Gist of The Hour Blog

a Kano kingmakers drag Gov Ganduje to court over new emirates  - The Four kingmakers have dragged Governor Abdullahi Ganduje to court over the creation of four additional emirates in the state - Also sued are the speaker of the Kano state House of Assembly, the state government and the four newly appointed emirs - The revered kingmaker are challenging the governor’s decision before a state High Court  The controversy surrounding the traditional institution in Kano has taken a new turn as four kingmakers of Kano Emirate have sued Governor Abdullahi Ganduje over the creation of four additional emirates in the state.  The kingmakers are Sarkin Dawaki Maituta Alhaji Bello Abubakar, Sarkin Bai Alhaji Mukhtar Adnan, Madakin Kano Alhaji Yusuf Nabahani and Makaman Kano Alhaji Sarki Ibrahim Makama According to Daily Trust, they are challenging the governor’s decision before a state High Court.  Also sued are the speaker of the Kano state House of Assembly, Kabir

© AP A Boeing 737 MAX 8, being built for American Airlines, is partially obscured by the engine wash as it takes-off on a test flight Wednesday, May 8, 2019, in Renton, Wash. The Boeing 737 Max 8s have been grounded following deadly crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia. Analysts expect that idling the Max 8s, a fuel-efficient update of Boeing's popular 737, will crimp growth plans in the near future. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson) Arlington, Va. — CBS News has obtained audio from the American Airlines pilots' union confronting Boeing about new features to the 737 Max that may have been factors in two deadly crashes. Frustration boiled over during the tense meeting in November 2018, less than a month after the first Max crashed, and four months before the second crash. "We flat out deserve to know what is on our airplanes," one pilot is heard saying.  "I don't disagree," the official said. Last October, Lion Air flight 610 went down off the coas

Swaziland’s King Mswati the III King Mswati of Swaziland has denied ordering the men in his country to marry more than one wife or face imprisonment. According to a statement issued by the government on Monday and signed by its spokesperson, Percy Simelane, and available on Bulawayo24.com , the government said the issue was never discussed. The statement blamed the Zambia Observer newspapers for the report, asking it to substantiate its claim. Part of the statement read, “In the wake of several poisonous reports published in some foreign newspapers, social media platforms and other forums purported to be an official statement by His Majesty, King Mswati III, Government wishes to state the following: “The current dispatch titled ‘Marry more wives or face jail,’ quoting the King is not only an insult to the monarchy but a disgrace to journalism. “His Majesty has not made any pronouncement to that effect and it has never been an issue raise

Time to make sure WhatsApp is updated on your iPhone, Android or Windows device    WhatsApp has been hit by a security bug that could let hackers take over your phone with a voice call, even if you did not answer it. Users are being urged to update their WhatsApp smartphone apps immediately because of a security bug that allows hackers to take over your phone by simply calling it, whether or not you answer. What has happened? A vulnerability in the popular Facebook-owned messaging service has been discovered that allowed hackers to install spyware through an infected WhatsApp voice call. The spyware is capable of trawling through calls, texts and other data, activating the phone’s camera and microphone and performing other malicious activities. Which phones does it affect?  Any phone running either WhatsApp or the WhatsApp Business app can be affected. All brands of phones with WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business installed are affected, inclu

WhatsApp on Tuesday encouraged its users to upgrade the app to plug a security breach that allowed sophisticated attackers to sneak spyware into phones, in the latest trouble for its parent Facebook.   The vulnerability — first reported by the Financial Times, and fixed in the latest WhatsApp update — allowed hackers to insert malicious software on phones by calling the target using the app, which is used by 1.5 billion people around the world. “WhatsApp encourages people to upgrade to the latest version of our app, as well as keep their mobile operating system up to date, to protect against potential targeted exploits designed to compromise information stored on mobile devices,” a spokesperson said in a statement to AFP.  The FT cited a spyware dealer as saying the tool was developed by a shadowy Israel-based firm called the NSO Group, which has been accused of helping governments from the Middle East to Mexico snoop on activists and journalists. And se

Popular Nollywood actress, Tonto Dike has revealed that she wants to get a new boob on her birthday which comes up on June 9. In a post on her Instagram page, @tontolet, on Tuesday, the mother of one posted her desire in the form of prayers to God. She wrote: “Dear Lord Jesus, I have all I want for now. “My birthday wish is that you make my schedule and that of Dr Ayo align so I have my new boobs in Jesus name I pray!! Thanks, daddy Lord. “#KINGTONTO #KINGTONTOBIRTHDAYWISH #JUNE9TH #BUYING ME A NEW BREAST #BOOBSWISH #GEMINIBABY’’. Recall that Tonto Dike had in 2017 underwent cosmetic surgery in an unknown hospital. The 33-year-old revealed that she had not been confident of her body. “My body has been something that I have always been extremely ashamed of,” she revealed.

Add caption Nigerian actress, Mercy Aigbe has threatened to sue a Nigerian blogger who wrote that her daughter has been receiving stipends from her father. The actress, while reacting to the post, said it was a big fat lie and she has been responsible for her daughter’s upkeep for the past 18 years. She then vowed that the blogger will suffer as she is not ready to sweep this particular case under the carpet. She wrote: “This afternoon, I instructed my lawyer to write a blogger, who has made it in his/her life mission, to spread falsehood about me. The latest, being that the father of my daughter has been sending money for her upkeep. This lie is in response to the post I made on mother’s day. I could have allowed this lie to slide but henceforth, I have made a decision to challenge every form of falsehood. I know like many media people, this particular blogger might not take me serious. They believe there will be no consequence for spreading false news or if they beg, all will be

Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen Chris Ngige The Federal Government will, on Tuesday in Abuja, inaugurate the N30,000 new national minimum wage implementation committee, almost one month after President Muhammadu Buhari signed the bill into law.  Dr Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment said this while fielding questions on television concerning the time for payment of the new wage.   Ngige did not state when government would start payment but said that arrears would be paid anytime implementation of the new wage began. He said there were still processes and procedures the new wage would undergo before the commencement of its implementation, even though it had been passed and signed into law. ADVERTISEMENT “It is a whole process and the salary and wages commission will do its job before implementation,” the minister said.  He said that the committee was made of seven ministers with the Head of Service of the Federation, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita a

The African Action Congress (AAC) has suspended Omoyele Sowore, its presidential candidate in the 2019 General Election. Punch reports that Mazi Okwy, a member of the AAC National Executive Committee read the party’s resolution to journalists in Abuja on Monday. Sowore and eight others, including its Deputy National Chairman (South West), Ogunlana Rotimi Jacob, were suspended for six months over alleged anti-party activities. The party then appointed Dr. Leonard Ezenwa, the acting National Chairman, while Abayomi Francis Olufemi has been named Deputy National Chairman. The allegation against Sowore bordered “particularly on inflow of illegal foreign funds into the party and personally retaining same in contravention of Section 225 (3)(4) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), together with eight others.” When contacted, the Head of Media and Public Relations, Sowore Campaign Organisation, Rachel Onamusi-Kpiasi said: “Leonard (Ezenwa) has been suspended from t