Ethiopia's PM says ending war, expanding economic links with Eritrea key for regional stability

Ethiopia's prime minister said on Wednesday that ending war and expanding economic ties with neighbouring Eritrea is critical for stability and development in the impoverished Horn of Africa region.

Abiy Ahmed's remarks followed the announcement on Tuesday by his ruling coalition that Ethiopia would fully implement a peace deal signed in 2000 and meant to end a two-year war that devolved into a stalemate resulting in huge military build up by both countries.
The pledge would entail ceding a disputed town to Eritrea. There was no sign on Wednesday that Ethiopia had begun withdrawing its troops from the town of Badme.
It is one of many policy shifts announced since the 41-year-old took office in early April, moves that could reshape Ethiopia's relations with its neighbours and have equally dramatic impacts inside the country of 100 million people.

Whether the new measures, including liberalisation of the state-controlled economy, end up addressing critical challenges from high youth unemployment to rising government debt remain to be seen. But they are shaking the country up.

"All that we have achieved from the situation of the last 20 years is tension," Abiy said.
"Neither Ethiopia nor Eritrea benefit from a stalemate. We need to expend all our efforts towards peace and reconciliation and extricate ourselves from petty conflicts and divisions and focus on eliminating poverty."

Ethiopia’s move is a “drastic departure” from its longstanding – and failed – policy, said Ahmed Soliman, Ethiopia analyst at Chatham House, a London-based thinktank.
“To see some movement is extremely positive. This is the most important latent conflict within the Horn and its resolution is important for peace and security in the region.”

NO COMMENT FROM ERITREA
Eritrea used to be a part of Ethiopia and waged a 30-year struggle for independence. The war on their shared border between 1998 and 2000 killed tens of thousands of people, caused significant displacement and the splintering of families.

Eritrea's government has not responded publicly to Addis Ababa’s offer of an olive branch late on Tuesday. The two nations cut ties during the war.
Asmara's Information Minister told Reuters on Tuesday evening he had not seen the Ethiopian government's statement so could not immediately comment. He did not respond to phone calls on Wednesday.

Eritrea has long said it wants Ethiopia to pull its troops out from the disputed territory before normalizing ties, citing a decision by a boundary commission at The Hague which awarded the village of Badme to Eritrea in 2002.
Asmara has long felt betrayed by world powers, who they say failed to force Ethiopia to abide by the commission ruling.

Ethiopia says the row over border demarcation can only be resolved through a negotiated settlement.
On Tuesday, an Ethiopian foreign ministry official told Reuters that there were "at least 61 attempts" to mediate between the two nations, but that Asmara had rejected all requests.
Russia, the European Union, and Qatar were among those that proposed to mediate in the last two decades, he said.

Abiy said Ethiopia needed to resolve what he seemed to view as a costly and pointless dispute.
"Putting an end to this situation and finding peace is necessary beyond anything else not just for Ethiopia but for the wider Horn of Africa," he said in a speech in Addis Ababa.

"Every Ethiopian should realise that it is expected of us to be a responsible government that ensures stability in our region, one that takes the initiative to connect the brotherly peoples of both countries and expands trains, buses and economic ties between Asmara and Addis Ababa."
Diplomats say punitive measures taken against Eritrea may prevent an immediate conclusion to the dispute.

The U.N. Security Council imposed an arms embargo on Eritrea in 2009 on charges that Asmara provided political, financial and logistical support to militant groups in Somalia. Eritrea has long dismissed the claims, saying they are concocted by Addis Ababa in a bid to isolate the country and divert attention from Ethiopia's reluctance to hand over the disputed areas.

"The Eritrean government has always proclaimed its innocence and will demand that the sanctions are promptly lifted. This could be a sticking point for now," said a Western diplomat in Ethiopia.

"Sometimes I am ashamed to be called a Nigerian "- Peter Okoye reacts to FG's plan to stop entertainers from shooting their videos abroad

Peter Okoye of P-square has reacted to plans by the Federal government to stop entertainers from shooting their music videos abroad. Lai Mohammed disclosed this during a meeting with Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON)  House in Lagos yesterday, July 15th.

President Buhari absent from FEC meeting again,VP Osinbajo presides

President Buhari is absent from the Federal Executive Council meeting currently holding at the cuncil chambers in Aso Rock Abuja. This would be the third week Presidnet Buhari has not attended the meeting. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who is prsiding over the meeting, started off proceedings with the call for the recitation of the National anthem at exactly 11am.

President Buhari might however attend the meeting before it closes.

Last week, Lai Mohammed informed Nigerians that Presidnet Buhari needed some time to rest and would be working from home. He is yet to address state house correspondents on why President Buhari failed to attend the meeting again today.

Wanted Matharoo sisters speak on their arresr, the video apology they made and how they escaped from Nigeria with Temporary visas

Indian sisters, Jyoti and Kiran Matharoo were arrested in 2016, and they admitted on camera to being the owners behind the now defunct damaging website, NaijaGistLive.com and apologized to Femi Otedola, his family and other petitioners they had written damaging stories or attempted to extort money from. They also claimed that stories written on the site were sent in by close friends or associates of people written about. (See here).
Now, they are claiming they are innocent and were coerced into making the apology video where they admitted to owning NGL...



They were arraigned before a magistrate court in Yaba and granted bail in the sum of N500,000 each and two sureties each. The police seized a laptop, a camera and 2 Canadian passports from the sisters. However, at a second hearing into the case in January 2017, the sisters did not appear in court.
In an interview with CTV News Toronto, they claim to were blindsided with the allegations and apology video, and the Canadian embassy issued a temporary visa which they used to leave Nigeria.

"No phones, denied a lawyer, denied the embassy, kept on the floor, scared for my life," are the memories the sisters have of the incident. "We just decided to speak because everyone thinks we are missing, dead or worse," Jyoti said. "I was yelling and saying show me an arrest warrant, show me something with my name on it but they didn't have any identification," Kiran said. “The way the media reported it, they called us sex workers, prostitutes and escorts. I’ve never done anything like that." Jyoti said. "In Femi's actual statement, our names are not listed, just Babatunde Oyebode (who provided web security for the damaging website)," she added.
"Right after that they took us in for questioning. They put us in a jail cell overnight for eight hours, there was rats in  there, 11 other girls, two pieces of foam and I was crying the whole night, I was freaking out," Jyoti said.
They were put in protective custody and allegedly then told to do a video apology in exchange for their passports, but they were never returned. Their lawyer told CCTV news that the Canadian embassy issued temporary passports after realizing that their bail conditions did not restrict travel. The Matharoo sisters left Nigeria on January 1st, vowing never to return.
"I think the stain on our reputation will never be cleared because no matter what we do, its always going to be there."
Visit website

Ooni of Ife sympathizes with Oba of Lagos, denies involvement in the fire incident at his palace

Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi has sent his heartfelt messages to the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Aremu Akilu over the fire outbreak at his palace in Lagos Island yesterday.
Although, Nigerians have been claiming that the fire incident that affected the main sections of the Lagos palace, was a result of Oba Rilwan snubbing the Ooni of Ife at a public function, a week ago.
But in a brief chat with Premium Times, the spokesperson of the Ooni’s palace, Moses Olafare said the Ife monarch is sad over the fire outbreak and that the incident has nothing to do with the Ooni of Ife snub.
'We are not happy over the fact that the palace of Lagos king got burnt, we can only sympathize with the palace on the development,' he said.
Reacting to the widely speculated claims, he said:
'People are entitled to their own views. But what people say doesn’t mean that is the position of the palace.What happened is mere coincidence and should not be traced to the incident in Lagos, we send our sympathies,' he added.

The President of U.S, Donald Trump at work

The President of The United States of America Donald Trump has in the last 48 hours carried out some administrative actions. They include: -Taking over running of the entire federal government. -Issued an executive order aimed at rolling back former President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act. -Halted a reduction to the annual mortgage insurance premiums borrowers pay when taking out government-backed home loans. -Ordered agencies to freeze new regulations, giving the new administration time to review them. -Received a key legal OK from the Justice Department for Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner to take on a role in the White House. -Met with the CIA, where he addressed employees. Trump also took over the nuclear codes Trump's nominee for CIA director, Kansas Rep. -Mike Pompeo, contradicted his earlier testimony and said he was open to revisiting limits on interrogation techniques including waterboarding if his intelligence officers think it is needed. -Raised the specter of another conflict in Iraq, with Trump expressing regret for not taking over the country's oil and telling the CIA, "We should have kept the oil. Maybe we'll have another chance. -"Spoken to the Mexican president and said the two will meet at the end of January. -Spoke to the Canadian prime minister about the two nations' economic relationship. -Announced he has meetings with leaders in Mexico and Canada to begin re-negotiating NAFTA. -Announced his first foreign leader meeting will be Friday with the United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May.

 CNN

Fire guts timber market in Nnewi, Anambra state

The Timber market in Nnewi, Anambra state was razed by a fire incident, which started in the early hours of today. Government firefighters reportedly did not arrive on time and according to a Facebook user who shared the photos, it took the intervention of FC Ifeanyi Ubah stadium water tankers and fire rescue team to curtail the incident.

Federal Govt says there is no case of polio in Cross Rivers state

The Federal government has said that there is no case of polio virus disease in Cross Rivers state as investigations carried out so far, have shown that the suspected case is actually untrue. There have been speculations that the disease has surfaced in the state after a toddler  at Ekpene-Eki community of Odukpani local government area of Cross Rivers state was noticed with a deformed leg presumed to be a characteristic of the viral disease(read here) Speaking to Channels TV yesterday, the  Incident Manager of the National Polio Emergency Operation Centre, Dr. Usman Adamu, said the suspected polio case has been clinically diagnosed to be a deformity known as club foot. According to Adamu, the first polio diagnosis process revealed that the child’s leg was not flaccid as is the case of most polio disease patients. 

People are now becoming disabled by choice and they are called Transabled

Some people are becoming disabled by choice and calling themselves " transabled." Researchers in Canada are trying to better understand how transabled people think and feel. Clive Baldwin, a Canada Research Chair in Narrative Studies who teaches social work at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, N.B., has interviewed 37 people worldwide who identify as transabled. Most of them are men. About half are in Germany and Switzerland, but he knows of a few in Canada. Most crave an amputation or paralysis, though he has interviewed one person who wants his penis removed. Another wants to be blind. Most of them arrange “accidents” to help achieve the goal. One dropped an incredibly heavy concrete block on his legs — an attempt to injure himself so bad an amputation would be necessary. But doctors saved the leg. He limps, but it’s not the disability he wanted. The transabled are very secretive and often keep their desires to themselves, Baldwin says. One 78-year-old man told Baldwin he’d lived with the secret for 60 years and never told his wife. Some of his study participants do draw parallels to the experience many transgender people express of not feeling like they’re in the right body. Baldwin says this disorder is starting to be thought of as a neurological problem with the body’s mapping, rather than a mental illness. In the late 1990s, Scottish surgeon Dr. Robert Smith amputated the legs of two patients at their request. While the surgery involved National Health Service staff, each patient paid nearly $6,000 for their procedures. As the public begins to embrace people who identify as transgender, the trans people within the disability movement are also seeking their due, or at very least a bit of understanding in a public that cannot fathom why anyone would want to be anything other than healthy and mobile.

 Source: National Post.

Two years later, 4 Chelsea fans are finally convicted of racist violence in Paris metro station

Four Chelsea fans, Joshua Parsons, 22; James Fairbairn, 25; Richard Barklie, 52, and William Simpson, 27, who in February 2015 after a Champions league game between PSG and Chelsea denied a Parisian man, Souleymane Sylla  entrance onto the train due to the colour of his skin have been convicted of racial abuse in a Paris court, handed one-year suspended prison sentences and ordered to pay Souleymane Sylla a compensation of 10,000 euros.  The incident in February 2015 was filmed by a British man, Paul Nolan, and the footage  sparked an outcry over racism in sport after the video went viral.Only two of the accused attended the trial in Paris while the other two were tried In their absence. The four Chelsea fans have already been banned from attending Chelsea's games. After the court judgement, Sylla, who had been trying to get home on the Métro when he was repeatedly pushed out of the train by Chelsea fans shouting racist chants, said to Guardian UK; “I am glad to see justice done.” He said he had not been afraid to face the convicted men in court. “I have been waiting for justice for two years.” But one of the convicted Chelsea fans, Joshua Parsons, 22, from Dorking, Surrey, denied being racist “I’m very sorry for Mr Sylla but I wasn’t racist in any way.”Parsons said that after he pushed Sylla the first time, he chanted “Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea,” and after he pushed him a second time, he chanted “Fuck the IRA”. He said the chant  “We’re racist, we’re racist and that’s the way we like it” was shouted in another carriage; he did not sing it and he “did not like that chant”.If you can't remember the incident, please watch below.

Here's why American news anchor, Megyn Kelly is leaving Fox News for rival, NBC

Popular American news anchor, Megyn Kelly offered a heartfelt tribute to Fox News and her viewers in explaining her "tough decision" to leave the network for rival network, NBC.  On Tuesday January 3, 2017, Kelly said she felt a "human connection" to her viewers and also treasures that "particularly when it comes to my children, who are 7, 5 and 3," signaling that her night-time schedule was a key factor in her decision. "I have grown up here and been given every chance a young reporter could ever ask for," she said, praising Rupert Murdoch's family for its kindness toward her. Her last show at Fox airs Friday. Kelly's closing remarks came less than 12 hours after the surprise announcement that she will be giving up her prime-time role at Fox for a multi-year deal that includes several roles at NBC. She will launch a daytime program as well as a Sunday evening news magazine show, and be part of the network’s coverage of major political and breaking-news events. Murdoch, executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, said in a statement: “We thank Megyn Kelly for her 12 years of contributions to FOX News. We hope she enjoys tremendous success in her career and wish her and her family all the best.” Fox News fought hard to keep Kelly, who became a breakout star and whose 9 p.m. show was the second-highest rated in cable news, behind “The O’Reilly Factor.” Donald Trump’s attacks on Kelly during the campaign helped turn her into an international celebrity and she was featured on the cover of the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair and other publications. She also just published a best-selling memoir, “Settle for More.”

Orji Uzor Kalu explains why he joined APC ; something about President Buhari fulfilling his promises to him

Read what he shared on Facebook this morning below... As an Igbo man who have seen it all, trained in business by the Hausa Fulani and started business in the South West. I sincerely believe it is better for the Igbos to sit where other Nigerians are sitting. I recall that on complaining of how the bad roads in the South East has been a great source of worry to me and our people, President Muhammadu Buhari personally promised me that all the contractors in the South East will return to sites before the end of November. Today, contractors are fully back to the many abandoned Federal roads in Eastern Nigeria. These are part of the reasons for joining the party. I joined the APC because President Buhari has fulfilled the promise he made to me and we are hopeful he will do more.

President-elect Donald Trump demands an apology from the Hamilton cast for confronting VP-elect Mike Pence

President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday criticized the cast of ‘Hamilton’ for confronting vice president-elect Mike Pence when he attended the Broadway show, Hamilton, Friday night. When the former Indiana governor took his seat at the show, the audience booed him. At the end of the show, Mike Pence got up to leave while actor Brandon Victor Dixon was giving credits, the actor noticed Mike Pence get up and stopped him to deliver a message. Dixon read a statement reportedly drafted by Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator of “Hamilton,” with input from cast members. The statement emphasized the diversity of the show’s actors and their broad concerns about the Trump administration. He said: “Vice President-elect Pence, I see you walking out but I hope you will hear us, just a few more moments. There’s nothing to boo here, ladies and gentlemen,” “Vice President-elect Pence, we welcome you and we truly thank you for joining us here at ‘Hamilton: An American Musical’ — we really do. We sir — we — are the diverse America who are alarmed and anxious that your new administration will not protect us, our planet, our children, our parents, or defend us and uphold our inalienable rights, sir. But we truly hope that this show has inspired you to uphold our American values, and to work on behalf of all of us. All of us. Again, we truly thank you for sharing in this show, this wonderful American story told by a diverse group of men and women of different colors, creeds and orientations.”Well said. And the crowd agreed and clapped .. Donald Trump this morning, took to his twitter page to criticize the cast for confronting Mike. He tweeted: Watch the videos below: Tonight, VP-Elect Mike Pence attended #HamiltonBway. After the show, @BrandonVDixondelivered the following statement on behalf of the show. pic.twitter.com/Jsg9Q1pMZs— Hamilton (@HamiltonMusical) November 19, 2016 Update: Hamilton Musical just released full statement of what Dixon said to Mike Pence

ISIS slams Donald Trump victory, says he is a fool and would destroy America himself

Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has slammed the victory of Donald Trump in the just concluded election saying he is a fool and would destroy America himself thereby giving Jihadis opportunity to seize power. They went on to refer to him as a donkey saying he is "an indication of the end of the American empire". "What we want is their country be delivered to a donkey like Trump who will destroy it. In the end, they are all our enemies and we will only meet them on the battlefields. It is either them or us. We ask Allah to make their destruction caused by their own plans and their death come among themselves. The world is going to experience a change and this change will put Islam in the leadership position as the end result" One ISIS Jihad said.Few hours ago, al-Qaeda group also said that Trump's win will give extremists across the Middle East a common enemy - sparking fears of a major attack on US soil

FG files 9 count charge against Supreme court judge, Justice Ngwuta

The Federal Government has filed a nine-count criminal charge of money laundering and corruption against Justice Sylvester Nwali Ngwuta, a serving justice of the Supreme Court. DailyTrust reports that Justice Ngwuta who is currently on suspension, was charged to court following allegations of corruption leveled against him by the Department of State Security (DSS)after his home was ransacked by the security agency last month....  According to court documents filed before the Federal High Court, Abuja by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation, Justice Ngwuta is alleged to have retained in his possession the sum of N35.358 million contrary to the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (as amended). It was alleged that the he also retained in his possession the sum of $319,596.00 and £25, 915 all of which according to the prosecutors formed part of the proceeds of unlawful act contrary to the Money Laundering Act.It is also alleged that several sums of cash were recovered including N35.3 million, $319,596.00, £25,915 pounds sterling and €280.00. The search according to the prosecutors also revealed four diplomatic passports, one official and two standard Nigerian passports all in the name of the defendant. The Federal government also accused Justice Ngwuta of obtaining multiple passports contrary to Section 10 of the Immigration Act, 2015 and punishable under the same Section. He was alleged to have made false statement to the passport office concerning his date of birth for the purpose of procuring an additional Diplomatic Passport for himself. He was also alleged to have in his possession two valid Diplomatic Passports   and thereby committed an offence under Section 10 of the Immigration Act.  No date has been fixed for hearing of the case as no judge has been assigned to it yet.

Student fined $50 for asking President Mugabe fpr job in Zimbabwe

A student identified as Advance Musoki who appeared at a Bulawayo magistrate, was on Monday convicted and fined $50 or face two weeks in prison for demanding employment from President Robert Mugabe during the university’s graduation ceremony last Friday. Musoki who graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce Honours Degree in Risk Management and Insurance from the National University of Science and Technology (NUST), pleaded guilty to committing criminal nuisance in contravention of Section 46 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform). According to All African reports, Prosecutors said the 23-year-old student stood up during the graduation ceremony while demanding for employment uttered the unpleasant words ‘mabasa ngaadzoke President’ (Return to Work) three times, before he was caught  and pounced on by State security agencies before he was handed over to the police. However, during the court hearing Musoki's lawyer Mehluli Dube from the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) pleaded with the court to give Musoki a non-custodial sentence, which resulted to a fine of $50 or face two weeks in prison.

Meet 29-year-old Suwaiba Yunusa, the onlu female teacher at a primary school in Roni, Jigawa

29-year-old Suwaiba Yunusa is the only female teacher at Janbulo Islamiyya Primary School in Roni, Jigawa State.
"There aren’t many female teachers in the state so we are fortunate to have even one." says Headmaster Shaaibu Hassan. 
Some of the male teachers said that as as the only female member of staff, Suwaiba is far more than just another teacher.
"When they know there is a female teacher in the school, parents are easily convinced to send their girls to school," says one teacher.
"When the girls see her coming sometimes they start chanting her name. I think it’s because they are so happy to see someone who is like them," says another.
Speaking to the Global Partnership for Education, Suwaiba said:  "In our culture, it is inappropriate for male teachers to help the older girls one on one; they are also limited in their ability to discipline the older girls. But a female teacher—like a mother—can discipline a child of any gender and any age. "
She is also on hand to deal with the expected challenges that come up around older girls and menstruation that her male colleagues only laughed nervously about. But Suwaiba recognizes that perhaps her most important function is as a role model.
"Growing up I had two women teachers. I remember thinking I wanted to be like them. Now I am. So I know how important it is when the girls come up to me and say, ‘When I grow up I want to be a teacher like you."
"Last year, I was so happy. There were two other female teachers assigned to this school. We would work together to do exercises with the children. We would meet between classes and talk about whatever problems we faced in the classroom. This year, because there are so few female teachers around, they were transferred to other schools. Now, honestly, I don’t enjoy coming to school anymore. I feel so lonely and isolated. The male teachers all sit together and talk in the shade. Culturally, there is no way I can sit and talk with them. And there is no staff room where I can go and sit. So between classes I just wander here and there by myself with no one to talk to. I am thinking about leaving. I told the headmaster that if they can’t bring in another female teacher soon, I want to transfer to another school"

13 internally displaced children gain admission into senior secondary school in Borno state

13 Internally displaced persons (IDPs) have secured admission into SS1 at Government Senior Science Secondary School, Bama, Borno State. Nema Officials presented each of them with essential non food items needed for their stay in school. The items include; Blanket, Eating Bowl, 10 Long note books, Plastic Bucket, Mosquito Net, laundry soap and bathing soap.

250 internally displaced persons return to Maiduguri, Borno state

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) Nigeria reports that about 251 Internally displaced persons (IDPs) returned to Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State in north-eastern Nigeria, after a 1 year stay in the Fufore Internally Displaced Person (IDP) Camp, Yola, Adamawa state.

Appeal court nullifies monthly environmental sanitation in Lagos

The Appeal Court in Lagos has described as illegal the monthly environmental sanitation exercise held in the state. Delivering judgment in a suit filed by a resident of the state, Faith Okafor against the Lagos State Government (Respondent) over the weekend, Justice Ugochukwu Ogakwu of the Court of Appeal said their was no law written in the state that validates the restrain put on members of the public not to leave their homes between 7am to 10am as instructed by the state government during any of the monthly sanitation exercise.

The court ruled that the order given to residents of the state not to leave their homes within a stipulated time is unconstitutional, illegal and unlawful.

Faith had dragged the state government to court after she was arrested and charged before a special court for moving about during environmental sanitation on May 25th 2013.

The court in its ruling, restrained the Lagos State Government and its affiliates from further arresting the anyone whatsoever on the basis of a purported environmental sanitation offence or trying anyone in the Special Offences Court without conforming to the dictates of the Constitution.

Part of Justice Ogakwu reads
“I have arrived at the inexorable conclusion that the appeal is meritorious. The same succeeds and is allowed by me. The Ruling of the lower court in Suit No. M/548/2013: FAITH OKAFOR vs. LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT & ANOR. delivered on 1st July 2014 is hereby set aside. In its stead and for good order sake, judgment is hereby entered for the Appellant against the Respondents in the following terms:

It is hereby declared that the arrest and detention and transportation of the Appellant in the back of a vehicle which is of a metal cage with very little ventilation and light “Black Maria” by officials and/or agents of the 1st Respondent (KAI Brigade) on 25th May 2013 for a purported environmental sanitation offence violates the Appellant’s fundamental rights to respect for the dignity of her person, personal liberty and freedom of movement as provided under Sections 34, 35 and 41 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, and is therefore illegal and unconstitutional.”