The death toll from floods in Nigeria this year has increased to 603 as local authorities race to provide relief to hundreds of thousands of people being evacuated from their submerged homes.
More than 1.3 million people have been displaced by the disaster, which has affected people across 33 of Nigeria’s 36 states, the humanitarian affairs ministry said late on Sunday.
At least 3,400sq km (1,300sq miles) of land has been inundated, worsening fears of food supply disruptions. Conflict already has threatened production in the northwest and central regions of Nigeria, which produce much of what the country eats.
President Muhammadu Buhari directed “all concerned to work for the restoration of normalcy”, according to a statement issued by his office.
Nigeria experiences annual flooding, especially in its coastal areas, but this year’s floods are the worst in more than a decade. Authorities blame the disaster on the release of excess water from Lagdo Dam in neighbouring Cameroon and on unusual rainfalls.
Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris, reporting from Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa state in southern Nigeria, said people are fleeing to the city in the hopes of getting help from authorities.
“The bad news is, it’s been pouring down for the past few days and the rains are expected to keep coming down for the coming days,” Idris said.
The flooding has worsened a humanitarian crisis in Nigeria, where violence, especially in the troubled northern region, has displaced more than three million people, according to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre.
Last week, Buhari allocated 12,000 metric tonnes of grain for the flood victims, the humanitarian affairs minister said.
Zhao Chenxin, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission
Zhao Chenxin, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission, speaks at a press conference on the sidelines of the ongoing 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 17, 2022. (Xinhua/Chen Jianli)
China’s economic development is expected to gain new strong impetus from the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC).
The Chinese economy has posted a notable recovery in the third quarter of this year, Zhao Chenxin, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission, told a press conference Monday on the sidelines of the ongoing congress.
Following a 4.8-percent growth in Q1, China’s GDP edged up 0.4 percent in Q2 due to the impact of negative factors like COVID-19 outbreaks.
“China’s economic performance has seen fluctuations this year, but logged a continuous trend of recovery in general,” Zhao said, adding that the country’s major economic indicators like consumption have been on the rebound curve thanks to a slew of supportive policies.
Zhao pointed out that China’s economic performance has stood out globally, citing the country’s mild inflation, generally stable employment and huge foreign exchange reserves. “The Chinese economy is facing some challenges, but more importantly, it’s brimming with opportunities.”
China has the world’s largest middle-income group, a comprehensive industrial system, a sound industrial chain and increasingly modern infrastructure, offering abundant market space for companies, Zhao noted.
The country’s orders for energy equipment, petrochemical equipment, mining machinery, construction machinery, machine tools and industrial robots are seeing significant increases following more support to boost weak economic areas, he said.
Most importantly, the Party congress will gather strong momentum and offer fresh impetus for advancing the country’s economic development, Zhao said.
The country will move faster to build a modernized economy, according to a report to the 20th CPC National Congress.
China will raise total factor productivity, make industrial and supply chains more resilient and secure, and promote integrated urban-rural development and coordinated regional development, so as to effectively upgrade and appropriately expand economic output, the report said.
“The report has encouraged us and boosted our morale,” said Jiang Deyi, chairman of Chinese carmaker BAIC Group and a delegate to the congress. “We will foster more edge in the field of new energy vehicles (NEVs) and contribute more to China’s strength in manufacturing.”
The economy has shifted from high-speed growth to high-quality growth, Jiang noted. The automobile sector is a vivid case in point.
Thanks to preferential policies, more than 4.56 million NEVs were sold in China in the first nine months, up 110 percent year on year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
To make the industrial and supply chains more resilient and secure amid the COVID-19, the country has introduced requirements to prevent arbitrary closing of major industrial chain firms and those supplying daily necessities. Constant efforts have been made to keep industrial parks, enterprises and logistics running smoothly, according to Zhao.
The government is pushing the implementation of pro-growth measures with a focus on addressing the needs of small and medium-sized firms, Zhao added.
“With the implementation of the guiding principles of the Party congress, the effective coordination of COVID-19 prevention and control with economic and social development, and the continuous effects of macro policies, the sound momentum of China’s economic recovery will be further consolidated,” Zhao said.
France faced nationwide transport strikes and general disruption on Tuesday as the government and unions continued to row over walkouts at oil depots that have sparked fuel shortages. Teachers, students, workers from healthcare services and industry turned out for street demonstrations calling for pay rises to cope with the cost of living.
“The government must lead by example to take into account the social emergency,” Philippe Martinez, head of the CGT union told the press as he set off at the head of the protest march in Paris on Tuesday afternoon.
The CGT is one of several powerful trade unions calling workers to join the general strike, in their biggest challenge to President Emmanuel Macron since he won a second presidential term in May.
Also at the Paris demonstration, Frédéric Souillot, secretary general of ‘Force Ouvrière’, who warned the government on the future pension reform. “If the government tries anything on pensions, there will be a mobilization of all the unions,” he said.
The United Arab Emirates on Monday summoned the acting head of the mission at the European Union delegation to the UAE, asking for explanation of what it said were racist comments made by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell last week.
The UAE foreign ministry said the remarks were “inappropriate and discriminatory” and “contribute to a worsening climate of intolerance and discrimination worldwide” UAE state news agency (WAM) reported.
In his remarks at the new European Diplomatic Academy in Bruges, Belgium, which have been widely circulated online since he made them last week, Borrell called Europe “a garden” and most of the world a “jungle” that “could invade the garden.”
“The gardeners should take care of the garden, but they will not protect the garden by building walls. A nice small garden surrounded by high walls in order to prevent the jungle coming in is not going to be a solution. Because the jungle has a strong growth capacity, and the wall will never be high enough,” said Borrell, a Spanish politician.
The US Department of Justice has asked a federal judge to sentence former President Donald Trump’s adviser Steve Bannon to six months in prison for defying a subpoena to testify before a congressional committee investigating the United States Capitol riot.
US prosecutors recommended the sentence on Monday, accusing Bannon of pursuing “a bad-faith strategy of defiance and contempt” and publicly disparaging the panel investigating the attack on January 6, 2021.
The Justice Department also urged US District Judge Carl Nichols to fine Bannon $200,000.
“Throughout the pendency of this case, the Defendant has exploited his notoriety — through courthouse press conferences and his War Room podcast — to display to the public the source of his bad-faith refusal to comply with the committee’s subpoena: a total disregard for government processes and the law,” the department wrote in its filing.
The recommendations come just days after the January 6 panel last week voted to subpoena Trump in an effort to compel the ex-president’s testimony about the Capitol riot and his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 US presidential election.
Russian forces have again targeted Ukraine’s energy facilities, leaving part of Kyiv and other cities with no power and water.
Prosecutors say two people were killed in an attack on the capital. Plumes of smoke were seen billowing from around a power station near the Dnipro river. Power and water were cut in Zhytomyr, west of Kyiv, and two facilities were badly damaged in Dnipro.
The latest attacks came 24 hours after Kyiv was hit by “kamikaze” drones.
The unmanned aircraft believed to be Iranian-made, killed at least five people in the capital and four in the northern city of Sumy, striking critical infrastructure, with power outages reported in hundreds of towns and villages.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Twitter on Tuesday that in the past eight days, 30% of Ukraine’s power stations had been destroyed, “causing massive blackouts across the country”.
Ukrainian energy firm DTEK said two of its thermal power plants had been significantly damaged by Russian shelling, leaving one worker dead and six others wounded.
Waterleaf is a vegetable that’s known by many names. Its names include Ceylon spinach, Florida spinach, Surinam Purslane, cariru, and more. Even its scientific name is up for debate. Both Talinum fruticosum and Talinum triangulare are used. Regardless of what it’s called, it’s crunchy, tangy, and nutritious.
Waterleaf can grow to 5 feet by some accounts, and has simple pink flowers. It is an excellent source of iron, zinc, and molybdenum.
While waterleaf is native to the Americas and the Caribbean, it has been cultivated in many places across the world.
Health Benefits
Waterleaf is extremely nutritious. However, it is also high in oxalate. Oxalate is a natural chemical found in foods like spinach, rhubarb, beets, sweet potatoes, and waterleaf. For those with kidney disorders, oxalate may contribute to kidney stones.
Up to 50 percent of the soluble (dissolves in water) oxalate can be removed through blanching or cooking. Cooking can also remove lectins from waterleaf. Lectins are generally harmless, but they can interfere with the body’s ability to absorb micronutrients like calcium, iron, and zinc.
Some of the health benefits of waterleaf include:
Bone Health
Waterleaf is an excellent source of calcium and phosphorus, both of which are essential for healthy bones. In fact, some research has shown that taking calcium without phosphorus does very little for bone strength. The two elements appear to work together. They are especially good for helping women over 60 who are already suffering from osteoporosis.
Eye Health
Maintaining sufficient levels of vitamin A is essential for healthy eyes. Research indicates that vitamin A can slow the progression of retinal disease, reduce the risk of cataracts, and improve low-light vision. Waterleaf is a good source of vitamin A.
Let me begin this article by sounding a note of caution or call it a disclaimer. In law there is an offence known as SUBJUDICE, which simply means discussing an ongoing case in public with the view to influencing the mind of the jury or the court.
I innocently and fully absolve all media houses which will publish this article from blame. I will try as a lawyer to stay clear from commentary on what is going on in the courtroom, but if anybody should think there is a cause for SUBJUDICE, I alone am responsible.
The dream of every court-going lawyer is to get that one magic case that will propel him or her into stardom. I will not say that I am already a star in the Ghanaian courtroom, but by the sheer Grace of Almighty God I have NEVER envied ANY practicing lawyer, for the simple reason that I never know what court brief is waiting in the next hour for me.
The very first time I, Nkrabeah Effah Dartey, set eyes on AISHA HUANG was in late 2017 at the famous Kempinski Hotel, where I had been invited by a former client now a very bosom friend, Moses.
I met Moses, seated with a Chinese-looking lady, eating breakfast. He introduced her to me as a Chinese with a legal problem, and that he wanted me to be her lawyer.
I ended up in the courtroom before my lord Justice Ekow Biaden sitting at the High Court Criminal One in Accra. The charges related to GALAMSEY (illegal mining) operations.
Right from the Ghana Law School and beyond, by experience all these years I NEVER go to court unless I have been fully paid by a client, or where as a matter of Christian policy I decide to do the case pro bono.
I come from a very humble background, so my sympathies are always with the deprived.
The case of the Republic v Aisha Huang and 3 others travelled a very long distance before Justice Biaden. All through 2018 we went to court, and I had the opportunity to cross-examine all the witnesses. They were on bail, and two of the accused persons jumped bail, and the court became apprehensive.
The prosecution closed its case and it was time for us to open our defence on December 18, 2018. We went to court innocently to open our defence, only to be told that the Attorney General, then Gloria Akuffo, had entered a NOLLE PROSEQUI (Don’t prosecute).
His Lordship Mr. Justice Ekow Biaden, the Presiding Justice had no option, but to strike out the case and discharge the accused.
In fact, I was confused. So far, apart from a few points here and there, Justice Biaden had been very FAIR in the trial, and it appeared that all things going the same way, my client was going to be acquitted and discharged. Why nolle prosequi?
The Akans say that Otumfuo removes his ring over the shoulders. Government can do anything. Very well! Let us go Aisha, case over. No, no, protests the Immigration Officers around – “Counsel, we want to take your client for some documentation and later you have her.”
“Very well!”
The next thing I heard was that AISHA HUANG had been flown out of Ghana back home to China. How? What happened? She called me on phone from China saying they just put her on a plane and flew her out of Ghana.
As a lawyer I know that the political authority had all the power to throw out any foreigner out of the land, but, I wondered: Aisha Huang? What is so special about this diminutive Chinese woman to cause such political interest?
In fact, upon sober reflection, the conclusion I came to was that Aisha’s case was so bad that the court MIGHT be compelled to ACQUIT, her and if that happens it will be a big blow to the government, so why not truncate the trial altogether? Send her out of Ghana.
So she was sent out. 2018, 2019, 2020 – Covid-19 – 2021, 2022 – suddenly I saw in a newspaper publication here in Ghana that Aisha had been remanded in court – oh, when did she come back? Why did she not contact me?
Very well- but not very well, because I kept on hearing messages from the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) staff that there was a suspect in their cells who wanted to see me – and I won’t go unless I am paid!
Finally, I was compelled by my conscience to send my son, Lawyer Divine, who went, spent THREE HOURS without seeing her, and came back. The pressure mounted; I sent a female lawyer, FAFA, who, after two hours, met AISHA, and then one thing led to another and now I and the lawyers in this firm, NKRABEAH & ASSOCIATES, together with other law firms, are jointly representing AISHA HUANG.
I am walking on a tightrope against SUBJUDICE, so I will NOT say anything whatsoever about the core matter in the courtroom on the many applications I have made for bail and been refused, whether my Lord’s basis for denying bail is proper or improper and so on … LET THE LAW WORK, ON…
But let me use these pages to address the uninformed about the NUANCES of the law generally.
All over the world, not only in Ghana, the basic presumption of the law is that a person is presumed INNOCENT until proven guilty, and so pronounced by a Court of Competent Jurisdiction.
Most unfortunately, human life, from generation to generation, works almost by “word of mouth”, and negative tongues with dirty agenda soil human reputations, almost with no redress.
When I was in Legon, I was Junior Common Room (JCR) President of the famous Commonwealth Hall. The next JCR Government that succeeded me AUDITED my accounts and published it, with a report that my Government was thus far the CLEANEST in Commonwealth Hall records.
BUT YET WHEN I CONTESTED LEGON SRC ELECTIONS I LOST, BECAUSE ONE COMMONWEALTH HALL STUDENT CONFESSED OPENLY THAT HE USED WHITE CHALK TO WRITE ON WALLS IN SOME HALLS THAT I WAS CORRUPT AS JCR PRESIDENT…
Even though subsequently he died, I still find it very hard to forgive him – reader, for no reason every bitterness, sheer hatred, people soil other people’s names with raw inventions, calumny and terrible lies, and if you don’t get a day in court; if you don’t get a lawyer to defend you; if you don’t get a judge who will be IMPARTIAL and FAIR, they will be pushing you slowly into a shallow grave.
Reader, it is terrible!
Aisha Huang was arrested in late August 2022 and slapped with two counts of selling minerals without a license. On September 2, the Prosecutor said: “Investigations are continuing.” On September 14, they said again; “Investigations are continuing,” and yet again, on September 27, they said: “Investigations are continuing.”
When I pleaded with the court and pleaded with the Judge to transfer her into prison custody, the BNI woke up from their slumber and set up an 11-man panel and, reader, to interview this girl for THREE days, hunting for excuses to nail her.
For sheer hatred, people soil other people’s names with raw inventions, calumny and terrible lies.
What amuses me beyond tolerance levels are comments by those educated in our society who ought to know better, making all manner of accusations against me for the crime of being lawyer for AISHA HUANG.
The other day, the noisy Captain Smart was literally calling me a fool for claiming to defend AISHA, but when he went foul of the law, he sought refuge in lawyers coming to his defence.
Let me make the records straight – when I was Deputy Minister of State from May 2001 to May 2006, I NEVER STEPPED IN THE COURTROOM. Right now, I am a private legal practitioner, subject to the Ghana Bar Association; licensed to practice; my number is e/GAR /02094/22.
The other day at the Nkawkaw High Court, I was humbled to my knees when, after openly stating that I was 37 years at the Bar, the next lawyer opposing me quietly told the court: “I am 53 years at the Bar!”
If it were to have been to Achimota School, I would have been described as a “NINO BOY ….”
Reader let us pray for AISHA HUANG. Let all of us do our work sincerely and humbly, and let the TRUTH come out. LET JUSTICE PREVAIL.
Jota has made eight appearances for Liverpool this season
Liverpool’s Portugal forward Diogo Jota has been ruled out of the World Cup with a calf injury, according to Reds manager Jurgen Klopp.
The 25-year-old was taken off on a stretcher in the final moments of his side’s 1-0 Premier League win against Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday.
Klopp said Jota will be out for a “long time” and “we talk about months”.
“[It is a] pretty serious injury of the calf muscle. Sad news for the boy, us and Portugal,” the German added.
“He’s surprisingly OK so far. He’s an incredibly smart boy. I think he knew it when we carried him off the pitch.”
“We passed each other after the game and he explained pretty much what had happened. I think he knew it was a serious one and could be pretty impactful for his World Cup dreams.”
Jota wrote on social media: “After such a good night at Anfield mine ended in the worst way! In the last minute one of my dreams collapsed.”
He missed the start of the season with a hamstring injury before returning as a substitute in a goalless draw against Everton on 3 September.
Jota played for Portugal during the international break later that month and scored in a 4-0 win over the Czech Republic.
Alphonso Davies thinks his Bayern Munich team-mate Jamal Musiala should have won it
Bayern Munich defender Alphonso Davies has claimed his team-mate Jamal Musiala was ‘denied’ the Kopa Trophy, after he finished third in the race for the award at the Ballon d’Or ceremony on Monday.
The Kopa Trophy is given to the best under-21 player in the world, and Musiala looked to have a strong chance of coming out on top heading into the event.
However, he was pipped to the gong by Barcelona midfielder Gavi, while Real Madrid‘s Eduardo Camavinga came second. Davies took to Twitter on Tuesday to point out that Musiala had been hard done by, but expects him to go on and win the Ballon d’or at some point in his career.
‘They may have denied you of your Kopa Trophy, but they won’t deny you of your future Ballon d’Or,’ Davies wrote. Musiala is still only 19 but he has already made 92 appearances for Bayern since joining in 2019, scoring 22 goals.
He has won the Bundesliga in each of his three seasons at the club, and is now a central figure in Julian Nagelsmann’s team.
Meanwhile, Gavi, who only turned 18 in August, had his breakthrough campaign at the Nou Camp, and has netted twice in 60 matches for the Spanish giants.
