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The Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, yesterday in Abuja, walked out on students protesting the continued face-off between the government and members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, who have paralysed academic activities in the nation’s universities.  The students, under the aegis of the National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, had taken their protest to the minister’s office, clutching placards demanding a quick resolution of the crisis. After a few questions by the students, who were led by the NANS President, Comrade Sunday Asefon, the minister angrily left for his office. Commenting on the development, Asefon said:  ”We only asked the minister one or two questions about what the government is doing to resolve the impasse, when he angrily left us and went inside. ”We are surprised at the development because as students, we are the ones bearing the brunt of the strike. We are going to hold a meeting to deliberate on the next step to take an...

  Nigerian workers are facing very difficult times as they spend about 79% of their monthly minimum wage (N30,000) on transportation. This is according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) January report on transport fare NBS noted in the report that Nigerians in January paid N476.3 on an average per drop for bus journey within the city. This is an increase of 1.18 percent when compared to the N470.83 in December 2021. The amount paid in January 2022 is also a 35.28 percent rise from N352.15 paid in January last year. What this means is that for a Nigerian who is on a minimum wage pay of N30,000, he or she will have to spend over 70 percent of their salary on transportation. Nigeria has an average of 25 working days, if a per drop bus ride is N476.39, that is about N23,819 to get to work and back home in a month, leaving only N6,180 as take home pay. Further analysis also showed the huge pressure on Nigerian workers’ finances. NBS also reported that the average fare paid by c...

  For the first time in eight months, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has failed to remit a kobo to the federation account despite the rising international prices of oil. The account is jointly operated by the federal, state and local governments and money received is distributed to all. But a document obtained from NNPC shows that despite making an average N52.3 billion daily given oil price averaged at $90 per barrel and also a slight improvement in oil exports of 1.3 million barrels per day, NNPC revealed it had no money. The last time NNPC announced zero remittance to the federation account was in April last year. The document also revealed that a whopping N210.38 billion was spent on petrol subsidies in January. What this means is that in one year (February 2021- January 2022) almost N1.8 trillion has gone into subsidy payment. NNPC generated total revenue of N2.992 trillion in 11 months and removed N2.47 trillion for refinery rehabilitation, oil search,...

  The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited on Monday confirmed that International oil companies are diversifying and leaving Nigeria. The NNPC’s Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, disclosed this in Abuja at the ongoing Nigeria International Energy Summit 2022 with the theme, “Revitalising the Industry: Future Fuels and Energy transition.” According to him the exit of International Oil Companies from Nigeria was not because of bad policies, but due to the global push for energy transition and net carbon zero target. His words: “Companies are divesting. They are leaving our country literally, that’s the best way to put it. But they are not leaving because opportunities are not there. “It is because companies are shifting their portfolios where they can add value, and not just that, where they can also add to the journey towards net carbon zero production. We understand this very perfectly. “But we can’t afford not to realise that this country must benefit from the rea...

  The United States has directed its citizens to consider leaving Russia immediately as the hostilities between Moscow and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies over the invasion of Ukraine reached one week. In a statement issued on Sunday, the State Department said a special flight would be deployed to Russia to evacuate Americans in the country as more countries closed their airspace to Russia after the country’s invasion of its neighbour. The US embassy in Moscow had earlier advised Americans in the country to have an evacuation plan, citing the threat of attacks in Moscow and along the Russian border with Ukraine. “US citizens should consider departing Russia immediately via commercial options still available,” a security alert dated February 27 posted on the website of the US embassy in Moscow read. The US and its allies including the United Kingdom, Canada and France have imposed stiff sanctions on Russia over the invasion which has been described as the largest as...

  Mason Greenwood’s 18 year old girlfriend and accuser has broken her silence for the first time since making assault and rape allegations against the £75,000 per week Manchester United footballer.   The student, 18, described the past week as ‘very difficult’ and said she will not be making any further comments while police investigations continue. he thanked those who lent her support in the wake of the Manchester United star’s arrest. Greenwood, 20, was detained on suspicion of assault and rape after photos and audio posted by Harriet Robson allegedly detailed his physical abuse and rape attempt towards her. He was further arrested on Tuesday, February 1, on suspicion of sexual assault and making threats to kill. The forward has now been released on bail pending further investigation, although he has yet to be charged. His boyhood club, Manchester United have repeatedly confirmed that he will not train or play for the club until further notice. Greenwood and Robson are high...

  Tough times await Nigerian currency, and its economy as for the first time in three months, Nigeria’s external reserve has fallen below the $40 billion threshold. According to latest data published by CBN on Friday evening, Nigeria’s external reserves level as at Thursday, 3rd February 2022, had fallen to $39.98 billion. This came about a day after Ripples Nigeria reported that the apex bank withdrew $400 million from the reserve in the month of January 2022. The reserves had been on a good run since October 2021 after CBN took receipt of IMF SDR $3.5 billion and also successful issuance of $4bn euro bond. But pressure from the foreigh exchange market, coupled with weak dollar coming in from oil sale, forced  CBN  to rely on external reserves to defend Naira. Most notable was the fact that Nigeria’s international trade balance continued to rise as importation exceeded export by a whopping N3 trillion as at Q3, 2021. With the consistent decline of the reserves and the Ni...

  The anticipation  for  Who  Wants to Be a Millionaire? Series 2 -The Rebirth  will  soon be a reality as a special event to unveil the Sponsor and Host for the highly acclaimed TV Game Show is set to hold on Sunday, February 6, 2022, at the Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos. The Sponsor and Host reveal event is organized by UP, Nigeria’s premier Payments & Financial Technology Company and Leaders in Digital Payments Innovation, in collaboration with BLK Hut Media, the show’s producers in Nigeria under the  License  of Sony Pictures. He stated that the sponsors are proud and delighted  to sponsor such  creative and educative content  as  the Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? TV Game Show for the viewing pleasure of Nigerians. Also speaking, Hakeem Condotti CEO, BLK HUT said "As a company, BLK Hut desires to continuously deliver creative, intelligent and professional content to the market for the people and partner brands; and in th...

  A female Ukrainian sniper who has killed killed at least 10 people while fighting pro-Russian separatists, has vowed to take on Putin's troops as fears of an invasion rise.   The battle-hardened veteran Olena Bilozerska, 42, has already fought in the blown-up buildings and trenches of contested Donbas, east Ukraine but claims she is willing to do it all again to protect her country. She says: "You take up a weapon against my country - that's it, you're a target. If you don’t take him out in time, he might kill you or one of your comrades. "If I didn't shoot in time and the target hid, that's when I feel angry at myself for missing my chance. And if the target is hit, I feel the pleasure of a job well done.   She says she does not care about the lives of those she killed and she vows she would do it again. She says: "When the enemy crawls towards our position to kill me, does he think if I have a husband, parents, or kids? "Of course not. And I ...

  A   fire outbreak at the Egbin Power Plant in Ikorodu, Lagos state has led to power generation dropping by 630 megawatts (MW).    The fire incident occurred at the company's power plant on Wednesday February 2 at about 4.20 pm, leading to a blackout in Lagos state. The fire outbreak was successfully contained by a team of firefighters in collaboration with firefighters from the Nigeria Gas Company (NGC) in Egbin. Egbin Power Plc said in a statement on Friday February 4, that shutting down power generation, coupled with the load reduction mechanism adopted by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) helped to prevent system collapse.   The company also revealed that the thermal plant has an installed capacity of 1,320MW consisting of six units of 220MW each, while its actual average generating capacity is about 800MW.  Assuring the general public that its technical team are working to restore operations, Egbin power company also announced t...

  The United States District Court for the Central District of California has announced the postponement of the sentencing of Nigerian fraudster, Ramon Abbas better known as Hushpuppi. The court case has been postponed till July 11, 2022. Justice Otis D. Wright granted the order after Hushpuppi’s lawyers led by Louis Shapiro entered a request for postponement. He is expected to remain in custody in the intervening period of the delay. Ripples Nigeria reported a couple of days ago that  Hushpuppi  was previously scheduled to be sentenced on February 14 for duping people across different continents to the tune of millions of dollars. He pleaded guilty last year to the charges, seeking a lighter sentence. Hushuppi risks getting a 20 years jail sentence; a 3-year period of supervised release; a fine of $500,000 or twice the gross gain or gross loss resulting from the offence. Same court had also ordered the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to arrest the suspended Head o...

  Blockchain can play its part in the education sector — record-keeping in 2–3 years and then adoption by the labor market? In the post-pandemic world, individuals will need to seize ownership and control of their educational credentials — documents like degrees and transcripts — from schools, universities and governments. That notion received key support last week from the American Council on Education in a study funded by the  United States  Department of Education focusing on the use of blockchain in higher  education . “Blockchain, in particular, holds promise to create more efficient, durable connections between education and work,”  wrote  Ted Mitchell, the president of ACE, in the foreword to the study published on June 8, adding: “In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, learners will be more mobile, moving in and out of formal education as their job, health, and family situations change.” A key theme of the report is personal data agency — i.e., how...

  The most popular cryptocurrency, bitcoin, shed more in value in January 2022, than it did in the corresponding month of 2021, as the digital asset succumbed to various government policy, including rising bond yields. Bitcoin had opened January with $46,306.45 per BTC, but it crashed in market value, as investors priced it low till it nosedived by 16.8% in 31 days to $38,483.13 on January 31, 2022. During the corresponding period in January 2021, bitcoin appreciated in value by 14.18%, closing the month at $33,114.36, against the $29,001.72 it started the period with. This means  bitcoin  lost the gains of January 2021, which was $4112.64, considering $7,823.32 was wiped off the asking price of the crypto asset during the same period last month. The struggle of bitcoin to stay above $40,000 in January reflected the coin’s inability to withstand shocks from government policy or tie down investors from eyeing other securities to hedge inflation. In Q4 2021, bitcoin sustain...

  The federal government is set to hit a jackpot following the concession of Onitsha River Port, which connects Lagos to the South East if projections from the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) becomes reality. According to ICRC, the Onitsha River Port can generate about N50 billion into the Federal Government’s coffers. The group also expressed excitement that it would serve as an alternative source of transporting goods to the South East from Lagos, Port Harcourt and other areas with adequate water connectivity. A statement issued by the Ag. Head, Media and Publicity, ICRC, Manji Yarling, explained that Onitsha River Port was officially opened over three decades ago but had been neglected and not been optimally utilised. The  Onitsha River Port  is one of the four river ports in the country with others situated in Lokoja, Kogi State; Baro in Niger State and Oguta in Imo State. Read also:  Onitsha seaport finally commissioned after several years...

The United Kingdom has pledged to help Nigeria in the fight against terrorism and insecurity being perpetrated by the Boko Haram and Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists in the northern parts of the country. The pledge by the British government was contained in a communiqué at the end of the inaugural ‘UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership’ dialogue held in London on Thursday. At the end of the dialogue, the two countries affirmed their commitments to deepen partnership in the face of “complex and evolving global threats, including human trafficking, serious and organised crimes, drug trafficking, cyber-crime and piracy.” In the communiqué jointly issued by the UK National Security Adviser, Sir Stephen Lovegrove, and Nigerian National Security Adviser, Maj. Gen. Babagana Monguno (retd.) the two countries agreed to “enhance existing cooperation in civilian policing; approaches to stabilisation including civilian-led security and civil-military co-operation; hum...

  The International Space Station (ISS) will continue working until 2030, before plunging into the Pacific Ocean in early 2031,  National Space Agency (NASA) has revealed . In a new report, the US space agency said the ISS will crash into a part of the ocean known as Point Nemo, which is the point furthest from land on planet Earth, also known as the spacecraft cemetery. According to NASA, many old satellites and other space debris have crashed there, including the Russian space station Mir in 2001. The ISS which is a joint project involving five space agencies has been in orbit since 1998. More than 3,000 research investigations have taken place in its microgravity laboratory. But the license to  operate ends in 2024 and any extension must be agreed by all partners including Russia who have complained of being hampered by US sanctions on Russia. Nasa says the plan to retire the ISS marks a transition to the commercial sector for activities in low-Earth orbit - the area o...

Novak Djokovic's biographer has claimed that the Serbian will finally take his Covid-19 vaccination after watching Rafael Nadal win a record 21st Grand Slam at the Australian Open.   Djokovic was deported from Australia earlier this year before the tournament after he had arrived in the country with a medical exemption to compete unvaccinated. He was in enforced hotel quarantine when Australia's border force cancelled his visa and he went to court trying to overturn their decision which failed. But it now appears that Nadal's victory, combined with other tournaments enforcing stricter rules regarding vaccination, could have changed his mind.   His biographer Daniel Muksch appeared on Austrian TV channel ServusTV and said: 'What you hear from his environment, I think he's getting vaccinated.   'Maybe the final in Melbourne also contributed to that. Rafael Nadal's 21 is driving him, no question.'  Muksch's book on Djokovic, called 'A ...