Curator

http://ift.tt/2reDA1b Enatarari Kalango A student of Meadow Hall College, Lagos, Enatarari Kalango, has won the British Council Recognition and Outstanding Cambridge Learner Awards. She received the prestigious award for her exceptional performance in the June 2016 Cambridge examinations. Enatarari won the prize for the Best Across Eight Cambridge IGCSEs in the Cambridge International Examinations conducted across the six continents of the world in June 2016. The international qualifications are recognised by the world’s best universities and employers as giving students a wide range of options in their education and career. The award ceremony, which held at the Intercontinental Hotel on May 19, was designed to recognise Outstanding Cambridge Learners in 2015 and 2016 and the partner schools that have exemplified Equality, Diversity, Inclusion (EDI) and Child Protection policies. Enatarari achieved all A-stars (A*) in nine of her IGCSE subjects; (English, Mathematics, Biol...

http://ift.tt/2pjNDQQ Nasir El-Rufai • El-Rufai orders release of inmates Organised labour and human rights activists have urged Nigerians to ensure that democracy survives in the country. They said: “The worst form of democracy is better than a dictatorship regime that would return the nation to a pariah state.” Officials of National Union of Textiles, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN) and the Executive Director of Human Rights Monitor (HRM), Mr. Festus Okoye stated this at the celebration of democracy day organised by labour in Kaduna yesterday. They said: “We reaffirm our commitment to democratic process despite the challenges facing the economy. What Nigeria needs is to deepen democracy.”The NUTGTWN Secretary General, Issa Aremu urged Nigerians to resist any attempt to sabotage democratic culture that has taken root in the country, pointing out that; “non- accountability led to the wholesale corruption and mass poverty in recent time. Nigerians should theref...

http://ift.tt/2nXtSNy At an investigative hearing, sequel to queries of the office of the Auditor-General of the Federation (AGF), the committee chairman, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, also accused the council of engaging an insurance broker for N5.118 million without due process. • N5m insurance discrepancies House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts has accused the Nigerian Press Council (NPC) of fraudulently spending N8.301 million for renovating its building in Abuja. At an investigative hearing, sequel to queries of the office of the Auditor-General of the Federation (AGF), the committee chairman, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, also accused the council of engaging an insurance broker for N5.118 million without due process. The discoveries, among others, followed queries on the NPC by the Attorney-General of the Federation for the year ended December 31, 2011. The AGF had, in the complaints it forwarded to the committee, urged the parliament to investigate the N8.301 contract awar...

http://ift.tt/2p11jQM President Muhammadu Buhari. PHOTO: LUCY LADIDI ELUKPO. The administration of President Muhammadu Buhari should urgently respond to the nationwide calls for a true federal structure and practice in the country. Different persons from diverse backgrounds have repeated the call for the nation to return to the federalist temper which governed Nigeria in the early years of nationhood. Right from 1999 when the current democratic government was inaugurated, it was clear that the terms of the federation would have to be properly and vigorously re-negotiated. All the indices of a wrongly-skewed federal system were there. Disenchantment followed, expressed through violence and even statements by different opinion leaders. The reason for this is not far-fetched. Nearly 60 years after independence, the states which ought to be the constituent units of the federation still go cap in hand to Abuja monthly for economic hand outs. They all largely depend on a mono-product ec...

http://ift.tt/2q2OsNQ The training was organized by NRCRI in collaboration with Federal Government and the International Fund For Agricultural Development Assisted Value Chain Development Programme (FGN/IFAD VCDP). The Executive Director of the National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI) in Umudike, Abia State, Dr. Julius Okonkwo has urged youths to embrace practical agriculture and farming rather than keep searching for white-collar jobs. He noted that agribusiness has the potential to sustain youth entrepreneurs and make them employers of labour. Okonkwo who spoke recently at the closing session of the two weeks training on Cassava Stem Multiplication for 90 youth-farmers from six states of Anambra, Benue, Ebony, Niger, Ogun and Taraba, urged government at all levels to fund agriculture and not leave it to donor agencies alone. The training was organized by NRCRI in collaboration with Federal Government and the International Fund For Agricultural Development Assisted Value C...

http://ift.tt/2pUhFya Barcelona's Argentinian forward Lionel Messi (2ndL) celebrates with Barcelona's Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez (L) and teammates after scoring during the Spanish league Clasico football match Real Madrid CF vs FC Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on April 23, 2017. OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP Only victory in Saturday’s Copa del Rey final against Alaves will salvage some pride from Barcelona’s season and give coach Luis Enrique a successful send-off, whilst the Basques dream of lifting the trophy for a first time. On a night of goodbyes as Atletico Madrid’s Vicente Calderon hosts its final competitive fixture, Enrique will take charge of Barca for the last time. A win would complete a clean sweep of the Copa del Rey in his three seasons in charge. However, in contrast to the previous two years when Cup success was the icing on a successful season having won the treble in 2015 and a league and Cup double last season, Barca this time he...

http://ift.tt/2oFtOSJ Tax Operators in the nation’s insurance sector have expressed discomfort over the heavy tax burden being placed on them by the Companies Income Tax Amendment Act 2007 (CITA), which now constitutes a big clog to their profitability. The operators said the development has capped their claims experience, describing it as anti-investment and a defeat of the essence of insurance in Nigeria. The Deputy Commissioner for Insurance (Technical), National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Sunday Thomas, in a telephone conversation with The Guardian on the development, said the Commission is in talks with the relevant stakeholders on the Amendment of the CITA 2007, for the benefit of all. He said: “As a follow up to our presentation at the meeting, is to engage with the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) with a view to charting the way forward on the matter.” The Chairman, Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), the umbrella body of insurance underwriters, Eddie Ef...

http://ift.tt/2qfPQRv The destroyed property The legal tussle over the ownership of two blocks of flats located at 41 Kingsway Road (now Alfred Rewane Road) Ikoyi, degenerated at the weekend when one of the defendants in the suit attacked residents with thugs and demolished the property. The attack, which was carried out around 4:00a.m. on Saturday left the 91-year-old grandmaother along with her daughter, a retired civil servant, Alhaja Halima Abubakar, thoroughly brutalised when thugs numbering about 30, invaded the property with cutlasses, sledge-hammers and guns. Eyewitnesses said the aged woman, along with her daughters, were dragged out of the house and in the process sustained bruises all over their bodies. Narrating her ordeal, owner of the property, Halima Abubakar, said they were sleeping when they heard people trying to force the gate open with sledgehammer. According to her, the invaders eventually succeeded in breaking the fence down and forcibly entered their ...

http://ift.tt/2qR2IdQ Fabian Benjamin, who disclosed this in a telephone interview ahead of the board examination billed to commence on Saturday, May 13 assured that necessary machinery has been put in place to ensure a hitch free exercise. All appears set for the conduct of this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) as the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) yesterday directed candidates to check for their examination centres with effect from tomorrow on its website. Head of Media and Information of the board, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, who disclosed this in a telephone interview ahead of the board examination billed to commence on Saturday, May 13 assured that necessary machinery has been put in place to ensure a hitch free exercise. “We are good to go, every machinery has been put in motion, we enjoined parents and candidates to give us their support and on our part, we are assuring of a level playing filed for everyone.” Benjamin disclosed that t...

http://ift.tt/2qxVn5q Nigeria Flag Seek registration of motorcycles, tricycles for crime control The House of Representatives yesterday approved the second reading of a bill seeking to impose N100,000 fine on anyone who abuses the country’s national flag. Discussing the general principles of the bill at plenary, the sponsor, Sam Onuigbo (Abia-PDP) lamented the high rate of abuse which the national flag is being subjected to, and urged the House to do everything possible to preserve it. When passed, he said the bill, which would amend the Flag and Coat of Arms Act 2004, would further make provisions to safeguard all the country’s national heritage. He expressed concern that there are underground efforts to change the national flag as many public and government offices now include the coat of arms in it. According to him: “It is important to declare that any addition, subtraction or super imposition outside the version designed by Pa Michael Akinkunmi in 1959 is not the Nig...

http://ift.tt/2qu3M6j University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital As part of efforts to control the spread of meningitis and diarrhoea in the country, the Federal Government in collaboration with World Health organization (WHO) has approved University Teaching Hospital (UNTH) Enugu and the University Teaching Hospital (UITH) Ilorin as sentinel sites for surveillance of the diseases. The surveillance would focus on rotavirus diarrhea and pediatric bacterial meningitis/cerebro spinal meningitis (CSM) in children. Rotavirus is a contagious virus that causes gastroenteritis (inflammation of the stomach and intestines). Symptoms include severe watery diarrhoea, often with vomiting, fever, and abdominal pain. Infants and young children are most likely to get rotavirus disease. Executive Director and Chief Executive, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib told journalist at the weekend that the findings from the sites would help in information shari...

http://ift.tt/2pN8orY Britain's Anthony Joshua (L) looks for an opening against Ukraine's Wladimir Klitschko during the third round of their IBF, IBO and WBA, world Heavyweight title fight at Wembley Stadium in north west London on April 29, 2017. PHOTO: Ben STANSALL / AFP Not until the build up to Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, many Nigerian boxing fans did not know anything about Anthony Oluwafemi Joshua, the rave of the moment, who on Saturday night, floored Wladimir Klitschko in the 11th round at the Wembley Stadium, London to retained his IBF world title and added the WBC ‘super’ belt title. After he failed bid to make the Great British team to Beijing 2008 and his moves to join Team Nigeria was ‘blocked,’ Anthony decided to move on with challenges of life. Joshua was born in Watford to a Nigerian mother and a British father of Nigerian and Irish descent in 1989. His cousin is fellow unbeaten professional boxer Ben lleyemi. The pair made their professional debuts togeth...

http://ift.tt/2pNgrFa The report, carried out in partnership with PWC, Africa Development Bank Group and CDC Group named 59 Nigerian firms out of 343 companies from 42 African countries, representing 17 per cent of the total number of firms. PHOTO: Ugbusiness Profile provides platform for job creation, others Nigerian has emerged the country with highest concentration of high growth companies in Africa. This was contained in the inaugural ‘Companies To Inspire Africa’ report. ‘Companies To Inspire Africa’ report is a London Stock Exchange Group’s (LSEG) celebration of some of the fastest growing and most dynamic privately held growth companies in Africa. The report, carried out in partnership with PWC, Africa Development Bank Group and CDC Group named 59 Nigerian firms out of 343 companies from 42 African countries, representing 17 per cent of the total number of firms in the report. Addressing capital market participant launch of the report in Lagos at the weekend, the co...

http://ift.tt/2oQb6LI The World Bank has told Lagos based rights group, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) that it has no additional information on projects executed with recovered stolen public funds by the late General Sani Abacha. World Bank’s remark was contained in a response to SERAP’s request of February 2016 for additional information on how Abacha’s loot was spent. The rights group has sent an open letter to the Bank’s President Dr. Jim Yong Kim, requesting him to use his “good offices and leadership position to urgently address the public perception that the World Bank is seeking to distance itself from responsibility over alleged mismanagement in the spending of recovered Abacha loot”. Specifically, the organization asked Dr. Kim to “establish a Special Inspection Panel on Nigeria to visit locations across the country to verify whether or not the projects reportedly executed by the Nigerian government with the funds were actually execu...