Author: straightnewsng.com

The rumble that greeted the setting up of the forensic audit to excavate past financial records and bring to the fore the accounts of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, has died down. The appointment and inauguration of an Interim Management Committee (IMC) led by an erudite lawyer/activist, Dr. Joi Nunieh, to midwife the forensic audit of the NDDC from 2000 to 2019 has received a new boost to withstand any conceivable hurdles. The sack of the Pius Odubu-led board after it was confirmed by the Senate by President Muhammadu Buhari nailed rancour and controversy that would have sparked a row…

In this concluding part of the interview, Uwem Jonah Akpan, a Ph.D holder in African History/International Studies from the University of Calabar and author of Ikono- The Cradle of Ibibio Nation: A refutation and other books dropped a bombshell: the ancestors of Nnamdi Kanu, IPOB Leader, migrated from Ibiaku in what is known today as Akwa Ibom State to Ibeku in Abia while Aba was part of Akwa Ibom in the olden times. Excerpts: Now the book- Ikono The Cradle of Ibibio Nation: A refutation- has gone into the public domain. How is the perception?       Apart from the…

Relentless Liverpool beat Tottenham 1-0 to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League table to a yawning 16 points on Saturday as Southampton gained sweet revenge over high-flying Leicester. Elsewhere, Chelsea and Manchester United secured comfortable wins in the race for the top four but 10-man Arsenal fell further off the pace after a limp draw at Crystal Palace. Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool secured their 20th win in 21 Premier League matches thanks to Roberto Firmino’s 37th-minute goal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Their enormous lead over second-placed Leicester means they are almost certain to claim their first…

Former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, sees the shooting down of a plane by Iran that killed 176 passengers, as God’s judgment. The crash occurred hours after Iran targeted US forces in Iraq to avenge the killing of its top general, Qassem Soleimani in a US drone strike. Iranian officials had repeatedly denied claims by US, UK and Canadian officials that the Boeing Co. 737-800 jet was shot down by the missiles of its armed forces. On Saturday, Iran said it unintentionally shot down the Ukrainian airliner that crashed this week killing 63 Canadians and 82 Iranians, among others, calling it an…

By Akanimo Sampson In Mali, a vast landlocked African country that is the continent’s third biggest exporter of gold, life is increasingly becoming hellish for both men and women. Why? A third of the around 70 tons of total gold production in the country is estimated to come from artisanal mining which employs over one million people, according to government estimates. For instance, in the small gold-mining site of Tiemba in southern Mali, women and men reportedly form a human chain, from the holes dug in dry earth to the river bordering Guinea. The chain is made up of women pulling up buckets of…

By Akanimo Sampson There are a lot of unspeakable sad tales of African migrants. Their quest for the good life in Europe has not been as rosy as they often expected. For most of those who survived the hellish journey, they would not even wish the worst of their enemies the ordeals of the migrants. For instance, the case of the 24-year-old Joshua from Sierra Leone is quite touching to the kind-hearted. Like most young people in Africa in need of jobs, since Joshua could not find a stable job back home, he decided to drop out of his Sociology…

In this interview, Uwem Jonah Akpan, a Ph.D holder in African History/International Studies from the University of Calabar, and the author of Ikono The Cradle of Ibibio Nation: A refutation agrees that Ibibios are people of hoare antiquity.  In addition, he pans his thinking lens on other burning historical issues in Akwa Ibom and in Nigeria. Excerpts:    What actually motivated you to write the book- Ikono The Cradle of Ibibio Nation: A refutation? Thank you. Firstly, I am a historian by the grace of God. The three historians of the book I have successfully refuted are not. Secondly, I…

By Akanimo Sampson Sometimes in 2017 in Libya, Alhagie reportedly heard the sound of gunshots as he found his way through the dank, musty detention centre in Tripoli, the capital city of the North African country. Surrounding him were other migrants from across Africa: Ghanaians, Malians, Nigerians, Senegalese; and many others. Alhagie thought to himself that there must be thousands of other migrants who had attempted the arduous journey to Europe, just as he had, only to find themselves stranded in Libya, and their dreams of reaching “the promised land” slipping through their fingers. The Gambia, with a population of…

Priscilla Graves is a hairstylist with 15 years’ experience straightening and coloring black women’s hair. She has endured bouts of dizziness, nausea and difficulty breathing from applying potent chemical straighteners, and regularly deals with distraught clients suffering alopecia and painful blisters after using dyes and lotions specifically marketed to African Americans. “I try to find out online what’s in the products, but the government should be doing more to keep us safe and keep dangerous chemicals out of cosmetics,” said Graves, 34, at a salon in Harlem. “There should be clear warnings on the labels, we need more information.” The…

By Akanimo Sampson The Managing Director of Hanseaticsoft, Alexander Buchmann, says technology will make more impact on the shipping industry this 2020, as companies are increasingly introducing cloud-based software and apps in their businesses. Hanseaticsoft is, however, concerned with offering modern software solutions to optimise workflows in shipping companies. It also helps companies to gain new perspectives on processes and increase business performance. Many years of developing cross-departmental software for the maximum benefit has made Hanseaticsoft an expert in this field – not only in Germany but globally. According to Buchmann, the increased availability, reliability and reduced cost of the…