University lecturers in Kenya grouped under the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) have ended a strike over low pay after reaching an agreement with authorities, a union official said, allowing classes to resume after being suspended since early March.

Strikes by public workers in the country have become more frequent in recent years, often over low pay and other grievances.

Constantine Wasonga, secretary general of the union said the union had reached an agreement with the Inter Public Universities Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF), which negotiates lecturers welfare with the government.

As the strike is now over, all students are invited to resume their studies immediately, Wasonga said.

He did not provide details of the agreement, but said negotiations with the government would continue.

Aside from the pay issue, the lecturers had also demanded access to services available to other public servants like car loans and higher quality medical insurance.

Some public workers accuse the government of President Uhuru Kenyatta of neglecting them and failing to curb widespread corruption that they say swallows money that could be used to raise their pay.

Government officials deny the accusation.

Source: NAN

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called Nigerias President Muhamadu Buhari and reaffirmed the longstanding relationship between the U.S. and Nigeria, U.S. Department of State said.

Spokesperson for the Department, Ms Heather Nauert, said Pompeo, during the call, also underscored Buharis visit to the U.S. on April 30, and recognised Nigerias leadership in Africa.

Nauert said: On May 17, Secretary Pompeo called Nigerian President Buhari.

The Secretary noted the longstanding relationship between the Nigerian and American people and underscored the themes of the April 30 official working visit of President Buhari to the White House.

He recognized Nigerian leadership across the African continent on priorities we share: countering terrorism and other threats to peace and security, creating economic opportunity, fighting corruption, and advancing democracy and stability.

The Secretary welcomed continued cooperation in advancing our nations mutual prosperity.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Buhari visited the U.S. on April 30 at the invitation of President Donald Trump, and held bilateral meetings with the U.S. counterpart at the White House.

The meetings, which also had cabinet members from both sides, focused on security, economy and the fight against corruption. (NAN)

Source: NAN

Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje has waded into the crisis that almost engulfed the Kano State House of Assembly following a threat by aggrieved lawmakers to impeach the speaker and his deputy.

The spokesman of the aggrieved legislators and former Speaker of the House, Alhaji Kabiru Rurum, announced at a news conference in Kano on Wednesday night that the lawmakers have agreed to shelve their plan to impeach the Speaker, Alhaji Yusuf Ata, after the governors intervention.

We wish to inform you that the Executive Governor of Kano state, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje as well as party leadership in the state have waded into the crisis that engulfed our assembly.

They also ensured that the crisis ended in an no winner no vanquished.

As loyal legislators of this honourable House, who respect the supremacy of the leadership of the Executive Governor and party leaders in our state, we wish to state that we are in agreement with the decision taken, he said.

He said the concerned members were fully in support and in agreement with the decision taken during the meeting which took place on Tuesday night, May 15 at the Government House, Kano presided over by Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje.

He said the agreement reached at the meeting are as follows:
1.That Yusuf Abdallah Ata (Fagge constituency) should remain as Speaker.

2. That Kabiru Rurum (Rano constituency) to serve as Deputy Speaker.
3. That Mohammed Bello Butu-butu (RiminGado/Tofa constituency) to serve as Majority leader.
4. That Bappa Babba Dan agundi (Kano Municipal constituency) to serve as Chief Whip.
5. That Sanusi Usman Bataiya (Albasu constituency) to serve as Deputy Majority leader.
6. That Ayuba Labaran Durum (Kabo constituency) to serve as Majority Whip.

He, therefore, appealed to all members and the general public to remain calm and assured them of their commitment to the rule of law and total discharge of their legislative duties in the interest of the electorate.

He said the House would reconvene on Thursday, May 17 for deliberation.

Source: NAN

President Muhammadu Buhari has challenged South West caucus of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to bring Ekiti state back into the fold of progressive states.

The president, who gave the challenge during a dinner meeting with the caucus of the party in the South West on Wednesday night, said they could achieve this by ensuring electoral victory for the APC gubernatorial candidate, Kayode Fayemi , in the forthcoming governorship elections in the state.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed July 14 for the conduct of the governorship elections in Ekiti state,

The President said members of the party must work together in the state to ensure that the will of the people was not subverted.

I know Ekiti fairly well and Ekiti people are well known for their forthrightness, candour and integrity.

All of these values seem to have been lost and we must restore these values and return Ekiti to its pride of place in the comity of states.

I know Ekiti fairly well and Ekiti people are well known for their forthrightness, candour and integrity.All of these values seem to have been lost and we must restore these values and return Ekiti to its pride of place in the comity of statesBuhari.

As we approach the 2019 elections, the return of Ekiti into the fold of progressive states is important as the election of July 14 is going to be a key pointer to subsequent elections, he said.

President Buhari, who reiterated his determination never to interfere in the internal affairs of the party at any level, commended his minister of Solid Mineral Resources, Kayode Fayemi for reaching out to his co-contestants who lost out in the Saturday primaries.

He therefore enjoined all members and supporters of the APC in Ekiti state and beyond to see the July 14 governorship elections as a collective mission to rescue Ekiti and promote development.

Chief Bisi Akande, who spoke to State House correspondents after the meeting, assured that the caucus would do all it could within the electoral process to secure victory for the APC candidate in the July 14 election.

Among those at the dinner were Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, National Leader of the APC and former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Chief Bisi Akande, Chief Segun Osoba and the National Chairman of APC, John Odigie-Oyegun.

All the 33 governorship aspirants, along with Fayemi and former governor Segun Oni, partook in the dinner.

Governors at the meeting included Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun), Abiola Ajimobi (Oyo) and the Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Al-Makura, who was the chairman of APC Ekiti Governorship primaries committee.

Some members of the National Assembly, Ministers and stakeholders from the South West were also in attendance.

Source: NAN

The doubt over the quantity of daily petrol consumption has prompted a decision to effect the closure of filling stations that are 10 kilometres on the border to monitor actual consumption.

The Sub-Committee of the National Economic Council (NEC) on Remittance to Federation Account on Wednesday directed that the filling stations be closed down immediately.

The committee arrived at the decision after its meeting with Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) officials presided by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in Abuja.

The sub-committee queried the claim by Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) that it was lifting 60 million litres of petrol per day at present from a previous claim of 30 million barrels per day.

We have so many international partners that are saying that even if we are feeding Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana and Niger, we cannot take more than 35 million litres, Gov. Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara and Chairman, Nigeria Governors Forum, said.

He told State House Correspondents that the closure of the stations was to monitor the volume of petrol being distributed across the country.

According to Yari, the stations will be recertified according to their needs before they recommence operation.

So, we are taking decision now that any filling station that is 10 kilometres on the border side should be closed down by DPR.

And, we are going to direct the Minister of Finance in collaboration with DPR and NNPC to put a tracking device to every truck to know where that truck is heading.

The tracking will also show where the trucks are discharging the fuel because we are suspicious of the number, the governor stated.

He said that the committee had asked the NNPC to furnish it with how much it remitted to the Federation Account as proceeds from petroleum from 2015 to date and how much was outstanding.

On the cost of recovery which NNPC used to replace subsidy, the governor said that NEC was surprised that subsidy re-entered the trade after efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari to stop the practice. (NAN)

Source: NAN

An irate passenger who reportedly missed his scheduled flight was arrested at Melbourne Airport on Thursday after attempting to break into a Jetstar Airways plane.

The incident was captured on video by a traveller inside the terminal.

The video footage showed the man bashing and pulling frantically on the planes door, trying to get inside.

According to local media, the man was hours late for his original flight and became aggressive towards Jetstar staff.

They alleged the infuriated man then pushed a crew member and ran through the terminal gate onto the tarmac where
he was able to access the stairs leading to the plane.

We were sitting waiting to get on the flight and people went oh my god, what is going on? a witness said.

Someone was running on the tarmac!

This man was trying to get up the stairs, he was physically fighting with the staff, punching and scratching them.
`
The man was eventually restrained by baggage handlers and arrested by the police.

It was believed at least two Jetstar employees suffered injuries.

A spokesperson for the airline said baggage handlers went above and beyond.

We praise our crew for safely handling this incident and restraining the passenger until police arrived.

The man has been banned from any future Jetstar or Qantas flights and is set to face charges. (Xinhua/NAN)

Source: NAN

The US governments ethics watchdog on Wednesday referred President Donald Trumps apparent hush-money payment to a porn star to the Justice Department for possible investigation.

The 130,000-dollar 2016 payment to Stephanie Clifford, better known as adult performer Stormy Daniels, was made by Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, who seems to have only been reimbursed last year, according to the presidents 2017 financial disclosure form released Wednesday.

A footnote in the 92-page document claims that the expense was not required to be reported on Trumps 2016 disclosure form, but in the interest of transparency says that Cohen was reimbursed without interest last year for an amount in the range of 100,000-250,000 dollars.

Contradicting the footnote, the US Office of Government Ethics notified the Justice Department that the payment meets the disclosure requirements for a reportable liability under the Ethics in Government Act.

The letter by the office to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said that Trumps financial disclosure reports were being provided because you may find the disclosure relevant to any inquiry you may be pursuing regarding the presidents prior report, which was filed in June 2017.

The letter constitutes a referral by the ethics office of a possible false financial filing.

Daniels had previously described a 2006 liaison with Trump before signing a non-disclosure agreement shortly before the November 2016 presidential election.

Trump, who denies any sexual relationship with Daniels, tweeted this month that the agreement was made to stop the false and extortionist accusations.

Trump had claimed in early 2018 that he had no knowledge of Cohens payment to Daniels.

Rosenstein a year ago appointed Robert Mueller as special counsel to lead the federal probe into Russian election meddling, Moscows contacts with Trumps campaign and Trumps possible obstruction of the investigation.

Cohen was the target of raids last month in an investigation by the US Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York, after a referral from Mueller.

Citing the federal criminal investigation, Cohen this week told a New York court that he would refuse to testify, citing his right against self-incrimination under the US Constitutions Fifth Amendment in a lawsuit filed by Daniels seeking to have the non-disclosure agreement cancelled.

Daniels attorney argues that the contract was invalid because Trump never signed it, and alleges that Cohen falsely accused her of lying.

Trump was a television star and newly married to his third wife, first lady Melania Trump, at the time of the alleged Daniels encounter.(dpa/NAN)

Source: NAN

The Israeli army said its jets targeted Hamas positions in the northern Gaza Strip early Thursday in response to machine gun fire aimed at an Israeli border town.

One Palestinian was moderately injured from the strikes, the Gaza Health Ministry said.

The strikes were conducted in response to the heavy machine gun fire that targeted the city of Sderot and the numerous shooting attacks that targeted IDF soldiers throughout the day,the Israeli army said in a statement.

The strikes come days after 60 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces along the Gaza border during protests there.

The protests fuelled by a US embassy move to Jerusalem and over a decade of blockade on the coastal enclave made Monday the bloodiest day in Gaza since a 2014 war between Israel and Hamas, which still controls the territory.

Israel says that Hamas, the Islamist group which most of the West considers a terrorist organization, is using the protests as a mask to breach the Israeli border fence and attempt attacks on Israeli civilians. (dpa/NAN)

Source: NAN

Gov. Aminu Masari of Katsina State has urged Muslims to utilise the holy month of Ramadan to pray for peace, unity and prosperity in the country and the world in general.

The governor made the call in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Abdu Labaran, on Thursday in Katsina.

Muslims the world over commenced fasting in the holy month of Ramadan on Thursday.

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting to commemorate the first revelation of the Quran to Prophet Muhammad.

Fasting is the third pillar of Islam in which Muslims observe 29 or 30 days of abstinence from eating, drinking and sexual intercourse from sunrise to sunset with the hope of earning Allahs blessings.

Labaran quoted Gov. Masari as saying I am calling on Muslims in the country to use the Ramadan period to pray for the nation and its leadership.

As a period of devotion, there is no better time to dedicate to Nigeria than now, in view of the insecurity challenges threatening its corporate existence.

As a period of intense devotion and introspection, it is incumbent on us to use religion for the advancement, not the dismemberment of our nation.

This, we can do by imbibing the lessons which the month of Ramadan seeks to teach us, especially showing love to one another regardless of religious inclination, assisting the less privileged and placing our collective interest over and above individual considerations.

We must remember that a nation is only as good as its leadership, which means we cannot wish evil for our leaders and expect prosperity for the nation.

Masari called on Nigerians to continue to support governments effort at improving the living conditions of people and moving the country forward. (NAN)

Source: NAN

The Frenchman had Arsenal in the running to land the Portuguese star as he prepared to leave Sporting, but saw Manchester United beat him to a deal.

Arsene Wenger considers missing out on Cristiano Ronaldo to be his biggest transfer regret at Arsenal as the Portuguese could have changed history in north London.

Having spent 22 years at the Gunners helm, the Frenchman has suffered plenty of recruitment near misses in his time.

Some iconic figures have slipped through his grasp, with various factors conspiring against Arsenal as they endeavoured to land both promising and proven stars.

Source: Goal.com

Source: NAN