Elon’s refute to join the Twitter Board

 

Elon Musk

As contained in a recent tweet from Parag Agrawal (the CEO of Twitter), Elon Musk has decided not to join the board.

The brief note to the company reads:

“Elon Musk has decided not to join our board. Here’s what I can share about what happened.

The Board and I had many discussions about Elon joining the board, and with Elon directly. We were excited to collaborate and clear about the risks. We also believed that having Elon as a fiduciary of the company where he, like all board members, has to act in the best interests of the company and all our shareholders, was the best path forward. The board offered him a seat.

We announced on Tuesday that Elon would be appointed to the Board contingent on a background check and formal acceptance. Elon’s appointment to the board was to become officially effective 4/9, but Elon shared that same morning that he will no longer be joining the board. I believed this is for the best. We have and will always value input from our shareholders whether they are on our Board or not. Elon is our biggest shareholder and we will remain open to his input.

There will be distractions ahead, but our goals and priorities remain unchanged. The decisions we make and how we executive is in our hands, no one else’s. Let’s tune out the noise, and stay focused on the work and what we are.

Osinbajo finally declares his interest to run for Presidency come 2023

The ice has finally been broken as Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo declares his interest to run for the Presidency in the 2023 General Elections in Nigeria.

This, he made official in his verified twitter account in the early hours of Monday.

Ukraine Presses NATO For Weapons

 

Ukrainian Soldiers

Ukraine is pressing NATO for more weapons amid expectations that Russia is repositioning its forces before launching a major offensive in southeastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba met with NATO foreign ministers in Brussels on April 7, as well as with ministers from the Group of Seven, who pledged "additional restrictive measures" on Russia and a "readiness to assist further, including with military equipment and financial means, to allow Ukraine to defend itself against Russia’s aggression and to rebuild Ukraine."

The G7, which comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, also condemned "in the strongest terms" what it calls the "atrocities" committed by Russia in the town of Bucha and other areas of Ukraine.

"Haunting images of civilian deaths, victims of torture, and apparent executions, as well as reports of sexual violence and destruction of civilian infrastructure, show the true face of Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine and its people," foreign ministers from the G7 said in a joint statement on April 7.

"The massacres in the town of Bucha and other Ukrainian towns will be inscribed in the list of atrocities and severe violations of international law, including international humanitarian law and human rights, committed by the aggressor on Ukrainian soil," it added.

Kuleba said he and G7 ministers had discussed how they could take military, economic, and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine to the next level.

"Ukraine proposes a fair deal: the world provides us with all the support we require; we fight and defeat [Russian President Vladimir] Putin in Ukraine," he said on Twitter after the meeting in Brussels.

Senate confirms Jackson as first Black woman Justice on U.S. Supreme Court

Ketanji Brown Jackson

Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed by the Senate on Thursday as the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court in a milestone for the United States and a victory for President Joe Biden, who made good on a campaign promise as he seeks to infuse the federal judiciary with a broader range of backgrounds.

The vote to confirm the 51-year-old federal appellate judge to a lifetime job on the nation's top judicial body was 53-47, with three Republicans - Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Mitt Romney - joining Biden's fellow Democrats. A simple majority was needed, as Jackson overcame Republican opposition in a Supreme Court confirmation process that remains fiercely partisan.

Jackson will take the 83-year-old Breyer's place on the liberal bloc of a court with an increasingly assertive 6-3 conservative majority. Breyer is due to serve until the court's current term ends - usually in late June - and Jackson would be formally sworn in after that. Jackson served early in her career as a Supreme Court clerk for Breyer.

Biden hosted Jackson at the White House to watch the vote on television, posting on Twitter a selfie he took of them smiling after Senate acted.

Jonathan Escapes Unhurt As Aides Die In Abuja Road Accident

Goodluck Jonathan

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) on Wednesday confirmed the death of two aides of former President Goodluck Jonathan and the hospitalisation of two others in an auto crash involving the convoy of the former president in Abuja.

The incident happened when Jonathan was said to be coming from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport and heading towards his residence in Abuja.

However, confirming the accident on Wednesday, FRSC spokesperson, Bisi Kazeem, said apart from the aides that died, two other aides were also rushed to the National Hospital in Abuja after they sustained various degrees of injuries.

The FRSC also said the former president was not injured as the car he was in was not part of the ones that crashed.

Jonathan was later seen at the National Hospital after the incident before he eventually returned to his residence.

Meanwhile, Dr Jonathan has expressed  sadness over the  death of two police officers attached to him in the road crash.

In a statement, Ikechukwu Eze, Special Adviser (Media & Publicity) to Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, said the former president noted with sadness that the deceased, Inspectors Ibrahim Abazi and Yakubu Toma, were fine officers who were dedicated to their duties and service to the nation.

“The office of the former president has offered condolences to the families of the bereaved and the Police High Command.

“Dr. Jonathan prayed God to grant the souls of the departed eternal rest and bless their families and the nation with the fortitude to bear the loss”, Eze said

Twitter appoints Elon Musk to its board

In his recent tweets, Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal welcomes Elon Musk to the company’s board. Agrawal announced the move via a fresh set of tweets on Tuesday. The newly appointed CEO believes that the Tesla CEO will “bring great value” to the board. Musk also plans to bring “significant improvements to Twitter in coming months”. Who knows, maybe we will finally get the much-awaited edit button. Will we?

“I’m excited to share that we’re appointing @elonmusk to our board! Through conversations with Elon in recent weeks, it became clear to us that he would bring great value to our Board,” Agrawal noted in the announcement tweet.

The Twitter CEO also added that Musk is a “passionate believer and intense critic of the service” and that is exactly what the company and the boardroom require. Agrawal welcomes Elon Musk with the belief that he will make the social media platform “stronger in the long-term”.

FG Instructs Telcos to Bar Outgoing Calls on Unlinked Lines With Immediate Effect

 

Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami

The Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, on behalf of the Federal Government, has commended Nigerians and Legal Residents for their support during the exercise to link National Identification Number (NIN) to the Subscriber Identification Module (SIM). As of date, over 125 Million SIMs have had their NINs submitted for immediate linkage, verification and authentication.

Similarly, the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has issued over 78 Million unique NINs till date.

It would be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, gave the directive for the implementation and commencement of the exercise in December 2020, as part of the administration's security and social policies.

The deadlines for the NIN-SIM linkage has been extended on multiple occasions to allow Nigerians to freely comply with the Policy. The FG also took into consideration the passionate appeals by several bodies - Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Civil Societies, Professional Bodies and a host of others – for the extension of the deadlines in the past.

Will Smith refused to leave Oscars, faces disciplinary action for slapping Chris Rock

Will Smith was asked to leave the 94th annual Academy Awards ceremony Sunday after slapping presenter Chris Rock, but refused, according to a new statement from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Wednesday.

The organization behind the Oscars said its board of governors have initiated a disciplinary proceeding against Smith for violating the group’s standards of conduct. During the board’s next meeting on April 18 it will decide what action it will take, if any, including suspension or expulsion.

“Mr. Smith’s actions at the 94th Oscars were a deeply shocking, traumatic event to witness in-person and on television,” The Academy said in its statement. “Mr. Rock, we apologize to you for what you experienced on our stage and thank you for your resilience in that moment. We also apologize to our nominees, guests and viewers for what transpired during what should have been a celebratory event.”

Sri Lanka Economic Crisis

Damaged bus after it was set on fire by demonstrators in Colombo, Sri Lanka April 1, 2022. (Reuters)

Amid protests over the country’s worst economic crisis in decades, Sri Lanka government has imposed a curfew across the country from Saturday 6pm to Monday 6 am.

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa also declared a nationwide public emergency late on Friday. The President invoked tough laws allowing the military to arrest and detain suspects for long periods without trial, as demonstrations calling for his ouster spread across the South Asian nation.

Meanwhile, Lanka IOC, the subsidiary of Indian Oil Corporation in Sri Lanka, said Friday it would supply 6,000 MT of fuel to ease the power shortages. On Saturday, Indian traders said they were in the process of shipping 40,000 tonnes of rice to Sri Lanka, according to a report in Reuters.

Anger against Rajapaksa’s handling of a deepening economic crisis in the island nation of 22 million people spiraled into violence late on Thursday, as hundreds of protesters clashed with police for several hours.

A severe shortage of foreign currency has left Rajapaksa’s government unable to pay for essential imports, including fuel, leading to debilitating power cuts lasting up to 13 hours. 

Ukraine denies reprisal airstrike on major Russian oil depot

Moscow on Friday, accused Ukrainian forces of blowing up a huge oil depot in Russia in an airstrike – an attack that Ukraine denied carrying out.

Russia had warned that the attack could hamper peace talks between the nations, which were due to continue Friday by video. But Ukraine officials scoffed they had nothing to do with the bombing.

“For some reasons, they say that we did it, but according to our information, this does not correspond to reality,” Ukrainian Security Council Secretary Oleksiy Danilov said on national TV.

Earlier in the day, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Ukraine was to blame, according to Agence France-Presse.

“Of course, this is not something that can be perceived as creating comfortable conditions for the continuation of negotiations,” Peskov added.

Videos showed a flurry of rockets piercing the night sky in Belgorod at around 6 a.m. – and then a huge fire raging at the storage depot in the Russian city about 21 miles from Ukraine’s border.

“The fire at the oil depot occurred as a result of an airstrike from two helicopters of the armed forces of Ukraine, which entered the territory of Russia at a low altitude,” Belgorod regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram.

Gladkov initially said two employees had been hurt but in an update noted, “There are no victims.” Russian energy giant Rosneft, which owns the facility, also said there had been no injuries.

The strike came after Ukraine’s defense ministry posted a social media video pretending to announce Oscars-style awards for its military successes.

Pope Benedict XVI makes historic Indigenous apology for Canada abuses

Pope Francis on Friday made a historic apology to Indigenous peoples for the “deplorable” abuses they suffered in Canada’s Catholic-run residential schools and said he hoped to visit Canada in late July to deliver the apology in person to survivors of the church's misguided missionary zeal.

Francis begged forgiveness during an audience with dozens of members of the Metis, Inuit and First Nations communities who came to Rome seeking a papal apology and a commitment from the Catholic Church to repair the damage. The first pope from the Americas said he hoped to visit Canada around the Feast of St. Anna, which falls on July 26.