FG Should Give N50bn To Students As Grants Not Loan – ASUU

FG Should Give N50bn To Students As Grants Not Loan – ASUU

ASUU cited the burden of paying back the loan in a country where jobs are not guaranteed after graduation as the reason for the Union's suggestion. 

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has urged the Federal Government to covert the 50 billion naira budgeted for student loan scheme to grants.

President of ASUU, Emmanuel Osodeke, who was a guest on Channels Television’s Hard Copy on Friday, cited the burden of paying back the loan in a country where jobs are not guaranteed after graduation as the reason for the Union’s suggestion.

Recall that President Bola Tinubu signed the student loan bill into law on June 12.

The law is to provide easy access to higher education for indigent Nigerians through interest-free loans from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.

Tinubu in October announced that the scheme would commence in January 2024, with the Federal Government voting N50bn for the programme in the 2024 budget.

However, the ASUU president suggested that allocating the 50 billion naira as grants would have had more impact and be a humane investment in the education of Nigerian students.

“If the issue is just N50 billion, why can’t we convert that N50 billion as a country like Nigeria to grants for the children of the very poor?

“Let’s give to those who cannot afford it, not give them as a loan that becomes a liability for them before they even graduate and not sure of getting a job.

“We are thinking of the Nigerian people, those who cannot afford it, those children who are in the villages whose parents earn less than N30,000 a month,” he said.

“If it is just about 50 billion, the Nigerian government should give that 50 billion as grants to the students rather than giving it as a loan that will encumbrance them in the future and could make them start going to crime, in order to pay for this loan.”

Reflecting on past attempts to introduce a student loan, Osodeke questioned its success, pointing out that such initiatives had failed twice before.

He faulted the conditions attached to the loan, lamenting that it is economically disadvantaged for students in rural areas.

“In such a country where you easily have access to Job after graduation cannot pay it back and they are suffering, or people committing suicide. Is it in Nigeria where the children are sure that even in 10 years, you might not get the employment that they can pay back the loan?”

Addressing the budget allocation for the year, Osodeke raised doubts about the impact of a 50 billion naira loan, asking, “How many people will 50 billion go to as a loan?”

“Look at the conditionality, which level 12 officer will sign for the children of the poor in the village to get access to the loan? How much was budgeted this year? — 50 billion…how many people will 50 billion go to as loan?” he queried.

Kuwait Emir Sheikh Nawaf Dies At 86

Kuwait Emir Sheikh Nawaf Dies At 86

Given his age, concerns about his 

health were commonplace during his rule.

The ruling emir of oil-rich Kuwait, Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, died on Saturday aged 86, the royal court said, after three years in power marked by repeated political disputes.

“With great sadness and sorrow, we mourn… the death of Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, Emir of the State of Kuwait,” said a statement aired on state television.

The channel had cut its regular programming and switched to a broadcast of a Koranic recital before the announcement.

In November, Sheikh Nawaf was hospitalised “due to an emergency health problem”, according to the official KUNA news agency. It did not provide details about his illness, but he was later declared to be in stable condition.

Given his age, concerns about his health were commonplace during his rule.

Sheikh Nawaf ascended to the role of crown prince in 2006, appointed by his half-brother Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. He assumed the position of emir upon Sheikh Sabah’s death in September 2020 at the age of 91.

In 2020, Sheikh Nawaf faced the challenge of navigating the economy through a crisis triggered by a fall in oil prices.

The current crown prince, Sheikh Mishal al-Ahmad al-Sabah, another half-brother, is 83 years old. Attention is now focused on whether the family will appoint a younger generation ruler.

Around 14 months after he was appointed emir, Sheikh Nawaf transferred key constitutional duties to Sheikh Mishal.

 ‘Emir of pardons’

Sheikh Nawaf’s reign, though not the shortest in Kuwait’s history, was notable for issuing numerous amnesties, earning him the title “emir of pardons”, according to Bader al-Saif, an assistant professor of history at Kuwait University.

Last month, Kuwait’s Council of Ministers approved a draft royal decree calling for pardons for political prisoners convicted during the past decade. Similar pardons were also issued in 2021.

Sheikh Nawaf would also “be remembered for his unique personal attributes: soft spoken, devout, modest, low profile”, Saif said.

Kuwait, a conservative country where sovereign powers are concentrated in the hands of the ruling Al Sabah family, is home to the most active and powerful parliament in the Gulf.

But repeated standoffs between elected lawmakers and cabinet ministers installed by the ruling family have hindered development efforts and discouraged investors.

Following a succession of resigning governments and dissolved parliaments, Kuwait’s current cabinet is its fifth in a year.

Sheikh Nawaf’s rule also saw the Gulf country hold three parliamentary elections in as many years.

The political deadlock has delayed necessary reforms and blocked development projects, leaving infrastructure and education in disrepair and much of the population disgruntled.

Born in 1937, Sheikh Nawaf was the fifth son of Kuwait’s late ruler from 1921 to 1950 Sheikh Ahmad al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

He started his political career at the age of 25 as governor of Hawalli province, remaining in the position until 1978 when he began a decade-long tenure as interior minister.

Inflation Forces Turkey’s Central Bank Chief To Move In With Parents

The central bank last month pushed up benchmark lending rates to 40 percent in a bid to get inflation under control.

The new head of Turkey’s central bank said she has been priced out of Istanbul’s property market by rampant inflation, leaving no choice for the former finance executive but to move back in with her parents.

“We haven’t found a home in Istanbul. It’s terribly expensive. We’ve moved in with my parents,” 44-year-old Hafize Gaye Erkan, who took up her post in June after two decades in the United States, told the Hurriyet newspaper.

Erkan previously worked at firms including Goldman Sachs and First Republic Bank — and is now getting a crash course in the soaring prices that have seen many young people struggling to find lodgings.

“Is it possible that Istanbul has gotten more expensive than Manhattan?” she said.

Year-on-year inflation stood at 61 percent in November as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has allowed the lira currency to weaken while promising that a new team of economists with Wall Street experience would tackle years of economic crisis.

To quell growing anger, officials also capped rent increases at 25 percent — though experts say that has only amplified the housing tensions, as owners try to push out occupants, sometimes fraudulently, in order to set new and higher rents.

The central bank last month pushed up benchmark lending rates to 40 percent in a bid to get inflation under control.

“We’re nearing the end of our monetary tightening measures,” Erkan told the paper.

Two More Commissioners Quit Fubara’s Cabinet, Resignations Rise To Nine

Two More Commissioners Quit Fubara’s Cabinet, Resignations Rise To Nine

The latest to resign are the Commissioner for Special Project, Emeka Woke and the Commissioner for Environment, Austen Ben-Chioma.

The number of resignations in the Rivers State Executive Council has risen to nine after two more commissioners handed in their resignations following the depature of seven of their colleagues from Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s cabinet.

The latest to resign are the Commissioner for Special Projects, Emeka Woke and the Commissioner for Environment, Austen Ben-Chioma.

While Woke served as the Chief of Staff to former governor and current FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, Ben-Chioma served as Commissioner for Urban Development in the immediate past administration.

Woke was also former Local Government Chairman of Emohua Local Government Area.

His letter of resignation is dated November 14, 2023 as that of the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Professor Zacchaeus Adangor (SAN), whose resignation was first to be reported.

“My decision to resign at this time necessitated by pressing family demands for my time and attention as well as the desire to afford other deserving Rivers people the opportunity to serve you and the state in that capacity,” Woke’s letter read in part.

However, Ben-Chioma’s letter is dated December 15, 2023 as the case with the rest of the cabinet members that have resigned.

He also highlighted that his decision to resign was due to personal reasons.

Those who resigned earlier include the state’s Attorney-General (AG) and Commissioner for Justice Prof Zacchaeus Adangor, Commissioner for Works George-Kelly Alabo, Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Commissioner Inime Aguma and Commissioner of Finance, Isaac Kamalu.

Others are Commissioner of Transportation, Dr Jacobson B. Nbina, State Commissioner for Education, Prof. Prince Chinedu, as well as the State Commissioner for Housing, Gift Worlu.

The resignation of these nine Commissioners have so far come to public knowledge since the escalation of the political crisis in Rivers State.

One Commissioner, Henry Ogiri who was in charge of the Ministry of Power had before the new wave of resignations, left in November to take up a federal appointment as a Commissioner in the National Population Commission.

The Rivers State cabinet is now left with about 8 commissioners assuming more cabinet members have not resigned yet.

Israel Troops Kill Three Hostages Mistaking Them For ‘Threat’

Israel Troops Kill Three Hostages Mistaking Them For ‘Threat’

Army spokesman Daniel Hagari said the military "bears responsibility for everything that happened".

The Israeli army said its troops shot and killed three hostages on Friday after “mistakenly” identifying them as a threat.

“During combat in Shejaiya (a battleground neighbourhood of Gaza City), the IDF (army) mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat. As a result, the troops fired toward them and they were killed,” the army said in a statement.

“Immediate lessons from the event have been learned, which have been passed on to all IDF troops in the field,” it added, expressing “deep remorse over the tragic incident”.

The army identified the hostages as Yotam Haim and Alon Shamriz, both taken from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during Hamas’s October 7 attack, and Samer El-Talalqa, who was taken from Kibbutz Nir Am.

“This is an unbearable tragedy,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.

“The entire State of Israel mourns this evening. My heart goes out to the grieving families in their difficult time.”

Army spokesman Daniel Hagari said the military “bears responsibility for everything that happened”.

“We believe that the three Israelis either escaped or were abandoned by terrorists who held them captive,” he said, adding: “We still don’t know these details.”

Hamas kidnapped around 250 hostages during its October 7 attack on Israel, which killed 1,139 people, according to official figures.

Israel’s retaliatory war against the group has killed more than 18,700 people, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.

The Israeli government has repeatedly stated that bringing home all of the hostages is one of its chief war aims.

Missing UK Teenager Found After Six Years

Checks by French and British police confirmed his identity.

A British 17-year-old found in France six years after going missing in Spain is to return home to England this weekend, a French deputy prosecutor said on Friday.

Alex Batty, from the northern English city of Oldham, was picked up by a driver in a mountainous area of southern France.

Checks by French and British police confirmed his identity.

Police have said they suspect his mother, Melanie Batty — who did not have parental guardianship — and grandfather David Batty of having abducted the boy in 2017 when he was 11, under the pretence of going on holiday in Spain.

They went to live in alternative lifestyle communes in Spain and subsequently the French Pyrenees.

“He will be handed back to his maternal grandmother tomorrow (Saturday) or after tomorrow (Sunday) at the latest,” said the deputy public prosecutor for the Toulouse region, Antoine Leroy.

He would leave France via the southern city of Toulouse or southwestern city of Bordeaux, he said.

Alex’s grandmother was not able to travel and so the two would be reunited in the UK, he said, adding he was in touch with the British embassy.

Alex’s grandmother Susan Caruana, who according to British media reports is his legal guardian, expressed “relief and happiness” over the boy’s discovery.

“I spoke with him last night and it was so good to hear his voice and see his face again,” she said in a statement released by Greater Manchester Police.

“I can’t wait to see him when we’re reunited.

“The main thing is that he’s safe, after what would be an overwhelming experience for anyone, not least a child.”

Assistant Chief Constable Chris Sykes of Greater Manchester Police earlier told reporters: “Our priority is to get him back to the UK and getting back to his family in Oldham as soon as possible… I expect it to happen over the next few days.”

Leroy said the boy, his mother and grandfather had been in Spain and Morocco, before crossing over to France.

For six years, including two in France, he lived a “nomadic” life in a “spiritual “community”, never staying more than several months in the same place.

The teenager told investigators he had not suffered any physical violence during the past six years, but said he had been “sexually abused when he was… five or six years old”.

Mother ‘likely’ in Finland 

The deputy prosecutor described Alex as “bright and very calm”.

Leroy said he decided to escape when his mother announced she was going to go to Finland, where she is “likely” to be now. His grandfather died six months ago.

He said the 17-year-old walked for four nights in the direction of Toulouse before he was discovered at 3:00 am (02:00 GMT) on Wednesday by a young delivery man.

Toulouse public prosecutor Samuel Vuelta-Simon earlier told AFP that social services had taken care of the teenager.

The prosecutor added that there was no doubt over the boy’s identity.

Alex was last seen in Spain on October 8, 2017, the day he and his mother and grandfather were expected to return home from the family holiday.

Caruana has said she believed Alex’s mother and grandfather had taken him to live with a spiritual community to seek an alternative lifestyle without traditional education.

“They didn’t want him to go to school. They don’t believe in mainstream school,” Caruana told The Times of London.

Found By Delivery Driver 

The Depeche du Midi regional newspaper said Alex had been found by a student named Fabien Accidini.

Accidini, who delivers medicines to pharmacies in the area, said it was raining hard when he gave Alex a lift in his vehicle.

“He said that his mother had kidnapped him when he was around 12,” the student told La Depeche.

“Since then, he had lived in Spain in a luxury house with around 10 people. He would have arrived in France in around 2021.”

He had lived with his mother in a “spiritual community” in France and felt “no animosity towards her but wanted to go back to his grandmother”, Accidini said.

La Depeche said he had lived in France with his mother and grandfather in a “nomadic community” in the nearby Aude and Ariege departments.

Sykes, of the Greater Manchester Police, said that Alex had spoken to his grandmother by video call on Thursday night.

“Whilst she is content that this is indeed Alex, we obviously have further checks to do when he returns to the United Kingdom,” he added.

Anti-tank Mine Kills Four Soldiers in Senegal’s Casamance

Anti-tank Mine Kills Four Soldiers in Senegal’s Casamance a

The army has for several months been carrying out security operations against separatist rebels of the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC), who want independence for the region that also borders Guinea-Bissau.

Four Senegalese soldiers were killed when their vehicle ran over an anti-tank mine in the southern region of Casamance, where separatist rebels operate, the army said on Friday.

Three others were wounded in the explosion, which occurred on Thursday in Nord Bignona, near the border with Gambia, the army’s public relations unit said on X, formerly Twitter.

The army has for several months been carrying out security operations against separatist rebels of the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC), who want independence for the region that also borders Guinea-Bissau.

One of Africa’s oldest active rebellions, the MFDC has led a low-intensity separatist campaign since 1982 that has claimed several thousand lives.

The conflict was mostly dormant until Senegal launched a major offensive in 2021 to drive out the rebels.

Casamance, Senegal’s southernmost region, is almost separated from the rest of the country by the tiny state of Gambia.

It has a distinct culture and language derived from its past as a former Portuguese colony.

Senegal’s President Macky Sall has said that ending the rebellion is a priority, and in recent years the government has begun returning Casamance residents displaced by the conflict after announcing the destruction of several rebel bases.