News
‘Insult To Our Country,’ Trump Criticises Criminal Charges Against Him

Former US President Donald Trump offered a full-throated defense of his conduct Tuesday in his first public remarks since being charged over hush money payments to a porn star, blasting the criminal prosecution as “an insult to our country.”
Hours earlier the 76-year-old former US president pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts in a dramatic hearing in New York that transfixed the nation — and began the countdown to the first ever criminal trial of an American president.
“I never thought anything like this could happen in America — never thought it could happen,” Trump told an audience of several hundred donors, political allies and other supporters after returning to Mar-a-Lago, his beachfront mansion in southern Florida.
“The only crime that I’ve committed is to fearlessly defend our nation from those who seek to destroy it… It’s an insult to our country.”
Trump — the frontrunner in the race for the 2024 Republican nomination — said from a stage festooned with American flags in an opulent gold-and-cream ballroom that “radical left” prosecutors were out to get him “at any cost.”
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The bizarrely celebratory mood in the room seemed at odds with the gravity of the day’s events in Manhattan, with Trump reprising the applause lines that his supporters hear regularly at his rallies — and being rewarded with the same boisterous cheers and clapping.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is prosecuting Trump for cooking his company’s books to hide payments he arranged for adult film actress Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 election, to cover up an alleged sexual encounter a decade earlier.
Trump’s former chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg is serving a five-month jail term for the same charge of falsifying business records.
Manhattan prosecutors say Trump “repeatedly and fraudulently falsified New York business records to conceal criminal conduct that hid damaging information from the voting public during the 2016 presidential election.”
A “statement of facts” released alongside the indictment included details of hush money payments to Daniels, Playboy model Karen McDougal and a former Trump Tower doorman claiming to have a story about a child Trump had out of wedlock.
Daniels was paid $130,000 by former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, while McDougal and the doorman got $150,000 and $30,000 respectively from AMI, the publishers of supermarket tabloid the National Enquirer.
READ ALSO: Protests As Trump Pleads Not Guilty To Criminal Charges
Bragg alleges that Trump and his allies “also took steps that mischaracterized, for tax purposes, the true nature of the payments.”
Trump and his lawyers have accused Bragg of over-reaching in his characterization of the alleged misconduct.
The one-time reality TV star had sent a fundraising email even before flying back to Florida, saying that since the news of his indictment broke, his campaign had raised over $10 million.
“While we are living through the darkest hours of American history, I can say that at least for this moment right now, I am in great spirits,” Trump said.
The twice-impeached Republican is the first sitting or former American president to be criminally indicted.
Earlier in the Manhattan courtroom, he answered “not guilty” to all charges in a clear voice, sitting with hunched shoulders and at times looking annoyed but mostly listening cooperatively.
Judge Juan Merchan said a trial could potentially start as soon as January — a month before the presidential primaries kick off — although Trump’s lawyers have indicated they would want it pushed back to next spring.
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In a spectacle that played out on live television — with rival protesters rallying outside — the hearing marked a watershed moment for the US criminal and political system.
A crowd of hundreds had gathered, with pro-Trump protesters — sporting “MAGA” hats and attire emblazoned with the American flag — yelling slurs at their opponents.
Trump for years rejoiced in his reputation as a playboy but has always denied the tryst with Daniels, which would have occurred just after his third wife Melania gave birth.
In a rambling, conspiracy theory laden tirade to his supporters, he described Merchan as a “Trump-hating judge” and denounced Bragg for what he called “massive election interference at a scale never seen before in our country.”
But he spent much of his speech mocking several more serious investigations he faces, repeating previously-debunked allegations about being treated differently from previous presidents.
They include his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state of Georgia, his alleged mishandling of classified documents taken from the White House and his involvement in the storming of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
AFP
News
Migration Agency Warns Migrants Against Irregular Travel Routes

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM), in collaboration with Giving is Healing Foundation, has sensitised residents of Ayobo in Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State on the dangers of irregular migration and the need to embrace legal travel procedures.
Speaking during a sensitisation programme held at Megida Ifelodu Community Development Association in Ayobo, the founder of Giving is Healing Foundation, Mr. Gbolahan Ayediran, warned intending migrants against using illegal travel routes.
Ayediran said many Nigerians desire to migrate abroad in search of better opportunities but often ignore proper procedures, thereby exposing themselves to several dangers.
“Lots of people want to migrate and most of them do it in the wrong direction. The reason for the programme is for us to advise people on how they can migrate in the right way. As much as migration is their right, they should do it correctly,” he said.
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He advised intending travellers to obtain the necessary travel documents before embarking on any journey, noting that such documents include international passports, visas, flight tickets and yellow cards, depending on the destination country.
According to him, migrants should also gather adequate information about their destination countries to enable them make informed decisions before travelling.
Ayediran further highlighted some of the dangers associated with irregular migration, including abuse, exploitation, discrimination and forced labour.
Also speaking, the Chairman of Megida Ifelodu Community Development Association, Elder Mathews Amusan, commended the organisers for enlightening members of the community on safe migration practices.
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He urged residents planning to travel abroad to always follow legal migration procedures to avoid falling victim to human trafficking and other migration-related challenges.
One of the participants, Mr. Kolawole Adenoko, said the programme enlightened him on the dangers of irregular migration and the importance of travelling through the proper channels.
He added that he would also educate his relatives and friends on the risks associated with illegal migration.
News
Shatta Wale Bailed Burna Boy From Ghana Prison After Arrest For Smoking Weed – Captan

Ghanian singer, Captan, has claimed that his former record label boss, Shatta Wale, once bailed Nigerian singer Burna Boy out of prison in Ghana after he was allegedly arrested for smoking weed.
Speaking in a recent podcast interview, Captan claimed that Shatta Wale sent him and others to free Burna Boy from police custody.
He also claimed that Shatta Wale and his group once accommodated Burna Boy when he was being hunted by some dangerous men.
READ ALSO: Wale Edun Opens Up After Sack
Captan said, “I once bailed Burna Boy out of prison in Ghana when he was arrested for smoking weed. Shatta Wale sent me and some guys to go and free him from police custody.
“There was a time we also accommodated him when some people were after his life. We helped him settle the case.”
He added that he and Burna Boy are no longer in good terms after the Nigerian artist’s fallout with his mentor, Shatta Wale.
He, however, said he and Shatta Wale are open to reconciling with Burna Boy if he asks for it.
Watch the video here
News
Children’s Day: Chaos At Ogbe Stadium As Dozens Faint

Chaos erupted on Wednesday during the Children’s Day celebration as dozens of students reportedly collapsed following a stampede triggered by the use of pepper spray.
The event,
organised by the Edo State Ministry of Education at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium was disrupted after some male students of Ihogbe College allegedly made uncompromising advances towards female students at the venue.
A parent who identified himself as Oboh Emmanuel said, “the behaviour of those uncultured students attracted the attention of bouncers stationed at the stadium as they rebuked the male students.”
Oboh said the affected students later regrouped and attacked the bouncers, leading to a confrontation within the crowded arena.
READ ALSO:Children’s Day: Edo Commits To Child Protection
It was gathered that in the ensuing confusion, the bouncers were reported to have deployed pepper spray in an area occupied by a large number of students.
Several students, particularly female students, reportedly fainted after inhaling the substance, while others sustained injuries after being stepped on during the ensuing melee.
The panic was said to have spread across the stadium as students, teachers and parents scampered for safety.
Many of the affected students were reportedly rushed to the Edo Specialist Hospital for medical attention.
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Reacting to the incident, Chief Press Secretary to Governor Monday Okpebholo, Dr Patrick Ebojele, said the security personnel that fired the tear gas had been detained.
He said all the students, except two, that were rushed to the hospital have been discharged.
Ebojele stated that doctors wanted to observe the students till tomorrow before allowing them to go home.
“The two students are not seriously injured. Doctors want to observe them overnight. Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education is still at the hospital. The man who used pepper spray has been detained.
“The incident did not happen the way it is being exaggerated. All modalities were put in place to ensure the children enjoyed their day.”
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