Deputy President of the Senate Ike Ekweremadu has denied the trending report that he called for military intervention in Nigeria, just as the labour has warned it would resist military in politics.

I never called for a military coup. I never said the military was planning any coup. Even the militarys statement admitted that my statement was only cautionary and that we were sincere. But they went as far as saying that the international community should ignore my words of caution.

According to the , Ekweremadu said in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State on Sunday that comments on the floor of the Senate, though unambiguously in defence of democracy.

The comments, he said, were either being twisted or misconstrued by some persons.
,
He was a guest of Governor Seriake Dickson when he and other African lawmakers attending the 74th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (Africa Region) Executive Committee were invited for a dinner, reported.

The denial was reported by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Uche Anichukwu.

Ekweremadu said he has respect for the Nigerian Armed Forces, and that comments made by lawmakers in the course of their duty should be situated within the proper context before any form of reaction.

Of course, some people took it out of context and said I was calling for a military coup.

I hold the Nigerian Army and the Armed Forces in high regard. They have defended our democracy, our people and have acquitted themselves creditably.

If they need anything now, it is encouragement because this is not the best of times for them. But we do hope that when parliamentarians make statements, they (the military) should be able to know exactly what they said before reacting so that we dont overheat the system.

Meanwhile, the organized labour has warned that irrespective of several challenges facing the country, it would resist any illegal and undemocratic takeover of government in Nigeria.

According to the , the labour said it was disturbed by some subtle insinuations from some quarters that the military would venture into the politics of the country.

The Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, ASCSN, cautioned those mooting the idea to desist from throwing Nigeria into anarchy.

ASCSN s position came on the heels of reports credited to Ekwueremadu.

In a statement issued in Lagos, ASCSN President, Comrade Bobboi Bala Kaigama, and the Secretary-General, Comrade Alade Bashir Lawal, contended that any takeover of government by military again would take the country 50 years backward.

It is common knowledge that since the elected government of Sir Tafawa Balewa in 1966, suspended the 1963 Federal Constitution and imposed a unitary system of government, the countrys growth has been stunted.

We are also aware that all democracies in the world including that of the United States of America, Canada, Europe, etc, are not perfect but are still evolving and being improved upon.

The shortcomings being experienced in building democratic institutions in Nigeria were not peculiar and that with time, some of the flaws would be rectified.

Thus, under no circumstances should individuals, no matter how highly placed, should begin to hint of military takeover of government in Nigeria.

Source: NAN

The body of Aliyu Akwe-Doma, former Governor of Nasarawa State, arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja on Saturday night.

The remains were transported in a Turkish Airline.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the body was received by a delegation of the state government comprising commissioners, special advisers and interim management committee chairmen.

Others include Rep. Ogoshe Onawo, associates and family members of the deceased.

NAN reported that the body was taken to the residence of the ex-governor in Asokoro Abuja, from where it would depart to his home town for burial.

Doma, who died in a hospital in Israel on March 6, would be buried in Doma Local Government Area, Nasarawa State, on Sunday.

Doma was the second civilian governor of the state from 2007 to 2011. (NAN)

Source: NAN

The National Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone has started releasing the results of the March 7 general election with All Peoples Congress (APC), and Sierra Leone People Party (SLPP) leading other parties.

The Chairman of NEC, Mr Mohammed Conteh, declared the progressive result at the commissions headquarters in Freetown on Saturday.

The results, representing 50 per cent of the polling stations in each of the five districts, he said, had been cleared by NEC Tally Centre Information Technology Systems.

According to him, Mr. Samura Kamara, candidate of the ruling All Peoples Congress (APC), has so far polled 566, 113 votes and is followed by his key rival and candidate of Sierra Leone People Party (SLPP), Maada Bio, who has 564, 687 votes.

Similarly, he announced that National Grand Coalition (NGC)s candidate, Kolle Yemkulla, got 87,722 votes while Samuel Sam-Sumana of Coalition for Change (C4C) polled 44, 685 voters.

Other candidates were Kamaraimba Mansaray of Alliance Democratic Party (ADP) who secured 13, 507 votes; Musa Tarawally of Citizens Democratic Party (CDP) with 5,682 votes and Chernoh Bah of National Democratic Alliance (NDA), 4, 144 votes.

The chairman also announced that John ODwyer of National Progressives Democrats (NPD) scored 2,063 votes; Patrick Sandy, National Unity and Reconciliation Party (NURP), 1,132 votes and Baba Conteh of Peace and Liberation Party (PLP), 2, 100.

According to him, Francis Margai, Peoples Movement for Democratic Change (PMDC), got 5, 216 votes while Victor Williams of Republic National Independent Party (RNIP) polled 1,252 votes.

Other results announced were 6,036 votes secured by Jemba Ngobeh of Revolution United Front Party (RUFP); Mohamed Sowa-Turay, United Democratic Movement, 2, 923; Henry Kabuta, United National Peoples Party (UNPP), 1, 468 votes.

Olufemi Claudius-Cole of Unity Party (UP), he said, got 1,643 votes.

Conteh assured that NEC, as the only authority responsible to announce election results, was committed to producing accurate results that reflected the will of Sierra Leoneans as expressed on the ballots.

He disclosed that the tally figures would again be released when result from 75 per cent polling stations in all districts had been cleared.

In the 25 per cent results earlier released by the commission, APCs Kamara polled 291,933 votes and Bio of SLPP had 274, 352 votes.

By the countrys electoral laws, results of the elections would to be announced in percentages starting from 25 per cent, 50 per cent and 75 per cent before the final results which would produce the winner of the contest.

A presidential candidate must receive 55 per cent of the total valid votes cast to win the election.

If no candidate reaches 55 per cent, the two candidates with the most votes will participate in a run-off or second round of the election.

Answering questions, Conteh said he was not under any pressure and that nobody could pressurise him to do something wrong.

He said that the commission, for now, was giving more attention to the presidential election results.

In the elections, votes were cast for parliamentary and local county seats, results of which were still awaited. (NAN)

Source: NAN

Popular entertainment star turned activist, Charley Boy has apologized to President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki over an unverified post to spite the lawmaker.

Charley had taken to his tweeter handle @Areafada1 to cast aspersion on the President of the Senate over a picture where Saraki was seen cleaning mud from his trousers.

Apparently misled by social media posts, Charley Boy had written: E never start. Saraki after he escaped the mob attack by people of lafiagi in his own state. May all those who have conspired to render us hopeless, penniless and frustrated, may nemesis catch up with them.

E never start. Saraki after he escaped the mob attack by people of lafiagi in his own state. May all those who have conspired to render us hopeless, penniless and frustrated, may nemesis catch up with them.

Charlyboy(Official) (@Areafada1)

However, hours later and upon realizing that the photograph was taken when Saraki led a delegation on an oversight visit to assess the level of oil spillage in Ogoniland in 2012.

The entertainment star therefore tendered an unreserved apology to the President of the Senate saying: APOLOGY TO SENATE PRESIDENT SARAKI My earlier post on Senate president Bukola Saraki was incorrect. I admit I was in a hurry to post before verifying the veracity of the story. I apologize for this avoidable error.

APOLOGY TO SENATE PRESIDENT SARAKI
My earlier post on Senate president Bukola Saraki was incorrect. I admit I was in a hurry to post before verifying the veracity of the story. I apologize for this avoidable error.

Charlyboy(Official) (@Areafada1)

Some Nigerians who reacted to the apology commended Charley Boy for the bold step and urged the President of the Senate to accept the apology.
See thread below:

Charlyboy(Official) (@Areafada1)

Source: NAN

Senator Stella Oduah has felicitated with Nigerian mothers on the celebration of the 2018 mothers day and have charged them to remain anchors of development.

In a message to Nigerian mothers on the occasion of the celebration, the senator who represents Anambra North in the National Assembly described women as special breed created for special purposes.

Happy mothers day to all my sisters, mothers and daughters. You are indeed the spice of the universe.

Women are special breed indeed. God took out a special day to perfect the creation of women.

Oduah who is the vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Women Affairs therefore charged women to use their special qualities to ensure the development of their zones stressing that women held the key to developing Nigeria.

As women and mothers, we must be tolerant and focused, we must be the anchor of community development.

God made us tenacious for a purpose. Let us work hard to build our zones for our children. The development of our zones will herald the development of our nation.

Women thou are blessed. Happy mothers day to you all, she said.

Source: NAN

Lightning has struck a Seventh Day Adventist Church in Rwanda, killing no fewer than 16 people and injuring dozens more, a local official said Sunday.

Fourteen victims were killed on the spot as lightning hit the church in the Nyaruguru district in the Southern Province on Saturday, local mayor Habitegeko Francois told AFP over the phone.

Two others died later from their injuries, he said.

He added that 140 people involved in the incident had been rushed to hospital and district health centres, but that many had already been discharged.

Doctors say that only three of them are in critical condition but they are getting better, he said.

According to the mayor, a similar accident took place on Friday when lightning struck a group of 18 students, killing one of them.

Source: NAN

The Nigerian Government has congratulated Mo Abudu, Chimamanda Adichie and Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, over the honours recently bestowed on them on the global stage, calling them great ambassadors of Nigeria.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said the three honorees are iconic women in the Creative Industry who have brought great honour not only to themselves, their families and their industry, but also to the country.

He described as well deserved the listing of Mo Abudu, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of EbonyLife TV, and Nollywood star Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde among the top 50 women who are doing extraordinary things on the worldwide stage by Variety magazine, a weekly American entertainment magazine.

Alhaji Mohammed also said the already well-adorned cap of Chimamanda Adichie has been further festooned after her novel, Americanah, was listed in the New York Times list of 15 remarkable books by women that are shaping the way we read and write fiction in the 21st century.

He said the women are role models whose achievements will inspire a generation of young Nigerians to also do extraordinary things.

Of more importance is the fact that these womens achievements have transcended gender, nationality or race, placing them on the rarefied class of global, timeless achievers, the Minister said.

He said the great honours bestowed on the women will further focus world attention on the nations burgeoning Creative Industry, thus placing it on the right pedestal to take the world by storm.

Source: NAN

UNAIDS is elated with mid-way results from two studies that show a vaginal ring releasing long-acting antiretroviral medicine to prevent HIV infection in women.

Reports say that the results show that studies is up to 54 per cent effective in preventing HIV.

The ring, which is replaced monthly, slowly releases the antiretroviral medicine dapivirine and could give women an additional HIV prevention option that is discreet and that they can control.

Michel Sidib, Executive Director of UNAIDS, said: These results are significant. Structural, behavioural and biological factors make women more vulnerable to HIV infection.

So it is extremely important that they have the opportunity to protect themselves from HIV, on their own terms.

The interim results are from two large open-label studies conducted in South Africa and Uganda, which trials enrolled women between the ages of 20 and 50 years.

Open-label studies are studies in which the participants know which medicine is being used; that is, no placebo substance or treatment with no active therapeutic effect is used.

The HOPE trial, which began in August 2016 and enrolled more than 1,400 women by October 2017 the time of the interim review found a 54 per cent reduction in HIV risk.

This means that the rate of new HIV infections was 1.9 women newly infected for every 100 participants in a given year.

Based on statistical modelling, the researchers determined that the rate of new infections would have been 4.1 for every 100 had the women not been offered the ring.

The DREAM trial, which enrolled 940 women from July 2016, had similar findings, with a 54 per cent reduction in the HIV incidence rate.

However, the final results from both studies are expected in 2019, according to the UN HIV/ AIDS agency.

UNAIDS said adherence was shown to be high in both of the trials, although the measures of adherence were not able to determine whether the women used the ring all of the time, most of the time or just some of the time.

It said the DREAM study showed that more than 90 per cent of the women in the study used the ring at least some of the time, based on residual drug levels, and the HOPE study showed that 89 per cent of returned rings indicated that the ring was used at least some of the time within the previous month.

This is the first time that efficacy of more than 50 per cent has been observed in HIV prevention trials involving only women.

Two previous phase III trials presented in 2016 ASPIRE/MTN-020 and the Ring Study/IPM 027 which did include a placebo group showed only modest protection (30 per cent) against HIV infection for women.

Women from both ASPIRE and the Ring Study were included in the HOPE and DREAMS trials, UNAIDS explained.

Other scientific advances in HIV prevention presented in recent years, according to UNAIDS, included the PROUD and IPERGAY studies, which in 2015 reported an 86 per cent reduction in HIV acquisition among HIV-negative men who took antiretroviral medicines to prevent HIV.

Another is the 2011 HPTN 052 trial announcement, which showed that early initiation of antiretroviral therapy can reduce the risk of transmission to an uninfected partner by 96 per cent.

Similarly, the 2011 Partners PrEP and TDF2 studies, showed that a daily antiretroviral pill taken by people who do not have HIV infection can reduce their risk of acquiring HIV by up to 73 per cent.

Finally, the South Africa Orange Farm Intervention Trial, funded by the French Agence Nationale de Recherches sur le SIDA (ANRS) and published in 2005, demonstrated more than a 60 per cent reduction in HIV infections among circumcised men.

These important breakthroughs show just how critical it is to continue to invest in research and development into new and effective HIV prevention options, Sidib said.

The latest reports show that in 2016, funding for HIV prevention research and development was its lowest level in a decade, with no indications that investments are set to increase.

UNAIDS stressed that in spite of the recent scientific discoveries, there was still no single method that was fully protective against HIV.

To end the AIDS epidemic, UNAIDS strongly recommended a combination of HIV prevention options.

These could include the correct and consistent use of male or female condoms, waiting longer before having sex for the first time, having fewer partners, and voluntary medical male circumcision.

Other options are avoiding penetrative sex, the use of pre-exposure prophylaxis for people at higher risk of HIV infection and ensuring that all people living with HIV have immediate access to antiretroviral medicine. (NAN)

Source: NAN

Kenyan health officials have issued an alert after samples taken from patients confirmed the presence of H1N1 prototype 9 influenza virus.

The samples were taken from the patients suffering from flu in Laikipia County, central Kenya, reports.

Mr Donald Mogoi, a chief officer in charge of health in the area, said a child is suspected to have died of the flu two weeks but the deadly virus was confirmed on Tuesday by the National Public Health Laboratories.

The five-year-old boy died at the Nanyuki Cottage Hospital and was being treated for pneumonia, his dad said.

Mrs Evelyn Obongo, a clinical officer at the regional hospital, Nanyuki Teaching and Referral Hospital, said Wednesday that her team is attending to at least 60 cases with 15 cases already admitted to the wards.

Most of the patients are children, Mrs Obongo said.

Cases of the flu have been on the rise in the last two weeks, she added.

The diseased is characterised by high fever, diarrhoea, vomiting, dry cough and general body weakness.

Source: NAN

Anita Eboigbe

Popular rapper Olamide Adedeji aka Baddo, has proposed to his long standing girlfriend and mother of his son, Adebukunmi Aisha Suleiman.

The love birds have been together since 2011 and have a son Maximilaino Adedeji, born in 2015.

He announced the proposal on Snapchat @baddosneh, some hours after wishing her a happy birthday on the same platform.

The YBNL boss is said to have bent on his knee before Aisha as he proposed to her birthday on Thursday which coincidentally was marked International Womens Day with the theme: Press for Progress.

Olamide wrote: My senior wife Oya we have a wedding to plan.

Olamide, who raps mostly in Yoruba, has been described as the voice of the ghetto.

The Bariga born artist recently released a seven minutes visual to his hit song Science Student amidst controversies surrounding the message of the song.

He recently bagged the Listeners choice award at the just concluded Sound city MVP awards.

Olamide came into limelight in 2011 with his debut album Rapsodi before starting his label YBNL in 2012.

Source: NAN

Disney will in the 2019 summer launch its Cruise Line, the first-ever round trip cruise route starting from the port of Civitavecchia, a town near Rome, Italy.

Disney fans will be able to see Italy and Southern Europe in a more magical way than ever before.

The first voyage begins on June 14 with stops in Italy, France and Spain.

Guests will be able to visit Salerno, on Italys Amalfi Coast; La Spezia, a common launch point for visiting the picturesque towns of Cinque Terre; Villefranche-sur-Mer and Marseilles, on the French Riviera; and Spains vibrant beach city of Barcelona.

The Rome-based cruise is just one of seven new cruise routes that Disney has to offer in Europe.

The others are Cartagena, Spain; Toulon (Provence) and Brest, France; Belfast, Northern Ireland; Gothenburg and Nynashamn (Stockholm), Sweden; and Fredericia, Denmark, according to the Disney Parks Blog.

We dare you not to sing Its A Small World After All.

And closer to home for Americans, Disney Cruise Line is also returning to their popular ports in Alaska, the Bahamas and the Caribbean.

Source:

Source: NAN

Former US President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle are in negotiations with Netflix about producing a series of shows for the online streaming giant, according to US media reports.

Obama and former first lady Michelle would provide Netflix with exclusive content, with the format and number of shows yet to be determined, The New York Times reported citing people familiar with the matter.

Netflix declined to comment.

As the worlds leading on-demand internet television service, Netflix would offer Obama a global platform to delve into topics that marked his presidency, such as health care, immigration, foreign policy, and fighting climate change.

His wife, Michelle, would also have a stage to explore subjects she was passionate about while first lady, such as nutrition.

The format could include talk-show-style or documentary productions. Obama does not plan to use shows to respond directly to President Donald Trump or other critics, but instead to showcase inspirational stories, according to the Times.

Netflix said it ended last year with about 117 million users, including slightly more than 110 million paid subscribers.

Having shifted its focus to original content, Netflix has scooped awards and helped shake up both the television and film industries with its deep pockets.

Netflix is available in some 200 markets worldwide and produces programs in several languages.

It said it expects to spend between $7.5 billion and $8 billion on content for 2018.
*AFP

Source: NAN

Manny Pacquiao is to fight Argentinas World Boxing Association welterweight champion Lucas Matthysse in Malaysia on June 24, the Philippine ring legend has announced.

The 39-year-old will be co-promoting the bout after rejecting an offer to fight in Las Vegas on an undercard to his recent conqueror Jeff Horn, who will be facing Terence Crawford on April 14.

Pacquiao said he considers himself the underdog against the brawling Matthysse, 35, who has 39 wins all but three of them via the short route against four losses.

This is going to be a tough fight. Matthysse is also a knockout artist. But Im excited to fight and be a world champion again, he said in a statement announcing the bout late Thursday.

Im the underdog in this fight but Im used to it. It serves as a big motivation for me to train and fight hard to win the crown, said Pacquiao, who has won world titles in an unprecedented eight weight divisions.

I like his aggressive fighting style. Thats what I want, to entertain the boxing fans, said the elected Philippine senator, adding that the Argentine was not a dirty fighter.

The Filipinos trainer Restituto Fernandez said he expects the Kuala Lumpur bout, co-staged by Oscar De La Hoyas Golden Boy Promotions, to be a real brawl because Matthysse is an aggressive fighter.

Pacquiao, winner of 59 bouts against seven losses and two draws, lost his World Boxing Organisation welterweight title to Australias Horn last year.

The Filipino southpaw, who has enjoyed a glittering, 23-year pro career, retired briefly in 2016 but made a comeback to retake his WBO title from Jessie Vargas just months later.

The last of his 38 knockout wins came more than eight years ago.
AFP

Source: NAN

By Iyiola Pedro

Teenage qualifier Felix Auger-Aliassime scored a superb 6-2 7-6(4) first-round victory over fellow Canadian Vasek Pospisil at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California early today.

The 17-year-old displayed lightning-quick footwork in his bright pink shoes, and delighted the packed crowd with his formidable serve and powerful forehand.

He pounded down 11 aces and saved all three break points he faced en route to his first career victory.

To come here, beat one of my growing idols, Vasek, it felt kind of surreal at first, Montreal-born Auger-Aliassime told Tennis Channel.

All the emotions kicked in. I was trying to stay calm the whole second set, the whole tiebreak. After I let everything go. It felt great.

Auger-Aliassime, the youngest player in the mens draw and who shares a birthday with Roger Federer (Aug. 8), will face another Canadian in the second round, 32nd seed Milos Raonic.

Its quite funny to see these guys in my draw, he said.

I used to watch these guys on TV growing up, and now to stand in front of them, its crazy, but I guess thats where my level is at right now and Im just enjoying it.

Another teenager enjoying the winning feeling on Friday was 19-year-old Australian wild card Alex de Minaur, who beat 56th-ranked German Jan-Lennard Struff 3-6 7-6(3) 7-6(5).

De Minaur, ranked 141st, started the year by making the final of the Sydney International, where he lost to Daniil Medvedev.

He also took Alexander Zverev to five sets before losing a deciding tiebreak in a Davis Cup tie against Germany in early February.

His Davis Cup team mate Nick Kyrgios withdrew on Friday ahead of his first match, citing an on-going right elbow injury.

Kyrgios, who had not played since the Davis Cup tie, was scheduled to play Medvedev on Saturday but had been replaced by lucky loser Matteo Berrettini.

In other matches, wild card Ernesto Escobedo beat fellow American Frances Tiafoe 7-5 6-3, while lucky loser Dudi Sela of Israel edged German Peter Gojowczyk 6-4 6-4.

Source: NAN

Lionel Messi announced today that he and his wife Antonella Roccuzzo have become parents for a third time.

Welcome Ciro!!! Thank God, everything went perfectly. He and his mummy are doing very well. We are super happy!!! wrote Messi on his Instagram account, accompanying the post with a photo of the babys hand.

Ciro is a brother to five-year-old Thiago and Mateo, who is two.

Messi had pulled out of Barcelonas squad for Saturdays La Liga match at Malaga to be present for the birth.

The club tweeted: Change to the squad. Messi is out for personal reasons and Yerry Mina takes his place.

The Argentinian couple, both 30, first met in their home town, Rosario, in 1996 and started going out a decade later. They were married last year in Rosario.

Barcelona, who face Chelsea in the second leg of their last-16 Champions League tie at the Camp Nou on Wednesday, have an eight-point lead over Atletico Madrid at the top of La Liga.

Source: NAN

Marcus Rashford was Jose Mourinhos joker that made Manchester United beat rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford, with 74,855 fans on the stands

And then after he was substituted by Marouane Felliani, his colleagues held off a Liverpool fightback to move five points clear of their visitors in second place in the Premier League with a 2-1 win.

United are now within 13 points of Manchester City, but barring a late season collapse by the runaway league leaders that gap looks unbridgeable. More significantly Jose Mourinhos men moved another huge step closer to guaranteeing a top-four finish by opening up a 12-point lead on fifth-placed Chelsea.

Liverpool were left to rue a slow start as Rashford twice finished impressively after Romelu Lukaku had outmuscled Dejan Lovren.

The visitors dominated after the break, but could only find a response via a United player when Eric Bailly turned into his own net 24 minutes from time.

Just a second defeat in 21 Premier League games leaves Liverpool still in third, but they could drop to fourth if Tottenham win at Bournemouth on Sunday.

Rashford may not have even have started but for an injury Paul Pogba suffered in training on Friday.

Without the 89 million ($123 million) French international, Mourinho moved Alexis Sanchez inside behind Lukaku and handed Rashford his first league start of the year on the left.

The Portuguese coachs plans worked to perfection when Rashford brought the game to life with a superb finish after 14 minutes.

Lukaku beat Lovren to a long ball and the England international skipped inside Trent Alexander-Arnold before smashing a shot past the helpless Loris Karius.

Liverpool had chances for an immediate response as Sadio Mane just failed to get on the end of Roberto Firminos dangerous cross before Virgil Van Dijk skewed a header wide from close range when unmarked from a corner.

But soon Liverpools task became doubly difficult as Uniteds power and pace again proved too much.

Lukaku shrugged off Lovren once more and when his ball through to Juan Mata was cut out by Van Dijk, Rashford swept home the rebound.

An eventful afternoon for Rashford continued moments later when he escaped with just a yellow card for a late lunge on James Milner.

And he should also have had an assist to his name before half-time when a dinked cross picked out Mata perfectly only for the unmarked Spaniard to send an acrobatic effort wide.

Liverpool enjoyed almost complete control of the ball in the second-half but failed to find a way through the mass ranks of United defence.

The visitors did have two strong appeals for penalties waived away as Ashley Young pulled at Mohamed Salahs shirt before an Andy Robertson cross rebounded off Antonio Valencias arm.

When Liverpool were handed a lifeline, it came via a United boot as Bailly who had excelled on his first start since November flicked Manes cross into his own net.

Source: NAN

Cristiano Ronaldo came to the rescue again as Real Madrid followed up their thumping win over Paris Saint-Germain with a narrow victory against Eibar.

Ronaldo scored twice, his second six minutes from the end, as Real won 2-1 and avoided another slip-up in La Liga. Ivan Ramis had equalised for Eibar shortly after half-time.

His double means Ronaldo has now scored in seven consecutive games and has a remarkable 13 goals overall in that period.

Real move four points behind second-placed Atletico Madrid, who will restore that gap to seven with a win over Celta Vigo on Sunday. Eibar stay eighth.

After securing a 5-2 aggregate victory over Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, Real swapped the Parc des Princes for the Ipurua Municipal Stadium, the smallest in La Liga with a capacity of just over 7,000.

They were below their best and rode their luck late on when Eibar should have converted a pair of excellent chances.

But Ronaldo proved the difference again, the 33-year-old taking his tally for the season to 35 goals in 37 appearances.

Zinedine Zidane had insisted the success in Paris was now forgotten and his starting line-up suggested as much, with Karim Benzema the only key player rested.

Gareth Bale started up front alongside Ronaldo, while Luka Modric and Toni Kroos, fit enough only to come off the bench in midweek, returned.

Isco and Casemiro formed the top and tail of a midfield diamond.

Real were ragged early on as Takashi Inui, Kike Garcia and Joan Jordan all went close to giving Eibar the lead.

Raphael Varane had to be replaced by Nacho after taking a bang to the head and, against the run of play, Real edged ahead in the 33rd minute.

A sloppy pass out from the back by Anaitz Arbilla conceded possession to Luka Modric who quickly picked out Ronaldo with a sublime bending pass. Ronaldo chested the ball down and slammed it in at the near post.

In front, Real improved but five minutes into the second half and Eibar were level. Sergio Ramos lost his man at a corner and Ramis nodded in from six yards.

Source: NAN

Former President Robert Mugabes photograph with Brig.-Gen. Ambrose Mutinhiri, the leader of opposition party the National Patriotic Front (NPF), has elicited a shock-waves in the political landscape of Zimbabwe.

The shockwaves ripped through the party he dominated for decades, the ruling Zanu-PF.

Mutinhiri is taking on the ruling party in this years election.

Mugabe grinned broadly in the posed photo, standing beside Mutinhiri, the leader of opposition party the National Patriotic Front (NPF), which hopes to unseat the government in polls by August.

Mutinhiris abrupt resignation from Zanu-PF last week followed by his surprise announcement that he would be the presidential candidate of the new party exposed deep divisions in the governing party.

The symbolism of the photo opportunity, which was featured at the top of a press release issued by the new pro-Mugabe splinter party, was unmistakable.

Two days later Zanu-PF Youth League supporters chanted down with Mugabe at a rally, a rare outburst from the normally disciplined members of the party that Mugabe led for nearly four decades.

A leader of the league, Pupurai Tigarepi, later said that if Mugabe is not responsible, we are going to look at him as a new enemy.

In response to the hostility, the new president did little to defend the man who was once presented by Zanu-PF to the world as a liberation hero and father of the nation.

There is an issue regarding the former president, said President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Currently we see in the media various speculations about his activities we are not happy with what the media is saying. We dont know whether its correct or not but it is an issue we are examining.

(The photo) sort of solidifies the whole idea that the Mugabe family is behind the project, said Gideon Chitanga, an analyst with the Johannesburg-based regional think-tank Political Economy Southern Africa, describing Mugabes meeting with Mutinhiri as very cordial.

Other analysts said that Mnangagwa had every reason to be concerned by Mugabes sudden re-emergence on the political scene.

There is an understated panic especially within Zanu-PF, said Zimbabwean political analyst Brian Kagoro who added that the ruling party had already struggled to formulate a response to the opposition following the death of its figurehead Morgan Tsvangirai in February.

It would have been a much easier task to concentrate on infiltrating the (opposition) but now they have to deal with uncertainty as to who is with them, said Brian Kagoro, a director of the UHAI Africa think-tank.

Mugabe was forced to quit when the military briefly took power in November and Zanu-PF lawmakers launched impeachment proceedings against their once beloved leader. Since his dramatic reversal of fortune, he has largely appeared to stay out of public life.

The military moved against Mugabe, 94, after he sacked his then-deputy and heir-apparent Mnangagwa apparently fearing the nonagenarian was grooming his wife Grace to succeed him as president.

The former first lady had cultivated her own factional support base within Zanu-PF known as G-40 that was seen as hostile to the security establishment.

There is a fight for legitimacy among the retired military supremos, said Kagoro, who suggested that Mugabe was behaving with grand malice over his treatment.

The NPF claims to have many members who are outraged by the unconstitutional and humiliating manner in which president Mugabe was criminally ousted from the leadership of both Zanu-PF and the country.

Source:

Source: NAN

A News Analysis by Obike Ukoh

Controversy over sequence of election is on the front burner since the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), released the 2019 general elections timetable.

INEC fixed Presidential and National Assembly (NASS) elections for Saturday, Feb. 16, 2019, while Governorship and State Assembly elections come up Saturday, March 2, 2019.

The National Assembly, however, reordered the sequence of the elections, demanding that the National Assembly election should come first and the presidential last.

The argument of those opposed to the reversal, besides contending that NASS has no powers to change what INEC put forward, was that it was targeted at President Muhammadu Buhari.

Some senators event walked out of the chamber to protest the adoption of the reordering of election sequence put forward by INEC by the Senate.

Senate President Bukola Saraki, before the adoption, had told his colleagues to remember that they would not be senators forever.

We will come and go, but the institution will stay. We need to come up with laws that will build strong institutions. Let us not be personal about this. Let us behave like statesmen. We have procedures on some of these things.

There are many bills we have passed. If there are issues, there are mechanisms we can use to resolve them.

Abdullahi Adamu (APC- Nasarawa), a former Nasarawa governor and Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum, led the nine protesting senators.

They contended that the action of the National Assembly breached the constitution, which they claimed empowered only INEC to fix dates for elections.

Considering the strategic importance of the bill, it does not need to be rushed. Many members of the committee did not sign. We need to know why they did not. I believe that the content of the bill is not fair. We need to be fair. Why the rush? I will not be part of it, Adamu said.

Andrew Uchendu (APC- Rivers), who accompanied Abdullahi, said the amendment would not stand.

Chairman of the Senate Committee, Sen. Suleiman Nazif (APC- Bauchi), who spoke on the issue outside the chamber, dismissed the insinuation that the report targeted Buhari.

The sequence of election came from the House of Representatives. The Senate only adopted what the House passed.

For the avoidance of doubt, this bill which makes provision for a sequence of election different from the one earlier, did not violate any provisions of the laws governing the operations of the electoral body.

This sequence had been adopted in past elections, particularly in 1979 when presidential election was held last, that is, Aug. 11; election to the Senate was conducted on July 7, followed by the House of Representatives election on July14.

Also, in 1992, the Senate and House of Representatives elections were held on July 4, while the presidential was held later on June 12, 1993. In 1999, elections to the Senate and House of Representatives were held on Feb. 20, while the presidential was held February 27.

In 2003, the National Assembly election was held April 12, while the presidential held April 19. Similarly, in 2011, National Assembly elections held on April 9 while the presidential held April 16.

Chairman, House Committee on INEC, Edward Pwajok (APC- Plateau), also said the bill was not targeted at anybody.

The sequence of election provision in the bill is not targeted at anybody.

It is aimed at further giving credibility to the electoral process by way of giving the electorate the opportunity to vote, based on the individual qualities of candidates vying for National Assembly seats.

Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, in their reaction, described it as `rare news from the National Assembly.

National Publicity Secretary of the group, Yinka Odumakin, said the new election timetable was a positive development which will allow participatory democracy.

Odumakin recalled that the election sequence which was used in 1979 recorded success as it revealed the strength of each political party.

According to him, the new election sequence will allow each party express its strength and prevent bandwagon effect.

This is one of the very rare good news that has come out of the National Assembly. It is a good development that will allow participatory democracy in our country.

If we go back into history, in 1979, the order of elections was the one that we started with National Assembly Elections and ended with the Presidential election.

In that election, the NPN that formed government at the national level then, won only seven out of 19 states, while UPN, GNPP, PRP, NPP won the rest.

You saw the strength of each party reflected.

In 1983, the order of election was changed, and once we had that, that is when we started having landslide (victory). That was when NPN started taking everything.

Elections stopped reflecting the wishes of the people. This is because the Presidency is the most powerful office in the land, therefore, once a party takes it, the rest is a bandwagon, he said.

Odumakin said that the new sequence is beneficial as it will allow each election stand on its own.

The reason to the best of my knowledge is to ensure that each election stands on its own. People are able to make their choices not based on the fact that a party has won the presidency, therefore, there is no point voting for the other political party.

Buhari Support Organisation (BSO), Enugu State chapter, on its part, condemned what it called the unconstitutional amendment of Section 25 of the 2010 Electoral Act by the National Assembly.

The group called on Buhari to veto the bill and distinguished senators and House members to support the veto.

The group warned that, obstacles or booby traps should not be planted to block President Muhammadu Buhari from firming the solid foundation he is laying in the provision of critical infrastructure rails, roads, agro and power.

Gov. Yahaya Bello of Kogi, a staunch supporter of Buhari, said reordering of election sequence would not affect the presidents electoral fortunes.

Bello, who spoke recently to State House correspondents in Abuja, said that the president would still win by a landslide irrespective of which election comes first.

Whichever order it comes, this upcoming general elections I can assure you that Mr President will win landslide and the good ones will return to the National Assembly.

Sen. Enyinnaya Abaribe, South-East Senate Caucus Chairman, said those opposed to the reordered election sequence were those who cannot win elections except they climb on the back of President Muhammadu Buhari.

He said: Anybody who attaches himself to Buhari for re-election is not fit, ab initio, to be a Senator. It is high time politicians stopped riding on the back of some political establishments or parties to win elections in Nigeria.

Dr Uwakwe Esse, in apparent reference to personal strength and popularity of politicians, recounted how Chief Ejieke Ukaegbu, was elected into the Eastern House of Assembly during the First Republic as an independent candidate.

Ukaegbu represented Bende, the present Bende Federal Constituency, currently represented by Nnenna Ukeje (PDP-Abia).

Ukaegbu was a member of the NCNC, but Dr Michael Okpara, then Premier of Eastern Region, from the same cultural and political zone with Ukaegbu, preferred Oji Iheukwumere from Uzuakoli as the partys candidate.

Ukaegbu consulted with his constituents, and he contested the election as an independent candidate and won.

In the case of Ukaegbu, personal charisma and acceptance gave him the victory, rather than sequence.

When the issue of order of election sequence became an issue in 2014, during debate on amendment of the Electoral Act, Daily Trust newspaper wrote an editorial on the issue.

The April 9, 2014 editorial was titled: INEC can hold all elections in one day.
In the editorial the paper wrote inter alia:

Members were sharply divided over some of the proposals, including a proposal to grant the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) powers to use electronic voting machines in future polls.

Perhaps the most crucial of the bills is the one that proposes that INEC should conduct all elections in one day. Leading the debate on the proposed legislation, Sen. Abu Ibrahim, its sponsor, argued that such procedure would be in tune with global best practices and cost effective.

Although INEC chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega foreclosed, rather unfortunately, the conduct of all elections in a single day in the 2015 elections, it would be useful for the country to prepare to do that in subsequent polls.

If the yearnings and hopes for credible elections are to be addressed in a positive way, holding all elections in one day is the way to go.

The huge resources that the country expends on elections are a trend that is disturbing and should end.

With only a day slated for all elections, this cost will be drastically reduced.

In the last elections in 2011, staggered over three weeks, INEC paid the ad-hoc staff it engaged for the exercise N50 billionfor one day, according to figures that Sen. Ibrahim referenced in arguing the bills relevance.

Besides cutting cost, holding elections in one day will promote greater participation of all political parties in the process even if many of them relatively do not have enough resources as the ruling party does.

Crucially, such a process will eliminate the so-called bandwagon effect, in which the outcome of preceding election shapes voter attitude in subsequent ones.

Not surprising, ruling party stalwarts opposed the thrust of the proposed bill, hinging their argument on the tenuous argument that INEC lacked the capacity to embark on such exercise.

INEC can actually set the ball rolling, even in 2015, by reordering the sequence of the forthcoming elections so that the presidential poll comes last.

Afterwards, it can begin to plan for all-elections-in-one-day scenario in 2019 and beyond. (NANFeatures)

Source: NAN