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France’s Anti-Trust Watchdog Fines Google €220 Million

Zoe Maven
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France’s Anti-Trust Watchdog Fines Google €220 Million

Google is being fined 220 million euros by France’s antitrust watchdog for abusing its ‘dominant’ position in online advertising.

The head of the authority, Isabelle de Silva, said the decision was unprecedented in the way that it delved into the complex algorithmic auctions that power Google’s online display advertising business.

She said, the fine, along with Google’s commitment to changing its practices, “will make it possible to re-establish a level playing field for all players, and the ability for publishers to make the most of their advertising space.

Google, based in Mountain View, California, did not dispute the facts and opted to settle after proposing some changes, according to a prepared statement from the Competition Authority.

Google France’s legal director, Maria Gomri, said in a blog post Monday that Google has been collaborating for the past two years with the French watchdog on issues related to ad technology, notably the platform known as Google Ad Manager.

She wrote that commitments made during negotiations would “make it easier for publishers to make use of data and use our tools with other ad technologies.”

The French authority’s investigation was prompted by complaints from Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., French newspaper group Le Figaro and Belgium-based Rossel La Voix. Le Figaro later withdrew its complaint.

U.S. tech giants have been facing intensifying scrutiny in Europe and elsewhere over their business practices.

Germany became the latest country to launch an investigation of Google, using stepped up powers to scrutinize digital giants.

Mali’s Transitional President To Honour Election Commitment

Zoe Maven
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Mali’s Transitional President To Honour Election Commitment

Mali’s coup leader Colonel Assimi Goita was sworn in as the transitional president on Monday at a ceremony in Bamako where he stated he would guarantee elections next year.

Amid pressure mounts from international powers, he reassured that the sub-regional and regional organisations and the international community in general that Mali will honour all its commitments for and in the best interests of the nation.

On May 24 Goita dismissed the transitional civilian president and prime minister, which caused former colonial power France to suspend its cooperation with the military.

The African Union also suspended Mali’s membership while International powers are eager to see if elections promised during the first coup in 2020 will transpire.

After the first coup in August, the government installed pledged to reform the constitution by October and stage elections in February 2022.

Mali is key to the stability of the Sahel region – which is plagued by jihadist groups and so maintaining international partnerships, is crucial as its security forces are thinly resourced.

Goita’s role comes after he led a second coup in nine months in May and despite international condemnation of his power grab.

East Texas Pastor Gets High School Diploma At 99

Angel Gimalo
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East Texas Pastor Gets High School Diploma At 99

A 99-year-old World War II veteran, Jack Hetzel, has achieved his dream of getting his high school diploma.

It took him a while to achieve his dream, but Jack Hetzel, a 99-year-old World War II veteran who leads the First United Methodist Church in Big Sandy, Texas, is beaming with joy after recently achieving his dream of getting a high school diploma.

“It’s very exciting,” said Hetzel, who joined Big Sandy High School’s graduation ceremony to collect his honorary diploma last Friday, to KETK.

According to Hetzel & Hetzel Enterprises, where the recent graduate is listed as president and CEO, the pastor had no more than a third-grade education but enjoyed a full military career spanning 20 years in the U.S. Army Air Corps, U.S. Army and the U.S. Air Force. He fought six major battles in World War II in Europe and the Korean War.

“With no more than [a] third-grade education, Jack became an instructor of ‘Military Science’ at Texas A&M University. Since retiring from the military, Jack has always been involved with entrepreneurship, creating many successful businesses and nonprofit charities which are still in operation today. Jack is ‘happiest when helping people in need,’” the company noted.

Hetzel, who had received his GED in 1948, said he was forced to drop out of school in the third grade and could not get his diploma then because the school had no record of him attending.

“I have longed to get this diploma since 1948 when I passed my GED but the school that I have attended I’d only attended the third grade and they didn’t have any record of me so I then couldn’t get a diploma from that school,” Hetzel said.

He explained that even though he always regretted not getting his diploma he took advantage of alternative ways to learn.

“You see, when you have little education and then you have to come up through life and you have to front life with little education, you have to learn somehow,” said the preacher who will turn 100 this fall. “I used other people to be my teachers. So if I got a question, I’d go to somebody that knew and asked them the question and then I would use it in everyday life.”

On Memorial Day, Hetzel was recognized by the Texas Senate which adopted a resolution by state Sen. Bryan Hughes commending him for his achievement.

NNPC will deliver dividends to Nigerians this year says Kyari

Henry Williams
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NNPC will deliver dividends to Nigerians this year says Kyari

The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari has said he is hopeful that the state behemoth will be able to declare dividend this year.

Speaking at this year’s Nigeria International Petroleum Summit (NIPS), Kyari explained how the company is leveraging technology to achieve more efficiency which is helping the corporation reduce its high cost of operations and deliver more value to stakeholders.

He noted that the corporation is doing more in terms of cutting costs, becoming more efficient and investing in assets that give value.

In April, the NNPC had written Ahmed Idris, accountant-general of the federation, informing him that the corporation would not make any remittance to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) in May.

In a copy of the letter seen by BusinessDay, the corporation said N111.96 billion would be deducted from April 2021 oil and gas proceeds — due to the FAAC in May — noting that the deduction was necessary to ensure the continuous supply of petroleum products to the nation and guarantee energy security.

The NNPC, in reaction, said the zero-revenue projection for May did not mean it was in bad financial straits as it pertains only to the federation revenue stream it manages.

Rising imports push Nigeria’s trade deficit to 10-year high

Henry Williams
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Rising imports push Nigeria’s trade deficit to 10-year high

The foreign trade in goods statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) shows the total value of Nigeria’s merchandise trade stood at N9, 757.87 billion representing a 6.99 percent increase over the value recorded in the last three months (Q4) of 2020.

This is 14.13 percent compared to the first three months (Q1) of 2020.

The rise in total trade during the quarter was driven by an increase in imports (up 15.6% quarter on quarter to N6.9 trillion) while exports declined. Exports were down by 9 percent quarter on quarter to N2.9 trillion in Q1 2021.

The current total value of imports is the highest recorded quarterly in a decade. The export component of this trade stood at N2, 907.21 billion, representing 29.79 percent of the total trade while import was valued at N6, 850 billion representing 70.21 percent.

Consequently, the surge in imports compared with the decline in exports resulted in the sixth consecutive quarter of trade deficit in Q1 2021 (N3.9trn) and the highest trade deficit in a quarter since 2011.

The higher level of imports over exports resulted in a trade deficit (in goods) of -N3, 943.45 billion.

The value of crude oil export stood at N1, 929.83 billion representing 66.38 percent of the total export recorded in Q1, 2021, while non-crude oil export accounted for 33.62 percent of the total export.

Nigeria clings to fossil fuels, favours slower energy transition

Henry Williams
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Nigeria clings to fossil fuels, favours slower energy transition

Nigeria has clung to making the most of its fossil fuels as the world races towards a low-carbon future and renewable energy resources take the centre stage.

Timipre Sylva, Nigeria’s minister of state for Petroleum Resources has said that the global energy transition would not happen overnight and that Africa’s most populous country has to optimise the use of available petroleum resources to energise its energy-poor economy.

This is contrary to what advanced economies are doing, switching to electric vehicles and renewable energy.

Speaking at the ongoing Nigeria International Petroleum Summit (NIPS), an event organised by the Federal Government of Nigeria and aimed at charting the way forward in the post-Covid-19 pandemic era, Sylvia agreed that energy transition will make the world a cleaner, healthier place but he disagrees that this transition will happen anytime soon.

America’s Supreme Court Refuses Permanent Residency For Immigrants On Humanitarian Grounds

Angel Gimalo
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America’s Supreme Court Refuses Permanent Residency For Immigrants On Humanitarian Grounds

The Supreme Court on Monday unanimously refused to let immigrants who have been allowed to stay in the United States on humanitarian grounds apply to become permanent residents if they entered the country illegally, siding with President Joe Biden’s administration.

The justices, acting in an appeal by a married couple from El Salvador who were granted so-called Temporary Protected Status, upheld a lower court ruling that barred their applications for permanent residency, also known as a green card, because of their unlawful entry.

The case could affect 400,000 immigrants, many of whom have lived in the United States for years.

Biden, who has sought to reverse many of his Republican predecessor Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policies, had opposed the immigrants in this case, placing the president at odds with immigration advocacy groups and some of his fellow Democrats.

A federal law called the Immigration and Nationality Act generally requires that people seeking to become permanent residents have been ‘inspected and admitted’ into the United States. At issue in the case was whether a grant of Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which gives the recipient ‘lawful status,’ satisfies those requirements.

Writing for the court, liberal Justice Elena Kagan said that ‘because a grant of TPS does not come with a ticket of admission, it does not eliminate the disqualifying effect of an unlawful entry.’

Unity Schools: 76,855 Candidates Jostle for 30,000 Admission Slots

Precious Obazee
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Unity Schools: 76,855 Candidates Jostle for 30,000 Admission Slots

The National Examinations Council says a total of 76,855 candidates on Saturday sat for the 2021 National Common Entrance Examination for admission into the 110 Federal Government Colleges, also known as Unity Schools.

Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, noted that goverment had planned to increase the carrying capacity of the Unity Schools to 30,000 to accommodate new schools and more candidates who were desirous of attending the Colleges.

Represented by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Arc. Sonny Echono, he noted that the carrying capacity was increased to about 26,000 last year, which did not include the six new Technical Colleges and the plan to establish five more Colleges in the country to bring the total number of Unity Colleges to 115.

He said the government was concerned about persistent attacks on schools and abduction of students and had taken steps to beef up security around the Colleges while appealing to parents to allow their children enrol for the Colleges, established to foster national integration and cohesion.

Adamu said it was interesting that more girls sat for the examination on Saturday, as a result of sensitisation and advocacy efforts of the Ministry.

He said Zamfara four years ago had no single student to enrol into Unity College, and had surprisingly become the first state with highest registered number of candidates in the North after Federal Capital Territory.

Acting Registrar of NECO, Ebikibina Ogborodi who accompanied the permanent secretary, said the conduct of the examination was smooth and hitch-free in all the 417 examination centers across the country.

While giving further breakdown on candidates that sat for the examination, the Acting Registrar said state with the highest number of candidates was Lagos with 21,423 candidates, followed by FCT, 8674 candidates, Anambra 5,738 and Zamfara has 4,865 while Taraba has the least registered number of candidates, 113.

He also disclosed that the total number of female that registered for the examination was 39,555 while a total of 37,300 male candidates registered for the examination.

IGP Orders Suspension Of Tinted Windshields In Nigeria

faith Jegede
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IGP Orders Suspension Of Tinted Windshields In Nigeria

The Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, has announced the immediate suspension of tinted vehicle windscreens in Nigeria.

The announcement was made on Monday during a meeting with senior police officers including DIGs and Commissioners from across the states.

While making the announcement, he reiterated that roadblocks remain prohibited in the country and warned that heads of commands must enforce it and key into the road patrol strategy as an alternative to roadblocks.

International Friendly: Eagles And Lions Clash Again In Vienna

Emenike Agu
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International Friendly: Eagles And Lions Clash Again In Vienna

nternational Friendly: Eagles and Lions clash again in Vienna

Nigeria and Cameroon will once more battle it out at the Stadion Wiener Neustadt in the second of a two-match friendly programme in the Austrian capital, Vienna.

Five –time African champions Cameroon edged the first encounter 1-0 at the same venue on Friday, courtesy of a 36th minute strike by Andre Zambo Nguissa. The Super Eagles created chance after chance but failed to get the ball into the net.

Coach Gernot Rohr spoke at length about having to use a rash of new players in the first session, but he is compelled to do even more of that in Tuesday’s encounter following injuries to defenders William Ekong and Jamilu Collins, and the knock for pacy winger Moses Simon.

Simon appeared to be getting better as of Monday morning, but the smart money is on him starting from the bench, just as Cyprus-based goalkeeper Francis Uzoho may start in goal against the Indomitable Lions. With the versatile Abdullahi Shehu heaved back to the rear from midfield for which he was initially pencilled down, and the couple of injuries from Friday’s match, Rohr has had to extend invitation to Hungary –based Vincent Onovo to fight for his first cap. Onovo arrived in the team hotel just after dinner on Sunday.

A three-man defenceline is in the offing, with perhaps Chidozie Awaziem, who impressed in that unit on Friday, Abdullahi and Ozornwafor. Another late invitee, Anthony Izuchukwu, from Slovakia, is another possibility. A loaded midfield could include Onovo, with Wilfred Ndidi, Oghenekaro Etebo, Samson Tijani and Abraham Marcus also on the roll.

Home –based professional Anayo Iwuala could start, with Paul Onuachu, Peter Olayinka, Kelechi Iheanacho, Alex Iwobi, Moses Simon, Terem Moffi and Captain Ahmed Musa also to taste action.

After Friday’s game, Rohr told the media: “We missed seven key players due to injuries, so it was not our best team, but it was good to see other players. We are not happy to lose the game, but we saw some interesting new young players.”

Friday’s defeat was Rohr’s first loss to Cameroon in four matches. The Eagles pounded the Lions 4-0 in Uyo and were held 1-1 in Yaounde in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches in September 2017, and then edged the Lions 3-2 in the Round of 16 at the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt two years ago.

Though a friendly game, fierce rivals Cameroon were very happy to prevail over Nigeria for the first time since winning the Africa Cup of Nations final on penalty shoot-out in Lagos 21 years ago. “We took the game seriously because we played against a tough opponent, a big game against a big rival. It was important for us to show our preparations, and I’m happy we won,” said Cameroon’s Germany-based striker Eric Choupo-Moting.

A sense of purpose to win the second game reigns supreme in the Eagles’ Hilton Garden Inn camp in Wiener Neustadt, 46 kilometres outside Vienna.

After a one-hour training session in the light drizzle on Sunday morning, the three-time African champions will have their last training session at the match venue on Monday evening. Captain Ahmed Musa says defeat in Tuesday’s game is not an option.

“We are not happy to have created so many chances and fail to score. We will approach the game differently on Tuesday. Cameroon is a big rival and we are not happy to have lost the game on Friday.”

Goalkeeper Maduka Okoye told thenff.com: “We bave taken some positives from the first match against Cameroon. We had a good game and it was unfortunate that they scored with just that one shot on target. However, we have shown that we are ready for the AFCON with the strength of character we showed after conceding the goal. We are ready to go for it on Tuesday.”

New-boy Abraham Marcus said it was a dream come true for him to join up with the Nigeria camp. “When the coach introduced me into the game, all I had in mind was to help the team get the equalizer. I look forward to another opportunity on Tuesday.”

Both teams have qualified for the finals of the 33rd Africa Cup of Nations, which Cameroon will host in January 2022. Nigeria finished top of their group winning four of six matches and drawing two, while Cameroon also topped theirs though they had already qualified as hosts.

The two teams are using both matches to look at their general shape, form and structure ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches starting in September.  

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