‘I’ve Worked Hard For This’ — Ighalo Relishes FA Cup Brace For United

Manchester United striker Odion Ighalo is delighted that his hard work behind the scenes to get himself into shape is finally paying off.

Ighalo scored a brace in Manchester United’s 3-0 win over Derby County at Pride Park on Thursday night and helped his side to progress to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.

The striker, who joined Manchester United on loan in January, has already netted three goals for the club and has been turning out to be a good squad option for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer |||READ MORE …

South-South Governors To Establish Regional Security Network

Governors of the south-south region have agreed to adopt a security outfit to address the security challenges in the region.

Chairman of the South-South Governors Forum Governor Ifeanyi Okowa disclosed this on Thursday to journalists after a closed-door meeting that lasted nearly three hours.

“We have agreed as a region that there is a need to have a regional security outfit and we have mandated the brace commission to begin to work out the details and brief us at our next meeting which is going to hold in Port Harcourt,” he said.

Highlighting some of the resolutions reached at the meeting, Okowa said on the top of the agenda was the resuscitation of the brace commission which according to him, would help to harmonise policies that would drive the economic cooperation and integration of the region |||READ MORE …

Thousands of US residents have been asked by state governments to 'self-quarantine.' Here's what that looks like

(CNN)With US coronavirus cases topping 220 across 19 states and the death toll climbing to more than a dozen, state governments have asked thousands of residents to seclude themselves from the rest of the community to help contain the virus.

In New York alone, more than 2,500 people were instructed to self-quarantine as health officials scour for anyone who may have been exposed to the state's first coronavirus cases. At least 22 have tested positive and are in isolation.

In California, health officials said Thursday more than 9,700 returning travelers were told to stay at home and monitor their health. Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency earlier this week after California saw its first virus-related death |||READ MORE …

Fayemi says no mercy for rapists in Ekiti

Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, said on Tuesday that his administration would have no mercy on rapists and molesters in the state.

Fayemi said his administration had put in place the enabling legal framework that criminalises all abuse on women in the state, noting that the era when women were maltreated and subjugated was over in the state.

The governor made this known in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital while declaring open the 4th Ekiti Gender Summit with the theme, “Gender equality and women’s empowerment post-Beijing: Political will and impact” |||READ MORE …

[BREAKING] Coronavirus: Nigeria disease control agency boss quarantined, says Health Minister

The Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire,  said on Tuesday that the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control,  Chikwe Ihekweazu, has been quarantined for 14 days.

Ehanire stated this when he appeared before the Senate leadership to provide an update on the activities of his ministry to curb the spread of coronavirus in the country.

He told the Senate principal officers that Ihekweazu was quarantined because he just returned from China |||READ MORE …

Lagos Assembly passes Amotekun law

 Lagos State House of Assembly at plenary on Tuesday passed the bill to create Amotekun Corps as a special unit of the Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Corps.

It passed the bill after taking the third reading of the amendment to the Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Corps Agency Law 2019 |||READ MORE …

Rep to criminalise casualisation, outsourcing of jobs

The House of Representatives on Tuesday moved to criminalise the rampant cases of casualisation and outsourcing of jobs in the country, passing for second reading a bill to stop the practice.

The House expressed concern that employers of labour, especially those in banking, telecom as well as oil and gas sector often resort to casualisation and outsourcing of jobs, thereby making Nigerians slave workers in their own country.

Organised Labour as well as officials of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, led by the Minister, Senator Chris Ngige have been in the forefront of the crusade to end casualisation and outsourcing in the country which forms one of the new conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) as adopted during the centenary celebration of the world body |||READ MORE …

Here are the best and worst performing Senators for February

Imagine having a sitting senator advocate for the rehabilitation of ex-Boko Haram members into society, and a bill seeking to grant immunity on members of both states and federal legislature passing second reading at the House of Representatives. If passed into law, it would be difficult to prosecute indicted lawmakers while in office. Here’s how we ranked senators this month

10. Senator Ibrahim Gaidam

Senator Ibrahim Gaidam, sponsor of the bill that seeks to establish an agency for the rehabilitation of repentant Boko Haram members, has said his goal is to reintegrate such persons into mainstream politics in Nigeria. The rehabilitation of ex-Boko Haram terrorists isn’t news anymore, bur Gaidam’s seeming resolve to push this bill is an indication of misplaced priorities.

9. Senator Aishatu Dahiru

The town of Garkida in northeastern Nigeria was recently attacked by Boko Haram, and a number of buildings were burned, including the church building for Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa. As such, Senator Aishatu Dahiru cited Orders 42 & 52 and moved a motion on the insurgent attack on Garkida, a town in Gombi Local Government Area of Adamawa. Dahiru urged the Chief of Army Staff to establish a military command base in the town, and for NEMA to urgently assess the extent of damage and provide relief materials to communities affected |||READ MORE …

Mexico returns ancient Nigerian sculpture

The Mexican government, on Tuesday, delivered to Nigeria an ancient bronze sculpture seized by customs agents at Mexico City airport. The Nigerian sculpture is of Yoruba origin.

The sculpture, from the 6th century southwestern Yoruba city of Ile-Ife, shows a man wearing woven pants and a hat, sitting with his legs crossed and holding an instrument.

“Specialists from the National Institute of Anthropology and History determined that it was a piece of Yoruba origin,” Diego Prieto, head of the agency, told newsmen |||READ MORE …

Why refineries in Nigeria will not work — Experts

At the backdrop of the announcement of the Federal Government’s plans to rehabilitate the country’s refineries by the Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, experts in the petroleum downstream industry have said that the government lacks credibility to restructure the sector and bring the refineries to full operation.

The country has four refineries with 524,000 barrels per day capacity. However, the refineries, in the last 20 years, have had a poor operating record with average capacity utilization hovering between 15 and 25 percent per annum.

As a result, 70-80 percent of the national petroleum products demand is met through imports. But operators in the petroleum industry have insisted that the Federal Government cannot make the country’s refineries efficient |||READ MORE …

Reps PDP caucus supports review of presidential, guber judgement

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) House of Representatives caucus has supported calls by the party’s hierarchy for the review of the Supreme Court judgement on the presidential election and four governorship polls.

Caucus Leader, Rep. Kingsley Chinda made the caucus position known in a statement issued on Wednesday in Abuja.

Apart from the presidential election, the governorship polls the House caucus wants the Apex court to revisit are those of Kaduna, Katsina, Kano and Osun states |||READ MORE …

Minimum wage: NLC state councils to take action against erring govts

Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has directed its state councils to go on strike if any state government fails to implement the N30,000 new national minimum wage.

Speaking with The Nation, NLC President Ayuba Wabba said the organised labour had given each state council the template on the new wage and the consequential adjustment.

He stressed that no state should be excused for not implementing the new minimum wage |||READ MORE …

Why all zones must adopt regional security outfit – EK Clark

On Monday we served you the first part of an engaging interview with Elder statesman, Chief E.K. Clark. Today, we bring you the concluding part where he spoke on why all zones must adopt regional security outfits and why ex-Boko Haram insurgents should not be given amnesty as was done to ex-Niger delta militants.

What would the South-South zone take to the table when the National Assembly constitution amendment committee takes off?

The South-South region, popularly known as Niger Delta will take to the table those items for which we have always agitated at every Conference such as those held in 2005 and 2014. These issues include derivation or resource control. The Northerners, who do not have oil, are today the owners and managers of the Industry |||READ MORE …

Nasarawa governor okays death penalty for kidnappers

Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule has assented to the Bill which prescribed death penalty for anyone found indulging in kidnapping in the state.

Sule signed into law the “Nasarawa State kidnapping Act Prohibition Law 2020”  and “Child-Protection Executive Order” Bill.

“I need to state that the Nasarawa State Kidnapping Act Prohibition Law was extensively deliberated and passed by the State House of Assembly |||READ MORE ...

‘Just call me Harry!’: Prince DROPS his royal title as he returns to Britain without Meghan

The Duke of Sussex today embarked on his final round of engagements as a senior working royal as he launched a new eco-friendly travel firm in Edinburgh – and asked delegates ‘just to call him Harry’.

Prince Harry, who will step down as a senior royal in less than five weeks, is in the Scottish capital for a ‘working summit’ of the Travalyst partnership, which will feature a grading system for users to track their carbon emissions.

Before he took to the stage today, host Ayesha Hazarika, a former Labour adviser, said: ‘He’s made it clear that we are all just to call him Harry. So ladies and gentlemen, please give a big, warm, Scottish welcome to Harry.’ |||READ MORE …

Sulky Baby Birth Photo Staring At Her Doctor Goes Viral

Many parents are opting to have a birth photographer attend their baby’s labor and delivery to capture those first fleeting moments. Looking back at the images of the baby’s first breath, or the first time that dad and baby lock eyes is extraordinary. This one birth photographer captured an epic photo of a newborn’s first look, staring down her doctor just moments after her birth. The moment this little one was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on February 13, she had one mood: not impressed.

Photographer Rodrigo Kunstmann has been a professional photographer for 11 years, a birth photographer for 4 years. Recently, he was present during a c-section to help the parents capture those precious first moments, and one of his photos has gone viral. One look at the viral photo and it’s obvious why everyone loves it – the baby is not playing around |||READ MORE …

Labour crisis looms in kwara as operators of MicrofBanks raise alarm 2,000 workers will lose their jobs

Ilorin…Labour crisis looms in kwara state as operators of MicrofBanks in the state on Wednesday raised the alarm that 2,000 workers in their fold will lose their jobs over a recent directive of the state government to civil servants to open accounts with commercial banks

Chairman of the group,Alhaji Ahmad Suleiman who disclosed this while addressing newsmen in Ilorin, therefore appealed to the state government to rescind its directive which said that civil servants should close their salary accounts in microfinance banks and open accounts with commercial banks to ease salary payment.

Vanguard reliably gathered that the state government action was prompted by the ease with which it would be paying the minimum wage salaries in the commercial banks unlike in the microfinance banks where most civil servants have their salary accounts |||READ MORE …

Ekiti Revokes N3.2bn Road Rehabilitation Contract

The Ekiti State Government has revoked the contract for the rehabilitation of the Ayede-Ikun-Otun Ekiti road valued at N3.2 billion from the construction company handling the project.

The road was awarded to Sharvet Nigeria Limited early January 2020 and the company has not mobilised to site and commenced work as contained in the terms of the agreement since then.

Speaking with journalists after the state executive council meeting in Ado Ekiti Wednesday, the Information Commissioner, Mr. Muyiwa Olumilua, said the government took the action owing to gross incompetence exhibited by the construction firm |||READ MORE …

Young Ballerinas Celebrate Black History Month with Fierce, Misty Copeland-Inspired Photo Shoot

A group of young ballerinas have taken their beloved hobby and turned it into an iconic photo shoot inspired by Misty Copeland in honor of Black History Month.

The little girls, who dance together at iRule Dance Studio in Beaumont, Texas, recently took a break from their vigorous dance schedules to pose for the camera in a photo shoot by Brandie Perry of Bee Photography, Good Morning America reported.

But what was supposed to be an activity to help the girls bond ultimately turned into a symbol of empowerment for black women, and has quickly become a viral sensation |||READ MORE …

The 2020 Cadillac CT5-V Is a Proper Sport Sedan

With the old ATS and CTS, Cadillac built cars that compared to BMW in a way few expected. Excellent chassis tuning made them benchmarks, and in high-performance V form, they were favorites of the folks who work for this fine publication. The problem was that no one bought them. Cadillac's had a rethink.

The ATS and CTS have been replaced with the CT4 and CT5, which are a little smaller and cheaper than their predecessors. The CT4 is aimed at the Audi A3 and Mercedes A-Class, while the CT5 is up against the mighty BMW 3-series. The CT5 is longer and wider than the 3er, but is also slightly less expensive.

Previously, the V-series cars were real fire-breathers with serious track credentials—now, they're a little more mild and road oriented. Think BMW M340i rather than M3. True successors to the old Vs are coming, with a name to be announced |||READ MORE …