Lovelines,
A girl I have dated for three years was married to a man in Europe through an arranged marriage by her father. Still anytime I see her, my mind still goes to her.
Sarata

Please keep away from this girl when it comes to intimacy. You can be good friends and helpful to each other. Do not think about romantic relations again because she is now a married woman. Let bygones be bygones. It is not everyone we love that we will be able to marry. Good luck!

She lives a promiscuous lifestyle

Lovelines,
I sacrifice a lot for my girlfriend of three years. Her sisters and aunts can testify to this. Throughout these years she lived a promiscuous life. Anytime, I confront her, she would deny the allegations as false. However, towards the end of last month, I realised that she is pregnant for another guy. She is still calling me on the phone.
Saidykhan

This will be a lesson to you because not all that glitters is gold. So put space between yourself and her. If she calls you, receive the call and greet her as a good friend and a former lover. You have nothing to worry about. Good luck!

I date many girls

Lovelines,
I am a guy who dates many girls without finding a desireable woman as a true lover, although they always play their expected parts. Still, I keep on picking and dropping. Even the lady I am currently going out with suspects that I am continuing the trend with her. What can I do about this?
Tambedou

You have to search within yourself to know what is wrong. Secondly, try to know what you want in a woman. Then you will be able to compare and make a choice. You cannot have a woman who will match your desires 100 percent. But with time, both of you will become compatible. So try to be flexible with your expectations from a woman of your choice. Good luck!

I need a Gambian woman for wife

Lovelines,
I am a 38-year single Ghanaian working with one of the High Commissions in Sierra Leone.  I need a stout/fat Gambian woman between the ages of 20-45, who is working or doing business to marry. Please help me to realise my dream.
Kwofie

Do you match the above description and are you ready to spend the rest of your life with this hardworking and determined young man? Call Lovelines for more information and the contact address of Kwofie. Good luck!

She won my heart

Lovelines,
There is a young girl who has won my heart. This girl is one of my girlfriend’s friends whom I met in one of my friends’ house. Since I set eyes on her, I can’t control myself anymore. We have chats on the phone regularly.
Ali

Well your text is incomplete so I do not know want you want Lovelines to do for you. But you can make a call for a quick response. Good luck!

She wants to be my friend not a lover

Lovelines,
There is a girl I am attracted to but she keeps telling me that we can be good friends but not lovers. So she wants me to forget about love. I don’t know what to do.
Bunjai

I will advise you to accept her friendship because a friend is a person with whom you may be sincere. Friendship needs no words, it is solitude delivered from the anguish of loneliness. Friends are born not made. In all, friendship can lead to something deeper but depends on how you build it. Good luck!

She always says I love you

Lovelines,
I have been dating a girl for the past four years but she has never visited me. I always visit and communicate with her while she keeps on saying to me “I love you.”  But she never returns my calls or texts me. Is there anything I can do?
Lulu

There is nothing you can do other than to walk away and look for another girl who is interested in you. This lady  does not see you as a lover but a mere  friend. So forget about her ‘I love you’.  Good luck!

He likes to be in the room

Lovelines,
I am 22 dating a man of 24 for the past four years. Recently, I noticed that he always wants to be with me when I am alone in my room while it is very hard for him to sit with me when I am outside. Moreso he does not like to stay with me if I do not cuddle him. Does this guy love me?
Mabinta

It is surprising to me that you have just begun to notice  a man you have been dating for the past four years. Anyway, he loves you. There must be a reason for his actions. Tell him you find his actions irritating. There are possibly clues to the reason for his behaviour  which you know but might not have given much thought to. So call Lovelines then I can explain better if you are not sure about your thoughts on this. Good luck!

One girl, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that there is a lot of littering and uncontrolled waste disposal in the area and that this is causing a lot of problems including ill-health and odours in the surrounding areas. Se disclosed that when one strolls through Jola Kunda and the Latriuknda Sabiji Christian Cemetery you can see the waste. She further expressed her frustration at people who do not clean their surroundings on Set-Setal.

One possible solution to the problem in her opinion would be for KMC to visit the area during Set-Setal to observe those not taking part.

It is disgusting to read of the threats made against Scorpions star Ousman Jallow during the Algeria game held at the Independence Stadium in Bakau last weekend. After The Gambia’s memorable 1-0 victory, a number of Algerian players claiming to be terrorists threatened to attack the hotel Gambian footballers and match officials would be lodging in when they play the return leg this weekend. This kind of behaviour has no place in sport and FIFA should immediately impose harsh sanctions not only on the players who made the threats but on the Algerian Football Association.

The Gambia Football Association has written a letter of notification to the world football governing body, FIFA, following the threats made to the Scorpions by some Algerian players during the qualifier for the World and African Cup of Nations.

The letter has been signed by the Secretary General of the Gambia Football Association, Jammeh EK Bojang, and copied to CAF General Secretary.

The GFA must be commended for their prompt response to this abusive behaviour against a Scorpions player. The players are in the protection of the GFA and it is heartening to see the GFA living up to their responsibilities in this regard.

It will now be very interesting to see how FIFA and the CAF react to this shameful incident. Before any action is taken by FIFA the Algerian Football Association should take disciplinary action of their own to show that they have no tolerance for this kind of behaviour. The players, identified as wearing numbers 17 and 4, must be immediately suspended and perhaps even worse. If one were to claim to be a terrorist and promise to blow up hotels in the street or in an airport you would very quickly find yourself in police custody. Why then should this wretched behaviour be tolerated on a football field?

Our boys are in Algeria at the moment so let us hope that security is very tight indeed. Of course it is not only the players who may be at risk but all the coaching staff and trainers as well. These people are in Algeria to play football to bring joy and exhilaration to the fans of both nations, not to be in fear of their lives. Let us hope that swift action is taken on this matter and that our boys respond in the best way possible by securing valuable away goals and earning a vital three points so that we can go to the World and African Cup of Nations.

Elephants are very social animals. Elephants travel in herds, containing about 6 to 30 individuals. The herd is made up of the oldest female (the matriach), females and their offspring.

The African elephant is the largest living land mammal, one of the most impressive animals on earth. Of all its specialized features, the muscular trunk is the most notable it serves as a nose, a hand, an extra foot, a signalling device and a tool for gathering food, siphoning water, dusting, digging and a variety of other functions. Not only does the long trunk permit the elephant to reach as high as 23 feet, but it can also perform movements as delicate as picking berries or caressing a companion. It is capable, of powerful twisting and coiling movements used for tearing down trees or fighting. The trunk of the African elephant has two finger-like structures at its tip, as opposed to just one on the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus).

The tusks, another noticeable feature, are greatly extended incisors (elephants have no canine teeth); about one-third of their total length lies hidden inside the skull. The largest tusk ever recorded weighed 214 pounds and was 138 inches long. Tusks of this size are not found on elephants in Africa today, as over the years hunters and poachers have taken animals with the largest tusks. Because tusk size is an inherited characteristic, it is rare to find one now that would weigh more than 100 pounds.

Both male and female African elephants have tusks, although only males in the Asiatic species have them. The growing of the Tusks for many elephant is the sign of the whole body growth. Elephants are "right- or left-tusked," using the favoured tusk more often as a tool, thus, shortening it from constant wear. Tusks will differ in size, shape and direction; researchers use them (and the elephant's ears) to identify individuals.

Elephants can live in nearly any habitat that has adequate quantities of food and water. Their ideal habitat consists of plentiful grass and browse.

An elephant spends about 16 hours of the day to eating and about threes to five hours to drinking, bathing, dusting, wallowing, playing and resting. As an elephant only digests some 40 percent of what it eats, it needs great amounts of vegetation (approximately 5 percent of its body weight per day) and about 30 to 50 gallons of water. A young elephant must learn how to draw water up into its trunk and then pour it into its mouth. Elephants eat an extremely varied vegetarian diet, including grass, leaves, twigs, bark, fruit and seedpods. The fibrous content of their food and the great quantities consumed makes for large volumes of dung.

African elephants are distinguished from Asian elephants in several ways, the most noticeable being their ears. Africans' ears are much larger and are shaped like the continent of their origin. The African is typically larger than the Asian and has a concave back. Both African males and females have external tusks and are usually less hairy than their Asian cousins.

African elephants have traditionally been classified as a single species containing two different subspecies, namely the savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana ) and the forest elephant (Loxodonta africana cyclotis),

Under the new two species classification the savannas elephant refers to as the largest of all elephants as well as the all land animals in the world standing up to 4 m (13 ft) at the shoulder and weighing approximately 7,000 kg (7.7 tons). The average male stands about 3 m (10 ft) tall at the shoulder and weighs about 5500–6000 kg (6.1–6.6 tons), the female being much smaller. Most often, Savanna Elephants are found in open grasslands, marshes, and lakeshores. They range over much of the savannas zone south of the Sahara.

The other suggested species is the Forest Elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis). Compared with the Savannas Elephant, its ears are usually smaller and rounder, and its tusks thinner and straighter and not directed outwards as much. The Forest Elephant can weigh up to 4,500 kg (10,000 lb) and stand about 3 m (10 ft) tall.

At the age of 14 years the males will leave the herd and group together with other males of the same age or older. When the group comes across a female, also called cow, the male of the highest rank is selected as the one to breed

A female is ready to breed at the age of 12, at which she is in an oestrus period. When in an oestrus period the female breeds with visiting males. After a period of 18 months, the female will give birth to a single offspring. The offspring can weigh up to 27 lbs.
The offspring feeds off its mother for 3 years until it is able to feed itself.

When it comes to taking care of the offspring, the mother is the main caretaker. When it comes to defend the offspring from predators or other bullying the entire herd pitches in to keep the young safe. Every offspring is essential to the power of the herd, since they mates once in every year.

The female elephant give birth to a new offspring 5 year later after caring of the past offspring. The young elephant will learn by watching and copy from the act of the others. It will learn how to eat and drink with its trunk, and what to do and not to do.

Tusks of the young elephant begins to erupt at 16 months but do not show externally until 30 months; when its tusks are 5 or 6 inches long, they begin to disturb the mother and she weans it. Once weaned usually at age 4 or 5, the calf still remains in the maternal group.

The average life span of an elephant is between 60 and 70 years.

For more information on visiting Tanzania contact Wild Things

For more information on visiting Tanzania's mountains contact Mountain Kingdom

A private Christian university in Nigeria has come under fire from activists and health officials over its policy of compelling students to undergo HIV and pregnancy tests.

Earlier this year, Covenant University, in Otta, a town near the port city of Lagos, in Ogun State, introduced mandatory testing for new students and those about to graduate, as part of its 'Total Man' concept. The university says this ensures that its graduates are not only academically sound but of high moral standard.

Pregnant students who cannot prove they are legally married risk suspension or expulsion. Covenant University - rated as the best private tertiary institution in Nigeria last year - implements a strict code of behaviour: all students have to live on the campus and, among other restrictions, are not allowed to use mobile phones.

"With the level of moral decadence in our society, the Covenant University is determined to ensure the purity of our graduates before they are released into the society. They must be found worthy both academically and morally," said Chancellor Bishop David Oyedepo, of Living Faith Church, which owns the university.

The controversial policy has caused an outcry among HIV/AIDS activists and government officials, who have warned that the move could be a setback in tackling the country's widespread problem of stigma and discrimination.

The country's licensing body for universities, the Nigerian University Commission (NUC), last week summoned Covenant University officials to clarify the policy, which the NUC says is unjustified.

Prof Ignatius Uvah, the NUC's deputy executive secretary, stressed that Covenant University was bound to respect national and international conventions on HIV/AIDS, which demand that tests should be voluntary. According to news reports, the Public Relations Officer of the NUC, Alhaji Ibrahim Yakassai, said the issue would be resolved "very soon"

The National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) has also condemned the compulsory testing of students, saying that "in line with the national guideline for HIV/AIDS counselling and testing, the administration of HIV tests should be with the full consent of the individual involved, and it must be voluntary, confidential and offered only as a package that includes pre- and post-test counselling."

Though the University had earlier stated that negative HIV and pregnancy test results were a condition for graduation, its spokesman, Mr Emmanuel Igban, said the tests were a routine exercise to determine the health status of students.

"It is not true that anyone who tests positive for HIV/AIDS would be denied the opportunity to graduate, contrary to media reports," Igban said in a statement issued in response to growing condemnation of the university's policy.

Bisi Ladipo-Salami, of BAOBAB, a women's human rights activist group, described the compulsory testing as a violation of the students' rights, and maintained that there was no law prohibiting HIV-positive and/or pregnant students from graduating.

"We believe that the fundamental rights of all Nigerians, irrespective of religious affiliation, are non-negotiable, and demand an end to the infringement on the rights of the young people under any guise," she said.

Princess Olufemi-Kayode, Executive Director of advocacy group Media Concern for Women and Children, commended Covenant University for its efforts to ensure a high moral standard among its students.

However, she added that there was a need for better understanding of the human rights perspective on HIV/AIDS tests, because "the virus can be contracted through various means other than sex, which seems to be emphasis of the university."

Notwithstanding these criticisms, the chancellor believed that the students should be guided to protect them from possible HIV infection or unintended pregnancy, because in the past some students had been caught engaging in "reprehensible sexual activities".

"It is a very bad situation that requires every possible approach to ensure that we produce the kind of graduates that can guarantee a better future for this country," he said.

Magistrate Pa Harry Jammeh of The Kanifing Magistrates’ Courts last Thursday ordered the remanding of Lamin Yaffa and Ebrima Ceesay, all from Bakau, at the State Central Prisons, Mile II.

The duo is standing trial on charges of idleness and disorderly behaviour tantamount to a breach of the peace, to which they both pleaded not guilty.

According to the facts put before the court, Lamin Yaffa and Ebrima Ceesay were on or about 10th July, 2007, at night, found in possession of a mirror, empty and broken bottles at the Independence Stadium.

The case was adjourned to 23th July 2007. Corporal 870 represented the IGP in the trial.