How ASUU strike turned me to A newspaper vendor – Student (Vanguard)
A 400L Computer Science Student with the Federal University Lokoja, (FUL), Thomas Kehinde has decried the prolonged strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), insisting that both the academic body and the government are playing games with the lives and future of Nigerian youths.
Kehinde in an interview with our correspondent on Wednesday said the ASUU strike has turned him into an emergency newspaper vendor just to survive with the harsh economy of the country.
Kehinde, a native of Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State said that his parent fed from hand to mouth just to see him through school; in a bid to pursue his academic dream of becoming a great computer scientist, and the strike has dashed his hope of graduating. Read more
Court remands teenager for allegedly burning ex-lover’s girlfriend to death (Guardian)
A 19-year-old girl, Jemila Ibraheem, was on Wednesday remanded in police custody in Lagos State, over alleged murder of her ex-lover’s new girlfriend.
Ibraheem, who is an upcoming actress and resides in Satelite town area of Lagos, was charged with a count of murder.
The court however, did not take her plea.
Magistrate P.E. Nwaka, ordered that the defendant be kept at the Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba, pending advice from the Lagos State Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
Nwaka, adjourned the case until Jan. 4, 2021, for mention. Read more
ASUU strike: We will shut down all private varsities, says NANS (Punch)
The new President of the National Association of Nigerian Students, Sunday Asefon, has vowed to shut down all private universities in the country should the nine-month strike embarked on by members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities continue.
The NANS president said this while speaking on a PUNCH Online interview programme, The Roundtable.
He lamented that the ongoing strike is the longest industrial action embarked on by the university lecturers.
According to him, NANS would engage the Federal Government representatives and ASUU leaders to find a lasting solution to resolve the stalemate in negotiations between the two arms. Read more
Lawmaker raises alarm over extinction of 188 wildlife species (Vanguard)
The member representing Ovia Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Dennis Idahosa yesterday expressed worry over the possible extinction of not less than 188 species of wildlife in Okomu National Park as a result of the illegal activities of poachers and loggers.
Idahosa who is the Chairman House Committee on Legislative Compliance told journalists in Benin City yesterday that the National Park located in Ovia South West Local Government Area of Edo state have been taken over by loggers and poachers thereby endangering the wildlife.
He regretted that the illegal activities have placed about 33 species of mammals and about 150 species birds in danger. Read more
Navy declares 43 personnel wanted for desertion (Nation)
The Nigerian Navy has declared 43 personnel wanted for desertion.
A circular containing the names and photographs of the deserters and displayed at the Navy Headquarters in Abuja, requested the public with useful information that could lead to the arrest of the fleeing officers to report to the nearest Naval facility or Police station.
The circular also mandated all Navy Personnel with information on the whereabouts of the 43 personnel to arrest them or be dealt with as an accomplice. Read more
Buhari swears in INEC Boss, Yakubu, for second term (Guardian)
President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday swore-in Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC ), for the second and final five-year term in office.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the swearing-in ceremony took place just before the commencement of the weekly virtual meeting of the Federal Executive Council, (FEC), in the Council Chambers, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The Senate had on Dec. 1, confirmed the nomination of Yakubu for re- appointment as Chairman of INEC. Read more
Interior Ministry records 45,751 business, 38,051 citizenship applications in two years (Thisday)
The Ministry of Interior has disclosed that it has recorded total business applications of 45,751 as well as 38,051 citizenship applications from September 2018 to October 2020, adding that it has led to improvement in income generation for the government.
Speaking Wednesday in Abuja, at the 4th Quarter 2020 Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Units’ Consultative Forum (3PUCF) of all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), hosted by the ministry, the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Shuaib Belgore, also called on the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, (OHCSF) to professionalise the PPP Units in all MDAs of the federal government.
He added that the call for professionalising the PPP Units in all MDAs has become necessary especially with the infrastructure gap bedevilling the country as well as to ensure continuity, reduce public sector administrative cost, allows for shared risk, reduce the problem of public sector budget constraints and to also provide for easy monitoring of PPP projects across the country. Read more
I was promised N3m, says soon-to-wed man arrested for smuggling cocaine (Nation)
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Special Area Command, Abuja has arrested one Elechi Adendu Kingsley, 39, for attempting to bring cocaine into the country from Brazil.
The agency said the suspect confessed to the crime, saying he was promised N3 million if he was successful, preparatory to his wedding in January 2021.
He was arrested with a bag containing cellophane bags containing the substance during the inward clearance of Ethiopian Airline flight Et 911, according to Principal Staff Officer, Public Affairs, of the agency, Jonah Achema. Read more
Benjamin Netanyahu will be first in Israel to get COVID-19 vaccine (NYPost)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be the first person in his country to be given Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine.
Netanyahu made the announcement Wednesday in front of a just-landed aircraft at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, which had been carrying the first batches of the vaccine to arrive in the Jewish state.
The 71-year-old prime minister explained that he had decided to get the shot early to encourage others to not fear the immunization. Read more
Jacques Jordaens: Baroque masterpiece found in Brussels town hall (BBC)
A painting that hung for some 60 years in a Brussels town hall has been authenticated as the oldest known version of one of Flemish master Jacques Jordaens’ most famous works.
The discovery of the Holy Family painting was made during a 2019 inventory of cultural works in Saint-Gilles town hall.
It was thought to have been a copy.
The work dates to 1617 or 1618, said the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage, which helped make the find. Read more
Former Israeli space chief says aliens exist, humanity ‘isn’t ready’ (Metro)
The former head of Israel’s space security program has made an astonishing claim about the existence of aliens. According to Professor Haim Eshed, extra-terrestrial intelligence very much exists – but only the United States and Israel have had the privilege of meeting them. The 87-year-old says that the rest of humanity ‘isn’t ready’ for contact with aliens and that the US and Isreal have agreed to keep it secret. Read more
COVID-19 vaccine: Allergy warning over new jab (BBC)
People with a history of significant allergic reactions should not have the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid jab, regulators say.
It came after two NHS workers had allergic reactions on Tuesday.
The advice applies to those who have had reactions to medicines, food or vaccines, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said.
The two people had a reaction shortly after having the new jab, had treatment and are both fine now. Read more
Johnny Depp applies to Court of Appeals to overturn Amber Heard libel case verdict (Metro)
Johnny Depp has formally applied to the Court of Appeals in a bid to overturn the verdict in his libel case. The former Fantastic Beasts actor lost his case against The Sun’s publisher News Group Newspapers after suing them for a headline which labelled him a ‘wife beater’. His ex-wife Amber Heard testified against him and the judge ruled that he ‘did assault’ her during their turbulent marriage. Now, lawyers on Depp’s behalf have filed an application to appeal the court’s ruling. Read more
Tyler Perry put $100K toward Carl Lentz’s LA rent (PageSix)
He lentzed him some change.
Tyler Perry dropped nearly $100,000 so disgraced Hillsong pastor Carl Lentz and his family could live in a luxury Los Angeles mansion, the UK’s Sun is reporting.
Perry, 51, covered six months of rent upfront on the 5,000-square-foot, five-bedroom Manhattan Beach home — valued at $4 million — where Lentz, 36, and his family moved after unloading their New Jersey home days before he was sacked from the megachurch for infidelity.
The Sun reports that in addition to splurging on the $16,000-per-month rental, Perry has been a shoulder to cry on for Lentz, who’s been “leaning” on Perry since his dramatic fall from grace. Another source told the paper the pair have been “consistently” talking with each other. Read more
Elon Musk moves Tesla to Texas in Silicon Valley snub (BBC)
Elon Musk has announced he is leaving Silicon Valley for Texas, and predicts the tech hotspot could lose its influence.
The billionaire entrepreneur declared that California had “too much influence in the world” but that its power is waning.
Tesla, valued at $500bn (£372bn), has its headquarters in California, but will build a new factory in Austin.
Space X – Mr Musk’s spaceflight company – already has facilities in Texas. Read more
Nigeria Football Federation working to avoid national team boycott (BBC)
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) is working to avoid another national team boycott as it tries to clear an 18-month backlog of bonuses and allowances.
A proposed protest by the players last month, ahead of their 2021 Africa Cup of Nations away fixture, backfired after they let a 4-0 lead slip as Sierra Leone fought back to draw 4-4.
“Our initial plan was to address it before the game in Sierra Leone but we all saw what happened,” one player told BBC Sport Africa as he insisted on anonymity.
“I don’t think they [NFF officials] can keep quiet if they’re unpaid by their bosses. They’re quick to blame the players for defeats but happy to celebrate the success of the team.
“If the players go on strike they blame us for being money hungry and selfish yet this is money they owe us. Read more
Jose Mourinho reacts to Manchester United’s Champions League elimination (Metro)
Jose Mourinho insists Manchester United automatically represent one of the favourites to win the Europa League following their demise in Leipzig last night, but believes it is unfair that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side will get a second shot at European glory this season. United looked on course to secure qualification to the knockout stages after they collected nine points from their opening four fixtures in Group H, but suffered the ignominy of dropping into European football’s second tier competition, paying the price for a dismal first-half display against Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Mourinho’s Tottenham team, meanwhile, are already assured of a place in the last 32 of the Europa League, a competition the Special One tasted success in during his first season at Old Trafford, ahead of tomorrow’s match against Royal Antwerp. Read more
CAF fines Aubameyang as Gambia consider appeal (BBC)
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has issued a number of sanctions for breaches of its regulations.
There was a $10,000 fine for Arsenal striker Pierre Emerick Aubameyang for his social media posts when he and his Gabon team-mates were not allowed to leave the airport on arriving in The Gambia.
Caf’s statement said that “Aubameyang has publicly published offensive and degrading material that undermines the honour and image of the Confederation of African Football.
“The Caf Disciplinary Board decided to impose a fine of 10,000 USD for breach of the values of sportsmanship and integrity on the Gabonese Football Federation for the regrettable behaviour of the player.” Read more
Anthony Joshua picks out six Kubrat Pulev attributes he has to worry about (Metro)
Anthony Joshua will not be taking Kubrat Pulev lightly in their world heavyweight title fight this weekend and has picked out a string of the Bulgarian’s attributes that he will have to worry about. AJ (23-1) puts his WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO world heavyweight titles on the line against the Cobra at Wembley Arena on Saturday night. It is a bout that has been long in the making as they were originally scheduled to fight back in 2017 before Pulev (28-1) was forced out of the contest through injury. They were then due to scrap earlier this year but Covid-19 postponed the bout. Read more
Paris St-Germain v Istanbul Basaksehir: Uefa investigation after official accused of racism (BBC)
UEFA has started a disciplinary investigation after a match official was accused of using a racist term in the Champions League game between Paris St-Germain and Istanbul Basaksehir.
The Turkish club allege Romanian fourth official Sebastian Coltescu made a racist comment towards assistant coach Pierre Webo in Tuesday’s match.
Both sets of players walked off in protest and the match did not resume.
The two sides will finish the game on Wednesday with a new officiating team.
Former Cameroon international Webo was shown a red card in an exchange on the touchline and then accused the fourth official of using a racial slur. Read more
Champions League referee Kralovec in match-fixing scandal (Punch)
Czech referee Pavel Kralovec, who officiates in the Champions League, has been implied in a local match-fixing scandal, Czech media said Wednesday.
The case involves former Czech Football Association (FACR) deputy head Roman Berbr, who has been in custody over suspected match-fixing since October.
Citing police wiretaps, the DNES broadsheet said Berbr had called Kralovec ahead of July’s Czech Cup final, in which Sparta Prague beat Slovan Liberec 2-1 to reach the Europa League group stage. Read more