By Esther Adesulu
As the new week comes alive, Heritage Times takes a look at major stories from the past week, both locally and on the foreign scene.
Here are top quotes that shaped the world last week, and topics that may form talking points in the coming days:
1. ECOWAS Suspends Burkina Faso Over Military Coup
West African bloc, ECOWAS last Friday suspended Burkina Faso after its recent coup, with other sanctions to come later, a participant at a virtual summit said.
On the eve of the summit, Coup leader, Lt. Col. Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba made a televised appeal for “the international community to support our country so it can exit this crisis as soon as possible”, and promised Burkina would “return to a normal constitutional life when the conditions are right.”
2. Mali Military Govt Cuts Ties With France In Landmark ‘Anti-Neocolonialism Move’
The military Government of Mali officially announced an end to diplomatic, military and economic ties with France, a decision it claims, was in line with the demands of the Malien people.
The Government said its decision to sever cooperation agreements with France was effective from Monday, January 24, 2022.
3. IELTS: UK Home Office Reacts To Calls From Nigerians To Stop English Proficiency Test
Recently, over 60,000 signed petition on change.org to stop foreign universities from requesting English proficiency tests from Nigerians.
Reacting, the UK Home Office said: “To be included on the Majority English Speaking Country (MESC) list, we must have evidence that most people in the country (more than half) speak English as a first language.”
4. Binance Restricts 281 Nigerian Crypto Accounts
More than 280 cryptocurrency accounts owned by Nigerians on Binance, the world largest cryptocurrency platform, have been restricted.
“Some 281 Nigerian accounts have been affected by these personal account restrictions with approximately 38% of these cases restricted at the request of international law enforcement,” Binance Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Changpeng Zhao said.
5. UAE Lifts Entry Restrictions On Nigeria, 11 Other African Countries
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is set to lift travel restrictions placed on travellers who had recently visited Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ethiopia and eight other African countries.
“From January 29, entry into the UAE for arrivals from Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Republic of the Congo, Republic of South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe is allowed again,” NCEMA, UAE’s aviation regulatory agency said on Twitter.
6. Femi Adesina: Blaming Super Eagles’ Loss On Buhari’s Phone Call Is Silly, Idiotic
Special Adviser to President Muhammad Buhari on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, stated that linking the Super Eagles’ loss at the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) Round 16 against Tunisia, with the President’s phone call is “silly and idiotic.”
Adesina debunked this in a post titled, “Losing Is Part Of The Game,” stressing that if the President had failed to encourage the players, Nigerians would have still condemned his action.
7. Nigeria’s Drug And Food Agency Bans Sale Of Alcohol In Sachets, Mini Bottles
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has taken actions to put a halt to the registration of sachet alcohol, mini bottles below 200ml in the midst of other rigorous regulatory measures.
“The Director-General explained that manufacturers of low volume alcohol beverages (200ml) with satisfactory laboratory reports, which were already submitted to NAFDAC for registration before this decision, have been directed to reformulate their products to stipulated standards free of charge,” the statement said.
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