PICTURES FROM ADEBAYO ADELABU, THE MINISTER FOR POWER’S FIRST DAY IN OFFICE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

President Vladimir Putin repeated several of his go-to talking points during his speech at the BRICS summit on Wednesday in New Delhi, India. These comments were all intended to support Russia's conflict in Ukraine while undermining the West by attributing responsibility for the invasion. This is true even though Mr. Putin chose to send his soldiers into Ukraine. He reiterated the Kremlin narrative that his invasion, which was denounced by Ukraine and the West as an imperialist land grab, was a forced response by Russia to Kyiv's and Washington's hostile actions in a video message to the group's leaders, which also included leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

"Our actions in Ukraine are dictated by only one thing - to end the war that was unleashed by the West and its satellites against the people who live in the Donbas," said Mr. Putin, referring to the eastern region of Ukraine where Russian proxies have been battling the Ukrainian army since 2014. "I want to note that the severe crisis in Ukraine was caused by some countries' desire to maintain their hegemony in the world," the speaker said. Mr. Putin was addressing a tiny group of nations that, in contrast to the majority of countries, including the US, UK, Germany, France, Norway, Turkey, and Italy, have not denounced Russia's activities in Ukraine.

The sanctions are hitting everyone," he said. "They are causing difficulties for the global economy, for the stability of the financial system, for the supply of energy and food." Mr Putin's speech was met with mixed reactions from the BRICS leaders. Some, such as Chinese President Xi Jinping, expressed support for Russia, while others, such as Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, were more cautious in their words. He also criticized the sanctions imposed by the West on Russia in his address, calling them "illegal" and "harmful" to the world economy.

Former President Donald Trump turned himself into authorities on Thursday in Fulton County, Georgia. He will now await his arraignment and trial on the 13 offenses for which he was accused, and officials have made it plain that he must exercise caution on social media in the interim.

 

 

 

The conditions of Trump's release prohibit him from intimidating any witnesses or co-defendants in the case, including by making direct or indirect threats against them—including on social media, both personally and by sharing someone else's posts. Trump was freed on a $200,000 bail.

 

Trump wasn't arraigned when he was booked, unlike in his other indictments; instead, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis requested that all defendants in the case be arraigned the week of September 5. This doesn't necessarily mean that Trump will appear in court at that time; he could try to waive his appearance or it could be done virtually.

Though Willis suggested a trial date of March 4, 2024, analysts say it would be too soon for the difficult matter to go to court, and Trump will likely try to delay the trial as long as possible. It is yet unknown when the case will go to trial.

Kenneth Chesebro, a former Trump lawyer, has asked for a speedy trial in the case, which the court decided Thursday will begin on October 23. However, this won't apply to Trump, who has asked to have his issue divided from Chesebro's and anyone else's who requests a speedy trial.

 

Trump is anticipated to follow his co-defendants, former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and former Justice Department employee Jeffrey Clark, in attempting to have his case transferred to federal court. This is an option if the indictment's actions against federal officials were "under color of [their] federal office."

While legal experts have expressed skepticism that Trump will be able to move the case over, the effort could succeed in further delaying a trial regardless. By moving the case to federal court, Trump could benefit by increasing the likelihood that he could be granted immunity if the court found that he was acting within the scope of his duties as president when he attempted to overturn the 2020 election. It would also make it less likely that the trial would be televised.

Trump is accused of committing racketeering (also known as RICO charges), soliciting a public official to violate their oath, conspiring to impersonate a public official, conspiring to commit forgery in the first degree, making false statements and writings, filing false documents, and conspiring to file false documents, among other offenses. These charges are all pending in Fulton County.

 The charges can all result in prison time if he is found guilty, which would total 76.5 years if he were found guilty on all counts and given the longest possible punishment. Many of the accusations can also result in fines.

Major Critic

Trump has vehemently disputed the accusations made against him and, as was to be expected, has denounced the indictment as a "witch hunt" and an attempt to derail his 2024 presidential campaign. He has also attacked Willis, accusing him of being politically biased against him. After being arrested on Thursday, the former president told reporters that it was a "very sad day for America" and made many unfounded accusations that the 2020 election will be "rigged" against him.

 

If any of Trump's fellow defendants decide to "flip" on him in order to protect themselves. As all of his co-defendants might receive significant jail sentences for allegedly supporting his plan to stay in the White House, it is possible that they could turn on him if Trump refuses to pay their legal fees.

 

In addition, Chesebro will be prosecuted in October before the other defendants, so MSNBC highlighted that if he is found guilty, it may encourage others to try to collaborate with the authorities in order to avoid repeating his mistakes. Although none of the defendants have publicly "flipped" on Trump yet, some have voiced their displeasure, including former Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis who complained that the defendants' legal bills were not being covered by Trump's super PAC. In a legal filing, David Schafer, the former Georgia GOP chair who was charged with being a "fake elector" who assisted in sending a phony slate of electors to Congress claiming Trump won, also accused the former president and his campaign of being responsible for the scheme, claiming he and other electors "acted at the direction of the incumbent President and other federal officials."

Impressive Fact

If found guilty in Georgia, Trump won't be able to quickly obtain a pardon since the state only allows criminals to seek a pardon five years after serving their sentence and provides an independent board the authority to do so. Even if Trump is successful in having the trial transferred to federal court, the state charges would still be used to try and convict him.

Important Context

The extensive plan by Trump and his aides to rig the state's 2020 election led to his indictment in Georgia. The "fake electors" plot, attempts to prevent Congress from certifying the election results, and pressure on state legislators and officials to reject them were all part of the strategy. One example of this was Trump's phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, in which he requested the secretary "find" enough votes to declare him the winner. According to Willis' office, the defendants "refused to accept that Trump lost and they knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome of the election," alleging the defendants "constituted a criminal enterprise for the purposes of trying to unlawfully subvert the election results."

 

The former president turned himself in to Georgia authorities on Thursday night, after many of his co-defendants had already done the same. He was then jailed and had a mug photo taken. Trump and his co-defendants were been given till Friday at noon by Willis to present themselves; after that time, they risked being forcibly detained.

The first of the 19 defendants to turn themselves in before the deadline on Friday was two former presidents of the United States Donald Trump and John Eastman, who were co-defendants in the Georgia election interference case. Trump is anticipated to turn himself in on Thursday.

 

Hall was the first Trump co-defendant to be held in Fulton County Jail on Tuesday, according to jail records. Hall and prosecutors struck an arrangement on Monday that as a condition of his release, Hall would post a $10,000 bail and submit to pre-trial supervision every 30 days.

 

Along with Trump and 17 other people, Hall, a bail bondsman, was charged last week with racketeering and six other offenses, most of which were connected to a plan that Hall and other Trump associates allegedly carried out to hack into Coffee County's voting software.

 

Eastman, whose disbarment proceedings in California were postponed until Thursday so he could turn himself up in Fulton County, surrendered as well on Tuesday after agreeing to a $100,000 bail deal with the prosecution on Monday.

Soon after turning themselves in, both guys were freed.

 

 

Trump stated on Truth Social on Monday that he would surrender on Thursday after reaching an agreement on a $200,000 bond with the Fulton County District Attorney's office.

 

Both men were released shortly after surrendering.

Trump stated on Truth Social on Monday that he would surrender on Thursday after reaching an agreement on a $200,000 bond with the Fulton County District Attorney's office.

The Federal Government, States, and Local Government Councils have received a total of N966.110 billion in July 2023 Federation Account Revenue from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). This was said in a statement that was released following the FAAC meeting for the month of August. Wale Edun, the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance presided over the meeting. The N966.110 billion in total distributable revenue was made up of N397.419 billion in statutory income, N271.947 billion in value-added tax revenue, N12.840 billion in electronic money transfer levy revenue, and N283.904 billion in exchange difference revenue. The entire deductions for the cost of collection in July 2023 were N62.419 billion, whereas the total deductions for transfers, refunds, and cancellation of tax credits were N717.962 billion.

 

 

The Excess Crude Account (ECA) balance was listed in the communiqué as $473,754.57. The Federal Government collected N374.485 billion, the State Governments N310.670 billion, and the Local Government Councils N229.409 billion from the total income of N966.11 billion. The relevant States received a total of N51.545 billion as a part of their 13% derivation revenue. For the month of July 2023, the gross statutory income of N1.15 trillion was received. This was N2.497 billion less than the total of N1.152 trillion that was received in June 2023. The communiqué states that while Value Added Tax (VAT) increased only a little in July 2023, Import and Excise Duties and the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) both climbed significantly. Oil and Gas Royalties, Companies' Income Tax, and Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT)

The swearing-in of 45 next ministers has commenced at Aso Villa under the direction of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. As of the time this story was being written, Aguri Ngelale, President Tinubu's special assistant on media and publicity, was reading the citation of the ministers, which would be followed by the taking of the oath.

Spain defeated England 1-0 in the tournament's championship game, which was played in Sydney, to claim the title of FIFA Women's World Cup winner.

Olga Carmona, the captain of La Roja, scored the game's decisive goal in minute 29 to give Spain the win.

Spain and England engaged in a heated match at Australia Stadium in front of a crowd of 76,000 spectators that FIFA's website dubbed "high-energy, high-quality, and end-to-end from the very first whistle." Under head coach Sarina Wiegman, England has already lost two straight games in the World Cup finals. Wiegman was unable to carry on the winning streak that England enjoyed this year as the champion of Europe.

La Roja just became the fifth team since the inaugural FIFA Women's World Cup to hoist the trophy as World Champions. The other champions were the United States, Germany, Norway, and Japan. No team has ever won more than one cup.

The triumph for Spain, according to coach Jorge Vidal, "ushers in a definitive boom of women's soccer in the country."

He said that Spain won the World Cup due to having "the best squad of all."

In Vidal's opinion, the game strategy for the matchup with England was to be ready for their two primary offensive and defensive strategies.

"We were aware that they would equal us in the center, but defensively we had to pay close attention, particularly on long balls. Even though they didn't generate many fantastic opportunities, the team demonstrated their ability to endure. The players have shown excellent mental toughness, according to Vidal.

 

The English players, in turn, praised Spain and said they deserved to win the match and take home the World Championship.

The formal positions of the ministers expected to work with President Bola Tinubu were made public by the Presidential Office on Wednesday. The complete list of ministers, along with each one's office, is as follows:

 

Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy: Bosun Tijani

 

 

Minister of State, Environment and Ecological Management: Ishak Salako

 

Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister Of The Economy: Wale Edun

 

Minister of Marine and Blue Economy: Bunmi Tunji-Ojo 

 

Minister of Power: Adebayo Adelabu

 

 Minister of State, Health and Social Welfare: Tunji Alausa 

Minister of Solid Minerals Development: Dele Alake 

Minister of Tourism: Lola Ade-John 

Minister of Transportation: Adegboyega Oyetola

Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment: Doris Anite

Minister of Innovation Science and Technology: Uche Nnaji 

Minister of State, Labour, and Employment: Nkiruka Onyejeocha

 Minister of Women Affairs: Uju Kennedy

 

Minister of Works: David Umahi

 

 

Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development: Festus Keyamo

 

 

 

Minister of Youth: Abubakar Momoh

 

Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation: Betta Edu

 

Minister of State, Gas Resources: Ekperikpe Ekpo

 

Minister of State, Petroleum Resources: Heineken Lokpobiri

 

Minister of Sports Development: John Enoh

Minister of Federal Capital Territory: Nyesom Wike

Minister of State, Housing and Urban Development: Abdullahi Gwarzo

Minister of Budget and Economic Planning: Atiku Bagudu

Minister of State, FCT: Mariga Mahmoud

Minister of State, Water Resources and Sanitation: Bello Goronyo

 

Minister of Agriculture: Abubakar Kyari

 

Minister of Education: Tahir Mamman

 

 

Minister of Police Affairs: Ibrahim Geidam

 

Minister of Foreign Affairs: Yusuf Tuggar

 

Minister of Interior: Saidu Alkali

 

Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare: Ali Pate

Minister of State, Steel, and Development: Maigari Ahmadu

 

Minister of Steel and Development: Shuaibu Audu

 

Minister of Information and National Orientation: Muhammed Idris

 

Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice: Lateef Fagbemi

 

 

Minister of Labour and Employment: Simon Lalong

 

Minister of State, Police Affairs: Inman Suleiman

 

Minister of Special Duties: Zephaniah Jisalo

 

Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation: Joseph Utsev

 

Minister of State, Agriculture, and Food Security: Aliyu Abdullahi

 

Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy: Hannatu Musawa

 

Minister of Defence: Muhammed Badaru

 

Minister of State for Defence: Bello Matawalle

 

Minister of State, Education: Tanko Sununu

 

Minister of Housing and Urban Development: Ahmed Dangiwa

 

The £30 million transfer of Manchester United defender Harry Maguire to West Ham is said to have fallen through. In an effort to bolster his team for the next campaign, David Moyes and the Hammers reached an agreement on the defender's transfer cost last Wednesday.

The Europa Conference League champions got impatient waiting for the defender to complete his departure from Old Trafford, according to The Guardian, with Maguire reportedly demanding a payment of almost £7 million. Maguire had personal arrangements in place with Moyes' team, but because his pay was about to decrease, he sought fair recompense to leave the club. But because the two sides haven't been able to reach a resolution thus far, the Hammers have decided to abandon the transaction out of frustration.

The 30-year-old has struggled since arriving at United in a record-breaking £80 million transfer from Leicester in 2019. However, in recent years, she has come in for harsh criticism and was recently this summer relieved of her club leadership by Ten Hag.

Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Facebook, informed Elon Musk that he was out of town after the tech billionaire's adversary threatened to drive a Tesla to the Facebook CEO's house. After Mr. Zuckerberg canceled the battle, claiming that his opponent was not serious about the match, Mr. Musk posted on Twitter to explain his most recent intentions to try to fight the Facebook founder.

And he said, "I will ask the car to go to @finkd's house for the Tesla FSD test drive in Palo Alto tonight.

I'll also test the most recent X livestream footage so you can follow our journey in real time! The combat will begin if we are fortunate and Zuck really answers the door. He continued to criticize his tech opponent for pulling out of the competition in a subsequent article.

Coming soon is a Zuck thread about how, of course, he would fight whenever, but blah blah UFC something," he said.

The Meta chief wasn't even present, according to a spokeswoman for Mr. Zuckerberg, so Mr. Musk's travel would have been useless. "Mark isn't in Palo Alto right now since he's on the road. The representative said that Mark "takes this sport seriously and won't fight someone who just shows up at his house." After Mr. Musk refused to agree to a framework and continued changing the specifics of the fight, Mr. Zuckerberg declared on Sunday, August 13, that he was pulling out of it.

 

The UFC president, Dana White, and the two billionaires have been in discussions about the prospect of a super fight that might bring in over $1 billion in revenue.