2020 Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden will attend a town hall on Oct. 15, the night scheduled for his second debate with U.S. President Donald Trump, ABC News announced on Thursday.

The primetime event will take place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where the former U.S. vice president will answer questions from voters, and be moderated by anchor George Stephanopoulos, according to the broadcaster.

The announcement came hours after Trump said he would not take part in the second presidential debate following a format change making it virtual to protect the health and safety of those involved during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The format change has sickened the president and a growing number of individuals close to him.

Kate Bedingfield, Bidens deputy campaign manager and communications director, said that the Democrat was prepared to attend the virtual matchup, originally designed to take place in the form of a town hall in Miami, Florida.

But the President has refused, as Donald Trump clearly does not want to face questions from the voters about his failures on COVID and the economy, Bedingfield said, adding that the campaign was hopeful that organisers would move the event to later this month.

Bill Stepien, Trumps reelection campaign manager, defended the Republican presidential nominees remarks, arguing in a statement that the American people should not be deprived of the chance to see the two candidates for president debate face to face two more times.

Meanwhile, Stepien has urged the debate panel to reschedule the second face-off between Trump and Biden for Oct. 22 and the third for Oct. 29, both in-person.

The presidential opponents met for their first debate in the 2020 race in Cleveland, Ohio on Sept. 29, two days before the incumbent tested positive for COVID-19. Biden has undergone multiple tests since Trumps diagnosis, with each one returning negative.

Trump returned to the White House on Monday, where he continues to receive treatment, after a three-day hospitalisation due to the coronavirus infection.

Speaking to Fox Business Thursday morning, the president said he was feeling perfect, while appearing eager to hit the campaign trail as Bidens lead over him in national polls is widening.

I think Im better to a point where Id love to do a rally tonight. I wanted to do one last night, Trump said, adding: I feel perfect. Theres nothing wrong.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that individuals self-isolate for at least 10 days after the onset of symptoms from COVID-19, which has infected nearly 7.6 million people and killed more than 212,000 in the U.S. (Xinhua/NAN)

Source: NAN News

INECs Result Viewing Portal and Nigeria future elections

One of the greatest threats and impediments to democracy is to subvert the will of the people, analysts observe.

They observer further that the management of elections, especially election results, is significant to the electoral process and consolidation of democracy in any country.

Over the times, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has not only reiterated but demonstrated its commitment to ensuring that the votes of electorate in every election count in determining who wins an election.

In recent times, the commission has introduced some technology innovations to ensure transparency in the electoral process, including the Permanent Voter cards (PVC), Smart Card Readers (SCR) and regular update of voters register.

To further strengthen election management process and enhance transparency of the system, INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu, on Aug. 6, introduced a dedicated public election result viewing portal, known as The INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal.

The portal which can be access by longing in to https://inecelectionresults.com, enables Nigerians to view polling unit results in real time on election day.

The portal was introduced alongside with Z-pad, a tablet with dual functions of uploading of scanned copies of election results at polling Units (PUs) to the portal, as well as a secondary authentication mechanism to support the smartcard readers on voters verification on election day.

The instruments were test-run at the Aug. 8, Nasarawa Central State Constituency by-election in Nasarawa State and subsequently deployed for the Sept. 19 Edo governorship election.

While INEC assured the public that the result viewing portal and the Z-pads would be used for Ondo State governorship election and subsequent polls, it dropped the use of the z-pads for secondary authentication mechanism to review and perfect the device for that function.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Mr Festus Okoye, announcing the introduction of the portal, said that the commission was aware that result management had remained a major source of mistrust in Nigerias electoral process.

Citizens are often concerned, and sometimes rightly so, that results may not always be consistent with votes cast.

INEC is determined to address any source of this concern through enhancing the level of transparency in the conduct of elections, more so in the process of releasing results of elections.

It is a fundamental principle of democracy that in elections, votes are not only correctly counted, but that they also count, Okoye said.

He recalled that in consistent with INEC commitment to transparency in election management, the commission introduced the Form EC60E, which is a poster version of the primary result sheet, the Form EC8A.

This replica of the polling unit result is pasted at the PU after votes are counted, recorded and announced.

This poster, now widely known as the Peoples Form EC8, has increased transparency in result management.

The form enables the citizens to photograph the results and project the outcome of elections, even before the final results are announced.

Unfortunately, this has also led to abuses, as unofficial and at times false results are known to have been circulated, particularly via social media, leading to tension and casting aspersions on the final outcome of elections, he said.

Okoye, however, stressed that that the result view portal did not constitute electronic collation of results.

He said that the collation of election results shall remain as provided for by law, a manual process of completion of relevant result sheets and their upwards collation until the final results are determined.

The commission hopes that this innovation would improve the transparency in election result management and further consolidate public confidence in the electoral process, Okoye said.

Interestingly, various stakeholders including voters, political parties, civil society organisations, election observers and the international community, commend INECs performance in the Edo election, describing it as the most credible and improved election conducted by the commission in recent times.

They commend INEC on logistics deployment, including early arrival of materials, opening of polls, as well as the deployment of its new innovations, the Z-pad and result viewing portal.

While some see the result viewing portal as a magic wine in the Nigeria electoral process, others describe it as a key innovation boosting citizens confidence in the electoral process.

The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (Situation Room), one of the accredited groups that observed Edo governorship election in its preliminary statement, observed that the election appeared to have been a marked improvement on recent previous governorship elections.

An ICT expert, Mr Christopher Chidi, said one of the innovations that made Edo election a success was the introduction of the result viewing portal.

The portal has made it difficult for politicians to alter election results at will at the collation centres at the wards, local or state level.

Also, Mr Moses Gabriel, a civil servant, said that the portal contributed a lot to the success and credibility of the Edo election.

Since the results from the polling units are displayed live, nobody can now tamper with the mandate of the people as expressed by them at the polling units.

I commend what INEC has done in Edo and we are hopeful it will be extended to future elections, especially in the Ondo State governorship election, Moses said.

The Head of Publicity, National Consultative Front (NCFront), Mr Tanko Yunusa said that the use of the Z-pad, has eliminated rigging at collation centres.

Yunusa said: You must give the process kudos. When INEC introduced Z-Pad, it helped to checkmate the social malfeasance that usually happens at collation centres.

This is a welcome development and there is an improvement in the process as we move on in our democratic setting. It was a hard working process that yielded result, Yunusa said.s

The co-convener of Centre for Liberty, Mr Ariyo-Dare Atoye, said that the general conduct of INEC staff, security personnel and other stakeholders in the Edo election validated Nigerians views that electoral reform was urgently needed for progress of the nations democratic process.

INEC has already demonstrated its willingness to embrace this lofty leap with its Z-pad initiative.

With the introduction of the results viewing portal and the Z-pad, electoral fraud, if not eradicatedit will be reduced, Atoye said.

Also commending INEC performance and its innovations in Edo governorship election, the National Publicity Secretary, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, urged the commission to extend the innovations to future elections.

Ologbondiyan said: Nigerians hope that what we have witnessed in Edo will not be an off-season procedure; we demand that this credible process applies to all our elections.

The PDP applauds the use of virtual portal by INEC to upload results directly from the polling unit, the base of our election, which made it impossible for electoral violators to hijack this electoral process.

It is our hope in the PDP, this new found image of INEC will gather more thresholds in future elections, particularly the Oct. 10, Ondo State governorship election.

Ologbondiyan, urged INEC to strengthen its processes, particularly in the area of card readers, to forestall the type of delays witnessed in accreditation of voters in Edo.

He also commended President Muhammadu Buhari for allowing credible election, imploring him to continue in the spirit of ensuring that the people are allowed to freely choose their leaders at all elections.

Ologbondiyan added that the Edo election had indeed shown that credible elections were possible in Nigeria, if all stakeholders played by the rules.

The Young Progressives Party (YPP) National Publicity Secretary, Mr Egbeola Martins, said that the innovations by INEC in the Nigeria electoral process, especially the result viewing portal, is a welcome development.

INEC is by this feat admonished to collaborate with the National Assembly to give legal backing to this innovation that has further enhanced the electoral process by making it more transparent.

Failure to act quickly in this direction may give enemies of democracy the opportunity to take advantage of the lacuna in our electoral laws thereby giving them the impetus to challenge any outcome in court.

When the alteration of election results becomes difficult as seen in the just concluded Edo election, it increases the confidence of electorate to participate in the electoral process based on the strength that their votes will count, he said.

All in all, analysts observe that while Nigerians await the full automation of the countrys electoral process, INEC should continue to deploy key technology innovations allowed within the Electoral Act, Nigeria Constitution and other legal frameworks, to promote the integrity and transparency of the countrys electoral process.

Source: NAN News

Spain and Portugal have signed an agreement to push ahead with their joint bid to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup, the Spanish football federation (RFEF) said on Wednesday.

The countries federations ratified an agreement to promote the joint candidacy for the organisation of the World Cup in 2030, establishing strategies for the international projection of both federations and countries, the RFEF said in a statement.

The federations, which signed the agreement before a friendly between their national teams in Lisbon, had began analysing the possibility of a joint bid last year.

Few things can generate more hope and anticipation that the opportunity to organise a World Cup (present) and we cant think of a better companion than Portugal, said RFEF president Luis Rubiales.

Spain hosted the 1982 World Cup and launched a failed bid along with Portugal to stage the 2018 tournament which was awarded to Russia.

Portugal has never staged the World Cup but did hold the 2004 European Championship.

Argentina, Uruguay, Chile and Paraguay have announced they will make a four-way bid which could have sentimental value as Uruguay hosted the inaugural World Cup in 1930.

The UKs four associations are contemplating a joint bid along with Ireland while Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece and Romania are also planning a joint bid.

The bidding process formally starts in 2022 with FIFA to choose the hosts in 2024.(Reuters/NAN)

Source: NAN News

PDP Governorship candidate Mr Eyitayo Jedege and his ZLP counterpart, Mr Agboola Ajayi

Olufemi Ojo

Mr Eyitayo Jedege, the PDP governorship candidate in Ondo State, says he is still in the race, contrary to reports that he has stepped down for another candidate.

Jegede made the clarification in a statement made available to newsmen by the Spokesman of his campaign organisation, Mr Gbenga Akinmoyo, on Thursday in Akure.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governorship election in Ondo State is scheduled for Oct. 10.

The governorship candidate told his supporters to disregard the rumour that he had collapsed his structure with that of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) candidate, Mr Agboola Ajayi.

He described the rumour as part of the desperate move by his detractors to deceive the general public and distract his supporters.

Jegede said that he had meticulously worked to complete his campaign tour across the length and breadth of the state and held the closing rally at a colourful ceremony in Ondo West Local Government area on Wednesday.

Thousands of supporters joined me at the ceremony to receive the PDP national officers from Abuja, led by the National Chairman, Uche Secondus.

Several PDP governors and former governors, led by the Chairman of PDP Governors Forum, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal and other party chieftains were also present at the rally, he said.

Jegede added that in spite the tight campaign schedule, he was able to honour the invitations of the organisers of the two governorship debates to answer questions and address the electorate on his partys manifestoes.

Jegede said he had also signed a peace accord to confirm his commitment to a violence-free election and plea to relevant authorities on the need to enjoy free, fair, transparent and credible election in the state, come Oct. 10.

NAN reports that INEC had earlier published the names of 17 governorship candidates and their running mates alongside their political parties.

The parties include the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and 15 other political parties.

NAN also reports that of the 17 candidates vying for the governorship position, 16 are males and one female. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

APC logo

By Emmanuel Mogbede

The All Progressives Congress (APC), UK Chapter has called on electorate in Ondo State to re-elect Gov. Rotimi Akeredolu, saying he has been tested and trusted to deliver good governance.

The party made the call in statement signed by Mr Jacob Ogunseye, its Publicity Secretary on Thursday in Abuja.

It described Akeredolu, who is the APC candidate for the Ondo State governorship election slated for Oct. 10 as the best among other candidates, saying he deserves to be re-elected.

This, according to the APC UK would ensure that Akeredolu, who is also the Ondo State incumbent governor continued his good works in the state.

It said that Akeredolu was a rare gem whose achievements in the last three and half years should be a crucial factor in deciding the outcome of the Ondo State governorship elections.

It expressed optimism that with Akeredolus re-election, the state would have a better chance to compete at the national level.

The statement also quoted Mr Ade Omole, the leader of the party in the UK as saying that Akeredolu is a man with great and enviable credentials and love for the state.

His giant strides in areas of industrialisation, infrastructural development, health, and education have shown his unalloyed love for his state.

It will be ignoble to venture for any untested hands now when it is the time to consolidate,Omole said

He, therefore urged the electorate to work and ensure the success of the governor in the forthcoming election.

He noted that prior to the campaigns, Akeredolu commissioned several laudable projects across the local government areas.

Omole said that Akeredolu was a man of character who displayed commitment and loyalty to his people.

He has shown leadership and governance in a positive dimension and has shown courage in the face of adversaries.

Akeredolu has brought progress into the lives of many, I urge all voters in Ondo to vote for him.

He deserves a second term and we can only expect more if he is given the opportunity to govern the state for another four years,Omole said, adding that Akeredolu would do more in his second term. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

YouTube logo

By Stellamaris Ashinze

YouTube on Thursday announced that artists and creators from Nigeria could apply for grants from its global 100 million dollars Black Voices Fund.

Alex Okosi, Managing Director, Emerging Markets, YouTube EMEA said in a statement that the global fund would over the next three years offer support to Black artists and creators.

Okosi said that the fund to enable artists and creators could thrive on YouTube.

The managing director said that Black Voices Fund would invest with the intention to present fresh narratives that emphasise the intellectual power, authenticity, dignity and joy of Black voices, as well as to educate audiences about racial justice.

He said that the m fund was first announced in June and was officially named the #YouTubeBlack Voices Fund.

According to him, this year, the fund will be focusing its efforts on creators within the US, Brazil, Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.

Our goal is to expand funding to more countries over the course of the next three years,

Additionally, we hope to provide a consistent drumbeat of educational training, workshops, and community events to Black creators and artists globally.

The #YouTubeBlack Voices Fund is part of the work currently underway to ensure that YouTube is a place where Black artists, creators and users can share their stories and be protected, he said.

According to Okosi, along with our commitment to amplifying marginalised voices on the content side we are also investing in product and policy changes that will continue to advance YouTubes mission.

He said the mission of giving everyone a voice and showing them the world.

Okosi said that YouTube believes that it is only by taking a stand against those who would try to bully, harass, silence and intimidate others that it truly moves closer to achieving this mission.

He said that YouTubes new efforts included ramping up enforcement and terminating more accounts that repeatedly post hateful comments.

The MD YouTube was also in the process of rolling out product changes to make creator moderation tools more streamlined.

Okosi said that Interested artists and creators could apply for funding here.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that launched in May 2005, YouTube is the worlds most popular online video community allowing billions of people to discover, watch and share video. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

L to R. Mr David Abraham of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Captain Sunday Umoren (NIMASA), Commodore Patrick Yekwe of Defence Headquarters, the Defence Attache, Navy Captain Oluseyi Oladipo, Mr Chuma Joe of MOD, Commodore Samuel Kure of Defence Intelligence Agency (Team Leader), the representative of the Ambassador, Alhaji Abubakar Salihu, Commodore Martins Aligwe of Naval HQ and Dr Oni of Ministry of Justice

By Ifeanyi Nwoko

In a bid to consolidate efforts at ending the upsurge of maritime crimes, piracy and insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea, Nigeria has activated a bilateral agreement on improving the security in the region.

The new agreement mandates both countries to embark on combined maritime and air patrols along the common maritime border.

This was disclosed in a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday by Commodore Samuel Kure of Ministry of Defence who led the Nigerian delegation for the activation of the agreement.

The agreement, he said became necessary in view of the fact that over the last decade, the Gulf of Guinea had witnessed an upsurge in maritime crimes such as piracy, smuggling, bunkering, trafficking in drugs, humans and arms, wildlife crime.

Both countries noted that the insecurity had attracted concern and also led to the elevation of marine insurance premiums to war risk status, thereby increasing shipping costs to countries in the region, especially Nigeria.

In a bid to enhance security in the Gulf of Guinea, on March 15, 2016, President Muhammadu Buhari and President Teodoro Obiang Mbasogo signed a Bilateral agreement for the establishment of a Combined Maritime Policing and Security Patrol Committee (CMPSPC ).

This bilateral agreement between Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea marked an important milestone in maritime security cooperation.The CMPSPC is made up of equal representation from both countries.

The Nigerian membership includes representatives of the Ministries of Defence, Foreign Affairsand Justice.

Also represented are Defence and Service Headquarters, Defence Intelligence Agency, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, Nigeria Police Force, Nigerian Immigration Service and the National Boundary Commission.

The Nigerian delegation that has been in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea since Sept. 30, 2020 for the inaugural meeting of CMPSPC, concluded its assignment on Oct. 6, 2020 at the Sipopo Conference Centre, Malabo City,it said.

According to the statement, Nigerias head of delegation Commodore Kure along with other representatives, made robust contributions towards the smooth operationalisation of the agreement.

According to Commodore Kure, these concrete steps towards operationalisation of the agreement demonstrate President Buharis commitment to enhance maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea.

The next session of the CMPSPC is scheduled to hold in Abuja Nigeria.

Source: NAN News

Paris Appeals Court

Google has lost an appeal against an order from the French competition authority telling it to negotiate with news providers over fees it should pay for displaying previews of their sites.

The Paris Appeals Court on Thursday rejected the internet giants appeal against the interim measures imposed by the Autorite de la Concurrence (competition authority) in April.

However, the court amended the authoritys order to clarify that Google could improve its own services in the meantime as long as that didnt affect the interests of the news sites.

The authoritys April order came after Google decided to stop showing previews for news articles in French search results unless the news providers consented to their use without a fee.

The internet giant took the step in response to new EU copyright rules, which provide that online publishers must have the authorisation of news media before they republish their news items.

The original media is also entitled to copyright fees under the rules, which came into effect in France in 2019.

The authority said at the time that Google might have abused its dominant position by imposing unfair negotiating conditions and frustrating the purpose of the rules, which was to give news publishers more of the value created by their content.

Google said it had appealed to get legal clarity on some parts of the order and would review the Appeals Courts ruling, which can be appealed.

The firm said its priority was to reach an agreement with French publishers and press agencies. (dpa/NAN)

Source: NAN News

Ex-I-G advises against banning of SARS

By Joseph Edeh

A former Inspector-General of Police (I-G), Mr Mike Okiro has advised against the ban of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Inspector-General of Police (I-G), Mohammed Adamu on Oct.4, banned the personnel of the FSARS and other tactical squads of the force from routine patrols.

Other tactical squads affected by the ban include the Special Tactical Squad, Intelligence Response Team , Anti-Cultism Squad and other tactical squads operating at the federal, zonal and command levels were banned from carrying out routine patrols and other conventional low-risk duties notably stop and search duties, checkpoints, mounting of roadblocks, traffic checks among others.

Okiro who gave the advice in an interview with NAN on Thursday in Abuja, said that the squad should be rebranded and refocused for effective service delivery.

The police management should go to the drawing board and retrain personnel of the SARS as it will be counter-productive to disband them.

You cannot throw away the baby with the bath water, if they have deviated from what they were established for they should be retrained and refocused,he said.

Armed robbers will be happy that there is no more SARS in the country but are Nigerians ready for that, he said.

He said that the squad had derailed from the primary purpose of tackling armed robbery that it was established for.

Members of the SARS are doing things that are different from their training,he said.

He called for stiff punishment for any member of the squad who violates the code of conduct to serve as a deterrent to others.

The former police boss said that it was unfortunate that the squad have now delved into cases of debt recovery and other matters aside armed robbery.

He called for adequate funding of the force for training and retraining of its personnel and to acquire modern equipment for effective service delivery.

Source: NAN News

Arsenal Hale End Academy

By Joseph Edeh

Arsenal FC have closed their Hale End academy after a staff member tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The academy, in east London and separate from Arsenals senior training facilities at London Colney, is used to develop players between the ages of nine and 16.

We can confirm that a member of staff from our Hale End Academy has tested positive for COVID-19 and immediately left the site to self-isolate, Arsenal said in a statement.

As a consequence, six other members of staff are now self-isolating Our Hale End Academy will now be closed on Thursday for deep cleaning.

The health and safety of everyone on all our sites is our paramount concern. No members of our mens or womens first team squads have been affected.

Arsenal full back, Kieran Tierney, is also told to self-isolate for 14 days after coming into contact with Scotland team mate, Stuart Armstrong, who tested positive for the virus. (Reuters/NAN)

Source: NAN News