Month: July 2017

EU labels Egyptian goose, alligator weed as dangerous

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European Commission on Wednesday added 12 species to list of so-called invasive aliens, among them the Egyptian goose and alligator weed. A statement by the EU noted that invasive alien species were one of the major causes of biodiversity loss, and had significant negative economic impact on healthcare costs, crop yields, fish stocks and infrastructure. It stated that the Egyptian goose, recognised as an agricultural pest in South Africa, was known to be aggressive toward other birds, drowning other species and taking over nesting sites. The EU statement indicated that…

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Sudan freezes talks with US over sanctions

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Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir suspended negotiations with Washington aimed at ending sanctions against Khartoum, after the United States extended its embargo for another three months, state media reports US President Donald Trump prolonged a review period overnight to October 12 before his administration decides whether or not to permanently lift the decades-old sanctions. His predecessor Barack Obama had eased the sanctions in January, but kept Sudan on review for six months, a period that ended on Wednesday. Obama had made the permanent lifting of the sanctions dependent on the East…

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Customs intercept N94.7m harmful drugs imported from India

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The Nigerian Customs Service on Wednesday said it had intercepted pharmaceutical products suspected to be unfit for human consumption and other contraband suspected to have been smuggled from India The products, which were seized by NCS’s operatives in Zone ` C ’ Benin, were valued at N94.7m. The Comptroller of Customs, Abubakar Azarema, who is also the National Coordinator, Comptroller-General of Customs’ Compliance Team, announced this to newsmen in Benin. Azarema said that 1,149 cartons of the unidentified pharmaceutical products were smuggled into the country through Lagos ports. He said…

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Brazil jails former President Lula

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Former Brazilian leader, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, was convicted on corruption charges on Wednesday in the first of five graft trials he faces. The two-term president was sentenced to nine and half years in prison but would remain free on appeal. The ruling marked a stunning fall for Lula, Brazil’s first working-class president who left office six years ago with an 83 per cent approval rating. The former union leader won global admiration for transformative social policies that helped reduce stinging inequality in Latin America’s biggest country. Former U.S.…

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Supreme Court sacks Sheriff, reinstates Makarfi as PDP chairman

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The Supreme Court has removed Ali Modu Sheriff as the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party. A five-man panel of the apex court led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, in its judgment delivered on Wednesday, reinstated Ahmed Makarfi, earlier sacked by the Port Harcourt Division of the Court of Appeal, as the National Caretaker Committee. Reading the lead judgment of the Supreme Court, on Wednesday, Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour, held that contrary to the majority judgment of the Port Harcourt Division of the Court of Appeal,…

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Akwa Ibom school vice principal shot dead

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Gunmen have killed a vice principal of a community school in Nkek village, Ukanafun Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State. The police spokesperson in the state, Ikechukwu Chukwu, who confirmed the incident, said the principal was shot dead in the school premises on Wednesday morning. Mr. Chukwu said the police were investigating the killing. The victim’s name was not disclosed. Ukanafun has become notorious for cult-related violence and killings. The Chairman of the local government, Abasiono Udomfu, was sacked by the state government for his alleged involvement in the…

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Buhari is in high spirit – Osinbajo

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President Muhammadu Buhari currently in London on medical vacation “is in high spirit and is doing very well and recuperating”, Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has said. Osinbajo who visited the president on Tuesday in London said on Wednesday that, “we had a very good time” and good conversation. The Acting President told state House correspondents that he briefed Buhari on the developments in Nigeria. Osinbajo returned to Abuja, Nigeria’s capital after visiting President Muhammadu Buhari in London Tuesday night. Spokesman Laolu Akande, announced Osinbajo’s arrival in a tweet this morning.…

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Lagos/Suleja floods: Is NEMA overwhelmed?

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In Nigeria the rich and the poor don’t often cry or wail in solidarity. But an irony has occurred which necessitated the meeting of these unlike minds- the rich and the poor. That necessity which the mother of the irony that birthed in Nigeria is the natural cum man-made disaster of floods which occurred in two distant places-Lagos and Suleja. Lagos and Suleja in Niger State as we write are substantially flooded. This floods in Lagos affected mostly the affluent members of the society because of the fact that majority…

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Tottenham in last-minute bid to steal Iheanacho from Leicester

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Tottenham Hotspur have emerged as late contenders in the race to sign Manchester City striker, Kelechi Iheanacho. The 20-year-old Nigerian international Iheanacho has long been linked with a departure from the Etihad, with the arrival of Gabriel Jesus at the club earlier this year pushing the youngster further down the attacking pecking order behind the Brazilian and fellow South American superstar Sergio Aguero. It was reported on Monday afternoon that Leicester City had secured a deal for the youngster worth a fee in the region of £25 million, having beaten…

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China’s Nobel laureate suffers organ failure

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The hospital treating China’s cancer-stricken Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo offered a grim update on his health on Wednesday, but human rights groups cautioned that the authorities may be manipulating the medical reports. The 61-year-old democracy advocate’s liver function continued to deteriorate and he suffered from “shock and organ failure”, according to the First Hospital of China Medical University in the northeastern city of Shenyang. The hospital’s website has been giving regular updates about Liu’s condition since he was admitted early last month after he was transferred from prison due to…

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