Good morning.
Yo, guys. It’s the end of the year. I’ll be drinking on your behalf later tonight and listening to sad songs.
For now, let’s get down to business. We are focusing on virtual crossovers, another set of Boko Haram casualties and whether the price of Bitcoin will continue to surge.
Churches go virtual
It’s the last day of the year and Churches nationwide will be keen to hold crossover services into the New Year, which usually start from the later hours of December and 31 and extend into the early hours of January 1.
However, considering a 12 am to 4 pm curfew imposed by the federal government to limit the spread of Covid, some Church leaders announced on Wednesday that crossover services, for the first time in their histories, will be held virtually.
The Redeemed Christian Church of God and Daystar Christian Centre said they will make use of social media platforms to communicate God’s words for the New Year.
But other churches, such as Living Faith Church Worldwide led by David Oyedepo, Mountain of Fire Ministries, and Covenant Christian Centre are choosing to hold physical services earlier to beat the curfew.
Testing: Meanwhile, Nigeria is still not testing enough for Covid. The federal government has blamed states for this failure. While some, like Lagos (over 200,000 tests), have done considerably well, others like Kogi (less than 500) have been abysmal.
NCDC: The disease agency reported 1,016 new cases and 11 deaths on Wednesday.
An inconclusive medical report
Hopes that the alleged sexual abused meted out on an 11-year-old boy at the Deeper Life High School in Uyo would be confirmed by a medical report were tempered on Wednesday.
The boy’s mother, Deborah Okezie, had suggested her son was anally abused by seniors in the Christian boarding school, garnering significant attention on social media.
But an initial medical report carried out at a private medical facility in Uyo did not state whether he had been sexually abused.
Quote: “In physical examination, you need to watch which area was molested and this one they are thinking of the anus, which that report has shown that there was no injury seen,” a doctor at the facility, Emmanuel Akpanobong, said.
“In fact, one would have expected that if the molestation was done that very day and maybe there is evidence of contamination – smearing with semen and all that. But these were not available at the time of seeing the child.”
Next steps: The state government said it was handing over the matter to a sexual assault centre and the police for further investigation.
Boko Haram claims more casualties
I’ve been trying hard to stay off news about violence (since they happen all the time anyway), but this one kept coming up and shows the importance of community effort.
At least seven hunters have died from a landmine left by Boko Haram militants. While one report said they were on a routine patrol, another said the hunters were chasing Boko Haram terrorists when they met their untimely end.
It is not yet clear if the military recorded any casualties.
Quote: “We call on the federal government of Nigeria to support these hunters with better weapons and vehicles to enable the hunters to provide the needed support to the military,” a Borno commissioner said. “The hunters know the terrain better and they understand the tactics of the terrorists. If we don’t give support to the local hunters and vigilante, very soon they would be discouraged and the terrorists would overrun our towns again.”
Related: Bandits have killed a prominent cattle dealer in Zamfara for refusing to buy stolen cows.
What else is happening?
Air France-KLM: Nigerians now need an airport transit visa if they are travelling to the United Kingdom via France, the airline has said. Yeah, no thanks to Brexit.
DSS: Officials of the secret police tried to intimidate a journalist in Lagos on Wednesday during a traffic incident. The DSS is notorious for the abuse of fundamental human rights.
Mining: A British firm has begun drilling for gold in central Nigeria. I’m not sure what the significance of this news is, but I’ll keep an eye on it.
Ghana: Opposition leader John Mahama, is seeking a rerun of this month’s election at the Supreme Court. Mahama, who was declared runner-up to President Nana Akufo-Addo, has described the voting process as ‘fraudulent’.
Bitcoin: The cryptocurrency’s price hit another record high on Wednesday and, according to some analysts, it might continue to rise.
Brexit: Well, the UK has signed into law the deal Boris Johnson struck with EU negotiators. The divide is now really complete. No?
China: Authorities have granted conditional marketing authorisation for a self-developed Covid vaccine.
And that’s it for today. See you next year. Haha.