Foreign Affairs

UK CONSERVATIVE PARTY MULLS REPLACING KEMI BADENOCH AS PARTY LEADER Unrest within the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party could see Kemi Badenoch booted out as leader after poll ratings for the party have dipped ahead of next week’s local elections. The Tories are expected to lose a significant number of seats in the elections. Polls indicated that Badenoch has performed poorly …

UK DEPORTS 43 NIGERIANS, INCLUDING FAILED ASYLUM SEEKERS, OFFENDER The United Kingdom has deported 43 Nigerians as part of its latest move to tighten immigration controls, according to a report published on the official government website, gov.uk, on Friday. Among those deported were 15 failed asylum seekers and 11 foreign national offenders who had completed their prison sentences. Additionally, seven …

ISRAEL DELETES SOCIAL MEDIA POST EXPRESSING SORROW FOR DEATH OF POPE FRANCIS A message on the country’s verified X account that read “Rest in Peace, Pope Francis. May his memory be a blessing” was taken down hours after it was posted on Monday. Israeli diplomatic missions around the world were ordered to delete any similar messages and not to sign …

FAREWELL TO THE PEOPLE’S POPE BYKAYODE KOMOLAFE The progressive signature of Pope Francis on the Vatican was unmistakable from the beginning of his papacy. Since the Catholic pontiff died on Easter Monday the remarkable positions taken by the Bishop of Rome on many socio-economic and political issues have been amply acknowledged in tributes from diverse quarters. The Pope stood for …

FRONTLINE CARDINALS WHO MAY SUCCEED POPE FRANCIS Following the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday, the Catholic Church has entered a period known as sede vacante, which is Latin for “the seat being vacant”. This triggers the centuries-old process of selecting a new pope. With no clear frontrunner, attention has turned to a number of high-ranking cardinals considered potential …

FRONTLINE CARDINALS WHO MAY SUCCEED POPE FRANCIS Following the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday, the Catholic Church has entered a period known as sede vacante, which is Latin for “the seat being vacant”. This triggers the centuries-old process of selecting a new pope. With no clear frontrunner, attention has turned to a number of high-ranking cardinals considered potential …

TRIBUTES AS POPE FRANCIS DIES AT 88 Pope Francis, whose time as head of the Catholic Church was noted for humility and outreach efforts to people of disparate backgrounds and faiths, has died at 88, the Vatican has confirmed. The Argentinian national was known as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, when he was elected the Catholic …

TRIBUTES AS POPE FRANCIS DIES AT 88 Pope Francis, whose time as head of the Catholic Church was noted for humility and outreach efforts to people of disparate backgrounds and faiths, has died at 88, the Vatican has confirmed. The Argentinian national was known as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, when he was elected the Catholic …

CHINA TURNS TO NIGERIA, OTHER EMERGING ECONOMIES AS US MARKETS FREEZE Product manufacturers in China have turned their attention to Nigeria and other emerging markets following the imposition of trade tariffs on their products by the US President, Donald Trump. Trump, on April 2, slapped a 46% tariff on Vietnam and a 17% levy on the Philippines before paring those …

NIGERIA CUTS POWER SUPPLY TO NIGER REPUBLIC The Federal Government has reduced electricity supply and sales to the Junta-ruled Niger Republic by 42 per cent, cutting it down from 80 megawatts to 46MW. The measure has caused the country’s electricity production to fall by 30 to 50 per cent and forced state-owned power company Nigelec to impose planned power cuts …