Trump grants presidential pardon to Lil Wayne and Kodak Black.

 

Donald Trump in his last day as the President of the United States of America has granted pardoned to American rappers Lil Wayne and Kodak Black.

Lil Wayne in 2020 had pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a loaded weapon on a private jet while travelling to Miami.

Also pardoned is Kodak Black who is in federal prison after pleading guilty to a firearm possession charge.

Trump also pardoned his former campaign manager, Steve Bannon, former Detroit Mayor, Kwame Kilpatrick among other 100 on the list.

However, Wikileaks’ Julian Assange and Edward Snowden were not on the list.

Lil Wayne’s pardon may not come as a surprise as the Grammy award-winning rapper had endorsed Trump for re-election in October 2020.

UPDATE : Joe Biden sworn in as 46th US President

 

Joe Biden has been sworn in as the 46th United States President.

Biden took his oath of office on Wednesday at the Capitol in Washington D.C.

Chief Justice, John Roberts Jr, administered the pledge at exactly 11:48am ET.

Kamala Harris did the same before him after the national anthem rendition by Lady Gaga.

Harris becomes the Vice President. She is America’s first female, first Black and Asian-American person to hold the office.

As expected, former President Donald Trump was absent. Mike Pence, the former Vice President, fulfilled his promise to attend.

Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George Bush Jr, Barack Obama and their wives attended.

BIAFRA : Nothing can separate Igbo nation from Nigeria’ — Ohaneze Ndigbo

 

Obiozor disclosed this on Wednesday in Enugu during his inaugural press conference as the president general of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation.

The President General, Ohaneze Ndigbo, Prof. George Obiozor, has said that nothing demands the separate existence of the Igbo nation from the rest of Nigeria.

He reiterated the belief of the Igbo nation in a united, prosperous and progressive Nigeria.

The President general however, said that the Igbo nation was still in search of a nation where justice and fairness would prevail.

He said that though the search for equity and fairness by the Igbo man had been torturous and agonising, “all actions and utterances that put us in harm's way must be avoided.

“The Igbo nation is not at war with the rest of the country and there is nothing that demands our separate existence from Nigeria.”

Obiozor 

advised all separatist groups, especially the leader of the proscribed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB),

 Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, 

not to go beyond his bounds.

“Kanu is one of us and must listen to us. The issue of Biafra is beyond his capacity to decide and like him, we are all in this Biafra dilemma together.

“We have mutual responsibility in this matter and it is sacred in our hearts. All actions or utterances that put us in imminent or present danger must be avoided.

“Kanu should act and play his part well. There lies his honour,” he said.

He said that the Igbo nation in its search for fairness and equity in the country, must tread carefully in order not to make enemies or be misunderstood.

According to Obiozor, after 40 years of involvement in Nigerian politics, the greatest priority of the Igbo nation is security.

“How we are perceived as a people is borne out of our feeling of insecurity in the country. Our leadership will find out how to reduce this vulnerability of our people.

“I am ready to provide leadership and we shall not disappoint,” he said.

Obiozor commended President 

Muhammadu Buhari,

 governors, ministers and National Assembly members from the region, sociocultural organisations and others who congratulated him after his emergence to lead Ohaneze Ndigbo.

“We must invent a well defined common course for our people. We must unite our people. We need a leadership that will be progressive.

“I, therefore, call on our people to join hands with us to bring accelerated development to our place,” Obiozor said.

USA INAUGURATION DAY 2021, HOW TO WATCH AND MORE

 

Inauguration Day 2021 is  . On January 20, President-elect Joe Biden will be sworn in as president of the United States of America together with his 

vice president Kamala Harris. The event will be attended by former presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton. However, 

Donald Trump won’t be in attendance after he made history as the first president to be impeached twice.

There are limited guests during the occasion due to coronavirus pandemic and security concerns, especially after the riot at the Capitol. Despite all these, the inauguration will be a star-studded event with performances from famous artists like Lady Gaga who’ll be singing the national anthem and Jennifer Lopez who’ll be giving a special performance. In addition, Amanda Gorman will deliver a poetry reading.

On the other hand, there’ll be a TV special, Celebrating America, which will be hosted by Tom Hanks with performances from Jon Bon Jovi, Demi Lovato, Justin Timberlake, and more.

For those who are staying at home, the inauguration will take place at 12 p.m. ET and will be telecast on all major networks and streamed on CBSN. The theme, according to the Presidential Inaugural Committee, is “America United”. They explained on their site, “At a time of unprecedented crisis and deep divisions, America United reflects the beginning of a new national journey that restores the soul of America, brings the country together, and creates a path to a brighter future.”

Since most Americans and the rest of the world will be witnessing the historic event from the comfort of their homes, it’s good to know that the Celebrating America special will be aired from 8:30-10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed) and depending on your location, you can watch it on CBS, NBC, and ABC if you’re on the West Coast. People can also watch it on CNN and MSNBC via cable or through live TV streaming.

In addition to the stars already mentioned above, there are other performers who’ll be entertaining guests and viewers. The Inaugural Committee is yet to announce them. Meanwhile, with regard to the inaugural ball, there won’t be any this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

ahead of inauguration, says 'we should be introducing'

 

Biden cries during farewell address from Delaware ahead of inauguration, says 'we should be introducing' his late son Beau as president instead

Before he headed down to the nation's capital ahead of his inauguration, President-elect Joe Biden bid farewell to his home state of Delaware in an emotional speech on Tuesday.

Biden spoke from the Major Joseph R. "Beau" Biden III National Guard/Reserve Center in New Castle, Delaware, quoting James Joyce to illustrate his love for the state.

In the middle of quoting the Irish writer, Biden choked up.

"Excuse the emotion, but when I die, Delaware will be written on my heart," Biden said, invoking Joyce's famous quote on Dublin being written on his heart.

Biden also honored his late son, Beau.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I only have one regret, that he isn't here. Because we should be introducing him as president," Biden said.

Beau suffered from brain cancer and died at 46 in 2015.

Biden has said his son's death was a major motivating factor in his decision to run for president.

"But we have great opportunities," Biden said as he composed himself after mentioning Beau. "Delaware has taught us anything is possible in this country."

Presidency warns Akeredolu over quit notice to herdsmen in Ondo

 

The Presidency has condemned Governor Rotimi Akeredolu’s ultimatum to herdsmen to vacate Ondo forest reserves.

In a statement on Tuesday, Garba Shehu, said the presidency has been keenly monitoring events occurring in Ondo State.

The special assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari said what is emerging is a lack of consistency in messaging which in turn leads to various contradictions regarding accuracy and the intent behind the message.

The presidency called for restraint on both sides.

It urged the state government and the leadership of the Fulani communities to continue their dialogue for a good understanding that will bring to an urgent end the nightmarish security challenges.

Shehu said Akeredolu, being a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), has fought crime in his state with passion and commitment.

“It will be the least expected to unilaterally oust thousands of herders who have lived all their lives in the state on account of the infiltration of the forests by criminals.

“If this were to be the case, rights groups will be right in expressing worries that the action could set off a chain of events which the makers of our constitution foresaw and tried to guard against.

“We want to make it clear that kidnapping, banditry and rustling are crimes, no matter the motive or who is involved. But, to define crime from the nameplates, as a number of commentators have erroneously done- which group they belong to, the language they speak, their geographical location or their faith is atavistic and cruel.

“We need to delink terrorism and crimes from ethnicity, geographical origins and religion—to isolate the criminals who use this interchange of arguments to hinder law enforcement efforts as the only way to deal effectively with them.

“The President, who swore to defend the constitution has spoken against the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in asking citizens of Northern origin to leave; he did not spare the group based in Sokoto, ‘Muslim Solidarity Forum,’ which asked the Bishop of Sokoto to leave and is prepared to do all that the law permits to protect citizens all over the country in their choice of where they wished to reside and are treated as equal citizens.”

Shehu said the Ondo and all States must draw clear lines between the criminals and the law-abiding citizens.

He added that beyond law and order, the fight against crime is also a fight for human values which are fundamental to Nigeria.

Fulham vs Man Utd, Solskjaer speaks on dropping Bruno Fernandes

 

Manchester United manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, has insisted he will not leave Bruno Fernandes out of his team.

Fernandes has started all but five of United’s 29 matches so far this season.

And Solskjaer maintains the Portugal midfielder is ready to play again when United travel to Fulham on Wednesday.

“He’s not tired, no, no chance. He is one of the players that runs and covers the ground in every single game.

“He’s very good at recovering and recharging his batteries. He’s not tired and if I ask him he’ll say there’s absolutely no chance that he’s tired,” Solskjaer told a news conference on Tuesday.

Solskjaer also revealed fans won’t have to wait too long for Amad Diallo to make his debut.

Diallo, 18, was signed from Atalanta in the summer, but only just arrived this January, after completing the paperwork on his £19 million move.