BIAFRA : Killing of ESN commander, Ikonso Don disastrous – Ohanaeze

 

 

The apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has described the killing of a top commander of the Eastern Security Network, ESN, Ikonso Don as a disaster.

 reports that this was contained in a statement by the Secretary-General of the organization, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro.

He said the killing had made Ikonso a martyr and further worsened the tensed security situation in the Southeast zone.

Isiguzoro while questioning the circumstances surrounding the killing of the IPOB member, declared that “we have taken time to study the entire situation before issuing this statement and we feel that many questions are left unanswered.

“There are strong counter claims that Ikonso was not killed during a gun duel contrary to the statement by security agencies. And our question is: why kill a man you have taken captive? Why did they not arrest and prosecute him in a court of competent jurisdiction?

“So, we are questioning the circumstances surrounding his death. Ikonso should not have been killed. His death has huge consequences because he has been made martyr, a hero, you can even see that the IPOB said they have renamed the Imo Government House after him.

“The escalation of violence we are witnessing in the Southeast now won’t be happening if they didn’t kill him. Southeast is now at the mercy of herdsmen and unknown gunmen.”

 

He accused federal government forces of trying to recycle violence in the Southeast, wondering why the zone should be so militarized whereas people still moved freely in the Northeast.

“Military action is not the solution, they should withdraw troops from the roads. What the Federal government must do at the moment is to give the Southeast governors all the support they need. We are not seeing it at the moment, federal forces are rather making things difficult for them. The governors should take the lead with the Federal government supporting them.

“The Federal Government must also end all forms of marginalization of the Southeast, that’s why the youths are very angry. We have started the process of restoring peace, we are talking with all stakeholders, every party, but the Federal Government should stop aggravating matters.”

 

He equally berated “Abuja politicians” from the zone, accusing them of keeping silent while the people were being slaughtered.

“All of them have failed Ndigbo, they have not just refused to join in search for solution but are keeping grave silence. Even those of them close to the President are not telling him the truth. They have all relaxed in Abuja while their home is burning, but they must know that if this fire is not quenched, nobody will escape,” he cautioned.

Coronavirus Vaccine : Covid-19: India records highest daily cases amid oxygen shorteage

 

India has shattered a global record of daily coronavirus cases, reporting a grim 314,835 new infections in the last 24 hours.

India further recorded 2,023 additional deaths in the past 24 hours, pushing the caseload to 15,616,130 infections and the death toll to 182,553 people, according to data released by the health ministry on Thursday.

There are 2,157,538 active cases in the country, with an increase of 125,561 cases through to Tuesday, while 13,276,039 people have been cured and discharged from hospitals.

At least 22 patients died due to a low oxygen supply after a leakage in the oxygen supply tank of a civic hospital in India's Nashik town, around 167 km from Mumbai.

India's COVID-19 vaccine capacity has been severely affected as the U.S. has restricted exports of more than 30 key vaccine raw materials by leaving the critical raw materials needed for vaccine production to local manufacturers in February, which will further exacerbate the epidemic in India.

Adar Poonawalla, chief executive officer (CEO) of the Serum Institute of India, on April 16 tweeted a post, saying that the U.S. needs to lift the vaccine raw materials export ban.

"If we are to truly unite in beating this virus, on behalf of the vaccine industry outside the U.S., I humbly request you to lift the embargo of raw material exports out of the U.S. so that vaccine production can ramp up. Your administration has the details," he wrote.

The export ban has drawn criticism from several Indian media outlets.

Scroll, an independent Indian media website reported on April 19 that India's COVID-19 vaccine production lines will be halted within a few weeks if the U.S. does not provide key raw materials.

Zee News criticized the crucial raw material export ban imposed by the Biden Administration as "an act of vaccine mafia".

 

Coronavirus : Pfizer, Moderna Covid vaccines 94% effective at preventing hospitalizations in elderly, CDC study shows

 

The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines are 94% effective at preventing hospitalizations among fully vaccinated adults ages 65 and older, according to a real-world study published Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The two-dose mRNA vaccines were also found in the study to be 64% effective at preventing hospitalizations in the elderly who received just one shot. The study evaluated 417 hospitalized adults across 14 states from January to March. The U.S. agency said the findings were consistent with those found in clinical trials.

“This multisite U.S. evaluation under real-world conditions suggests that vaccination provided protection against COVID-19–associated hospitalization among adults aged ≥65 years,” the CDC wrote in the study. “Vaccination is a critical tool for reducing severe COVID-19 in groups at high risk.”

The CDC study provides more evidence on the benefits of getting vaccinated against the virus, which has infected more than 32.1 million Americans and killed at least 573,420, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Health officials had previously said Covid-19 hospitalizations among older Americans, who are at increased risk for severe disease, have tumbled since the shots first became available in the United States late last year.

As of Tuesday, more than 81% of U.S. adults ages 65 and older have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, according to data compiled by the CDC. More than 67% of U.S. adults ages 65 and older are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

In a statement Wednesday, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said the agency’s findings were “encouraging and welcome news.”

“The results are promising for our communities and hospitals,” she said. “As our vaccination efforts continue to expand, COVID-19 patients will not overwhelm health care systems — leaving hospital staff, beds, and services available for people who need them for other medical conditions.”

Earlier this week, White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Americans should begin to see a turning point in the pandemic “within a few weeks” as the U.S. continues to vaccinate Americans at a rapid pace.

The U.S. is reporting an average of 2.7 million daily Covid-19 vaccinations over the past week, according to data from the CDC, about equivalent to levels one month ago.

If the U.S. continues its vaccination pace, “literally within a few weeks, we’re going to start to see a turning around of the dynamics,” Fauci said Monday during a virtual event hosted by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

“Not down to no infections,” he said. “If you’re waiting for classic measles-like herd immunity, that’s going to be a while before we get there. But that doesn’t mean we’re not going to have a significant diminution in the number of infections per day and a significant diminution in all of the parameters, namely hospitalizations and deaths.”

Coronavirus Vaccine : How long does protection from COVID-19 vaccines last?

 

Experts don't know yet because they're still studying vaccinated people to see when protection might wear off. How well the vaccines work against emerging variants will also determine if, when and how often additional shots might be needed.

“We only have information for as long as the vaccines have been studied," said Deborah Fuller, a vaccine researcher at the University of Washington. “We have to study the vaccinated population and start to see, at what point do people become vulnerable again to the virus?”

So far, Pfizer's ongoing trial indicates the company's two-dose vaccine remains highly effective for at least six months, and likely longer. People who got Moderna’s vaccine also still had notable levels of virus-fighting antibodies six months after the second required shot.

Antibodies also don't tell the whole story. To fight off intruders like viruses, our immune systems also have another line of defense called B and T cells, some of which can hang around long after antibody levels dwindle. If they encounter the same virus in the future, those battle-tested cells could potentially spring into action more quickly.

Even if they don't prevent illness entirely, they could help blunt its severity. But exactly what role such “memory” cells might play with the coronavirus -- and for how long -- isn’t yet known.

While the current COVID-19 vaccines will likely last for at least about a year, they probably won’t offer lifelong protection, as with measles shots, said Dr. Kathleen Neuzil, a vaccine expert at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

“It’s going to be somewhere in the middle of that very wide range,” she said.

Variants are another reason we might need an additional shot.

The current vaccines are designed to work against a particular spike protein on the coronavirus, said Mehul Suthar of the Emory Vaccine Center. If the virus mutates enough over time, vaccines might need to be updated to boost their effectiveness.

So far, the vaccines appear protective against the notable variants that have emerged, though somewhat less so on the one first detected in South Africa.

If it turns out we need another shot, a single dose could extend the protection of the current shots or contain vaccination for one or more variants.

The need for follow-up shots will also depend partly on the success of the vaccination push globally, and tamping down transmission of the virus and emerging variants.

US Capitol on High Alert for Biden's First Address to Congress

 

WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden's first address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday will take place in a U.S. Capitol on high alert, with memories fresh of the deadly January 6 attack on the building by supporters of his predecessor, Donald Trump. 

The crowd inside the Capitol will be a small fraction of the hundreds of members of Congress, Supreme Court justices, top government officials and guests who typically attend, to allow for more social distancing in a COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than 572,000 Americans. 

But security will be higher than usual, even for what is officially designated a "National Special Security Event," with the Secret Service in charge of security. 

"The Secret Service and all law enforcement and public safety partners have worked hard collectively in preparation to secure this significant event," said a Secret Service representative, adding that "every security contingency is accounted for." 

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday said she is confident about security for Biden's speech. 

"I actually had a very strong briefing on Monday. I said I wish I had had this briefing, you know, before January 6. But we insisted on knowing every detail of it," she told reporters. 

The limitations on attendance, she said, mostly are being driven by COVID-19 precautions, but security also is playing a role. 

The white-domed building is still surrounded by a black steel mesh fence with some 2,250 armed National Guard troops from the District of Columbia and 18 states on duty in the city — the vestiges of a much larger force put in place after Trump supporters stormed the building as Congress was voting to certify Biden's election victory. 

Five people, including a U.S. Capitol Police officer, died from or following the violence, and dozens of police were injured in clashes with rioters. More than 400 people have been charged in connection with the attack, and authorities expect at least 100 more will be charged, federal prosecutors said in a court filing last week. 

District of Columbia authorities have asked the Pentagon to authorize the district's National Guard contingent to help local police handle any anti-Biden protests coinciding with Wednesday's address. 

"The D.C. National Guard is prepared to support D.C. law enforcement, pending approval" by Acting Army Secretary John Whitley, the D.C. National Guard said in a statement. 

It was not immediately known if Whitley would approve the request. The National Guard deployment already has cost more than $520 million, according to the U.S. National Guard Bureau.

joint session of congress 2021 : President Biden's First Address to Congress Is Invite Only

 

WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden's first address to Congress is an invite-only affair, no guests allowed.

The restrictions for Wednesday's event are due to COVID-19 safety protocols, but they will have the added security benefit of a limited number of people inside the U.S. Capitol for the president's first major indoor event since he took office just weeks after the Jan. 6 insurrection. Fencing is still up around the Capitol, and the National Guard is still there.

"Obviously the events of the sixth are poignant reminders of why we need to be vigilant," said Michael Plati, the U.S. Secret Service special agent in charge who is leading security for the joint session. "But the standard of security remains the same."

Congressional leadership extended the invitations, and anyone without one must leave the building by 5 p.m. Wednesday, though staff with Capitol offices and those credentialed by the sergeant-at-arms can remain in the building, according to a memo by Timothy Blodgett, the acting sergeant-at-arms. Official visitors are allowed only until 1 p.m., and they must be escorted into the Capitol from the barricades.

While senators are in Washington this week, the House is not in session, with most lawmakers working remotely. House Republicans are holding a private retreat in Florida, and it's doubtful many will rush back to attend.

Chief Justice John Roberts is the only member of the Supreme Court invited to Wednesday's speech. He plans to attend, court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said.

Security agencies ready

One of the main issues on Jan. 6 was a lack of coordination between multiple agencies in the district, which won't happen this time because those agencies have already been approved to work together and have been doing so for months, said Plati, who led security for the Jan. 20 inauguration that proceeded without any problems.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi invited Biden to the chamber to share his "vision for addressing the challenges and opportunities of this historic moment." Presidents don't deliver a State of the Union address to Congress until their second year in office.

The joint session is designated as a "national special security event," which clears the way for communication, funding and preparation between multiple agencies in Washington, including the U.S. Capitol Police, Pentagon, Homeland Security and District-area police. Other such events are the State of the Union, the Super Bowl, and the Democratic and Republican national conventions.

Biden's address comes as he completes his first 100 days in office. He didn't give a traditional address to Congress earlier this year because, the White House said, he was focusing on his COVID-19 recovery and response efforts.

The address will provide him with an opportunity to update the American public on his progress toward fulfilling his promises and make the case for the $2.3 trillion infrastructure package he unveiled earlier this month.

Security will be tight around the Capitol region for the event. National Guard troops, in place since the riot, are still in the area. Some security plans will be obvious — officers in uniforms, checkpoints, metal detectors, fencing — and some won't. Capitol police said Monday that streets around the Capitol will be shut down two hours before the event.

"We have many options, and we prepare for contingencies well in advance," Plati said.

Trouble at the Capitol

The Capitol Plaza remains behind fencing that was erected after a mob of Donald Trump supporters had descended on it on Jan. 6, sacking the building and disrupting the vote to certify Biden's presidential win. Five people died, including a Capitol Police officer. Hundreds of people were charged in the insurrection.

There had also been a second razor-wire-tipped fence that blocked off city streets around the Capitol, but that has since come down. Soon after it was removed, a man rammed his car into two Capitol Police officers, killing one. It's likely that streets will be blocked off anew for Wednesday's event.

And a 22-year-old Virginia man was caught by Capitol Police scaling the fence Monday. He was taken into custody.

Law enforcement officials never go into too much detail about security so would-be attackers aren't tipped off. But Plati said they have taken into account recent events and watched other major U.S. events such as the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial in Minneapolis and the response to it.

"There are always opportunities to learn from these incidents, but the planning is comprehensive" and incorporates the possibility for mass civil unrest or other security concerns, Plati said.

"We continuously evaluate the intelligence with our partners and refine the plan; we look to make those refinements," Plati said.

Joint session of congress 2021 : Biden Proposes Large-scale Spending for Children, Families

 

WASHINGTON - U.S. President Joe Biden is proposing a wide expansion of national government assistance for American children and families on Wednesday as he prepares to make his first address to a joint session of Congress.

Biden plans to lay out details of his $1.8 trillion proposal in a nationally televised speech, being witnessed in person by about 200 socially distanced, mask-wearing lawmakers and key U.S. officials in the House of Representatives chamber. Normally, the crowd for such an address would be 1,600 but is being sharply limited Wednesday night by the ongoing threat of the coronavirus.

The plan features two years of government-paid, pre-kindergarten education for the country’s youths and two years of free community college for young adults, all of it to be paid for with higher taxes on the country’s wealthiest people.

In addition, Biden’s proposal calls for $225 billion in child-care assistance for U.S. families and monthly payments of at least $250 to parents, a heretofore unknown U.S. social safety net.

In advance of the speech, the White House called the spending plans for families and education, as well as a previous call for $2.3 trillion in infrastructure funding, “once-in-a-generation investments in our nation’s future.”

It is spending, if approved by Congress, that would usher in a much bigger national government footprint in American life, way more than most Republican lawmakers would like but not go as far as some progressive Democrats say they envision. 

“President Biden knows a strong middle class is the backbone of America,” the White House said. “He knows it should be easier for American families to break into the middle class, and easier to stay in the middle class.”

“Unlike in past decades,” the White House concluded, “policies to make life easier for American families must focus on bringing everyone along: inclusive of gender, race, or place of residence – urban, suburban, or rural.”

Whether Biden’s spending plans have any chance of enactment is an open question in Washington.

Biden, a Democrat who took office January 20, won approval for a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package without the support of a single vote from opposition Republican lawmakers, relying totally on the narrow Democratic majorities in both chambers of Congress.

Already, Republicans are attacking his infrastructure and family spending plans as too costly and assailing Biden’s plans to raise taxes on corporations and the wealthiest of Americans. Under Biden’s prescription, those who earn more than $400,000 annually would have to pay higher federal income taxes and those earning more than $1 million annually would pay much higher taxes on their profits when they sell stock investments. 

The Senate Republican minority leader, Mitch McConnell, said Tuesday that Biden's three-plus-month presidency "can best be described as the Biden bait and switch."
"President Biden ran as a moderate, but I'm hard pressed to think of anything at all that he's done so far that would indicate some degree of moderation," McConnell said.

National surveys this week show Biden with an average approval rating of 53%, according to a polling aggregator, Real Clear Politics.

Biden will be speaking from the same dais in the House chamber that insurrectionists overtook on January 6 as supporters of his predecessor, Donald Trump, stormed past law enforcement officers into the U.S. Capitol, in an effort to block Biden’s official certification as the winner of last November’s election over Trump.

White House officials say Biden, the country’s 46th president and at 78 its oldest, is likely to refer to the attack on the Capitol that left five people dead. More than 400 people were arrested on various charges.

The Capitol is now heavily guarded and still surrounded by black fencing, although some National Guard troops who were guarding the perimeter have returned home.

In his speech, Biden is also likely to tout his early success in getting Americans vaccinated against the coronavirus, with more than 200 million shots already administered even as the death toll has risen to a world-leading total of more than 573,000. U.S. health officials eased mask-wearing suggestions this week, but millions of Americans are refusing, for various reasons, to get inoculated, or skipping the second shot of a two-dose regimen.

In addition to discussing his plans for domestic spending, Biden is expected to discuss his goal of engaging with other nations and taking a leadership role on the world stage, a contrast from Trump who often touted his “America First” stance and withdrew from international pacts that he viewed as poorly crafted or too costly for the United States.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday that Biden’s comments on foreign policy would include “taking America's seat back in the world, what our values are as a country.”  She said the president would likely talk about a number of foreign policy priorities, “including our engagement with China.”  

The Biden administration’s push to work more closely with allies included this month’s coordination with fellow NATO members on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, the longest U.S. war started to fight terrorists who attacked the U.S. on September 11, 2001. On his first day in office, Biden rejoined the Paris climate change pact.