ONE WORD

The Senate on Wednesday went into executive session ahead of the screening of Justice Tanko Muhammad for confirmation as Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN). Justice Tanko who has acted as CJN since January 25 was about to be ushered into the Senate chambers at about 11.10am when the Senate Leader, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi (Kebbi North) moved a motion for the Senate to first go into executive session before screening the acting CJN. The motion was seconded by Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaye Abaribe (Abia South) after which the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, subjected the motion to a voice vote and the ayes had it. Details later…

Former president Sepp Blatter has said the decision to appoint secretary general Fatma Samoura as the ‘Fifa General Delegate for Africa’ is colonialist and flouts Fifa rules. Last month, football’s world governing body made the move in a bid to improve governance within the Confederation of African Football (Caf). “This can be considered as a new aspect of colonialism,” the Swiss told BBC Sport in a statement. “Fifa’s direct intervention to Caf and sending Mrs Samoura as a kind of ‘supervisor’ ignores the statutes of the federation. “To recall, confederations are not members of Fifa. Only the national associations are.” Caf’s Executive Committee (ExCo) is set to discuss Samoura’s looming arrival when it meets in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Wednesday. Despite previous claims by both Fifa and Caf that her appointment was ‘unanimously’ agreed by the latter’s Executive Committee, there is still believed to be opposition by certain members of the 22-man board. BBC Sport un

L-R: Naomi Sallau, NASU Treasurer, Comrade Ademola Olorunsuyi Chairman SSANU and Comrade Kasimu Mohammed Chairman NASU during the interview on Tuesday The Inter University Centres have called on the Federal Government to consider the inclusion of its members in the disbursement of earned allowances for Universities. They made this call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja through the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and Non Academic Staffs of Universities (NASU). Mr Ademola Olorunsuyi, the Chairman SSANU, National Mathematical Center (NMC), said that recently N25 billion among others was released by the Federal Government to universities and inter university centres as payment for earned allowances. “But inter university Centres which NMC is part of were not paid the earned allowance. “We want to express our displeasure in the exclusion of inter university centers from the disbursement of earned allowances by th

Bishop Matthew Kukah says the Fulanis hardly deserve the hate they have been getting (Guardian) The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Hassan Kukah, says the labeling of all gunmen or bandits as ‘Fulani Herdsmen’ is a dangerous pathway to tread for all Nigerians. In recent times, ‘Fulani herdsmen’ have been blamed for a raft of kidnappings and murders from the Savannah regions of the north to the green vegetation of the south; as the farmers-herders crisis in Nigeria takes on frightening dimensions daily. The fear of the nomadic herdsmen has deepened tribal tensions in ethnically diverse Nigeria and Kukah considers the labeling an unfair, skewed one. “If it is Fulani today, yesterday it was the Igbo,” TheCable quotes Kukah as saying on Tuesday, July 16 at a colloquium on fake news and hate speech organised by the Olusegun Obasanjo Centre for African studies. The passport as an ethnic weapon Nigerians have also been apprehensive over images of herdsmen on a page of t

Over 200 people have been killed and millions displaced as seasonal monsoon rains triggered floods, landslides in South Asia. Hundreds of building were also destroyed in the accompanying landslides, officials said on Wednesday. It was also disclosed that death toll in monsoon related incidents since July 10 in seven Indian states was 95. About 30 animals, including two one-horned rhinos, see said to have died at Assam’s national parks since July 30. Among worst hit areas was North-eastern Assam state, with with over five million people affected by floods. A state management unit said that at least 33 people had died in rain related incidents including drownings and landslides. In India’s eastern state of Bihar rivers continued to flow over the danger mark and an estimated 2.6 million people were affected. Bihar’s disaster management unit said 33 people had died since late Tuesday. According to the Home Ministry, in neighbouring Nepal, 83 people lost their lives while 3

A woman has been killed after falling from the ninth floor of a block of flats in Russia while having sex - but her partner survived after landing on top of her. The woman, aged 30, was found dead at the base of an apartment block in St Petersburg on the night of July 5 during what neighbours described as a wild party. Initial reports suggested the woman had been killed by the falling TV, but images from the scene clearly show her naked from the waist down. Witnesses said they saw a television thrown from the window of the flat, after which the woman and her 29-year-old lover plunged to the ground below. After interviewing witnesses, investigators concluded that the couple were having sex on a windowsill when they fell. Two other men were in the flat when the fall happened, but are not thought to have been involved. A murder investigation has been launched. The woman landed head-first on the asphalt and died instantly, local media reported, but the man survived after hi

Delta State Governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa has appointed Miss Veronica Abang as his Special Assistant on New Media with immediate effect. Abang who was a staff in the media department in the Office of the Governor is to handle the social media aspects of the communication departments. Abang Veronica aka Dove, is a Communications and New Media Strategist and Consultant, who served as a Legislative Aide on Digital Content an Strategy to the immediate past President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki. She also doubled as a Personal Assistant on Media and Communications to the Global Goodwill Ambassador, International Confederation of Midwives and Special Advisor, World Health Organisation Independent Advisory Group, H.E. Mrs. Toyin Saraki. She is one of the pioneer handlers of @NGRSenate twitter handle and also Co-founded Veekhan – a Digital Marketing Company that consulted for Interra Networks and has trained members of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on Digital Marketi