The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) says the judiciary plays an essential role in protection of freedom of expression and access to information, particularly for journalists. Ms Nuhu Yachat, Representative, UNESCO Regional Office in Nigeria, said this during a capacity building workshop on freedom of expression and safety of journalists for State High Court judges on Tuesday in Lagos. The three-day workshop, organised by UNESCO, aims to provide a platform for the discussion of international and regional standards on freedom of expression and the safety of journalists as they affected Nigeria. Yachat said journalists, when free to…
Author: Newsdesk
The Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Orji Kalu, has opined that the only a Muslim-Muslim ticket could make the All Progressives Congress (APC) win the presidential election in 2023. Kalu, who was responding to questions by journalists at the National Assembly complex in Abuja on Wednesday, believes that the ruling party may lose the election if it fails to adopt a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket. “If we don’t play Muslim-Muslim (ticket), we are in trouble,” he stated. “It will be difficult to win the election because the only thing left for Ahmed Tinubu today is to play Muslim-Muslim. “What is…
The Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) has challenged the jurisdiction of a Federal High Court in Yenagoa to hear a N700 billion oil spill compensation suit filed by members of Aghoro I Community in Bayelsa. The people of Aghoro I in Ekeremor local government area of Bayelsa, dragged the SPDC to Federal High Court Yenagoa over a May 17, 2018 oil leak from the oil firm’s Trans Ramos Pipeline. When the suit came up for hearing, Counsel to SPDC, Mr Michael Amadi told the court that the oil firm is challenging the jurisdiction to hear the case and appeal at…
World Health Organisation (WHO) says it is working with partners on renaming monkeypox and its variants, and also to put in place a mechanism to help share available vaccines, more equitably, as the need arises. WHO Director General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, disclosed this at a news conference on Tuesday in Geneva. He said WHO had published guidelines on vaccination against monkeypox and also published recommendations for governments regarding case detection and control of the disease. Speaking to journalists in Geneva, WHO Smallpox expert, Dr Rosamund Lewis, said it was crucial to raise awareness in the population about the level of…
The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday, announced that the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee will meet on June 23 to determine if monkeypox should be declared ‘Emergency of International Concern’. The WHO Director General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, said at a news conference at the agency’s headquarters in Geneva, that the Committee had been convened due to the spread of the monkeypox virus to 32 non-endemic countries. The experts will meet on June 23 to assess whether the continuing outbreak represents a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, the highest level of global alert, which currently applies only to the…
The National Industrial Court, on Wednesday dismissed a defamation suit filed by Mr Godwin Akpan against Mobil Producing Nigeria for lacking in merit. Delivering Judgment, Justice Mahmood Namtari, held that that a servant who claims a wrongful termination of employment, must show in what manner the wrong was done. The court however, declared that the termination of the claimant’s employment by Gins Global Ltd, the first defendant, as wrongful. The court in addition stated that the termination was not in accordance with the employment agreement and ordered the firm to pay the claimant, the sum of N120,000 as severance benefit and…
Google on Wednesday announced new initiatives to support small retail businesses and offered 1,000 scholarships to business owners in Africa. Juliet Ehimuan, Google Country Director for West Africa, said in a statement that it was part of a month-long commemoration of International Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Businesses (SMB) Day in June. Ehimuan said the programmes commemorating the International SMB Day reaffirms Google’s dedication to ensure that small retail businesses on the continent acquire the necessary digital technology, tools and training to thrive and be more resilient. She said this includes a one-hour virtual training event, tagged: the ‘Shopping Small Business Summit’, aimed…
Bulgaria’s National Statistical Institute on Wednesday said the country’s inflation rose in May by 15.6 per cent year-on-year. According to the institute, this is the highest annual rise since May 1998, when the figure stood at 18.8 per cent. Meanwhile, the monthly inflation in May 2022 was 1.2 per cent which was lower than the figures for April and March, which stood at 2.5 per cent and 2.2 per cent, respectively. Prices of transport, food and non-alcoholic beverages contributed much to the inflation. In May, transport prices rose by 3.2 per cent over the previous month, and by 32.6 per cent…
Senator representing Abia South Senatorial District at the National Assembly (NASS), Eyinnaya Abaribe has officially resigned membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to join the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). His resignation letter was read by the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, during Wednesday’s plenary. Until his resignation, Abaribe was the Minority Leader in the Senate. The letter was entitled “Notification for Resignation from Membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Senate.” “This is to notify you and my dear colleagues in the Senate that I have formally resigned my membership of the PDP through my…
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has named an 11-member Vice Presidential Candidate Screening Committee, to screen Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike, who was elected on Tuesday to be the running mate to the party’s flagbearer, Atiku Abubakar. Former Foreign Affairs minister, Tom Ikimi was appointed to head the committee that will screen Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, on Thursday. Wike has not officially been announced as at the time of filing this report. Wike was reported to have polled 13 of the 16 votes of the party’s consultative panel set up to recommend a running mate among Wike, Delta…