Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu says the decision of the Southern Governors to ban open grazing is irreversible and will be enforced.Akeredolu, says they are ready to defend the legality of their decision in court.He is reacting to the statement by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami who faulted the ban on open grazing and said the governors do not have the right to do so.Ondo Governor in reaction said Malami’s comparison of open grazing to auto parts trading is not only strange but also annoyingly and ‘betrays a terrible mindset.He stressed that the Southern Governors are most willing to meet him in Court.

The House of Representatives has called on the Federal Government to stop the proposed increase of the electricity tariff for June.They stressed that it was important to direct the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission to rescind its decision on the proposed increment in view of the hard times Nigerians were going through.The lawmakers also mandated the House Committees on Power, Poverty Alleviation, as well as Labour, Employment and Productivity to ensure compliance with the directive.

President Joe Biden signed a hate crimes law on Thursday aimed at protecting Asian Americans who have suffered a surge in attacks during the Covid-19 pandemic.Biden told Asian American politicians and senior members of Congress in a packed room at the White House that racism is an ugly poison that has long plagued our nation.”Biden says the Asian American community had been made a scapegoat.

Zimbabwe has imposed a mandatory quarantine on travellers arriving from India, after a localised outbreak of a variant of Covid-19 first identified in India in central Zimbabwe.Health Minister Constantino Chiwenga says genomic sequencing tests revealed its presence in the country.All travellers from or transiting through India will now be quarantined at designated centres at their own cost.They will also be subject to a local coronavirus test.Zimbabwe’s Covid numbers remain low with 17 new cases and no deaths recorded in the latest daily update.

Ethiopia’s electoral board has announced that country’s general election will now take place on 21 June, 16 days later than planned.The country was supposed to hold nationwide elections last year but they were postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.The delay contributed to the escalation of political tensions as some groups accused Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration of using the pandemic as a pretext to stay in power illegally.The electoral board says that logistical and operational difficulties, including belated voter registration in some areas due to recurring violence, meant it wouldn’t be possible to conduct the polls on time.

The African Union has called for a democratic transition in Chad within 18 months following last month's military takeover.The AU says it categorically rejected any extension of the transition period.Chad's military council has promised to hold elections within 18 months.It is headed by the son of the former president, Idriss Déby, who died last month after being injured fighting rebels.There have been regular opposition protests since the military took over, with dozens of activists arrested.

Former Ghanaian President John Mahama has withdrawn his acceptance as a special African Union envoy to mediate talks over the political crisis in Somalia.Mr Mahama noted the lack of support by the Somali federal government.He says the proposed assignment required that he enjoy the unalloyed support and co-operation of all political stakeholders.The AU appointed Mr Mahama as its special representative to Somalia on 7 May, but the Horn of Africa country questioned his impartiality.A long-running maritime border dispute has also contributed to stormy relations.

The Federal Government on Thursday convened a conciliatory meeting with the Kaduna State government and the Nigeria Labour Congress to resolve the impasse that has grounded labour activities in the state.The minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige says that the state government delegation disagrees with the labour leaders.He noted that the meeting, thereafter, resolved to constitute a 10-man committee comprising six state government officials and three NLC representatives to discuss and resolve the impasse.The minister stated that the committee chaired by the Head of Service in Kaduna State was given a mandate of up to Tuesday next week to report to him.

The French President, Emmanuel Macron, has called for major reforms in the way African countries are given financial assistance.The African Development Bank estimates that tens of millions of people could fall below the poverty line this year with many African countries at risk of debt distress because of the pandemic.Mr Macron drew a link between the continent’s economic troubles and the spread of Islamist militancy as he called for the financial rules to be changed.

Health authorities in Malawi are expected to destroy more than 19,000 doses of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccines later on Wednesday.They say the vaccines have expired and there is no sufficient data to know if they are safe for use, following guidance from the World Health Organization.The authorities say the move seeks to give confidence to Malawians to get the jab when available.Officials fear that using vaccines past their expiry date will further reduce public trust.