Coup Plot: Former Interim President Of Bolivia Arrested

By

Angel Gimalo

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March 13, 2021

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Former interim president of Bolivia, Jeanine Áñez and several ex-ministers have been arrested.

Prosecutors say she and the ministers took part in a coup against the then President Evo Morales in 2019.

Morales resigned and fled Bolivia after protests and allegations of electoral fraud.

Áñez has said she is the victim of a political vendetta by Morales’s Mas Socialist party, which has since returned to power.

The party won a landslide victory in presidential and congressional elections in October last year, paving the way for Morales to return to Bolivia from Argentina and take over the leadership of the Mas party.

Morales fled Bolivia in November 2019 after weeks of violent protests and after losing the backing of the military over his controversial re-election to a fourth term in office.

Several of his allies in senior posts also left the country.

Thomas Tuchel insists he’s not the police, scraps strict Frank Lampard policy

By

Henry Williams

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March 13, 2021

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Chelsea have witnessed a rejuvenation under Thomas Tuchel since his arrival in January after the sacking of Frank Lampard with the Blues in the top four of the Premier League.

Thomas Tuchel is said to have scrapped Frank Lampard’s strict disciplinary sheet and insisted he is “not the police”.

Lampard’s regime saw a list of fines and charges for poor discipline.

One of the punishments included a £20,000 charge for being late to training as well as being fined £500 for every minute a player is late for a team meeting.

Tuchel has decided to adopt a different strategy and has placed his trust in the Chelsea squad to keep their own discipline.

He said: “I have no complaints – everybody has been on time, nobody was ever late for a meeting or out on the pitch.

“I’m more into trusting and feeling the same values and convincing them about the values than setting the rules and fines.

“I’m not against fines but I think it should be something in the dressing room…. when you arrive and have an appointment with the physio or doctor you arrive on time.

When Tuchel took over, the blues were ninth in the Premier League but in a twist of fortunes now sit fourth in the table and have a chance to strengthen their grip of a Champions League spot with a victory over Leeds United today.

N42bn debt: banks’ USSD services face disconnection by Telcos

By

Henry Williams

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March 13, 2021

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The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria say telcos will disconnect Financial Service Providers from Unstructured Supplementary Service Data services from March 15 until they pay their over N42bn debt.

In a statement signed by ALTON and Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo, and Head of Operations, Gbolahan Awonuga.

ALTON explained that it became necessary to withdraw services due to the lack of agreement on a payment structure with the banks that did not involve the end-user being asked to pay.

It noted that following the issuance of the USSD pricing determination by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) which resulted in a price review of USSD service by the telcos, the banks decided that they would no longer pay for USSD service delivered to their customers and requested the telcos to charge customers directly for use of the USSD channel.

Meanwhile, the telcos complained that the banks, however, provided no assurances that such service fees charged to customers’ bank accounts for access to bank services through the USSD channel would be discontinued post implementation of end-user billing by the telcos.

The telecom operators said this was in consideration of millions of Nigerians who had become more reliant on accessing financial services through the USSD infrastructure due to COVID movement restrictions.

Eritrea Frees 21 Female Christian Prisoners

By

Angel Gimalo

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March 13, 2021

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In Africa’s east, Eritrea has released 21 female Christian prisoners but the country’s forces stand accused of attacking churches in the troubled Tigray region of neighboring Ethiopia.

The women, all reportedly young mothers, had been held in an island prison on the Red Sea since last August.

They were arrested in 2017 after a series of raids on underground churches by the Eritrean authorities.

Many of their husbands were conscripts, leaving their children without anyone to care for them, human rights group Release International reports.

They are the latest Christians to be freed from prison in a string of unexpected prisoner releases over the past half-year.

Achebe’s ‘Things Fall Apart’ now translated in Ekegusii

By

Henry Williams

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March 13, 2021

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Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart (1958), has been translated by Jane Bosibori Obuchi-Marando, under the title Binto Mbisebererekani (A-Frame Publishers, 2020) in recent publication in Ekegusii language.
Chinua Achebe’s novels such as A Man of The People (Mwakilishi wa Watu), No Longer At Ease (Hamkani si Shwari Tena), Arrow of God (Mshale wa Mungu) and Things Fall Apart (Shujaa Okonkwo), already exist as Kiswahili translations, however Ms Obuchi’s Binto Mbisebererekani is possibly the second translation of Achebe’s novel into another Kenyan language – apart from Kiswahili.

Interestingly, despite the literary work being translated into over 50 languages across the world – and sold more than 10 million copies, the work has not been translated into Achebe’s own (m)other tongue – Igbo language.

In the advent of Things Fall Apart more than 60 years ago, it raised a debate within the literary community about language choice in African fiction.
More because of the late literary giants position that it was possible to transform English in such a way that it would represent African reality.

From 1919, when W.B. Yeats wrote his poem in 1958 when Achebe penned Things Fall Apart for almost four decades. In 1993, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, who abandoned writing his creative works in English in the 1980s, published a collection of 21 essays under the title: Moving the Centre: The Struggle for Cultural Freedom (James Carrey, London). The tone and echoes in Ngugi’s essays is a recommendation of a very simple but yet radical suggestion on how to confront the ‘problematic centre’: Why not move the centre?

Ms Jane Obuchi-Marando’s effort to translate Things Fall Apart experience into Ekegusii can be seen as an endorsement of Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s crusade of defending African languages in general and decolonising the African mind in particular.

Ms Jane Obuchi-Marando, a career teacher, has written other works such as Endabasia Y’echinkwana Chi’Ekegusii (A Dictionary of Ekegusii Phrasal Verbs ), Ekegusii Nekiya (Ekegusii is A Good Language) and Emegano y’Abana (Children Stories), among other works.

More kudos to her for embarking on this library expedition that expands the frontiers of the African experience and strengthens our heritage through language.

Nigeria’s Amaju Pinnick Confirmed FIFA Council Member

By

Emenike Agu

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March 13, 2021

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President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Melvin Pinnick, was on Friday in Rabat, Morocco elected into the FIFA Council – the highest decision-making organ in world football.

He attained the exalted seat after defeating his only rival, incumbent Walter Nyamilandu of Malawi by 43 votes to 8 at the Congress held inside the Royal Ballroom of the Sofitel Hotel in Morocco’s administrative capital.

our of Pinnick’s five rivals, Lamin Kaba Bajo (The Gambia), Wallace Karia (Tanzania), Nick Mwendwa (Kenya) and Andrew Kamanga (Zambia) threw in the towel before the vote and opted to back the Nigerian.

General Secretary of Nigeria Football Federation, Dr Mohammed Sanusi cast Nigeria’s vote.

It is a remarkable case of rapid global football boardroom upliftment for a man who, a little over six-and-half years ago, had no intention of contesting for even board membership of the Nigeria Football Federation, but has now been in the post for six-and-half years (becoming the first person to democratically secure a second term), won election as Member of the CAF Executive Committee, served as CAF’s 1^st Vice President, still serving as Member of the Organizing Committee for FIFA Competitions, and now a revered member of the world’s highest decision-making organ for football.

Pinnick’s entry into the 37-member FIFA Council came at the 43^rd Ordinary and Elective General Assembly of CAF, and was accomplished hours after the man he supported for the CAF Presidency, Dr Patrice Motsepe of South Africa, mounted the ‘throne’ unchallenged. Motsepe’s challengers Augustine Senghor of Senegal, Ahmed Yahya of Mauritania and Jacques Anouma of Cote d’Ivoire had all withdrawn from the race before today’s poll.

The elevation is for a four-year term, and automatically makes Pinnick a Member of the Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football.

A man who sets and pursues his vision doggedly, Pinnick thus becomes only the third Nigerian to serve in world football’s highest decision-making body, after the late Etubom Oyo Orok Oyo and Dr Amos Adamu.

The quest by the suave and effervescent football administrator for the seat was solidly backed by the Government of Nigeria, which delegation, led by the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, Nebolisa Anako was on ground in Morocco.

A mining billionaire who is also into banking and telecommunications and has businesses in 40 African countries, Dr Patrice Thlopane Motsepe is also the owner of top South African club, Mamelodi Sundowns.

In his acceptance speech, Motsepe expressed gratitude to the African football family for his attainment of the position, saying it is a huge honour to serve African football at the highest level. “All of us can and will work together,” he said, underscoring the need for team work, collaboration and sense of togetherness as he praised Senghor, Yahya and Anouma who withdrew from the race.

Reactions trail flurry of new US Federal spending, UK extends over £50bn Government Spending

By

Elizabeth Williams

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March 12, 2021

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The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 is a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus package proposed by President Joe Biden to speed up the United States’ recovery from the economic and health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing recession. Though The American Rescue Plan builds upon previously enacted aid measures in 2020; The bill Provides $350 billion to help states, counties, cities and tribal governments cover increased expenditures, replenish lost revenue and mitigate economic harm from the COVID-19 pandemic.
State and local government recipients could use the funds to cover costs incurred by Dec. 31, 2024. The funds would be distributed in two tranches, with 50% delivered no later than 60 days from the date of enactment.
The 220-to-211 vote in the House of Representatives on wednesday, almost entirely along party lines sends to President Biden’s desk one of the largest economic rescue packages in U.S. history, which Democrats had promised to pass as one of their first acts of governance after securing narrow but potent majorities in Washington during the 2020 presidential election.
Republicans banded together in opposition on Wednesday, much as they had against an earlier version of the proposal in the House last month.
In an earlier press briefing, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) described the package as “wildly expensive” and “largely unrelated to the problem,” echoing consistent criticism from the GOP that the bill contains unnecessary provisions that are unrelated to the public health crisis and carries a price tag that is much too steep. McConnell added that the package will discourage workers from returning to work.

Furlough scheme: Over £50bn UK Government Spending
Meanwhile in the United Kingdom Budget 2021; Chancellor Rishi Sunak extends furlough scheme.
Rishi Sunak said the scheme – which pays 80% of employees’ wages for the hours they cannot work in the pandemic – would help millions through “the challenging months ahead”.
More than 11 million people have been furloughed at some point since the coronavirus job support scheme was first set up last March — around a third of the UK workforce. An estimated 4.7 million people were on furlough at the end of January, according to the Treasury. The scheme has cost the government over £50bn ($69bn) to date.
Some 600,000 more self-employed people will also be eligible for government help as access to grants is widened.

UK Stops Recruitment of Medical Professionals From Nigeria And 46 Other Countries.

By

faith Jegede

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March 12, 2021

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The United Kingdom has updated its medical code of practice (CoP) which suspends the recruitment of doctors and nurses from Nigeria and 46 other countries.

According to the document “There must be no active recruitment from the countries on the list, unless there is an explicit government-to-government agreement with the UK to support managed recruitment activities that are undertaken strictly in compliance with the terms of that agreement.

“Government-to-government agreements must make sure that migration to the UK does not exacerbate existing health and social care workforce shortages. Agreements will be informed by the best evidence, including a health labor market analysis, engagement with health sector stakeholders in countries of origin and consultation with WHO”.

“Skilled and experienced health and social care personnel are a valuable resource to any country, and for some low and lower middle-income countries increasing scale of health and social care worker migration threatens the achievement of national health care goals”. While this might seems like the update is aimed at improving the welfare of the countries in question, the document further highlights that “International migration of health and social care personnel can make a contribution to the development and strengthening of health and social care systems to both countries of origin and destination countries if recruitment is managed properly.”

The document also states that the UK aims at increasing the amount of home grown nurses and general practitioners by a lot and have put machinery in place to encourage those who have left to come back.

The document describes ‘active international recruitment’ “as the process by which UK health and social care employers, contracting bodies, agencies and sub-contractors target individuals, either physically or virtually, to market UK employment opportunities, leading to UK employment in the health or social care sector. This can include, but is not limited to, advertising to candidates through all types of communication mediums, ‘incentivisation’ activities such as referral bonus schemes and referring candidates to specific vacancies in the UK in return for a fee from the employing organisation. Recruitment organisations are not allowed to charge fees to the individual employee.”

The 47 countries include: Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Kiribati, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Federated States of Micronesia, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua, New Guinea, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania,Togo, Uganda, Vanuatu, Yemen.

Kidnapping is now a lucrative business and students are the goldmine – Shehu Sani

By

Chris Ottah

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March 12, 2021

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Former Kaduna Central Senator, Shehu Sani, has described kidnapping as a thriving business.

Sani said kidnapping is now a lucrative business with students as its “stocks and goldmine.”

In a tweet, the former lawmaker warned against underestimating the issue of kidnapping in the country.

According to Sani: “When they said that the Jangebe Kidnappings would be the last, it’s clear that they really underestimated the enormity and gravity of the problem.

“Kidnapping is now a thriving lucrative business and students are now their stocks and Goldmine.”

His remark is coming at a time some unknown gunmen had abducted students of the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation in Mando, Kaduna State.

Confirming the incident to journalists, the state’s Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Mohammed Jalige had said the exact number of students abducted is currently uncertain

Meanwhile, bandits had abducted students of Government Girls Science Secondary School, GGSS, in Jangebe, Talata Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

The bandits, however, released the girls following the assistance of some repentant bandits and security agents.

I will succeed Buhari in 2023 – Rochas Okorocha

By

Chris Ottah

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March 12, 2021

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Senator Rochas Okorocha, representing the Imo West Senatorial District, has said that he will succeed President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023.

The former governor of Imo State, stated this when a group of youth under the umbrella of ‘Forward with Anayo Rochas Okorocha (FOWARO 2023)’ visited him in Abuja, the nations capital.

Okorocha who stated that he had contested for the office three times but failed at the primary level, expressed optimism of winning the race in 2023.

He said he aspired to become president of Nigeria long ago, stressing that the first time he picked the presidential ticket was over 20 years back under the platform of ANPP.

“I have contested for the office of the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria three times.

“The first time, l ran when l was very young; 20 years ago, and l ran on the platform of ANPP. Later, l ran on the platform of the PDP where l came second and the last one was APC in 2014.

“So, l have been in the business of running for this office. This time, it will be the fourth attempt. I am hoping to be the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“Every time l started, l got stopped at the primary level, but this time around when l do run, l must win the race,” he said.

Okorocha is one of the founding fathers of the All Progressives Congress, APC, which came into force prior to the 2015 general election.