”Governance is a continuum, which still places a transitional responsibility on the administration to provide for the incoming government a non-partisan and objective roadmap for 2023,” he added.
Former president Goodluck Jonathan has urged Nigerians to put the nation first as they explored opportunities before them in 2023, including voting for candidates of their choice in forthcoming general elections.
Jonathan in his in his new year message said that 2023 held great possibilities in spite the challenges faced by the nation in previous years.
“Last year was, without a doubt, filled with gains and losses.
“As a country, we experienced a devastating flood that resulted in the death of many lives and the destruction of property and sources of livelihood of millions of citizens.
“As a people, we survived the horror of the flood amid other national challenges, lived with hope unto God and faith in our nation, and triumphed into this New Year.
“This year holds great possibilities for us all. We must harness the opportunities that lie within the length and breadth of our nation. “
Jonathan said 2023 remained very significant for the survival of the nation.
He said that 2023 would be an election year, when citizens would go to the polls to elect leaders for different offices.
“We must see the election as an opportunity to birth a new country and overcome the challenges of the past years. Let us put the nation’s interest first in all our conduct this year.
“The ballot serves as the most suitable vehicle for achieving our shared dream of peace, justice, unity, and prosperity.
“This year, let us be purposeful in our actions, abide in faith and love toward God and country and eschew all negative tendencies and sentiments that would diminish our collective fortunes of unity, peace, and progress.”
He said that very new day is a gift for which man must show appreciation to God.
“We thank God for the gift of life and the opportunities the New year 2023 presents to us as individuals and as a nation,” Jonathan said.
By Francis Ewherido
Happy New Year to you all and welcome to 2023. Though I am not a prophet I know and I said it last week that not everyone celebrating Christmas will see 2023. It has always been like that year in year out. Sadly, it happened again via police brutality, accidents, natural deaths and other means. May their souls rest in peace.
I am not the all-seeing and all-knowing God, so I do not know how 2023 will turn out for me not to talk of other people, but I wish us all God’s protection, guidance, prosperity, health of mind and body. Though we do not know the future, we still plan for it. Make your plans, set targets and work towards achieving them. As they say, you do not win a lottery without first of all buying a ticket. In other words, it is difficult to achieve targets unless you set them.
Planning is very important for us in 2023. The year 2022, as close as it was to 2023, is almost gone. The year 2024, though just a year away is in the future. Year 2023 therefore offers us an opportunity to make short term, medium term and long term plans. Where plans are already in the place, 2023 offers an opportunity to take a second look and make adjustments where necessary. The New Year offers new beginnings and new opportunities for everybody. The young and in deed others should go on a self-discovery or rediscovery. You need to know who you truly are, your strengths, your weaknesses, your opportunities, the threats you face; what works for you and what does not work for you. You need these pieces of information to make meaningful progress. It is difficult to make meaningful progress without sorting out this puzzle. Without goals, you are not different from the man who dresses up in the morning and sets out without a destination in mind. How you want take do that kind waka? And if you are on a wrong road, retrace your steps; a wrong road will not lead you to your destination.
For young people, be pure at every stage of your life. What you failed to do or dodged now might return to haunt you. Look at what some politicians and workers in the private and public sectors are going through. Ordinary secondary school certificate has become a huge stumbling block. I do not want to talk about university and NYSC certificates. Be pure abinitio. Also flee from Yahoo-Yahoo; it is a building without foundation; soon it will collapse.
People above 40 should remember their annual check-up and healthy habits. Our clinics and hospitals should sit up. How can someone who managed to get to your facility collapse and die of low blood sugar. A bottle of coke or a cube of sugar was all that was needed to avoid this death. It is painful and shameful. Blood pressure and sugar level (if you have issues with sugar or diabetes) are the first tests nurses carry out once you step into the facility even before you see the doctor.
The JAPA wild fire is still burning. I have dwelt on it extensively before, but let me just touch on it because it is still a major issue. I will continue to reiterate that you have a right to live anywhere you like in this whole world, but it you must JAPA, go through the right channels and have the right documents. Don’t JAPA with a tourist visa. When it expires, you might live subsequently like a fugitive. Also, what are your plans when you get there and who is guiding you? I see some people who have not travelled outside the country giving tips on JAPA. If a blind man leads another blind man, where do they end up? The top notch environment, orderliness, effective transportation and good security are for all. But you still have to sort out accommodation, up keep and other personal matters. Paying tax is unavoidable unless you want to go to jail. You earn in dollars/pounds/euro and also pay in these currencies, not naira where $1,000 can transform to about N700,000 and make you awash with cash easily so do not use exchange rate to plan your stay in the UK.
With the right documents you can get a job about a month after arrival, if you are not picky. But can your take home pay take you home and sustain you until you get your next pay cheque after paying taxes, rents and meeting other commitments? I see them for UK and America o, e no easy as many of us dey see am here. Unless you have concrete plans to JAPA, I still believe there are great opportunities in Nigeria in spite of the enormous challenges. There are myriad of problems, but there also lie the opportunities of providing solutions and getting your break through. But I have to confess that getting out school or gaining technical skills and being unemployed is annoying and unacceptable. Our society should develop to the level where all hard working people can at least put food on their tables. Hardworking people should not be jobless and go hungry.
It is partly why the 2023 general election is very important. Our presidential and national assembly elections are slated for February 25, 2023, while the governorship and house of assembly elections will take place in March 4, 2023. We crave for better country/society and that can only happen if we vote competent, conscientious, empathetic and visionary people at the federal, state and local government levels. Let national interest and common good guide us in our choices of presidential, governorship and house of assembly, House of Representatives and senatorial candidates. Ordinarily these should take precedence over ethnicity or party membership. You are a member of your party, not a slave to your party. I know selfish and personal interests are heavy in this election, but we are better off with a society where all hardworking people can strive, not a few people with big mansions and exotic cars, while the majority live in abject poverty.
The new electoral act though not perfect has put a lot more powers in the hands of the electorate. Whether or not you are a party man or party woman, be involved. Have your candidates for the presidential, governorship, national assembly and state assembly elections. I know there is hunger in the land and many will sell their votes. Just remember the far reaching implications of your actions. Esau sold his birth right for a plate of porridge due to hunger and the consequences were life long. There should be no sitting on the fence, but vote with the future in mind, not N2,000 to quench immediate hunger.
On a final note, the Ewherido Family had a great news earlier in the week to close year 2022 on a good note. On Wednesday, the Administrator of the Catholic Diocese of Warri, Archbishop Augustine Akubueze, announced the appointment of our eldest brother, Monsignor Anthony Ovayero Ewherido, as the Bishop-Elect of Catholic Diocese of Warri by His Holiness, Pope Francis. Until his elevation, Monsignor Ewherido was a Professor of Biblical Theology and Languages and Rector of the SS Peter and Paul Major Seminary Bodija, Ibadan. Please join my family in praying for Bishop-Elect Ewherido to be a good shepherd of God’s flock in his care.
I wish all a fruitful 2023 and beyond.
![[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: New Year resolutions](https://thenewsguru.ng/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Screenshot_20211202-092925.png)
By Oke Chinye
Read: Ephesians 5:15-20
Meditation verse:
“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16).
“Therefore, do not be unwise but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:17-20).
If you are looking for new year resolutions, today’s readings highlight a few important ones.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).
For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com
or call +2348155525555
For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.
Many Nigerians in search of a better life have set relocation from the country, now popularly referred to as ‘japa’, a top priority on their goals for 2023.
Poor standard of living, rising insecurity and the economic uncertainty that looms over the country preparing for its general elections, change in government and drastic reform measures such as fuel subsidy removal, all in one year, are some of the main reasons behind the decision to japa.
Today, millions of ethnic Nigerians live abroad and the largest communities can be found in the United Kingdom’ (500,000–3,000,000) and the United States (600,000–1,000,000 Nigerians). Other top destination countries include Canada, Germany, South Africa and The Gambia.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) investigation revealed that the five easiest routes for relocation used by Nigerians are study, work, marriage, application for permanent residency and asylum.
However, irrespective of the relocation route one chooses to take, here are eight things you should do before you japa:
The Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has urged Nigerians to support his presidential ambition.
In his new year message signed by himself in Abuja, the former Vice President described the Year 2023 as a defining moment for Nigeria.
“I am inspired by the compelling need to provide leadership that will propel Nigeria to greater heights, to overcome our challenges and together as one recover and rebuild a united, strong, and prosperous Nigeria.”
Abubakar thanked God for His infinite mercies and congratulated all Nigerians for surviving the year’s experience.
He advised Nigerians not to despair, saying “hope is on the horizon. PDP shall make things right again.
“On behalf of myself, my family, and our great party the PDP, I urge you to support our noble cause to recover and rebuild Nigeria for a prosperous 2023 and beyond.”
He wished all Nigerians a happy and prosperous new year.