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Trump plans to give $50m penthouse to Putin in Moscow
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court documents unsealed thursday say cohen well knew his statements to congress about trump tower moscow were false and misleading stating that he told the lies in order to minimize links between the moscow project and individual 1 an apparent reference to trump1 the trump organisation planned to give a 50 million penthouse in the planned trump tower moscow to president vladimir putin while the company was in negotiations in 20161 cohen also trumps fixer discussed the idea with putin press secretary dmitry peskov two u.s. law enforcement officials told buzzfeed1 trump tower moscow is at the centre of a plea deal cohen reached thursday with special counsel robert mueller in his investigation into possible collusion between the trump campaign and russia in the 2016 presidential election1 cohen pleaded guilty to lying to congressional panels about trumps moscow property plans including his plans to travel to russia contacts with russian officials in connection with the project and how long the property plans were discussed within the trump organization1 buzzfeed news reported this on thursday quoting four persons familiar with revelations made by trumps lawyer michael cohen1 cohen also tried to give the false impression that the moscow project ended before the iowa caucus and the very first primary in hopes of limiting the ongoing russia investigations1 however it was revealed that the discussions surrounding the project extended well into 2016 and cohen regularly informed trump about the negotiations1 it is unclear if trump was specifically aware of the deal to give putin the penthouse1 trump defended the project thursday telling reporters there was a good chance that i wouldnt have won [the presidential election] in which case i would have gotten back into the business and why should i lose lots of opportunities1 trumps relationship with putin has been under close scrutiny since the campaign during which u.s. intelligence agencies say the kremlin meddled in the presidential contest1 -
Nigeria testing 5G network for 2020 rollout
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nigeria has started trial testing of the rollout plan of 5g networks with the 26ghz 38ghz and 42ghz spectrum bands beginning with the eko atlantic project1 the country to regulatory agency nigerian communications commission ncc would be ready to roll out 5g by 20201 ncc said in abuja on thursday during a collaborative meeting with gsma for 5g rollout in nigeria1 the executive vice chairman of ncc prof. umar danbatta said 5g broadband data will drive connectivity and allow humans to interact with connected devices to check their health status and remotely control home appliances without physical contact1 danbatta acknowledged the deficit in infrastructure rollout and spectrum availability in the country but added that the ncc was already working to address the challenges1 he said ncc would begin with the available 26ghz 38ghz and 42ghz to drive 5g rollout in the country1 danbatta said ncc is already working on the three key factors that will drive 5g deployments which include infrastructure spectrum and regulation ahead of the 2020 rollout date1 we will rely on existing policies and regulation and still come up with additional policies and regulation that will address any hiccups1 also speaking the head sub-saharan africa for gsma mr. akinwale goodluck said although nigeria still operates 2g and 4g networks they will gradually give way for 5g as the demand for 5g increases among the millennial who are the digital natives1 gsma used the occasion of the collaborative meeting to launch its latest report which focused on spotlight on nigeria delivering a digital future1 -
Photos: Oby Ezekwesili, running mate Galadima
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galadima was unveiled at an event wednesday in ilorin during which ezekwesili also launched the partys manifesto1 this experience complements my incomparable competence and capacity when it comes to socio-economic and governance issues1 like me alhaji galadima has shown a long-standing commitment to the fight to rescue our nation by standing with people of integrity1 together we will lift 80 million nigerians out of poverty and unlock prosperity for every citizen she said1 galadima assured ezekwesili of his loyalty and promised to work with her towards getting peoples mandate in the 2019 general elections1 -
MAN against smuggling in West Africa
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also speaking dr ngozi ejbuna the director-general west africa monetary institute wami said that the forum had made a lot of useful recommendations on the way forward to promote trade in the sub-region1 manufacturers association of nigeria man has kicked against smuggling in west african countries and appealed to the governments to address the menace in the region to ensure smooth trade among member states1 the theme of the forum is harnessing intra-west africa monetary zone wamz trade potential through value addition and diversification1 ahmed said that activities of smugglers had continued to hamper the progress of trade in west african countries1 according to him apart from the problem of smuggling some counties that are not members have taken advantage of the free trade movement agreement to sell their goods in the region1 he said that they packaged their goods in the names of member countries deceitfully to enable them sell their goods without hindrance1 the man president charged customs authorities in member states to live up to their responsibilities in tackling the activities of smugglers1 the president also decried the inability of small and medium enterprises smes operators to access finance as a major problem affecting smooth trade in the sub-region1 he said that in nigeria there were various initiatives by the central bank of nigeria cbn for smes operators to access funds but was being hampered by the stringent conditions attached to the funds1 the president of man alhaji mansur ahmed expressed disdain for smuggling at a joint news conference with other stakeholders at the ongoing 9th trade ministers forum on west african monetary zone in abuja1 ejbuna disclosed that the issue of harmonised standard products on competitive advantage in the zone was equally discussed1 she said that the resolutions of the meeting would be presented to the ministers for ratification on friday at the forum of ministers1 in his remarks mr nathaniel patray the governor central bank of liberia stressed the need for governments in west africa to create enabling environment for smooth trade in the sub-region1 patray explained that african governments must remove trade barriers ensure access to finance for businesses as well as provide good leadership for business to thrive1 he said that having an enabling environment was key and important for business to flourish in any part of the world1 if i talk about enabling environment i dont mean governments should construct roads but i mean the things hampering our businesses from moving forward in africa1 there is the need for governments to address problems affecting the businesses by re-examining our domestic policies he said1 the liberian apex governor also urged governments in various countries to increase salaries and wages of officers and men manning the borders to prevent corruption1 he said that some officers compromise by taking bribes at the border posts the attitude he said had hampered smooth trade in the sub-region1 -
Nigeria to get ordered 12 Super Tucano in 2024
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the nigerian air force in december 2017 received letters of offer and acceptance for the super tucano deal1 nigerias military will not be able to receive the already paid-for 12 a-29 super tucano aircraft until 2024 from the united states1 the planes are needed to combat boko haram insurgency in the north east of the country1 reported that the contract was announced on 28 november and is worth 329m for the aircraft although the total not-to-exceed amount is approved at 344.7m1 it will include forward looking infrared flir systems for six of the aircraft. these systems will be funded soon after the initial contract award the website said1 in addition to the 12 aircraft the contract provides for ground training equipment mission planning systems mission debrief systems spares ground support equipment and support services1 nigeria paid 462m for the aircraft and a host of other accessories and weapons in april1 the department of defence said that work will be performed in jacksonville florida and is expected to be completed in may 20241 reports said the united states department of defence has just awarded a 329 million contract to the sierra nevada corporation to manufacture the planes for the nigerian air force naf months after nigeria paid for them1 in august last year the nigerian deal was valued at 593 million and included paveway ii guided bombs laser-guided rockets 12.7 mm ammunition unguided bombs and infrared sensors. some of this may be acquired under separate contracts1 based on an earlier request it can be assumed that nigeria will be getting anaaq-22f electro-opticalinfrared eoir sensor and laser designator turrets1 the sale of the aircraft has been dogged by controversy1 under barack obama the deal was cancelled due to accusations of human rights abuses against nigerias military1 but president donald trumps administration approved the sale to support nigerias efforts to fight boko haram militants and to boost us defence jobs1 however the deal nearly stalled earlier this year when the nigerian defence ministry complained over the late delivery date of the aircraft and the fact that nigerian personnel were to be excluded from the aircrafts production and maintenance processes1 defence minister mansur dan ali in january refused to accept these conditions1 -
Saudi favours Tunisia with $500m loan
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saudi arabia has resolved to lend tunisia 500 million at a favourable interest rate and will finance two projects worth 140 million in spite of the protest by tunisians against saudi1 the package was released a day after the visit of saudi crown prince sparked protests in tunisia1 tunisians staged a protest against saudi arabias crown prince mohammed bin salman denouncing him as a murderer involved in the killing of saudi journalist jamal khashoggi1 the crown prince who faces no overt criticism in his country received lavish receptions earlier in his tour in visits to bahrain the united arab emirates and egypt1 tunisias president beji caid essebsi received the crown prince and awarded him the republics medal the countrys highest official award. the african country has been struggling economically and is dire need of funding1 an advisor to the president nourredine ben ticha told state television that tunisia will announce in a few days important deals with saudi including a loan with low interest rate agreements on investment and other important details1 an official and a source close to the discussions between prince mohammed and essebsi told reuters that the loan would be worth 500 million. the two sources also acknowledged that the saudi development fund will finance two projects worth about 140 million but did not give more details1 tunisia is currently struggling to cut its budget deficit stabilize falling foreign currency reserves and manage expectations of international lenders demanding reforms such as trimming the public wage bill1