Dons Eze
- Foreign Affairs
- March 30, 2024
- 120 views
KING CHARLES HAS ONLY TWO YEARS TO LIVE, FUNERAL PLANS UNVEILED
KING CHARLES HAS ONLY TWO YEARS TO LIVE, FUNERAL PLANS UNVEILED King Charles III has only been Britain’s reigning monarch for 18 months, yet his funeral plans are already set amid his battle with pancreatic cancer. Named “Operation Menai Bridge,” the monarch’s funeral processions will look similar to Queen Elizabeth II’s ceremonies, dubbed “Operation London Bridge.” As his cancer progresses, royal insiders tell In Touch that Charles’ final resting plans are of timely prioritization. “It’s a fairly common thing to do among the British royalty, but in Charles’ case expediency is necessary,” says the source, who notes that “some courtiers believe Charles’ cancer is worse than they’re making it out to be.” “Operation Menai Bridge” is set to include familiar protocols. When the monarch dies, Charles’ body will be moved from the throne room at Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall. He will lie in state, and his official funeral will take place nine days later. He will likely be buried in the royal vault at Windsor Castle. “It will have all the pomp and circumstance befitting a British monarch,” adds the source. The update comes shortly after a separate high ranking royal insider told In Touch that Charles is not only battling pancreatic cancer – a timely update given that he did not share what kind of cancer he was diagnosed with – but has a mere two years to live. “King Charles is much sicker than the palace lets on and simply isn’t up to the job of running his fractious family, the crown’s business interests and fulfilling the daily duties of the monarchy,” the member of the royal inner circle revealed in early March. “His cancer is eating him alive. He’s very frail. The situation is desperate.” Royal watchers have begun to witness his decline, too. Though he will be stepping out on Easter Sunday for a service at Windsor, the king is missing from the royal calendar for the foreseeable future, instead relying heavily on his sister, Princess Anne, to do the work of the royal family. While many would have assumed his heir, Prince William, would be stepping up to the plate, he too is missing from the royal schedule due to Princess Kate Middleton’s own cancer diagnosis and treatment. However, additional sources told In Touch that more could be at play between Charles and William outside of the family’s respective health crises, as the king is under the impression William is not ready to take the throne. “Charles knows the pressures of being the monarch, and he just isn’t sure William is ready to take his place,” the third insider revealed, noting that William is “currently facing a public relations disaster.” “It seems premature, and there could be consequences.” With such an update, the future of the monarchy seems shaky at best, and even Queen Camilla is said to be frustrated by Charles’ declining health and weakened status. “Behind the scenes, Camilla is disgusted by the king’s apparent weakness and is providing him little comfort as he battles his fatal cancer,” a palace courtier told In Touch in early March, highlighting her vacation from royal duties which started on March 4.“By going on holiday, she was thumbing her nose at stepson William, who is incapable of shouldering the monarchy’s burdens on his own.”
WHY I IGNORED LABOUR PARTY CONVENTION – PETER OBI
WHY I IGNORED LABOUR PARTY CONVENTION — PETER OBI Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party for 2023 elections has declared his stance on the recent national convention of the party that saw Barr Julius Abure emerge as Julius Abure emerge as national chairman. Addressing Nigerians on X Space hosted by Parallel Facts on Friday, Peter Obi said he ignored the convention because the party leadership under Abure failed to do wide consultation with key stakeholders of the party before embarking on the said convention.The former Anambra Governor emphasised the need for the right thing to be done to salvage the party, adding that he is more passionate about building a new Nigeria than building a new Labour Party.
PDP APPOINTS CARETAKER COMMITTEES FOR STATES, LGAS, WARDS
PDP APPOINTS CARETAKER COMMITTEES FOR STATES, LGAS, WARDS The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has approved the appointment of the Executives whose tenures have expired in some State, Local Government and Ward chapters to serve as Caretaker Committees in the affected States, LGAs and Wards respectively. The appointment was pursuant to the provisions of Section 29 (2) (b) of the Constitution of the Party on behalf of the National Executive Committee (NEC). The PDP, in a statement by its spokesman, Hon Debo Ologunagba, said that the Caretaker Committees have been mandated to run the affairs of the Party at their appropriate levels for a period of 3 (three) months as follows: ABIA – Local Government Area (LGA): With effect from March 22, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 15, 2024 AKWA IBOM – LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024 ; Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 BAUCHI – LGA: With effect from March 22, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 14, 2024 BAYELSA – State: With effect from March 23, 2024; LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 BENUE- LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 CROSS RIVER – LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 DELTA- LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 EKITI – Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 ENUGU – LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 14, 2024 GOMBE- State: With effect from March 23, 2024; LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 14, 2024 IMO – LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 14, 2024 JIGAWA- Ward: With effect from March 16, 2024 KADUNA. – Ward: With effect from March 14, 2024 NIGER. – Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 ONDO – LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 PLATEAU – LGA: With effect from March 23, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 RIVERS- State: With effect from March 21, 2024; LGA: With effect from March 18, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 14, 2024 SOKOTO- Ward: With effect from March 16, 2024 TARABA- Ward: With effect from March 14, 2024 Federal Capital Territory (FCT)- LGA: With effect from March 21, 2024; Ward: With effect from March 7, 2024 The NWC stated that in situations where vacancies occurred in the respective Excos due to death, defection and/or resignation, no replacement should be effected for such vacancies in the Caretakers Committees.The NWC charged all leaders, critical stakeholders and members of the Party to continue to work together to ensure the stability, growth and success of the Party in their respective States, Local Government Areas and Wards.
- Foreign Affairs
- March 26, 2024
- 112 views
INTERPOL GOES AFTER FLEEING BINANCE DIRECTOR – MINISTER
INTERPOL GOES AFTER FLEEING BINANCE DIRECTOR – MINISTER Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris on Monday said there is no hiding place for Nadeem Anjarwalla, a Director of Binance who escaped from custody and fled the country after he was detained by the Nigerian Government. The minister said the International Police (Interpol) were currently on Anjarwalla’s trail. Idris was reacting to the Binance executive’s escape from Nigeria. According to Idris, since Binance is an international firm, there is no way the culprit will evade arrest. His explanation came barely few hours after the Office of the National Security Adviser confirmed that Anjarwalla, a key suspect in the ongoing criminal investigation regarding Binance’s activities in Nigeria, managed to escape lawful custody on Friday, March 22nd, 2024. In an official statement released by the Head of Strategic Communication for the Office of the National Security Adviser, Zakari Mijinyawa, it was explained that collaborative efforts between the office, relevant security agencies, various government bodies and the international community are already underway to swiftly locate and detain the fugitive. The statement stressed that security agencies are working with Interpol for an international arrest warrant on the suspect as preliminary investigation shows that Anjarwalla fled Nigeria using a smuggled passport. The personnel responsible for the custody of the suspect have been arrested, and a thorough investigation is ongoing to unravel the circumstances that led to his escape from lawful detention. It would be recalled that the Federal Government of Nigeria, like other governments around the world, has been investigating money laundering and terrorism financing transactions perpetrated on the Binance currency exchange platform. Anjarwalla, who holds British and Kenyan nationalities and serves as Binance’s Africa regional manager, was being tried by Nigerian courts before he escaped while under a 14-day remand order issued by a court.He was scheduled to appear before the court again on 4 April 2024.
LP CRISIS: PETER OBI, OBIDIENTS DUMP ABURE AS SEARCH FOR NEW CHAIRMAN BEGINS
LP CRISIS: PETER OBI, OBIDIENTS DUMP ABURE, AS SEARCH FOR NEW CHAIRMAN BEGINS The crisis rocking the Labour Party, LP, took a dangerous dimension last week, with members of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, picketing the party’s national secretariat and some of its state offices. There are also indications that the presidential candidate of the party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi and his supporters known as Obidients may have abandoned the party’s National Chairman, Julius Abure to his fate. This is not unconnected to the internal crisis that has been rocking the party structure since the 2023 general elections was concluded. After a series of legal battles with the factional chairman of the party, Lamidi Apapa, Abure has been in the news over alleged financial impropriety and other disturbing issues. Peter Obi had in February 2024, called for a thorough and forensic investigation into an embezzlement allegation levelled against the party’s chairman, Abure. The call by the former Anambra Governor was in response to allegations earlier made by Oluchi Oparah, the national treasurer of the party, accusing Abure of allegedly misappropriating N3.5 billion. Oparah also alleged that the Abure-led National Working Committee, NWC, was working hand-in-hand with the Edo State Government and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, ahead of the September 2024 governorship polls. Similarly, in a letter signed by Comrades TItus Amba and Chris Uyot, the chairman and the secretary of NLC Political Commission, the party expressed concerns over recurrent scandals and pending cases of fraud. Abure was recently accused by some stakeholders of the party, including the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, of running the LP as a “sole administrator.” The Deputy President of the NLC Political Commission, Dr Theophilus Ndubuaku, who spoke when the workers occupied the Labour Party headquarters in Abuja recently, said the decision to picket the party’s headquarters was taken to express workers’ grievances against Abure’s style of leadership. He said, ”Now, it is in the hands of this usurper, he is looking for N30 million, N40 million, and so on to buy forms, excluding the people who founded the party. Enough is enough, Abure must go,” said the acting General Secretary of NLC, Comrade Bello Ismail on the cost of governorship interest and nomination forms. Similarly, in a letter issued by Comrades TItus Amba and Chris Uyot, the chairman and secretary of NLC Political Commission, respectively, the union also knocked Abure for not being committed to the ideology of the Labour Party. The embattled LP Chairman was in the news recently again over his alleged plan to hold National Convention without due processes. The Abure-led National Working Committee, NWC, was accused of planning to hold the national convention of the party in Umuahia, Abia State capital on March 27. The planned convention was captured in a notice issued to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on March 13. The move was, however, rejected by critical stakeholders, such as the House of Reps Caucus and the NLC, leading to the recent picketing of the party’s secretariat last week. Recall that the Nigeria Labour Congress Political Commission – the political wing of the NLC, had in an open letter dated March 15, condemned the planned convention. While demanding for the immediate resignation of Abure, the commission described the plan as illegal, noting that it would not allow any form of illegality in the affairs of the party to stand. A source who spoke on Saturday on condition of anonymity, alleged that Abure’s intention was to impose leadership on the party. He said major stakeholders in that party were against the March convention, stressing that the party needs more time to select its leaders. “Everybody in the party including our leader, Peter Obi is tired of Abure’s leadership.…