EA Delays Battlefield 2042 Release By A Month

By Chinua Albert Okafor @The RoboRai YouTube (Subscribe)

• New release date now November 19th, 2021

A delayed release of Dice's Battlefield 2042 has been announced by its parent company, EA. It was originally scheduled to release on October 22nd, but it will now be available on November 19th.

EARLY MORNING GUN SHOTS SCARES STUDENTS OF FED UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY MINNA

• * Two Abducted

By Celestine Okafor (Editor-in-Chief)

Barely less than a month after the abduction of two Professors and four others at the University of Abuja, gunmen suspected to be armed bandits, on Thursday morning, attacked adjourning communities to the Federal University of Technology (FUT), Minna in Niger state.

EARLY POLL RESULTS IN NIGER STATE PUTS APC ON THE LEAD

By Princess Simon (Bureau Chief North Central, in Minna)

Results from 11 out of the 25 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Niger state have shown the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) in clear lead followed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Easter Security Assessment: ANAMBRA POLICE EXPRESS CONCERN OVER MASKED SECURITY PERSONNEL PROTECTING VIPs

* Warns of Security Risks

By Rose Nwankwu (Anambra State Correspondent, in Awka)

The Anambra State Police Command has expressed serious concern over the growing trend of some security operatives concealing their identities while providing protection to Very Important Personalities (VIPs) within the State.

Easter: IPAC CELEBRATES WITH CHRISTIANS, URGES PEACE, TOLERANCE AND UNITY IN THE COUNTRY

By Celestine Okafor (Editor-in-Chief) @CeleOkaf11

The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) joins millions of Christians across the country to celebrate this year's Easter and urges the faithful to use the occasion to renew their commitment and service to God and their fatherland.

EBELE'S DIARY AND OTHER UNFORGETTABLE FIRST LADIES

By Azu Ishiekwene

I thought there was a mistake. The headline said Nigeria’s former ambassador to Spain and wife of Dim Odumegwu Ojukwu, Bianca, slapped the outgoing First Lady of Anambra State, Ebele Obiano. In my head, however, the news read differently. This was not the sort of thing you would associate with Bianca, a former ambassador and beauty queen.

In spite of what I was reading as the news broke, I told myself that the reality was the other way round: Ebele Obiano must have slapped Bianca Ojukwu. If you know Ebele, you will know why in spite of the news, it is easy to be mistaken about what really happened at the swearing-in of Charles Soludo as governor of Anambra State last week.

Willie Obiano may have been governor for eight years, Ebele ruled. She called the shots in respect of appointments, especially those related to internally generated revenue. Onitsha Market, a state cash cow, for example, reported to her through her protégée/manager. Members of the state universal basic education board took their brief from her, too. And inside Government House, her office was so strategically located, you could not mistake that it was the altar at this official shrine.

She was also a major political force whose influence people vying for political positions coveted. Her displeasure was avoided at all costs. She had weight and she knew how to flaunt it.

During the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship primaries last year, for example, Ebele told her husband - the governor - that she had a different candidate. She reportedly told him that Soludo was a risk; they would be unable to control him if he took power.

But the governor wanted Soludo. His wife, on the other hand, made it clear that her preferred candidate was Chukwuma Ume Umeorji, currently representing Aguata federal constituency at the National Assembly. It took the combined intervention of some traditional rulers, along with members of the clergy, to appease Ebele and save the family divided against itself on the eve of an important election.

It would appear that as part of the “terms of settlement”, the governor would later announce that whereas he had no desire to continue in active politics after leaving office, he would secure a senatorial seat for his wife, Ebele, for her labours.

Such is the strength of Ebele’s clout and the fear of her majesty that you can imagine my confusion at the breaking of the news that she was at the receiving end of Bianca’s ambassadorial slap. It turned out that that was indeed the case, and to make matters worse, Ebele was alone in her moment of distress.

She was painfully ignored by her husband at the crime scene and left to be set upon by an ecstatic public that seemed so pleased by the incident it was prepared to forgive the indiscretion of an ambassador who ignored the provisions of the Geneva convention, supposedly in self defence. All is fair in love and war, I guess.

But this may well be an incident that Anambrarians, even the whole world, will look back on with deep regret. Had Ebele been permitted to take the dignified exit that she had hoped for and for which she had made elaborate preparations including a dance rehearsal the night before only matched by her extraordinary butterfly-sleeves pink dress on the D-Day, she might have considered sharing her First Lady diary with us.

The diary of her last days in office was nothing, if not extraordinary, worthier in my view than the famous memoirs of Harriette Wilson, the concubine of the Duke of Wellington who, in defiance of the threat of the Duke to publish and be damned, still went ahead to leak her salacious notes to a blackmailer.

I’m told, for example, that two weeks before the handover, the governor had taken journalists in the state on a final tour of his legacy projects. Later when they returned for lunch in the Government House, Obiano hosted them alone; Ebele was not available. As they finished and were departing, however, she returned.

The governor quickly recalled as many journalists as he could find and asked them to take their seats again. As they were wondering why, he announced that he recalled them to pay their respects to Her Excellency, the First Lady. Now that they had paid their courtesies and she had bestowed her benevolent smile on them, they could depart in peace.

People familiar with Anambra protocol in the last eight years said preferments have been amended to ensure that at all public functions, Ebele was duly acknowledged and applauded before the deputy governor. And, in fact, even on the handover day, Ebele’s diary would show that she was her own woman. She chose her own time to arrive at the venue which, by the way, was inside Government House. She arrived, not before the event started, but in line with her disdain for all deputies, including deputy governors, she came in after the new deputy governor had been sworn in.

Ebele has amassed such a rich collection of experiences in the last eight years, the world, especially the office of first ladyship, would be the poorer for the recent public humiliation which I strongly suspect might force her into her shell. Who wouldn’t want to find out what exactly was her beef with Bianca, for example?

I’m told that she was unhappy that Bianca took the Ojukwu political talisman too far. That just because she’s Ojukwu’s wife, Bianca regarded herself as the goddess of APGA, the sun around which everything revolved.

The cold war continued for years. When Bianca made a bid for the Senate in 2019, however, Ebele thought that was the moment to settle the matter of supremacy once and for all. She opposed Bianca’s candidacy and instead, backed E.N. Ukachukwu, the perennial aspirant for Anambra governorship and veteran Abuja politician.

Of course, Bianca “lost” the APGA party primaries to Ebele’s candidate, but another party, the YPP, exploited the divided house and won the bigger electoral war for Anambra South senatorial district. In the end, both Bianca and Ebele lost. That defeat widened the gap and festered the wound. By handover day, matters had reached boiling point.

EBONYI COMMISSIONER DEBUNKS NEWS REPORTS ACCUSING HIM OF THREATENING A JOURNALIST

By Desmond Ukandu (Group Politics Editor)

The Ebonyi State Commissioner for Information and State Orientation, Barrister Uchenna Orji, has denied news reports making rounds that he had threatened to arrest Mr Nelson Nwaefuru, said to be a practicing Journalist and Publisher of Fastlink Newspaper based in Ebonyi State over alleged extortion.

EBONYI GOV CONGRATULATES BUHARI ON NIGERIA'S 60th INDEPENDENT ANNIVERSARY

•  Rejoices With Bayelsa Gov Over Election Victory At Appeal Court

By Desmond Ukandu (Group Politics Editor)

The Ebonyi State Governor, Engr. Dave Nweze Umahi, has extended his message of warm felicitations to President Muhammadu Buhari on the occasion of Nigeria's celebration of her 60th Independent anniversary.

EBONYI GOV SUSPENDS COMMISSIONER, SSA OVER OFFICIAL MISDEMEANORS

By John Ituma (Ebonyi State Correspondent)

Ebonyi State Governor, Engr. Dave Nweze Umahi has ordered an immediate suspension from duty to the State Commissioner for Lands and Survey, Chief Emmanuel Uguru and the Senior Special Assistant on Education, Dr Obianuju Alo, for alleged acts of negligence and dereliction of duty.

EBONYI GOVT MOVES TO RE-ENGINEER THE STATE'S ECONOMY THROUGH SUPPORT FOR SMES

By Julius Ituma (Ebonyi Correspondent)

Ebonyi state governor, Engr. David Nweze Umahi, has approved the disbursement of funds to assist the establishment of new businesses for startups and expansion of existing ones for intending entrepreneurs and the entire business community in the State.

EBONYI PDP GUBER CANDIDATE BLASTS ANYIM OVER SUPPORT FOR NWIFURU, APC GOVERNOR-ELECT

• * Says 'You Lied And Betrayed Ebonyi PDP'
• I Won't Support Injustice To Please My Party.....Anyim

By Comfort Idenyi (Ebonyi State Correspondent, in Abakaliki)

Still smarting from the pains of losing the March 18 governorship election, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate in Ebonyi state, Dr. Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii, at the weekend, accused the former Senate President, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, of lying against his party, PDP, in other to justify his political support for the governor-elect, Rt. Hon. Francis Ogbonnaya Nwifuru of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

EBONYI PDP REJECTS STATE GOVT'S DECISION TO USE VOTERS CARD AS PRE-CONDITION FOR EMPLOYMENT IN CIVIL SERVICE

By John Ituma (Ebonyi State Correspondent)

The People's Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State has raised strong objections over the decision of the State government to give as a condition the submission of a voter's card as a major requirement for anyone to be employed in the state civil service.

Ebonyi Political Skirmishes: PDP RAISES ALARM, ACCUSES GOV UMAHI'S GOVT OF PLOT TO ARREST, LINK PARTY CHIEFTAINS TO CRIMES IN THE STATE

By Comfort Idenyi (Ebonyi State Correspondent)

The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State, on Saturday, raised the alarm over what it described as an alleged plot by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to arrest its prominent stakeholders.

Ebonyi State At 26: WHY I HAVE PERFORMED WELL.....Gov Umahi

• * Restates Commitment To Further Growth And Development Of The State

By Celestine Okafor (Editor-in-Chief) @CelestineOkaf11

Ebonyi State Governor, Engr. David Nweze Umahi, has restated his administration's resolve to ensure massive empowerment of Ebonyi Citizens within the remaining few months of his administration.

ECCE NEGLECT INCREASES DROP-OUTS, CHILDREN OUT OF SCHOOL CRISIS.....SUBEB

By Ankeli Emmanuel (In Sokoto State)

The Executive Chairman, Sokoto State Universal Basic Education Board, Alhaji Umar Nagwari Tambuwal has submitted that adequate care for children, especially at the early childhood stages leads to emotional and psychological stability which is very critical to having responsible youths and adults in the later years.

ECHOES OF AFCFTA AND ACBF'S 7TH AFRICA THINK-TANK SUMMIT

By Michael Jegede (Editor-At-Large)

Last month, the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), African Union (AU) Specialized Agency for Capacity Development whose headquarters is in Harare, Zimbabwe, hosted the7th African Think Tank Summit with the theme, “Implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement: Assessing country readiness and the implications for capacity-building.”

NIGERIAN NEWSLEADER BUSINESS REPORT reveals that different presentations were made in connection to the theme of the two-day Summit. Among the topics discussed were: Understanding the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for making AfCFTA a reality, exploring the critical determinants of country readiness in implementing the AfCFTA, identifying key capacity issues facing the implementation of the AfCFTA at the continental and country levels, building the capacity of frontline state actors and institutions to effectively drive the implementation of the AfCFTA. Others are: Building the capacity of SMEs as a driving force for success in the implementation of the AfCFTA, the role of Think Tanks in supporting the implementation of the AfCFTA, and establishing partnerships and coordination mechanisms to enhance country readiness.

The Summit held virtually provided a veritable platform for African Think Tanks and other key stakeholders to identify and examine key capacity challenges facing countries and other major institutions involved in driving the African continental free trade agenda.

The virtual gathering which reportedly attracted experts and representatives from about 45 African countries, was convened by ACBF in partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), the African Union Commission (AUC), the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA), the Development Centre for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation (OECD-Dev), the International Cooperation Centre of China’s National Development and Reform Commission (ICC-NDRC), the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), the Southern Voice, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

While officially opening the Summit, ACBF Executive Secretary, Professor Emmanuel Nnadozie said the AfCFTA represented a major opportunity to help African countries diversify their exports, accelerate growth, increase intra-African trade, attract foreign direct investment and create jobs through value addition.

Nnadozie maintained “There is, therefore, a need to find solutions to put the AfCFTA back on track, to accelerate its implementation and to deliver on the promises. Hence the aim of the Summit is to provide a platform for African Think Tanks and other key stakeholders to engage in a high-level deliberation on the most effective ways of addressing the capacity challenges facing the implementation of the AfCFTA to accelerate its implementation and enhance country readiness in implementing and benefiting from the Agreement, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

In his remarks, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors at the Afreximbank, Professor Benedict Okey Oramah represented by Chief Economist and Director, Research & International Cooperation Department at Afreximbank, Dr. Hippolyte Fofack, said the AfCFTA had the potential to transform African economies and boost intra-African trade.

Senior Director at the African Development Institute of the African Development Bank Group, Professor Kevin Chika Urama, said the Think Tank Summit had come at an opportune time when the African continent is in the process of coming up with policies to achieve growth and “build back better post-COVID-19.”

Urama further stated that “This is a clarion call for Africa to accelerate the implementation of this agreement to be able to achieve the great implications of trade for development.”

A Communiqué issued at the end of the Summit reads in part: “We note that the Summit provided us with the opportunity for stakeholders and development partners to have a good understanding of the capacity challenges posed by COVID-19, factors affecting the readiness of countries and the capacity gaps not only of governments but other key stakeholders – private sector, SMEs, civil society, regional economic communities, and the African Union. The Summit also enabled us to identify the actions including priority capacity building programs required to put the AfCFTA back on track and to build the capacity of key stakeholders (government, private sector, SMEs, civil society, regional economic communities, and the African Union) to improve country readiness.

“We acknowledge that the challenges of COVID-19 can be overcome and the AfCFTA if duly domesticated by countries and implemented as designed, could help Africa achieve the future we want: ‘an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa’. This is a common dream that underpins Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals.

“We note that African think tanks are able and ready to play a critical role in supporting African countries in tackling AfCFTA implementation issues through evidence-based policy design and implementation, provision of platforms for stakeholder engagement, dialogue, advocacy, and capacity development activities for state and non-state actors as well as their monitoring and evaluation to assess the progress of the AfCFTA.”

It further states: “We recognize that think tanks should be the source of the policies for the domestication of the ACFTA, its implementation and monitoring and evaluation at the national, regional and continental levels.

“We commit to providing advice on the policy options and innovative solutions available to successfully tackle the bottlenecks facing the implementation of the AfCFTA using knowledge, research and networking while expanding our outreach to policy actors and making our research accessible to support the AfCFTA.

“We encourage African governments and key stakeholders, especially the private sector, to work with African think tanks and capacity building institutions to support the expansion, retention, and use of capacities required to develop home-grown interventions for the effective implementation of the AfCFTA.

“We recommend that think tanks be supported in conducting strategic studies on human, institutional and transformative leadership capacity gaps facing the continent and to share good practices on how to address them to facilitate the effective implementation of the AfCFTA.

“We enjoin ACBF to coordinate the development of capacity development interventions to address gaps in key areas identified such as mapping of AfCFTA interventions, awareness, commitment and operational readiness, human capital and skills development, digital capacity, institutional and policy support, knowledge sharing and advocacy based on the ACBF’s strategy to accelerate the implementation of AfCFTA in Africa.”

Due to the global outbreak of the deadly Coronavirus code-named COVID-19 in January 2020, trading under the AfCFTA which was originally scheduled for July 1, 2020, was postponed to January 1, 2021.

The AfCFTA agreement has been signed by 54 out of 55 AU Member States. So far, about 35 African countries have ratified and deposited the instrument of ratification at the AU Commission. The Agreement was adopted on March 21, 2018, and came into force on May 30, 2019, thirty days after the 22ndinstrument of ratification was deposited as stipulated in the Protocol establishing AfCFTA.

As part of the preparation for the commencement of trading under AfCFTA in January 2021, Ghana’s President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo had in August this year at a ceremony in Accra, handed over the AfCFTA Secretariat to the Chairperson of the AU Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat. President Akufo-Addo had as well announced at the event the provision of a residential accommodation to serve as the official residence of the Secretary-General of AfCFTA, Wamkele Mene.

Among the about 35 nations on the African continent that can be said to have fully keyed into the AfCFTA with the deposition of their instruments of ratification to the legal depository of the AU include Algeria, Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Republic of Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea and Kenya. Other are Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Namibia, Niger, Rwanda, Saharawi Republic, and Nigeria which only deposited its instrument of ratification on December 5, 2020, having earlier ratified the agreement on November 11, 2020.

According to Article 3, Part III of the Protocol on Trade in Goods, the specific objectives of establishing AfCFTA are to: (a) enhance competitiveness of services through economies of scale, reduced business costs, enhanced continental market access, and an improved allocation of resources including the development of trade-related infrastructure; (b) promote sustainable development in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); (c) foster domestic and foreign investment; (d) accelerate efforts on industrial development to promote the development of regional value chains; (e) progressively liberalise trade in services across the African continent on the basis of equity, balance and mutual benefit, by eliminating barriers to trade in services; (f) ensure consistency and complementarity between liberalisation of trade in services and the various Annexes in specific services sectors; (g) pursue services trade liberalisation in line with Article V of the GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services) by expanding the depth and scope of liberalisation and increasing, improving and developing the export of services, while fully preserving the right to regulate and to introduce new regulations; (h) promote and enhance common understanding and cooperation in trade in services amongst State Parties in order to improve the capacity, efficiency and competitiveness of their services markets; and (i) promote research and technological advancement in the field of services to accelerate economic and social development.

According to a World Bank publication, “The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement will create the largest free trade area in the world measured by the number of countries participating. The pact connects 1.3 billion people across 55 countries with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) valued at US$3.4 trillion. It has the potential to lift 30 million people out of extreme poverty, but achieving its full potential will depend on putting in place significant policy reforms and trade facilitation measures.”

At the 13th Extraordinary Session of the AU’s Assembly of the Heads of State and Government on AfCFTA held December 5, 2020, the urgent need for member states to kick-start trading activities was accentuated. The South African President and AU Chairperson, Cyril Ramaphosa, was quoted as saying: “Today we stand on the cusp of a new era in the progress of our continent. The moment that we have all been working painstakingly towards has finally arrived…We are all filled with a great sense of pride at how far we have come to reach this moment. And now, we are about to witness the realization of one of the flagship projects of Agenda 2063.

“Throughout this process, we have stood united, with 55 sovereign AU Member States rallying together, despite different levels of economic development and diverse strategic priorities. The commencement of trading under the AfCFTA on the 1st of January 2021 is one of the most significant milestones in the continental integration project”.

Ramaphosa further emphasized that “this is going to be the clearest affirmation that Africa is determined to take charge of its own destiny, and that its success and development is fundamentally tied to harnessing the potential and energies of her citizens.” NNL.

ECOWAS: IS THIS THE BEGINNING OF THE END?

By Azu Ishiekwene

Mali and Burkina Faso obviously have a lot more in common than squaring off in a game of football like they just did in the Round of 16 knockout stage of the African Nations Cup (AFCON), in Cote d’Ivoire.

Edo & Ondo Guber Polls: IGP MEETS WITH POLICE MOPOL COMMANDERS

* Enjoins Them To Be Neutral, Embrace Citizen-Friendly Approach During Elections

By Kingsley Okoro (Crime/Police Affairs Reporter)

The Inspector-General of Police, Muhammed Adamu, has charged Commanders of the seventy-nine (79) Police Mobile Force (PMF) Squadrons across the nation to exhibit high-level professionalism, neutrality and embrace a citizen-friendly approach in policing the forthcoming Gubernatorial elections in Edo and Ondo states.

Edo 2024: LP SAYS PARTY GUIDELINES DESIGNED TO WIDEN PARTICIPATION IN SELECTION OF GUBER CANDIDATE FOR POLL

• * insists It's In Line With Electoral Act
• Argues That N30m Nomination Fees Realistic, Lowest

By Kingsley Eghagha (Politics Reporter, in Abuja)

Leading opposition group, the Labour Party, has clarified that the Guidelines of the party for the Edo State Governorship Primaries released recently as approved by its National leadership, is in line with the party's Constitution, the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution.

Edo Election: PDP MANIPULATING FIGURES, PRODUCING FAKE ELECTION RESULTS, Says APC

By Cosmas Enahoro (Edo State Correspondent)

As the vote counting in the just concluded Edo state election process continues, the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), has raised alarm that the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state was of falsifying figures and producing what it described as fake results. It urged the public to ignore such results.