Author: Samuel Akpenpuun

US President Donald Trump repealed numerous executive orders promoting LGBTQ equality and issued new ones decreeing only two genders and ending government diversity programs Monday, definitively breaking with what he decries as “woke” culture. On the campaign trail, Trump vilified diversity, equity and inclusion policies in the federal government and corporate world, saying they discriminated against white people — men in particular. “The Biden Administration forced illegal and immoral discrimination programs, going by the name ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI), into virtually all aspects of the Federal Government, in areas ranging from airline safety to the military,” said one new…

The Benin Zone of the Academic Staff Union of Universities has said that the Tertiary Education Trust Fund may go into extinction if the National Assembly passes the tax reform presented by the executive arm of government. The Zonal Coordinator of the Zone, which is made up of nine universities in Edo, Delta and Ondo states, Professor Monday Igbafen, stated this on Friday at a press conference held at the University of Benin. Igbafen said that ASUU is not comfortable with the provisions of Section 59 (3) of the bill, which states that only 50 per cent of the development…

The Nasarawa State Police Command has arraigned gospel singer Timilehin Ajayi in court on charges of murder. Ajayi is accused of killing and dismembering his alleged girlfriend, Salome Adaidu, after she visited him at his residence in the Papalana area of New Karshi, Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State. The 32-year-old suspect appeared at the Nasarawa State High Court in Lafia, the state capital, on Friday. The victim, a 24-year-old member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), was serving at Nicon Insurance in Abuja before her tragic death. The suspect was apprehended on Sunday, January 12, while attempting…

A former factional chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Edozie Njoku, has emerged as the new chairman of the National Rescue Mission. His emergence was announced at an emergency national convention of the party after Isaac Udeh resigned his position as the chairman. Udeh is now the organising secretary of the party. Addressing journalists after the meeting, the new chairman declared to offer a vigorous, dynamic, and formidable opposition to the Bola Tinubu-led government to strengthen Nigeria’s democracy.

The Lagos State Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, LAMATA, has announced that six additional train sets will be in Lagos very soon to strengthen the capacity of the Lagos Rail Mass Transit (LRMT). This was disclosed in a statement on Friday by LAMATA’s Head of Corporate Communication, Kolawole Ojelabi. He said the trains will be plying Blue and Red Lines to deliver value to commuters and thereby increase the economic viability of the state. Ojelabi stated that the six train sets, which have scaled the factory acceptance test hurdle, are scheduled for shipment to Lagos from China and will be deployed…

The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency on Friday sealed off Cyvillian Garden, a popular relaxation spot located on Abacha Road, Mararaba, Nasarawa State over excessive noise pollution. The agency, in a statement on Friday, said the sealing followed numerous complaints by residents and the refusal of the facility to abate its nuisance after a series of notifications. The Director General of NESREA, Dr. Innocent Barikor, who spoke through the Director, Inspection and Enforcement, Dr. Christopher Beka said, “We took all necessary steps before getting to the point of sealing. Complaints from residents were investigated and noise readings were…

President Joe Biden on Friday commuted the sentences of nearly 2,500 people convicted of non-violent drug offences in what the White House called the largest single-day act of clemency in US history. Those whose sentences were commuted were serving “disproportionately long sentences” compared to what they would receive today, Biden said in a statement. He called the move “an important step toward righting historic wrongs, correcting sentencing disparities, and providing deserving individuals the opportunity to return to their families.” “With this action, I have now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in US history,” Biden said, adding…

Two-time Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka retired with an injury during her third-round match against Belinda Bencic on Friday in Melbourne. Osaka needed treatment on her stomach at 6-5 in a first set which she went on to lose on a tiebreak to her Swiss opponent, before shaking hands and leaving the court. Osaka had a troubled build-up to the first Grand Slam of the year, retiring from the final in Auckland with an abdominal injury. The Japanese star also revealed last week that she and her rapper boyfriend Cordae, the father of her daughter Shai, had split up. But…

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has said that the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano dual carriageway will be ready for use in 14 months. Idris made this known at the inauguration of the rehabilitation of section 1 of the road (Abuja to Kaduna) rigid pavement on Thursday. While Section 1 of the road is from Abuja to Kaduna, Section 2 is from Kaduna to Zaria, and  Section 3 is from Zaria to Kano. The description and scope of works include scarification and pulverization of existing bituminous surface as sub-base material and filling of embankments. Others are the provision of approved…

Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has advocated a multi-faceted approach with intelligence-driven strategies in combating drug abuse. Otti spoke on Thursday when he received a delegation of the new State Commander, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Nnadi Wilfred, in Nvosi in the Isialangwa South Local Government Area of the state. He frowned at the evolving nature of the drug menace and its impacts on criminal activities in the country. The governor also underscored the need for collaborative efforts between government and security agencies in combating all forms of crime and drug-related offences, assuring that the state government would give the…