Gist Arena

500 Amnesty delegates from more than 80 countries will gather at an international conference next week in Dublin to vote on whether to advocate the elimination of all penalties for sex work, on the grounds that it is a matter of privacy between consenting adults. Simply put, the Human Right group will vote on a new policy that calls for the global decriminalization of sex trafficking. The sex-trade policy, according to the group is the best way to respect, protect, and fulfill the human rights of sex workers. Its Deputy Executive Director, Cammie Croft said, "Sex workers are one of the most marginalized groups in the world so it is important that we understand how, as Amnesty International, we can work to support their human rights. The violations that sex workers can be exposed to include physical and sexual violence, arbitrary arrest and detention, extortion and harassment, human trafficking, forced HIV testing and medical interventions" “They can a...

International singer, Akon, who is currently in Nigeria, paid a visit to APC  National leader & former Lagos state governor, Bola Tinubu at his Ikoyi home in Lagos today July 31st. Akon is in Nigeria for his Solar power project. Another photo below.

Former governor of Lagos state Babatunde Fashola and ex Governor of Rivers state Rotimi Amaechi visited Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka at his home in Abeokuta, Ogun state today July 31st. Another photo after the cut...

The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Friday set aside the decision of the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal in Kogi which struck out the petition of Sen. Smart Adeyemi. Adeyemi of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had challenged the election of Sen. Dino Melaye of APC, alleging electoral irregularities and malpractices. Justice Muhammed Adume held that the tribunal was wrong in striking out Adeyemi’s petition on the grounds of technicalities, instead of substantial justice. The appellate court, therefore, remitted the case to the tribunal for “trial on merit’’. The court further held that the decision of the tribunal that Adeyemi did not file his petition within the time frame allowed by law was wrong and nullified it forthwith. Adume said the respondents did not provide sufficient evidence before the tribunal that the petition was filed late. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the tribunal had dismissed the petition of Adeyemi, a one-time Nationa...

Three passengers and the pilot of a Saudi-owned private jet died after the aircraft crashed into a car auction near Farnborough, Hampshire, London. The small private jet overshot the runway at Blackbushe Airport on the Hampshire-Surrey border, before ploughing into the neighbouring car auction site, destroying at least 15 cars.  The aircraft, a £7million Brazilian-built Embraer Phenom 300 was completely destroyed in the crash, leaving behind a fireball and large plume of toxic black smoke. A spokesman for Blackbushe Airport said:  'A Phenom 300 Jet with four persons on board crashed near the end of the runway around 3.09 PM while attempting to make a landing. The scene was attended by Blackbushe Fire & Rescue within minutes, followed by Hampshire Fire, Police and Ambulance units. The Saudi-registered Embraer Phenom 300, pictured, had just arrived from Milan when it overshot the runway  Photo credit: UK   Daily Mail

According to Baba Nuhu, a member of the local government council, 32 Boko Haram militants on motorcycles raided the village of Kukuwa-Gari, Yobe state around 10:30 pm on Wednesday July 29 killing 10 people including two women. "They burnt more than half of the village, including food silos and livestock on which the people depend for their livelihood." Confirming the report that the attack was apparently in reprisal, he added, "The attack came two days after two Boko Haram members who came into the village were identified by residents and mobbed to death," News of the attack was slow to emerge because the insurgents have destroyed telecom masts since the insurgency began in 2009. -AFP

There was minor riot in Ariara market in Aba, Abia state today after Police/soldiers allegedly shot  and killed a trader at the market. Details are sketchy but according to an eye-witness, the soldiers stormed the market to arrest some people who resisted and during arguments , shots were fired and one man was killed (that's him in the wheel barrow). A few others were injured. Other traders took his body to the police station near the market.

The Nigeria Police Force revealed that armed robbers who specialize in robbing users of Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) in commercial banks have devised a new method of dispossessing unsuspecting victims of their money. According to the Police, "On July 30th at about 12:10am, a male bank customer went to withdraw money from one of the ATMs at the Central Business District, Abuja. Three young men pretending to have come to withdraw money attacked him. The victim raised an alarm which attracted nearby police patrol team to the scene.   The hoodlums took to their heels upon sighting the advancing police team. One automatic pistol fell from one of the suspects and was recovered by the Police. Luckily for the victim, the robbers were not successful in disposing him of his money. On July 28, another bank customer was attacked by robbers and disposed of the money he withdrew from ATM." -Nigeria Police Force

Billionaire CEO of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan are going to be parents. Mark shared the photo on the left announcing the happy news and also shared details about previous miscarriages 'to give more people the same hope they felt and help more people feel comfortable sharing their stories as well'. The couple were married in 2012. The soon-to-be father proudly shared this emotional post with his 33.2 million followers on Facebook. "Priscilla and I have some exciting news: we're expecting a baby girl! We've been trying to have a child for a couple of years and have had three miscarriages along the way.  "You feel so hopeful when you learn you're going to have a child. You start imagining who they'll become and dreaming of hopes for their future. You start making plans, and then they're gone. It's a lonely experience. Most people don't discuss miscarriages because you worry your problems will distance y...

President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Alhaji Mohammed Kari as the Commissioner for Insurance and Chief Executive of the National Insurance Commission. A statement from the Presidency said that Alhaji Mohammed Kari’s appointment, which is for a term of four years in the first instance, takes effect from Friday, July 31, 2015. the statement which was signed by Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President, Mr. Femi Adesina said the new Commissioner for Insurance started his career with Royal Exchange Assurance in 1979. He later worked with Yankari InsuranceCompany until 1989, when he was appointed Executive Director in Niger Insurance Plc. In January 1992, he was appointed Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Reinsurance Corporation, a position he held until March 1993 when he was appointed Managing Director of NICON Insurance Corporation. He served in that capacity until January 2000 when he resigned. He returned to insurance...

Find the EFCC press statement below.. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday, July 29, 2015 arraigned one Umar Yusuf and Ibrahim Ahmed Bebeji, both former clerks of National Orthopedic Hospital, Dala, Kano State before Justice Dije Aboki of the State High Court, Kano on a 3-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust and theft. Yusuf and Bebeji, between January and September, 2013 allegedly conspired and fraudulently altered information on official revenue receipts in their custody for services rendered to individuals. An audit report carried out by the Hospital Management revealed that, the sum of N3,331,167 (three million, three hundred and thirty one thousand, one hundred and sixty seven naira) was collected as revenue by the accused. But, the duo declared and paid the sum of N150,314 (one hundred and fifty thousand, three hundred and fourteen naira) to the hospital coffers while pocketing the sum of N3,180,853 (three million, one hun...

The University of Port Harcourt , Rivers state is among the list of top 10 African Universities as rated by the Times Higher Education journal. No other Nigerian University made the entire top 30-list. Read more  here

What the young guy shared on twitter as he graduated with a First Class degree in Mathematics.

The managing director, Kaduna Refining and Petrochemicals Company, Saidu Mohammed, on Friday said the refinery will hit 90 per cent production of its 110,000 installed capacity. PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the refinery had been operating at 60 per cent production capacity before commencement of the turn-around maintenance in October 2014. Mr. Mohammed, in an interview after a tour of the refinery with journalists, said the refinery has undergone turn around maintenance. He said it will attain 90 per cent of its 110,000 installed capacity by March 2015. He said, “The 80-90 per cent resumed production of the 30-year-old refinery is equivalent to 3-5million liters of petrol, which is 150 trucks of 30,000 liter capacity truck per day.” The MD said the KRPC resumed refining following the completion of its first phase of facility rehabilitation that began in October 2014. “We have opened every column, changed what we can change to give us that level of productio...

18 month old Ali Dawabsheh was burnt alive when suspected Jewish assailants set fire to two Palestinian West Bank homes. The fire that killed him also critically wounded his parents and older brother. The parents and brother ran from the home when a molotov cocktail was thrown into their one-room apartment through a window, leaving the little boy behind.  

This lady was also arrested by Cameroonian police after she tried to bomb a market in Marou, Cameroon yesterday July 30th.

About 8 people died this morning when a suicide bomber blew himself up. More photos below

Can this sycophants stop embarrassing us

There is  serious riot in Aba now at The Ariaria Market. The market is now deserted. Some eyewitnesses said the riot started when a team of policemen shot dead three traders in the shoe zone of the market while the police were pursuing some drug dealers. The police station in the area have been reportedly set on fire by the irate mob while prisoners in the police cell have been set free. These are some of the first pictures from the riot. Some of these photos are shady because of teargas all over as our reporter on the ground is dodging bullet from the police…. Safety first. Source‬  : IGTV

President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the Head of Service of the Federation, Danladi Kifasi, to facilitate the immediate release of the N5 billion pledged by the Federal Government since August 2014 for the Victims Support Fund (VSF), the presidency announced Friday. The fund was created to support victims of bomb attacks. President Buhari gave the directive after receiving a briefing from the VSF Presidential Committee headed by former defence minister, Theophilus Danjuma, at the Presidential Villa. Mr. Danjuma told the president that out of the N55.92 billion pledged at the fund-raising dinner for the fund in August last year, N33.54 billion was still outstanding, including N5 Billion from the Federal Government. He said the VSF currently has N23.33 billion in four bank accounts. Mr. Danjuma urged the president to use his office to persuade all organizations and individuals to honour their pledges to the Committee.  The committee also reve...