Tragedy struck in Oyo State on Friday as a 41-year-old woman identified as Shakirat Rasheed committed suicide in Adeosun area of Apete a surbub of Ibadan.

Rasheed was said to have reportedly hanged herself after her friend whom she stood for as guarantor failed to repay a loan taken from a micro-finance bank.

Her friend allegedly took the loan from a micro-finance bank popularly known as LAPO.

It was gathered that Rasheed reportedly stood as a guarantor for her friend who obtained a loan from LAPO office at Awotan area, but the friend was said to have been at large, forcing the guarantor to be paying the loan in bits.

Sources added that the loan caused Mrs Rasheeds depression and she seemed unable to bear the problem any longer, especially when officials of the micro-finance bank reportedly called her on Friday to see them in their office.

The Divisional Police Officer in charge of Apete police station led detectives to the scene of the incident.

It was further gathered that the family said that there would be need to perform some rituals before the body could be detached from the rope hanging on it from the ceiling.

Commissioner of Police, Shina Olukolu, confirmed the story.

He said that preliminary investigation indicated that the woman committed suicide.

Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the State Police Command, Mr Olugbenga Fadeyi also confirmed the incident to newsmen on Saturday.

Fadeyi told Journalists that more efforts are being intensified to get more details about her death.

Source: NAN

Tunisia on Saturday bid farewell to its late President, Beji Caid Essebsi, who passed away on Thursday morning at the age of 92.

The body of late President Essebsi will be buried in Al-Zallag cemetery in the Tunisian capital.

The burial will be in a procession that will take place from the presidential palace in Carthage with the participation of heads of state and government from 23 Arab and other foreign countries.

The Tunisian Interior Ministry said that extraordinary measures had been taken to secure the funeral for Essebsi.

Essebsi was born on Nov. 29, 1926, in Sidi Bou Said in the northern suburbs of the capital.

He studied law in Paris until 1950; two years later, he became a lawyer in his home country.

His first involvement in politics dates back to 1941 when he joined the Neo Destour party, a Tunisian political party that was founded by a group of Tunisian nationalist politicians during the French colonisation.

Following the countrys independence from France in 1956, he began to exercise high political responsibilities.

He took over the Tunisian presidency after winning the 2014 elections.

Source: NAN

Doctors in an Indian hospital have expressed shock following the discovery of coins and jewelries in the stomach of a 26-year-old lady.

The lady Runi Khatun, was rushed to Rampurhat Government Medical College and Hospital after she became weak and emaciated and the doctors discovered that she had swallowed various items.

The doctors while carrying out surgery on her, brought out 69 chains, 80 earrings, 46 coins, eight lockets, 11 nose rings, five anklets and one wristwatch.

According to Daily Mail of UK, the lady complained to her mother that she was weak and could no longer eat.

She was said to have eventually collapsed and the mother rushed her to the hospitals.

It was at the theatre that doctors who operated on her began to bring out all the coins and jewellery to their shock.

Source: NAN

TheVCIS Global Allianz Fund Assistance Scholarships isa one-off partial award for high achieiving students who are interested in studying a degree program atMacquarie University Australia.

The VCIS Global Allianz Fund provides a partial tuition fee scholarship. This free education award amount is up to ,000 and will be awarded as the fee reduction for the student commencing studies in the 2020 year.

Eligible Countries:International

Type:Undergraduate and Postgraduate

Value Of Scholarships:,000

Number of Awards:One

Eligible Field Of Study:

• Undergraduate programs (Bachelor of Clinical Science, Bachelor of Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Bachelor of Human Sciences, Bachelor of Medical Sciences, Bachelor of Psychology, Bachelor of Psychology (Honors), and Bachelor of Speech and Hearing Sciences)
• Postgraduate program (Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Physiotherapy, Master of Clinical Audiology, Master of Clinical Neuropsychology, Master of Clinical Psychology, Master of Laboratory Analysis, Quality and Management, Master of Organizational Psychology, Master of Professional Psychology, Master of Public Health, Master of Radiopharmaceutical Science, and Master of Speech and Language Pathology).

Eligibility:To be eligible for the scholarship, students must meet the following requirements:

• Be a citizen of a country other than Australia or New Zealand.
• Meet the Academic and English requirements for one of the following Macquarie University Bachelor or Postgraduate Coursework Degrees:

Application Process:Interested applicants must hold an offer to study in 2020before completing the online application process for the award.

Visit The Official Website For More Information

Application Deadline:November 30, 2019

Source: Scholarships And Aid

The University of Queensland is giving Schwarzman funding for the brightest Australian and international students.

The award is available for students from all around the world to pursue thepostgraduatedegree program in all subject areas for the academic year 2019-2020.

University or Organization:University of Queensland

Department:NA

Course Level:Masters degree

Award:Varies

Access Mode:Online

Number of Awards:Not known

Nationality:International students

The award can be taken inAustralia

Eligibility

• Eligible Countries:Claimants from any nationality
• Acceptable Course or Subjects: Masters degree in any subject offered by the university
• Admissible Criteria: To be considered for this education award, the applicant must have to be enrolled in undergraduate degree programs must be on track to successfully complete all degree requirements by August 1 of their enrollment year. Candidates must be at least 18 but not yet 29 years of age as of August 1 of their Schwarzman Scholars enrollment year.

Method of Application

To get involved in this program, aspirants are prescribed to take admission in the postgraduate degree coursework at the university. After being enrolled, claimants can apply for the bursary.

Admission Requirements

You will be able to gain a conditional admission for a postgraduate degree program after meeting the entry requirements of the university.

• Supporting Documents:Must attach the resume (2-page maximum), transcripts/academic records essays (2) and letters of recommendation.
• Language Requirement:All applicants must demonstrate that they have met our English language proficiency (ELP) requirements.

Benefits:The grant will provide full tuition, fees, room, and board, travel to and from Beijing, in-country study tours, required books and supplies, Lenovo laptop and smartphone, health insurance and a personal stipend.

Source: Scholarships And Aid

This grant provides support for Ecologists in Africa to carry out innovative ecological research. The British Ecological Society recognises that ecologists in Africa face unique challenges in carrying out research; BES grant is designed to support you to develop your skills, experience and knowledge base as well as making connections with ecologists in the developed world. They support excellent ecological science in Africa by funding services and equipment.

Eligibility Criteria:

• Applicant should be a scientist and a citizen of a country in Africa or its associated islands, that is a low-income economy or lower-middle-income economy according to theWorld Bank categorisation
• Have at least an MSc or equivalent degree
• Be working for a university or research institution in Africa (including field centres, NGOs, museums etc.) that provides basic research facilities
• Carry out the research in a country in Africa or its associated islands

British Ecological Society Ecologists in Africa Grant

• The maximum value of a grant is 8,000 for research. An additional sum up to 2,000 may be requested to fund travel to help you develop connections with other ecologists outside your usual peer group. This must be requested at the application stage.
• Travel funds are available to spend time working with ecologists in developed countries where facilities and experience will help you on return to your own institution.
• Successful applicants also receive two years of free BES membership and free online access to journals.

Method of Application:

APPLY HERE

OFFICIAL LINK

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA.

The application will be judged by a panel of reviewers on the basis of your personal qualifications, the scientific excellence, novelty and feasibility of the proposal, and the academic and non-academic impact of the planned research.

You should demonstrate that you have made connections with ecologists in a developed country that can provide advice during the proposed project. If international travel is part of the application, you should demonstrate close links with those you propose to visit.

Funding is available for any area of ecological science excluding research focused solely on agriculture, forestry and bioprospecting. Please note that neither purely descriptive work nor studies that might be considered incremental will be funded.

The proposed project could be part of an existing programme but the application should be for a clearly defined piece of research. Researchers must also show how their research will have a wider impact beyond academia.

Scholarship Application Deadline: Monday 9 September at 17:00 (BST).

Source: Scholarships And Aid

The fellowship is a one year, full-time post-graduate diploma programme in built environment designed as a multi-disciplinary immersion to introduce young practitioners and students to new ideas, knowledge and skills to question, evaluate, invent and redefine the built environment. The Anant Fellowship is the flagship programme of Anant National University, Indias first Design University.

Anant University Fellowship Programme.

Anant Fellowship has been carefully curated and structured to prepare you to make exponential change within yourself, to the country, and to the world. Academic rigour and intensity have been combined with first-hand, experiential discovery to create an equitable balance between theory and praxis, between instruction and experimentation, and between paced-learning and open-ended discovery.

• Academic Instruction:The first component of Anant Fellowship is designed to broaden your perspective and aid empathetic solutions by providing you the opportunity of learning from pioneering ideas and thoughts in two thematic clusters: Domain and Technical, and Societal and Cultural.
• Experiential Discovery:In the second component of Anant Fellowship, you will learn from your own and your peers first-hand experiences, and from your own values, beliefs, mindsets, and constructs.
• Live-Action Project:The third and the most important component of the Fellowship is the Live Action Project where you work in teams throughout the duration of one year to solve a real-life challenge in close association with local administrative bodies and community stakeholders.

Anant University Fellowship Programme Eligibility.

• Open to students and practitioners from all professional and educational backgrounds with a preference to those from the disciplines of architecture, design, planning, environmental science, and engineering, civil and construction engineering, IT, social sciences and humanities.
• Applicants must have a sound academic record, and should have successfully completed an undergraduate or postgraduate degree before the start of the Fellowship.
• Applicants must be able to show a demonstrated commitment to improving the Built Environment, and an understanding of the issues pertaining to the area.
• Anant Fellowship is committed to diversity; they invite applications from students and professionals of all age-groups, socio-economic backgrounds, and geographies both in India and internationally.

Anant University Fellowship Programme Benefits.

As an Anant Fellows, you expect to:

• Enhance your technical and core skills in architecture, design and planning
• Be trained to think broadly and deeply across topics like Green Urbanism, Earth Based Construction Techniques, Transportation, Anthropology, Sociology, and Economics, among others
• Gain a deeper understanding of yourself and others, and develop imaginative empathy
• Collaborate with like-minded individuals from diverse disciplines and take up a Built Environment challenge with an opportunity for real-life impact
• Become purpose-driven leaders who contribute to the larger society by creating unique Built Environment solutions

Scholarship:

• They are offering 80% scholarships covering cost of Tuition, Boarding, and Lodging to all accepted candidates. Limited 100% scholarships are available for those with combined annual family income of less than INR 8 lacs. Applicants are encouraged to apply early to increase their chances of getting scholarship assistance.

Method of Application

THE FOLLOWING ELEMENTS WILL BE CONSIDERED TO IDENTIFY CANDIDATES WITH A STRONG RELENTLESS COMMITMENT TO MAKE A CHANGE TO THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT:

• Online Application consists of Resume, Work Sample and Statement of Purpose (Three Questions)
• Telephonic Interview
• Personal Interview
• Offer

APPLY HERE

OFFICIAL LINK

Scholarship Application Deadline: Ongoing.

Source: Scholarships And Aid

The Chairman, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Col. Muhammad Abdallah (retd), says President Muhammadu Buhari has approved recruitment of 5,000 personnel for the agency to boost its manpower.

Abdallah made the disclosure on Friday at the Public Destruction of Drug Exhibits by Taraba Command of NDLEA in Jalingo.

He said that the gesture would go a long way in improving operations of the agency on campaign against drug addiction in Nigeria.

He said increased consumption of illicit drugs among the youths in Taraba was worrisome, appealing to families to brace up to their responsibilities.

According to Abdallah, effective drug prevention must involve positive engagement of children, youths and adults with their families, schools, workplace and community.

He commended Gov. Darius Ishaku of Taraba for his support to the agency in addressing drug problems in the state.

He also commended Mrs Anna Darius, wife of the governor, for giving great impetus to the war against drug abuse in the state.

The chairman thanked the governor for including NDLEA commandant in the state’s Security Council as well as supporting the agency with operational vehicles.

He noted that the provision of Hope Afresh Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), managed by the wife of the governor for sensitisation against drug abuse was a great boost to anti-drug abuse campaign.

Earlier, Acting Commander of NDLEA in the state, Mr Peter Odaudu, had said that the agency had assembled seven tonnes (6,963.80 kilogrammes) of deadly weeds and psychotropic substances for destruction.

Odaudu said that the exhibits were seized between January, 2003 and December, 2018.

He listed some of the illicit drugs assembled for destruction as Cannabis Sativa, Diazepam, Rophynol, Cough syrups with codeine and Tramadol.

According to him, a court order for their destruction has been duly obtained.

Odaudu commended other security agencies in the state for their cooperation in the success recorded by the NDLEA.

He commended the state government for supporting the agency towards ensuring effective control in consumption of illicit drugs in the state.

In his remarks, the state governor, Mr Darius Ishaku, said that drug consumption had increased violent crimes in the state.

Ishaku, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Alhaji Haruna Manu, said that most persons arrested for violent crimes in the state were youths.

He, therefore, urged the youths to avoid the use of illicit drugs, saying that it was dangerous to their health and the society.

He also urged the agency to collaborate with office of the First Lady to achieve more feat in its mandate of ensuring a drug-free society.

Ishaku said that the construction of health centres by the first lady’s foundation for sensitisation in the three senatorial zones was a better platform to adopt by the agency.

He assured the agency of continued support by the state government to eradicate drug abuse. (NAN)

Five inmates of Maximum Security Prison in Kirikiri, Lagos, have bagged university degrees from National Open University (NOUN).

The Vice Chancellor of NOUN, Prof. Abdalla Uba Adamu, disclosed this in Lagos on Friday during the graduation ceremony and presentation of certificates to the five inmates at Maximum Security Prison, Kirikiri.

Adamu, who was represented by Professor Gregory Okagbare, said over 526 inmates were studying various courses from Nigerian prisons.

He said there had been an increase in the numbers of inmates enrolling in degree programmes of NOUN in the various study centres located in prisons nationwide.

“There are over 526 inmates studying various courses at both under and post graduate levels while in prison detention.

“I congratulate the graduating inmates and urge you to seek for higher qualifications,” he said.

The Controller General of Prisons, Ja’afaru Ahmed, who was represented by Assistant Controller General Chuks VU Chiabua, reiterated the commitment of the prison service to continually provide educational platform for inmates to realise their dreams while in prison.

The successful inmates who received their certificates in various degrees are: Adebayo Ojo, B.Sc Criminology & Security Studies, Idong Nelson, B.Sc Peace & Conflict Resolution and Audu Godfrey, B.Sc PCR.

Others are Akolade Arowolo, PDG in Peace & Conflict Resolution and Okeke Chinonso B.Sc Entrepreneurship and Business Management. (NAN)

Bandits commanders in Birnin-Magaji Local Government Area of Zamfara, on Friday agreed to suspend attacks on the people at a dialogue meeting with the state government and security officials.

The bandits also said that the coast is now clear for all those displaced by the attacks to return home.

News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the agreement was reached at the palace of the Emir of Birnin-Magaji.

Present at the meeting were the state Commissioner of Police, bandits commanders, leaders of Fulani, Civilian Joint Task Force and local vigilantes known as “Yansakai”.

The meeting, chaired by Police Commissioner Usman Nagogo, was also attended by Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Security Matters, Abubakar Dauran and National leaders of Miyetti-Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN).

The bandits’ commanders at the meeting were: Ardo Nashawari, Audu Karki and Muhammad Bello, while the leaders of civilian JTF and vigilantes were Malam Garba Nasarawa-Godal and Alhaji Shuaibu Aliyu.

Speaking on behalf of the bandits, Nashawari, said with the suspension of the attacks, farmers were now free to return to their farms and other residents free to go about their normal businessess.

Nashawari added, “We believe with this dialogue,the Fulani can now go to markets, they can move freely without any hitch.”

The Civilian JTF leader, Alhaji Shuaibu Aliyu, urged the government to ensure immediate disarming of the bandits.

“On behalf of the entire members of Civilian JTF and Vigilance Group Birnin-Magaji Local Government Area, we commend the state government for this dialogue, we abide by it,” he said.

On his part, the commissioner of police described the meeting as “fruitful” and restated the commitment of the command to rid the state of banditry, kidnapping and other crimes.

“We are impressed with the comments of the warring factions, both of them have accepted the dialogue”, Nagogo said.

The National President of MACBAN, Alhaji Ardo Kiruwa, described the dialogue as “succeeding”, noting that most of the markets that were hitherto closed due to insecurity, have been opened.

“We were told that the Fulani were seen in Shinkafi market yesterday”, he added.

Kiruwa called on the Fulani to cooperate with government and security agencies in order to maintain peace and stability in the state.

Also, Dauran, the special adviser on security, thanked the people of the state for their support and cooperation toward ensuring that the dialogue succeeded.

He cautioned against politicising the state government’s efforts at tackling the security challenges in the state.

“We are aware that some people are using politics to challenge the government’s efforts in this regard”, he noted.

The Emir of Birnin-Magaji, Alhaji Hussaini Maude-Dan’Ali, thanked the state government for initiating the dialogue and urged all parties to adhere to all the agreements reached during the dialogue.

“We are happy with the outcome of this meeting, we are going to continue to support government towards ensuring the success of this dialogue”, the emir said. (NAN)