COVID-19
Thomas Bach urges organisers to ignore Tokyo 2020 doubters
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President, Thomas Bach, has urged organisers to focus on the preparations for next year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo as a virtual Coordination Commission meeting got underway. The Coordination Commission, chaired by IOC vice-president John Coates, is set to discuss ways to stage Tokyo 2020 during the pandemic with Tokyo city, Government officials and members of the Organising Committee. Virtual meetings held in two days are expected to focus on simplification measures to reduce the cost of the postponed Games and coronavirus countermeasures. Bach addressed organisers over a video conference call. “Nobody can expect from us that we know already, exactly what needs to be done in 10 month from now to ensure a safe environment for everybody,” he...
President Buhari: CAMA Act will help us fight corruption
President Muhammadu Buhari Thursday explained that the recently passed Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020 (CAMA) in Nigeria will enhance transparency and corporate accountability in the fight against corruption. President Buhari spoke in a video message presented at the Open Government Partnership (OGP) 2020 Virtual Leaders’ Summit on the sidelines of the 75th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA75) in New York, United States. ”Since the inception of our Administration in 2015, the Government has been committed to changing international and domestic perceptions regarding Nigeria’s commitment to fight corruption and foster good governance. ”We focused on the task of dealing head-on with this destructive monster, which led to us joining the Open Government Partnership and...
Minister, others shun senate over 2020 budget performance
Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, Thursday shunned the Senate when summoned to brief lawmakers of 2020 Budget Performance. The Minister’s refusal to appear before the Senator Barau Jibrin, All Progressives Congress, APC, Kano North led Senate Committee on Appropriations was the second time in two weeks. Also invited but shunned the meeting with the Senate were the Accountant-General of the Federation, Idris Ahmed, and the Director-General of the Budget Office, Ben Akabueze. Briefing Journalists in Abuja Thursday, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Senator Jibrin expressed disappointment at the absence of Nigeria’s key economic and budget planners at the crucial meeting. The Senator who noted that the meeting was originally scheduled to ho...
Labour insists on reversal of fuel price, electricity tariff hike
File Photo The organised labour Thursday insisted that the Federal Government should revert back to the old prices of petrol and electricity tariff, if not the strike will stand. This is as the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige and the President of Trade Union Congress, TUC, Comrade Quadri Olaleye, had a hot altercation over the letter to President Muhammadu Buhari to reverse the prices of petrol and electricity tariff. Meantime, Secretary to the Federal Government, SGF, Boss Mustapha said that deregulation of the Petroleum sector was long overdue, but the TUC President maintained its previous position that government should revert to the old prices before any discussion would continue. The meeting which took place at the Old Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, had...
Tiger Woods to defend Zozo Championship title next month
Getty Images Tiger Woods will defend his Zozo Championship title next month at Sherwood Country Club in California, the PGA Tour said on Wednesday. The 78-player tournament, which will be held from Oct. 22 to Oct.25, was relocated to California this year from Japan due to logistical issues caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. “It is disappointing that we will not be able to play in Japan this year, but Sherwood Country Club will be a great backdrop for what I know will be a great championship,” Woods said in a PGA Tour news release. Woods, who missed the cut at last week’s United States Open, enjoyed a wire-to-wire win at last year’s Zozo Championship in October to match Sam Snead’s record of 82 PGA Tour victories. Since his three-shot triumph over Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, Woods has competed ...
Anglican Primate wants programmes to cushion hike in petrol, electricity tariff
The Primate, Church of Nigeria, Most Rev. Henry Ndukuba, on Wednesday called on the Federal Government to urgently come up with programmes to cushion the effects of the hike in petrol prices and electricity tariff on citizens. Ndukuba, who made the call at the 13th General Synod of the Church in Abuja, stressed that the hike would worsen the economic hardship on Nigerians and increase the poverty level in the country. While lamenting the negative effects of COVID-19 on the citizenry, Ndukuba expressed regret that most of the small and medium scale enterprises had collapsed and many more Nigerians had lost their jobs. On national security, the Anglican Primate stressed the need for government to accord priority to community policing and support regional security organisations to strengthen ...
For $199, You Can Look Like a Cringey Daft Punk-Esque Astronaut With This Pandemic-Proof Helmet
Thanks to a bizarre new pandemic-proof wearable, you can now look like an astronaut plucked out of an early 90s pre-Daft Punk helmet blueprint. For $199, you can squeeze your head into MicroClimate‘s freakish “AIR” helmet, which the company is touting as a safe and stylish alternative to protect against COVID-19. More of a clumsy fishbowl than a trendy fashion statement, the new wearable cycles both inlet and outlet air through HEPA filters and contains a patented acrylic visor, which offers a clear view of the cosmonaut DJ behind it. Despite its Black Mirror-esque appearance and inherently comical existence, though, the “AIR” model comes with a laundry list of impressive tech specs. In addition to its state-of-the-art fan-powered ventilati...
SXSW Announces 2021 Virtual Edition and Dates
With no light at the end of the tunnel of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, South by Southwest is officially going digital in 2021. Organizers of the iconic Austin, Texas music festival and media conference took to social media to share the news of the upcoming virtual fest and its 2021 dates. They also announced that they are working closely with the City of Austin and public health authorities for the return of the physical event, refraining from divulging potential dates. The inaugural digital version of SXSW will take place March 16th to 20th, 2021 and is set to feature “conference keynotes and sessions, screenings, showcases networking, and more.” The 2020 in-person edition of SXSW was originally scheduled for March 13th to 22nd before organizers decided to ...
Frank Lampard urges Premier League clubs to help save struggling EFL
Frank Lampard has urged Premier League clubs to ‘have a heart’ and help save Football League sides amid the financial implications of the coronavirus pandemic. The impact of the pandemic and continued absence of supporters is being felt right across the sport, but nowhere more so than the lower leagues who remain without a vital source of income as fixtures continue to be played behind-closed-doors. Sporting authorities have approached the government warning of the disastrous consequences potentially awaiting without financial aid, though the Telegraph are reporting that elite level football will not receive support given the riches at the highest level of the game. The government believes that the Premier League – the richest division in world football – should be responsible for providin...
NUC directs universities to conclude resumption arrangements as Nigerian government gives nod
The National Universities Commission has directed Universities to conclude arrangements for their reopening following the decline in the number of Coronavirus Disease cases in Nigeria. The directive, the NUC said, followed the nod given to it for universities to reopen by the Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Education. The Federal Ministry of Education is represented on the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, headed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, which announced the significant decline in COVID-19 cases. According to the directive, contained in a memo addressed to Vice Chancellors, the universities are to conclude their resumption arrangements in line with the guidelines of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. The memo, signed by ...
Nigeria’s Hauwa Ojeifo wins Gates Foundation changemaker award
A Nigerian gender and disability rights advocate, Hauwa Ojeifo, has won the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation changemaker award for 2020. According to the Gates Foundation, the award celebrates an individual who has inspired change using personal experience or from a position of leadership. Ms Ojeifo, who heads “She Writes Woman,” a women-led movement giving mental health a voice in Nigeria, was recognised for her work in promoting gender equality (Global Goal #5), a statement by the foundation said on Tuesday. The awardee, who is a sexual and domestic abuse survivor, founded her platform in 2015 to provide “mental health support through a helpline, teletherapy and virtual support groups serving as a first point of contact to ensure that survivors of gender-based violence and those livin...
Hardwell, Chuckie Among a Number of Dutch Artists to Demand “Clarity” on COVID-19 in the Netherlands
Famed electronic music producers Hardwell and Chuckie are two of a bevy of Dutch artists to appear in a post by Instagram account @watchdogs.nl that demand “honesty and transparency” regarding the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. A Reddit user translated the post, which also includes a video wherein a number of the listed artists appear. “This can’t go on any longer. We stand for good public health, our economy is at Breaking point, human behavior is being criminalized and what about the future of our Children? We want clarity,” the post reads. “We had to watch the past 6 months how we kept moving backwards instead of forwards. That’s why we demand honesty and transparency.” The statement goes on to question the use of “non-medical ma...
