Author: straightnewsng.com

By Akanimo Sampson The coronavirus crisis will wipe out 6.7 per cent of working hours globally within the second quarter of 2020. This, according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), is equivalent to 195 million full-time workers. Large reductions are foreseen in the Arab States (8.1 per cent, equivalent to five million full-time workers), Europe (7.8 per cent, or 12 million full-time workers) and Asia and the Pacific (7.2 per cent, 125 million full-time workers). Huge losses are expected across different income groups but especially in upper-middle income countries (7.0 per cent, 100 million full-time workers). This far exceeds the…

By Akanimo Sampson As COVID-19 continues to bite harder worldwide, Nigeria has confirmed 16 new coronavirus cases and six deaths in the country. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Tuesday confirmed new cases on Tuesday, bringing the total number to 254 in the country. A breakdown shows that 10 new cases were reported in Lagos, 2 in FCT, 2 in Oyo, 1 in Delta, and 1 in Katsina while 44 persons have been discharged. This is as Federal legislators are currently engaging health authorities for details the coming of Chinese doctors to assist Nigeria to respond to the…

The Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Abba Kyari, is alleged to be receiving treatment for coronavirus pandemic in London, Straightnews has learned exclusively. This is contrary to speculation that he was being treated at an undisclosed isolation centre in Lagos. Kyari, a member of Buhari’s kitchen cabinet, was said to have tested positive for coronavirus and became “very sick” following his official trip to Germany and Egypt. He was said to have been removed from Abuja to an infectious disease treatment center in Lagos as he reportedly began coughing heavily during a meeting that included, among others, the…

Amid the 14-day coronavirus lockdown imposed on Akwa Ibom State, a legal practitioner in the state has called on the government to relax it at least for one day to enable most people to retool their food supplies. Governor Udom Emmanuel imposed the lockdown on the state with effect from Friday, April 3 after Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, had published that the state has five coronavirus cases. Speaking in Planet 101.1 FM, Uyo on Tuesday, Ekemini Udim said within this lockdown period, some people might have exhausted their food supplies especially as some food items like vegetables are…

By: Israel Umoh Some people are made for a season. Others are made for a time. Few are made for a period. Season segments the time but time has elasticity that oils season. Period is the timetable of suddenness and unpredictability. Though the sequence is a centrifuge to all, frequency in achieving anything is the magic wand that uniquely identifies the capacity and passion of a person. To those born for a period belongs Iniobong Ememobong, the page boy of Use Ndon in Ibiono Ibom local government area of Akwa Ibom. A Classics graduate and a Barrister-at-law, Iniobong is…

The last may not have been heard of yet as the war of attrition raging between the Chief Press Secretary to Akwa Ibom Governor and members of the Government House Press Corps, Uyo over allegation of stealing of money continues unabated. The battle between the press secretary and press corps of more than 50 members has shifted from official government channel to the Facebook court where the two combatants are locked in a war of unprintable words. The cold war that started on Sunday, April 5 dovetailed into Monday, April 6 with no ceasefire yet in sight. One Ekere Umana…

By Akanimo Sampson Women are carrying a higher economic cost of the rampaging coronavirus pandemic than men. Globally, women are said to be more vulnerable to economic shocks wrought by crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Isabelle Durant, and its Director, Division on International Trade and Commodities, Pamela Coke-Hamilton, say the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is not gender-neutral. According to the two UNCTAD chiefs, “it affects men and women differently. Therefore, we must not be gender blind in our responses to the pandemic, or else women will…

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, has tasked higher institution admission seekers to disregard admission cut-off marks circulating in social media. The board said it was yet to release the cut-off marks for 2020 admissions, saying the ones in circulation were from fraudsters who in their usual ways, were out to dupe unsuspecting admission seekers. JAMB also said it had reinforced its Central Admission Processing System, CAPS, mobile app to enable candidates to access to information regarding admission-related issues in the comfort of their homes without visiting any Computer-Based Test, CBT centres or cyber cafe. The board in a…

By Akanimo Sampson Scientists across all International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) hubs in West Africa have been trained on data management. The purpose of the training themed Creating a living data management plan for research reproducibility, was to educate them on data management planning (DMP). The Institutional Data Manager, Olatunbosun Obileye, lectured on areas such as the meaning and reason for DMP, elements of DMP, and how to create a winning, functional and living DM plan. “At the end of the lecture, participants should be able to come up with a winning DM plan, when there is a request…

It is sad that Nigerian society still holds onto archaic beliefs about women. These beliefs form certain stereotypes held about women by the misogynists. In 2020, these stereotypes held about women must die. Women are their own enemies This would have been true if it wasn’t so ridiculous. Going by this logic, every Nigerian woman hates every Nigerian woman. But in reality, Nigerian women are collaborating together to start companies, run businesses, form supportive girl squads and change the narrative. The gaslighting of this stereotype is simply trite. Women are weak You must not be acquainted with the fact that…