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Nigerians on social media have lambasted former President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, for condemning the suspension of Hadiza Bala-Usman as Managing Director (MD) of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

President Muhammadu Buhari had on May 5 approved Bala-Usman's suspension after a reported cold war between her and Rotimi Amaechi, Minister of Transportation.

She was accused of failing to remit the operating surplus of NPA to the consolidated revenue fund (CFR), an allegation she denied.

Amaechi had inaugurated an 11-member investigative panel to probe NPA over all contracts awarded since 2016 when she became Managing Director.

However, Sirleaf in a tweet on Saturday said Bala-Usman's suspension disheartened her.

The first female President of Liberia claimed she knew her to be an accomplished leader and dedicated public servant.

"I am disheartened to hear about the suspension of Nigerian Ports Authority MD @hadizabalausman, who I have known to be an accomplished leader and dedicated public servant," the tweet had read.

"I urge adherence to the rule of law and fair and equal treatment as the situation evolves."

Nigerians on social media, however, mauled the former Liberian leader over her tweet.

They asked her to face her country's problems and challenges and leave Nigerians to address their own in their ways.

Here are Twitter reactions below:

A Twitter user, @danleety wrote, "You never care to wait for the outcome of the panel, what if she's corrupt , and you are still backing her without in-depth knowledge."

Another used, @jacksonpbn said, "Please respect yourself and mind your business. Don't let us drag you on this lane and expose how you used your sons to loot Liberia!" 

For @grandmasta_01, the former Liberian President ought to be more concerned about the mindless killings in Nigeria.

"Ma, the mindless killings going on in Nigeria has not disheartened you for once, it's the Hadiza Usman's issue.
There is more to this, Ma. Kindly keep your relationship personal and not get dragged in the Naija style. It's not usually pleasant," he said. 

@akingbadegroup wrote, "Disheartening about the suspension of NPA Boss not about the incessant killing in Nigeria and kidnapping of girls school child if at all you want to sympathize with Nigeria in anyway, misplacement of priority." 

@rotilaw said, "The MD was appointed by the President and remains in office at his pleasure. That the President has removed her is within his authority. I seriously doubt if Madam Sirleaf who have brooked such intervention when she was President."

@Hon_oluwatosin wrote, "Is Liberia corruption-free? If yes, you can speak as a patriotic for her. Meanwhile, there's nothing wrong in changing her, the ministry isn't her heritage, but public office Thank you for your concern." 

Another user, @TAIWOISAACABIOD said, "Face your country problems and challenges and leave Nigeria to address their challenges in their own way/s.

What was your contribution to the development of Liberia for the tenure of your office as a woman?." 

 

Politics News AddThis :  Original Author :  SaharaReporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
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Nigerians on social media have lambasted former President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, for condemning the suspension of Hadiza Bala-Usman as Managing Director (MD) of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

President Muhammadu Buhari had on May 5 approved Bala-Usman's suspension after a reported cold war between her and Rotimi Amaechi, Minister of Transportation.

She was accused of failing to remit the operating surplus of NPA to the consolidated revenue fund (CFR), an allegation she denied.

Amaechi had inaugurated an 11-member investigative panel to probe NPA over all contracts awarded since 2016 when she became Managing Director.

However, Sirleaf in a tweet on Saturday said Bala-Usman's suspension disheartened her.

The first female President of Liberia claimed she knew her to be an accomplished leader and dedicated public servant.

"I am disheartened to hear about the suspension of Nigerian Ports Authority MD @hadizabalausman, who I have known to be an accomplished leader and dedicated public servant," the tweet had read.

"I urge adherence to the rule of law and fair and equal treatment as the situation evolves."

Nigerians on social media, however, mauled the former Liberian leader over her tweet.

They asked her to face her country's problems and challenges and leave Nigerians to address their own in their ways.

Here are Twitter reactions below:

A Twitter user, @danleety wrote, "You never care to wait for the outcome of the panel, what if she's corrupt , and you are still backing her without in-depth knowledge."

Another used, @jacksonpbn said, "Please respect yourself and mind your business. Don't let us drag you on this lane and expose how you used your sons to loot Liberia!" 

For @grandmasta_01, the former Liberian President ought to be more concerned about the mindless killings in Nigeria.

"Ma, the mindless killings going on in Nigeria has not disheartened you for once, it's the Hadiza Usman's issue.
There is more to this, Ma. Kindly keep your relationship personal and not get dragged in the Naija style. It's not usually pleasant," he said. 

@akingbadegroup wrote, "Disheartening about the suspension of NPA Boss not about the incessant killing in Nigeria and kidnapping of girls school child if at all you want to sympathize with Nigeria in anyway, misplacement of priority." 

@rotilaw said, "The MD was appointed by the President and remains in office at his pleasure. That the President has removed her is within his authority. I seriously doubt if Madam Sirleaf who have brooked such intervention when she was President."

@Hon_oluwatosin wrote, "Is Liberia corruption-free? If yes, you can speak as a patriotic for her. Meanwhile, there's nothing wrong in changing her, the ministry isn't her heritage, but public office Thank you for your concern." 

Another user, @TAIWOISAACABIOD said, "Face your country problems and challenges and leave Nigeria to address their challenges in their own way/s.

What was your contribution to the development of Liberia for the tenure of your office as a woman?." 

 

Politics News AddThis :  Original Author :  SaharaReporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
https://ift.tt/3feqvhG

Nigerians on social media have lambasted former President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, for condemning the suspension of Hadiza Bala-Usman as Managing Director (MD) of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

President Muhammadu Buhari had on May 5 approved Bala-Usman's suspension after a reported cold war between her and Rotimi Amaechi, Minister of Transportation.

She was accused of failing to remit the operating surplus of NPA to the consolidated revenue fund (CFR), an allegation she denied.

Amaechi had inaugurated an 11-member investigative panel to probe NPA over all contracts awarded since 2016 when she became Managing Director.

However, Sirleaf in a tweet on Saturday said Bala-Usman's suspension disheartened her.

The first female President of Liberia claimed she knew her to be an accomplished leader and dedicated public servant.

"I am disheartened to hear about the suspension of Nigerian Ports Authority MD @hadizabalausman, who I have known to be an accomplished leader and dedicated public servant," the tweet had read.

"I urge adherence to the rule of law and fair and equal treatment as the situation evolves."

Nigerians on social media, however, mauled the former Liberian leader over her tweet.

They asked her to face her country's problems and challenges and leave Nigerians to address their own in their ways.

Here are Twitter reactions below:

A Twitter user, @danleety wrote, "You never care to wait for the outcome of the panel, what if she's corrupt , and you are still backing her without in-depth knowledge."

Another used, @jacksonpbn said, "Please respect yourself and mind your business. Don't let us drag you on this lane and expose how you used your sons to loot Liberia!" 

For @grandmasta_01, the former Liberian President ought to be more concerned about the mindless killings in Nigeria.

"Ma, the mindless killings going on in Nigeria has not disheartened you for once, it's the Hadiza Usman's issue.
There is more to this, Ma. Kindly keep your relationship personal and not get dragged in the Naija style. It's not usually pleasant," he said. 

@akingbadegroup wrote, "Disheartening about the suspension of NPA Boss not about the incessant killing in Nigeria and kidnapping of girls school child if at all you want to sympathize with Nigeria in anyway, misplacement of priority." 

@rotilaw said, "The MD was appointed by the President and remains in office at his pleasure. That the President has removed her is within his authority. I seriously doubt if Madam Sirleaf who have brooked such intervention when she was President."

@Hon_oluwatosin wrote, "Is Liberia corruption-free? If yes, you can speak as a patriotic for her. Meanwhile, there's nothing wrong in changing her, the ministry isn't her heritage, but public office Thank you for your concern." 

Another user, @TAIWOISAACABIOD said, "Face your country problems and challenges and leave Nigeria to address their challenges in their own way/s.

What was your contribution to the development of Liberia for the tenure of your office as a woman?." 

 

Politics News AddThis :  Original Author :  SaharaReporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
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Consistently committed in deploying his unique intellectual capacity and organising skills for decades; he is one of those who has brought Marxist socialist thoughts closer to the ordinary person in effortless manners, not just through his writings but in practical actions in organising peasant farmers, workers, students and all their allies without sectarian dispositions or postulations.

Educated as a mathematician at the Universities of Ibadan and Lagos, Nigeria, Dr. Edwin Madunagu can safely be described as one of the few intellectuals who have succeeded in sustaining Marxian discourse in contemporary Nigeria, even when the strength of the movement seems waned by the incursion of non-state organisations commonly called Non-Governmental Organisations funded by imperialist interests. Dr. Madunagu still believes in the efficacy of an efficient mass organising model in changing society to a better place for humanity.

He has written several books on political economy and opinion articles as a columnist with one of Nigeria’s most popular liberal newspapers, The Guardian for decades and maintain a resource centre in Calabar that will possibly serve the reading/research public globally for centuries to come, if well preserved.

Edwin Madunagu

Eddie who was once sacked as a lecturer at the University of Lagos by the military regime led by General Olusegun Obasanjo for mobilising students and the public against anti people policies that were not just driven towards mass assault on education, but focused on deepening mass poverty in the country was appointed a member of a committee that eventually turned out to be a cover for personal intents of a reprobate regime headed by General Ibrahim Babangida.

Less than a year after the Babangida gang seized power, the regime constituted the National Political Bureau to engage the Nigeria people in discussions around the political future of the country and also, among others, to "review Nigeria’s political history and identify the basic problems which have led to our failure in the past and suggest ways of resolving and coping with these problems."

Despite his open radical dispositions and critical credentials, Dr. Madunagu’s name was announced as one of those to conduct the debates that ended up as smokescreen by the regime to entrench itself in power.

The seventeen-member Political Bureau was inaugurated in Abuja on January 13, 1986.

The bureau, headed by Dr. Samuel Joseph Cookey had Dr Madunagu as member along with Abdullahi Augie, Dr. Bala Takaya, Oye Oyediran, Mrs. Hilda Adefarasin who was then President of the Nigeria Council of Women Societies, E.O Ewa, Professor Tunde Adeniran, Mrs. R. Abdullahi. A.D Yahaya, Professor Sam Oyovbaire, Dr. Ola Balogun who later opted out of the team, Comrade Paschal Bafyau, then General Secretary of the Nigeria Union of Railway Workers and later elected as President of Nigeria Labour Congress, Sanni Zahradeen, Mallam Haruna Adamu, Comrade Ibrahim Halilu, then General Secretary of the National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions Employees, as well as O.E. Uya.

Of all the seventeen members, Dr. Madunagu was clearly the only well known marxist-communist who had once left his teaching job and relocated to Odeomu, a village somewhere in Osun State, close to the university town of Ile – Ife along with Dr. Seinde Arigbede and others to organise peasants and their allies for the struggles against oppression and exploitation of the Nigerian people. 

He had no illusions about the bureau accepting his inputs and consequently ended up writing a minority report that was published by the Newswatch Magazine which immediately suffered a ban for publishing the report. Such attacks were regular attributes of the Babangida government, a major feature of all fascist regimes. Not a few media organisations suffered the same fate, with the exception of those that were the regime’s apologists.

The place of Dr. Madunagu in the left movement in Nigeria is colossal as he has been involved in organising cells around campuses and communities for decades; leading to the formation of several mass organisations across the country.

Despite the post glasnost and perestroika assault on the left and decimation of left movements across the globe by deliberate proliferation of non-state organisations, popularly referred to as non-governmental organisations, with attractive funds from imperialist sources, Eddy’s writings, sustained commitment to the struggle and unwavering principles surely encourages us, the younger ones to keep the fire burning as we believe the tunnel will open with shining lights. We should never give up as the oppressing system won’t give up without a nifty battle.

The challenge of having a leader like Eddie still with us without any relapse is for the rest of us, especially younger comrades, to redouble our commitment and abilities to organise without all the contemporary nuances such as ethnicity and religion. We must refocus our commitments to building mass organisations with clear ideological, internationalist focus without sectarian dispositions. This will be the greatest honour we can give to all our ageing comrades.

As we celebrate Dr. Ewin Madunagu this Saturday, 15th day of May 2021 at 75, we will continue to be encouraged and emboldened by his writings, principles and consistent commitment to our collective struggles.

Happy birthday, great Comrade.

Denja Yaqub is an Assistant Secretary (Industrial Relations) at the headquarters of Nigeria Labour Congress, Abuja

TRIBUTE AddThis :  Original Author :  Denja Yaqub Disable advertisements : 
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The drama  Mr Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwoolu had been performing in the selection of the 9th Vice Chancellor of Lagos  State University (LASU) is intriguing, incredulous and insalubrious. The scripting of the drama probably began hours after the recommendations of the joint selection panel of the University reached his table, but the drama itself started seventeen days after Mr  Governor had received the recommendations. Rather than picking any of the top three candidates recommended to him, he elected to follow the June 12 style of President Badamasi Babangida to annull the process with the excuse that his office had received some petitions against the selection process. Unlike Babangida, Sanwo- Olu ordered the Joint Selection Panel to conduct a new selection process.
 
In compliance with Mr  Governor ’s directive, the Joint Selection Board of the University conducted another exercise on March 11th 2021 and submitted their recommendations to  Mr Governor. Rather than picking any of the three best performing candidates, the Governor again shilly-shallied for eighteen days only to cancelled the process. To calm already fraying nerves of curious observers and concerned stakeholders, he announced the setting up of a Special Visitation Panel (SVP) to look into the selection processes and come up with their recommendations. The Visitor handed the panel five terms of reference to consider in dealing with the needless impasse and proffering solutions. The terms of reference are:
 
ToR 1. Look at the remote and immediate causes for the impasse into the selection process and procedure for the appointment of the 9th Vice-Chancellor for the university.
The naked truth as far as the selection process was concerned was that there wasn’t any impasse over the process of appointing the 9th Vice- Chancellor of LASU. It was the indecision or procrastination by the Visitor ( Mr Governor Babajide Sanwoolu) to appoint the 9th Vice-Chancellor that created a seeming impasse being alluded to. The recommendations of the joint selection panel were promptly sent to the Visitor but he did not announce his decision till after 17 days (Friday January 8, 2021) thus giving room for petitions to be received. The question to ask is “was the selection panel given any opportunity to respond to the contents of the petitions?” No of course! The failure to avail the Panel or the candidates of such opportunity undermines the transparency which should attend the process, and implicitly gives undue credence to anonymous petitions as the basis for the cancellation of the previous processes. This not being done suggests that the government believes or somewhat aligns with the authors of the so called petitions and acted on them to cancel the process. 

In that first selection process, Prof. O. Odusanya scored 90 per cent to rank first, Prof S. Bakre came second with 72.5 per cent. Prof. K. Akinyemi, who ranked third on the list, scored 68.8 per cent. The wife of the State ’s Commissioner for Environment  Prof. I. Olatunji-Bello, Mr Olatunji Bello, Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello was ranked 4th with 68.0 per cent, and was followed by Omotayo Awofolu from the Namibia University of Science and Technology, who scored 66.5 per cent.
 
The response to the outcome of the second selection processby Mr Governor was the same as the first. To the second interview conducted on March 11, 2021, the final decision by the Visitor was not made known till after another 18 days when news of the Special Visitation Panel  (SVP) was announced. In that second selection process which was recorded on video and included Computer Based Test component, Prof. Olumuyiwa. Odusanya again came first by scoring 87.94 per cent. A Professor of public Health at Usmanu Danfodio University Sokoto, who had been a Vice-Chancellor at a faith-based university before),  Taofik Ibrahim, scored 80.95 per cent to come second; and a Professor of public mental Health and incumbent Ag. Provost of the University ’s College of Medicine, Abiodun Adewuya, came third with 76.61 per cent. The incumbent deputy vice-chancellor in charge of academics, Prof. Elias Wahab, was ranked 4th with 76.61 per cent, while Prof. Olawunmi Badejo scored 71.99 per cent to be ranked 5th. Prof. Akinyemi took the 6th position with 69.01 per cent; Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello ranked 7th with 68.95 per cent, and Prof Sena Bakre with 66.4 per cent ranked 8th.
 
The pattern or trend of cancelling the second selection process to the discerning minds clearly revealed that there is more to the governor’s decisions to cancel the two processes and opt for the special visitation panel than meets the eye. What the real intentions are may yet be unfolded at the end of this system inflicted imbroglio.
 
 
ToR2. Review, in the public interest, the relevance of the deluge of petitions against the 1st and 2nd processes for the appointment of the 9th Vice-Chancellor to the University.
The word ‘deluge’ means ‘a flood’ of water or something. There couldn’t have been a flood of petitions if Mr  Governor had acted on time in the interest of excellence and consider the fact that not every party who didn’t excel at the selection process will be matured enough to give their blessings to the process and be happy to see another person announced as the winner without a fight.

Like it was in the first selection, Mr Governor  did not give any opportunity to the Joint Selection Panel to see the petitions and defend their integrity. For justice to be done, fair hearing must be given to all parties. The petitions being entertained without any right of response being offered to those accused in reality has given room to the needless impasse. If the so called petitions had any sincere weight, none of the candidates who came first, second and third in the first selection process would have been considered worthy to participate in the second selection process. The principle of fair hearing demands that if any of the candidates has been indicted in any of the petitions, such petitions ought to be brought to the notice of such candidate and he or she should be allowed to address any allegation before an adverse decision is rendered in relation to such candidate.
 
 
ToR 3. Examine if the extant laws of the University and other relevant guidelines were followed in the process for the appointment of the 9th Vice-Chancellor.
LASU was established in 1983 and the enabling law is dated 2004 with a slight amendment to that law in 2016. With respect to the office of the VC, the amendment changes the term of the VC to a single five (5)-year tenure as opposed to the four (4)-year renewable term previously.
LASU had had eight (8) VCs listed below and three of them were  Professors of of Medicine and Fellows of the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria (NMPCN).
1. Professor Folabi Olumide- Surgeon, Foundation VC; 2. Professor Jadesola Akande- Lawyer; 3. Professor Enitan Bababunmi –Biochemist; 4. Professor Fatiu Akesode- Paediatrician and Community Physician; 5. Professor Abisogun Leigh-Geneticist; 6. Professor Lateef Hussain-physicist; 7. Professor John Obafunwa- pathologist; 8. Professor Olanrewaju Fagbohun-Lawyer.
 
THE SELECTION PROCESS 
The LASU law states that the process of appointing a VC lies with the joint Council/Senate selection panel which shall consist of:
a) The Chairman of Council as Chairman; b), three external members of council who are themselves appointees of the government to the council and c), three members of the University Senate
The selection panel will after interview present a list of three  recommended candidates to the Visitor from which he will make a choice of one to appoint as the VC.
In compliance with this law, the 11th Governing Council chose its three members in addition to the Chairman who is a statutory functionary while the Senate chose its three representatives from a list of 10 candidates who were nominated to represent the Senate. All the seven members of the Joint Selection Panel are academia and industry giants with impeccable character. They are: Professor Adebayo Ninalowo- Pro-Chancellor as Chairman, Mr. Karl Toriola } External member of Council, Mrs Adenike Ayo-Faseun } External member of Council, Barrister Anuoluwapo Esho} External member of Council, Professor Adeola Animasaun} Senate Representative, Professor Tunde Owolabi} Senate Representative and  Professor Babatunde Yusuf} Senate Representative. It appears the Visitor to LASU did not mind rubbishing the integrity of these people until the equation which is well known in the public domain, to produce the desired answer could be arrived at.
 
THE ADVERTISEMENT 
The first advertisement published on the selection processes was in line with that done in Nigerian Universities specifying the duration of candidates as as Professors and their academic, administrative and research capabilities amongst other requirements. 
It is important to note that the Conditions of Service of LASU 2017 (currently in use approved by the Governing Council, page 40) rates the PhD and the Fellowship of NPMCN equal and scores them 10 (out of 10) marks. It is also known and stated in the same document that whereas holders of PhD are employed as Lecturer Grade 2, holders of the Fellowship of NPMCN is employed as Lecturer Grade1, a higher entry position. This is the norm and practice in Nigerian Universities. 
For the second advertisement, the Governing Council set in motion a new process shortly after the Visitor cancelled the first exercise. The advert was more explicit stating that candidates should have either a PhD or Fellowship of the World-renown Medical Colleges. This is to make it clear that Medical Professors in clinical medicine are not put at a disadvantage. Besides, the fellowship is backed up in the laws establishing the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria (NPMCN) and is registerable with the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) as Fellows are registered on the specialist register of medical practitioners of the country as is done worldwide. These fellows are clinical teachers, serve as consultants and are responsible for patient care while providing tutelage to medical students who learn largely by apprenticeship. The advert further stated that candidates will be expected to demonstrate Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) competency.
The fact that the candidate who came first in the first selection process and the best three candidates in the second selection process were all doctors made it seemed as if there is either a calculated attempt to sacrifice excellence because the best candidates are medical practitioners or because the powers that be is rooting for a candidate that is not amongst the best three in both selection processes.
 
PRACTICE IN OTHER UNIVERSITIES
The National Universities Commission (NUC) does not appoint Vice-Chancellors for any university. At the Federal Universities, the appointment of Vice-Chancellors lies with the Governing Council as part of the autonomy the Federal Government has granted universities. The LASU College of Medicine of which the Faculty of Clinical Sciences is the largest and has the highest numbers of fellows is still accredited by both NUC and the MDCN. Indeed, Professor Jubril Aminu, Professor of Internal medicine and Fellow of NPMCN (FMCP) was a former Executive Secretary of NUC.
Many Nigerian Universities have appointed and still appoint Fellows as Vice-Chancellors without any discrimination as shown in the table University Vice-Chancellors who are Doctors and Fellows:
University of Ibadan 
Professor Adeoye Lambo
Professor Oritshe Jolomi Thomas
Professor ABOO Oyediran
Professor Ayodele Falase
Professor Isaac Adewole
University of Lagos
 Professor Akinpelu Adeshola
Professor Kweku Adadevoh
Obafemi Awolowo University 
Professor Oladele Ajose
Ahmadu Bello University
 Professor Ishaya Audu
University of Ilorin 
Professor Adeoye Adeniyi
Federal University Lokoja 
Professor Adbulmumuni Rafindadi
University of Nigeria, Nsukka 
Professor Benjamin Ozumba
Ebonyi State University 
Professor Chigozie Ogbu
Gombe State University 
Professor Aliyu Usman El-Nafaty

ToR 4 Review and advice on all other relevant matters of the process adopted so far for the appointment of the 9th substantive Vice-Chancellor for LASU.
Asides from Mr. Lawal Pedro (SAN), every other member of the Special Visitation Panel set up Mr  Governor Sanwo-Olu are academic and University administrators who ought to know the adverse effect the circus of rigmarole encouraged by Mr Governor on the selection process of the 9th Vice Chancellor for LASU could end up having on the effective administration of the institution. Professor Bamitale Omole, the Chairman of the Panel was the former Vice Chancellor of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. The chaos that engulfed OAU after his tenure was caused by the kind of politics that is now unfolding in the selection of LASU’s 9th VC. One would have thought he would lead the panel with the benefit of history to advise the Visitor to stand for excellence but the feelers coming out from the grapevine on the panel’s submission did not show any serious respects for history by the panel. 
Professor Joseph Ajianka a former  Vice Chancellors of University of Port-harcourt and Professor Ayo Olukotun from Olabisi Onabanjo Universities both know the horrific damage that promotion of mediocrity and lack of respect for due process could do to LASU and they ought to have considered the effects this needless impasse is having on LASU already as well as the signal being sent across to youths across Nigeria that merit, excellence and hard work mean nothing in the Nigerian culture and leadership equation.

One of the members of the Special Visitation Panel is Mr. Olujimi Olukoya, the former Registrar of the University of Ibadan. History seemed to have uniquely placed Mr. Olujimi Olukoya in the panel so that the recollections of his ascendancy to the position of the Registrar of University of Ibadan could be a priceless guide to the Panel in their advice to the visitor. 
Mr. Olukoya's selection based on merit was vehemently opposed by haters of due process in 2013 when he was interviewed for the then vacant position of Registrar. Like it is in the case of LASU’s 9th VC selection process, petitioners and protesters fought hard and huffed and puffed to have excellence thrown away because Mr. Olukoya was coming from a College of Education environment and not a University environment. Mr. Olukoya was then the Registrar at the College of Education, Oyo. The petitioners didn't mind the fact that Olukoya came first in the selection process with 86% beating the nearest applicant who had scored 62% with 24 points. The enemies of due process preferred an insider to get the job even though the best candidates from UI then had come a distant 4th and 6th respectively.  The Governing Council led by Pro – Chancellor Chief Wole Olaonipekun (SAN) stood by excellence and cleared every obstacle on the path of Mr. Olujimi Olukoya. 
 
Olukoya's experience in UI and the eventual triumph of merit was perhaps God's way of letting the SVP see that the best candidates in LASU's VC Selection process needed the same justice that the system supported Mr. Olukoya to get, but it appeared the Panel would rather play safe and flow with the rhythm of the powers that be than stand for justice.

The paramount consideration in reviewing the processes that have taken place so far should be the question of whether or not the due process of the law has been followed. The process for the appointment of a Vice Chancellor for Lagos State University is purely in the realm of rules and the law. The question agitating the minds of many Nigerians is “what exactly did the Visitor find wrong in the second exercise that necessitated the creation of a Special Visitation Panel and wasting of millions of tax payers’ money to conduct a needless goose chase? Did the selection processes violate any rule or laws of the institution. The purpose of the rules of engagement and laws guiding the process is to make for certainty in the process, to inject integrity into the process and to limit the exercise of any subjective discretion in the process. Controversy will only be averted if it can be established that the process as previously undertaken was not in accordance with the due process of law as enshrined in the statutory provisions guiding the appointment of a Vice-Chancellor for LASU. If no such flaw exists, then all those involved in the process, including the Visitor and this special visitation panel are bound by the outcome, otherwise the process would appear to be arbitrary, subjective and politicized. That is what the principle known as the Due Process of law means and entails.

It is gradually becoming a norm now for the political powers that be in Nigeria to throw Nigerian universities into turmoil over the selection of Vice-Chancellors and this is counter-productive for the quest for excellence. The list of infamy is growing: the university of Port-Harcourt, University of Ibadan, Lagos state University and lately University of Jos. How do we convince our children to believe in Nigeria where a simple issue as choosing a University Chief Administrator becomes enmeshed in politicking? Ho can we demand patriotism from our youths if we blatantly rubbish merit, hard work and sacrifice them on the altar of  political expediency. We are losing thousands of young Nigerians to other lands annually because they believe the culture of mediocrity which thrives here can not allow them to reach the pick of their career. Our way of deployment of impunity continues to crush the will of the ordinary masses. God forbids that we soon totally become a nation where only the children of the rich and powerful succeed and excel through patronage. 

There is enough crises and confusion in the land already and needles crisis should not be encouraged in LASU or any other part of Nigeria through injustice and insensitive leadership. Rather than  our leaders merely appealing to Nigerian youths  not to leave the country, let them make the land comfortable through the practice of righteousness in all they do. We can never make progress as a nation if we continue to revel in sin and injustice despite our many prayers for God is righteous and just.
 
 
ToR 5. Make other recommendations for the smooth running of the University.
It is the belief and position of millions of Lagosians and Nigerians who stand for merit and excellence that the processes involved in the appointment of the 9th VC of LASU have been transparent, untainted, and credible and of the highest ethical standards and the candidate who came first in both selection exercises should be announced in the interest of excellence which Lagos states claims it represents.
The eyes of the whole world was on the panel all the while it was seating to review the memoranda it received and the presentations made to it. The eyes of the whole world is now on Governor Babajide Sanwoolu to see what act or scene of his poorly written script he will  be unfolded next.  The eyes of the world are on the Visitor as it was on the World Trade Organization's Council during the process that led to the appointment of Nigeria's Professor Okonjo Iweala as the first female DG of the WTO.  
Okonjo Iweala came first in the many rounds of interviews. The powerful United States opposed Okonjo Iweala's appointment initially but later surrendered because the men and women who guided the process remained principled and unbiased to the end. History is presenting Governor Sanwo Olu with lessons to learn from this very recent incident. Okonjo Iweala was not assisted by any god-father to become DG of WTO. She took the post by merit, not on the sentiments of apologists. The recent history of Okonjo’s emergence places a big burden on the conscience of the governor to do the right thing and do things right without wasting further time. 
As the governor studies the SIP’s recommendations and weighs the next action to take, he must never forget that history is not only a coach, but a judge as well. If he truly believes in #GreaterLagos, the governor must match rhetoric with action by announcing the best candidate in LASU's two selection processes as the 9th VC of LASU. It is by allowing the best to lead LASU that the institution can truly excel. We can never become greater by rubbishing merit and rejecting excellence. 
 
Olanrewaju Osho is a Director @ Inspire Nigeria Initiative.  He is a development strategist, road safety specialist and the flag bearer of the Abundant Nigeria Renewal Party (ANRP) for Senate in FCT during the 2019 elections.

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President Muhammadu Buhari will depart Abuja, the nation's capital, for a summit in France on Sunday.

The Presidency confirmed this in a statement on Saturday.

Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari.

The statement partly read, "President Muhammadu Buhari will on Sunday, May 16, 2021, depart Abuja for Paris, France, on a four-day official visit to attend African Finance Summit which will be focused on reviewing African economy, following shocks from Coronavirus pandemic, and getting relief, especially from increased debt burden on countries.

"The summit, to be hosted by President Emmanuel Macron, will draw major stakeholders in the global financial institutions and some Heads of Government, who will, collectively, discuss external funding and debt treatment for Africa, and private sector reforms.

"During the visit, President Buhari will meet with the French President to discuss growing security threats in Sahel and Lake Chad region, political relations, economic ties, climate change and partnership in buoying the health sector, particularly in checking the spread of Covid-19, with more research and vaccines.

"Before returning to Nigeria, President Buhari will receive some key players in the oil and gas sector, engineering and telecommunications, European Council and European Union Representative for Foreign and Security Policy and Commission, and members of the Nigerian community.

"The President will be accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, Minister of Trade and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, and Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire.

"Also on the trip are National Security Adviser, Maj. Gen. Babagana Mohammed Monguno (rtd) and Director General of National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Amb. Ahmed Rufai Abubakar," Femi Adesina, presidential spokesman, said in the statement.

The Presidency was, however, silent on the President's visit to his doctors.

SaharaReporters had on Wednesday exclusively reported that Buhari would be in Paris for at least four days, where he has also been scheduled to meet his doctors.

"Buhari will be heading to Paris for four days. He was planning to go to Kampala (Uganda) and travel to London, the United Kingdom, to see his doctors, but they opted to meet him in Paris. He will be travelling on Saturday," a presidential source had disclosed.

See Also Politics Buhari To Meet His Doctor During Official Trip To Paris Saturday 0 Comments 3 Days Ago

SaharaReporters also reported how Buhari planned to attend the inauguration of Uganda's tight-fist dictator, Yoweri Museveni, and from there, let him visit the UK for treatment.

But the plan was later shelved and the decision to send Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to Uganda to represent Buhari was made at the last minute when it appeared that the UK trip was not feasible.

Top presidency sources had told this newspaper that Buhari's health, particularly his dementia, had deteriorated recently, and he was incoherent at the security chiefs' meetings in the last two weeks.

"Buhari had wanted to travel to go for Museveni's inauguration in Uganda and now use the opportunity to go to London but they changed the plans last minute and sent Osinbajo," a top source had revealed.

According to a release from the State House, Osinbajo would be joining several other Heads of State and Government for the swearing-in ceremony scheduled for Wednesday, May 12, at Kololo Independence Grounds in Kampala, the nation's capital city.

The Vice President, who also participated at the resumed National Security Council meeting presided over by the President at the Presidential Villa, later travelled to Lagos State, where he attended another function.

Since he assumed office on May 29, 2015, Buhari has embarked on medical trips abroad at least five times, covering a period of no fewer than 170 days of the five years he had been in power.

The following is a timeline of the President's trips for medical treatment; on February 5 to 10, 2016, the President took a six-day vacation in the United Kingdom, saying that his doctors lived in England.

Between June 6 and 19, 2016, Buhari went on a 10-day medical trip to England for an ear infection surgery. He extended his trip by three days to rest.

On January 19, 2017, the President was back in London again on a medical vacation.

On February 5, 2017, he wrote to the National Assembly, seeking an extension of his London medical leave. Later on March 10, 2017, Buhari returned to Nigeria but didn't resume work immediately at Aso Villa.

The Presidency had claimed that "he was working from home." On May 7, 2017, Buhari embarked on a trip to London for another medical vacation. He returned after 104 days – the longest he had stayed outside the country.

On August 19, 2017, Buhari returned to Nigeria, and it took him a while to resume work because rats had reportedly damaged furniture in his office.

The Presidency had announced that he would be working from home. On May 8, 2018, Buhari went to London for a four-day "medical review."

On April 26, 2019, Buhari again left for the UK on a 10-day private visit to seek medical care. He came back to the country on May 5.

In 2020, Buhari had not minimised his foreign medical trips to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the global lockdown and strain on medical facilities.

Also, from March 30 to April 6 2021, the President embarked on another trip for a routine medical check-up in London.

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Yoruba freedom fighter, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, says there will be no election in the South-West states in 2023.

Igboho disclosed this while speaking with other agitators at a rally held on Saturday in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, to demand the Yoruba nation.

He said that the Yoruba nation must leave now as it is no more a slave to the northerners.

Ighoho sought unity among Yoruba people and asked all that are aggrieved to come together.

The Yoruba freedom fighter also asked the Oyo and the Federal governments and the Nigeria Police Force to immediately release all Odua Peoples Congress (OPC) members in custody over the arrest of the Fulani warlord Isikilu Wakili in Ibarapa.

Recall that the Oyo State Police Command announced that it took into custody some members of the OPC connected with the earlier arrest of Wakili.

But Ighoho, during the rally, warned against their continued detention.

He said, “I urge the Oyo, Federal Governments and police to release OPC member who arrested Fulani herdsmen terrorising Yoruba people in Ibarapa land immediately, before all, Yorubas will come out en masse to protest against it.

“They apprehended some Fulanis who were disrupting the peace of Ibarapa and handed them over to the police. But the Oyo State Police and Nigerian Government now arrested them which should not be so.”Politics News AddThis :  Original Author :  Saharareporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
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Yoruba freedom fighter, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, says there will be no election in the South-West states in 2023.

Igboho disclosed this while speaking with other agitators at a rally held on Saturday in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, to demand the Yoruba nation.

He said that the Yoruba nation must leave now as it is no more a slave to the northerners.

Ighoho sought unity among Yoruba people and asked all that are aggrieved to come together.

The Yoruba freedom fighter also asked the Oyo and the Federal governments and the Nigeria Police Force to immediately release all Odua Peoples Congress (OPC) members in custody over the arrest of the Fulani warlord Isikilu Wakili in Ibarapa.

Recall that the Oyo State Police Command announced that it took into custody some members of the OPC connected with the earlier arrest of Wakili.

But Ighoho, during the rally, warned against their continued detention.

He said, “I urge the Oyo, Federal Governments and police to release OPC member who arrested Fulani herdsmen terrorising Yoruba people in Ibarapa land immediately, before all, Yorubas will come out en masse to protest against it.

“They apprehended some Fulanis who were disrupting the peace of Ibarapa and handed them over to the police. But the Oyo State Police and Nigerian Government now arrested them which should not be so.”Politics News AddThis :  Original Author :  Saharareporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
https://ift.tt/3tTXayu

Yoruba freedom fighter, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, says there will be no election in the South-West states in 2023.

Igboho disclosed this while speaking with other agitators at a rally held on Saturday in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, to demand the Yoruba nation.

He said that the Yoruba nation must leave now as it is no more a slave to the northerners.

Ighoho sought unity among Yoruba people and asked all that are aggrieved to come together.

The Yoruba freedom fighter also asked the Oyo and the Federal governments and the Nigeria Police Force to immediately release all Odua Peoples Congress (OPC) members in custody over the arrest of the Fulani warlord Isikilu Wakili in Ibarapa.

Recall that the Oyo State Police Command announced that it took into custody some members of the OPC connected with the earlier arrest of Wakili.

But Ighoho, during the rally, warned against their continued detention.

He said, “I urge the Oyo, Federal Governments and police to release OPC member who arrested Fulani herdsmen terrorising Yoruba people in Ibarapa land immediately, before all, Yorubas will come out en masse to protest against it.

“They apprehended some Fulanis who were disrupting the peace of Ibarapa and handed them over to the police. But the Oyo State Police and Nigerian Government now arrested them which should not be so.”Politics News AddThis :  Original Author :  Saharareporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
https://ift.tt/3tTXayu

Aggrieved soldiers affected by the Nigerian Army’s controversial Welfare Housing Scheme have lamented that the army is owing them uniform and boot allowances and still wants to make deductions from their salary in the name of a housing scheme.

The soldiers, who spoke to SaharaReporters on Saturday on the condition of anonymity, said the official statement of the Nigerian Army that the soldiers were duly consulted on the scheme was not true as nobody sought their consent or opinions.

File photo used to illustrate story

The soldiers also lamented that it was also a lie that the Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, met the scheme in the pipeline when he assumed office in January 2021, adding that the controversial housing scheme is his brainchild.

SaharaReporters had on Friday reported that some of the aggrieved soldiers wrote a save-our-soul letter to President Muhammadu Buhari over the Nigerian Army’s planned deduction of their salaries to pay for the “fraudulent Nigerian Army Welfare Housing Scheme.”

See Also Military Soldiers Write Buhari, Kick Against Nigerian Army’s Salary Deduction For Housing Scheme 0 Comments 2 Days Ago

The soldiers – One sergeant, two corporals, two Lance Corporals and one Private – in the letter obtained by SaharaReporters had noted that the army planned to deduct between N15,000 and N49,000 monthly from their little salaries, which are not able to currently meet their needs.

The personnel said the Non-Commissioned Officers and the Senior Non-Commissioned Officers were the only ones affected, and they now find it difficult to feed their family and pay their children school fees “from our meagre salaries.”

They demanded that the army authorities reconsider the deductions.

In a reaction by the Nigerian Army’s Director of Public Relations, Brig-Gen Mohammed Yerima, the army authorities had claimed that the soldiers were duly consulted.

“The current Chief of Army Staff met an Army Housing Scheme in the pipeline and constituted a committee to understudy its feasibility and desirability. The committee subsequently designed the questionnaire for soldiers to bare their minds on the scheme and ascertain those interested in it. It was still at this stage of administering the questionnaire to soldiers that agent provocateurs seized the moment to demonise the scheme with toxic narratives,” the army’s spokesman had stated.

But speaking with SaharaReporters, some of the soldiers countered the army’s position that the housing scheme was an innovation to swindle the lower ranks of their meagre salary.

“This is a welfare housing policy proposed by the Chief of Army Staff for the other rank cadre which is to be compulsory and monthly deductions will be made from every soldier’s salary. No soldier was consulted on this. The officer cadre was exempted; besides, most of us have houses of our own. Our scarce skills allowance is N100,000 every month but we are short paid,” one of them said.

“There was no housing scheme in the pipeline that the new Chief of Army Staff met when he assumed office. No soldier was consulted, and questionnaires were not shared to sensitise or sample the opinion of troops.

 

“Our salary has not been increased; we still buy uniforms and boots for ourselves; we live in dilapidated buildings. We've not been paid a uniform allowance and boot allowance. You are deployed to a company, the company pays the sum of N150,000, but the Commanding Officer will pay each soldier N30,000,” another soldier said.

Military News AddThis :  Original Author :  Saharareporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
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Aggrieved soldiers affected by the Nigerian Army’s controversial Welfare Housing Scheme have lamented that the army is owing them uniform and boot allowances and still wants to make deductions from their salary in the name of a housing scheme.

The soldiers, who spoke to SaharaReporters on Saturday on the condition of anonymity, said the official statement of the Nigerian Army that the soldiers were duly consulted on the scheme was not true as nobody sought their consent or opinions.

File photo used to illustrate story

The soldiers also lamented that it was also a lie that the Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, met the scheme in the pipeline when he assumed office in January 2021, adding that the controversial housing scheme is his brainchild.

SaharaReporters had on Friday reported that some of the aggrieved soldiers wrote a save-our-soul letter to President Muhammadu Buhari over the Nigerian Army’s planned deduction of their salaries to pay for the “fraudulent Nigerian Army Welfare Housing Scheme.”

See Also Military Soldiers Write Buhari, Kick Against Nigerian Army’s Salary Deduction For Housing Scheme 0 Comments 2 Days Ago

The soldiers – One sergeant, two corporals, two Lance Corporals and one Private – in the letter obtained by SaharaReporters had noted that the army planned to deduct between N15,000 and N49,000 monthly from their little salaries, which are not able to currently meet their needs.

The personnel said the Non-Commissioned Officers and the Senior Non-Commissioned Officers were the only ones affected, and they now find it difficult to feed their family and pay their children school fees “from our meagre salaries.”

They demanded that the army authorities reconsider the deductions.

In a reaction by the Nigerian Army’s Director of Public Relations, Brig-Gen Mohammed Yerima, the army authorities had claimed that the soldiers were duly consulted.

“The current Chief of Army Staff met an Army Housing Scheme in the pipeline and constituted a committee to understudy its feasibility and desirability. The committee subsequently designed the questionnaire for soldiers to bare their minds on the scheme and ascertain those interested in it. It was still at this stage of administering the questionnaire to soldiers that agent provocateurs seized the moment to demonise the scheme with toxic narratives,” the army’s spokesman had stated.

But speaking with SaharaReporters, some of the soldiers countered the army’s position that the housing scheme was an innovation to swindle the lower ranks of their meagre salary.

“This is a welfare housing policy proposed by the Chief of Army Staff for the other rank cadre which is to be compulsory and monthly deductions will be made from every soldier’s salary. No soldier was consulted on this. The officer cadre was exempted; besides, most of us have houses of our own. Our scarce skills allowance is N100,000 every month but we are short paid,” one of them said.

“There was no housing scheme in the pipeline that the new Chief of Army Staff met when he assumed office. No soldier was consulted, and questionnaires were not shared to sensitise or sample the opinion of troops.

 

“Our salary has not been increased; we still buy uniforms and boots for ourselves; we live in dilapidated buildings. We've not been paid a uniform allowance and boot allowance. You are deployed to a company, the company pays the sum of N150,000, but the Commanding Officer will pay each soldier N30,000,” another soldier said.

Military News AddThis :  Original Author :  Saharareporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
https://ift.tt/3w0sZHs

An Israeli airstrike targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children, on Saturday.

According to ABC News, the strike on the high-rise came nearly an hour after the military ordered people to evacuate the 12-storey building, which also housed Al-Jazeera, other offices and residential apartments.
AP
The strike brought down the entire structure, which collapsed in a gigantic cloud of dust. There was no immediate explanation for why it was attacked.

The earlier Israeli airstrike on the Gaza City refugee camp was the deadliest single strike of the current conflict between Israel and the militant group Hamas. Both sides are pressing for an advantage as cease-fire efforts gather strength.

The latest outburst of violence started in Jerusalem and spread across the region over the past week, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed cities of Israel. There were also widespread Palestinian protests Friday in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people.

The spiralling violence has raised fears of a new Palestinian "intifada," or uprising when peace talks have not taken place in years. Palestinians on Saturday were marking Nakba (Catastrophe) Day when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what was now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. That raised the possibility of even more unrest.

U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived Friday as part of Washington's efforts to de-escalate the conflict and the U.N. 

Security Council was set to meet Sunday. But Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.

Since Monday night, Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which has pounded the Gaza Strip with strikes. In Gaza, at least 139 people have been killed, including 39 children and 22 women; in Israel, eight people have been killed, including the death Saturday of a man killed by a rocket that hit in Ramat Gan, a suburb of Tel Aviv.

The strike on the building housing media offices came in the afternoon after the owner received a call from the Israeli military warning that the building would be hit. A.P.'s staff and others in the building evacuated immediately and were reported safe.

Al-Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatar's government, broadcast the airstrikes live as the building collapsed.

"This channel will not be silenced. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced," an on-air anchorwoman from Al-Jazeera English said, her voice thick with emotion.

"We can guarantee you that right now."

The bombardment earlier Saturday struck a three-story house in Gaza City's Shati refugee camp, killing eight children and two women from an extended family.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters his wife and five children had gone to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday with relatives. She and three of the children, aged 6 to 14, were killed while an 11-year-old is missing. Only his 5-month-old son Omar is known to have survived.

Children's toys and a Monopoly board game could be seen among the rubble, as well as plates of uneaten food from the holiday gathering.

"There was no warning," said Jamal Al-Naji, a neighbour living in the same building. "You filmed people eating and then you bombed them?" he said, addressing Israel.

"Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!"

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the airstrike.

Gaza's infrastructure, already in widespread disrepair because of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after Hamas seized power in 2007, showed signs of breaking down further, compounding residents' misery. The territory's sole power plant is at risk of running out of fuel in the coming days.

The U.N. said Gazans are already enduring daily power cuts of 8-12 hours and at least 230,000 have limited access to tap water. The impoverished and densely populated territory is home to 2 million Palestinians, most of them the descendants of refugees from what is now Israel.

The conflict has reverberated widely. Israeli cities with mixed Arab and Jewish populations have seen nightly violence, with mobs from each community fighting in the streets and trashing each other's property.

Late on Friday, someone threw a firebomb at an Arab family's home in the Ajami neighbourhood of Tel Aviv, striking two children. A 12-year-old boy was in moderate condition with burns on his upper body and a 10-year-old girl was treated for a head injury, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service.

In the occupied West Bank, on the outskirts of Ramallah, Nablus and other towns and cities, hundreds of Palestinians protested the Gaza campaign and Israeli actions in Jerusalem. Waving Palestinian flags, they trucked in tires that they set up in burning barricades and hurled stones at Israeli soldiers. At least ten protesters were shot and killed by soldiers. An 11th Palestinian was killed when he tried to stab a soldier at a military position.

International News AddThis :  Original Author :  Saharareporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
https://ift.tt/3oixDxT

An Israeli airstrike targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children, on Saturday.

According to ABC News, the strike on the high-rise came nearly an hour after the military ordered people to evacuate the 12-storey building, which also housed Al-Jazeera, other offices and residential apartments.
AP
The strike brought down the entire structure, which collapsed in a gigantic cloud of dust. There was no immediate explanation for why it was attacked.

The earlier Israeli airstrike on the Gaza City refugee camp was the deadliest single strike of the current conflict between Israel and the militant group Hamas. Both sides are pressing for an advantage as cease-fire efforts gather strength.

The latest outburst of violence started in Jerusalem and spread across the region over the past week, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed cities of Israel. There were also widespread Palestinian protests Friday in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people.

The spiralling violence has raised fears of a new Palestinian "intifada," or uprising when peace talks have not taken place in years. Palestinians on Saturday were marking Nakba (Catastrophe) Day when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what was now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. That raised the possibility of even more unrest.

U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived Friday as part of Washington's efforts to de-escalate the conflict and the U.N. 

Security Council was set to meet Sunday. But Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.

Since Monday night, Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which has pounded the Gaza Strip with strikes. In Gaza, at least 139 people have been killed, including 39 children and 22 women; in Israel, eight people have been killed, including the death Saturday of a man killed by a rocket that hit in Ramat Gan, a suburb of Tel Aviv.

The strike on the building housing media offices came in the afternoon after the owner received a call from the Israeli military warning that the building would be hit. A.P.'s staff and others in the building evacuated immediately and were reported safe.

Al-Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatar's government, broadcast the airstrikes live as the building collapsed.

"This channel will not be silenced. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced," an on-air anchorwoman from Al-Jazeera English said, her voice thick with emotion.

"We can guarantee you that right now."

The bombardment earlier Saturday struck a three-story house in Gaza City's Shati refugee camp, killing eight children and two women from an extended family.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters his wife and five children had gone to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday with relatives. She and three of the children, aged 6 to 14, were killed while an 11-year-old is missing. Only his 5-month-old son Omar is known to have survived.

Children's toys and a Monopoly board game could be seen among the rubble, as well as plates of uneaten food from the holiday gathering.

"There was no warning," said Jamal Al-Naji, a neighbour living in the same building. "You filmed people eating and then you bombed them?" he said, addressing Israel.

"Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!"

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the airstrike.

Gaza's infrastructure, already in widespread disrepair because of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after Hamas seized power in 2007, showed signs of breaking down further, compounding residents' misery. The territory's sole power plant is at risk of running out of fuel in the coming days.

The U.N. said Gazans are already enduring daily power cuts of 8-12 hours and at least 230,000 have limited access to tap water. The impoverished and densely populated territory is home to 2 million Palestinians, most of them the descendants of refugees from what is now Israel.

The conflict has reverberated widely. Israeli cities with mixed Arab and Jewish populations have seen nightly violence, with mobs from each community fighting in the streets and trashing each other's property.

Late on Friday, someone threw a firebomb at an Arab family's home in the Ajami neighbourhood of Tel Aviv, striking two children. A 12-year-old boy was in moderate condition with burns on his upper body and a 10-year-old girl was treated for a head injury, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service.

In the occupied West Bank, on the outskirts of Ramallah, Nablus and other towns and cities, hundreds of Palestinians protested the Gaza campaign and Israeli actions in Jerusalem. Waving Palestinian flags, they trucked in tires that they set up in burning barricades and hurled stones at Israeli soldiers. At least ten protesters were shot and killed by soldiers. An 11th Palestinian was killed when he tried to stab a soldier at a military position.

International News AddThis :  Original Author :  Saharareporters, New York Disable advertisements : 
https://ift.tt/3oixDxT