Newscast - Africa

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has rued oil theft in the country, warning that Nigeria might go bankrupt if the trend is not checked.
He also raised concerns over the country’s economic future, warning that Nigeria’s debt to service revenue ratio might pose danger for decades.
He says that over 90 per cent of Nigeria’s revenue from crude oil sales is used to furnish interest accruing on debt.
He says the country is moving steadily towards a state of bankruptcy, a whole nation.

The Nigerian Railway Corporation says 21 passengers are still unaccounted for following the attack on an Abuja-Kaduna-bound train about a week ago.
The Managing Director of the NRC, Fidet Okhiria says a total of 80 meters of the affected section has been fixed including replacement of affected sleepers and twisted rails
The NRC boss says two more persons have returned home, taking the number of safe passengers to 172.
He says attempts are being made to reach the remaining numbers on the manifest.

A United States court has rescheduled the trial of Abba Kyari, and five others, for alleged $1.1 million fraud coordinated by Ramon Abbas, aka Hushpuppi.
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California rescheduled the trial from May 17 to October 11, 2022, based on a joint request by the prosecution and three of Mr Kyari's co-defendants.
Judge Otis Wright, agreed that not granting the parties' request could deny defence counsel the reasonable time necessary for effective preparation, taking into account the exercise of due diligence.
He says it would unreasonably deny defendant continuity of counsel and could make proceeding impossible or result in a miscarriage of justice if the court rejected the postponement request.

Hong Kong has responded with fury over what it described as unfounded and ridiculous allegations in key reports from the United Kingdom and the United States that said the territory’s democratic rights and freedoms were continuing to deteriorate.
The UK says that alternative voices in Hong Kong’s executive, legislature, civil society and media had been all but extinguished.
The Hong Kong government strongly oppose the unfounded and ridiculous allegations against the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government made by foreign countries through various reports.
It added that Hong Kong continued to enjoy a high degree of autonomy under the one country, two systems that was adopted on its return to Chinese rule.

The White House says President Joe Biden will announce a record release from US strategic oil reserves in an attempt to curb a politically damaging surge in domestic fuel prices following Russia’s attack on Ukraine.
The white house says the scale of this release is unprecedented adding that the record release will provide a historic amount of supply to serve as bridge until the end of the year when domestic production ramps up.”
A senior US official told reporters that the US oil would be coming to market very soon and that with other countries making their own coordinated releases of reserves, the total addition to daily supply will be well in excess of the one million barrels.

President Vladimir Putin warned unfriendly countries, including all EU members, that they would be cut off from Russian gas unless they opened an account in rubles to pay for deliveries.
Putin says they must open ruble accounts in Russian banks. It is from these accounts that payments will be made for gas delivered starting April 1.
He announced that he signed a decree that outlines the clear and transparent process.
He says all payments will be handled by Russia’s Gazprombank, a subsidiary of state energy giant Gazprom.

Russia says it will expand the list of EU figures banned from entering the country following Western sanctions over Moscow’s military actions in Ukraine.
The foreign ministry says the restrictions apply to the top leadership of the European Union including a number of European commissioners and heads of EU military structures as well as the vast majority of members of the European Parliament promoting anti-Russian policies.
The ministry says the EU delegation in Moscow had been informed, adding that any hostile sanctions from the EU and its members would elicit a harsh response.

Mali’s military has received two combat helicopters and two sophisticated radar systems from Russia to help in its fight against Islamist Militants.
The junta, which seized power in 2020, has developed closer ties with Russia after a series of disagreements with France.
Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group are now believed to be helping Mali’s military, though the junta has refused to confirm their deployment.
France’s foreign minister in an interview with France24 says that Mali’s military leaders had become hostage to the mercenaries from Wagner.
Mali’s Defence Minister Col Sadio Camara batted away such criticism, saying the equipment from Russia gave the army the autonomy it needed to battle insurgents.

Kenya’s Supreme Court has ruled against President Uhuru Kenyatta’s plan to make broad constitutional changes, saying he had acted unlawfully.
The government had sought to overturn its rejection by lower courts known as the Building Bridges Initiative.
Some points went in the government’s favour, but in essence, the ruling means the proposal cannot proceed.
They say the creation of 70 new constituencies without public participation was unconstitutional.

The United States officially marked the beginning of construction on a new, modern consulate building in Lagos.
Spokesperson Temitayo Famutimi, the US Consulate says the groundbreaking highlights the enduring bilateral friendship and partnership between the US and Nigeria.
The US Consulate says throughout the project, an estimated $95 million will be invested in the local economy, and the project will employ approximately 2,500 Nigerian citizens, including engineers, architects, artisans, construction workers, and administrative staff.