NaiJa Joint

THE recent merger of the Christian Religious Knowledge, CRK, and Islamic Religious Knowledge, IRK, into Religion and National Values under the curriculum has continued to garner controversy, as stakeholders are of the opinion that the move might further plunge the country into another civil or sectarian crisis. Although the merger of these subjects occurred in 2013 when the proposal was approved by the National Council of Education and was implemented by schools in September, 2014, the recent outcry of well meaning Nigerians over the removal of CRK from the curriculum thereby leaving students with the options of either studying French or IRK has raised speculations that the Federal Government’s plan, through the Federal Ministry of Education, is trying to islamise Nigeria. However, debunking claims that the move wasn’t to sideline one religion, the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council, NERDC, Professor Ismail Junaidu, said: “The Basic Education Cur

Reasons were given by the police high command this morning why billionaire kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, popularly known as Evans, decided to drag the Nigeria Police to court over his continuous detention. Evans had on Wednesday dragged the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, the Police Service Commission, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni and the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad to the Federal High Court in Lagos. In the suit filed by a Lagos-based lawyer, Olukoya Ogungbeje, Evans is claiming that his continued detention is an abridgement of his fundamental human rights. However, sources at the high command said that it was Evans’ gang members who are yet to be arrested that sought for and got the services of Ogungbeje to frustrate further investigation into the case. A source said: “Evans gang members who wanted him to go to court before Police will finish investigations that have been leading to their exposure and arrests, hire

Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo on Sunday evening received President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, at Akinola Aguda House, his official residence. The two leaders highlighted the critical role that Nigeria and Ghana play as the “centrepiece” of ECOWAS and the West African sub-region. President Akufo-Addo thanked Acting President Osinbajo for receiving his delegation on a special day, when Nigeria was commemorating Eid El-Fitr. He said that his visit was part of an ongoing tour of the sub-region to “take stock of what’s going on, and to renew relations.” Acting President Osinbajo on his part thanked the Ghanaian President for visiting Nigeria, adding, “We’re extremely excited about the ECOWAS sub-region and hope that we will be able to do a lot together.” They discussed the forthcoming African Union (AU) Summit in Addis Ababa, ongoing negotiations on the Continental Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), and the revitalization of the Ghana-Nigeria Permanent Joint Commission for Cooperation.

Villagers in China visited what used to be their relatives' homes on Monday to mourn loved ones lost when a landslide swept down a mountain, with little hope of finding anyone alive after more than 48 hours of fruitless searching. At least 93 people are missing after the landslide engulfed Xinmo village in mountainous Sichuan province as dawn broke on Saturday. Ten people have been confirmed dead. "Our house was somewhere around here but everything has been destroyed beyond recognition," said a middle aged woman, one of a few residents who were away when disaster struck, after she pulled a green blanket she recognised out of the mud and rocks. The government has sent some 3,000 rescuers, along with heavy digging equipment, and has promised to do all it can to look for survivors. Heavy rain triggered the landslide, authorities have said. Some villagers said they've always known landslides are a big danger but authorities never offered to help t

Cristiano Ronaldo and Alexis Sanchez will extend already lengthy seasons even further when they participate in the summer showpiece in Russia Russia will continue their preparations for next year's World Cup by hosting the Confederations Cup this summer. The eight-team tournament is held the year before each World Cup to give the host country an opportunity to test their facilities and provisions ahead of the main event. It features the champions of each confederation - decided through competitions such as the European Championship and Copa America - as well as the World Cup hosts and the reigning world champions. That means a few stars will be on show at four of the Russian stadiums that will hold World Cup matches next year, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal, and Alexis Sanchez and Chile travelling east for the tournament. The Confederations Cup kicked off on June 17 and we have all the details you need to know. CONFEDERATIONS CUP GROUPS Group A

Nigerians have continued to react to the voice message said to have been released by President Muhammadu Buhari to Nigerians, felicitating with them on the occasion of Eid-el Fitr. According to the Presidency on Sunday, Buhari, in the voice message ‘thanked Nigerians for their consistent prayers for his well-being.’ In the audio message, he also urged all citizens, irrespective of their socio-political affiliations, to always avoid hate speech and divisive tendencies capable of causing disaffection among them. He also prayed for good harvest as farmers embarked on agricultural activities occasioned by the commencement of rains across the country. However, reacting to the voice message in his Twitter handle, former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-kayode, said it was not President Buhari that spoke in the Sallah audio recording, and that it was an insult to Nigerians for the President to have spoken in Hausa language. He said: “It was not @MBuhari that spoke in today’s Sallah day

Elder statesman and nationalist, Dr. Paul Unongo, has blamed the problems in Nigeria’s political terrain on late sage, Obafemi Awolowo. According to Unongo, Nigeria’s problem started when Awo started what he tagged as tribal politics. According to the outspoken nationalist, Nigeria’s problem began many years ago after the late Nnamdi Azikiwe scored a fantastic victory in the Western House as a member of the House and his party was to form the government. He said Awolowo, who brought federalism as a form of governance reverted to tribal politics when Azikiwe defeated him in the election. He told Vanguard that, “Awolowo felt, as the strongman of the Yoruba, Azikiwe should not have won the election in his place, and he could not countenance an Igbo man coming to be the premier or the first minister or prime minister of a predominantly Yoruba place. Night came, and when day broke, Zik discovered his majority had collapsed. “The Yoruba abandoned him and went to a strange person

Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has hailed Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, for his recent intervention in response to the quit notice to Igbos by Arewa youths. He condemned the ultimatum and urged government to be on its toes to avoid being caught unawares. Fayose also called for dialogue with the leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu to douse the growing ethnic-based tensions in the country. “As much as secession is not an option, the handlers of our democracy must be equitable, fair and just to everyone”, he said in a chat with newsmen yesterday. “The Igbo have continued to suffer because of the perceived role of Emeka Ojukwu. If we say past governments didn’t do well what has the present government done differently? “I agree that secession is not desirable but there must be justice and equity. When people are being killed or vilified, you must expect a reaction. No region should begin to use power to oppress another. If Nig