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Niger governor, deputy take 30% salary cut as coronavirus hits economy
Governor Abubakar Bello of Niger on Tuesday ordered a 30 per cent slash in the salaries and allowances of all political officers in the state. Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Ahmed Matane, in a statement in Minna, said that the directive was “with immediate effect”.“Those to be affected by the order include the governor, his deputy, commissioners, special advisers and all other political appointees,” the statement said. It said that the “temporary” slash was in view of the economic situation occasioned by the Coronavirus pandemic. “Government will transparently resume full payment of salaries and allowances when the economic situation improves,” the statement stated and quoted the governor as regretting the inconvenience the reduction might cause affected persons. Get more storie...
Mississippi governor signs bill removing confederate symbol from flag
The Republican governor of the southern US state of Mississippi signed a bill Tuesday removing the Confederate battle standard from the state flag, after nationwide protests drew renewed attention to symbols of the United States’ racist past. “This is not a political moment, it is a solemn occasion to come together as a Mississippi family, reconcile, and move forward together,” Governor Tate Reeves wrote on Facebook. Mississippi is the only American state to incorporate the Confederate standard on its official flag, after nearby Georgia dropped it in 2003. Tate said a commission on the flag would “begin the process of selecting a new one — emblazoned with the words ‘In God We Trust.’” The swift signing comes after state lawmakers voted Sunday to remove the emblem in a 91-23 majority vote i...
LP Announces Global Livestream Concert From Los Angeles
Musician and prolific songwriter LP has announced her first global livestream event scheduled for Aug. 1. The 2020 Virtual World Tour will broadcast live from The Beehive studios in the Los Angeles and is expected to be the artist’s only full-production concert in 2020. “I was expecting to tour throughout 2020 around the world, but unfortunately we had to postpone that to 2021. So, to lift my own spirits, and hopefully other people’s, I decided to put together a proper concert here in L.A., live-streamed everywhere, for everyone to be a part of,” LP said in a release. The multi-camera, HD video, 80-audio-channel concert will kick-off live at 1pm PST and will feature LP and her band performing a set of hits, fan favorites, covers, brand-new music, new v...
Spotify Launches New Subscription Plan For Couples in U.S., 54 More Markets
Spotify has unveiled a new, cheaper premium subscription option for couples, called Premium Duo, that will be rolled out in the United States and 54 other markets today (July 1). The single plan will allow two people living at the same address to have individual premium accounts, which are also entwined through playlists like its Duo Mix of favorites from each party, for just $12.99 a month. Spotify began testing the new tier last March, piloting Premium Duo in Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Ireland and Poland. Now with its wider rollout, Duo joins Spotify’s individual plan ($9.99/month), family plan ($14.99/month for up to six accounts under one roof) and student plan ($4.99/month). [embedded content] In a blog post announcing the new tier, the company noted that a user study found that of cou...
FIRS generates N66 billion from stamp duties
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has generated the sum of N66 billion from stamp duties between January and May. The FIRS Director, Communications and Liaison Department, Abdullahi Ahmad, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday. Ahmad said the Executive Chairman of FIRS, Muhammad Nami, disclosed this at the inauguration of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Audit and Recovery of Back Years Stamp Duties and the unveiling of the FIRS Adhesive Stamp in Abuja. Mr Nami said the money realised in the first five months of the year from stamp duties represented about 1,000 per cent increase. He stated that the increment was unprecedented when compared to six billion naira collected from January to May 2019. The FIRS boss attributed this increase to the dynamism triggered by Fin...
CAF cancels 2020 AWCON, keeps mum on qualifiers
Getty Images Apparently not ready to risk the lives of players, officials and other stakeholders during the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, the Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Tuesday cancelled the 2020 African Women’s Cup of Nations (AWCON). This was one of the many crucial decisions taken by the Executive Committee headed by CAF President, Ahmad Ahmad during a video-conference Executive Meeting held Tuesday, June 30, 2020. The Committee which also discussed the future of competitions and other related issues following the disruption of football activities across the world including Africa by the COVID-19 pandemic opted to cancel the 2020 AWCON. “Due to challenging conditions, the 2020 edition of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations has been cancelled”,...
774,000 jobs: National Assembly can’t suspend selection process – minister
The Minister of State for Labour, Festus Keyamo (SAN), says members of the National Assembly cannot stop the selection process of the 774,000 Special Public Works Programme jobs. He stated that the Joint Committees on Labour of both the Senate and the House tried to “control the programme as to who gets what, where and how”. The minister insisted that he would not surrender the programme to the lawmakers’ control “since their powers under the constitution does not extend to that”. He, therefore, directed the state selection committees to proceed with the recruitment process. Keyamo, in a statement issued after his meeting with the NASS committee ended in a fiasco on Tuesday, said, “There was a misunderstanding between us when they questioned why I did not privately submit the programme to ...
Suspension: Adams Oshiomhole withdraws application against Appeal Court ruling
Mr Adams Oshiomhole, on Tuesday, withdrew his application for stay of execution of the June 16, 2020 judgment of the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal which affirmed his suspension as the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress. The withdrawal, his lawyers said, was in line with his concession to the dissolution of the National Working Committee and the subsequent appointment of a caretaker committee by the National Executive Committee of the party on June 25. Following the withdrawal of the motion, the three-man panel of the Court of Appeal led by Justice Eunice Onyemenam unanimously dismissed in a short ruling on Tuesday. Oshiomhole’s Ward 10 in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State had in November 2019 suspended him as a member of the party for anti-party activit...
Cirque du Soleil Files for Creditor Protection
Cirque du Soleil filed for creditor protection in Canada on Monday (June 29) while it develops a plan to restart its business amid the pandemic. The creator of many of the most popular shows in Las Vegas on Monday blamed the “immense disruption and forced show closures as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.” The Montreal-based circus arts show company temporarily suspended its productions around the world in March because of the new coronavirus outbreak. Cirque du Soleil also announced the termination of approximately 3,480 employees previously furloughed in March. In connection with the filing, Cirque du Soleil said it has entered into a purchase agreement with its existing shareholders TPG, Fosun and Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec as well as Investissement Quebec as a debt provide...
Blackpink’s ‘How You Like That’ Collects Multiple Guinness World Records
Blackpink’s historic week has been rewarded with a swag of Guinness World Records. The south Korean girl group’s music video for “How You Like That” earned 86.3 million views on its arrival June 26, enough to set records for most viewed YouTube video in 24 hours, most viewed music video on YouTube in 24 hours, and most viewed YouTube music video in 24 hours by a K-pop group. It’s not such a great week for compatriots BTS, who were the previous record holders in those categories with the video for “Boy With Luv” featuring singer Halsey, which dropped in April 2019. “Boy With Luv” is now scrubbed from the record books. Jisoo, Jennie, Rose and Lisa aren’t done with busting records. The live premiere of ‘”How You Like That” reached 1.66 mil...
75% of Nigerians at risk for non-communicable diseases – study
Three quarters of Nigerians are at risk of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), a nationwide study by WellNewMe, a health technology company, has revealed. According to the study, the situation needs to be urgently addressed, especially in the present COVID-19 pandemic era, as persons with underlying conditions are most vulnerable to the deadly virus. Dr Obi Igbokwe, the Co-founder of WellNewMe and author of the pilot report, told newsmen in Lagos on Tuesday that in 2019, the company partnered Novartis to run a year-long pilot to determine Nigerians’ risks for developing chronic diseases. Igbokwe quoted the World Health Organisation (WHO) as saying that the COVID-19 pandemic might have had significant impacts on the health of people with NCDs, such as hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, di...
NAF chief inaugurates officers’ quarters in Calabar
The Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshall Sadique Abubakar, has commissioned a two blocks of single officer’s quarters at the 305 Special Mobility Group on Tuesday in Calabar. Abubakar, who was represented at the occasion by AVM Mohammed Yakubu, the Chief of Logistics, Nigerian Air Force, said the welfare of their personnel was very critical to the growth of the force. Abubakar said that when personnel are well cared for with good accommodation, they are more likely to do their job better. According to him, other projects were ongoing in the Command for Airmen, adding that in the coming weeks, they would also be inaugurated and put to use. “We are in Calabar today to commission the officers quarters for our men as part of the effort to boast their morale and dedication to their statutory duties...
