9JA VIBEZ HUB: News

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Friday, October 22, 2021

News October 22, 2021

Lagos disc jockey commits suicide.

A 22-year old Disc Jockey (DJ), Emeka Nwoye, from Enugu State, has allegedly hung himself at Ayobo-Ipaja Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos State.

The deceased lived with his parents at No. 38, Olakunle Domingo Close, Off Popoola Street, Ikola Ojugbele.

He was said to have locked himself in on Wednesday, 20 October 2021 in the evening when his parents were yet to return from work and allegedly carried out the suicide.

According to his father, Mr Nwoye, who is a retired police officer, Emeka’s dangling body was discovered at about 10:10 pm on Wednesday.

The deceased’s elder brother, Godday Nwoye told newsmen that Emeka, before his death, was receiving treatment for an illness he returned with from a journey he embarked on along with his friend a few weeks ago.

It was observed at the scene that the height of the living room where he allegedly hung himself was barely higher than his own height. This triggered questions from some members of the crowd.

However, police from the Meiran Division have been invited by the family to commence an investigation, while efforts were ongoing to evacuate the corpse as at press time.

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News October 22, 2021

IPOB: Group insists on fair hearing for Nnamdi Kanu.

As the trial of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) resumes on October 21, the Greater Igbo Forum has called for a fair hearing in court.

The group demanded that he be produced in court and be given an opportunity to air his own views as is expected of a democratic setup.

Founder of Greater Igbo Forum, Obinna Chikelu Kingsman, who made the call also charged the government of the day to decisively deal with the raging problems of insecurity and also the economy in the interest of Nigerians.

He said the forum stands for all Nigerians as it is not an ethnic group, but for all Nigerians that have an affiliate with the Igbo race either by the mother, by the father, or by marriage or by adoption.

“Having said that, the pertinent issue concerning the Nigerian nation today is about the Nnamdi Kanu’s detention, I can say the first part of it is the equity and justice he deserves to be given a fair hearing in the competent court. As there’s a program tomorrow there’s no question of bringing him or not, he should be allowed to appear in court and then have the opportunity to air his own view and the state too will air their own view that is the right of every individual that is detained by the state, and that is the beauty of democracy and the Rule of Law.

“So my suggestion is to give Nnamdi Kanu a fair hearing, produce him first of all at the court tomorrow and hear him and at the same time look squarely on the way to go about the insecurity issues which a lot of things have come to play, unemployment is there, hunger is there and at the same time the feeling of not belonging that is beside, the Igbo’s are seeing it now.”

Kingsman also said the distribution of the national leadership structure is supposed to represent the Federal Character System.

This, he said, gives everybody a fair level ground where everybody can showcase their talent and strength. “I mean this is a simple thing that calls for justice and implementation and I know there are competent hands everywhere,” he said.

He said though there are competent people everywhere, the country has remained at a level where a section is neglected in terms of being given the opportunity to lead to avoid friction.

“The factors that divide us must be taken into cognisance when we’re looking for peace, that is in terms of ethnicity and religion, and at the same time the people especially the South Easterners, my brothers I plead to them, let us give peace a chance. You don’t get anything through violence, violence destroys but that is why the Greater Igbo Forum stands for dialogue. I believe when all heads are cool, we sit down together and we talk out issues and nobody will play arrogant when the truth is being said,” he said.

Hon. Levi Ezeorah, National President of Greater Igbo Forum also reechoed the call that Kanu be provided in the court and given a fair hearing, which he said would douse tension.

“No matter how you see him, he has followers, he has sympathizers and the issue is, what is this young man clamouring for? We’ve spoken of marginalization, without marginalization there could have been nothing like his struggle, there are people, no matter how you take it there are people that see him as a freedom fighter. What we need to ask is, is there marginalization? If there is, is there any against the Igbo people? If there is, like my forum believes in dialogue is it not necessary to approach the whole thing with dialogue? What is this young man clamouring for? Bring the stakeholders from that region to discuss that, I think that is what will now bring down the tempo and reduce the crisis.

“The continual detention of Nnamdi Kanu in the cell does not solve any problem, it does not, and the Federal Government will do the people good by providing Nnamdi Kanu in the court. A lot of people are receiving the heat and even the IPOB people have been infiltrated by people who are even using that to create a crisis and the moment Nnamdi Kanu is tried properly I think we will reduce the tension.

On his part, award-winning journalist, Mr Ben Okezie, said as far as Nnamdi Kanu is concerned, the government should embrace transparency in dealing with the IPOB question.

“The government should be open, they shouldn’t in anyway twist the arm of justice against him, they should allow justice to prevail and then, I also believe that the judge that is handling the case will be fair and will not in any way allow any government to dictate what they should do. But every eye is open, the world is watching, he’s a freedom fighter and a freedom fighter should not be subjected to the type of injustice that we’re perceiving that the government is trying to inflict on him.

“But nonetheless, I believe that the Federal Government of Nigeria will be fair in everything they’re doing with Nnamdi Kanu whether they’re going to bring him on that day depends on the information that the security agencies must have gotten, if they find out that the atmosphere or environment will not be very very clear for him, then I think they’ll not produce him. But if they find out that everywhere will be secured then I don’t see any reason why they shouldn’t bring him to the court for ruling But this what one expects that they should be fair in everything they’re doing with Nnamdi Kalu, there shouldn’t be like using a sledgehammer to kill an ant,” he said.

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News October 22, 2021

#EndSARS: Panels’ recommendations should be incorporated into police training – ex-AIG.

A retired assistant inspector-general of police, Wilson Inalegwu, says the recommendations of the #EndSARS panels should be incorporated into police training.

Following the nationwide protests for the disbandment of the special anti-robbery squad (SARS), the national executive council (NEC) headed by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo in October 2020 asked states, including the federal capital territory (FCT) to establish judicial panels to investigate cases of police brutality and compensate victims.

Speaking on the conduct of the police at the #EndSARS memorial, Inalegwu said the recommendations of judicial panels should be incorporated into the training scheme of the police so as to give them a sense of direction.

He advised NEC to set up an inter-ministerial committee that will critically implement the recommendations into the training process of the Nigerian Police Force.

“Looking at the EndSARS report, and having the minister of police affairs, the minister of justice, the chairman of police service commission and IGP, critically, they can set up an inter-ministerial committee to look at the report,” he said.

“When you look at those factors, you will incorporate them in the training and you see to the implementation, using the AIGs of the zones.”

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Tuesday, October 19, 2021

News October 19, 2021

Security Update: Over 50 Bandits Neutralized In Birnin Gwari LGA.

In an inspiring success for the security forces, over 50 bandits have been neutralized during a combined ground and air assault in the Saulawa-Farin Ruwa axis of Birnin Gwari LGA.

According to operational feedback to the Kaduna State Government from the Command of the Joint Operations, a Nigerian Air Force helicopter gunship provided close air support to ground troops advancing from the Dogon Dawa-Damari-Saulawa axis.

Following extensive scans, bandits were spotted on five motorcycles, about 4km east of Saulawa, waiting to ambush the ground forces. They were engaged vigorously by the helicopter gunship, and were wiped out.

After this, armed bandits on about 50 motorcycles were sighted fleeing towards Farin Ruwa, and were struck effectively by the gunship. Fleeing remnants were mopped up by ground forces.

A second helicopter gunship joined the operations, and many more fleeing bandits were neutralized by precise strikes. Assessment revealed that more than 50 bandits were neutralized during the joint operation.

Governor Nasir El-Rufai expressed his satisfaction at the operational feedback, and congratulated the ground troops and gunship crews on the rout. He urged them to sustain the momentum and bring even more bandits to their bitter end.

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Wednesday, October 6, 2021

News October 06, 2021

Hundreds of Afghans gather outside passport office as Taliban resumes issuing travel documents.

Hundreds of Afghans gathered outside a passport office in Kabul on Wednesday, a day after Taliban officials said that the country would resume issuing travel documents, ending a months-long suspension that had further diminished the already limited ability of Afghans to leave their war-torn country.

© NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images Afghanistan's passport ranks poorly in terms of visa-free access for its holders.

Alam Gul Haqqani, acting head of the passport office, told reporters Tuesday that up to 6,000 passports would be issued daily. The Taliban government would also release 25,000-plus new passports that had previously been paid for, he said at a news conference.

In Wednesday’s chaotic scenes, Taliban guards beat back people trying to apply for passports in an attempt to maintain order, Reuters reported. The Taliban plans to start issuing passports on Saturday and isn’t yet taking new applications, according to the news agency.

The passports will continue to be issued under the name of the former government, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. No country has officially recognized the Taliban, which has renamed the country an Islamic Emirate, as Afghanistan’s legitimate government.

© Thomson Reuters Afghans gather outside the passport office after Taliban officials announced they will start issuing passports to its citizens again, following months of delays that hampered attempts by those trying to flee the country after the Taliban seized control, in Kabul, Afghanistan October 6, 2021. REUTERS/Jorge Silva

The reopening comes as the Taliban struggles to govern a country that is facing a major brain drain. Many educated Afghans fled following the Taliban takeover of the country in August, fearing that the regime would implement its severe interpretation of Islamic law. While the Islamist militants have pledged to govern more moderately than during their brutal 1996 to 2001 reign, many remain deeply skeptical of such promises.

In the past two months, the passport office received at least 170,000 applications, local media reported.

A Taliban spokesman had previously said educated Afghans should stay because it was “time for people to work for their country,” though the militants have agreed to let citizens with valid visas freely leave, according to Western officials.

There are no restrictions on who can apply for a passport, Interior Ministry spokesman Qari Saeed Khosti said at the news conference. But he urged former government officials and professionals “to come forward as the nation has invested in” them and “to play their part in rebuilding” Afghanistan.

Afghans with valid passports still face difficulties leaving the country. Afghanistan sits at the bottom of the 2021 Henley Passport Index, which ranks travel documents based on the number of places holders can visit without having to obtain a visa. Afghanistan has been in last place for most of the past 16 years, and many embassies that issued visas have relocated out of the country since the Taliban seized power.

However, even the prospect of being able to leave Afghanistan has led to some relief. Kabul resident Najia Aman told Reuters that she was “very happy” to hear about the resumption of passport issuance, because it meant a family member could go to Pakistan for medical treatment.

Pakistan’s ambassador to Afghanistan Mansoor Ahmad Khan said in an interview that his country could only process visas on valid passports and that “passport renewal is an Afghanistan issue.”

© Thomson Reuters A Taliban soldier carrying a weapon speaks to Afghans gathered outside the passport office after Taliban officials announced they will start issuing passports to its citizens again, following months of delays that hampered attempts by those trying to flee the country after the Taliban seized control, in Kabul, Afghanistan October 6, 2021. REUTERS/Jorge Silva

But it wasn’t immediately clear if Afghans outside Kabul, the capital, would be able to easily apply for passports. Many regional passport offices were damaged in fighting during the Taliban takeover, according to a resident of Helmand Province, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to fear of retribution.

“Maybe now, it is only in the capital Kabul that people could get their passports,” the person said.

The Taliban is also allowing some female employees at the Interior Ministry to return to work so that they can process paperwork submitted by women applying for a passport, Khosti said. He noted, however, that the female staff “will come to the office through a separate entrance.”

The vast majority of female Afghan government employees have been told to stay home from work, though the Taliban has said such a move would be temporary.

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News October 06, 2021

Buhari’s promise of teachers’ new retirement age, salaries not with National Assembly – Minister.

Grace Edema, Deborah Tolu-Kolawole, Solomon Odeniyi, Abiodun Nejo, Olufemi Olaniyi, Daud Olatunji and Gbenga Odogun

Published 6 October 2021

Nigerian teachers on Tuesday joined their counterparts all over the world to commemorate this year’s World Teachers Day just as the Federal Government promises more welfare for teachers.

At a programme organised to commemorate the day in Abuja, the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, said the harmonised bill for the new retirement age of teachers which was promised by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), last year “has yet to be presented to the National Assembly for approval.”

Recall that the President announced a new salary scale for teachers, as well as increased the retirement age from 60 to 65 years.

But Adamu, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Sonny Echono, at the Tuesday event said, “The draft bill for harmonised retirement age for teachers/education officers in Nigeria 2020 was presented and approved by the Federal Executive Council on January 20, 2021 and is awaiting presentation to the National Assembly.

“I assure you all that frantic efforts are being made to implement the resolutions to complement the delivery of effective and equitable sound education that will foster development and contribute to the evolution of a strong, democratic, egalitarian, prosperous, indivisible and indissoluble sovereign nation.”

On new promises, Echono said the President had rolled out plans to increase teachers’ quality through payment of stipends and offering automatic employment after graduation for graduates of education courses.

He said “The ministry will collaborate with the state governments to ensure automatic employment, undergraduates of B.Ed/B.A.Ed/ BSC.Ed in public institutions are to receive stipends of N75,000 only per semester, while NCE students will receive N50,000 as stipends per semester.”

Echono added that the government, through partnership, would build low-cost houses for teachers in rural areas, engage teachers in trainings and also reintroduce bursary award for NCE students.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi (retd.), has assured teachers and students that the federal and state governments are working to ensure they are protected.

The minister spoke at the ministry’s Teachers Day celebration and award presentation to teachers in Armed Forces Schools.

Represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Istifanus Musa, the minister said, “Nigeria have keyed into the safe school programme.

“That means we are taking the necessary steps to make sure every student is protected. As parents and teachers we may have certain feelings but many state governments are already keying into the programme and taking steps by moving students from unsafe areas to safe ones.”

Fayemi restates commitment to teachers’ welfare

Also in Ekiti, Governor Kayode Fayemi reiterated his administration’s commitment to the welfare of teachers.

Fayemi said, “As a responsible government, we shall continue to improve teachers’ welfare and ensure improved conditions of service. We are committed to fulfilling our pledge of clearing outstanding arrears of salaries from the last administration”.

The governor, who spoke during the celebration of World Teachers Day, presented a car to Mr Olasoji Bamidele of Isan Secondary School, Isan Ekiti, who emerged the best teacher in the public secondary schools and Mr Jimoh Akanbi of AUD Nursery and Primary School, Otun Ekiti, who emerged the best teacher in public primary schools category.

Cash prizes were also given to first and second runners up in both categories as well as other categories in the technical education and private schools.

Oyo lauds teachers

The Oyo State Government has applauded the steadfastness and dedication of teachers in the state.

The Executive Chairman, Oyo State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr Nureni Adeniran, who said this in a statement on Tuesday to celebrate the World Teachers Day, also asked the teachers to show more commitment to their job.

He reiterated the commitment of the Governor Seyi Makinde led administration to the welfare of teachers, especially in the areas of training and re-training, prompt payment of salaries and conducive environment for teaching and learning in public schools.

Kogi ASUSS decry teachers’ shortage

The academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools, ASUSS has expressed serious concern over shortages of teachers in Kogi Stateschools.

The Chairman of the union, Ojo Ranti in a speech said it “is painful that the issue of teachers’ recruitment has remained outstanding for many years despite year-in-year-out calls.

“Distinguished guests and respected colleagues, we will be failing ourselves as a union, failing beloved students in particular and the society in general, if we shy away from presenting the challenge of abysmal shortage of teachers in our schools as it is.”

Abiodun gift Ogun best teachers cash, houses

The Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has fulfilled house and cash donations to the best teachers in the state.

Abiodun fulfil the promise promise he made during the 2020 World Teachers Day, the governor on Tuesday , exactly one year after.

The governor gave a semi-detached bungalow to the best overall teacher for year 2020 in the state.

He also rewarded this year best teachers in the state with cash prizes ranging from N1m to N2m .

He also gave a two-bedroom detached bungalow to Mr Kehinde Oladapo , a teacher in Sapara Junior Secondary School, Ijebu Igbo.

Oladapo also received a donation of N2.5m for being the overall best teacher in the state.

Abiodun announced this while addressing members of the Nigerian Union of Teachers and the Academic Staff Union Secondary Schools in Abeokuta.

He noted that since assumption of office, the government had ordered the release of promotion letters to deserving primary and secondary school teachers due for promotion.

Lagos hails teachers

Also in Lagos, the Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by the Commissioner for Education, Mrs Folasade Adefisayo at the 2021 World Teachers Day Celebration in Ikeja, said, “We are indeed proud of you in Lagos State, and we will continue to hold you in high esteem because we have seen your impacts on the quality of teaching as reflected in the performances of our students across the state.

“Our administration shall continue to reward excellence and productivity of exceptional teachers with cars and other prizes and we will continue to provide better working environment.”

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News October 06, 2021

Maryam files plea in IHC for annulment of Avenfield verdict

PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz has filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court, seeking the annulment of the verdict related to the Avenfield Apartments reference, a private TV channel reported on Tuesday.

In her petition filed through Advocate Irfan Qadir, Maryam maintained that the verdict was a ‘classic example of outright violations of law and political engineering hitherto unheard of in the history of Pakistan’. “Supreme Court supervised the entire process of the investigation of the case and monitored the prosecution,” she maintained. “Filing three separate references in the case of assets is also a violation of the law,” she said, adding that the accountability court judge would know why he didn’t notice these facts.

© ASSOCIATED PRESS Maryam Nawaz, daughter of former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and leader of an opposition party, addresses supporters while leaving her home to attend a rally in Lahore, Pakistan, Friday, Oct. 16, 2020. Pakistani opposition parties are staging a rally in the eastern city of Gujranwala to kick off their campaign against Prime Minister Imran Khan to force him step down over what they say is his failure in handling the nation's ailing economy. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Maryam contended that the apex court’s “role in the constitution is neither that of the investigator nor that of the prosecutor”. “NAB is bound to conduct the investigations with transparency,” she maintained.

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The plea also referred to former IHC judge Shokat Aziz Siddiqi’s address to the bar. “The judge remarked that the chief justice of Pakistan had been approached: we won’t let Nawaz Sharif and his daughter get released till the elections,” the petition quoted judge Siddiqi as saying in the address. According to the plea, Siddiqi’s remarks created doubts that the verdict of the case was biased.

Maryam’s petition stated that former accountability judge Arshad Malik’s video was also a proof that the cases against Sharif family were ‘influenced’.

The petition urged the IHC to take notice of the ‘serious violations’ and nullify the Avenfield Reference verdict while acquitting all the convicts.

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Meanwhile, the IHC registrar imposed two objections on Maryam’s petition. The registrar office maintained that Maryam made the same appeal as to that in the main petition challenging the Avenfield reference verdict. Secondly, the petitioner can acquire fresh grounds only with the court’s permission.

The lawyers representing Maryam have been informed about the objections, and a special bench – comprising Justice Amir Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani – will conduct a hearing on the petition today.

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News October 06, 2021

Deuba still struggles to appoint ministers

Kathmandu, Oct. 6 -- It's been almost three months since Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba was elevated to the country's top executive position but he is still struggling to appoint all ministers.

During Tuesday's meeting of the four top leaders of the ruling coalition, Nepali Congress leaders claimed that a tentative agreement was made on the allocation of ministries but the leaders of the coalition partners have not yet agreed on them.

Nepal's newly appointed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba addresses the parliament asking for a vote of confidence in Kathmandu on July 18, 2021. (Photo by PRAKASH MATHEMA / AFP) (Photo by PRAKASH MATHEMA/AFP via Getty Images)

"Actually there was no agreement today," said a leader close to Madhav Nepal, chairman of the CPN (Unified Socialist). "Though Nepali Congress leaders have said an agreement has been reached, we have not agreed on the allocations yet."

Janata Samajbadi Party Chairman Upendra Yadav said they reached a tentative agreement on the allocation of ministries and it would be finalised by Wednesday evening so that the ministers could be appointed on Thursday. He said the number of ministries for his party would also be finalised on Wednesday.

Yadav had briefed the meeting of his Parliamentary Party at Singha Durbar that his party will get four to five ministries.

One of the members in the five-party alliance of the coalition partners-Rastriya Janamorcha having only one member in the House of Representatives-has announced its plan not to join the government.

According to leaders, the meeting of the coalition partners decided to allot at least four ministries to Janata Samajbadi Party and CPN (Unified Socialist) each and five ministries to the CPN (Maoist Centre) and six to the Nepali Congress.

Currently, the Deuba government has five ministers-three from Nepali Congress-Balkrishna Khand (Home), Gyanendra Bahadur Karki (Law) and Narayan Khadka (Foreign)-and Maoist Centre has two ministers-Janardan Sharma (Finance) and Pampha Bhusal (Energy)-and the state minister for Health Umesh Shrestha from the Congress.

Prime Minister Deuba has been leading 16 ministries.

The Nepali Congress has claimed eight ministries including the prime minister. Congress is laying claim to ministries such as defence; communications and information technology; women, children and senior citizens; health and population; and youth and sports. The party already controls home, foreign and law ministries. However, the Law Ministry will go to the CPN (Unified Socialist).

The CPN (Maoist Centre) will get water supply; land management, cooperatives and poverty alleviation; and education, science and technology ministries. The party already has finance and energy ministers.

However, some ministries including education are also claimed by the Janata Samajbadi and the CPN (Unified Socialist).

The Janata Samajbadi Party has laid claim to physical infrastructure and transport portfolio besides agriculture and livestock development; forests and environment; and federal affairs and general administration. Party leaders are also claiming the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies.

But the prime minister wished to allocate four ministries each to the CPN (Unified Socialist) and Janata Samajbadi Party besides one each state minister to them and six ministries to the CPN (Maoist Centre).

As per a tentative agreement, the CPN (Unified Socialist) will get culture, tourism and civil aviation; urban development; labour, employment and social security; and law, justice and parliamentary affairs portfolios.

Prime Minister Deuba and Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal are reportedly pressing Madhav Nepal to have a lawyer-probably Govinda Bandi-as the law minister on his party's quota. Currently Congress leader Gyanendra Bahadur Karki is leading the law ministry.

CPN (Unified Socialist) leaders have not yet agreed and have claimed that they would rather remain outside the government if they were not given at least four ministries excluding the law. If the parties could forge an agreement, Law Minister and government spokesperson Gyanendra Bahadur Karki will become the defence minister. But CPN (Unified Socialist) is not happy with the ministries allocated to the party.

"Our chairman [Nepal] will meet Prime Minister Deuba and Maoist Centre chair Dahal to lodge the party's discontent," said a leader close to Nepal asking not to be named.

Lawmaker Metmani Chaudhary of CPN (Unified Socialist) said his party would get five ministries-defence, urban development, youths and sports, culture, tourism and civil Aviation, and industry and commerce.

According to leaders close to the prime minister, the government is preparing to end the ongoing ninth session of the House of Representatives and the tenth session of the National Assembly within a day or two and come up with an ordinance related to the administration of oath to ministers.

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News October 06, 2021

Zuckerberg Responds to Claims That Facebook Prioritizes Profit as ‘Just Not True’

(Bloomberg) -- Facebook Inc. Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg addressed a recent series of negative stories about the company for the first time by saying accusations that it puts profit over user safety are “just not true.”

“It’s difficult to see coverage that misrepresents our work and our motives. At the most basic level, I think most of us just don’t recognize the false picture of the company that is being painted,” he wrote in a note to employees on Tuesday that he also posted publicly.

Zuckerberg Responds to Claims That Facebook Prioritizes Profit as ‘Just Not True’ © Bloomberg Zuckerberg Responds to Claims That Facebook Prioritizes Profit as ‘Just Not True’It came shortly after whistle-blower Frances Haugen, a former employee, testified in a Senate hearing about her experience there and internal research she said showed the company prioritized profit while stoking division. Haugen appeared on “60 Minutes” Sunday night, saying Facebook routinely made decisions that put business interests ahead of user safety.

“There were conflicts of interest between what was good for the public and what was good for Facebook,” she said. “Facebook over and over again chose to optimize for its own interests like making more money.”

Zuckerberg wrote that he was bothered by a narrative that Facebook is not worried about children’s safety. Two Senate hearings over the past week have focused on Facebook’s impact on teens and young children, including Haugen’s testimony.

The Wall Street Journal published internal Facebook research last month, provided by Haugen, that showed Instagram made some mental health issues worse for teenagers who use the product. The company, which was building a version of Instagram for children, has put that project on hold.

“When it comes to young people’s health or well-being, every negative experience matters,” the CEO wrote. “We have worked for years on industry-leading efforts to help people in these moments and I’m proud of the work we’ve done.”

Facebook doesn’t benefit from content that makes people angry or depressed or make all product decisions to maximize user interactions, Zuckerberg said. When it changed its News Feed algorithm to show more posts from friends and family a few years back, the CEO added, the company did so knowing that people would spend less time on the service.

Zuckerberg ended the note by encouraging Facebook’s workforce and expressing his gratitude for their work.

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News October 06, 2021

Biden says changing filibuster rules to raise debt ceiling is a ‘real possibility’

President Biden late Tuesday said it is a “real possibility” that Senate Democrats could seek to revise the chamber’s filibuster rules to overcome a Republican blockade on raising the debt ceiling.

Such a major change could give Democrats the ability to stave off a potential, calamitous default roughly two weeks before a critical fiscal deadline — but only if all party lawmakers agree to loosen the Senate’s typical 60-vote threshold in a way some have been disinclined to do for months.

President Biden gives a thumbs-up before boarding Air Force One, Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2021, in Lansing, Mich., after touring the Operating Engineers Local 324 training center in Howell, Mich. (Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal via AP) © Matthew Dae Smith/AP President Biden gives a thumbs-up before boarding Air Force One, Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2021, in Lansing, Mich., after touring the Operating Engineers Local 324 training center in Howell, Mich. (Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal via AP)The debt ceiling refers to the government’s ability to borrow to pay its bills. Lawmakers have until Oct. 18 to raise the cap by a specific amount or suspend it until a particular date — or else the U.S. government could face a crisis so stark that the Biden administration has warned it could thrust the country back into a recession.

Democrats and Republicans agree that the dangers of default are vast. But GOP lawmakers led by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky have refused to supply the 10 necessary votes for Democrats to overcome a filibuster on a plan to suspend the debt limit in the chamber — part of the GOP’s broader efforts to oppose Biden’s economic agenda.

Earlier Tuesday, McConnell reiterated his belief that Democrats instead should use a process known as reconciliation to address the debt ceiling. The move would allow the party to raise the borrowing cap using a majority, rather than the typical 60 votes required in the Senate, preserving the ability of Republicans to withhold their support.

But Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) has said repeatedly that reconciliation is not an option for Democrats, since it is “risky” and time-consuming — threatening perhaps to take too long and push the country into default. The Senate is set on Wednesday to consider instead a House-passed measure to suspend the debt ceiling in 2022, the third such measure Republicans are expected to block.

With the standoff only intensifying, Biden on Tuesday for the second time this week lambasted Republicans. “There’s not many options if they’re going to be that irresponsible. … There’s not much time left to do it by reconciliation,” he told reporters.

If the process bogs down because of a filibuster, lawmakers would have even less time. Asked about loosening the rules specifically to address the debt ceiling, Biden replied: “I think that’s a real possibility.”

For Biden, the suggestion itself amounts to a significant political development. The president has been reticent to call for a full repeal of the power available to the minority party, even as Democrats newly in charge of the House and Senate fail to advance long-sought police, election and gun reforms, partly in response to sustained GOP opposition.

Instead, Biden has called for a return to the “talking filibuster,” which requires protesting senators to command the floor for as long as they wanted to hold up debate. Otherwise, he said in July, the elimination of the rule entirely could “throw the Senate into chaos.”

Even as recently as last week, the White House appeared disinclined to pursue a solution to the looming debt ceiling crisis by seeking a change in one of the Senate’s most fundamental rules. Press secretary Jen Psaki said during a briefing in late September that Biden’s position “has not changed on that,” adding only that he was working with Schumer “on a path forward.”

With the debt ceiling, though, the stakes are high: Biden and his top aides have warned that congressional inaction could destabilize the global economy. It could delay seniors’ Social Security checks, for example, and result in rising interest rates that make it more expensive for Americans to own homes. A default could further rattle stock markets domestic and foreign, plunging the United States into another recession, only months after emerging from the last downturn during the darker days of the coronavirus pandemic.

The mere prospect of a default roughly a decade ago sent stocks tumbling, terrified investors and prompted credit-ratings agencies to warn about a possible downgrade. This year, Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, found that it could cost the economy roughly 6 million jobs, eliminate as much as $15 trillion in household wealth and send the unemployment rate surging to roughly 9 percent.

Despite the dire warnings, however, Senate Republicans have blocked two attempts by Democrats to suspend the debt ceiling in recent weeks — as McConnell and his allies argue that they do not wish to support Biden as he pursues trillions of dollars in new economic spending initiatives. GOP lawmakers are expected to deliver a third defeat Wednesday, when Schumer tries to advance a new measure to suspend the borrowing cap. That procedural move requires 60 votes, which Democrats do not have without GOP support.

The prospect of another defeat loomed large over Democrats as they gathered Tuesday for their weekly lunch. Emerging from the private gathering, some party lawmakers said there had been renewed talk about addressing the issue through different means — perhaps by weakening the filibuster so that the usual 60-vote threshold for most chamber activity would not apply to the debt ceiling. In that case, Democrats could rely on their tiebreaking majority, with Vice President Harris casting the deciding vote.

“There’s a lot more conversation because Mitch McConnell is threatening to blow up the economy,” said Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), a longtime advocate of the issue. “The level of frustration in the [Democratic] caucus has gone through the roof.”

But tweaking the filibuster requires the full support of Senate Democrats, which has eluded some of the party’s leaders in the past. Two of the party’s most pivotal swing votes, Sens. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), each has expressed an unwillingness to rethink the power of the minority to hold up debate in a chamber where historically even one senator can grind policy to a halt.

“I’m not going to say anything about it,” Manchin told reporters Tuesday.

Schumer, for his part, declined to offer any indication as to the exact road ahead.

“We all know that Senate Republicans have manufactured a crisis that threatens to plunge our economy back into recession,” he said at a news conference. “We do not have the luxury of using a convoluted, drawn-out and risky process.”

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