Coping with disaster attracts Ecobank, IFRC
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a first project is already being rolled out in ghana where ecobank is launching a digital public fundraising campaign. a unique qr code a type of bar code used to access information through your mobile phone has been created and displayed in branches making donating easy and immediate1 ecobank and the international federation of red cross and red crescent societies ifrc have signed an agreement to work together to empower local communities to cope with disasters more efficiently1 many of the natural hazards that take place do not need to become major disasters when a population is prepared and able to respond adequately1 we need to address the underlying causes of this vulnerability including lack of funding to equip communities with required systems and skills said dr fatoumata nafo-traor ifrcs regional director for africa1 the growing gap between funds needed by humanitarian groups and funds available to them is a major cause of communities vulnerability to disasters1 it is on this account that ecobank is partnering with national red cross and red crescent societies in africa to secure resources for their local first aid volunteers1 ecobank will leverage its innovative technology to fundraise across africa in an effort to mobilise capital to help narrow the funding gap1 through our ecobank mobile app we will be able to support the red cross and red crescents domestic fundraising efforts said sam adjei regional executive central eastern and southern africa cesa and ecobank kenyas managing director1 many innocent lives continue to be lost in africa simply as a result of insufficient investment in disaster preparedness1 transforming africa is the principle on which ecobank has built its business added sam adjei. today we are present in 33 countries across the continent1 that scale is what creates impact and determines how well we take our continent to the next level in a sustainable way1 training will be another key pillar of the partnership as ifrc will work with the ecobank academy a pan-african corporate university based in lom togo1 ifrcs staff members will participate in a number of customised programmes to enhance their management skills1 as part of the agreement ecobank employees will also be given the opportunity to attend first aid training sessions enabling them to save lives during every day emergencies and disasters. ecobank tanzania will be the first ecobank affiliate to roll out a first aid training course for its staff1 supporting africas most vulnerable by investing in local humanitarian organisations is not only cost-effective but it also ensures long-term and sustainable results1 local humanitarian actors make a difference every day in their own communities. they respond to crises quickly providing assistance that is culturally appropriate said dr nafo-traor1

Excitement as Osinbajo brings TraderMoni to Ikotun, Igando, Ile Epo markets
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tradermoni is a federal governments initiative aimed at providing two million petty traders across the country with collateral-free loans before the end of the year4 excited crowd thronged and cheered as osinbajo walked into the markets1 shouts of tradermoni tradermoni baba baba osinbajo osinbajo rented the air while security operatives had a field day controlling the crowd1 the vice president who acknowledged the cheers inspected the markets and had one-on-one interactions with the traders1 gov. akinwunmi ambode of lagos state accompanied osinbajo to the markets1 also in the team was daddy showkey a galala singer whose presence added fervour to the visits as his fans hailed and surged to exchange banters with him1 tradermoni is designed to help petty traders expand their trade through the provision of collateral-free loans of n10 0001 the loans are repayable over a period of six months1 under the scheme beneficiaries can get access to a higher facility ranging from n15 000 to n50 000 when they repaid n10 000 within the stipulated time period1

Osinbajo: I stand for fiscal federalism, stronger states, state police
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by chijioke okoronkwo9 owolabi said that the association was borne out of a vision of some young men eight of them who decided in 1978 to concretise their fledging relationship and dominance of social space into a sustainable institution1 osinbajo made this submission while delivering the 40th anniversary lecture of the association of friends on monday in lagos1 the theme of the lecture is restructuring and the nigerian federation1 he reiterated his stance that good governance was what nigeria needed rather than geographical restructuring1 i have been an advocate both in court and outside of fiscal federalism and stronger state governments1 i have argued in favour of state police for the simple reason that policing is a local function1 you simply cannot effectively police nigeria from abuja only recently i made a point that stronger more autonomous states would effectively eradicate poverty1 so i do not believe that geographical restructuring is an answer to nigerias socio-economic circumstances1 that would only result in greater administrative costs but there can be no doubt that we need deeper fiscal federalism and good governance1 he argued that state governments had enormous constitutional powers which they should harness to better their fortunes1 the vice president said that the supreme court held that states had a constitutional right to create local governments pursuant to section 8 of the constitution1 he said that the creation remained incomplete until the national assembly by resolution amended the existing list of local governments to capture the newly created councils1 osinbajo said further that the apex court ruled also that with respect to federal land the state had exclusive authority to grant authority tofor building or developmental control permits1 vice president prof. yemi osinbajo has restated that he is an advocate of fiscal federalism stronger state governments and state police1 osinbajo said that pursuant to the supreme court ruling lagos state government created by state law local government council development areaslcdas to activate the newly created local government councils until such a time the national assembly would complete the process1 he said that the lagos state government took the challenge which resulted in the state earning more internally generated revenueigr than 30 nigerian states put together1 osinbajo said it was wrong to mix up all the issues of good governance and diversificationof the economy with the argument on corruption1 good governance involves inter alia transparency and prudence in public finance1 it involves social justice investing in the poor jobs for young people which explains our school feeding programme providing a meal per day to over nine million pupils in 25 states today1 our n-power is now employing 500 000 graduates our tradermoni that will be giving microcredit to two million petty traders our conditional cash transfers giving monthly grants to over 400000 of the poorest in nigeria1 the plan is to cover over a million households1 he said that in arguing for good governance nigerias greatest problem was grand corruption1 the vice president described corruption as the unbelievable looting of the treasury by simply making huge cash withdrawals in local and foreign currenciesa travesty which president muhammadu buhari stopped1 according to him the restructuring nigeria needs is the restructuring of governance in such manner as to eliminate corruption and create an enabling environment for growth and investments in infrastructure education nutrition and better sanitation1 earlier in his address alhaji oluropo owolabi said that the topic of the lecture could not have come at a better time1 he said that in recent times restructuring had dominated the nations political discourse hence the choice of the vice president a professor of law for the lecture1 he said further that the supreme court ruled in favour of lagos state government as it struck down many provisions of the law that sought to give the federal government control over local government funding1

Mambilla power plant to cost $5.72b
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on the level of development of the project fashola said the progress is that for the first time in over 40 years the federal government has now signed an engineering and procurement contract. president buhari has made that possible1 nigerias 3 050 megawatts mambilla power plant will cost us5.72 billion the minister of power works and housing mr. babatunde fashola has said1 fashola said at a ceremony to mark his three years in office that work on the mambilla power plant which had suffered several setbacks for over 40 years is set to commence from early 20191 according to fashola the federal executive council fec has approved the project1 he said president muhammadu buhari is committed to ensuring the urgent commencement of the project which is expected to be completed within 60 months1 he said arrangements were at an advanced stage to secure the funds from the chinese government in the form of loans1 all the companies that were fighting themselves and going to court when we came are out of court. we have a contract a joint venture we created that joint venture we have a contract with them we have signed. fec has approved the project it is going to cost 5.72 billion he said1 he explained that the choice of the chinese company cgcc to handle the project was because it built chinas gorges dam which is similar to the mambilla power plant1 aside providing the funds fashola said they have the technology they have done it before no need to reinvent the wheel. we will take a loan we are now trying to negotiate the final tranche of the loan1 the nigerian government is supposed to provide 15 per cent of the total cost of the project as its counterpart funding1 you dont budget all of the money at once and even if the loan was approved today you wouldnt draw it all down because it is a minimum of 60 months construction time assuming that there are no hitches. that is where we are1

Breaking: Diezani Alison-Madueke to be extradited from UK - EFCC
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alison -madueke who is being investigated in the uk had urged the federal government to bring her back to the country to face corruption charges against her1 he however said thatthe action had to be processed through the office of the attorney-general of the federation explaining that it was not something the commission would commence and conclude on its own1 granting the application the judge had said i have read the motion on notice seeking the final forfeiture of the sum of n7.6 billion reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity1 i have also gone through the affidavit in support of the application1 in the circumstances i am of the view that the application has merit and is hereby granted as prayed. parties have a right of appeal1 in october 2017 the minister of justice and attorney-general of the federation abubakar malami had said that nigeria had no immediate plan to bring alison -madueke back home to face trial1 this extradition is just an aspect of diezanis investigation and commencement of trial he said1 but malami said that bringing her back to the country would jeopardise the investigation being carried on her in the uk1 steps have been taken by the united kingdom authorities on issues bothering on corrupt practices involving nigerians1 if nigeria feels strongly that there is need to bring mrs diezani alison -madueke here to face charges of corruption government will not hesitate to do that1 as things stand now there is no need for that since the uk government is already investigating her he had said1 the efcc spokesman could not however say the point at which it became necessary to seek extradition of the former minister1

Banky W eyes Lagos House of Reps seat
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they said we dont have the money to run we say our strength lies in our numbers they said we dont have the structure we say we will attempt to build it they said what if you lose i say what if we win1 nigerian singer olubankole wellington with stage name as banky w is gunning for a seat in the house of representatives1 the musician made the announcement at the debut convention of the modern democratic party mdp in lagos. he said he was aware it would not be easy to run given who he would be running against1 it is with the greatest sense of humility purpose and destiny thati humbly announce to run for the 2019 federal house of representatives1 i am under no illusions that this run will be easy considering who we are going up against this is almost impossible1 nan reported the award singer picked the slogan hope 19 and entrusted the election process on hope1 you see my entire life has been a story of just dreaming dreams praying about those dreams setting goals and working until they come true. i can live with trying and failing i cant live with not trying1 he has declared interest in the eti-osa federal constituency seat in lagos and he is campaigning as a member of the modern democratic party to snatch the seat from the ruling all progressives congress in the next february election1 so why we may not have a godfather we do have god vision intellectual capacity integrity right intentions and last but not least a whole lot of hope1 at the end of the day hope may be all we have but i believe it is all we need1 wellington added that the richest people in nigeria live in the constituency therefore eti osa is vital to the development of nigeria1 eti osa houses many rich people in nigeria therefore for nigeria to work eti osa must work1 we want to fix nigeria but we must begin by fixing our communities1 our generation needs a realistic rallying point we need to begin in communities earn our way into the system and up the ladder1 banky w joins some entertainers and celebrities who have declared to run for public offices in the 2019 general election including kanayo o kanayo and shinna peller1

ASUU strike: DSS detains Bauchi chapter chairman
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maina said that the action was a violation of fundamental human rights and queried the dss to explain the reasons behind the arrest1 by mohammed kaigama1 the vice chairman of the association dr ibrahim maina condemned the action at a joint press conference on sunday in bauchi1 maina alleged that babayo was detained by the dss operatives on sunday when he was invited to the departments headquarters in bauchi1 he said the asuu chairman adamu babayo was invited through a short service message sms which is not a formal way of invitation1 on friday he received a text message requesting him to report to the dss office in bauchi on sunday. he went to the office together with some of the executives of the association1 the dss operatives requested other members of his entourage to leave and detained him in their office he said1 the academic staff union of universities asuu chapters of the abubakar tafawa balewa university atbu and bauchi state university gadau had decried the detention of atbu chapter chairman dr adamu babayo by the department of state services dss1 let them explain to us why he was detained. that will give us the idea of what needs to be done1 if the detention is in connection with the ongoing strike it is a nationwide strike embarked on by the universities in the country and not a peculiar or personalproblem1 what wrong have we done by pressing for our rights through the strike he queried1 maina maintained that industrial action is the rights of a worker as enshrined in the civil service act which enable workers to press home their demands1 however a dss official who spoke on condition of anonymity denied the allegation insisting that babayo was not detained but invited to answer some questions1 news agency of nigeria nan reports that asuu had on nov. 5 embarked on an indefinite strike to press for implementation of the agreement reached with federal government in 20171

Foreign flight operations: Air Peace decries intl politics
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by solomon asowata2 she said that air peace had had directly offered jobs to more than 3000 nigerians besides impacting the nations economy in many other respects in just four years of operations1 the chief operating officer of air peace mrs oluwatoyin olajide said this on sunday in lagos while reacting to criticism that the airline lacked capacity to begin operations on the designated foreign routes1 olajide said air peace had capacity to operate into all destinations approved for it announcing that the airline would launch its dubai and sharjah services before the end of the year1 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that the federal government had given approval to air peace to begin long-haul flights to london guangzhou-china houston mumbai johannesburg dubai and sharjah1 the minister of state for aviation sen. hadi sirika had on thursday at the 5th aviation stakeholders forum in abuja queried the airlines inability to commence the operations months after securing two boeing 777-200300 er for that purpose1 however olajide urged the federal government to protect its flag carriers by engaging in international aero politics with governments preventing nigerian airlines from flying into their countries1 nigerian carrier air peace says it has capacity to operate its designated foreign routes but is being frustrated by international aero politics1 olajide noted that some of the destination countries only responded to the airlines application only after about two years1 where the destination countries reluctantly approved the airlines application to fly into their domains impossible charges were imposed to frustrate and discourage it from acting on such approval she said1 according to her the high charges imposed on nigerian airlines by other nations were unfortunately not reciprocated by federal government1 the foreign airlines are rather pampered in nigeria and given approval to operate to multiple destinations olajide said1 she dismissed claims that domestic airlines lacked the capacity to take advantage of the bilateral air service agreements basa nigeria signed with different countries1 in demonstration of its capacity she said air peace was at the moment consistently operating into 14 domestic and five regional destinations including accra banjul dakar freetown and monrovia1 she said most countries the carrier had been designated to operate were either deliberately foot-dragging in processing its application or imposing frustrating conditions to discourage it from flying into their domains1

Real Betis stun Barcelona in 7-goal thriller
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betis seemed faster sharper and hungrier while barcelonas midfield was repeatedly carved open on the break1 ten man barcelona were crushed 3-4 sunday afternoon at the camp nou with real betis handing them their second la liga defeat of the season1 it was barcelonas first home defeat in more than two years1 the last time they lost at home was in september 2016 against alaves1 now betis have ended barcas 42 games unbeaten run with a brilliant counter-attacking display1 junior firpo and joaquin had put betis two up at the interval before messi sparked hopes of a comeback from the spot1 giovani lo celso then capitalised on a rare mistake from marc-andre ter stegen only for barca to come again arturo vidal making it 3-2 having come on as a substitute1 ivan rakitic was sent off however with nine minutes left and sergio canales added a fourth for betis before messi poked home in the 92nd minute1 barca stay top of the table despite the defeat but their lead is down to one point with atletico madrid now breathing down their necks in second while espanyol will have a chance to move level on points with the catalans when they visit sevilla later on sunday1 ernesto valverdes barca play atletico at the wanda metropolitano after the international break1 returning star lionel messi scored a brace to record his 14th goal of the season but his efforts were not enough as the visitors capitalised on barcelonas leaking defence to score four times1 it took five passes for the opener the last a first-time drive from william carvalho to free junior down the left. he weaved inside sergi roberto and found the net1 barca had chances. messis free-kick found clement lenglet on the stretch but his lunging finish was tipped over by pau lopez. ter stegen denied cristian tello with his legs1 betis were soon pouring onto barcas defence again with juniors cross evading everyone before finding lo celso on the opposite side of the box. his cute cut-back picked out veteran winger joaquin who stabbed in betis second1 vidal replaced the jaded arthur melo at half-time and shot within a minute of the restart. messi feathered a through-ball for sergi but betis survived the scramble as luis suarez lashed wide1 barca had the momentum and in the 68th minute they pulled one back with jordi alba pulled down by tello and messi converting the penalty for his eighth league goal of the season1 but the comeback stalled three minutes later as betis restored their two-goal advantage. ter stegen made the error letting lo celsos shot slip through his fingers and into the far corner1 barca were not done yet. two substitutes combined for a second munir el haddadi laying on vidal to make it 3-2 but no sooner had the recovery began again it was halted1 first rakitic was sent off a second yellow card for a late challenge on lo celso and then canales pushed in betis fourth from juniors cross1 messi added his second in injury-time tapping a vidal pass over the line. the video assistant referee deemed messi onside but there was no more late drama as betis held on for a shock victory1

Buhari wants stiff penalty for illicit financial deal
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by ismaila chafe7 he therefore assured that this task would be focused on strengthening international cooperation on asset tracing recovery and repatriation and enhancing cooperation between the african union and the united nations anti-corruption monitoring mechanisms. nan1 he also called for a crackdown on safe heavens of such perpetrators1 mr femi adesina the presidents special adviser on media and publicity in a statement in abuja said buhari made the call at the first edition of the paris peace forum held on the sidelines of the centenary of armistice day1 buhari warned that continuous impunity would encourage more pilfering of countries resources to the detriment of poor and vulnerable populace1 the president said nigeria had strengthened its laws and institutions to fight corruption fast-track recovery of stolen assets and punish offenders urging more commitment from governments and international institutions1 he delivered his statement on illicit financial flows iffs and corruption the challenge of global governance during the event attended by about 70 world leaders and governments1 he said we must crack down on safe havens for corrupt assets1 i also advocate sanctions by professional bodies against transactional middlemen lawyers bankers brokers public officials etc. who facilitate illicit financial flows1 i would like to reiterate that the government of nigeria remains open and is ever willing to continue to identify and share experiences and strategies to give life to the ideas that will lead to winning the fight against corruption1 the nigerian leader noted that illicit financial flows posed a risk to the realisation of the sustainable development goals sdgs1 according to him this is so as many countries grapple with the challenge of gathering resources to improve their human development index while a few privileged individuals continue to explore the weaknesses in financial systems1 our experience in nigeria is that financial crimes such as corruption and fraudulent activities generate enormous unlawful profits which often prove so lucrative that the threat of a jail term is not sufficient to deter perpetrators1 president muhammadu buhari currently attending the paris peace forum has called for stringent actions against perpetrators of illicit financial flows1 this is not to under-estimate the value of strong institutions. it only indicates that asset recovery represents significant deterrence compared to the traditional focus on obtaining conviction by the law enforcement agencies of the countries of origin he said1 the president urged world leaders and global institutions to remain resolute on the global declaration against corruption made in london in 20161 he observed that the declaration had encapsulated the collective commitment to the principles of open government partnership especially the national action plans to actualize beneficial ownership transparency and enhance the capacity of financial intelligence units fius1 buhari said the independent reporting mechanisms and support for the activities of the global forum on transparency and exchange of information for tax purposes should be reinforced1 as we take stock of the strengths and weaknesses of domestic regional and international mechanisms against illicit financial flows i seize this opportunity to recall the global declaration against corruption made in london in 2016 and our commitment thereto he added1 he said said tremendous progress had been achieved through the enactment of global instruments noting that some fundamental technical issues remain unresolved1 these revolve around the formulation of policy and regulatory frameworks that cut across different jurisdictions1 we must not lose sight of the role played by secret companies banks and law firms all too often based in developed economies and their related offshore centres1 recent studies reveal that flaws in the global financial system enable corrupt individuals to hide details of their financial dealings under the noses of governments and law enforcement agencies1 this underscores the need to urgently address the issue of mutual legal assistance as well as continental legal frameworks in the context of safe havens for illicit transfers he said1 the president disclosed that the whistle-blowing policy had facilitated recovery of billions of naira from corrupt persons which had been redirected to the development of critical infrastructure and programmes that would benefit all nigerians and realisation of the sdgs1 at the continental level the president said the african union had bestowed on him the honour to champion the fight against corruption across the continent1 a more powerful deterrent is to ensure that profits and assets generated from illicit financial flows and corruption are recovered and returned to countries of origin1

Zikist movement launched for Buhari
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and it is on record that despite the truism that his excellencies dr alex ekwueme and dr ogbonnia onu were shoved aside in jos and kaduna presidential primaries respectively. ndigbo albeit voted overwhelmingly for the winner ex-president chief olusegun obasanjo of the south west who served for eight years1 zikist-buharist-movement zbm meant to be used to mobilise massive votes for presidential candidate president muhammadu buhari has been launched in the south-east1 a communiqu issued on sunday after the bso south-east summit by chief stanley ohajuruka and godwin onwusi south-east coordinator and acting secretary of bso said zbm remains a non-partisan movement launched to go beyond the party lines to scaling up votes for buhari1 the movement would carry out massive mobilization of apc members and non partisan ndigbo at home and diaspora for buharis re-election1 the communiqu read in part our study shows that the total membership of all the political parties apc pdp apga upp et al is less than 30 per cent of the electorate1 and that the turnout of registered voters in the previous elections has been very poor which makes it imperative that we have to mobilize in order to achieve 2019 massive vote for president buhari and 2023 presidential turn of ndigbo1 in this connection we today launch the zikist-buharist-movement zbm a non-partisan movement aimed at mobilising ndigbo both at home and abroad1 the zbm in the best tradition of the great zik dr nnamdi azikiwe want to reopen the ancient north-east political alliance which without the exclusion of any geopolitical zone earned ndigbo indelible laurels in the 1st and 2nd republics1 bso south east proclamation that 2023 is our turn to produce nigeria president of igbo extraction is based on equity natural justice and good conscience1 for it is our considered view that the rotation of president convention from southern belt to northern belt introduced by patriots in 1999 4th republic when nigeria returned to civil rule is for equity natural justice and harmony of our dear country1 it is based on equity natural justice and good conscience that we remind ourselves that since 1999 the south east geopolitical zone is the only geopolitical zone in the southern belt which has not presided over nigeria1 it was launched by the buhari support organisation bso1 it recalled that in 2010 and 2015 ndigbo repeated the same voting pattern by voting overwhelmingly for ex-president dr goodluck jonathan adding that it was clear that ndigbo supported their two southern brothers even when south west in 1999 refused to vote for obasanjo meaning that ndigbo has paid their dues1 the communiqu stated further bso south east in deep reflection asked ourselves what option in a scenario where two fulani-muslim brothers buhari and atiku are front liners in the 2019 presidential election who could the great zik choose if he were alive1 in answering this germane question we said two major critical issues will readily come to ziks mind one whom between the two of them has the support of the north two what is their programmes1 as a pragmatist the great zik would readily choose president buhari who has uncommon cult followership in the northern belt. this choice is based on the pragmatism that for us to achieve the igbo presidency we need buharis supporters not only in the north but nationwide1 on the second issue the great zik would be attracted by his excellency atiku abubakars promise to restructure the country in six months in office but as a pragmatist he will reason that it cannot be achieved by fiat-executive-order1 whereas the atiku restructuring mantra is appetizing the truism is that it cannot be done by fiat-executive order but by the amendment of the rigid 1999 constitution. all that glitters is not gold the sage says1 the statement said that apc and by extension president buhari was not against restructuring otherwise they could not have set up the malam el-rufia committee on restructuring and its report receiving attention1 on the issue of four years it said that buharis remaining four years after 2019 is cast on constitutional stone while atikus is at best pledge1 in summary we call on ndigbo both at home and abroad to join the zbm to actualise this noble objective of over 80 per cent massive vote for the performing president president muhammadu buhari it said1 the summit was attended by bso and apc chieftains including chief osita okechukwu of voice of nigeria von the director-general nigerian film commission mr chidia maduekwe national commissioner of national population commission mr ejike eze and national chairman of bso dr abubakar mahmood1 others are enugu state bso coordinator mr anike nwoga imo state bso coordinator adaobi obi enugu state apc publicity secretary mrs kate offor and the senatorial candidate of apc in enugu east prince lawrence eze. nan1

Nishikori upsets Federer in ATP Finals opener
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earlier kevin anderson made an impressive atp finals debut in the same lleyton hewitt group beating dominic thiem 6-3 7-6 12101 roger federer suffered a shock straight-sets defeat to kei nishikori at the atp finals on sunday severely denting his bid for the 100th title of his illustrious career1 the result means federer is now in danger of failing to qualify for the semi-finals for just the second time in his career1 federer 37 has beaten nishikori in paris and shanghai in recent weeks but despite having the backing of a full house at the o2 arena he never really settled into a groove1 the normally cool swiss was warned by the umpire for ball abuse in the 12th game after nishikori produced a staggering backhand winner down the line1 the swiss great made 20 unforced errors in the first set and nishikori capitalised forcing a tie-break in which he raced to a 61 lead before sealing it 741 federer showing real urgency broke nishikori immediately at the start of the second set but it proved a false dawn as he lost his own serve as his frustrations mounted1 nishikori broke again in the sixth game and served out for victory1 the title is contested by the eight players who have accumulated the most ranking points over the season and is in a round-robin format with the best four players reaching the knockout semi-finals stage1 the swiss who has won the season-ending event a record six times produced an uncharacteristically error-prone and fractious display as the japanese seventh seed prevailed 7-6 74 6-31 south african giant anderson came into the match with a healthy 6-2 lead over thiem in head-to-heads but had lost their two most recent meetings including a straight-sets defeat at the us open1 the wimbledon finalist who stands at 2.03 metres six feet eight inches tall established an early grip dominating the early exchanges and securing the crucial break in the fourth game1 the 32-year-old making his debut at the season finale won 84 percent of his points on serve in the first set compared with just 58 percent for his ragged austrian opponent1 thiem tightened up his game in the second set and looked far more aggressive with his serving numbers rocketing higher but anderson held firm to take the set into a tie-break1 in a see-saw tie-break 25-year-old thiem had two chances to level the match but anderson kept his cool to seal the victory with an ace on his fourth match point1 i definitely felt a little bit nervous said anderson. but i was able to settle very quickly and find a really good rhythm taking care of my serve games nicely created quite a few opportunities on his serve1 he wasnt serving at you know well a very high first serve percentage i think overall just getting off to a good start helped me a lot today1 world number one novak djokovic who heads the guga kuerten group will be in action on monday against john isner while alexander zverev takes on marin cilic1 djokovic who replaced rafael nadal at the top of the rankings last week was sunday presented with the 2018 year-end atp world tour number one trophy1

Presidency blasts Atiku group over Minimum Wage statement
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he noted that these reports were contrary to what transpired on tuesday when the committee presented its report to the president1 the presidency has criticised the concocted controversy over president muhammadu buharis position on proposed n30000 by some political actors to score cheap political goals saying stiff judgment awaits them at the polls1 in a statement issued by his media office atiku had allegedly claimed that president buhari cannot be trusted to implement the new minimum wage of n30 000 recommended by the pepple tripartite committee1 atiku who is the presidential candidate of the peoples democratic party pdp said buhari may not have the political will to implement the new wage1 however adesina said those who have latched onto the concocted controversy to play cheap politics we appeal to them to remember that elections are not won through loquaciousness and trying to demean the president at every drop of a hat1 but then it is not surprising as they have nothing else to sell to nigerians if they dont ride on the name of the president. stiff judgment awaits them at the polls1 the presidential aide therefore frowned at the recurring reports alleging that buhari had reneged on earlier acceptance of the n30000 recommended as the new national minimum wage by the national minimum wage tripartite committee1 mr femi adesina made the condemnation in a statement in abuja on thursday while reacting to comments apparently made by the atiku media office1 he said the president while acknowledging the concerns raised by government on affordability and labours focus on meaningful increase stated clearly in a speech which was made available to the media that1 in a way both arguments are valid. i want to assure you all that we will immediately put in place the necessary machinery that will close out these open areas1 our plan is to transmit an executive bill to the national assembly for passage within the shortest possible time. i am fully committed to having a new national minimum wage act in the very near future1 as the executive arm commences its review of your submission we will continue to engage you all in closing any open areas presented in this report. i therefore would like to ask for your patience and understanding in the coming weeks1 from the above and throughout the report-submission ceremony the president never mentioned any figure. what he committed himself to was a new minimum wage and only after the report of the committee has been reviewed by the executive and legislative processes of government and an appropriate bill presented to him for assent1 until the proposed minimum wage has gone through the whole gamut of law-making president buhari who is a stickler for due process will not be caught in this unnecessary web of controversy which amounts to putting the cart before the horse and hair-splitting1

Corruption: Rwanda recommends online assets declaration for Nigeria
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by kate obande-okewu4 the five-day learning visit was to expose state and federal government officials to the mechanisms to be applied during the post-conflict era in reconstructing and strengthening public institutions particularly in the north east nigeria2 dr usta kaitesi deputy chief executive officer of rgb said this when he received the nigerian delegation on a post-conflict learning visit titled readiness for change on thursday in kigali rwanda2 she said that the online method was to enable officers add newly acquired assets and deduct the ones that were no longer in their possession to ensure accurate database2 kaitesi said that rwandan government had zero tolerance for corruption and anybody caught irrespective of their position would face the law2 she explained that rwanda was not 100 per cent free from corruption but it was very minimal adding that only zero tolerance for corruption could guarantee and sustain the fight2 there is no immunity for public office holders in rwanda if you take part in corrupt activities and you are caught you will be dismissed from office and face the law irrespective of your position2 you can always run but no matter how long you run anytime you are caught you will face the wrath of the law2 so either you stay and face the consequences then come out to be a better person or you keep running till you are caught2 we still have some perpetrators of the genocide who are still at large and we are still searching for them any day they are found they must face the law she said2 the rwandan governance board rgb says online assets declaration by public office holders is one of the methods that can be used to reduce corruption to a barest minimum in any country including nigeria2 mrs winifred oyo-ita head of civil service of the federation who led the delegation described rwandas public service as excellent2 oyo-ita noted that the visit was enlightening and that nigeria had learnt a lot and would replicate same in nigeria for better national development2 the delegation also visited the national public service commission rwanda and was received by the mrs angelina muganza executive secretary of the commission2 muganza said that rwanda depended on its human capacity to grow the economy as they had no mineral resources2 she explained that before the genocide recruitment was based on nepotism connection and prejudice but all these had stopped2 according to muganza after the genocide the priority is to find staff the entry year into public service is 18 and exit 652 she also said the recruitment process was done online and if you were not employed there was a platform you could appeal to be employed2 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that the delegation had so far visited 10 rwandan institutions including ministries to learn their post-conflict survival strategies and mechanisms2 she explained that resilience on part of government and compliance by citizens was paramount in ensuring sustainability of any development project or policy2

200 bodies found in mass grave in Ethiopia
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the graves were discovered as part of investigations into the alleged atrocities committed by the former president of ethiopias somali region abdi mohammed1 violence in the country has displaced hundreds of thousands of people and many people are yet unaccounted for1 the former president of the region is awaiting trial over allegationof causing ethnic clashes1 a notorious regional security force known as the liyu police is accused of carrying out killings in the area between the somali and oromia regions and it reported directly to the former regional president1 the police are trying to identify the 200 bodies found1 mr mohammed was forced to resign in august and was arrested weeks later after violence broke out in the regional capital jijiga1 he is alleged to have overseen widespread rights abuses including torture rape and killings during his 13-year rule1

Amosun says not behind Oshiomholes alleged detention
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by chijioke okoronkwo9 gov. ibikunle amosun of ogun state has dismissed rumours that he and gov. rochas okorocha of imo are behind the alleged detention and grilling of all progressives congressapc national chairman adams oshiomhole1 oshiomhole was reportedly detained and questioned on nov. 4 by the department of state services dss over the fallout of the apc primaries1 speaking with state house correspondents after a closed-door meeting with president muhammadu buhari on thursday at the presidential villa amosun said he did not have such capacity1 i think you are giving me an oversight role1 i am not a security person so clearly that question will probably not be for me1 i dont hide under a finger and fight if there is need for me to put my views across you know by now i will do it1 the governor who sounded evasive said that all that needed to be said about the apc crisis had been said hence no need to sound like a broken gammaphone1 he said it was not true that he was having problem with the leadership of the party1 it would be realled that three apc governors okorocha amosun and abdulaziz yari of zamfara have been at loggerheads with oshiomhole over the outcome of the partys primaries1

Why North Korea canceled meeting with Pompeo
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while there havent been any nuclear or ballistic missile tests by north korea haley said its government hasnt allowed inspectors into its nuclear and missile facilities1 u.s. ambassador nikki haley has accused north korea of cancelling thursdays talks between u.s. secretary of state mike pompeo and a senior north korean official because they were not ready1 i dont think there was some major issue for the postponement1 i have talked with the administration and basically what were looking at is they postponed it because they werent ready she said1 pompeo was supposed to meet with kim yong chol in new york on thursday to discuss the norths commitment to eliminating its nuclear weapons and arrangements for a second summit between u.s. president donald trump and north korean leader kim jong un1 i do think the talks are going to be rescheduled1 and it doesnt change the fact that that summit is still scheduled for the president and kim to meet after the first of the year haley said of the pompeo-kim yong chol meeting1 haley spoke to reporters ahead of u.n. security council closed consultations called by russia to discuss exemptions from u.n. sanctions on north korea1 we have given a lot of carrots up until now she said pointing to the kim-trump summit in singapore and follow-up meetings as well as stopping military exercises1 haley however said on thursday that a meeting between the two nations leaders is still on for after jan. 11 were not going to get rid of the stick because they havent done anything to warrant getting rid of the sanctions yet she said1 haley accused russia of trying to earn brownie points with north korea and i think they are also just trying to go ahead and talk about lifting sanctions because theyre already cheating1 she accused russia of bringing in north korean laborers and providing pyongyang with refined petroleum in violation of u.n. sanctions. and she added we know theyve been doing some things with the financial aspect of it1 as she left the closed council meeting haley said humanitarian exemptions were discussed1 she said earlier that the u.s. goal is to make sure aid goes to people in need not the regime so it is investigating technical aspects of a number of requests to make sure aid is not re-routed1 so were going to take our time to do that she said1 but haley said russias real aim came out at the end of the council consultations1 what theyre looking for is to lift banking restrictions which are exactly some of the things we know theyre not following through on appropriately1 so now we know what their agenda is. we know exactly why theyre trying to do it. were not going to let it happen haley said1

Fire kills 7 at South Koreas low cost housing
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the facility called goshiwon in korean is where poor workers relying on construction jobs or student preparing for bar exams or civil service exams stay in individual rooms with tiny sleep and study spaces1 a fire that likely blocked a crucial exit at a low-cost dormitory-style housing facility in central seoul killed at least seven people and injured 11 others on friday1 the fire authorities are investigating possible safety lapses in the building1 it was dawn and the exit door was likely blocked so it would have been difficult for the residents to escape 1 another official from the jongno station said the facility which was built in 1983 did not have sprinklers because current safety regulations cant be retroactively applied to older structures1 the official who didnt want to be named citing office rules said it was unclear whether the buildings smoke detector worked1 according to seoul metropolitan fire and disaster headquarters the death toll could rise despite the blaze been extinguished1 budget travelers also often stay in such facilities1 south korean media reported that most of the victims were manual laborers in their 40s to 60s1 the fire agency couldnt immediately confirm the reports. it wasnt known whether any young students or travelers were staying there1 the facility was located on the second and third floors of a three-story building. its first floor has restaurants1 the fire agency said all the victims were on the second and third floors1

HIV-infected soldier rapes 70 boys
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they said tests confirmed he was infected with hiv1 police in thailand have arrested an hiv-infected soldier sgt. maj. jakkrit khomsing who allegedly blackmailed and raped more than 70 teenage boys1 police lt. col. nacharot kaewpetch said the victims would send their nude photos to khomsing before agreeing to meet him1 when they found out he was not who he pretended to be online he would threaten to make their nude photos public if they refused to have sex with him1 kaewpetch said police discovered medicine for treating hiv when they arrested the 43-year-old khomsing at his home wednesday in the northeastern province of khon kaen1 police said in a statement that they received a complaint that khomsing was using fake social media profiles on facebook and the gay dating app blued to win the trust of his victims1 so far police have determined that khomsing had more than 70 victims between the ages of 13 and 181 even though the suspect is a soldier this behavior and ive consulted with army commanders is a personal issue not an organisational one police maj. gen. surachate hakparn said1 police said they are widening their investigation and attempting to contact other victims who have not yet filed charges1 police have so far charged khomsing with six offenses including sex with a minor under 15 with or without their consent punishable by 4-20 years in prison1 other charges are indecent assault of a minor under 15 using threats punishable by up to 10 years in prison separating a minor under 15 from their parents without reason punishable by 3-15 years in prison blackmail punishable by up to 3 years in prison and coercing minors to conduct inappropriate acts punishable by up to three months in prison1

South Korea President sacks finance minister, policy chief
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it is a marked change from the growth model of the past driven by exports and investments by the souths major companies that has seen the south rise to become asias fourth-biggest economy1 president of south korea moon jae-in has sacked his finance minister kim dong-yeon and presidential chief of staff for policy jang ha-sung as the country struggles with slowing growth rising unemployment and persistent income gaps1 the pair had reportedly been at odds with each otherover how to address the situation in south korea which is the worlds 11th-largest economy1 moons global profile has been dominated by his role in the rapid diplomatic rapprochement with nuclear-armed north korea but at home his handling of the economy has become increasingly controversial contributing to falling poll ratings1 his administration has steeply raised south koreas minimum wages cut working hours and converted temporary staff to permanent in a series of redistributive moves it says will lead to what it calls income-led growth1 the two top economy officialshave already been replaced top blue house spokesman yoon young-chan said in a televised statement1 and critics say the moves have had the opposite effect to what was intended worsening the situation of many low-income earners and seeing small businesses cut staff while big firms hold back investment in the face of tougher regulation1 last month the central bank of korea cut its growth forecast for this year to 2.7 per cent down from the 3.1 per cent achieved in 20171 and unemployment jumped 0.4 percentage points to 3.8 per cent in the third quarter with youth joblessness at its highest since 1999 at 9.4 per cent1 finance minister kim had called for redistributive policies to be rowed back including minimum wage hikes while jang wanted to stick with pursuing equality1 kim was replaced by hong nam-ki a veteran bureaucrat while jang was succeeded by kim soo-hyun currently moons top social affairs adviser1