Macron, Merkel Demand Explanations From US, Denmark Over Spying Report

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May 31, 2021

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday that they expected the US and Danish governments to present explanations over allegations of spying by Washington on European allies with Copenhagen’s aid.

Macron after a French-German summit meeting held via video conference between Paris and Berlin said this is not acceptable between allies, and even less between allies and European partners,”.

Macron said he was attached to the bond of trust that unites Europeans and Americans,”, adding that “there is no room for suspicion between us.”

“That is why what we are waiting for complete clarity. We requested that our Danish and American partners provide all the information on these revelations and on these past facts. We are awaiting these answers,” he said.

Giving her position, Merkel said she “could only agree” with the comments of the French leader.

In an investigative report on Sunday, Danish public broadcaster Danmarks Radio (DR) and other European media outlets said the US National Security Agency (NSA) had eavesdropped on Danish underwater internet cables from 2012 to 2014 to spy on top politicians in Germany, Sweden, Norway and France.

The NSA was able to access text messages, telephone calls and internet traffic including searches, chats and messaging services — including those of Merkel, then-foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and then-opposition leader Peer Steinbruck, DR said.

Merkel said at the summit that she was “reassured” by statements by the Danish government, especially Defence Minister Trine Bramsen, condemning such actions.

Myanmar Journalist To Seek Asylum In Spain

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Zoe Maven

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May 31, 2021

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Myanmar correspondent Mratt Kyaw is set to arrive in Madrid on Tuesday where he will for asylum after fleeing the military junta in Yangon.

The 30-year-old correspondent, who will travel to Spain after failing to obtain asylum in Germany, won AFP’s Kate Webb award in 2017 for his outstanding coverage of the ethnic and religious conflicts in Myanmar.

According to the Spanish news agency EFE, which he worked for, Mratt Kyaw said the junta issued an arrest warrant for the reporter, forcing him to seek safety abroad.

Mratt, who has worked for EFE since 2018, criticised the military junta which overthrew civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1. He has spent four weeks in a detention centre and would tomorrow fly from Frankfurt to Madrid to ask for asylum in Spain.

A spokesman for Spain’s interior ministry said Mratt’s arrival had not been officially registered but would be treated according to international law.

Reporters Without Borders spokeswoman in Germany Katja Gloger said the interior ministry there had been asked to handle the asylum request after stressing the journalist’s life was in danger.

Myanmar has been in uproar since the putsch, with near-daily protests and a nationwide civil disobedience movement with over 800 people being killed by the military, according to a local monitoring group.

The press has been caught in the crackdown as the junta tries to tighten control over the flow of information.

Myanmar ranked 140 out of 180 countries in the 2021 Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index.

Laurent Gbagbo Plans To Return To Ivory Coast On June 17

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Zoe Maven

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May 31, 2021

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Former Ivourian President Laurent Gbagbo is making a come-back to politics with plans to return home on June 17 following his acquittal on charges of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court, ICC

Assoa Adou, the leader of a pro-Gbagbo party, announced the date of the former President’s home-coming in front of a crowd that had come to celebrate Gbagbo’s birthday in Abidjan.

Gbagbo, who turned 76 on Monday, served as president from 2000 until his arrest in 2011, after his refusal to concede electoral defeat to Ouattara. Post-election violence spiralled into a civil war that claimed the lives of 3,000 people.

On March 31 the ICC upheld a 2019 decision which ruled prosecutors had failed to present enough evidence to prove their case against Gbagbo and Charles Ble Goude, a former youth leader and one of his aides.

In April President Alassane Ouattara said Gbango was free to return from the Hague but did not say whether Gbagbo had been pardoned.

Analysts say Gbagbo’s return could be complicated by an outstanding 20-year sentence given to him in absentia in November 2019 by an Ivorian court for misappropriating funds from the regional central bank.

Kante responds to Ballon d’or nomination call after UCL win

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Henry Williams

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May 31, 2021

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N’golo Kante has distanced himself from suggestions from fans that he should be nominated for this year’s Ballon d’Or.

The Frenchman was instrumental as Chelsea ended the 2020/2021 season as Champions of Europe. He was everywhere on the pitch against Manchester City.

The Former Leicester City Midfielder won the man of the match award in the second leg of the Knockout round against Atletico Madrid. He won the man of the match award in both legs of the Semi-final clash with Real Madrid. He also won the award in the Final against Manchester City at Estadio do Dragao Stadium in Porto.

Ngolo Kante is now being tipped by many as an early contender to win the Ballon d’Or later this year.

According to the report from Metro Sport, he said:

“The man of the match award is secondary. The main thing is the work of the whole group. It is pride and joy. We fought to qualify for the Final and we have received the reward for our hard work”

He was asked if he could potentially be nominated for the Ballon d’or this year. He replied:

“No, for the moment, we are savouring the UEFA Champions League trophy. I will join with France’s squad soon for the European Championship. I hope to win that as well”

2023: North East youth group endorse Kogi governor for president

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Henry Williams

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May 31, 2021

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A coalition of groups from Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe State called the North East Youth Coalition Group, has called on the Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello to run for the 2023 presidential election.

Chairman of the coalition Alhaji Salisu Magaji made call when he led members of the groups to address a press conference at Zaranda Hotel in Bauchi, saying that Magaji Governor Bello is youth, energetic, focused and a charismatic leader that believes in uniting the country for sustainable development.

Magaji explained that said the coalition decided to support the Governor because it believes that he has a vision to address the socio economic and political challenges facing the country for peace, unity and stability.

He said members of the coalition after their deliberation, commended Bello, fir his foresight and patriotism and explained that its high time for youth to lead this country.

JAMB says candidates to pay N700 for mock UTME slated for June 3

By

Henry Williams

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May 31, 2021

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The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced that candidates should pay the sum of N700 to their assigned Computer Based Test centres before taking their mock Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) on Thursday, June 3, 2021.

The payment is different from the N3,500 fee paid by the candidates for the UTME forms and N500 for reading text.

This disclosure is contained in a statement issued by JAMB through a tweet post on its official Twitter handle on Monday, May 31, 2021.

The tweet post from JAMB reads, “All candidates sitting the 2021 Mock examination scheduled for Thursday, 3rd June 2021 are advised to go to their assigned centres with N700.

The amount would be paid to the Centre owner as the mock examination fee,” the examination body said.

IPOB’s sit-at-home order: Total compliance in Nnamdi Kanu’s home state, Abia

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Henry Williams

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May 31, 2021

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Residents of Umuahia, the Abia State capital, on Monday, complied totally with the sit-at-home order by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

Correspondents recall that the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), led by the Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, had ordered a sit-at-home on May 31st across states in the South-East in honour of the over 5 million Biafrans massacred during the 1967- 1970 civil war.

A statement by IPOB spokesman, Emma Powerful quoted the leader of the group, Nnamdi Kanu as saying, “we announce again, that this year’s annual Biafra Remembrance Day and candlelight procession will take place on Sunday night 30th of May, while at sit at home and total lockdown takes place on Monday, 31st May, 2021, and not May 30th as earlier announced.

However, following the sit-at-home order by the IPOB, correspondents who toured the major cities in the state to monitor the execution of the directive reports that there was total compliance as major busy markets, banks, motor parks and other commercial places, including schools and government offices were under lock and key.

Police: How explosion rocked Rivers market, injured two

By

Henry Williams

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May 31, 2021

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Police in Rivers State have confirmed that explosion rocked Mile 3 market in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area of the state.

The Police Public Relations Officer of the Command, Nnamdi Omoni, in a statement on behalf of the Commissioner of Police in the State, Friday Eboka, disclosed that two people were injured in the explosion.

The incident which happened around 6:30am, Monday, was alleged to have left several people injured.Omoni noted that the explosive believed to be dynamite had exploded when a shop owner had opened her shop in the market in the early hours of Monday, adding that two children were injured.

He said: “The Rivers State Police Command can confirm that there was an explosion this morning at the Mile 3 Market in the Port Harcourt Local Government Area of the State

Chipper Cash: A look into Africa’s fintech unicorn contenders

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Henry Williams

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May 31, 2021

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There is no better way to announce a thriving sector than to become a unicorn – a company with a $1 billion valuation – in just three years of being established as a business.

Three years, that is what it has taken San-Francisco-based Chipper Cash founded by Kenyan duo, Ham Serunjogi, and Maijid Moujaled to amass 4 million customers, be present in seven African countries, and close to $152 million in total funding.

The latest funding that confirmed Chipper Cash’s seat on the unicorn table in Africa, as reported by TechCrunch, was a $100 million Series C round led by SVB Capital, a US-based venture capital (VC) firm.

Although Chipper Cash founders are not able to confirm the unicorn status, TechCrunch estimates that the company could be the most valuable company in Africa, with a valuation in the region of $1-2 billion.

If Chipper Cash has indeed joined the unicorn club as TechCrunch projected, it would be the second company doing so in 2021. Flutterwave in March when it raised a Series C round of $170 million to improve its technology, product, customer support, expand to new frontiers, and continue to support shops on its Store to sell to global markets. The funding was led by Avenir Growth Capital and Tiger Global Management LLC.

Nigeria’s NAFEX adoption may be long walk from full unification

By

Henry Williams

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May 31, 2021

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The move by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Tuesday that saw the regulator adopt the NAFEX rate of N410.25 per US dollar on its website received accolades from many industry players as they tagged it a ‘major step’ towards full exchange rate unification.

But, analysts say though commendable, it was nothing more than recognising what was due for recognition as more than 90 percent of economic transactions were already using the rate long before it was updated on Tuesday.

The government had since March adopted the Investors and Exporters window rate (also known as the NAFEX rate) for gouvernement transactions, the CBN retained the old N379 per dollar official rate on its website, which created some confusion for investors.

The CBN pulled down the rate two weeks ago and has followed cette action up by officially adopting the I&E window rate on its site web where the naira is quoted at a weaker rate of N410.25 per dollar.

Issues around liquidity and restriction on dollar deposits and usage are bigger challenges to full unification than merely recognising an overdue update on the CBN website, analysts said.

Nigeria, unlike it African peers has continued to operate multiple exchange rate window. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council hold the view that ditching the multiple exchange rate practice, which Nigeria started in 2016 in reaction to lower oil prices, will open up the economy to badly-needed investments.

A Lagos-based economist believes the efforts at regulation of use only create artificial scarcity and ultimately keeps driving the rate down against the dollar.