Churchill Choken

Update:: A man and a woman arrested over the drone disruption that brought Christmas getaway flights to a standstill at London’s Gatwick Airport were released without charge on Sunday, police said. Paul Gait and Elaine, the 47-year-old man and a 54-year-old woman from the town of Crawley, near Britain’s second-busiest airport, were arrested on Saturday. The police swooped after three days of disruption from Wednesday to Friday, affecting 140,000 passengers. “Both people have fully co-operated with our enquiries and I am satisfied that they are no longer suspects in the drone incidents at Gatwick,” Sussex Police detective chief superintendent Jason Tingley said in a statement. Drones were sighted buzzing around the airfield more than 50 times, forcing the government to bring in specialist military resources to help counter the threat. The dangers posed by drones include the possibility of a device smashing into a passenger plane or being sucked up into an engine where its ...

Update:: The Civil Society Legislative Centre (CISLAC) and other anti-graft groups have said that the low knowledge on African Union Convention for Preventing and Combating Corruption (AUCPCC) has limited the anti-corruption fight in Nigeria. They made the observation at the preliminary launch and findings of the country report on the implementation of AUCPCC. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the African Union adopted the AUCPCC on July 1, 2003 and it became effective on Aug. 5, 2006. Ms Chinwe Ndubeze, one of the Directors in the Legal Department of the EFCC said while Nigeria signed on Dec. 16, 2003 and ratified the 12 article convention on Sept. 26, 2006, the implementation and awareness had, however, been low. “Concerned about the negative effects of corruption and impunity on the political, economic, social and cultural stability and its devastating effects on the economic and social development the African States adopted AUCPCC. “In spite of this, many ...

Update:: At his 80th birthday, Prof. Ango Abdullahi, has warned that the future of Nigeria “is not in naira and Kobo’’, but in the legacies left for generations of Nigerians. The octogenarian advised Nigerians, especially the young ones, to do everything possible to leave good legacy behind for future generation. The former Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria held the anniversary at his farm at Basaa, Zaria in Kaduna State which was attended by ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo. He said the ceremony was an opportunity for “members of the Abdullahi Kwasau dynasty to come together, “to know one other, speak with one another and strengthen the relationship with one other”. Obasanjo, who was at the ceremony organised by Abdullahi Kwasau Dynasty, advised Nigerians to forge a collective force against the current insecurity. He called on Nigerians not to plant the seed of destruction for the country. Obasanjo said: “We have to work together to make our country...

Update:: Cuba will soon be legalising gay marriage if the updated country’s constitution adopted by the country’s National Assembly on Saturday is anything to go by. The approval of the constitution is the final step before a national referendum expected to approve the new charter in February. The new constitution contains more continuity than change, although it recognises the de-facto modernisation of Cuban society over the last decade. The constitution maintains Cuba as a centrally planned economy ruled by a single Communist Party, but recognises private property for the first time and paves the way for a separate referendum on legalising gay marriage. It also creates the role of prime minister alongside the current president, as well as provincial governors. Legalising private property is a formal recognition of significant change in Cuban society since former President Raul Castro permitted home and auto sales, creating a booming real-estate market, and allowed more ...

Update:: The number of active oil rigs in the country fell by 17.6 per cent to 28 in November, as global oil benchmark, Brent crude, fell to its lowest level this year. Brent plunged below the $60 per barrel mark in November from a four-year high of $86.74 per barrel in early October. Data obtained from Baker Hughes Incorporated and the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries on Friday showed that the Nigeria’s rig count stood at 34 in October. The country and Kuwait recorded the biggest decline in the number of rigs among its peers in the OPEC in November. Rig count dropped to 44 from 50 in Kuwait; fell to 152 from 155 in Saudi Arabia; declined to 67 from 69 in Venezuela, and dipped to 57 from 58 in the United Arab Emirates. Ecuador saw a rise in its rig count to 13 in November from 8, while that of Angola and Iraq increased by one to five and 61 respectively. Rig count is largely a reflection of the level of exploration, development and production activities occ...

Update:: Atiku revealed this at a parley he held with civil society organisations last Thursday in Abuja. Atiku said: “There must be a partnership between civil society organisations and political parties to enthrone, sustain, maintain and develop democracy. Therefore, I would like to appeal for the strengthening of this partnership between civil society organisations and PDP, because it was PDP that enthroned democracy in this country in 1999, and not the APC.” He explained that there was need to dignify Nigerians at home and abroad, which a PDP government would do through providing good governance, security, jobs and prosperity. “We will also respect law and order and obey court orders,” he said. He assured his guests that his party would tackle the issue of kidnapping by providing employment, “because most of those kidnapping are jobless.” Atiku said it is possible to bring back Nigerians that have excelled abroad by offering them things they are used to abroad. “N...