They threatened to kill, fry and eat us – Released schoolgirl shares heart-wrenching experience

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March 2, 2021

One Hafsat Anka, a victim of Zamfara Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe, abduction, has disclosed that their abductors threatened to kill, fry and eat them if they misbehaved.

Shortly after regaining freedom, Hafsat told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that they trekked over a long distance from the school, and had a stopover for some hours before they reached their destination.

The student who said she would continue her studies as a day student revealed that the bandits wore military uniforms and claimed they defeated the security officials by invading the school.

“There was no clean water or good food, and we felt we had already spent years even though it was our first day and the bandits kept firing into the air to scare us.

“They were very young boys with one elder they called Kasalle or Yaya who gave them instructions, and he was the one that stopped them from touching any of us,” Hafsat added.

Salihu Tanko Yakasai released from DSS’ custody

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Chris Ottah

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March 2, 2021

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The former media aide to the governor of Kano, Salihu Tanko Yakasai, has been released from the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).

TheCable confirmed Yakasai’s release from DSS custody on Monday evening.

The former media aide was picked up by the agency over the weekend, after he made a post on social media, asking the President Muhammadu Buhari administration to resign over insecurity.

Yakasai, who was sacked on Saturday by Abdullahi Ganduje, governor of Kano, had called on the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration to resign from office, following the abduction of more than 300 students from Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe, Zamfara state.

The 317 schoolgirls, who were abducted by bandits on February 26, have not yet been freed.

“Clearly, we as [the] APC government, at all levels, have failed Nigerians in the number 1 duty we were elected to do which is to secure lives & properties. Not a single day goes by without some sort of insecurity in this land. This is a shame! Deal with terrorists decisively or resign,” Yakasai had tweeted.

Hours after the post, his whereabouts raised concern on social media, after which Peter Afunanya, DSS spokesman, confirmed to TheCable that the former media aide was was in the agency’s custody.

“This is to confirm that Salihu Tanko-Yakasai is with the Department of State Services. He is being investigated over issues beyond the expression of opinions in the social media as wrongly alleged by sections of the public,” Afunanya had said.

The lovely Grace Adichie dies at 78.

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faith Jegede

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March 2, 2021

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The mother of renowned writer, Chimamanda Adichie, Mrs. Grace Ifeoma Adichie has passed away at the age of 78.

Mrs Grace Adichie was the first female registrar of the University of Nigeria Nsuka, a position she held from 1995.

She was appointed Assistant Secretary, Cabinet Office, Enugu between 1972 and 1973.She was also the Assistant Division Officer, Nsukka Urban, from June-December 1973;

Her other positions include, Admin Officer II, University of Nigeria Nsuka from 1973-75 & Admin Officer I, University of Nigeria Nsuka between 1975-77; Assistant Registrar from 1977-79; Senior Assistant Registrar from 1979-81; Principal Assistant Registrar between 1981- 85; and Deputy Registrar from 1985-95.

Her husband, Prof. James Nwoye, who was the first professor of statistics in Nigeria, had passed away in June of last year. The two had been married for 56 years and had done many interviews on their individual achievements and their achievements as a couple, prior to his death.

Presently, she is survived by 6 children and 9 grand-children. She is said to have passed away suddenly on the 1st of March, 2021.

IPOB: NBC jams Radio Biafra signals in Lagos

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Chris Ottah

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March 2, 2021

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Word out is that the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has jammed the signals of a pirate radio claiming to be ‘Radio Biafra’ in most parts of Lagos, an official of NBC has said.

Mr Ekanem Antia, the Deputy Director, Public Affairs of NBC, made the disclosure in a statement by the management of the commission on Monday in Abuja.

Antia explained that the illegal radio which broadcast incendiary messages was notorious for spewing fake, inflammatory and inciting content.

“The NBC Act, CAP N11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 spells out in chapter two, subsection two, that: No person shall operate or use any apparatus or premises for the transmission of sound or vision by cable, television, radio, satellite or any other medium of broadcast, from anywhere in Nigeria, except under and in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

“Also, Section 15.4.1 of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code provides that:

“The police shall prosecute any person engaged in any form of broadcasting or in possession of any broadcast equipment or apparatus in the country without a licence or permit for the purpose,” he said.

According to him, the commission, therefore, warns the general public that anybody who attempts to operate broadcasting in Nigeria without legal authorisation of the NBC will be prosecuted and the equipment, confiscated according to Law.

Antia stated that the Department of State Security and the Nigerian Police had been requested to bring the culprits behind the illegality to book.

Abducted Jangebe schoolgirls finally regain freedom

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Chris Ottah

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March 2, 2021

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The schoolgirls kidnapped from Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe in Talatu-Mafara local government area of Zamfara state have been released.

Over 300 of the schoolgirls were kidnapped after gunmen invaded the school in the wee hours of the morning last Friday.

There was speculation about their release at the weekend, but the Zamfara state government dismissed the rumour as fake news.

But on Tuesday, the state government announced that the schoolgirls have been released.

”Alhamdulillah! It gladdens my heart to announce the release of the abducted students of GGSS Jangebe from captivity. This follows the scaling of several hurdles laid against our efforts. I enjoin all well-meaning Nigerians to rejoice with us as our daughters are now safe,” Bello Matawalle, the governor, tweeted.

https://twitter.com/Bellomatawalle1/status/1366603841521778691/photo/1

The Jangebe abductions happened a few days after 27 schoolboys have kidnapped from Government Science College, Kagara, Niger state.

Captives from both incidents have regain freedom.

Attacks targeting schools have become often since last December when schoolboys were kidnapped from Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina state. They were released a few days later.

President Muhammadu Buhari has promised that the Jangebe schoolgirls’ abduction will be the last of such abductions in the country.

Insecurity: Osinbajo has been left out of Buhari’s government – Bamgbose

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Chris Ottah

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March 1, 2021

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Olusegun Bamgbose, Esq., National Coordinator, Concerned Advocates for Good Governance, CAGG, on Monday claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari has left Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo out of the scheme of things.

According to him, Osinbajo is no longer part of the decision-making caucus of the current administration, a situation he described as “embarrassing.”

“It’s quite embarrassing that the Vice President of Nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has been left out of the scheme of things,” Bamgbose revealed on Monday.

“He is not consulted or allowed to air his views about the security situation of the country.”

The senior lawyer accused the cabals of playing politics with the lives of the citizens, wondering how a government can comfortably be paying ransom to bandits all the time.

Bamgbose noted that at this point, the bandits seem to have discovered that the abduction of students is becoming very lucrative.

“I have this strong feeling that he knows what to do to suppress the bandits, but most unfortunately, he is not carried along in the scheme of things. The cabals seem to be playing politics with the lives of the citizens. How can a government be paying ransom to bandits all the time?” he queried.

“The insecurity situation ravaging the entire country is quite worrisome. The Federal Government seem to be helpless as killings, abductions and kidnappings continue unabated.

“The situation no doubt has seriously affected the foreign investments. Foreign investors are no longer interested in Nigeria in view of the security challenges.

“Many have strongly criticised the Buhari’s administration for poor handling of the situation, but no visible and positive change. Things are getting worse day by day.

“The bandits are on a daily basis wrecking havoc on the citizens. The security agents are confused as to what to do to curtail the nefarious activities of the bandits and gunmen.”

Okonjo-Iweala reacts as Swiss newspaper apologise over ‘grandmother’ headline

By

Cleopatra Okohai

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March 1, 2021

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Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the first woman and first African to lead the World Trade Organization on Monday welcomed an apology from a Swiss newspaper that had dismissed the seasoned international professional as a grandmother.

“It is important & timely that they’ve apologised,” Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said in a tweet.

We need to call out this behavior when it happens. This is precisely what my book Women & Leadership coauthored with @JuliaGillard talks about – the stereotypes women face when they take on leadership positions.
— Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (@NOIweala) February 28, 2021

The development economist took over as the new WTO chief on Monday after a long, high-powered career serving as minister of finance and foreign affairs in her native Nigeria and 25 years at the World Bank.

But when several Swiss newspapers announced her appointment last month, they decided the most noteworthy thing to mention about the new WTO chief was as a matriarch.

“This grandmother will become the boss of the WTO,” read the headline of the article published by the Aargauer Zeitung and several other papers on February 9.

After a number of women heads of UN agencies and more than 120 ambassadors in Geneva last week signed a petition calling out the headline as racist and sexist, the paper apologised.

“This headline was inappropriate and unsuitable… We apologise for this editorial mistake,” the paper’s foreign editor-in-chief Samuel Schumacher said in a statement on Friday.

In her tweet, Ngozi welcomed the apology and said she was “thankful to all my sisters, UN Women Leaders and the 124 Ambassadors in Geneva who signed the petition on calling out the racist & sexist remarks in this newspaper.”

“We need to call out this behaviour when it happens,” she insisted, decrying “the stereotypes women face when they take on leadership positions.

She said the headline debacle reflected the problems raised in a book she co-authored with former Australian prime minister Julie Gillard called “Women and Leadership.”

COVID-19: Lagos extends work-from-home directive by four weeks

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Cleopatra Okohai

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March 1, 2021

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The Lagos State Government has further extended the work-from-home directive to civil servants on Salary Grade Levels 12 and below.

A statement issued by the Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola, said this is in a bid to further stem the spread of COVID-19 within the public service and other stakeholders.

He expressed the government’s delight that measures put in place to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the state has resulted in a steady decline in the number of recorded cases in the preceding weeks.

Muri-Okunola maintained that in order to sustain the success so far recorded, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has reviewed the directive to all public servants on Salary Grade Levels 12 and below for four weeks, with effect from Monday, 1st to Friday, 26th March 2021.

The HoS said the directive does not preclude any of the exempted Grade Levels from reporting for duty whenever the Accounting Officer deems it necessary.

He said, “All Public Servants are advised to continue to stay safe by observing all COVID-19 protocols such as Physical Distancing, regular use of face masks and hand hygiene.

“Also, Accounting Officers are to ensure strict adherence to all extant directives aimed to guarantee physical distancing in the workplace by preparation of weekly Duty Rosters as considered germane to effective service delivery in respective MDAs.”

The Lagos State Government has witnessed a decline in the number of infections in the recent past due to the government’s regular updates on preventive measures as well as public enlightenment campaigns to create awareness about measures to stem the spread of the deadly virus.

Chadwick Boseman’s Widow Simone Accepts His Golden Globe Award With Emotional Speech

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Koko Lawrence

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March 1, 2021

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Chadwick Boseman’s widow Taylor Simone Ledward has accepted the star’s Golden Globe on his behalf. The star passed away last year at the age of 43 after a private four-year battle with cancer.

Since his tragic passing, Chadwick has been recognised in the film industry for his stellar on-screen work as he won Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture Drama for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.

The actor beat Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal), Anthony Hopkins (The Father), Gary Oldman (Mank), and Tahar Rahim (The Mauritanian) for the gong, which his proud wife accepted in an emotional speech.

Simone said Chadwick would “thank his ancestors”, as her heartbreaking speech saw host Renée Zellweger and his Ma Rainey co-star Viola Davis shed a tear. In her words:

He would thank God. He would thank his parents, he would thank his ancestors for their guidance and their sacrifice.

Heartbroken Taylor Simone, who married the actor before his death after the pair got engaged in October 2019, said her late husband would thank “his incredible team”. She said:

He would say something beautiful, something inspiring, something that would amplify that little voice that tells you can, that tells you the keep going, that calls you back to what you are meant to be doing at this moment in history. And I don’t have his words but we have to take all the moments to celebrate those we love, so thank you HFPA for this opportunity to do exactly that. And hun… you keep em coming. Thank you.

Boseman Chadwick was diagnosed with stage III colon cancer in 2016 and secretly battled the disease. He even filmed the entire Black Panther film during his diagnosis, without telling the world of his condition.

Ghana President receives free coronavirus vaccine amidst rejection

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Cleopatra Okohai

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March 1, 2021

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President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana on Monday became the world’s first recipient of a coronavirus vaccine from Covax, a global scheme to procure and distribute inoculations for free to “poorer” countries.

“Richer” countries have surged ahead with inoculating their population, but many “poorer” countries (according to news report) are still awaiting their first vaccine doses.

“It is important that I set the example that this vaccine is safe by being the first to have it so that everybody in Ghana can feel comfortable about taking this vaccine,” the 76-year old president said before receiving a shot of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine in a live broadcast.

The first lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo also received a shot, one day before the rest of the 600,000 doses are deployed across the country.

Ghana’s food and drug authority last month authorised the Indian-made vaccine and Russia’s Sputnik V, as the government aims to target 20 of its 30 million population by year’s end.

Last Wednesday, Ghana was the first country to receive vaccines from Covax, led by Gavi the Vaccine Alliance, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI).

Some 145 participating economies are set to receive 337.2 million doses by mid-year – enough to vaccinate a little over 3% of their combined populations.

Covax has said it hopes to raise the figure to up to 27% in lower-income countries by the end of December.

Ghana has recorded 84,023 Covid-19 cases and 607 deaths since the start of the pandemic, although the true figure is believed to be higher due to lack of testing.

Schools reopened in January after a 10-month closure, but large social gatherings are banned and land and sea borders have remained closed since March 2020.

Despite the vaccine roll-out, the president said that all the current restrictions to curb the spread of the virus were to remain in place.

It is also important to note that there have also been wide concern on the safety of the coronavirus vaccine. Another angle is the need to enforce vaccine on African countries that have been labelled poor and must be aided by richer countries in procuring the vaccine.

Mistrust and patchy communication have contributed to growing scepticism about Covid-19 vaccines in African countries, with people getting warier of Covid-19 jabs than they would be of other vaccines.

The high level of skepticism and wariness can be traced to suspicion of government elites and some vaccine mishaps

One prevalent theory, for example, holds that the Covid-19 vaccines are designed to quell Africa’s population growth. The adverse effect of vaccine shots on some people further sealed the fear of covid vaccines in the heart of many.

in any case, some countries have refused to take part in vaccination. In late January, Tanzania’s President John Magufuli dismissed Covid jabs as “dangerous for our health”.