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Showing posts with label February 16. Show all posts
Showing posts with label February 16. Show all posts

Thursday, 16 February 2017

Ambode, others to attend The Guardian’s cyber security conference

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Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode (middle), flanked by Commissioner for Finance/Economic Planning and Budget, Adeyemi Ashade (left) and Permanent Secretary/Accountant General, Mrs. Abimbola Umar during the governor’s meeting with investors on Bond Issuance in Abuja.

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State has confirmed his participation at the maiden cyber security conference being organised by the flagship of the Nigerian media, The Guardian.

Scheduled for February 23, 2017 at the Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos by 9:00 a.m., the theme of the conference is “Monitoring, Detection and Prevention: Keys to Organisational Growth.”

Ambode will be the chief host of the conference, the strategic partners of which include the Lagos State government, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Microsoft Inc.

Speakers at the conference include Director, Banking and Payment Systems, CBN, Dipo Fatokun; Chief Executive Officer, Makeway International, United Kingdom (UK), Kola Olutimehin, and the Senior Partner, Lockwire Security, East Midlands, UK, Anthony Maxwell.

The conference which costs N120,000 per participant is expected to bring to the fore current global best practices in integrated network defence systems; provide exposure to proven standards-based methodologies for assessing and managing the risks to organisation’s information systems and infrastructure; provide exposure to intrusion detection and prevention and other broad strategies employed in cyber security.

Participants would also be exposed to up-to-date digital forensic investigation techniques, identity/access management for Information Communication Technology (ICT) resources, building the right public key infrastructure (PKI) to manage enterprise trust as well as exposing participants to key online transactions monitoring and security techniques.

Expected at the meeting are ICT managers, top executives, bankers, accountants, auditors, company treasurers, marketing managers, officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFFC), Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), Customs, Police, Army, Navy, NDLEA, e-payment companies and revenue collectors, among others.

On the speakers, Maxwell is an IT security specialist with a 15-year background securing Windows and Linux systems. He is a qualified CISSP with ISO 27001 certifications in auditing and digital forensics, among others.

His security experience has encompassed forensics, incident response, penetration testing, audit and consultancy. A widely travelled and seasoned cyber-security accredited trainer, consultant and practitioner, he worked extensively in Japan and has even conducted technical presentations in Japanese.

Maxwell’s active international experience in cyber security within varied industries and across different continents includes areas such as security training and consultancy, hands-on security administration and investigations, as well as forensics and malware analysis. He has worked with leading multi-national blue chip organisations in Europe such as Intel, Oracle, the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and the National Health Service (NHS), to name but a few.

In Japan, he has provided security services to clients ranging from banks to broadcast media and Internet service providers. Olutimehin is an astute professional consultant of almost two decades involved in financial systems development and IT security.

Olutimehin’s overall compass in organisational management is focused on change, where he is an accredited and certified trainer for a number of programme/project management courses and business analysis courses. His business is particularly geared towards the provision of training and development, management consulting and publishing. The training and development arm provides events on specialist areas (such as cyber security, investment banking, accounting and finance, media and communications) where experts are engaged to meet clients’ specific technical demands, as well as programme/project management courses based on the BMP (best management practice) set of frameworks. There is also significant focus for business skills and business applications courses.

Other high points of the conference will be the presentation of the 2016 Nigeria Cyber Security Report, put together by United States International University-Africa and Demadiur in partnership with Serianu.

Vía The Guardian Nigeria http://ift.tt/2lddOav


Ambode, others to attend The Guardian’s cyber security conference (Read full details)

http://ift.tt/2ldgdC6

Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode (middle), flanked by Commissioner for Finance/Economic Planning and Budget, Adeyemi Ashade (left) and Permanent Secretary/Accountant General, Mrs. Abimbola Umar during the governor’s meeting with investors on Bond Issuance in Abuja.

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State has confirmed his participation at the maiden cyber security conference being organised by the flagship of the Nigerian media, The Guardian.

Scheduled for February 23, 2017 at the Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos by 9:00 a.m., the theme of the conference is “Monitoring, Detection and Prevention: Keys to Organisational Growth.”

Ambode will be the chief host of the conference, the strategic partners of which include the Lagos State government, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Microsoft Inc.

Speakers at the conference include Director, Banking and Payment Systems, CBN, Dipo Fatokun; Chief Executive Officer, Makeway International, United Kingdom (UK), Kola Olutimehin, and the Senior Partner, Lockwire Security, East Midlands, UK, Anthony Maxwell.

The conference which costs N120,000 per participant is expected to bring to the fore current global best practices in integrated network defence systems; provide exposure to proven standards-based methodologies for assessing and managing the risks to organisation’s information systems and infrastructure; provide exposure to intrusion detection and prevention and other broad strategies employed in cyber security.

Participants would also be exposed to up-to-date digital forensic investigation techniques, identity/access management for Information Communication Technology (ICT) resources, building the right public key infrastructure (PKI) to manage enterprise trust as well as exposing participants to key online transactions monitoring and security techniques.

Expected at the meeting are ICT managers, top executives, bankers, accountants, auditors, company treasurers, marketing managers, officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFFC), Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), Customs, Police, Army, Navy, NDLEA, e-payment companies and revenue collectors, among others.

On the speakers, Maxwell is an IT security specialist with a 15-year background securing Windows and Linux systems. He is a qualified CISSP with ISO 27001 certifications in auditing and digital forensics, among others.

His security experience has encompassed forensics, incident response, penetration testing, audit and consultancy. A widely travelled and seasoned cyber-security accredited trainer, consultant and practitioner, he worked extensively in Japan and has even conducted technical presentations in Japanese.

Maxwell’s active international experience in cyber security within varied industries and across different continents includes areas such as security training and consultancy, hands-on security administration and investigations, as well as forensics and malware analysis. He has worked with leading multi-national blue chip organisations in Europe such as Intel, Oracle, the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and the National Health Service (NHS), to name but a few.

In Japan, he has provided security services to clients ranging from banks to broadcast media and Internet service providers. Olutimehin is an astute professional consultant of almost two decades involved in financial systems development and IT security.

Olutimehin’s overall compass in organisational management is focused on change, where he is an accredited and certified trainer for a number of programme/project management courses and business analysis courses. His business is particularly geared towards the provision of training and development, management consulting and publishing. The training and development arm provides events on specialist areas (such as cyber security, investment banking, accounting and finance, media and communications) where experts are engaged to meet clients’ specific technical demands, as well as programme/project management courses based on the BMP (best management practice) set of frameworks. There is also significant focus for business skills and business applications courses.

Other high points of the conference will be the presentation of the 2016 Nigeria Cyber Security Report, put together by United States International University-Africa and Demadiur in partnership with Serianu.

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYNP8f


Court orders permanent forfeiture of $153.3m linked to Diezani (Read full details)

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Former Minister of Petroleum, Alison-Madueke

Justice Muslim Hassan of the Federal High Court, Lagos, yesterday ordered the final forfeiture of the sum of $153 million linked to a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke.

The order followed an application by the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) seeking a forfeiture of the funds on account that they are proceeds of crime.

Justice Hassan had on January 6, issued an interim order of forfeiture of the said money to the Federal Government, in line with the prayers of the anti-graft agency.

The EFCC had initiated an ex parte application, seeking an interim order, for the temporary forfeiture of the sum to the FG, which it claims is linked to the ex Minister.

The court had also issued 14 days to any interested party to appear and prove the legitimacy of the monies, failing which the funds would be permanently forfeited to the FG.

At the last adjourned date on January 24, counsel for the Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo and that of the respondent (Lawal), had respectively argued their originating processes before the court.

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYzhp8


Why FG withheld fiscal support allocation to Ekiti State, by minister (Read full details)

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Minister for Finance, Kemi Adeosun PHOTO: SUNDAY AGHAEZE/STATE HOUSE

CBN denies AGF’s query on forex transactions report

Finance Minister, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, has confirmed that the Federal Government indeed withheld allocations due to Ekiti. She cited non-conformity on the part of the state government with regulations regarding disbursement of such funds by the ministry.

A statement by the Director of Information in the Ministry of finance, Alhaji Salisu Na’Inna Dambatta, said the action was taken because it had become the habit of Ekiti State not to obey rules set for disbursement. The statement further said the claims by the Ekiti State Government were spurious.

“The Ekiti State Government failed to comply with the necessary requirements for participating in the Budget Support Facility (BSF), which is a Conditional Loan Programme to state governments introduced with the view to enhancing fiscal prudence and designed to enhance transparency, efficiency in public expenditure and payment of salaries.

“This is not the first the Ekiti State Government failed to comply with the rules. It had defaulted in meeting the conditions specified and agreed upon by the 36 state governments that are participating in the programme as contained in the Fiscal Sustainability Plan (FSP) and the Ekiti State Government was warned formally of its failure to comply with the full requirements vide a letter on August 5, 2016, with reference number HMF/FMF/ASG/1/2016,” the statement read.

It further stated that failure of Ekiti State Government to comply with the requirements and conditions for the Budget Support Facility (BSF) resulted in a letter sent to the Chief of Staff to notify him of the suspension of BSF for Ekiti State and it was conveyed to Mr. President before payment to the Ekiti State Government was reinstated.

Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Nigeria [CBN] has denied reports that its governor, Godwin Emefiele and some top management staff have been queried by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) over the sale of foreign exchange.

Acting Director of Corporate Communications, Mr. Isaac Okoarafor, said in a statement yesterday that the apex bank observed that while it was perfectly normal for any agency of government to seek clarifications on any matter from other agencies of government, it wishes to clarify that neither the governor of the CBN nor the Director, Legal Services Department, received any communication with regard to the issue.

The CBN said as a responsible government institution, the third currency transactions should be in line with the prevailing forex rate range in the interbank market, when properly examined.

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYBBfX


New malaria vaccine provides 100% protection in clinical trial (Read full details)

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According to the World Malaria Report 2016 released by the World Health Organisation (WHO), malaria killed 429,000 and infected 212 million people in 2015.

Scientists have discovered an effective vaccine that offers up to 100 per cent protection from malaria. German researchers at the University of Tübingen in collaboration with the biotech company, Sanaria Incorporated, have demonstrated in a clinical trial that a new vaccine for malaria called Sanaria PfSPZ-CVac has been up to 100 per cent effective when assessed at 10 weeks after last dose of vaccine.

With this discovery, Nigeria can save over 300,000 lives lost to malaria yearly and over N480 billion spent on the treatment and control of the parasite annually. The search for a vaccine has been going on for more than a century. An effective vaccine would make it easier to control malaria; vaccination campaigns could be conducted in severely affected areas to eliminate the pathogen. Such a vaccine could also help to stop the spread of resistance to the treatment, and to better protect travellers.

Details of the research results were published yesterday in the latest edition of the journal Nature. Tübingen University is a public research institution located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg. It is one of Germany’s most famous universities in the areas of medicine, natural sciences, and the humanities.

For the trial, Professor Peter Kremsner and Dr. Benjamin Mordmüller of the Institute of Tropical Medicine and the German Centre for Infection Research (DZIF) used malaria parasites provided by Sanaria. The vaccine incorporated fully viable, not weakened or otherwise inactivated, malaria pathogens together with the medication to combat them.

The Tubingen study involved 67 healthy adult test persons, none of whom had previously had malaria. The best immune response was shown in a group of nine test persons who received the highest dose of the vaccine three times at four-week intervals. At the end of the trial, all nine of these individuals had 100 percent protection from the disease.

According to the World Malaria Report 2016 released by the World Health Organisation (WHO), malaria killed 429,000 and infected 212 million people in 2015. It noted that millions of Africans still lack tools to prevent and treat the ailment. Around 90 per cent of those malaria deaths were in Africa. Nearly three-quarters of those who succumb to the disease are children under five.

Malaria parasites are transmitted by the bite of female Anopheles mosquitoes. The Plasmodium falciparum parasite is responsible for most malaria infections and almost all deaths caused by the disease worldwide. Most of the previous vaccines, which have been tried involved the use of individual molecules found in the pathogen.

Prof. Peter Kremsner explained: “The 100 per cent protection was probably caused by specific T-lymphocytes and antibody responses to the parasites in the liver. The researchers analyzed the bodies’ immune reactions and identified protein patterns which will make it possible to further improve malaria vaccines.”

The researchers injected live malaria parasites into the test subjects, at the same time preventing the development of the disease by adding chloroquine — which has been used to treat malaria for many years. This enabled the researchers to exploit the behaviour of the parasites and the properties of chloroquine.

Once the person is infected, the Plasmodium falciparum parasite migrates to the liver to reproduce. During its incubation period there, the human immune system could respond; but at this stage, the pathogen does not make the person sick. On top of that, chloroquine does not take effect in the liver — so it is unable to prevent the parasite from reproducing. Malaria only breaks out when the pathogen leaves the liver, entering the bloodstream and going into the red corpuscles, where it continues to reproduce and spread. As soon as the pathogen enters the bloodstream, however, it can be killed by chloroquine — and the disease cannot break out.

Study leader, Benjamin Mordmueller, said: “By vaccinating with a live, fully active pathogen, it seems clear that we were able to set off a very strong immune response. Additionally, all the data we have so far indicate that what we have here is relatively stable, long-lasting protection.”

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYEtcN


Dogara canvasses utilisation of gas deposits for enhanced economy (Read full details)

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Gas plant

Urges transparent digital switchover exercise

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has advocated for the robust utilisation of Nigeria’s 187 trillion cubic feet gas reserve for the betterment of the citizenry and economy.

Opening a public hearing yesterday in Abuja on two bills seeking to establish the Nigerian Gas Processing and Marketing Regulatory Board as well as the National Gas Resources Development Agency, Dogara regretted that the value chain benefits of the industry were yet to be felt by Nigerians.

Represented by the Whip of the House, Garba Ado Doguwa, he pointed out that extant laws laid so much emphasis on crude oil production at the expense of gas exploitation.

His words: “Presently, Nigeria has a proven gas reserve of about 187 trillion cubic feet and with the global drive towards the use of cleaner fossil fuel, we must do everything possible to draw maximum benefits from the emerging gas economy.”

Giving a synopsis on the general principles of both bills, the sponsor and chairman, House Committee on Gas Resources, Frederick Agbedi, noted that the move was aimed at engendering accountability and transparency in the sector.

Also yesterday, the nation’s number four citizen warned against the exploitation of Nigerians as the country transits from analogue to digital broadcasting.

Speaking at the investigative hearing of the Sunday Katung-led Adhoc Committee on the process of digital switchover in the country yesterday in Abuja, he noted that there were allegations that the exercise had been marred by procedural irregularities, inconsistencies and misappropriation of funds for the project.

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYFPEi


Rocker El Khatib frees style and explores identity…Read full details

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(FILES) This file photo taken on July 20, 2013 shows<br />singer Hanni El Khatib performing at the Vieilles Charrues Festival in Carhaix-Plouguer, western France. Craving a new creative outlet, rocker Hanni El Khatib is taking a cue from the rap world by releasing a mixtape — on which he explores new styles and speaks out for the first time on his identity as a first-generation American.<br />Fred TANNEAU / AFP

Craving a new outlet despite his growing success, the indie rocker Hanni El Khatib took his cues from a perhaps unexpected source — the rap world.

The garage rocker, who has worked with hip-hop stars including Freddie Gibbs, became transfixed by the phenomenon of mix tapes — song collections which some rappers release at a dizzying pace but don’t consider albums.

“Rappers do it every day, so why can’t I do it? Why do rock bands have to be confined to this whole album and touring thing?” El Khatib asked.

The result is the 19-track “Savage Times.”

In commercial terms, it may mean little that El Khatib thinks of it as a mix tape, or that he has taken to calling it his fourth album.

“Savage Times” heads in more adventurous musical directions, with El Khatib mostly staying true to his bluesy guitar rock but also dabbling in electronic effects, pop and, yes, hip-hop.

“Savage Times” also brings out the most upfront statements on personal identity by El Khatib, a first-generation American born to a Palestinian father and Filipina mother.

“This project was the most liberating thing musically I’ve ever made because I removed the album stigma,” El Khatib told AFP at a beerhouse in Los Angeles.

“Usually when I’m making a record, I’ll think that there has to be a blend of songs and that they have to be cohesive sonically, or otherwise people won’t think it’s an album,” he said.

“That wasn’t the point. The point was to make it an exercise in production — what can I do as a producer and as a musician?” he said.

“Savage Times” comes out Friday around the world except in France, where El Khatib has enjoyed a particularly strong fan base and it will be released March 3.

– ‘I was born brown’ –
El Khatib’s career has rarely touched on his ethnicity. He entered music from the fashion world, where he remains a designer at skateboarder label HUF in his native San Francisco.

That changes on “Savage Times.” The track “Born Brown” builds off psychedelic loops as El Khatib shouts with punk ferocity about his immigrant heritage, ending with the lines, “I was born brown — born brown!”

On “Mangoes and Rice,” with an indie swagger reminiscent of Sonic Youth or the Pixies, El Khatib affectionately remembers food his mother made for him.

El Khatib, who at an album release party in Los Angeles dedicated a song to immigrants, did not dispute that President Donald Trump’s election may have awoken his consciousness.

With an identifiably Arab name, he said he often encounters misperceptions with uninitiated listeners categorizing him as world music or thinking Hanni El Khatib is an invented band name.

But El Khatib insisted he was not pushing a political agenda.

“By all means, I’m not trying to be an outspoken political artist, mostly because I don’t feel that it’s my place to do that,” he said.

“I can only speak from my experience — what I’ve been through and how I feel and how I get treated just because of my name,” he said.

El Khatib doubted that many people were looking to him for political cues but said, “I do have a platform over the guy working at the coffee shop.”

“And that guy at the coffee shop isn’t going to be asked six months later by a journalist about his Twitter.”

– Freedom with own label –
El Khatib toured almost all of 2015 to promote his last album, “Moonlight,” but his shows came to an abrupt end when the Bataclan attack forced a cancellation in Paris.

He said he had already felt that his touring was getting stale and wanted to head back into the studio.

Before compiling “Savage Times,” El Khatib started putting out the songs for free — an approach that he said initially unnerved his associates.

But El Khatib co-owns his own label, Innovative Leisure, handling detail down to designing art for album covers.

“The beauty of the modern landscape of the music industry is that it is in a kind of disarray. People are playing by their own rules,” he said.

“I thought, I’m cutting out the middlemen anyway. So who do I have to answer to?”

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYNi6t


Police abort planned interview with Sahara Reporters’ publisher (Read full details)

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The interview, which the police had scheduled to hold with the publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, yesterday could not hold afterwards.

This followed police cancellation of the meeting due to the death of one of their officers. According to the police: “The officers that were scheduled to interview Sowore were not on ground because the police lost one of its officers.”

Sowore, publisher of an online media, has had a running battle with the police since January, leading to his arrest and subsequent release at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Yaba, Lagos.

Meanwhile, a Lagos-based lawyer and rights activist, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, who led others to the police station in solidarity with Sowore, addressed a mini gathering at the venue.

Adegboruwa said: “I have very strong reasons to believe that he is currently being persecuted on account of his media activities. Such persecution should not be allowed in a democratic government.

“Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution grants the right to freedom of expression and the press to every citizen of Nigeria. Section 22 places a great obligation on the media to hold government accountable to the people.

“This is what Sowore has been practicing through the Sahara Reporters’ medium. Although I may not agree with all that the medium represents, I have no doubt in my mind that Sowore has impacted meaningfully on Nigerians.”

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYFAt6


NEC orders CBN to review exchange rate (Read full details)

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CBN

• Okays $250 million for SWF
• Holds valedictory session for Mimiko
• Presidential villa defends budget

The National Economic Council (NEC) yesterday expressed concern over the exchange rate and directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to quickly facilitate an urgent review of the current forex policy‎ in the country.

Yesterday’s NEC meeting which lasted for over five hours was presided over by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, with the 36 state governors in attendance.

Other members of NEC are the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Head of Service of the Federation (HoSF) and other top government functionaries.

The council said the review would cushion the suffering Nigerians are going through in view of the free fall of the naira at the parallel market. Naira currently exchanges for N510 to the dollar at the parallel market, while CBN official rate remains at N305.50 to the dollar.

Deputy Governor of Nasarawa State, Silas Agara who addressed State House correspondents after the meeting yesterday said there was the need to close the gap between the inter-bank and the parallel market rates of the naira.

Agara was also joined at the briefing by the Deputy Governor of Rivers State, Mrs. Ipalibo Harry, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun and the Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Chief Audu Ogbe.

According to the deputy governor, the decision to review the forex policy followed a submission to the council by the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele.

“After a brief presentation on forex policy options by the CBN governor, council members generally expressed concern over the current situation of the exchange rate and called for an urgent review, especially the gap between interbank and the parallel market rates.

“The CBN governor urged Nigerians to exercise patience as the apex bank continues to take steps that will stabilise the market. He sued for patience and understanding, assuring that the situation is being closely managed,” Agara said.

The free fall of the naira has been identified by the Presidential Task Force on Food Crisis as one of the factors responsible for the rising prices of food items across the country.

Adeosun reported to the council that a member each from the six geo-political zones had been nominated into the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).

She disclosed that NEC also approved the injection of $250million into the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF). The amount, according to her is to be drawn from the Excess Crude Account (ECA) which stands at $2,458billion (February 15, 2017).

“Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Uche Orii presented a report to the council on the NSIA annual reports and accounts for the year ended 2015 and update on 2016 activities,” she said.

Adeosun said “in its report to NEC, the council members were informed that NSWF has the highest ranking in Africa in terms of performance and capitalisation.”

Members of the NSIA are (North-East), Mrs. Halima Buba as Non-executive Director; (North West), Mr. Bello Maccido, Non-executive Director; (North Central), Lois Laraba Machunga-Disu, Non-Executive Director; (South West), Mr. Babajide Zetilin as Non-Executive Director; (South East) Mr. Urum Kalu Eze, a Non-Executive Director; and (South-South), Mr. Abue Ighodalo, legal practitioner with 10 years post-qualification experience.

Also, the council was informed by the minister of agriculture of the massive wheat production in Jigawa, Kano, Kebbi and Zamfara states, among others.

The NEC held a valedictory session for the outgoing governor of Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko who attended the meeting for the last time. The Governor-elect Rotimi Akeredolu was also in attendance yesterday as an observer. It was the first NEC meeting in the year.

Meanwhile, the Permanent Secretary in the State House, Jalal Arabi, while defending the Presidential Villa’s 2017 budget before the Senate Committee on Federal Character and Inter-Governmental Affairs, disclosed that a reduction of N3 billion from what was budgeted last year was carried out as a result of dwindling government revenue.

According to him, the budget cut in 2016 from N16,563,395,984 to N13, 567,979,279 in 2017 represents 18.08 per cent reduction in comparison with the sum appropriated last year.

While defending the proposal before the lawmakers yesterday, Arabi told the committee that despite its decision to cut down on this year’s budget, an increase was made particularly for routine maintenance of villa facilities, electricity charges and overhead expenditures.

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYzj0g


Gabriel Garcia Marquez statue unveiled in Cuba…Read full details

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A statue of late Colombian writer, journalist and Nobel Prize for Literature 1982 Gabriel Garcia Marquez is unveiled in Havana, on February 16, 2017.<br />YAMIL LAGE / AFP

A life-size bronze sculpture of the Colombian Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez was unveiled Thursday in Havana, an homage to the writer and to Cuba for its support of the peace accord with leftist FARC rebels.

The sculpture portrays the writer holding books and a rose, dressed in the traditional suit known as a liqui liqui that he wore to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982.

“We want to pay homage to Gabo who is so intimately linked to Havana, the Caribbean and Cuba,” Colombian ambassador to Cuba Gustavo Bell told AFP, using a nickname for the late author.

This “is a tribute, a show of gratitude from the Colombian people to the Cuban people for accompanying us in the peace process,” Bell said.

Havana hosted four years of peace talks between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known by the Spanish acronym FARC.

Garcia Marquez, who died in 2014, was a personal friend of deceased Cuban leader Fidel Castro and lived in Havana for a period in the 1980s.

The statue stands 1.80 meters (5 feet and 9 inches) tall and is a “living sculpture” that shows Garcia Marquez descending a staircase.

The statue was created by Cuban sculptor Jose Villa Soberon, whose other works around the city include life-size renderings of the Beatle John Lennon and Mother Teresa.

This year also marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of the famous writer’s “100 Years of Solitude.”

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2lpNgFe


Ozekhome prays court to unfreeze his account (Read full details)

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Mike Ozekhome

A human rights lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), has asked the Federal High Court in Lagos to vacate an interim ex-parte order freezing his account by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

He sought an order restraining the Federal Government and the EFCC, whether by themselves, their operatives, agents, servants, and/or privies howsoever, from dealing in anyway and manner as to the operation or the proprietary rights of the ownership of the account.

The lawyer said the application for an order for interim attachment/forfeiture of his account was done in bad faith by EFCC, which he said, did not comply with statutory and judicial authorities in obtaining an interim order vide motion ex-parte.

According to him, the respondent allegedly suppressed material facts in obtaining the order; therefore, the action is unconstitutional as same offends sections 36, 37 and 41 of the 1999 Constitution as there was no legal justification for EFCC’s action.

Ozekhome, who said that the N75 million was part-payment of legal fees from Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has also filed an affidavit of urgency deposed to by a lawyer in his firm, Chimaobi Onuigbo, praying that the case be heard urgently.

He said as at the time Fayose transferred the money to his chambers’ account, there was no court processes filed or served on the applicant, indicating that the EFCC was on appeal, or asking the court to stay the execution of the order defreezing the governor’s account.

The motion to set aside the freezing order will be heard on February 23.

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kYyLYl