Author: straightnewsng.com

The Federal Government has declared Monday 12th and Tuesday 13th August as Public Holidays to mark the 2019 Eid-il-Kabir celebrations. Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Barr. Georgina Ekeoma Ehuriah, who made the declaration on behalf of the Federal Government, congratulated the Muslim faithful on the occasion. Ehuriah called on all Nigerians, at home and in diaspora, “to use the period of this year’s Eid-il-Kabir celebration to embrace the virtues of love, humility, peace and sacrifice as exemplified by the Holy Prophet Mohammed (Pbuh).”

By Akanimo Sampson A likely cheery news for those with visual disability from a Rael-Science post is that scientists have partially restored sight to blind people using a paradigm-shifting implant that wires images directly to the brain. The new method, known as Orion, uses a video camera attached to a pair of glasses that sends information to electrodes implanted directly into the visual cortex of the brain, totally bypassing broken optical nerves that no longer work. A team of neurosurgeons from Baylor Medical College in Texas and the University of California, Los Angeles has carried out the surgical produce on…

Following the confirmation of the 43 ministerial nominees by the Senate and submission of same to him, President Muhammadu Buhari will swear them in on August 21, 2019. Buhari forwarded the ministerial list to the National Assembly on July 23, 2019. The list contained 43 names, 14 of whom served as ministers in his first term in office. Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF, Boss Mustapha, announced in a statement Tuesday. The statement issued on the SGF’s behalf by Babatunde Lawal, Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Affairs Office in the OSGF, also invited all ministers-designate, Head of the Civil Service…

The naira on Monday traded at N362.57 to the dollar at the parallel market in Lagos. Turnover at the window stood at 293.60 million dollars. The currency was N359 to dollar at the parallel market in Lagos, while it was exchanged at N445 and N397 to the pound sterling and Euro, respectively. At the Bureau De Change window, the naira closed at N359 to the dollar, while it was N445 and N397 to the pound sterling and Euro, respectively. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the naira had remained stable at the parallel market in Lagos due largely to…

No fewer than 81 herdsmen had been convicted and 3,000 cows arrested for infringing the Benue State Anti-open Grazing Act. Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, who gave the update in a keynote address at the 2019 annual convention of the Idoma Association USA on Saturday in New York, said implementation of the law had brought relative peace to the state. “We are implementing our law, and there is relative peace. As at today, we have convicted 81 herdsmen. Some have paid fines; others are still in prison as I talk to you. “We have gone a step further. Anywhere we…

The Kaduna State High Court has granted the embattled leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, and his wife Zeenat, leave to seek medical attention abroad. In his ruling on Monday, Justice Darius Khobo ordered that the IMN leader and his wife be accompanied abroad by officials of the Kaduna State government. The presiding judge ruled that El-Zakzaky and his wife should proceed to India for medical treatment. He, however, did not give any time frame as to how long they will stay in India. No date has been fixed for the defendants to embark on the…

By Akanimo Sampson A new research from the University of Southern California (USC) Viterbi School of Engineering could be the key to our understanding of how the aging process works, a Rael-Science post has said. The findings potentially pave the way for better cancer treatments and revolutionary new drugs that could vastly improve human health in the twilight years. The work, from Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science Nick Graham and his team in collaboration with Scott Fraser, Provost Professor of Biological Sciences and Biomedical Engineering, and Pin Wang, Zohrab A. Kaprielian Fellow in Engineering, was recently published…

The Forum of Past Chairmen of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ in Akwa Ibom, has challenged the new team led by Comrade Amos Etuk as chairman, to quickly get to work to improve the practice of journalism profession and the welfare of members in the state. In a congratulatory to the new executive, the forum congratulated the chairman and other winners in the keenly contested State Council elections held on August 2, 2019. The Forum also lauded the peaceful atmosphere that reigned during the exercise, observing that as watch dogs who criticise the conduct of politicians at national elections,…

Siemens Nigeria, which recently signed an agreement with the Federal Government, has started work, planning to supply additional 2,000 megawatts and 4,000 mw for consumption by 2021 and 2023 respectively. Investigation by Vanguard showed that the company has been engaging with different stakeholders, including the Ministry of Works, Housing and Bureau of Public Enterprises, BPE, Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN and Electricity Distribution Companies, DISCOs, in order to better understand all issues and challenges staring the sector in the face. The engagements, involving visits and technical sessions culminated in the articulation of a plan, which has been approved by the…

By Akanimo Sampson There is a high risk of Ebola outbreak in Uganda as hundreds of citizens crossed the Congolese-Ugandan border last July to engage in economic opportunities. The Ebola scare is coming one year after the beginning of its outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) where the disease continues to affect highly mobile communities along the Ugandan border at major transit hubs. International Organisation for Migration (IOM) Uganda EVD Health Coordinator, Dr. Patrick Kaliika, said “there is a risk Ebola may cross into Uganda, but efforts at entry points are helping us to prevent the spread of the…