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Expert: Corporal punishment impedes autistic child’s development
Baerbel Jaja, Head, Government Special School, Lafia, Nasarawa State, says corporal and psychological punishments should not be meted to special needs persons. Jaja told newsmen in Lafia on Friday that corporal and psychological punishments hamper the overall functionality and the development of such persons. She said: “If you flog an autistic child, that’s the end of the development for that child. “You have killed his spirit. “Even for a normal child, if you keep flogging him, you have actually killed the spirit of that child and that will make him not to function well. “If an autistic child does not function the way you want, you have to be patient with him. “You cannot use force on any of this special need kids because it doesn’t work; it will rather close up the little you have achiev...
Namibian president caught in new fishing corruption allegations
Informante The president of Namibia has been implicated in new allegations of corruption involving the country’s lucrative fishing industry by an investigation released by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and The Namibian newspaper. According to a lawyer who allegedly arranged the deal, President Hage Geingob instructed his close associates to embezzle millions of dollars from a state-run fishing enterprise in order to bribe electors at the 2017 congress of the ruling SWAPO (South West Africa People’s Organization) party, reports the new investigation released on Friday. The lawyer, who is not named by the OCCRP, claims that Hage Geingob – elected as President of Namibia in 2014 and re-elected in 2019 – allegedly asked James Hatuikulipi, then chairman of the sta...
NSF: Edo government pledges better welfare to volunteers
The Edo Government has pledged to do its best to take care of the volunteers who will help in the hosting of the 20th National Sports Festival (NSF) in Benin. The State Deputy Governor, Mr Philips Shaibu, made the pledge on Friday while addressing the volunteers at the Games village, located in the University of Benin. Shaibu, who also is the Chairman of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the festival, assured the volunteers that the state would welcome collaboration and cooperation of the team to ensure the success of the sporting fiesta. “This address is to assure you that we will collaborate and cooperate with you to ensure that the game is successful. “Your role as volunteers to help us guide and control our athletes as they come is paramount to the success of the games. “From th...
Plateau governor installs four traditional rulers
Plateau State governor, Simon Bako Lalong, says traditional rulers need to play a greater role in enhancing the security of their domains and the entire nation. Governor Lalong stated this while installing two second class chiefs in Wase local government area of Plateau State. The monarchs are Chief Lot Nden, Ponzhi Kadarko Chiefdom and Alhaji Muhammad Asi, Aku-Jukun of Mavo Chiefdom. While presenting the staff of office to the two traditional rulers after they took the oath of allegiance, Governor Lalong said the restoration of the two chiefdoms was in fulfilment of his campaign promise and the desire to meet the yearnings of the people in the spirit of equity and justice. He says any community leader or traditional ruler who is unable to assist security agencies towards arresting crimina...
ECWA: Terrorists tactically taking over Northern Nigeria
The Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) has raised the alarm, saying terrorist groups are tactically expanding their activities and making incursions into other parts of the North. Addressing a press conference in Jos on Wednesday on the insecurity ravaging the country, ECWA President, Dr. Stephen Panya, said “Boko Haram and ISWAP have destroyed tens of thousands of lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of Nigerians and many Christians and Christian communities have been deliberately targeted and destroyed. “It is clear that these terrorist groups are gradually but tactically expanding their activities and making incursions into other parts of the north and even beyond, and the apparent lack of unity in the fight against these terrorist groups, and the inability of government to deal...
Suez Canal reopens after stranded ship is freed
Traffic has resumed in Egypt’s Suez Canal after a stranded container ship blocking it for nearly a week was finally freed by salvage crews. Tug boats honked their horns in celebration as the 400m-long (1,300ft) Ever Given was dislodged on Monday with the help of dredgers. Hundreds of ships are waiting to pass through the canal which links the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. It is one of the world’s busiest trade routes. Peter Berdowski, CEO of Dutch salvage company Boskalis, said the Ever Given had been refloated at 15:05 (13:05 GMT) on Monday, “thereby making free passage through the Suez Canal possible again”. Egyptian officials say the backlog of ships waiting to transit through should be cleared in around three days, but experts believe the knock-on effect on global shipping could take w...
Ohanaeze faction opens own office
The division in Ohanaeze Ndigbo leadership following January 10th election has deepened with the faction opposed to the Prof. George Obiozor- led leadership opening a parallel office opposite the Akanu Ibiam International Airport as its operational base. The Engr. Chidi Ibeh-led faction had while inspecting the main Ohanaeze Secretariat at the Park Avenue, Enugu, recently, declared it as uninhabitable and vowed to secure another secretariat to run the affairs of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organization. Meanwhile, the Ibeh group has declared April 22, 2021 as “Atonement Day of Ndigbo”. According to Ibeh, on the issue of atonement, “this land must be purified; our prayerful men and women will be assembled together, all the clergy in Igbo land will come together and pray for the cleansing o...
Governor Makinde: Nigeria’s redemption will begin from Oyo
Governor of Oyo State, ‘Seyi Makinde, has declared that God will redeem Nigeria from its current challenges of insecurity, ethnic and religious tension starting from Oyo State. The governor, who dwelt on the uniqueness of figure seven, said that God will use the seventh election in the Fourth Republic coming up in 2023 to get Nigeria to perfection. According to him, the fact that Oyo State currently produced the Seventh President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), as well as the Worldwide President of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) is a sign that God loves Oyo State and would redeem the country starting from Oyo. A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Taiwo Adisa, indicated that the governor also challenged Nige...
Minister tasks NSDC boss on ensuring self-sufficiency in sugar production
Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, has tasked the newly appointed Executive Secretary of the National sugar Development Council (NSDC), Zach Adedeji to work towards the realisation of the Federal Government’s goal in ensuring self-sufficiency in sugar production. Speaking at the inauguration of Adedeji as the Chief Executive Officer of the NSDC at the weekend in Abuja, Adebayo said the Federal Government relied on him to work assiduously towards the realisation of the country’s self sufficiency in the sugar production. He noted that the appointment of Adedeji was based on his performance in his former positions, adding that the nation expected him to leave landmark achievements by the time he would be leaving office. “You are therefore expected to discharge...
Sokoto conducts council polls amidst boycott by APC
Council elections went on in Sokoto on Saturday despite a boycott by the main opposition party, All Progressives Congress. According to the State Independent Electoral Commission, 10 political parties participated in the election but only PDP agents were seen in most of the polling units observed by newsmen. Some political observers opined that other participating parties were not financially buoyant to recruit and deploy agents to the polling units. However, there was low turnout in some of the polling units observed, especially in the state’s metropolis while in other areas. Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, who cast his vote in his hometown of Tambuwal, noted that, periodic local government election was fundamental to a sustainable democracy. “We all know that local council election is a ...
Ibrahim Gambari: We must not assume President Buhari alone can solve our problems
Ibrahim Gambari, chief of staff to the president, says Nigerians should not assume that the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration can solely solve the problems affecting the country. Gambari stated this on Saturday when he represented the president at the 2021 annual lecture of Arewa House, in Kaduna. Delivering the president’s message, Gambari called on Nigerians to put the nation first in all their dealings, as was done by the country’s founding fathers. He said good leadership will provide a platform for the nation to overcome its challenges and unlock the huge potentials of the country. Gambari also noted that there is a need to improve coordination and collaboration among leaders at all levels of government, adding that all hands must be on deck to steer the country towards the path of ...
Yoruba monarchs warn Nigerians to stop making inflammatory comments
Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, and the Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba Abdul-Rasheed Akanbi, yesterday, cautioned Nigerians against making inflammatory statements that could ignite ethnoreligious crisis in the country. The monarchs gave the warning during the visit of Oba Akanbi to the Alaafin’s palace, in Oyo. Asking those stoking ethno-religious crises to have a retrospective look at the past, the monarchs advised that anything that could fan the embers of discord should be avoided. They said: “Nigerians must exercise restraints; they must bear in mind Nigeria’s long history of ethno-religious conflicts, as people use this type of deep-seated animosity in their speech precisely because of the culture of impunity which reigns in the country.” “What is more, hate speech is an agent provocateur ...