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JAMB boss lists major challenges
Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, Registrar, Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) said malpractice and indiscipline are some of the board’s major challenges yet to be fully addressed. The Registrar made this known when members of the Senate Committee on Basic and Secondary Education visited the board’s headquarters in Bwari, Abuja on Monday. Oloyede said that the challenges, unfortunately, were mostly with regards to parents trying to bend the system by all means and get their wards or children into schools, irrespective of their performance. “Our challenge remains examination malpractice, especially with regards to parents who keep calling me to favour their wards or children whether they meet the requirements of the system or not. “There’s also indiscipline from the tertiary institutions...
South Africa extends tight coronavirus restrictions for another 14 days
South Africa extended tight COVID-19 rules on Sunday for another 14 days, maintaining restrictions that include a ban on gatherings, a curfew from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. and a prohibition on the sale of alcohol. The country, the worst-hit on the African continent in terms of recorded cases and deaths, is in the grip of a third wave of infections driven by the more infectious Delta coronavirus variant. “Our health system countrywide remains under pressure,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a televised address to the nation. Early this month South Africa recorded a new record of over 26,000 daily cases, stretching hospitals to breaking point. Ramaphosa moved the country to the fourth level of a five-tier restriction scale in late June as infections climbed, promising to review the restrictions af...
Lagos marks 70 houses for demolition, 20 on the Island
The Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) said it is set to demolish 70 distressed buildings in the state. Twenty of the buildings are on Lagos Island. The agency made this known after bulldozing a partially collapsed house at 19 Church Street on the Island. LASBCA spokesman, Mr Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, said the General Manager of the agency Mr Gbolahan Oki, supervised the demolition. Oki said it has became an urgency to immediately remove the dilapidated and distressed building, which were no longer fit for human habitation, to prevent collapse. He said many defective buildings had been marked for removal in a bid to end the era of building collapses. Oki noted that his team had earlier visited the distressed buildings to get an on the spot assessment and asked the residents to reloca...
Nigerian asks resident doctors, health workers to withdraw strike notices
The Federal Government has directed the National Association of Resident Doctors and the Joint Health Sector Unions to withdraw their strike notices immediately. The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, said this at a news conference in Abuja on Friday. Ngige was addressing newsmen at the end of a meeting with the Presidential Committee on Salaries, relevant Federal Government stakeholders and health sector professional associations and trade unions. He said that the Federal Government was recently issued notice of trade disputes by NARD and JOHESU. “I told them to withdraw because it is arm-twisting. It is not allowed in International Labour Organisation Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiation. So, we expect them to withdraw those notices they gave. “JOHESU gave 15-day ulti...
Anambra election: We’ve no hand in APGA triple candidates woes – APC
Anambra State All Progressive Congress (APC) has denied any hand in the triple candidates scenario in All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the state as alleged by Governor Willie Obiano of the state. The party said that was rather too busy with the self-purification and organizational process to bother about parties that were hijacked from their original goals. The State APC Publicity Secretary Okelo Madukaife in a statement said that Governor Obiano had alleged that APC and PDP were responsible for the crisis in APGA and in fact tried to stop one of the three factional candidates from emerging. “APC has nothing do with such infradig affair. PDP will speak for itself. One thing is however clear. Every leader in the place of Governor Obiano today would be ashamed of what has become of ...
UNICEF to supply AU states 220 million coronavirus vaccines
The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has signed an agreement with Janssen Pharmaceutica NV to supply up to 220 million doses of the J&J single-dose vaccine to all 55 member-states of the African Union (AU) by the end of 2022. Some 35 million doses are to be delivered by the end of this year, UNICEF stated in a statement issued on Thursday in New York. The agreement, between UNICEF and Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, will help implement the Advance Purchase Commitment (APC) signed between the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT) and Janssen last March. That agreement secured an option to order another 180 million doses, bringing the maximum access up to a total of 400 million doses by the end of 2022. The AU established AVAT in November 2020 to deliver COVID-19 vaccines to the African continen...
INEC promises to train Malawian electoral body on delineation, creation of polling units
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has promised to teach its Malawian electoral commission counterpart the tricks it used in the delineation of constituencies and creation of polling units. Speaking when his Malawian counterpart, Justice Chifundo Kachale, led a delegation on a courtesy visit on him in Abuja on Thursday, National Chairman of INEC, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, said he understand that the Southern African country is also faced similar challenges Nigeria had previously. He announced to the delegation that the Commission is currently undergoing a historic voter registration exercise, emphasizing: “We are also doing the voter pre-registration online, which will now be completed physically in person at designated centres nationwide. So you are coming at the right time. ...
NLC urges National Assembly to transform NNPC to public liability company
The Nigeria Labour Congress has cautioned the National Assembly to handle with utmost care what it described as the very sensitive issue of the unbundling of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation. It urged the lawmakers to transform the NNPC to a public liability company as part of the reforms of the oil and gas sector captured in the Petroleum Industry Bill. The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, said this on Tuesday, in a statement lauding the passage of the PIB titled, ‘Congress commends the national assembly for passing the petroleum industry bill – demands that the NNPC be transformed into a public liability company.’ It stated, “We know that the process of making the PIB a law has not been completely consummated as the passed bill would still need to be harmonized by a conference of th...
Former Everton boss calls Richarlison to discuss possible Real Madrid move
New Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has been in contact with Richarlison, a player he is eager to reunite with in Spain this summer. Ancelotti was hired by Real Madrid in June as he opted to leave Everton to return to his former club on a contract that runs through 2024. The Italian boss is now interested in bringing one of Everton’s stars to Madrid with him, as he has held conversations with Richarlison over that possibility. Goal can confirm that a call between Ancelotti and Richarlison happened recently, with the forward currently on duty with Brazil for Copa America. Ancelotti is eager to bring him to the Bernabeu, but any potential talks are in the early stages. Still, the conversation between the two could evolve into an offer for Everton to consider in the coming weeks. The Braz...
Coronavirus: England to lift mask, distancing rules July 19
Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday revealed plans to lift most of England’s legal coronavirus restrictions, including face masks and social distancing from July 19, urging personal responsibility rather than government edict. Johnson had initially aimed for a full reopening on June 21, but was forced to push back the date because of a surge in the highly contagious Delta variant. That variant now accounts for nearly all new Covid-19 cases in Britain, and infection rates have soared, sparking concern. But mass vaccinations have stopped a resultant surge in hospital admissions or deaths. “This pandemic is far from over, it certainly won’t be over by the 19th,” warned Johnson. “We must reconcile ourselves, sadly, to more deaths from Covid. “There’s only one reason why we can contemplate g...
Senate summons ex-NSITF bosses over ‘N84 billion embezzlement’
The Senate has summoned former managing directors of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund over alleged missing financial documents in the agency. The former NSITF bosses are expected to appear before the Senate Public Accounts Committee on Tuesday. The Chairman of SPAC, Senator Matthew Urhoghide, at the last meeting of his panel on Thursday, said 50 queries were issued against the NSITF officials by the office of the Auditor General for the Federation. Urhoghide said the ex-NSITF bosses were being invited following the failure of the officials of the agency to respond to the queries of the AuGF regarding some alleged financial infractions. He said, “Twelve out of the 50 queries of the Auditor General of the Federation so far reviewed by the committee revealed that N84bn had allegedly be...
PDP: Zamfara governor’s reason for defection confirms APC behind insecurity
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) noted that Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle’s statement that he joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) in order to get the Federal Government to end insecurity in his state is a confirmation that APC and its government are responsible for the banditry, terrorism and kidnapping ravaging that state. According to the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Kola Ologbondiyan, “The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says the confession by Zamfara State governor, Bello Matawalle, that he joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) in order to get the Federal Government to end insecurity in his state, reinforces public stance that the APC and its government are responsible for the banditry, terrorism and kidnapping ravaging that state.” The party believ...
