“The House of Representatives” Committees on Communications; Justice; Information and Culture; and National Security and Intelligence are to hold their inaugural investigative hearing on Tuesday (today) after the expiration of the 10-day deadline given by the leadership of the House to investigate the ban placed on Twitter by the Federal Government. Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, on June 8, 2021, said the leadership of the House had resolved to intervene in the decision that had pitched Nigerian Twitter users against the government.
The leadership had mandated the committees to carry out an investigation, including inviting Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, to explain the rationale behind the ban and the legality of the action. The panel was asked to report back within 10 days. The PUNCH had reported on Monday that the joint committee had yet to act on the directive. However, the committee on Monday invited journalists to its investigative hearing scheduled for 10am on Tuesday.
Members of the minority Peoples Democratic Party in the House had staged a walkout in protest against the refusal by the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, to grant their prayer that the ban on Twitter by the Federal Government be suspended pending when the chamber probes the matter. Gbajabiamila had stated that the leadership of the House had resolved that the lawmakers needed to hear from both sides first before a legislative action was taken.
Hollywood actress, Angelina Jolie on Sunday visited a refugee camp in Burkina Faso sheltering thousands of Malians who had fled jihadist violence in the region.
Jolie visited the camp at Goudebou, in the northeast of the landlocked West African country, as part of her role as an ambassador for the United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees.
The Oscar winner arrived by helicopter accompanied by Burkina Faso’s Foreign Minister, Alpha Barry, for a ceremony to mark World Refugee Day.
“I have marked this day every year for 20 years with refugees in different countries
I have never been as worried about the state of displacement globally as I am today,” she said after her visit.
The truth is we are not doing half of what we could and should to find solutions to enable refugees to return home or to support host countries like Burkina Faso, coping for years with a fraction of the humanitarian aid needed to provide basic support and protection,” Jolie added.
During an attack in March last year, 9,000 refugees who were sheltering there despite previous raids, had been forced to flee, causing its de facto closure.
Since December, the Burkina Faso authorities and the UNHCR have been relocating the refugees there, having stepped up security at the camp.
There are now more soldiers posted at a new barracks and increased patrols.
The Oyo State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists has called on the state government and Police Command to arrest the killers of an Ibadan-based journalist, Titus Badejo.
The call is contained in a condolence message issued on Sunday in Ibadan by the council Chairman, Mr Ademola Babalola.
It was earlier reported that Badejo was allegedly killed around 9 pm at a popular night club in Oluyole area of Ibadan on Saturday. The deceased was an On-Air Personality, Disc Jockey, and sports presenter.
In the statement, the NUJ chairman charged Governor Seyi Makinde and Commissioner of Police, Ngozi Onadeko, to ensure the killers were arrested and made to face the full wrath of the law.
The Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has confirmed the state inauguration of Amotekun’s governing board. According to Makinde, the inauguration was in accordance with section 7 of the State security network agency law 2020. A statement from the governor obtained by Akewusolaf reads:
This morning, we inaugurated the Governing Board of Amotekun in accordance with Section 7 of the Oyo State Security Network Agency Law, 2020. This is another step we are taking to tackle the security challenges in Oyo State as we foster inter and intra agency collaboration.
“The board is made up of the Chairman and the Commandant of Amotekun Corps; the Secretary; representatives from the security agencies and Community Development Associations; the Chairman, Oyo State Council of Traditional Rulers; and the Executive Assistant on Security.”
The Dubai’s Supreme Committee of Crisis and Disaster Management had earlier announced the resumption of flights from Nigeria on Saturday after several months of a ban in line with the country’s Covid-19 protocols.
In the statement released via the UAE government official website, travel protocols were also provided for inbound passengers from South Africa, Nigeria and India.
In the statement, Nigerian passengers were required to “present a negative test result for a PCR test taken 48 hours prior to departure.”
In addition, “The negative PCR test certificate should carry a QR Code and the test must have been conducted by labs approved by the Nigerian Government. Passengers must also undergo a PCR test on arrival in Dubai.”
The decision which was meant to be effective by 23rd June has been reversed as revealed in an announcement by Emirates Airlines in a statement via its official website on Monday
“In line with government directives, passenger flights to and from Nigeria (Lagos and Abuja) are suspended with effect from 21 June 2021 until further notice.” The statement read
The airlines also revealed that customers travelling to and from Lagos and Abuja will not be accepted for travel.Likewise, passengers who have been to or connected through Nigeria in the last 14 days are not permitted to board from any other point to the UAE
The airline also reaffirmed its “committment to Nigeria” while looking forward to resuming passenger services “when conditions allow”.
Vin Diesel was born as Mark Sinclair on July 18, 1967, in Alameda County, California, with his fraternal twin brother, Paul. His mother, Delora Sherleen Vincent (née Sinclair), is an astrologer. Diesel has stated that he is “of ambiguous ethnicity”. His mother has English, German, and Scottish roots.
He has never met his biological father, and has stated that “all I know from my mother is that I have connections to many different cultures”. Diesel has self-identified as “definitely a person of color”, and has stated that his parents’ relationship would have been illegal in parts of the United States due to anti-miscegenation laws. He was raised in New York City by his white American mother and African-American stepfather, Irving H. Vincent, an acting instructor and theater manager.
Diesel made his stage debut at age seven when he appeared in the children’s play Dinosaur Door, written by Barbara Garson. The play was produced at Theater for the New City in New York’s Greenwich Village. His involvement in the play came about when he, his brother and some friends had broken into the Theater for the New City space on Jane Street with the intent to vandalize it.
They were confronted by the theater’s artistic director, Crystal Field, who offered them roles in the upcoming show instead of calling the police. Diesel remained involved with the theater throughout adolescence, going on to attend NYC’s Hunter College, where studies in creative writing led him to begin screenwriting. He has identified himself as a “multi-faceted” actor.
Vin Diesel
Diesel’s first film role was a brief uncredited in the drama film Awakenings (1990). In 1994, he wrote, directed, produced, and sappearancetarred in the short drama film Multi-Facial, a semi-autobiographical film which follows a struggling multiracial actor stuck in the audition process. The film was selected for screening at the 1995 Cannes Festival.
In 1997, Diesel made his first feature-length film, Strays, an urban drama in which he played a gang leader whose love for a woman inspires him to try to change his ways. Written, directed, and produced by Diesel, the film was selected for competition at the 1997 Sundance Festival, leading to an MTV deal to turn it into a series.
Director Steven Spielberg took notice of Diesel after seeing him in Multi-Facial and cast him in a small role as a soldier in his 1998 Oscar-winning war film Saving Private Ryan. In 1999, he provided the voice of the title character in the animated film The Iron Giant.
In 2000, Diesel had a supporting role in the drama thriller Boiler Room, where he appeared alongside Giovanni Ribisi and Ben Affleck. He got his breakthrough leading role as the anti-hero Riddick in the science-fiction film Pitch Black later that year. Diesel attained action hero stardom with two box office hits: the street racing action film The Fast and the Furious (2001), and the action thriller XXX (2002). He turned down the chance to reprise his roles in the sequels 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) and XXX: State of the Union (2005).
Instead he chose to reprise his role as Riddick in The Chronicles of Riddick, which was a box office failure considering the large budget. He also voiced the character in two spin-off video games and the anime film The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury. In a change from his previous action hero roles, in 2005, he played a lighthearted role in the comedy film The Pacifier, which was a box office success.
In 2006, he chose a dramatic role playing real-life mobster Jack DiNorscio in Find Me Guilty. Although he received critical acclaim for his performance, the film did poorly at the box office grossing only $2 million against a budget of $13 million. Later that year, Diesel made a cameo appearance in The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, reprising his role from The Fast and the Furious.
In 2007, Diesel was set to produce and star as Agent 47 in the film adaptation of the video game Hitman, but eventually pulled back and served as executive producer on the film instead. In 2008, he starred in the science-fiction action thriller Babylon A.D. which was a critical and box office failure. Diesel returned to The Fast and the Furious series, alongside most of the principal cast from the original 2001 film, in Fast & Furious, which was released in April 2009.
Diesel reprised his role as Dominic Toretto in installments five through nine of the Fast & Furious franchise, Fast Five (2011), Fast & Furious 6 (2013), Furious 7 (2015), The Fate of the Furious (2017) and F9 (2021). He reprised his role as Riddick in the third film of The Chronicles of Riddick series, simply titled Riddick (2013). In August 2013, Diesel received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
He voiced Groot in the 2014 Marvel Cinematic Universe film Guardians of the Galaxy. He starred in the supernatural action film The Last Witch Hunter (2015). In 2016, Diesel appeared as a supporting character in Ang Lee’s war drama Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk.
In 2017, Diesel also reprised his roles as Xander Cage in XXX: Return of Xander Cage, and Groot in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Over the course of several years, Diesel has discussed playing two separate roles within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In November 2016 director of Guardians of the Galaxy, James Gunn, confirmed that Diesel had been in talks to play Blackagar Boltagon / Black Bolt for the planned Inhumans film, but it was turned into a television series instead without Diesel involved.
Diesel reprised his role of Groot once again in the crossover films Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019) which combined the superhero teams of Guardians of the Galaxy and The Avengers.
He has said, “[I] think there’s gonna be a moment that we’re all waiting for, and whether you know it or not, you are waiting to see [Groot] and [the Hulk] get down.”
Diesel portrayed Valiant Comics character Bloodshot in the film of the same name which released in March 2020. He is also joining the cast of James Cameron’s Avatar 2.
In September 2020, Diesel announced his venture into music, with the release of the song “Feel Like I Do”, produced by Kygo. He debuted the song on The Kelly Clarkson Show on September 24, stating: “I am blessed that on a year that I would normally be on a movie set — and as you know, that’s not possible — I’ve had another creative outlet. Another way to show you, or share with you, my heart.”
Diesel has said he prefers to maintain his privacy regarding his personal life, stating: “I’m not gonna put it out there on a magazine cover like some other actors. I come from the Harrison Ford, Marlon Brando, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino code of silence.”
Sometime around 2001, Diesel dated his Fast & Furious co-star Michelle Rodriguez. Since 2007, he has been in a relationship with Mexican model Paloma Jimenez; the couple have three children: daughter Hania Riley (born April 2008), son Vincent Sinclair (born 2010), and daughter Pauline (born March 2015). The last is named in honor of his co-star and friend Paul Walker, who died in November 2013. He is also the godfather of Walker’s daughter, Meadow.
Diesel is noted for his distinctive deep voice; he said his voice broke around age 15, giving him a mature-sounding voice on the telephone. He has played Dungeons & Dragons for over 37 years as of 2021, and wrote the foreword for the commemorative book 30 Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons. Canadian video game designer and developer Merritt k created the 2015 ASMR game Vin Diesel DMing a Game of D&D Just For You based on his D&D fandom. He has expressed his love for the Dominican Republic and how he relates to its multicultural facets. He is acquainted with its former president, Leonel Fernández, and appeared in one of Fernández’s earlier campaign ads. Los Bandoleros, a short film directed by Diesel, was filmed in the Dominican Republic.
Following the Saturday’s protest which led to the blockage of Kaduna-Abuja Expressway by residents over attacks by bandits, the Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, has met with the village head and other members of the community in the area.
Recall that the residents of Ungwar Magaji in the Chikun Local Government Area had barricaded the expressway following the killing of a 13-year- old girl.
However, accompanied by the Speaker of the Kaduna State House of Assembly, Yusuf Ibrahim Zailani, the governor interacted with residents of the area.
El-Rufai was initially received at the Kaduna-Abuja road by the Force Commander, Operation Thunder Strike, Lt. Col. MH Abdullahi, who briefed him on the security situation in area.
According to a statement by the state Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Mr Samuel Aruwan on Sunday, “the Governor held a meeting at Kakkau community which was attended by the village head, Mr. Iliya Garba Zarmai and members of the community.”
The governor was quoted to have told residents that the government was doing all it could to ensure the safety of their lives and property.
The governor, however, warned against blocking of roads, “a practice he described as detrimental to the activities of innocent citizens whose movement is forced to a halt.”
He stressed that such actions would offer no solution but only create panic and further breakdown of law and order.
Recalled that within the last one week, security agencies reported to the Kaduna State Government several incidences of attacks by bandits which left some citizens dead in Kakkau, Damba-Kasaya, Kankomi, Kajuru town, Idasu, Karaukarau, and Sobawa villages in Chikun, Igabi, Giwa and Kajuru local government areas.
A retired Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Alhaji Mohammed Bukar, has said he is innocent of allegations that he mismanaged the award of N2.5billion road contracts in 2017 and 2018 while working under the minister, Babatunde Fashola.
Bukar, in his reaction sent to SaharaReporters, said that contrary to the annual report of the Auditor-General of the Federation on the accounts of the Federation of Nigeria for the year ended, December 31, 2018, which indicted him, he never awarded any contracts.
The retired permanent secretary noted that he never also procured 36 project monitoring vehicles, adding that they were not under his watch if they were ever procured.
He said, “I have never awarded a contract worth N2.5billion or worth any amount beyond my approval threshold as a Permanent Secretary. Specifically, the allegation that I awarded a contract for the emergency repairs of Tatabu bridge in Niger State in breach of Public Procurement Act, 2007 is fallacious.
“It may, nonetheless, be instructive to note that the award of an emergency contract does not require the approval of the Federal Executive Council as provided for in Section 43 of the Public Procurement Act, 2007. SaharaReporters can confirm this from the Bureau of Public Procurement.
A Federal High Court in Lagos State has discharged and acquitted Sen. Peter Nwaoboshi (Delta North) of a N322 million money laundering charge filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The judge, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke, held on Friday that the EFCC failed to prove the elements of the offences for which it charged Nwaoboshi. Aneke also discharged Nwaoboshi’s two companies – Golden Touch Construction Project Ltd and Suiming Electrical Ltd – on the same ground.
He held, among others, that the prosecution’s case collapsed because “bank officials were not called to testify.” Recall that the defendants were arraigned in 2018 before Justice Mohammed Idris, who was later elevated to the Court of Appeal. They were then re-arraigned before Justice Aneke on Oct. 5, 2018. In the 2-count charge marked FHC/L/117C/18, the anti-graft agency alleged that the defendants committed the offence between May and June 2014, in Lagos State.
Nwaoboshi was said to have purchased a property described as Guinea House, Marine Road, in Apapa Lagos.
It was reported that a gas tanker exploded in Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way in Ikeja, Lagos, around 11pm on Thursday, June 17. Read here Following search by operatives of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), the bodies of 3 male adults were found inside one of the stores at the OPIC plaza.
It was gathered that a woman was at the Chinese Restaurant with her child when the explosion occurred. While she was being evacuated by fire fighters, she kept crying about her child which gave insight that someone was trapped inside. The operatives did a further search and found the bodies of 2 more people, one of which was a child. Speaking on the rescue operation, the Director-General, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu said, “First responders worked to control the spread to the adjacent properties as well as the nearby petrol station until 0400hrs Friday. Thirteen people with various degrees of burns were rescued comprising nine males and four females. They were provided with pre hospital care before taken to Lagos State health facilities for further treatment
The affected truck has been moved, the entire affected area cordoned off and post disaster assessment on going.
US President Joe Biden has signed a bill into law establishing June 19 as Juneteenth National Independence Day, a federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.
Biden signed the bill in the East Room of the White House on Thursday in a ceremony that was attended by about 80 members of Congress, including members of the Congressional Black Caucus, local elected officials, community leaders and activists.
“I have to say to you, I’ve only been president for several months, but I think this will go down, for me, as one of the greatest honors I will have as president.
“I regret that my grandchildren aren’t here, because this is a really, really, really important moment in our history. By making Juneteenth a federal holiday, all Americans can feel the power of this day and learn from our history — and celebrate progress and grapple with the distance we’ve come (and) the distance we have to travel,” Biden said during the signing ceremony.
The President specifically noted that Opal Lee, the activist who campaigned to establish Juneteenth as a federal holiday, was in attendance.
Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when Union Major General Gordon Granger announced the end of slavery in Galveston, Texas, in accordance with President Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 Emancipation Proclamation. Only a handful of states currently observe Juneteenth as a paid holiday.
Biden, speaking at the White House alongside Vice President Kamala Harris, repeated the sentiments he relayed when he commemorated the Tulsa race massacre earlier this year, that “great nations don’t ignore their most painful moments.”
“They embrace them. Great nations don’t walk away. We’ve come to terms with the mistakes we made and in remembering those moments, we begin to heal and grow stronger,” the President said.
The holiday is the first federal holiday established since Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983 and becomes at least the eleventh federal holiday recognized by the US federal government.
The US Office of Personnel Management announced Thursday that most federal employees will observe the holiday on Friday since Juneteenth falls on a Saturday this year.
Nick Jonas was born on September 16, 1992, in Dallas, Texas, US, to Paul Kevin Jonas and Denise (nee Miller). His father who served as an ordained minister at an Assemblies of God church is a musician and songwriter.
Jonas grew up in Wyckoff, New Jersey, with his two older brothers, Kevin and Joe and younger brother Frankie. He was homeschooled by his mother, a singer and former sign language teacher. Although Jonas and his two older brothers played music while growing up, his career took off by chance at six when he was spotted singing in a hair salon where his mother was having a haircut. Following a reference to a professional show business manager he landed up performing on Broadway at just seven years of age portraying Tiny Tim in ‘A Christmas Carol’ in 2000 performing opposite Frank Langella.
The album ‘A Little Bit Longer’ became a major hit with 525,402 copies selling in its opening week. Nielsen Sound Scan mentioned the album’s debut as numero uno on Billboard 200. It also ranked #1 on Billboard Comprehensive Albums, Tastemakers, Top Internet Albums and Top Digital Albums charts. All the twelve tracks of the album’s original release charted either on Pop 100, on Billboard Hot 100 or on Bubbling Under Chart.
Nick Jonas
He has dated celebrities like Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, Delta Goodrem and Olivia Culpo.
In early 2017, speculations were rife that Nick Jonas was dating Indian actress Priyanka Chopra. The couple finally confirmed their relationship in June 2018.
Jonas who became a diabetic in his childhood established a foundation, ‘Change for the Children Foundation’, which partners with 5 other charities in raising funds and creating awareness for diabetes.
President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday morning, arrived Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.
Buhari is in the state to commission some projects executed by the administration of Governor Babagana Zulum.
According to Daily Trust, chants of “Baba Oyo-yo! Baba oyoyo!” rented the air as President Buhari landed in Maiduguri.
The presidential jet landed at the Nigerian Air Force wing of the Maiduguri International Airport at 9:30am.
The president was received by Prof Zulum, members of national and state houses of assemblies, service chiefs alongside top government officials.
According to the itinerary of the president, he is expected to visit the Shehu of Borno’s palace, address frontline troops and as well commission some projects within the state capital.
The president was received by Prof Zulum, members of national and state houses of assemblies, service chiefs alongside top government officials. According to the itinerary of the president, he is expected to visit the Shehu of Borno’s palace, address frontline troops and as well commission some projects within the state capital.
A Lagos state magistrate’s court has denied Nollywood actor, Olanrewaju Omiyinka, popularly known as Baba Ijesha bail in the ongoing trial over alleged sexual assault.
Baba Ijesha was arrested and detained by the Lagos state police after he was alleged to have sexually molested a minor twice.
The minor is the14-year-old foster child of a popular comedian, known as Princess.
Baba Ijesha was granted bail on May 17 — after spending about 25 days in police detention over a move to decongest the prison.
However, he has remained in police custody despite the bail.
During the trial on Wednesday, Kayode Olabiran, his counsel, prayed the court to release his client, citing his deteriorating health, The Cable reports.
He said the controversial nature of the case has made it difficult to secure his release despite his bail as intending sureties were scared of the likely consequences.
But in his ruling, the judge, P. E. Nwaka, held that the court could not grant the actor bail because the matter was beyond its jurisdiction.
The judge also explained that the case had already been filed before the high court.
Also speaking, Yetunde Cardoso, the superintendent of police in charge of the case, said the matter was already beyond the police.
“Mr Olanrewaju was actually granted bail during the JUSUN (Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria) strike and based on the conditions given, he couldn’t meet them and he was properly charged today (Wednesday).
“Just like the court stated, the case has already been filed before the high court and the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) of Lagos State Ministry of Justice has taken over the matter from the police.
“So presently, we have handed over to the DPP so the case is before them (DPP). It has nothing to do with the police anymore, it’s now left for the DPP to handle it,” she said.
The federal government has asked the House of Representatives to enact a law to regulate social and online media in Nigeria.
At a public hearing organised by the house on Wednesday, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, asked the lawmakers to amend the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) act to empower the agency to regulate social and online media.
The public hearing was organised by the house committee on information, national orientation, ethics and values on a bill to amend the NBC act.
Section two (b) of the NBC act states: “(1) The Commission shall have [the] responsibility of: Receiving, processing and considering applications for the establishment, ownership or operation of radio and television stations including (i) cable television services, direct satellite broadcast and any other medium of broadcasting.”
Mohammed, however, wants the commission to also be able to regulate the online media in addition to other channels of broadcasting.
The minister said: “I want to add here specifically that internet broadcasting and all online media should be included in this because we have a responsibility to monitor contents, including Twitter.”
Mohammed’s proposal comes about six days after the NBC asked all social media platforms and online broadcasting service providers operating in Nigeria to apply for a broadcast licence.
Yoruba freedom fighter, Sunday Adeyemo popularly aka Sunday Igboho, has issued a fresh eviction notice to killer herdsmen in the South-West, saying he will ensure they are all smoked out of the forests very soon.
According to Vanguard, Igboho gave the fresh order during an interview with his spokesperson, Oluyomi Koiki on Wednesday.
“I want all Fulani on Yoruba land to leave. I, myself will monitor compliance to the eviction notice. I don’t issue an order without ensuring compliance. As from Monday, we don’t want to hear of any kidnapping in Yorubaland again. I will show them the stuff Yoruba people are made of.
We will tell them there is clear distinction between Yoruba and Fulani. All these weapons they are brandishing, we will collect them with ease. We will blow ‘wind’ into all the forests in Yoruba land. If we don’t prove to these people who we are now, they will be encroaching on our lands when we achieve our Yoruba nation,”he said.
Igboho warned criminal elements hibernating in the forests to leave because henceforth, there must not be any issue of kidnapping again in the zone.
”How can six million people be commanding about 250 million of other Nigerians. Marriage is not by force. We can’t live with you again. Yoruba nation is a vehicle of salvation and I want all Yoruba to board the vehicle and have their seats,” he was quoted as saying.
On the calls for the creation of Oduduwa nation, Igboho said; “How can we go back when we are almost in our destination. Those who have not joined us should do so now because there’s no election come 2023. Yoruba will go.”
He appealed to all youths not to insult elders in Yoruba land including the traditional rulers.
The activist said; “Please, don’t insult our elders again. I don’t want anyone to cast aspersions to our traditional rulers that they have collected money. No, don’t do that. Even, if they were given money, it’s part of common wealth that was stolen.
Don’t fight the police or any security agents. Let’s do our rally peacefully. Tell President Buhari, if he doesn’t understand Yoruba, tell him in English Language that we don’t want bandits in our zone again. Work has begun already and as from Monday, I will begin combing all forests in Yoruba land.”
He dared anyone who claimed to have given him money on the agitation to come forward and say it out now.
“If you know you have given me money that I should shelve Yoruba nation struggle, come out and say it now. No amount of money can stop me from going ahead with this struggle. You can’t kill me. Kill who? Throw bomb at me? If you throw bomb, I, too, will send thunder”, he added.
The Court of Appeal in Akure, Ondo State has dismissed the petition filed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Eyitayo Jegede in the October 2020 governorship election that brought in Rotimi Akeredolu as governor.
Akeredolu is a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and won on that platform.
Reading the lead judgment, Justice Theresa Ngolika Orji-Abadua, who delivered the judgement via Zoom described the case filed by Jegede as lacking merit.
Jegede’s counsel, Oyeachi Ikpeazu (SAN) had earlier approached the Appeal Court, saying Mr Akeredolu’s nomination was not constitutional. This came after an election petition tribunal, led by Justice Umar Abubakar, ruled on April 20, 2021 that the qualification of the APC candidate and his deputy were not a pre-election matter, but a constitutional matter, which is not within its jurisdiction.
“The issue raised therein in this petition are settled issues of internal affairs and Management of a political party which this tribunal has no jurisdiction,” the tribunal said then.
This was in accordance with the argument of the counsel for Mr Akeredolu, and the electoral body INEC.
Taraji P Henson was born September 11, 1970, in Southeast Washington, D.C. She is the daughter of Bernice (néeGordon), a corporate manager at Woodward & Lothrop, and Boris Lawrence Henson, a janitor and metal fabricator. She has two younger siblings, Shawn and April. Taraji has often spoken of the influence of her maternal grandmother, Patsy Ballard, who accompanied her at the Academy Awards the year she was nominated. Her first and middle names are of Swahili origin: Taraji (“hope”) and Penda (“love”). According to a mitochondrial DNA analysis, her matrilineal lineage can be traced to the Masa people of Cameroon. She has said that North Pole explorer, Matthew Henson was “the brother of my great-great-grandfather.
Henson graduated from Oxon Hill High School in Oxon Hill, Maryland, in 1988. She attended North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, where she intended to study electrical engineering, before transferring to Howard University to study drama.
To pay for college, she worked mornings as a secretary at The Pentagon and evenings as a singing-dancing waitress on a dinner-cruise ship, the Spirit of Washington.
Taraji P Henson
She received praise for her performances as a prostitute in Hustle & Flow (2005), for which she received a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture nomination; and as a single mother of a disabled child in David Fincher’s The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008), for which she received Academy Award, SAG Award and Critics Choice Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress. In 2010, she appeared in the action comedy Date Night, and co-starred in the remake of The Karate Kid.
Henson has also had an extensive and successful career in television, including series such as The Division, Boston Legal and Eli Stone. In 2011, she starred in the Lifetime Television film Taken from Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story, which brought her a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie. From 2011 to 2013, she co-starred as Detective Jocelyn Carter in the CBS drama Person of Interest, for which she won an NAACP Image Award. She starred in the ensemble films Think Like a Man(2012) and its 2014 sequel. In 2015, she began starring as Cookie Lyon in the Fox drama series Empire, for which she became the first African-American woman to win a Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series. She also won a Golden Globe Award; and was nominated for Emmy Awards in 2015 and 2016.
In 2016, Time named Henson one of the 100 most influential people in the world. That year, she released a New York Times best selling autobiography titled Around the Way Girl. Also that year, she was praised for her starring role as Katherine Johnson in the critically acclaimed drama film Hidden Figures, for which she won a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.
CNN’s chief international anchor, Christiane Amanpour says she has been diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
She made the announcement to viewers on Monday at the beginning of her daily television program.
The veteran presenter said; “I’ve had successful major surgery to remove it, and I’m now undergoing several months of chemotherapy for the very best possible long-term prognosis, and I’m confident.”
Amanpour, 63, is one of the best-known journalists in the world, in part due to her fearless coverage of international conflicts. She has been off the air for the past four weeks due to the diagnosis.
In her on-air announcement, Amanpour pointed out that ovarian cancer is all too common, affecting “millions of women around the world.”
Anchoring from her home base in London, Amanpour said she feels “fortunate to have health insurance through work and incredible doctors who are treating me in a country underpinned by, of course, the brilliant NHS,” referencing the National Health Service in the UK.
After speaking about her surgery and chemotherapy, Amanpour said, “I’m telling you this in the interest of transparency but in truth really mostly as a shoutout to early diagnosis.” She said she wanted to “urge women to educate themselves on this disease; to get all the regular screenings and scans that you can; to always listen to your bodies; and of course to ensure that your legitimate medical concerns are not dismissed or diminished.”
Amanpour also thanked her program’s staffers and Bianna Golodryga, CNN’s senior global affairs analyst, who filled in on “Amanpour” for the past four weeks.
With months of chemo treatments ahead, Amanpour anticipates anchoring Mondays through Wednesdays for the time being. She also has three weeks of previously-scheduled time off starting at the end of June.
CNN Worldwide president, Jeff Zucker, who revealed that he is a cancer survivor, wished Amanpour a full recovery.
“I want to applaud Christiane Amanpour for her candor, bravery and always working towards the greater good. As a cancer survivor, I too encourage people to listen to their bodies and get all early cancer screenings available to them. From our CNN family, we wish Christiane the very best for a full and speedy recovery,” he said in a statement.
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