Allegation of vaccine mismanagement in Lagos inaccurate, says NPHCDA (Punch)
The Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Faisal Shuaib, on Friday, cleared the Lagos State Government of recent allegation of COVID-19 vaccine mismanagement.
He said a team set up to investigate the allegation found out that the reports were inaccurate.
Shuaib disclosed this in Abuja at a joint press conference organised by the NPHCDA and the World Health Organisation to update Nigerians on the status of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign. Read more
JAMB bans parents from UTME venues (Vanguard)
The Registrar of Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Is’haq Oloyede, has ordered all CBT Centres across the country not to allow parents/guardians into the registration hall again.
A statement signed by JAMB Spokesman in Ilorin Office, Hassan Lawal, quoted Oloyede as saying that the decision was made after inspecting some of the registration centres in Kwara, which were overcrowded.
”The registrar said it has been discovered that the parents/guardians are always a distraction to both candidates and the centres and at the same time, congesting the halls by not following the COVID – 19 protocols,” Oloyede was quoted as saying.
Oloyede also advised parents/guardians to stop pushing the education of their wards faster than necessary.
“For example a 14 or 15-year-old is not matured enough to undergo the process of registration and university pressure and are vulnerable to exploitation by scammers out there,” he said. Read more
COVID-19: Lagos, Kano lead as Nigeria vaccinates over 1m persons (ThisDay)
As the national vaccination exercise against COVID-19 entered its sixth week, the federal government has said that 1,051,096 people have so far received a single dose of the Astrazeneca vaccine jab as at yesterday, Thursday, April 15, 2021.
In an update on the ongoing vaccination across the country, posted on its platform, the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), said that vaccination was being carried out in all the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The agency put the percentage of the vaccine doses so far administered at 52.2 per cent.
The statistics showed that Lagos State was leading in the number of persons vaccinated with 193,794, followed by Kano, 57,165; and Kaduna with 55,756. Read more
NPA halts cargo lifting at APM Terminal over protest (DailyTrust)
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has suspended the Electronic Call-up for trucks (ETO) for cargoes bound for the AP Moller Terminal (APMT) in Apapa.
This follows the disruption of operations at the terminal due to protest by members of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) against the management of APMT.
NPA, in a series of tweets on its official Twitter handle on Thursday, said while it is working towards resolving the dispute between both parties, APMT will not receive or exit cargoes for the next 24 hours.
“The authority hereby urges stakeholders to please take note, as ETO tickets will not be issued to APMT bound cargoes.” Read more
LSSTF supports Lagos NSCDC with patrol van to enhance security (Independent)
The Lagos State Security Trust Fund ( LSSTF) has donated a patrol vehicle to the Lagos Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps ( NSCDC) .
The Executive Secretary of LSSTF, Mr Abdurrazaq Balogun, at the handling of the Patrol Van to NSCDC in Lagos on Friday, said the feat was to support NSCDC security surveillance on the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the LSSTF was established in 2007 by the state government to investigate ways and means of assisting the police in combating the growing menace of violent crimes in the state.
According to Balogun, the security of the state is the topmost agenda of Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu. Read more
Lagos APC lawmaker obtains JAMB forms for 300 youths (Guardian)
Mr Abiodun Tobun, a lawmaker representing Epe Constituency 1 in the Lagos State House of Assembly, has obtained Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) forms for 300 youths in Epe.
Tobun, the All Progressive Congress (APC) lawmaker, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Epe, on Friday.
He said that this was the sixth edition of the distribution of free JAMB forms to youths in the Epe community.
“The beneficiaries for this year were more than the previous edition and they were drawn across Epe Constituency.
“Education is the bedrock of development of any community or society and I believe once the youths are built educationally, the nation is also built,’’ he said. Read more
FG kicks-off freight services on Warri-Itakpe rail line (Nation)
The Federal Government on Friday flagged-off commercial freight services on Warri-Itakpe standard gauge rail line.
The service is expected to make movement of high volumes of containerised cargoes like steel, agricultural produce, oil and other goods easy.
It is also expected to reduce the stress witnessed on roads and in turn, prolong the lifespan of most roads in the country.
The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, also said the service would boost the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), of the country as well as improve the power supply. Read more
TB Joshua: YouTube blocks Nigerian preacher over gay cure claim (BBC)
YouTube has suspended the account of influential Nigerian TV evangelist TB Joshua over allegations of hate speech.
A rights body filed a complaint after reviewing at least seven videos showing the preacher conducting prayers to “cure” gay people.
Facebook has also removed at least one of the offending posts showing a woman being slapped while TB Joshua says he is casting out a “demonic spirit”.
The preacher said he was appealing against YouTube’s decision. Read more
Man docked for allegedly stealing 6 cell phones (Leadership)
A 21-year-old unemployed man, Joseph Osaretin, on Friday appeared in an Ogbeson Chief Magistrates’ Court in Benin for allegedly stealing six cell phones worth N640,000.
The police charged Osaretin with two counts of conspiracy and theft.
The prosecution counsel, Sgt. Kehinde Iyawe, told the court that the defendant on April 31, in Upper Mission Extension, Aduwawa Quarters in Benin stole the phones, belonging to the complainant, Kelvin Oscar worth N640,000.
He said that the offence contravened the provisions of sections 516 and 390 (9) of the Criminal Code, Laws of the defunct Bendel 1976, now applicable in Edo. Read more
Chrissy Teigen returns to Twitter just three weeks after deleting her account (Metro)
Good news Chrissy Teigen fans – the star is back on Twitter. Three weeks after the social media favorite decided to delete her account, the model made her surprise return to the platform on Friday. Chrissy, 35, explained that she hadn’t enjoyed silencing herself online as she tweeted:’ ‘turns out it feels TERRIBLE to silence yourself and also no longer enjoy belly chuckles randomly throughout the day and also lose like 2000 friends at once lol.’ She added: ‘I choose to take the bad with the good!!’ Read more
Resumption of US arms sale to UAE ‘disastrous’, says HRW (MEMO)
President Joe Biden’s U-turn on ending US support for offensive operations in Yemen earlier this week with the resumption of arms sale to the UAE has been condemned as a “disastrous” move by Human Rights Watch.
Details of weapons deals worth $23 billion were announced on Tuesday by a State Department spokesperson. The contracts included as many as 50 F-35A fighters valued at $10.4 billion, 18 MQ-9B drones valued at $2.97 billion, and various munitions valued at $10 billion.
Denouncing the resumption, HRW said that the UAE has not changed its policy, pointing out that the Gulf state has continued to play a destabilising and belligerent role in Yemen and elsewhere in the region. “I am regularly overwhelmed by messages from people in southern Yemen telling me about egregious abuses regularly committed by UAE-backed local forces,” said the rights group Yemen researcher, Afrah Nasser. Read more
Germany’s Angela Merkel speaks with Ukrainian and French leaders over Russia’s border maneuvers (DW)
The German chancellor is holding talks with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Emmanuel Macron as the trio become increasingly concerned over the Russian deployment of troops near Ukraine’s border.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is speaking with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday, with the Russian deployment of troops near the Ukrainian border at the top of the agenda.
Zelenskyy is in Paris to meet Macron, while Merkel will join the pair via video call.
The talks come as Kyiv and the West have reacted alarmingly in recent weeks over the Kremlin’s military presence along the Russia-Ukraine border.
The leaders of Ukraine, Germany and France want to deescalate tensions in the region and hope Friday’s talks can be a step in that direction. Read more
Indianapolis mass shooting: 8 dead at FedEx facility (BBC)
Eight people have been killed and seven injured in a shooting in the US city of Indianapolis, police say.
Witnesses heard several gunshots at a FedEx facility and one said he had seen a man firing an automatic weapon.
The gunman, thought to have been acting alone, is believed to have killed himself, police say, adding that there is no ongoing threat to the public.
Police say several of the injured are in hospital. Flights from the nearby airport are not affected. Read more
Scientists have created the whitest paint ever – and it could save the planet (Metro)
The whitest paint ever has been created. And it’s also the coolest, literally, according to the scientists who made it. They say the new paint formulation could help buildings rely less on air conditioning In an effort to curb global warming, engineers at Purdue University in the US last year created the ultra-white paint that pushed the limits of how white paint can be. Now they’ve even outdone that. The newer paint not only is whiter, but also can keep surfaces cooler than the formulation that the researchers had previously demonstrated. Read more
UK woman says UAE denied her work visa due to Somali heritage (MEMO)
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has reportedly refused to issue a work visa for a British woman allegedly due to her Somali heritage.
The woman, named Samia, took to Twitter yesterday to announce that a school in the UAE had initially offered her a position which she called her “dream come true.” The human resources department then contacted her, however, and informed her that the government will not issue her a work visa and that her offer was revoked.
She cited her ethnicity as the determining factor of the refusal, claiming: “Because I am of Somali descent, despite being British born and raised, the UAE will not offer me working visa.”
In the screenshots of the emails she posted, in which she expressed her concerns of racism, the school and its assistant head teacher did not deny that the reason was her Somali heritage. Read more
Sandra Bullock’s new movie adds Brad Pitt to all-star cast (DigitalSpy)
Sandra Bullock movie The Lost City of D has Brad Pitt onboard for a special cameo.
This welcome news arrived via The Hollywood Reporter, as the outlet also confirmed that shooting is scheduled to kick off in the Dominican Republic this summer.
Big names such as Channing Tatum and Harry Potter’s Daniel Radcliffe have roles too, alongside Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Patti Harrison.
As for what it’s all about, The Lost City of D is described as being a ‘screwball adventure’ spin on the romance genre. Bullock, who is also producing the project, plays a reclusive novelist who gets stuck on a book tour with her latest release’s cover model (played by Tatum). Read more
Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury have ‘accepted fight offer’ confirms Eddie Hearn (Metro)
Eddie Hearn has confirmed Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury have both agreed a site offer for their heavyweight unification bout this summer. Both fighters have been considering offers from a number of venues this week to host their blockbuster battle to crown the undisputed champion of the world. Official confirmation is now another step closer with Hearn revealing both Joshua and Fury and their respective teams are in agreement over the fight location having also met with ‘The Gypsy King’ this week. Read more
Chris Smalling: Roma defender and family robbed by armed men at home (BBC)
Roma defender Chris Smalling and his family were victims of an armed robbery at their home early on Friday.
The robbery took place at the former Manchester United centre-back’s home in southern Rome, with luxury watches and jewellery taken.
Smalling was forced to hand the items over to three armed men before they left the house.
Police, who were called to the house at 5am local time, are investigating the incident, in which no-one was harmed. Read more
Bundesliga: Hertha Berlin in quarantine as DFL issues COVID-19 warning (DW)
Bundesliga strugglers Hertha Berlin have become the first top-flight German team to be ordered to quarantine after two players and two staff members tested positive for coronavirus, potentially throwing the end-of-season fixture list into chaos.
Hertha announced on Thursday morning that head coach Pal Dardai, assistant coach Admir Hamzagic and striker Dodi Lukebakio had tested positive, and that the team and staff would go into isolation, but still be able to train and play.
But a fourth positive test, this time defender Marvin Plattenhardt, led to a mandatory 14-day quarantine. All four are said to be symptom-free.
Hertha have applied to postpone their three upcoming fixtures against Mainz on Sunday, Freiburg on Wednesday and Schalke next Saturday but, with regulations stating that any further positive cases would see the 14-day quarantine period start from scratch again, further postponements could follow, leading to a fixture pile-up. Read more
Bundesliga fighting to finish season after virus outbreak (Guardian)
The last few weeks of the German Bundesliga season were thrown into chaos Friday as a coronavirus outbreak at Hertha Berlin forced the capital club into a two-week quarantine.
The German Football League (DFL) said it would postpone Hertha’s next three games after defender Marvin Plattenhardt became the fourth member of playing and coaching staff to test positive in a single day on Thursday.
With the entire team forced to self-isolate for a fortnight, the relegation-threatened club will have to reschedule their trip to Mainz on Sunday, a home game against Freiburg next Wednesday and the visit to bottom side Schalke on April 24.
“That is the right step from a health perspective, but it is obviously a blow from a sporting perspective,” said Hertha sporting director Arne Friedrich. Read more
Dan Evans reacts to booking spot in first Masters 1000 semi-finals vs Stefanos Tsitsipas (Metro)
Dan Evans produced another major upset on clay, beating 11th seed David Goffin, to book his spot in a first Masters 1000 semi-final in Monte Carlo. Evans, the British No. 1, defeated the Belgian 5-7 6-3 6-4 to set up a meeting with world No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas in Saturday’s semi-finals. It’s been a remarkabe week for Evans – who defeated world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the last-16 – on what is traditionally his weakest surface. Prior to this event, he had only won four tour-level clay-court matches – he’s equalled that total this week. He also only had four Masters 1000-level victories, which has now been doubled. Read more
Emilia Romagna Grand Prix: Charles Leclerc crashes after impressing in second practice (BBC)
Charles Leclerc crashed his Ferrari at the end of what had been an impressive second practice session at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Leclerc had earlier set the fastest lap time of the session, only to lose it for exceeding track limits.
Valtteri Bottas was fastest in the session, just 0.01 seconds quicker than Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton.Red Bull’s Max Verstappen suffered a mechanical failure early in the session. Read more