COVID-19
Republican Party Senator Lightly Smacks Hand Of President Trump Over COVID-19 Response
Source: Portland Press Herald / Getty President Donald Trump and his handling of the coronavirus pandemic has surfaced in the news of late, especially as journalist Bob Woodward preps a potentially damaging book release. While many in the Republican Party have yet to lambaste Trump over COVID-19 concerns, one senator in the party broke with her side to do just that. albeit gently. The Hill reports that Sen. Susan Collins of Maine made one of the more pointed statements regarding Trump and the pandemic, which as of Saturday (Sept. 12) has taken the lives of 193,000 Americans. In Woodward’s upcoming book Rage, Trump played down the coronavirus in a bid to not stoke the fears of residents but perhaps to the detriment of all. Collins, who was in Maine for a Senate debate Friday, said, “I belie...
Sister Bliss of Iconic Duo Faithless: Electronic Music Scene “Left to Rot in a Corner”
While we continue to figure out how to navigate the pitfalls of COVID-19, one industry that has been left to its own devices is the nightlife community. Sister Bliss of iconic dance duo Faithless recently discussed this issue with BBC Radio 6 Music to explain why she believes club culture needs to be better protected. “There’s a lack of leadership at the top which means certain industries have been given support and then others have been completely ignored,” she said. The electronic music scene and clubbing is definitely an incredible part of our cultural and economic force, and it travels all over the world globally. We really, I think, have been left to rot in a corner, so it’s good to see that venues and artists are trying to galvanize it—with the ‘Let...
Paris Saint-Germain sign Alessandro Florenzi on loan from Roma
Paris Saint-Germain have completed the signing of Alessandro Florenzi from Roma, with the defender arriving on a loan deal with an option to buy. The 29-year-old has been contracted to Roma throughout the duration of his career however he spent the second half of last season on loan with Valencia in the Primera Division. The 36-time Italy star will team up with international team-mate Marco Verratti in the French capital. “I’m especially proud and happy to become a PSG player,” he said in a statement on the club’s official website. “It’s one of the biggest clubs in Europe today, as was confirmed with their run to the Champions League final last month. “I’ve got the desire to give my maximum for PSG and the supporters of the club. There are enormous challenges ahead of us this season. It wi...
College Football Player Jamain Stephens Dies Of COVID-19 Complications
Source: California University of Pennsylvania / Twitter Jamain Stephens, a lineman for the California University of Pennsylvania, died of complications arising from the COVID-19 disease. Entering into his senior year, the 6-foot-3, 355-pound player was the son of a former NFL player, Jamain Sr. An announcement was made via Central Catholic High School’s Facebook page, where Stephens graduated from in 2017. From Facebook: Known more commonly by his nickname, “Juice,” Jamain was a defensive lineman for the Vikings, winning two WPIAL championships and a state championship in 2015. Jamain went on to continue his football career at California University of Pennsylvania, majoring in Business Administration. Jamain was an avid Central Catholic supporter, and could often be found cheering on the V...
Apple announces September 15 date for online iPhone 12 reveal event
Despite acknowledging that this year’s iPhone launches will be delayed by a few weeks relative to their traditional late September street dates, Apple isn’t stopping the hype train from leaving the station this month. The company announced today that a media event will indeed take place on September 15, roughly a week after its typical iPhone and Apple Watch debuts, setting the stage for new devices to arrive in October. Like the company’s WWDC20 developers’ conference, this event will be virtual rather than in-person, and livestreamed online for immediate viewing across the globe. The stream will start at 10 a.m. Pacific Time (1 p.m. Eastern) on Apple.com for viewing through browsers, as well as the TV apps on iOS, iPadOS, and tvOS devices. Apple is expected to announce the iPhone 12 fami...
UN lauds Africa’s success in virus fight
The United Nations has commended Africa for its exceptional management of the COVID-19 pandemic with record low incidences and deaths. The President of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Amb. Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, said this yesterday while addressing a virtual press conference, adding that the developing countries have done better than developed countries as regards the management of the pandemic. COVID-19 has spread rapidly and extensively to most countries in the world, resulting in considerable mortality in Europe and the United States, as well as in numerous upper-middle-income countries in South America and Asia. Experts predicted millions of COVID-19 deaths in Africa because many countries in the continent rank poorly on the United Nations Development Programme’s Human Dev...
UN condemns use of schools as isolation centres, IDP camps, military bases
The United Nations has condemned the repurposing of schools for use as markets, military bases, isolation centres and camps for internally displaced persons, IDPs, saying schools must remain safe places free of conflict and violence. It also warned against further attacks on educational institutions and students, lamenting that between 2009 and December 2018, about 611 teachers were killed in the Northeast due to the wave of insurgency in the region. In a statement marking the first International Day to Protect Education from Attack, the UN urged Nigeria to prioritise school safety as well as learners’ protection. It said while 910 schools were destroyed in the region within the period, 1, 500 schools were forcefully closed, with 4.2 million children at the risk of missing out on an educat...
COVID-19 Is Quietly Ravaging South Florida’s Haitian Community
Source: INSTARimages.com / WENN While some cities continue to party like its 1999 some areas are still fighting for their lives against COVID-19. One area is being slowly decimated. As spotted on Raw Story(via the Miami Herald), the city of Miami is seemingly losing the battle against the pandemic. According to the report, there is a huge race gap when it comes to confirmed cases that the data is showing but fails to make national headlines on major media outlets. In the last couple of weeks several Haitians have succumbed to the disease, at the time of this story there 100+ documented deaths stemming from Coronavirus. “The stigma is huge,” said South Florida Dr. Sidney Coupet. “A patient who I treated in the hospital, they discharged her. She beat COVID. The way she was speaking to m...
Plateau governor tasks new council chairman on prudence, accountability
Gov. Simon Lalong of Plateau has urged the new Chairman, Management Committee, Barkin Ladi Local Government, Jock Alamba, to embrace prudence and accountability in the discharge of his duties. Lalong also charged him to consolidate on the peace achieved in the area. He made the call while inaugurating the chairman on Tuesday at the Government House, Jos. Newsmen report that the former chairman of the Local Government, Mr Ezekiel Mandyau, died in July after an illness. The governor said that Nigeria was dealing with the impact of COVID-19, adding that the global pandemic had affected all facets of the economy, including the finances of local government. “This means that you must embrace prudence, accountability and accord priority to the programmes and projects that have direct bearing on t...
CSO urges President Buhari to freeze NDDC account
The Act for Positive Transformation Initiative, a Civil Society Organisation (CSO), has requested President Muhammadu Buhari to freeze the account of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and suspend all further spending in the commission. Mr Johnson Kolawale, the Head, Directorate of Research, Strategy, and Programme, made the call at a news conference on Monday in Abuja. He alleged that plans were ongoing to make fraudulent expenditures by top officials in the commission. Kolawale revealed that the commission had continued to spend funds against due process and against the directive of the President. According to him, the commission has squandered an additional nine billion Naira in the last one month. “We call on President Muhammadu Buhari, the National Assembly, and genuine sec...
27 Stranded Nigerian girls evacuated from Lebanon arrive Abuja
Another batch of 27 stranded Nigerian girls evacuated from Lebanon by the Federal Government and the Lebanese Government, as well as its community in Nigeria arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Sunday. Receiving them, Ferdinand Nwonye, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who represented the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, said the evacuation was in fulfillment of the Nigerian Government’s promise to ensure no Nigerian is left stranded in Lebanon. Newsmen report that there have been several pleas from Nigerians stranded in Lebanon for assistance to enable them to return home. Nwonye said the Nigerian Government was aware of the unfortunate situation they experienced in Lebanon, hence the collaboration to ensure their safe return to t...
Stakeholders call for measures against post-coronavirus suicide
Some stakeholders in mental health have called for proactive measures to be put in place to prevent incidences of suicide in Nigeria post COVID-19. They made the call at an Annual National E-conference organised by the Suicide Research and Prevention Initiative (SURPIN) held via Zoom on Saturday in Lagos. Theme of the conference was: “Together Toward Collaborative Resilience: Building Resilience Post COVID-19.” It was held in commemoration of the World Suicide Day, marked annually on Sept. 10. Commenting, Prof. Andrew Zamani of Clinical Psychology, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, said that collective resilience in preventing mental disorders, which could lead to suicide, largely depends on leadership. Zamani said the leadership must be the one that has integrity, inclined toward social i...