Home Blog Page 2654

Gunmen attack army checkpoint, two feared killed

By
admin
-
0
Nigeria army

Two persons were feared killed on Tuesday when gunmen attacked an army checkpoint in Amodu Awkunanaw, a community in Nkanu West Local Government Area of Enugu State, Nigeria’s South-east.

 

Some soldiers, together with some police officers, were at the checkpoint for a joint operation when the gunmen attacked them.

The incident occurred at about 7 a.m.

 

The gunmen, who reportedly stormed the checkpoint in two Lexus SUVs and one Toyota Sienna vehicle, opened fire on the soldiers and police officers.

There was a shootout, PREMIUM TIMES learnt.

 

Sources said although the number of casualties and their identities were not clear, at least two persons were killed during the shootout.

When contacted, the police spokesperson in the state, Daniel Ndukwe, confirmed the incident to PREMIUM TIMES.

 

Mr Ndukwe, however, said he did not have the details because he was yet to be “fully briefed” on the attack.

 

He said the attackers sustained gunshot injuries during the shootout with the security agencies.

 

Credit: premiumtimesng.com

Only PDP can defeat APC in Lagos; Okowa

By
admin
-
0
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa

Vice Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Governor Ifeanyi Okowa says only the platform can beat the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Southwest.

The Delta helmsman made the declaration at the PDP Southeast zonal stakeholders’ meeting in Enugu on Tuesday.

Okowa boasted that the PDP has the strength and capacity to win the 2023 general elections in all the six geo-political zones.

The governor said the party was getting stronger in the Northwest and Northeast.

“In the North-Central and the South-South, we have become strong; and PDP is in charge in the Southeast.

“We saw what happened in Osun. We are in charge of Oyo and Ondo States.

“A lot is happening in Ogun and Ekiti and even in Lagos State, PDP is going to compete favourably”; NAN quoted him saying.

The running mate to Atiku Abubakar said the presence of other parties would be felt in a few places during the polls.

Okowa assured that Atiku, a former vice president, has the solution to Nigeria’s problems due to his knowledge, experience and capacity.

Credit: dailypost.ng

Court stops Obi supporters from holding rally at Lekki Toll-Gate

By
admin
-
0
ENDSARS rally at Lekki Toll gate

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos State on Wednesday ordered the Labour Party and its supporters not to converge on the Lekki Toll-Gate for its planned rally for the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi.

DAILY POST reports that supporters of Obi had scheduled Obi Datti 23 Forward Ever Rally to be held on October 1, 2022, in Lagos.

Against the earlier plan to converge at the Toll-Gate, the court ruled that the LP supporters could pass through the facility for its rally but must not converge there.

Justice Daniel Osiagor, who gave the order, also directed the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alabi, to ensure compliance with the order.

He gave the order while ruling on a Motion for Injunction brought by ten plaintiffs, including nine lawyers, who are asking the court to, among others, restrain the LP, its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, his running mate, Yusuf Baba-Ahmed, one Julius Abure and their loyalists from holding the rally.

Credit: dailypost.ng

Court rejects Senate President Lawan, orders INEC to list Machina as APC candidate

By
admin
-
0
Ahmed Lawan

A Federal High Court in Damaturu, Yobe State on Wednesday ruled that Nigeria’s Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, is not the candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for Yobe North Senatorial District in next year’s election into the National Assembly.

The court ruled that Bashir Machina is the authentic candidate of the party having won the legally recognised primary supervised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The court ruled that Mr Lawan did not participate in the legally recognised primary election of the APC to select its candidate in the election held on 28 May.

With the ruling, Mr Lawan, a former university lecturer, will not be holding an elective office for the first time since 1999 when he was elected as a member of the House of Representatives for Bade/Jakusko Federal Constituency of Yobe State.

Mr Lawal did not participate in the original APC Yobe North primary because he was contesting to be the party’s presidential candidate.

Having failed to secure his party’s nod to run for president, Mr Lawal tried to reclaim the party’s ticket for Yobe North, a district he has represented since 2007.

Despite Mr Machina’s victory at the 28 May primary, the leadership of the APC submitted Lawan’s name as candidate for the district.

Mr Machina kicked and filed a suit praying the court should rule that he was the bona fide candidate of the party. He also asked the court to order the INEC to include his name in its final register of candidates for the National Assembly election.

INEC had refused to recognise either Mr Lawal or Mr Machina insisting it would only recognise the candidate the court rules was the authentic candidate of the party for the district.

Credit: premiumtimesng.com

Trade between Ghana and China hits US$9.57bn

By
admin
-
0
Vice-President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, commissioning the project

Built on mutual trust for development, bilateral trade volume between Ghana and China peaked at US$9.57 billion in 2021, from US$6.67 billion in 2017, the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Lu Kun has disclosed.

Representing a 12 percent year-on-year increase, China’s direct investment also increased by US$15 million, making Ghana China’s largest trading partner in Africa.

The Chinese Ambassador disclosed this at a durbar to commission a 22-km Cape Coast inner city road infrastructure funded by the Chinese government through Sinohydro agreement.

He attributed the steady rise in trade and investments to the strong demand for Chinese products by Ghanaians as well as measures put in place by both countries to leverage on the long-standing relations.

The Vice-President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, together with Mr. Kwasi Amoako Atta, Roads and Highways Minister, joined the chiefs of the area to commission the road project aimed at expanding access to ease traffic and accelerate development.

Elated by the increasing trade volumes between China and Ghana, the Ambassador said: “These are not just numbers, but a symbol of China-Ghana friendship we value and cherish.”

“The China-Ghana ties have been kept on a sound momentum of high-level bilateral exchanges and ever-increasing trust built on mutual strong conviction for development.

“The decades of solid relations remain a springboard for a win-win China-Ghana cooperation hinged on consolidating bilateral traditional friendship, deepening pragmatic cooperation, and broad consensus building on issues of mutual concern,” he stated.

The Chinese Ambassador indicated that China and Ghana have always supported each other on issues concerning their core and major interests, keeping close cooperation in the international and regional arena and thus safeguarding the relationship.

Through that, Mr. Kun said the Chinese government had financed, partnered, and executed several critical national projects relating to the economic growth and the livelihood of people in Ghana.

Key among them is the National Theatre, office complexes of the Foreign Ministry and Defence Ministry, the University of Health and Allied Sciences in Ho and the Cape Coast Sports Stadium.

Others are the Atuabo Gas Processing Project, Bui Dam, and Kpong Water Supply Expansion Project, Asogli Power Plant, and Africa World Airline (AWA) which have played a key role in resolving the power shortage and promoting the interconnection of the sub-region.

Lately, the Chinese equipment and technologies have accelerated the pace of integration with local enterprises and capital, bringing into being several local star enterprises and adding fuel to the enthusiasm for Ghana’s cooperation with China.

On people-to-people exchanges, he said cultural exchanges were close and ever-increasing on mutual understanding, as wood sculpture, music, and dance, among other forms of tourists, enjoyed high popularity among Chinese tourists.

Mrs. Justina Marigold Assan said the completion of roads was key to the region’s investment drive to become the preferred investment destination in the country. She said the Region remained the most preferred destination in Ghana’s quest to continuously attract investment from the Diaspora.

By Isaac Arkoh

Source: GNA

Lizzo makes history playing 200-year-old crystal flute

By
NANA KWESI COOMSON
-
0
Lizzo is a Grammy-winning singer

Lizzo made history by becoming the first person to play a 200-year-old crystal flute, once owned by former US President James Madison, during her concert in Washington DC on Tuesday.

The US singer and trained flautist was granted permission by The Library of Congress to play the instrument, which arrived on stage with a police escort.

Inspecting it on stage, she said: “It’s like playing out of a wine glass.”

The star then played a few notes while simultaneously shaking her lower body.

“I just twerked and played James Madison’s flute from the 1800s!” she beamed, after having handed it back to a representative who put it back in its

While posting the video on her own social media channels afterwards, the Houston-raised Juice singer told her fans: “No one has ever heard what is sounds like… now you do.”

She later added: “As a flute player this is iconic and I will never be over it.”

Following her historic gig on Tuesday evening, The Library of Congress tweeted to confirm the flute had been returned safely.

“We just did a DNA test,” they posted. “Turns out: It’s 100% that [crystal] flute.”

Grammy-winner Lizzo is currently touring the US in support of her fourth album, Special, which featured the TikTok hit, About Damn Time.

Earlier this summer, she changed the lyrics to a new song, Grrrls, after fans complained it used an ableist slur.

Credit: bbc.com

EU slams Russia annexation ‘votes’ in four Ukraine regions

By
admin
-
0
A service member of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic casts his ballot

The EU has slammed “illegal” annexation votes Russia held in four occupied regions of Ukraine and their “falsified” results.

 

“[The] EU denounces holding of illegal ‘referenda’ and their falsified outcome,” the bloc’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Twitter.

“This is another violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, amidst systematic abuses of human rights,” he said.

 

Kremlin-installed authorities in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhia, Russian-controlled regions that together make up about 15 percent of Ukraine’s landmass, claimed victory on Tuesday in annexation votes, sparking global outrage.

 

Ukraine and its allies have denounced the so-called referendums, saying the West will never recognise the results of the ballots, which have ratcheted up the stakes in Russia’s seven-month invasion.

 

Pro-Russian authorities in Zaporizhia said 93.11 percent of voters backed joining Russia, according to preliminary results on Tuesday evening.

Credit: Aljazeera.com

India village celebrates first government job in 75yrs

By
admin
-
0
Rakesh Kumar has been appointed as a primary school teacher

A village in the eastern Indian state of Bihar is celebrating after a resident got a government job – its first in 75 years.

Rakesh Kumar, 30, has been appointed as a primary teacher in a public school.

Residents distributed sweets and smeared coloured powder in joy when they heard the news last week.

Government jobs are highly sought after in India for the security and benefits they offer.

Mr Kumar will teach students in Barkurwa, which is located in the same district as his own village Sohagpur. While there is also a government school in Sohagpur, teachers there are from other parts of the state.

Devendra Chowdhary, a local leader, says that generations of people in Sohagpur have aspired to steady, well-paying jobs – since at least 1947, when India became independent – but have few ways of doing so.

Many students travel to big cities nearby to study, but no one had been able to get a government job – until now.

Credit: bbc.com

Chess commentator sacked for sexist comments

By
admin
-
0
Chess game

A chess commentator has been sacked by the International Chess Federation for making sexist comments. Ilya Smirin was broadcasting live during the ninth round of the Women’s Grand Prix on Tuesday.

The Israeli grandmaster admitted on air he had said chess is “maybe not for women” – and also seemingly praised a woman for playing like a man.

The federation apologised and called Mr Smirin’s comments offensive and embarrassing.

Belarusian-born Mr Smirin – who was once ranked one of the world’s top 20 players – was making his debut as an English-language commentator in Astana, Kazakhstan.

He was initially speaking about one of the competitors, Chinese chess player Zhu Jiner. She is a woman grandmaster, which is a separate, lower title to that of grandmaster.

All chess players – men and women – can become grandmasters, which is the highest title a chess player can attain, if they have a rating of 2,500 and above. The very top female chess players have this title. The woman grandmaster title is only for women and requires a lower rating of 2,300.

Credit: bbc.com

Chinese currency hits record low against US dollar

By
admin
-
0
China's yuan hit fresh record low

China’s yuan has hit fresh record lows against the surging US dollar.

The internationally-traded yuan fell to its lowest level since data first became available in 2011.

China’s domestic currency also reached its weakest point since the 2008 global financial crisis.

It comes as the dollar continues to rise in value against other major currencies, after the US central bank increased interest rates again earlier this month.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, major stock market indexes across Asia fell sharply.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index closed 3.4% lower, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei index closed 1.5% lower and the Kospi in South Korea ended the day down by 2.4%.

Many investors see the dollar as a safe place to put their money in times of trouble.

That has helped to drive up its value against other currencies, including the British pound – which hit an all-time low against the dollar on Monday.

Also on Wednesday, the dollar reached a fresh 20-year high against a closely-watched group of leading global currencies. The yuan’s slide is yet another example of a currency weakening as a result of the strong dollar.

 Credit: bbc.com

1...2,6532,6542,655...3,032Page 2,654 of 3,032

EDITOR PICKS

POPULAR POSTS

POPULAR CATEGORY

©
The Ghanaian Chronicle