News

Putin To Skip BRICS Summit In S.Africa Over Arrest Threat

Published

2 years ago

July 19, 2023

Editor

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend a BRICS nations summit in South Africa next month, the country’s presidency said on Wednesday, ending months of speculation he could be detained.

Putin’s potential visit has been a thorny diplomatic issue for Pretoria.

The Russian leader is the target of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant — a provision that South Africa as an ICC member would be expected to implement were he to set foot in the country.

“By mutual agreement, President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation will not attend the summit,” Vincent Magwenya, a spokesman for President Cyril Ramaphosa, said in a statement.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will instead represent Russia, Magwenya said.

The decision follows “a number of consultations” held by Ramaphosa in recent months, the most recent of which took place last night, he added.

South Africa is the current chair of the BRICS group, a gathering of heavyweights that also includes Brazil, Russia, India and China, and which sees itself as a counterweight to Western economic domination.

Putin was formally invited to a BRICS summit due to take place in Johannesburg between August 22 and 24, but Pretoria has been under heavy domestic and international pressure not to host him.

The other countries’ leaders will all be in attendance, Magwenya said.

“President Ramaphosa is confident that the Summit will be a success and calls on the nation to extend the necessary hospitality to the many delegates who will arrive from various parts of the continent and the globe,” he said.

Putin is sought by the ICC over accusations that Russia unlawfully deported Ukrainian children.

In court papers released on Tuesday, Ramaphosa wrote that arresting him would have amounted to a declaration of war on Russia.

The assessment was given in an affidavit responding to an application by the country’s leading opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), which aimed at forcing the government’s hand and ensuring the Kremlin leader was handed over to the ICC if he were to arrive.

– Neutral –

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked if the war wording was used in talks between the two nations.

“No, it did not sound that way,” he said.

“In this world, it is absolutely clear to everyone what an attempt to encroach on the head of the Russian state would mean.

“That is why there is no need to explain anything to anyone on this,” Peskov added.

The affidavit revealed South Africa was seeking an exemption under ICC rules, arguing that enacting the arrest could have threatened the “security, peace and order of the state”.

Pretoria has long said it wants to stay neutral over the war in Ukraine but has been accused by critics of tilting towards Moscow.

Some feared hosting Putin could have been read as a signal of support for Russia and jeopardised South Africa’s strong economic and trade relations with the United States and Europe.

Trade with Russia is much smaller, but their ties date back decades to when the Kremlin supported the ruling African National Congress party during the struggle against apartheid.

In recent local media interviews, South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile said the government had been trying to persuade Putin not to come.

News

IGP Appoints New Force PRO

Published

43 minutes ago

September 4, 2025

Editor

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, has approved the appointment of Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Benjamin Hundeyin as the new Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO).

Hundeyin, a graduate of English Language from Lagos State University, also holds a Master’s degree in Legal Criminology and Security Psychology from the University of Ibadan. He further obtained a Certificate in Civil-Military Coordination from the Martin Luther Agwai International Leadership and Peacekeeping Training Centre, Jaji, Kaduna State.

The new FPRO is an Associate of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), a Member of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA), and an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM).

A seasoned communicator, Hundeyin previously served as the Police Public Relations Officer at Zone 2 Command, Lagos, and later at the Lagos State Police Command.

He was also part of Nigeria’s contingent to the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Darfur, Sudan, in 2020, and at different times worked at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, as Administration Officer in the Public Relations Department.

The IGP urged Hundeyin to deploy his wealth of experience in communications and security to further strengthen the image of the Nigeria Police Force and sustain robust relations with the public.

He takes over from DCP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, who served as Force PRO until his redeployment.

News

Jonathan In Edo, Says Nigeria’s Politics Full Of Betrayals

Published

2 hours ago

September 4, 2025

Editor

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has decried the level of betrayal and lies in Nigeria’s political atmosphere.

Jonathan spoke in Benin on Thursday at the 70th birthday ceremony of his former Chief of Staff and former deputy governor of Edo State, Chief Mike Ogiadomhe.

Jonathan, who described Ogiadomhe as an ally that can be trusted all time, added: “One of the few friends that gave up their necks when I became president, is Mike. You know politics in the Nigerian standard is about betrayals.

“You find it difficult to see somebody who will say the same thing in the morning and in the evening. I’ve witnessed a lot of betrayals, especially my 2015 elections, and Mike is somebody who would take a bullet on my behalf.

“He is somebody that you can take his word to the bank; most other politicians, you cannot take their words to the bank. They will tell you something, the next one hour they are saying another”.

On his part, deputy governor of Edo State, Dennis Idahosa, who represented Governor Monday Okpebholo, said the foundation Ogiadomhe laid as deputy is what is still being followed.

Lucky Igbinedion on his part said he had no reservation handing over the affairs of the state to Ogiadomhe as his deputy governor when he needed to travel abroad.

Also speaking former governor of the state and senator representing Edo North, Comrade Adams Oahiomhole said whenever he discussed politics with the celebrant, he always told him that wherever Jonathan is, is where he would be.

He commended his wife, Lousia for being a dependable wife.

The birthday celebration attracted many dignitaries including former governors Lucky Igbinedion, Professor Osarhiemen Osunbor, Adams Oahiomhole and Ibrahim Dakwambo of Gombe State.

Others included former deputy governors including Rev. Peter Obadan, Pius Odubu, Marvelous Omobayo, Chief Judge of Edo State Daniel Okungbowa, Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Hon Blessing Agbebaku who led other members of the assembly, traditional rulers among others.

News

ITF Warns Organisations, Employers Against Rejection Of IT Students

Published

7 hours ago

September 4, 2025

Editor

The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) has warned organisations and employers nationwide against rejecting students seeking attachment for their Industrial Training (IT) exercises.

ITF Area Manager in Bauchi, Dr Ashore Paul, issued the warning on Thursday during the orientation exercise for prospective IT students of the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi.

Represented by Mrs Nanzem Yilshuut, Head of Training at the ITF Bauchi Area Office, Paul said that “the act establishing the Fund mandates every organisation to accept students for industrial attachment.”

He further stated that any employer or organisation found in breach of these provisions was liable to conviction and sanctions.

Paul also urged the prospective IT students to adhere to the rules and regulations of any organisation they joined and to be willing to learn and fulfill their responsibilities.

“When these students come back, we expect that there is a difference.

“They should have learned something new because definitely, what they learned in school, would be expected to be put into practicals.

“This will help them in their academics and also assist them in their future endeavours.

“They must participate 100 per cent, they must be disciplined and they must be willing to learn.

“We go round to ensure that they are doing what they are expected to do at their places of attachment.

“When we go for supervision, we ensure that what they are learning is in line with their courses,” he said.

The Rector of the institution, Sani Usman, said that the industrial attachment was an activity that enabled polytechnics to fulfill their mandate as technology and skill-driven institutions.

“Our students are given industrial experience during their first year so as to be registered in their minds that all of them are meant to be skilled class men and women and that is why the industrial attachment is very important.

“It enables them to build on what they have learned in their respective classrooms and practicals during the year,” he said.

Usman emphasised the importance of proper supervision during industrial training.

According to him, it will ensure students not only attend their placements but also carry out their assigned tasks effectively.

“The supervision is also to see that the employers or the places they have been sent to do their Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) do not exploit them to the level that is not required by the institution”, he said.

He further revealed that 3,000 students across all departments in the institution were going for this year’s SIWES.