Uganda has finally decided to remain in the International Criminal Court, after years of threats to withdraw from the Hague-based court.

Ugandas Speaker of parliament, Mrs. Rebecca Kadaga reaffirmed the governments commitment to the Rome Statute that established the ICC.

President Yoweri Museveni had publicly taken exception to the courts indictment of a sitting African head of state.

A Uganda parliament statement said Kadaga reassured the President of the ICC that Uganda will not withdraw from the Rome Statute, but will continue working with the ICC.

Kadaga made the remarks in the Netherlands, at the commemoration of the 20 years of the Rome Statute, and cleared any doubts as to the Ugandan governments commitment to the court.

I also want to reassure you that because of that collaboration, we are the first country to issue a reference for arbitration to the ICC, and we have continued to cooperate to date.

Of course, we are part of the African Union and there have sometimes been difficult situations between the ICC and the African Union. There are areas of reservations a reference to a February 2017 African Union decision to withdraw from the ICC.

Uganda voted in favour of the withdrawal after a divisive motion sponsored by Kenya was debated by the heads of state summit held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The ICC has always criticised Uganda for warming up to Sudanese President Omar Bashir, who is wanted by the court for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Darfur.

Kadaga described Bashir as an important actor in the region, stressing his centrality in prospects for peace in the war-torn and volatile South Sudan.

Uganda stands for a position where justice is not sacrificed at the altar of peace, and peace is not sacrificed at the altar of justice, according to Kadaga.

During the first inauguration of Kenyas President Uhuru Kenyatta, Museveni said Africa supported the court in the spirit of abhorring impunity, but that the court has since lost track and is being used as a tool of foreign domination.

Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto became the first-ever sitting heads of government to appear before the court, although charges against the duo were later dropped for lack of evidence.

Meanwhile, Burundi and South Africa had formally written to the ICC seeking withdrawal, but are yet to withdraw from the court.

The court has suffered heavy criticism for allegedly only targeting African leaders, a claim the ICC persistently denies.

Source:

Source: NAN

Troubled by frequent killings of Nigerians, the Nigerian Union in South Africa has called for the arrests and prosecution of killers.

The President of the Union, Mr Adetola Olubajo, blamed the incessant killings of Nigerians in South Africa on lack of prosecution of offenders by the authorities.

Olubajo said that the inability of the South African government to bring to book those perpetrating the heinous crimes against Nigerians has given the criminals free hands.

Lack of prosecution of these criminal activities has actually embolden a lot of people to feel that they can kill Nigerians without any consequence, he said.

He expressed concern that governments apathy to arrest and prosecute the killers has made the situation more complex.

People are emboldened to perpetrate the crime with impunity and without consequences, because of lack of prosecution.

When there are no arrests, no prosecutions, criminals will have effrontery to go into crime without fear of retribution.

What we are demanding is that whosoever commits any crime should be prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others, he said.

Olubajo also urged both Nigerian and South African authorities to work together to address the situation and reduce criminal activities against Nigerians in South Africa.

He, however, called Nigerians in South Africa to be law abiding and shun criminal activity

The killing of Nigerians in South Africa had been on the increase in recent times.

The latest was the assassination of Mr Martin Ebuzoeme by unknown assailant in Yeoville, Johannesburg on July 12 .

The killing came barely 24 hours after the visit of South Africas President Cyril Ramaphosa to Nigeria.

Ramaphosa had, during his visit on July 11, said that the killing of Nigerians and other foreign nationals in the country was an act of criminality, but not specifically targeted at Nigerians.

Before then, was also the killing of Mr Ozumba Tochukwu-Lawrence, by an unknown gunman at 10 Koppe, Middleburg, Mpumalanga on July 6.

Another Nigerian, Thankgod Okoro, was also reportedly shot dead in Hamburg, Florida West Rand, Johannesburg, on April 9 by the South African Police Flying Squad.

There was also the killing of Mr Clement Nwaogu a father of two, who was burnt to death by his assailants in April.

The wanton killings of Nigerians in South Africa had sparked a number of protests there.

At least 14 of the protesters were taken into custody and allegedly branded drug peddlers.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, had expressed worry over the killings of Nigerians in South Africa.

Dabiri-Erewa stated that no fewer than 117 Nigerians were extra-judicially killed in South Africa between 2013 and 2018 for one flimsy reason or the other.

Source: NAN

The Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) has praised President Muhammadu Buhari for the unveiling of the logo and the planned take-off of Nigeria Air in December.

BMO said on Abuja that efforts of President Buhari have gone beyond completing abandoned projects to resurrecting dead projects.

In statement BMO said it was gratifying that the Nigeria Airways killed by PDP government in 2003 was being brought back to life by Buhari 15 years after.

The statement signed by the Chairman of BMO, Mr. Niyi Akinsiju applauded the move and noted especially the acquisition of new Boeing aircrafts.

This is a most welcome development which will benefit the country in more ways than one, another promise kept and a further proof of President Muhammadu Buharis commitment to correcting the wrongs of the past.

The group recalled that when the President vowed to revive the Nigerian Airways that was liquidated by former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2003, many Nigerians were understandably cynical because of the failed promises of previous governments.

When the then Candidate Buhari gave his words on the National Carrier, many people who had been told that a government owned airline was not viable felt he was playing to the gallery, but it is now clear that the President is a man of his words, the group said.

It added that with the unveiling of the logo what many people had dismissed as a political gimmick has begun to manifest.

The group pointed out that many older Nigerians would recall that as at 1984 when Buhari was then a military ruler, Nigerian Airways had 34 aircraft, so he was understandably shocked that smaller countries were running well-managed airlines with private sector support and laid the groundwork for what we are seeing now.

The group reminded Nigerians that the new national carrier is just one aspect of an Aviation master-plan which included a maintenance, repair and overhaul centre, an aviation leasing company and airport concessioning -all designed to make the country the aviation hub for west and central Africa.

BMO also commended the Minister of State for Aviation Hadi Sirika for running with the Presidents dream, from planning to execution, while urging him to ensure that the December take-off date is sacrosanct.

It however urged him to learn from the missteps of previous administrations by ensuring that the public/private partnership arrangement is water-tight in order to realise the governments aspiration of profit within three years of operation

On the possible benefits of Nigerias investment in a new national carrier, BMO noted that the vacuum created by the absence of a national carrier is costing Nigeria $6.4 billion annually as a result of its inability to reap the benefits from 78 Bilateral Air Services Agreements (BASA) from non-payment of royalty by foreign carriers.

This, it says, is an estimate provided by aviation experts of what international operators should have been paying but for the inability of Nigerian airlines to reciprocate the number of flights operated by these foreign carriers due to lack of capacity and the fact that the country does not have strong airlines that operate many international destinations.

BMO says it was convinced that the Buhari administration would put in place the necessary processes to ensure that never again will Nigeria be deprived of a national flag carrier at a time smaller African countries are running viable, profitable airlines.

Source: NAN

Transferring call credit still remains relevant despite the other avenues available [for getting credit across to another person]. However, the transfer can only be between two customers using the same network i.e. it is on net. And while these transfers can be done by using the default PIN made available by the service provider, it is advisable to set up one’s unique PIN in order to curtail the incidences of indiscriminate transfer of one’s credit by some other persons.

Without further ado, we shall now look at the way to go about this for the different (major) networks we have in Nigeria.

Transferring MTN Call Credit

Before triggering the transfer, create a new PIN; changing the default PIN which is 0000. To do this, go to the message box and type 0000 [space] new PIN [space] new PIN and send to 777. For instance, let’s take your new PIN to be 8765; you will just type 0000 8765 8765 and then send to 777.

Now to transfer credit, type TRANSFER [space] Recipient’s number [space] amount [space] PIN and send to 777.
It should appear like this: TRANSFER 0803574XXXX 200 8765.

Optionally, you can just dial *600*0803574XXXX*8765# and send.

Transferring Airtel Call Credit

To change your PIN from the default one (1234) to a new PIN; type PIN 1234 New PIN and send to 432 – PIN 1234 3546 then send to 432.

With that done, you can now make the transfer by sending me2U recipient’s number Amount 3546 to 432. For example; me2U 0802346XXXX 200 3546 and send to 432.

Transferring Glo Call Credit

Glo’s default transfer PIN is 00000 and to change this, dial *132*New PIN*New PIN#. For example, say the new PIN is 83421, you will have it like this: *132*83421*83421# and send.

Now for the transfer; dial *131*Recipient’s number*Amount*PIN#. Example is : *131*0805561XXXX*200*83421# and send.

Transferring 9mobile Call Credit
The default PIN for 9Mobile is 0000 and to change it, just dial *247*0000*New PIN# - Example is: *247*0000*3430#
and send.

To transfer credit; type *223*PIN*Amount*Recipient’s number# and then send. So, it goes thus: *223*3430*200*0818469XXXX#.

Long gone are the days when you have to make calls at exuberant rates [charged by your network service providers]. The fact is that the antidote comes from the same group of individuals (that is, the service providers) that set the high cost in the first place; only that there are some customers who are either not aware of how to make cheap calls or have resigned to sticking with a plan that makes them
pay more.

Notwithstanding, for the sake of the former, I have decided to share with you the codes for unraveling the cheap call tariff plans.

How to make cheap calls on Airtel Nigeria

Just dial *318#. This enables you to migrate to Airtel Smart Premier
whereby you will be able to make calls at the rate of 11k/sec. The package
also comes with additional benefits. You can also dial *314# to migrate
to Airtel Smart VALUE bundle.

How to make cheap calls on MTN Nigeria
Dial *408# to migrate to MTN Xtra Special and you will be able to make calls at 15k/sec locally and 18k/sec internationally. Electively, you can dial *401# and select the benefit that catches your fancy from the available options.

How to make cheap calls on 9Mobile Nigeria
Dial *620*1# to migrate to the 9Mobile MoreFlex plan and make calls at 15k/sec or dial *320# to migrate to the MoreFlex evolution tariff.

Conference call may probably sound as simple as it is to those that have been frequently optimizing it; the truth however remains that quite a good number of persons are yet to come to terms with how to make the most of this feature. In fact, there have been times that I overheard phone conversations whereby an individual relayed virtually the same message to different individuals making different calls.

But with conference calls activated, the stress of having to repeat the same thing over and again is not only eliminated but some cost could also be saved in the process. More so, conference calls make it possible for team members to have group discussions without having to be present together at the same location.

Making A Conference Call

Making a conference call is just a click away. For android phones; all you need to do is to click on the ‘add call’ or ‘new call’ option after connecting with one of the receivers in the list of discussants and dial the phone number of the other person. The process can be repeated until you have reached the desired
number of discussants.

Nevertheless, if your device is not a Smartphone; simply press the left key on the phone; select the required option for conference call and then follow the same process as earlier communicated [in the case of android phones] and get in the flow.

Dr. Kayode Fayemi and his deputy Chief Bisi Egbeyemi will receive their certificates of return on Wednesday from the Independent National Electoral Commission.

The ceremony is slated for 11:00 a.m. at the state INEC headquarters along new Iyin Road in Ado-Ekiti, according to INEC Public Relations Officer, Alhaji Taiwo Gbadegesin,

Fayemi, who represented the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the election, defeated the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Prof. Kolapo Olusola and 33 other candidates to win Saturday’s governorship election in the state.

He polled 197,459 votes while Olusola garnered 178, 121. Fayemi will be inaugurated on October 16.

As INEC prepares to present the Governor-Elect with the certificate, a coalition of domestic and international election observers accredited to observe the election on Tuesday highlighted some weaknesses of the exercise.

The observers praised the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) for the proper conduct of the poll in line with global and constitutional dictates and standards.

However, they criticised the deployment of over 30,000 security agents for the exercise. They said the conduct of some of the security operatives largely marred the electoral process.

The Federal Government of Nigeria on Wednesday unveiled the new National Carrier. It is called ‘Nigeria Air’.

The Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, did the unveiling to investors at the ongoing Farnborough International Air Show in UK.

The colour is green white green.

According to Sirika the new carrier will ply 81 routes, both local and international, after considering about a thousand destinations.

Ethiopian Airlines said its in talks with Nigeria on the new national carrier.

Gov. Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State on Tuesday embarked on a road show in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti state capital, his first public appearance.

The News Agency of Nigeria, (NAN) reports that the governor was hailed as he moved round the streets of the city.

Fayose, who rounded off the street parade at the palace of the Ewi of Ado-Ekiti, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe was joined by tens of people in areas such as Okesa, Oja Bisi, Ojaba, Irona and Oke Oriomi.

The governor complained to the traditional ruler that he and his supporters were still being hounded after the election, three days after the poll.

https://youtu.be/6hdrgMNMj48

“I have come to officially tell your Kabiyesi, as the Paramount Ruler of Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, that the Government House was invaded by the police, even after the election was over.

“Over 400 of our members are still being detained as we speak now. After the poll on Saturday, my wife was prevented from entering the Government House for about 45 minutes.

“Since last Wednesday, security agents have continued to lay the siege to the Government House, and are subjecting people to untold hardship coming in or going out.

“My concern is, the poll has come and gone irrespective of what we went through. The constitution says I am still the governor till October 16 this year.

“Our state radio and television stations had been shut down. And there has been no means of getting across to our people

“It was only this morning that security agents at the entrance of the Government House were withdrawn

“If we have been robbed I still have a right to life and my family has a right to life too

“The man that won has three units of the police protecting him. All my security men have been withdrawn since last Wednesday and not restored yet. I am only left with just a few.

“Harassing me is not in the interest of democracy. People must intervene before things get out of hand. I don’t know why we should be in this situation in 2018,” he said.

Oba Adejugbe thanked God that nobody died during the poll.

“As if we knew, monarchs arranged many meetings before the election and pleaded with everybody before, during and after the poll.

“We don’t want any trouble. We said then that whoever wins, there should be no problem. The way I see you, I know something is happening. You rarely wear this type of dress to the palace.

“I will convey your message to the Oloye of Oye-Ekiti, who is the Chairman of the Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers because we are worried about your whereabouts.

“I appeal to security agencies that they should restore your personnel to you as the sitting governor

“As Ekiti leaders, we will intervene. You, Fayemi and Eleka are our sons. Peace must be allowed to reign. We need peace in our state,” the Oba said.

All Progressives Congress national leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, said the decision of the partys National Working Committee (NWC) approving direct primary for electing the governorship candidate in Osun will deepen internal democracy in the party.

Tinubu expressed the view in a statement in Lagos on Tuesday entitled Internal Democracy: Improving the Nomination Process,

A copy of the statement was made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) by Tinubus Media Officer, Mr Tunde Rahman.

According to the APC chieftain, the partys Constitution provides for both direct and indirect primaries, but the direct option is more democratic and more participatory.

Tinubu said that the decision was a ground-breaking step, as it affirmed the partys democratic inclinations.

He said that the involvement of all APC members in candidate nomination would ensure that the party chooses the candidate of the people.

It will also serve to galvanise the party membership for the general election that lies ahead.

Moreover, direct primaries will serve as a future deterrent to those who might have tried to corrupt the delegate system of obtaining nominations.

With that system, the temptation to buy delegates was an ever-present weakness. Now, such a venal undertaking will prove much too costly and uncertain to be entertained as feasible strategy.

I am sure party members in Osun welcome this decision for it shines the rays of democracy more fully upon them.

May this decision not be peculiar to Osun, but stand as the new way of our party. The nation and the APC will both be better for it, he said.

Tinubu said that the decision took courage and conviction, as it bucked the old ways to bring about something better and new.

When the history of this moment is written, those looking back on this decision will say that it was an inevitable natural consequence of party evolution, he said.

Tinubu commended the partys National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, for leading the party toward greater democracy.

According to him, increased participation of all party members in key decisions that affect them is commendable.

From inception, our party has held to principles of internal democracy, and by the open and fair conduct of our conventions, we have distinguished ourselves from all other political parties.

While we have achieved more than others with regard to internal democracy, there is still more to be done in order to perfect our internal procedures and mechanisms.

This consideration was a key factor in the election of Oshiomhole as party chairman.

Core to that mandate is the improvement of democracy within the party so that we may become even better representatives of the people, Tinubu said.

NAN reports that the APC said it would adopt direct primary method in Osun State in choosing a candidate ahead of the states governorship election.

The national chairman of the ruling party, Oshiomhole, said this on Monday in Abuja after the screening of aspirants interested in flying the partys flag in the Sept. 22 election.

Source: NAN