President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday resumed office after spending 16 days in the United Kingdom on medical vacation.
Upon his resumption on Monday, Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo briefed the President on the state of the nation.
President Buhari left Nigeria on Tuesday, March 30, briefly after a security meeting with defense and intelligence chiefs, as well as other security sector managers.
He arrived in the country on April 15 via the Nnamdi Azikiwe international airport from the United Kingdom where he went on medical vacation for two weeks.
Before his departure, the Presidency had explained that Buhari’s travel to the UK was not on an emergency case and that the Nigerian leader was not sick, dousing insinuations from critics who raised the alarm that the 78-year-old was not feeling well.
“It is a routine medical check-up; the President has undertaken this with a set of doctors that he has retained over many years,” said Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity.
He also explained that Buhari did not transmit power to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, noting that the President will not be away for so long to contravene the law.
“The requirement of the law is that the President is going to be absent in the country for 21 days and more, then that transmission is warranted. In this particular instance, it is not warranted,” the presidential aide said when he featured as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
Buhari’s departure was also widely criticised by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which described the move as an indictment of his government.
“It is indeed worrisome that under President Buhari, even the hitherto highly rated State House Clinic, has become so moribund that it cannot provide a simple medical checkup service for Mr. President,” the PDP said in a statement in which it also accused the Buhari government of wasting taxpayers’ money.
A student of the College of Business and Management Studies in Konduga, Juliana Christopher, who was kidnapped by Boko Haram, has said she saw many Chibok girls in the insurgents’ camp. He added that many small girls were either pregnant or nursing children belonging to the insurgents. Christopher, in an interview with The PUNCH, said she spent three weeks in Boko Haram camp after the insurgents, who were dressed in military uniforms, stormed her school in Borno State and abducted her. She explained that after she and her colleagues were kidnapped by the insurgents, they took them into the forest, where she saw other victims who were pregnant and nursing babies of the Boko Haram insurgents. She said, “On reaching their camp, we met many young girls there and the whole place was in disarray. It was in 2014 and I was in the Boko Haram camp for three weeks. We met Chibok girls in the camp. While in the camp, I saw so many small girls, who were kidnapped. Some were being molested. “Some were carrying children, while others were pregnant for the Boko Haram insurgents. It was a disgusting thing. Fortunately for me and some other girls, we escaped from the forest and found our way back to Chibok.” She explained that her father took ill shortly after she was kidnapped, adding that efforts to rescue him proved abortive. She said, “On getting to Chibok, I found the whole community in a state of confusion; so, I asked after my parents and was told that my father took ill when he heard about my abduction and my mother took him to the hospital in Maiduguri. I set out to go and look for them in Maiduguri, but I could not go far because the road was blocked and no movement was allowed, except for military vehicles; in that process, my father died. “When I heard about my father’s condition, I became worried and tried to locate my parents in the hospital, not knowing that he was already dead. When I eventually got to the hospital in Maiduguri, my mother had conveyed my father’s corpse to Chibok for burial, so my mother said I should stay back to avoid another kidnap. “That was how I got to this camp. I couldn’t continue with my education, because my mother alone could not take care of my schooling and that of my other siblings.”
Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State has inaugurated 25 power bikes procured by the Kano Road Traffic Agency (KAROTA) to control traffic.
Inaugurating the power bikes on Sunday in Kano, Ganduje said the bikes would be used to ensure that road users comply with traffic regulations.
He said the bikes would enable KAROTA personnel to move quickly to monitor traffic, trace violators and go around the city to fish out those smuggling illicit and substandard goods into the state.
The governor urged KAROTA officials to redouble their efforts in controlling traffic and apprehending those who break traffic rulesHe further urged them to ensure that those suspected to be carrying illegal items were traced and arrested.
Ganduje commended KAROTA Managing Director, Baffa Dan’agundi, for the initiative.
Dan’agundi had earlier stated that the agency bought the power bikes with the fund it saved from removing ghost workers from the pay list.
“Sometimes, we see a lot of things happening on the road, we see criminals carrying items in their vehicles but there are no vehicles to quickly trace them to their destinations.“However, with these modern power bikes, we will be able to arrest more criminals,” Dan’agundi assured the governor.
Some masked men have descended on the Fulanis in Oke Ogun area of Oyo State, as they abducted two in the last four days, and demanded N10 million and N3 million from each of their victims.
DAILY INDEPENDENT gathered that 40-year-old Amadu Shehu Imoru was kidnapped on Friday, April 16, 2021, at Oba Ayete Village, while Alhaji Kusore Shadani was abducted two days earlier, on Wednesday, April 14, at Iganna town, both in Oke Ogun.
The first victim’s father, Imoru Gafar, was said to have reported at Ayete Police Station, on April 17, that the armed men invaded their village at about 7 pm on Friday, shooting sporadically, after which they whisked off his son. He further said that the abductors called the line of one Musa Imoru, who is the victim’s brother, on Saturday, April 17, at about 8:20 am, and demanded N10 million as ransom.The caller’s voice and accent were said belong to a Bororo Fulani. On Thursday, April 15, a Fulani man, Shaibu Bello, and one other had reported at Iwere Ile Police Station that on April 14, at about 11 am, he was with four cows to sell at Ibudo Musa with Alhaji Kusore Shadani, owner of the cows, along Ilaji Ile Farm Settlement footpath, when he was blocked by four masked armed men.
He said that the gunmen kidnapped Kusore and took him to an unknown destination.
The kidnappers were said to have called Alhaji Kusore’s brother, one Lati Kusore, who told Bello that the captors demanded N3 million as ransom.
The state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Adewale Osifeso, confirmed the stories when contacted, saying that police operatives were on the trail of the abductors, in a bid to rescue the victims and arrest the crime perpetrators.
The expectations of Nigerians that the improvement in prices of oil in the international market will have a positive impact in the foreign exchange market appear dashed as nothing has really changed in the market.
Analysts are of the opinion that because the foreign exchange market operates with different exchange rates, the possibility of an improvement is very slim and also coupled with the fact that the oil market operates as a futures market. They said oil high prices seen now may not materialise immediately.
According to a Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) report, the foreign exchange market in Nigeria received $5.62 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020 from the CBN in a bid to increase availability of forex to meet the demand for business operation.
The capital disbursed in Q4 last year surpassed the $4.37 billion offered in the preceding quarter. However, the capital fell by 46.1 percent when compared to the corresponding period of 2019 when $9.98 billion was received by the foreign exchange market.
During the period under review, the report stated that Bureau De Change (BDC), as well as investors and exporters’ window sales of forex, rose significantly.
However, Brent prices which averaged above $40/b by June 2020, increased to $50/b by the end of 2020. Prices increased to $65/b in March 2021 due to rising oil demands as COVID-19 vaccination rates increased and economic activity picked up.
Over the past four years, the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms have assisted with improved liquidity.
Significantly, in light of the COVID-19 outbreak, there has been additional vulnerability to swings in oil prices as well as increased exit of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) which have adversely affected exchange rate stability. Analysts at FBNQuest in a note to Daily Independent, titled, ‘Dynamics within the forex market’, said the demand for forex remains high and the supply is inadequate for regular uses. The CBN’s Investors and Exporters (I&E) window rate is currently N409/$. This compares with N482/$ at the parallel market.
“Oil receipts (including oil-related taxes) contribute to external reserves. Oil prices have continued to firm over the last few months, averaging $61/b in Q1 ‘21. This compares with $45/b recorded in Q4 ‘20. The recovery can be attributed to production cuts by OPEC+ and ongoing mass vaccination across the globe which has fueled optimism on a global economic recovery”, the analysts said.
Despite the welcome recovery in oil prices, economic experts still believe that Nigeria’s foreign exchange market is still faced with uncertainty.
“The gross official reserves declined modestly in March by $279 million, this is subject to a caveat that the figure should be adjusted downwards to allow for the pipeline of delayed external payments, which the IMF estimated late last year at up to $3 billion.
“The modest decline is perhaps due to the CBN’s ‘Dollar for Naira’ initiative, its latest move to boost the flow of Diaspora remittances into the country and thus boost forex supply”, the analysts said.
There have been several calls for the CBN to harmonise the multiple exchange rates in operation, which encourages arbitrage and market fragmentation. This has remained a source of concern for multilaterals and, of course, FPIs. FPI inflows via I&E (or NAFEX) window reduced significantly to $309.2 million in Q1 ‘21, compared with $3.3 billion and $7.8 billion in the corresponding period in 2020 and 2019, respectively.
In Q1 ‘21, the CBN’s contribution to I&E forex inflows was just $83.4 million (4.5% of the total), compared with $1.8 billion (49.6%) in Q4 ‘20 and $5.4 billion (48.7%) in Q1 ‘20.
Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, President, Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), said the only way out of the hiccups in the forex market is that the CBN should unify all rates as this will calm the market.
“The CBN has tried to directly manage the forex market in the last four years but as it is, I think the CBN needs to take a bold step further and unify the exchange rates. This will greatly calm the market”, he noted.
Speaking of hope, analysts at FBNQuest said, “While market participants, including FPIs, are hopeful that the CBN will resume interventions in the I&E window, there has been no significant intervention from the CBN since the beginning of the year. The market has been largely dependent on local autonomous sources.
“As a result of the CBN’s minimal intervention in the I&E window, the NAFEX exchange rate has steadily crept upwards from N394/$ on 04 Jan ‘21 to N409/$ on 09 Apr ‘21. We assume this move by the CBN is an attempt towards possible unification of the various exchange rates”.
In the IMF Article IV on Nigeria released in February, the Fund’s estimates suggest that the naira was overvalued by 18.5 percent, and recommended a gradual and multi-step approach to establishing a unified and clear exchange rate regime, with the near-term focus on allowing for greater flexibility and removing the payments backlog.
Mr. Johnson Chukwu, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at Cowry Asset Management Limited, said the economy is a very difficult one to navigate because of the happenings in the forex market and that uncertainty in the foreign exchange market came about because of major reasons.
He said, “The truth of the matter is that Nigeria’s crude is sold in the futures market. For instance, this is April, the crude you are selling now, you will not get the money now but sometimes in June or July. When prices of oil go up, you may not get the effect in the market now.
“The second reason is that we still have arrears of forex demand from FPIs and this is increasing. The CBN has arrears that it must pay and we are seeing that these arrears are piling up and are increasing. Naturally, the CBN will be more interested in paying the arrears than to face what is happening now. Instead of deploying the forex to meet immediate demand, they will channel it to settling arrears.
“Thirdly, we should also look at where the policy of the CBN wants the market to be. If they want to intervene, there must be very strong reserves”.
CBN data show that Nigeria’s gross official reserves declined by $280 million to $34.82 billion in March. Analysts believe that in the name of accuracy, this figure should be adjusted downward to allow for the pipeline of delayed external payments, which the IMF estimated late last year at up to $3 billion and which the CBN has since indicated as substantially lower.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two persons for allegedly trafficking 191 pellets of heroin and cocaine via the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
The agency’s Director, Media and Advocacy, Mr. Femi Babafemi, announced this in a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja.
Babafemi said it was coming barely two weeks after a Madrid, Spain-bound trafficker, Okonkwo Chimezie Henry, excreted 113 wraps of cocaine after his arrest at same airport. He said the two suspects excreted 191 pellets of heroin and cocaine while under observation.
He said on April 10 during the outward screening of passengers on Ethiopian airline to Italy, NDLEA operatives in the airport intercepted and referred one Chukwudi Destiny for scanning and the scan result proved positive to drug ingestion.“Consequently, he was placed under excretion observation and in the process; he excreted 92 pellets of Heroin with a total weight of 1.300kg.
“Also on April 12 during the inbound examination of consignments on Ethiopian airline cargo flight from South Africa, operatives at Skyway Aviation Handling Company import shed made a seizure of 11.550kg of heroin.
“This was cleverly packed and concealed in cornflakes cartons. Four clearing agents are in custody in connection to the seizure,” he said.
Babafemi quoted the NDLEA Commander in Lagos State, Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, Ahmadu Garba, as saying a sting operation was executed on the address provided by one of the suspects.
He said that in the process, a Congolese, Kayembe Kamba Mazepy, was arrested, adding that after his arrest, he mentioned another person who was to receive the parcel from him.
“On the strength of the information, another sting operation was conducted in the early hours of April 17, where the person that came to take delivery was arrested,” he said.
Babafemi said that on April 16, another trafficker, Ezekiel Chibuzo, who arrived in Lagos from Brazil on board Qatar airline, was also arrested for alleged drug ingestion.
He said that he had excreted 99 wraps of cocaine, just as he said that officers at export shed of the airport have seized 834.50kg of khat leaves heading to UK and U.S.
Popular Nigerian online comedian, Debo Adebayo, otherwise known as Mr Macaroni, has taken to his verified Twitter account to reveal the ordeal he faced when he was arrested by the police during one of the #EndSARS protests.
Following the October 20, 2020 shootings at the Lekki Tollgate, many people kicked against the recommendation for reopening the tollgate.
The comedian was among those who participated in the protest against the reopening of the tollgate. He was subsequently arrested along with 40 other protesters for defying the Lagos State directive against the protest.
The protesters were later granted N100,000 bail each and arraigned on charges bordering on flouting the COVID-19 protocols on public gatherings and ‘breaking an order not to protest’.
However, comedian stated that while he was in custody, policemen took turns to beat him because he is ‘Mr Macaroni’.
Mr Macaroni
In a series of tweets, he further noted that he would take the case to court.
He wrote, “That very day, I swore never to stop using my platform to call out the evil that the police do. If they can do that to someone people know, imagine what they do to hundreds of thousands of unknown Nigerians.
Former Bad Boy rapper, Robert Ross popularly known as Black Rob is dead. He died on Saturday at the age of 51. This is coming just a few days after the death of rap legend, DMX. The rapper was suffering a variety of ailments including kidney failure before his death. A viral video recently had him singing to DMX songs on his hospital bed. Popular New York City promoter, Van Silk confirmed his death in a statement.
The statement reads: “We have lost another member of our Hip Hop family. “Many may have been unaware that Black Rob was sick over the years until Mark Curry posted the video from the hospital. “My memory of Black Rob was when he would come by DJ Kay Slay’s studio to do the mix tapes. He was someone who you would just wanna hang around with. May my brother Rest In Heaven.” The death has left the Hip Hop community in pains considering that DMX died just eight days ago with Black Rob offering his condolences from a hospital bed. The Harlem rapper had four albums over the course of his career and got featured on a variety of records with artists on Bad Boy, remixes to Total’s single “What About Us,” Faith’s “Love Like Us,” Mase’s “24 Hrs and so many others.
The Federal Government, through the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, has grounded a private chopper belonging to Pastor Enoch Adeboye of the Redeemed Christian Church of God at the Lagos Airport.
It was learnt that the aircraft, AgustaWestland AW139 chopper, with registration number 5N-EAA, was suspended from flying over two weeks ago, following the expiration of some of its papers and spare parts. The suspension, officials said, would also allow the regulator to conduct vital safety checks on its safety-critical components, especially some spare parts due for replacement.
Adeboye had, last Saturday during a special meeting with all ordained ministers of the mission at the RCCG, Region 21, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, called for drastic action against corrupt practices in all facets of Nigeria.
The RCCG leader, who flew a chopper to the venue, said he arrived late for the meeting because someone had requested a bribe from him to fly his helicopter.
He said he had decided to embark on the trip via his chopper to avoid a possible gridlock on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, SundayPUNCH, reports.
The 79-year-old mathematician-turned-preacher said, “I don’t give excuses because I have discovered long ago that only failures give excuses. But you must pray for Nigeria.
“Something must be done about corruption in this nation. All I can say is that I am this late because somebody wanted a bribe. And you know if you are expecting a bribe from me, you have to wait forever.
“But the devil has failed. And the devil will continue to fail. I decided to come by helicopter so that there won’t be a traffic jam that would tie me down on the expressway because I know what the devil could do.
“Then, I ran into something else. But by the grace of God, we are here.”
Although Sunday PUNCH could not ascertain who requested the alleged bribe from the revered servant of God, investigations by the paper revealed that the cleric’s chopper was suspended from flying by the regulatory authority over safety issues.
Multiple aviation sources confirmed that Adeboye could not fly his chopper with registration number 5N-EAA to the Ibadan programme but had to fly another aircraft reportedly belonging to Bishop David Oyedepo of the Living Faith Church (Winners Chapel).
A top official of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, who is close to the operations of the two choppers belonging to the servants of God, said, “The team relating directly with Daddy G.O. should have told the man of God on time that the NCAA had not cleared his chopper and, as such, it couldn’t go on the Ibadan trip.
Pastor Adeboye
“They shouldn’t have waited till the last minute. The NCAA (aviation regulatory agency) we have now is different from what it used to be. A new man in charge always insists that things must be done properly as far as the safety of lives is concerned. The church’s protocol team should have told him that the NCAA has not cleared the aircraft and it may not clear it within a short time because certain procedures must be followed. As such, an alternative arrangement should have been made.”
The NAMA official, who chose to speak on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to talk about the matter, further said, “On that last Saturday morning, when it later became obvious that the jet was not cleared to fly, they had to make an alternative arrangement with Bishop Oyedepo’s chopper. They had to quickly begin that process by filing the flight plan, etc. It was Bishop’s aircraft that Pastor Adeboye later flew to the event. He could not use his own.”
A top official of Omni-Blu Aviation, the airline operating the chopper for Adeboye, confirmed the development.
The official, who chose to speak on condition of anonymity, said a letter from Italy-based Leonardo, the manufacturer of Adeboye’s AW 139 helicopter, requesting the NCAA to grant a time extension on some spare parts that are due for replacement came late.
The spare parts due for replacement have been ordered from the manufacturer but they have yet to be shipped into Nigeria because they are usually produced on demand, according to Omni-Blu Aviation.
He said, “The NCAA that we have now is different from what it used to be. It always insists on a standard. We don’t want any disappointing situation for anybody, especially for a globally reputed servant of God like Daddy G.O.
“It appears the man of God was not properly briefed. But we thank God an alternative arrangement was made to rescue the situation. Safety is first and paramount. No life is worth toying with, how much more that of a servant of God like Daddy G.O. As an airline, we won’t compromise safety no matter the pressure.”
The Omni-Blu official denied knowledge of any bribe request, either by the airline or aviation officials.
He, however, said it was not impossible that some people might have cashed in on the situation to demand a bribe.
“You know some people don’t fear God no matter what. They can even go to the extent of asking a servant of God for a bribe. So, it is not impossible. But on our part, I am not aware of such.”
As it stands, it is uncertain when Adeboye’s chopper will be allowed to fly.
However, findings revealed that the NCAA had directed maintenance and safety checks to be conducted on the aircraft.
As such, the operator has secured a date for this at Aero’s maintenance hangar.
When contacted for comments, the Director-General, NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu, confirmed that the regulatory agency had suspended flights on the aircraft for safety reasons.
According to him, the NCAA does not often deal directly with individuals or owners of aircraft but the operator.
In this case, he said the NCAA only had business with the operator of the aircraft, Omni-Blu Aviation.
Nuhu said, “There are safety-related issues that must be resolved before the aircraft will be approved for resumption of flights. Safety is the paramount consideration in all approvals given by the NCAA. No matter what, we must not sacrifice safety for flights; that is the whole idea.”
When contacted, the spokesperson for RCCG, Pastor Olaitan Olubiyi, said the matter was already resolved.
He said the church would not want to take issue with the aviation authorities on the bribery allegation.
Olubiyi said, “We will not want to take issue with the aviation authorities but I can assure you that an amicable solution is being found to the issue.”
Boko Haram insurgents have launched a major attack on the base of the special forces of the 27 Task Force Brigade, located in Ngomari in Buni Yadi and Kumuya in the Buni Gari area of Yobe State, killing three soldiers while about 171 others reportedly fled the base or are missing in action.
Military sources told SaharaReporters that the insurgents destroyed heavy military equipment and shared photographs of gun trucks razed by the insurgents.
“The terrorists attacked us on Friday morning. They attacked the military base and burnt it down. Three soldiers were killed, one injured, while about 171 are missing. The base is deserted but we have called in for reinforcements,” a military source said.
“One Camel MRAP was burnt, one 105MMPH Artillery gun burnt, one Conqueror and one T72 tank were also burnt. The terrorists also set the camp ablaze,” another source revealed.
SaharaReporters learnt that the terrorists were aided by local informants and sympathisers before attacking the military base.
During the attack, the terrorists used heavy weapons in destroying military equipment and patrolled the community to prevent the reinforcement of soldiers.
It was learnt that the insurgents withdrew when reinforcements from the Nigerian troops came to the base.
The Nigerian troops have presently also restricted movement along Damaturu-Damboa-Biu Road following the attacks by the insurgents.
The number of people who have died worldwide in the Covid-19 pandemic has surpassed three million, according to Johns Hopkins University.
The milestone comes the day after the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) warned the world was “approaching the highest rate of infection” so far.
India – experiencing a second wave – recorded more than 230,000 new cases on Saturday alone.
Almost 140m cases have been recorded since the pandemic began.
Last week saw an average of 12,000 deaths a day reported around the world, according to news agency AFP.
WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned on Friday that “cases and deaths are continuing to increase at worrying rates”.
He added that “globally, the number of new cases per week has nearly doubled over the past two months”.
The US, India and Brazil – the countries with the most recorded infections – have accounted for more than a million deaths between them, according to Johns Hopkins University.
However, official figures worldwide may not fully reflect the true number in many countries.
China’s economy grew a record 18.3% in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same quarter last year.
It’s the biggest jump in gross domestic product (GDP) since China started keeping quarterly records in 1992.
However, Friday’s figures are below expectations, with a Reuters poll of economists predicting 19% growth.
They are also heavily skewed, and less indicative of strong growth, as they are compared to last year’s huge economic contraction.
In the first quarter of 2020, China’s economy shrank 6.8% due to nationwide lockdowns at the peak of its Covid-19 outbreak.
“The national economy made a good start,” said China’s National Bureau of Statistics, which released the first quarter data.
But it added: “We must be aware that the Covid-19 epidemic is still spreading globally and the international landscape is complicated with high uncertainties and instabilities.”
Other key figures released by China’s statistics department also point to a continuing rebound, but are also unusually strong because they are compared against extremely weak numbers from last year.
Industrial output for March rose 14.1% over a year ago, while retail sales grew 34.2%.
Ontario is now introducing strict new public measures, including:
a six-week stay-at-home order
restrictions on non-essential travel, including checkpoints at the borders with the neighbouring provinces of Quebec and Manitoba
new powers for police to stop and question people who leave home
a halt to non-essential construction
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government would help Toronto, the largest city in the country, which has been hard-hit by the latest surge.
“We’re going to do whatever it takes to help. Discussions are ongoing about extra healthcare providers, and we are ready to step up,” he said on Friday.
Why has it suddenly got worse?
New variants – especially the UK variant, B1.1.7 – account for more than two-thirds of infections in Ontario.
Even with vaccinations progressing, the expert panel warned that the number of new cases in Ontario could go as high as 30,000 a day – in a province with 14 million people, 38% of the total population of Canada.
On Friday, Ontario reported 4,812 new cases, its third straight day of setting new records since the pandemic began.
Hospital admissions and the number of patients in intensive care also set records for Ontario: 1,955 and 701, respectively.
image captionNew restrictions on retail have been imposed in Ontario
The expert panel said the best-case scenario would bring new cases down to about 5,000 a day, but only with considerably more stringent public health measures than the ones now in place.
It would also require a vaccination rate of 300,000 a day – three times the current pace.
Last week the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario warned doctors that they might have to start making decisions about who to admit to intensive care, because units were stretched almost to capacity.
The co-chairman of Ontario’s expert panel, Adalsteinn Brown, said Ontario’s hospitals could no longer function normally.
“Our children’s hospitals are admitting adults. This has never happened in Ontario before. It’s never happened in Canada before.”
A field hospital is now being set up in the car park of one of Toronto’s main hospitals.
The National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, may give consideration to the deployment of corp members to the 16 member states of the Economic Community of West African States Corps ECOWAS, going by one of the suggestions offered at its top management retreat in Niger State. Prof Oka Obono, a lecturer at the University of Ibadan, gave the proposition to the NYSC top management during the retreat in Suleja, Niger while delivering his lecture titled; “Strategies for Sustaining the NYSC in a Changing World.” According to a release by the NYSC Director of Press and Public Relations, Mrs Adenike Adeyemi, and obtained by SaharaReporters, the agency will consider the suggestion. The Varsity Don stated that the advantages of corp members being deployed across the West African sub-region would include the vast reduction of unemployment among the Nigerian youths as well as regional exposure.
Obono advocated that all stakeholders should embrace expansion strategies that would be of benefit to the youths. “Expand operations to the West African region thereby reducing internal graduate unemployment and reducing pressures on the Nigerian labour market,” Prof Obono told the NYSC management. He further advised that all stakeholders must adopt a high level of diplomacy and advocacy to positively engage the unlearned youths who are potential threats to societal peace and national development.
The NYSC Director-General, Brig Gen Shuaibu Ibrahim, in his remarks, said that the retreat was a platform for the scheme’s appraisal of its operations by the top management.
“We will intensify more on our proactive disposition to official engagements to move the Scheme Forward”, Ibrahim added.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has confirmed the arrest of Nigerian rapper, Sodiq Yusuf aka CDQ on suspicion of cannabis possession. CDQ was arrested by men of the anti-narcotics agency at his Lekki residence on Wednesday night. NDLEA Spokesman, Femi Babafemi confirmed the arrest to The PUNCH on Thursday, adding that the 35-year-old had been granted bail but remained under investigation. Babafemi noted that CDQ mentioned names of other artistes who use the substance known on the street as “loud”.
“Yes, CDQ was arrested in his house at Lekki for being in possession of cannabis. He was arrested based on intelligence. As of last night, he was granted administrative bail, but he is expected back into custody today because it is an ongoing investigation. “Some substances were found and he mentioned some names of some other big artistes. So, it is an ongoing investigation “The outcome of the investigation would determine what would happen. There are cases whereby the investigation shows some sufficient infractions, and then the case will go to court. There are other cases whereby if the quantity is insignificant, we will bring him in for counselling and possible rehabilitation. Those are likely scenarios that will happen.
CDQ, however, claims that someone was trying to set him up.
“No sleep for the wicked. Iyalaya yin o ni sun for dis Lagos. They tryna set me up today but Olohun wa,” he wrote in a message posted on Twitter and Instagram on the day of his arrest. “I have a lot to talk about but lemme get over the shock first,” he wrote in another message on Thursday.
The US will continue to support Afghanistan after withdrawing all US troops, but not “militarily,” President Joe Biden has pledged.
“It is time to end America’s longest war,” he said in a speech from the White House room where US airstrikes there were first declared in 2001.
The pull-out is to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the 11 September 2001 terror attacks, officials say.
At least 2,500 US troops are part of the 9,600-strong Nato Afghan mission.
The number of US troops on the ground in Afghanistan fluctuates, and US media report the current total is closer to 3,500.
US and Nato officials have said the Taliban, a hardline Islamist movement, have so far failed to live up to commitments to reduce violence in Afghanistan.
In Kabul, Afghan officials say they will continue peace talks in preparation for the withdrawal.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani tweeted that he had spoken on the phone with Mr Biden on Wednesday, and that the country “respects the US decision and we will work with our US partners to ensure a smooth transition”.
He added that Afghanistan’s defence forces “are fully capable of defending its people and country”.
What did Biden say?
“We cannot continue the cycle of extending or expanding our military presence in Afghanistan hoping to create the ideal conditions for our withdrawal, expecting a different result,” said Mr Biden, the fourth president to oversee the war.
“While we will not stay involved in Afghanistan militarily, our diplomatic and humanitarian work will continue,” he continued, adding: “We will continue to support the government of Afghanistan.”
Mr Biden also pledged to continue providing assistance to Afghan defence and security forces – including 300,000 personnel, who he says “continue to fight valiantly on behalf of their country and defend the Afghan people, at great cost”.
He also paid his respects to the victims of the 11 September 2001 attack which triggered the US invasion of Afghanistan.
“We went to Afghanistan because of a horrific attack that happened 20 years ago,” he said. “That cannot explain why we should remain there in 2021.”
“We have to focus on the challenges that are in front of us,” said Mr Biden, citing the threat of cyber attacks and rising tensions with China.
“We already have service members doing their duty in Afghanistan today whose parents served in the same war,” he added.
“We have service members who were not yet born when our nation was attacked on 9/11. War in Afghanistan was never meant to be a multigenerational undertaking.”
Later on Wednesday, Mr Biden will visit Arlington National Cemetery, where some of the 2,488 US troops who died fighting in Afghanistan are buried.
What is the withdrawal timeline?
Mr Biden’s plan pushes back the 1 May deadline agreed to by the Trump White House.
The deal signed in February 2020 said the US and its Nato allies would withdraw all troops by May 2021 if the Taliban upheld its promises, including not allowing al-Qaeda or other militants to operate in areas it controlled and proceeding with national peace talks.
Although the group stopped attacks on international forces as part of the historic agreement, it has continued to fight the Afghan government. Last month, the Taliban threatened to resume hostilities against foreign troops still in the country on 1 May.
Denmark has ceased giving the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid vaccine amid concerns about rare cases of blood clots, the first European country to do so fully.
The move is expected to delay the country’s vaccination programme by several weeks.
Drug watchdog the European Medicines Agency last week announced a possible link with clots but said the risk of dying of Covid-19 was much greater.
Several European countries had previously briefly suspended the jab.
Most have now resumed vaccinations with AstraZeneca, but often with limits to older age groups.
South Africa has also paused its use, despite the Johnson & Johnson being its preferred vaccine because of its effectiveness against the South African variant.
For both AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, the blood clot side effects are extremely rare.
Both vaccines work by a similar method, known as adenoviral vectors.
Why is Denmark stopping the AZ vaccine?
Danish officials said that all 2.4 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine would be withdrawn until further notice.
The Danish Health Authority said studies had shown a higher than expected frequency of blood clots following doses, affecting about one in 40,000 people.
It comes after two cases of thrombosis in Denmark were linked to vaccinations, AFP reported. One of the cases, in a 60-year-old woman, was fatal.
US President Joe Biden is set to announce that American troops will leave Afghanistan by 11 September, officials have told US media.
The US would miss a May deadline for a pull-out agreed with the Taliban by the Trump administration last year.
The new deadline would coincide with the 20th anniversary of the terror attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in the US in 2001.
Mr Biden had previously said the 1 May deadline would be tough to meet.
US and Nato officials have said the Taliban, a hardline Islamist movement, have so far failed to live up to commitments to reduce violence.
The Taliban have been warned that if they attack US troops during the pull-out phase, they “will be met with a forceful response”, said a senior administration official who was briefing reporters.
Mr Biden had decided a hasty withdrawal that would put US forces at risk was not a viable option, the official added.
At the same time, a review of US choices determined that now was the time to close the book on the 20-year conflict in Afghanistan to focus on more acute threats.
Mr Biden is due to make the announcement himself on Wednesday.
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