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Sanwo-Olu Shares COVID-19 Experience, As Governor Tests Negative To Virus

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Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has gotten a clean bill of health; he has been certified free of Coronavirus (COVID-19). The Governor, on Thursday afternoon, cheerfully walked out after 14 days in self-isolation, expressing his gratitude to all citizens for their prayers and wishes throughout the period of his public absence.

Sanwo-Olu shared experience of his personal battle against the dreaded virus in a briefing held at the State House, Marina.

He said: “COVID-19 is real”, apparently cautioning those still in doubt of the outbreak of the pandemic.

The Governor, on December 11, went into self-isolation after exposure to an infected aide. His test result came back positive, the day after.

Sanwo-Olu, however, said he was fortunate to have had a relatively moderate experience in the course of his infection, but added that he experienced most of the symptoms associated with COVID-19, including cough, fatigue and loss of smell.

The Governor expressed concern about the new surge in the rate of infection, disclosing that Lagos was now recording 18 per cent in positive results from the daily testing. He appealed to the residents to join in the effort to tame the virus by strictly adhering to the public health guidelines issued by the State Government.

The Governor said the second wave of the virus spread was proving to be more ambitious and dangerous than the first period of outbreak, urging the people to protect themselves and loved ones from the harshness of the virus.

He said: “Fellow Lagosians, let me sound this note of warning again, as I have done from the onset of this pandemic, COVID-19 is real. It is here with us, and it is not a respecter of anyone, or of social class, religious belief, or partisan affiliation. Not only is the virus here with us, but this second wave we are currently seeing is also proving to be more ambitious than the first wave.

“We are seeing infection figures that are surpassing what we saw at the peak of the first wave, and, just like then, Lagos remains the epicentre. As a densely-populated city and a centre of international trade and commerce, this is not surprising in any way. But, it is also the reason we need to exercise an abundance of caution in this period.”

The Governor stressed that the State Government was not resting on its oars to halt the second wave of the pandemic, disclosing that the State had started to raise the capacity of its isolation centres and General Hospitals by installing Oxygen Kiosks, which are needed for treatment of COVID-19 patients with compromised respiratory tracts.

Sanwo-Olu said six Oxygen Kiosks out of the ten proposed in the first phase would be unveiled next week.

The Governor restated that the emergency required to tame the second wave of the virus would not permit public gatherings and crowding, especially in Yuletide when religious centres would be holding services and vigils.

He directed worship to suspended all-night services, including vigils and crossover events, noting that the Federal Government-imposed curfew between midnight and 4 am would be enforced.

He said: “All over the world, Christmas period is associated with gathering, merriment and travelling, which all, sadly, contribute to the spread of the virus. We must now seek to minimise as much of these activities as we can, at this time. Let this Christmas be a period of sober reflection.

“The quicker we are able to tame this raging virus, through responsible behaviour, the higher the likelihood that we will enjoy 2021 that is not as restrictive and challenging as 2020. By acting responsibly, we are not doing only ourselves a favour, we are doing other people favour as well, especially those among us who are elderly or medically vulnerable.”

As part of the measures to curtail COVID-19 spread, Sanwo-Olu strongly advised residents to cancel all non-essential travels, regardless of destinations.

The Governor directed all in-bound international passengers arriving into the country through Lagos must subject themselves to COVID-19 test on the seventh day of their arrival. All business and social establishments in Lagos, the Governor ordered, must strictly enforce “No Mask, No Entry” policy.

Sanwo-Olu said there was no justification for socialising in the period of public health crisis without exercising caution, warning those who are bent on flouting the State’s regulations that the Government would bring the weight of the laws on them.

The Governor thanked frontline workers and medical personnel who attended to him during his period of isolation, saying: “I received very dedicated and competent care from the Lagos State COVID-19 Treatment Team, and I am extremely proud of the work they do.”

BIG STORY

US Court Sends British-Nigerian To Seven Years In Jail Over $5m Cyber Fraud

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Oludayo Adeagbo, a British-Nigerian, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for his role in a multimillion-dollar business email compromise (BEC) scheme.

According to the US Department of Justice, Adeagbo, who also goes by John Edwards and John Dayo, conspired with others to steal over $3 million from various entities in Texas, including local government bodies, construction companies, and a Houston-area college.

Adeagbo and his co-conspirators also defrauded a North Carolina university of more than $1.9 million.

The case began in August 2022 when Adeagbo and two other Nigerian citizens, Donald Echeazu, 42, and Olabanji Egbinola, 44, were extradited from the United Kingdom (UK), where they had been residing, to face charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and money laundering.

The US Department of Justice stated that the offences were committed in North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia.

On April 8, Adeagbo pleaded guilty in two cases against him in North Carolina and Texas for participating in a business email compromise scheme, which is also referred to as a “cyber-enabled financial fraud” scheme.

A business email compromise scheme can be initiated by scammers creating fake accounts that mimic companies a business regularly deals with.

Court records revealed that Adeagbo and his co-conspirators gathered information about significant construction projects across the United States, including a multi-million-dollar project at a university in North Carolina.

“To execute the scheme, Adeagbo, Echeazu, and others registered a domain name similar to that of the legitimate construction company in charge of the university’s project and created an email address that closely resembled that of an employee of the construction company,” the Department of Justice said.

“Using the fake email address, the fraudsters deceived and directed the university to wire a payment of more than $1.9 million to a bank account controlled by an individual working under the direction of Adeagbo and his co-conspirators.”

Adeagbo and his co-conspirators employed the same tactics in Texas, targeting local government entities and universities by impersonating construction companies. They stole over $3 million from the scheme, bringing their total haul to $5 million.

Adeagbo has been ordered to pay $942,655.03 in restitution and will serve seven years in prison.

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Nigerian-American Oye Owolewa Re-Elected To US Congress

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Oye Owolewa, a Nigerian-American Democrat, has been re-elected as the shadow representative for the District of Columbia (DC).

Owolewa, a PhD graduate from Northeastern University in Boston, made history in November 2020 when he became the first Nigerian-American elected to Congress.

He secured 164,026 votes, or 82.84 percent of the total votes cast in DC.

His role, while not officially recognized by the US government as a full member of Congress, is to advocate for the district’s interests, particularly its bid for statehood.

On Thursday, Owolewa expressed his gratitude to DC voters via a post on X, thanking them for their continued support.

“Thank you DC again for giving me chance to serve. I also want to thank the organizations that have supported, partnered with and endorsed me,” he wrote.

While shadow representatives like Owolewa do not have voting power in the US House of Representatives, they play a key role in pushing for recognition and state-level advocacy for DC residents, who are otherwise disenfranchised at the federal level.

Owolewa has consistently championed the cause of DC statehood, which has become a central focus of his work.

The re-election took place on November 5, the same day as the US presidential election.

In that election, former President Donald Trump defeated Vice-President Kamala Harris, securing over 270 electoral votes to win a second term.

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Joe Biden Urges Americans To Accept Trump’s Victory, Promises Peaceful Transition

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United States President Joe Biden has urged Americans to accept the victory of Republican Party candidate Donald Trump in the presidential election.

On November 6, Trump won the presidential election after surpassing the magic number of 270 electoral college votes.

Trump defeated Kamala Harris of the Democratic Party, who received 219 electoral college votes.

Harris has congratulated Trump on his electoral victory.

During a speech on Thursday at the White House Rose Garden, Biden said, “We accept the choice the country made.”

“I know for some people, it’s time for victory to state the obvious. For others, it’s a time of loss,” the US president said.

“Campaigns are contests of competing visions. The country chooses one or the other.

“I’ve said many times, you can’t love your country only when you win. You can’t love your neighbour only when you agree.

“I will do my duty as president. I’ll fulfil my oath and honour the Constitution. On January 20, we will have a peaceful transfer of power here in America.

“Remember, defeat does not mean we are defeated. We lost this battle. The America of your dream is calling for you to get back up.

“The America experiment endures. We are going to be okay, but we need to stay engaged. We need to keep going. Above all, we need to keep the faith.”

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