Senator Ifeanyi Ubah on Monday maintained that the South-East region deserves the Senate Presidency seat despite the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) zoning the position to the South-South. The lawmaker representing Anambra South argued that if the South-East produces the next leader of the upper lawmaking body, it would help in strengthening the unity of the country. “For me and our people from the South-East, we are still very strong in contesting for the office of the Senate President of Nigeria for the 10th Senate. That is our position for now,” he said on Channels Television’s Politics Today. “So, in the course of consultation, we would continue to update Nigerians about our position. But for now, I am still in this studio, the position of the South-East caucus [of the Senate] is that we are going to contest for the Senate President of Nigeria.” ‘Balance the Equation’ His comment comes hours after the APC zoned the key leadership of the Senate, sidelining the South-East region which has been clamouring for the Senate Presidency to be zoned to the region. Despite the move, Senator Ubah maintained that South-East senators have unanimously agreed that the position should come to the region. “That is our position for now,” he said, listing Orji Kalu and Osita Izunaso as capable of taking the post. He said lawmakers from the region will, however, meet to finalise plans to pick a candidate. While the South-East gave the ruling APC the least votes in the 2023 presidential election, Senator Ubah argued that for the sake of fairness, there should be a “balance of the equation” in the distribution of key positions in Nigeria. “I think after the presidential election, I think equity demands that we would sit down and look at every region because we are talking about Nigeria,” the lawmaker added. “Nigeria is not divided on who brings the vote and who does not bring the vote. Are we not part of Nigeria?” “We need it in order to balance the equation,” he noted.

  The Indigenous People of Biafra has declared May 30 as a day for sit-at-home in the South-East to honour its fallen heroes and those who died during the civil war. The pro-Biafran group stated that the lockdown would be total as every economic, social, religious, and political activity in the region would be suspended with the exception of hospitals, doctors, nurses, ambulances, and other health workers. It stated this in a statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, on Monday, while calling on industries, companies, transport companies (air, land and sea) hotels, schools, and churches to shut down in honour of its heroes and heroines. The statement read, “IPOB, ably led by the leader, Nnamdi Kanu, wishes to remind Biafrans, friends of Biafra, and lovers of Biafra freedom across the world that May 30 is sacrosanct and every Biafran must remember and honour those who died for us to live. “We remember those who died in the Nigeria genocidal war against Biafra, the mothers and fathers bombed in the marketplaces, hospitals, churches, and those children that the Federal Government starved to their early death. We cannot forget them till eternity. “We must remember those who died in slave chains and in tortures in the hands of the slave masters, those thrown overboard, and those that preferred death than to be taken as slaves. We remember them all. We remember our eternal leader, Ikemba Nnewi Dikedioranma Chukwuemeka Ojukwu, General Philip Efiong, Dr Frank Opigo, Okonko Ndem, Col. Achzie, Bruce Mayrock, Christian aid workers, Biafra aid volunteers, and many others who contribution during the civil war. “We remember IPOB members who were brutally murdered during peaceful protests and rallies, those murdered in Aba, Onitsha, Asaba, Igweocha, Enugu, Nkpor, Ebonyi in cold blood by the Nigeria Army at the resident of our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Okwuchukwu Kanu, in 2017. “This year’s event will be special, and the one-day sit-at-home in Biafraland will be total and will be from 6am to 6pm on May 30, 2023. Every economic, social, religious, and political activity in Biafraland will be suspended, with the exception of hospitals, doctors, nurses, ambulances, and other health workers. All other people and workplaces are advised to sit at home. “Also, Biafrans in Lagos and other parts of Nigeria are encouraged to join the sit-at-home order on that day; it’s only one day. We, therefore, advise Biafrans and other residents in Biafra territory to avoid endangering their lives or their businesses by obeying the sit-at-home order from IPOB’s leadership. “Wherever our people are or gathered on that day, they must pray with lit candles and must observe three minutes of silence immediately at 12 noon. Finally, the only joy and rest to appease our fallen heroes and heroines is Biafra restoration. So, ‘we must continue’.”

  A 13-year-old boy has committed suicide in Ntantalla, Cameroon, after being accused of stealing a mobile phone. According to Tata Benard Gibip, a Cameroonian journalist, the child had previously attempted to kill himself over the bogus charge but was cautioned. On Sunday, May 7, 2023, he crept out of the home and hanged himself on a tree. “A thirteen year old boy has committed suicide by hanging in Ntantalla, Ndu this Sunday May 7. Sources say the tragedy began on Saturday with an allegation that he stole a phone from a passenger he transported on a motorcycle, allegation to which he refuted. “He attempted stabbing himself but was cautioned out of it. It is today morning that he decided to take away his life by hanging. His lifeless body was discovered hanging from a tree after his absence was noticed. “Considering his tender age, many are wondering whether the allegation could actually push him to take away his life. However, answers unfortunately cannot be gotten as the concerned is no.” he wrote.

  Lady (Mrs) Jane Udewo Amaechi Nnamani, the wife of Nigeria’s former Senate President, Chief Ken Nnamani, is dead. Mrs Nnamani who was in her early 60s, according to a family source, passed on in Enugu on Friday, May 5, 2023, after a minor surgery. Though she was said not to be actually sick. She was known to be a brilliant, dutiful, very cheerful, friendly, quiet and unassuming woman. The former lawmaker’s wife, a mother of four children which includes a 33 year-old medical doctor (Dr Nnabuife Nnamani), was a successful business woman who was into real estate and products distributorship among many of her family’s business enterprises which she manages. She was also a member of the Governing Council of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Enugu, founded in 1979 where incidentally she was a final year doctorate degree student in Business Management. Late Mrs Nnamani was a renowned philanthropist, who, like her husband, Senator Ken Nnamani, has contributed immensely to the development of her Amaechi Awknawnaw community in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu state through her scholarship program to indigent students, widowhood empowerment initiatives and community infrastructural development.   She recently singlehandedly rehabilitated and furnished the Methodist Church Cathedral in her community at Amaechi Awknawnaw, Enugu state, which had been in bad shape for many years. Jane Udewo Amaechi Nnamani Late Mrs. Jane Udewo Amaechi Nnamani Lady (Mrs) Jane Udewo Nnamani was also known to have built and donated hostel accommodation and residential lodges to students of tertiary institutions in Enugu metropolis, such as the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) Enugu Campus and the Enugu State University of Technology (ESUT). Her death, last weekend, has thrown the entire Amaechi Awknawnaw community and Enugu statement in general into deep mourning. Arrangements for her burial, according to the family source, would begin as soon as her husband, Senator Ken Nnamani, returns from Washington, the United States of America.

  The man suspected of murdering eight people at a Texas shopping mall was kicked out of the US Army in 2008 less than three months after joining, a spokeswoman said Monday.   Mauricio Garcia, 33, was shot dead by police after opening fire with a semi-automatic rifle in the parking lot of Allen Premium Outlets north of Dallas on Saturday afternoon. “Mauricio Garcia entered the regular Army in June 2008; he was terminated three months later without completing initial entry training,” US Army spokeswoman Heather Hagan said in a statement, without specifying why he was removed. “He was not awarded a military occupational specialty. He had no deployments or awards,” Hagan added. US media and the independent Bellingcat research site reported that Garcia had a page on a Russian social media site that expressed neo-Nazi and misogynistic views, and revealed Garcia’s concerns over his own mental health.   The profile included photos of a shirtless torso bearing Nazi tattoos, though it was unclear if the person pictured was Garcia. US law enforcement officials declined to comment on the page, but one said media reports of Garcia’s far-right leanings came out of a document leaked from the investigation, which is being handled by the Texas Department of Public Safety, along with the FBI. A GoFundMe page appeared to confirm that three of those killed in the shooting were Korean-American parents and their three-year-old son. “After being released from the ICU, their six-year-old son William is the only surviving member of this horrific event,” the page said.   Others who lost their lives included two elementary school-aged sisters, a security guard and an engineer, according to US media. US President Joe Biden on Sunday renewed his call for lawmakers to pass a national assault weapons ban and other gun safety measures, saying fast action is needed to save lives. With more firearms than inhabitants, the United States has the highest rate of gun deaths of any developed country — 49,000 in 2021, up from 45,000 the year before. AFP

  Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has dispelled the rumours of him jostling to become Chief of Staff in President-elect, Sen. Bola Tinubu’s cabinet. El-Rufai stated this in Gombe on Saturday while addressing newsmen. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that El-Rufai was in the state to inaugurate the construction of 550 housing units and Gombe Geographic Information Systems (GOGIS) Service Centre. He described the reports on the different portfolios being assigned to him and published on national dailies as “mere speculations”. The governor said he was more interested in contributing to the development of Nigeria than jostling for positions. El-Rufai noted that being in government was not the only way to contribute to Nigeria’s development, saying even if he was not in government, he would remain committed to the progress of the country. “I have not had that discussion with the president-elect and I don’t like to speculate. “I read in the newspapers all kinds of portfolios assigned to me but you know, I am a committed Nigerian. “I want to see my country make progress and whatever I can do to contribute to the development of the country, I will do it. “But, I don’t have to do it working in government. Everyone who is working either in the private sector or civil society is contributing. “There is not just one way to contribute to the country and I will never stop working for Nigeria’s progress,” he said. The governor said upon leaving office in the next 22 days, he would take a break but be available to provide advice, where needed, on how to move the country forward. “I will be in the private sector, not any chief of staff. I will take a break and advise people like Governor Inuwa Yahaya if they need it,” he said. On Tinubu’s presidency from May 29, El-Rufai said Nigerians would not regret voting for the president-elect, stressing that better days were ahead of Nigerians under Tinubu. (NAN)

  Ndukwe Onuoha, a British-Nigerian poet, has been elected a councillor in his ward. He was elected on the platform of the Labour Party to represent the Mackworth and New Zealand ward in Derby City Council. Onuoha, nominated by his party in November 2022, was the only candidate of African descent to have emerged winner. The Derby council announced the poet’s victory via a tweet on Friday.   “MACKWORTH & NEW ZEALAND RESULTS Ndukwe Onuoha (Labour), Gaurav Pandey (Conservatives), John Whitby (Labour) have been elected. Labour GAIN,” the council tweeted. The Derby council said Onuoha polled 1,168 votes to become councillor. Nwando Umeh, another Nigerian and a Labour Party candidate, contested as one of the representatives of the Mackworth and New Zealand ward, but lost after she polled 1,084 votes, the council said. The law provides that a British or a citizen of the commonwealth – to which Nigeria belongs, having been colonised by the British – is eligible to contest for a councillor position in the UK.

  The riverside town of Otuan in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State was, yesterday, thrown into confusion when a 10-year-old boy accidentally killed his 12-year-old friend with his grandfather’s gun. Sunday Vanguared learned that the father of the deceased and his grandfather who owned the gun, were out of town when the incident occurred. The tragedy, it was learned, struck after the deceased, his sister and friend returned from the bush where they had gone to pick bush mango. A community source who pleaded anonymity said the girl sent her brother to get a cutlass from their father’s room to split open the bush mango. The friend, who joined in going to get the cutlass, stumbled on the gun where it was hidden. On seeing the gun, he picked it up and aimed it at the deceased. “As the deceased shouted at the friend to drop the gun, it fired and hit him. “The fatally injured boy was rushed to a nearby chemist in the community, accompanied by his heartbroken friend who was wailing when somebody whispered to him to run for his life,” the source said. When contacted, spokesman of the state police command, Asinim Butswat, said: “It has not been reported to the police, but we will find out if such an incident happened.”

  Charles III was crowned monarch of the United Kingdom and 14 Commonwealth realms on Saturday at Britain’s first coronation for 70 years, during a ceremony steeped in a millennium of ritual and spectacle. After a lifetime as heir to his late mother Queen Elizabeth II, Charles, 74, became the oldest sovereign yet to be crowned at London’s Westminster Abbey. At 12:02 pm (1102 GMT), Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby placed the solid-gold St Edward’s Crown on Charles’s head as a sacred and ancient symbol of the monarch’s authority. Welby also crowned Charles’s wife, Queen Camilla, 75. Cries of “God Save the King” rang out from the 2,300-member congregation, which included foreign royalty and political leaders. US President Joe Biden, represented at the abbey by First Lady Jill Biden, tweeted his congratulations and paid tribute to the “enduring friendship” between the United States and Britain. Trumpet fanfares sounded along with gun salutes across Britain and beyond. Returning to Buckingham Palace in the day’s second horse-drawn parade, the royal family appeared on the balcony to applause and more chants of approbation from tens of thousands of well-wishers braving a spring downpour. Some had camped out for days. A ceremonial fly-past was scaled down due to the weather. Not everyone joined in the celebration, however. Shortly before the coronation, London police arrested dozens of protesters using new powers rushed onto the statute book to crack down on direct action groups. The anti-monarchy movement Republic — which wants an elected head of state — said six of its organisers were detained, while climate activists Just Stop Oil said 19 of its number were held. Nevertheless, dozens of Republic activists held aloft banners on the route of the procession route, declaring: “Not My King.” Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and other campaign groups condemned the arrests. “This is something you would expect to see in Moscow, not London,” HRW said. The Metropolitan Police deployed some 11,500 officers for one of its biggest ever security operations. The force had warned that it would have an “extremely low threshold” for protests, and controversially planned to use mass facial recognition technology to monitor the crowds. As well as being the first coronation since that of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, it was the first of a king since 1937. It was only the second to be televised and the first in colour and streamed online. Changes Much of the Anglican service, in which Charles pledged “I come not to be served but to serve”, would have been recognisable to the 39 other monarchs crowned at Westminster Abbey since William the Conqueror in 1066. But while many of the intricate rituals and ceremony to recognise Charles as his people’s “undoubted king” remained, the sovereign sought to bring other aspects of the service up to date. Female bishops and choristers participated for the first time, as did leaders of Britain’s non-Christian faiths, while its Celtic languages — Welsh, Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic — featured prominently. A gospel choir sang for the first time at a coronation while a Greek choir intoned a psalm in tribute to Charles’s late father, Prince Philip, who was born on the island of Corfu. As king, Charles is supreme governor of the Protestant Church of England and has described himself as a “committed Anglican Christian”. But he heads a more religiously and ethnically diverse country than the one his mother inherited in the shadow of World War II. As such, he sought to make the congregation more reflective of British society, inviting ordinary members of the public to sit alongside the VIPs. In another change, the coronation themes mirrored his lifelong interest in biodiversity and sustainability. Seasonal flowers and foliage were brought from the wind-battered Isle of Skye in northwest Scotland to Cornwall at the tip of England’s southwest coast to fill the abbey. Ceremonial vestments from previous coronations were reused, and the anointing oil — created from olives on groves on the Mount of Olives and perfumed with essential oils — was vegan. Charles was anointed out of sight of the congregation behind a three-sided screen in front of the abbey’s High Altar, to the strains of Handel’s soaring anthem “Zadok the Priest”, sung at every coronation since 1727. Opposition Rishi Sunak, a Hindu who is Britain’s first prime minister of colour, gave a reading from the Bible at the service and has described the coronation as “a proud expression of our history, culture and traditions”. But polling indicates waning support for the monarchy, particularly among younger people. Charles’s younger brother Prince Andrew — sidelined due to his friendship with the late convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein — was booed as he headed to the abbey. Another royal exile, Prince Harry, who has criticised the family since leaving for the United States in 2020, attended the coronation on his own.   Overseas, Charles’s position as the hereditary monarch and head of state of 14 Commonwealth countries looks increasingly fragile. Jamaica and Belize both signalled this week that they are moving toward becoming republics, while Australia, Canada and others may eventually follow suit. Britons struggling with the soaring cost of living have meanwhile questioned why taxpayers should stump up for the coronation, with the bill estimated to be over £100 million ($126 million). Support Yet the huge crowds of royal fans that have been building all week on The Mall outside Buckingham Palace indicate that the royals still have a central role in British culture and history. Christine Wilen travelled from Niagara Falls in Canada. “I’m very excited to be here, to be part of this history,” said Wilen, wearing a visor and sweatshirt in Canadian colours. “It’s just too good an opportunity to miss,” said Nick Demont, 60, outside the abbey. “There’s a good chance I won’t see another one.” AFP

  The Diocesan Bishop of Ife, Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Rt. Rev. Olubunmi Akinlade has called on the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, to put an end to the importation of petroleum products after his swearing-in on May 29. Akinlade made the call at the thanksgiving service of the third session of the 11th synod of the Diocese of Ife, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) with the theme, ‘From personality to an institution – Jacob’s encounter at Bethel,’ at the Cathedral Church of St. Philip, Ayetoro, Ile-Ife, Osun State. He urged Tinubu to privatise the nation’s refineries to ensure the availability of fuel in the country. The bishop also urged the President-elect to be bold to take decisive decisions and go after enemies of the country, noting that the challenges ranging from the economy, insecurity, epileptic power supply, unemployment, poor health care, and others, must be tackled. He said, “As far as the refineries are concerned, I am a strong advocate that it should be privatised because the refineries have staff (members) who are being heavily paid, yet our refineries aren’t functioning optimally. “Why can’t we privatise them and allow investors to run them as a business? If all the refineries are working, we have no business importing fuel. That bold step of privatising refineries has to be done, it is inevitable. “The fuel subsidy is shrouded in mystery. First and foremost, I don’t believe Nigerians consume the number of litres they claim we consume daily. I don’t believe we are using that much.”