After weeks of heavy rain overwhelming already swollen rivers, two dams in Brazil’s Bahia state burst and flooded surrounding towns.
In the town of Itabuna, residents could be seen using inflatable rafts and canoes to deliver supplies to neighbours.
The rains have caused at least 18 deaths in Bahia since the beginning of November and thousands of people have been moved from some of the 67 towns facing further flooding.
Itambe is an agricultural region in southern Bahia located about 200 kilometers (125 miles) inland from the coastal city of Ilheus.
The mayor of Vitoria da Consquista, Sheila Lemos, said all residents close to the river had been evacuated.
In a posting on the city’s website, Lemos said the flooding threatened to cut off the BR-116 highway, a major truck route between northeastern and southern Brazil.
Bahia Governor Rui Castro said at least 300 people have been evacuated from each of some 20 towns in the state that were hit by floods caused by heavy rainfall for almost two months.
The rains have caused 17 deaths in Bahia since the beginning of November, and 66 towns are facing emergency situations, civil defense officials said.
In the state capital of Salvador, weather officials said December rainfall has been six times greater than the average.
Heavy storms have battered western regions of the United States, leaving thousands without power.
Almost 30in (76cm) of snow fell in parts of northern California in 24 hours, causing blackouts and road closures, including a 70-mile (112km) stretch of Interstate 80 into Nevada.
Avalanche warnings are in effect across six states.
Over the weekend, southern California was hit by rainstorms, which saw power lines snap and streets flooded.
More than 1.8in of rain fell over 24 hours in San Marcos pass in Santa Barbara County, while Rocky Butte in San Luis Obispo County recorded 1.61in, officials said.
The National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno, Nevada, said snowstorms would remain heavy over Sunday night and well into Monday, and forecasters have warned that travel could prove difficult in the region for several days.
Avalanche warnings were put into effect on Sunday for parts of Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Montana, Colorado and California, as the storms created widespread areas of unstable snow.
Authorities near Reno said three people were injured in a 20-car weekend pileup on Interstate 395, amid limited visibility.
Power cuts affected residents in Washington, Oregon and other areas, although northern California was the worst hit. Power Outage US reported 28,000 power cuts there in the early hours of Monday local time, mostly in northern coastal counties and those on the Nevada border.
Meanwhile, in Montana, the NWS warned that “dangerously cold wind chills could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as five minutes”. Wind chill could make the temperatures feel as low as -48C.
One benefit of the storms in California will be to replenish the Sierra snowpack. It accounts for about 30% of California’s fresh water supply and had been at dangerously low levels after weeks of dry weather.
The state’s department of water resources reported on Christmas Eve that the snowpack was now between 114% and 137% of normal ranges, with more snow expected to fall.
While the west coast is battered by heavy storms, many southern states have been experiencing “unusually warm temperatures,” with dozens of cities on track for their warmest December on record.
The NWS reported that Wichita Falls, near Texas’s border with Oklahoma, reported a record temperature of 32C (90F), while Houston saw temperatures hit 27C.
Intra-African trade routes may be facing a historic blockage as China expands its domineering influnce in the region, touted as the most commercially dependent across the globe.
Trade data gleaned from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and analysed by The Guardian show that Nigeria has spent N19.12 trillion on imported commodities from China in less than four years – from January 2018 to September this year.
Economists have seen the deepening Chinese influence in the local market as a huge drain and cost on the ailing domestic economy as imports constitute leakages on any economy.
In 2020 Nigerian families were cut in several different places starting with higher taxes, a malevolent global health pandemic and serial job losses on the back of multiple company shutdowns.
The Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation, Europe (NIDO-Europe), Italy Chapter, says about 1.5 million out of its 3 million registered members in Italy are affected by scarcity of Nigerian passports.
Mr George Omo-Iduhon, Chairman of the chapter said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday while reflecting on the activities of NIDOE in Europe and Italy.
NAN reports that NIDOE is recognised as the official platform through which Nigerians in Diaspora can channel their development efforts in Nigeria.
NIDOE partners with the Nigerian community, professional organisations as well as public and private businesses in focused areas such as foreign Direct Investments (FDI) professional networking, stakeholders advocacy, medical missions, educational support and skill transfer to Nigeria.
The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Kukah, has said that with the daily deaths being recorded across the country, it has become clear that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari no longer values the sacredness of human life.
In his Christmas message at the weekend, Kukah lamented that the government seems to have moved on by ignoring the fate of Nigerians in the custody of people he termed evil men, stressing that the moral scar of shame on Nigeria cannot be wished way.
According to Kukah the silence of Abuja was only feeding the “ugly beast of complicity in the deeds of the evil people who have suspended the future of entire generations of Nigeria’s children.”
The religious leader also stated that President Buhari owes parents and citizens answers as to where the children are and when they are coming home or when the abductions, kidnappings, and endless massacres of citizens will end.
Officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo say at least six people have died in a suicide bomb attack on a crowded restaurant in the eastern city of Beni.
Police prevented the bomber from entering the building, but he blew himself up at the entrance killing himself and five other people.
Another 13 people were injured.
The officials blamed Saturday’s attack on the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a militant group said to be linked to the so-called Islamic State (IS).
So far no group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Security forces in Sudan have fired tear gas at pro-democracy protesters in the capital, Khartoum.
The demonstrators converged on the presidential palace for the second time in a week, but were met by a heavy security presence.
Earlier the military government restricted phone and internet services in the city as protesters gathered, reports say.
Other cities, including Port Sudan, have also seen demonstrations. Last weekend, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators marched through Khartoum demanding civilian rule be restored after the military coup on 25 October.
More than 100 people were injured in clashes with police in last week’s protests. The security forces were also accused of sexually abusing more than a dozen women and girls.
Archbishop Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, spent his life campaigning for human rights. The activist and hero to millions tragically died on Sunday (26 December), aged 90.
South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa described Tutu’s passing as “another chapter of bereavement in our nation’s farewell to a generation of outstanding South Africans who have bequeathed us a liberated South Africa”.
Desmond Tutu was a major opponent of South Africa’s apartheid system and worked for universal suffrage, equal rights for women in the Anglican Church his controversial support for LGBT+ rights and advocacy regarded by many as contrary to African cultural values put him at odds with many on the continent.
The protagonist of the name Rainbow Nation” given to south Africa was a mark of his push for acceptance of western LGBT+ values on the continent.
In a video for the United Nations Free and Equal campaign in November, the UN’s “global campaign against homophobia and transphobia”, Tutu said: “I have to tell you, I cannot keep quiet when people are penalised for something about which they can do nothing.
The video was shared by LGBT+ Rights Ghana, one of the few groups advocating for the human rights of queer Ghanaians, whose members literally put their lives on the line.
The group celebrated “Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu [calling] for an end to punishing people because of who they are or whom they love”, a message particularly pertinent to the LGBT+ community in Ghana.
Public hearings began this month on the country’s Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill 2021.
While gay sex is already illegal in Ghana, the bill would go even further, targeting LGBT+ identity itself. It would specifically criminalise anyone is “lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, queer, pansexual, an ally, non-binary, or any other sexual or gender identity that is contrary to the binary categories of male and female”.
All of those listed, even allies, could face three to five years in prison if found guilty of the crime, which would become a second-degree felony.
The bill would not only criminalise being LGBT+, but also every aspect of queer life, from affirming medical care to public displays of affection like holding hands.
When he publicly declared his Gay status going against christian tenets it drew the ire of the Anglican community in which he represented and further dividing an institution that had managed cracks of discord between traditional members and new age followers seeking liberal freedom.
However his imapct on the continent remain undeniable Nigeria’s Former President Olusegun Obasanjo described the death of Tutu, as a personal loss.
In a condolence letter forwarded to the South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, Obasanjo said Tutu played a vital role in Nigeria’s journey to debt relief with the Paris Club in the early 2000s.
Analyst hold that he will be fondly remembered as Africa’s elder stateman with his push for a rainbow nation is the only dark shadow cast on his legacy.
Oshodi and chess should not be mentioned in the same sentence but the game has become a survival ticket for some from Oshodi
Blue BRTs, lively commercial motorcycle operators (Okada), humming tricycles (Keke Marwa), groaning yellow public buses, private cars, and a relentless stream of pedestrian traffic tell you are in Oshodi.
This bubbling metropolis, which is not for the fainthearted, offers a virtual and aural cacophony of sights and sounds that will leave an imprint on your memory long after your visit is over.
Oshodi is a growing community, daily fed with immigrants pouring in from neighbouring states in search of a better life.
Chess in Slum Africa
It is home to some; some found it, while some others have gotten trapped in her squalid city delinquencies.
I have always been intrigued, but not interested in Oshodi because of the manic stories I heard. Oshodi brings out the fear of the unknown in everyone, irrespective of where you are coming from.
On arrival, you come face-to-face with a bunch of stern-looking young men reeking alcohol and cigarette, who go about their daily collection of dues from frustrated bus drivers.
Get carried away by their aggressive approach and your phone or cash could suddenly develop wings and be gone.
Except you own nothing worth stealing. Only then can you be safe around this notorious neighbourhood where gunshots, mugging, and stabbings plus mayhem are the norms.
Provocatively positioned between slummy Mushin and bourgeoisie Ikeja-Oshodi has a reputation for nefarious activities. And the stories are true. So dangerous is Oshodi that even a bag full of debris stands the risk of being snatched in broad daylight.
You are just the icing on the cake if your face looks unfamiliar in some areas. Resist being robbed and you might just get a dagger hole in your body in a Spartacus style.
Bright spot
Amid this thuggish chaos, there is a tiny light at the end of its tunnel as Chess In Slum of Africa recently turned the lives of 51 Oshodi-based children around.
Fawaz Adeoye is a former bus conductor in Oshodi, but he is determined to find his way past the stifling hopelessness and poverty.
It was the slings and arrows that 18-year-old Fawaz carries on the daily job that pushed him to take part in a chess training organised by former Chess Champion Tunde Onakoya.
They selected Fawaz alongside other street kids to undergo the rudiments of chess training, with much emphasis on mental mathematics.
With training done and dusted, it was time for the kid to prove to the world that good things can come from unlikely places, even though Oshodi and her inhabitants have been written off by many high-placed brows.
“51 homeless children in one of the most dangerous ghettos in Nigeria showed up every day for our chess training because they saw an opportunity to learn — a new lease of hope,” Onakoya said.
“Some of them are orphans, while some ran away from their villages to seek greener pastures in Lagos,” he added.
Fawaz had always dreamt of becoming an actor and comedian, but he knew that chess in the slum project was an opportunity too good to miss.
He knew that when the desirable is not available, then the available becomes desirable. He enrolled in the training and that was the beginning of his life’s turning point as Fawaz combined hard work and versatility full of common sense to emerge the champion of the pilot ‘Chess In The Slum of Africa’ project.
“Adeoye Fawaz, an 18-year-old boy who works as a bus conductor and has lived years of his life under Oshodi bridge emerged as our overall champion in both chess and mental math.
A Star Is Born,” Onakoya wrote on his Twitter handle.
Chess in Slum Africa
“The final phase of the mental math competition was fast and furious, but Fawaz aced the questions. Now imagine if you gave these boys a proper education?! Imagine if you gave them coding?! Imagine how many of them we’ve lost to the streets because no one paid attention,” he said on a Twitter thread.
It was an emotional moment as tears welled up in the eyes of onlookers who came around to celebrate Fawaz’s heroic performance.
Dressed in a traditional Yoruba Buba and Sokoto attire, his cap epitomised hope amid the hopelessness as jubilant fans carried him shoulder high. To the downtrodden, Fawaz’s story is a clear sign that as long as there is life, there will always be hope.
“Those that see us as never do well now treat us with more dignity,” Fawaz said during an interview (conducted in Yoruba) with the BBC.
The widely celebrated chess champion revealed that while he lost his mother in 2019, he had been long separated from his father as a three-year-old.
He said: “When my mum died, her family members ‘shared’ me and siblings between them. I know the whereabouts of two and I don’t know where the other two are.”
Fawaz recalled he was more concerned about getting food to eat than taking part in the Chess classes when it started.
“I asked uncle Tunde if he wanted me to die of hunger when he was talking about teaching us Chess.
“At the initial stage, I did not understand the game at all but along the way, I reasoned the game could help in changing my life.”
That proved to be a smart choice by Fawaz, who confessed he never dreamt of becoming the champion.
“I have never emerged first in my life, but I did that in the Chess competition and I am very happy. Those that don’t want to be associated with me at all now talk with me freely.”
Journey to Oshodi
According to Fawaz, he had an altercation with his aunty then at Iyana Oworo and threatened to return to Ibadan.
However, while he got to Oshodi, he saw some familiar faces and decided to stay with them, intending to make some money, before he proceeded on his journey to Ibadan.
For the 18-year-old, staying under the bridge has helped him in a way by becoming a chess champion being celebrated across borders.
Already looking ahead to a better future, Fawaz has his eyes on becoming a Chess Master, returning to school to get educated, and also taking a shot at fashion designing.
Chess In Slum Of Africa Project
For a non-profit organisation with a vision geared towards taking vulnerable kids off the street by providing education through chess, it won’t be a bad idea if the sports ministry can identify with Onakoya’s laudable initiative.
Certainly, the sports minister, Sunday Dare, cannot deny that ‘Chess In Slum of Africa’ has channelled a course for other sports federations to follow.
The emergence of Fawaz and other Oshodi street kids in the just concluded Chess tourney shows that there is a cloud on the horizon.
Their success stories ignore one of old life’s impressions: that nothing good comes from the slums. These early signs promise an excellent future for Chess in a neighbourhood reputed for preference for football and music.
Everyone knows where Adeoye Fawaz is from.
What remains to be discovered is how far he can go in the sport that announced him to the world.
As for Oshodi, it has once again proved that “white pap comes from black pots”, and what the community needs is just an opportunity-the crucible that can turn coal into a diamond.
The two teams registered identical 3-0 victories in their first home matches in the new season.
Rivers United and Remo Stars were the biggest winners in the matchday 2 games of the NPFL played across the country on Sunday.
The two teams registered identical 3-0 victories over Katsina United and Heartland FC respectively in their home duels.
In Port Harcourt, Rafiu Kayode got Stanley Eguma’s side up and running with a goal just before the half-hour mark.
Rafiu continued from where he stopped in the second half as he doubled Rivers United’s lead in the 57th before Chijioke Akuneto sealed victory five minutes after with the third goal for the hosts.
In Ikene, newly-promoted Remo Stars showed once more they are in the NPFL this time to stay.
Gbenga Ogunbote’s men followed their opening day 2-0 win in Lagos over MFM FC with another comprehensive win this time against the Naze Millionaires.
Quickfire goals from Andy Okpe in the fourth and fifth minutes gave the Sky Blues the perfect start they craved for and in the 71st minute, Samuel Anakwe sealed victory with the third goal for the home side.
Elsewhere, Enyimba continued their perfect run under coach Finidi George as they snatched a 1-0 win against Rangers to win the Oriental Derby in Nnewi.
Emeka Obioma scored the decisive goal two minutes from time.
The People’s Elephant had defeated Abia Warriors 2-1 in the season’s first Oriental Derby.
In Ibadan, champions Akwa United were held to a 1-1 draw by Shooting Stars.
Utibe Archibong shot the visitors in front just before the half-hour mark after he was teed up by captain Friday Ubong. Ayo Adejubu saved 3SC from home defeat when he restored parity for the hosts on the stroke of 90 minutes.
At the New Jos Stadium Plateau United, recorded their first win of the season courtesy of a 1-0 win against Kwara United.
Kano Pillars’ poor start to the season continued on Sunday as they were held to a 0-0 draw at home by Lobi Stars in Kaduna.
The encounter between Nasarawa United and Gombe United also ended in a stalemate as both sides settled for a 1-1 draw.
Abdulateef Balogun scored the winning goal as Wikki Tourists pipped Niger Tornadoes by a lone goal.
Elsewhere, Sunshine Stars lost 1-0 to Abia Warriors in their away match with Paul Samson netting the only goal of the game in the 28th minute.
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