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Knives Out 3: Will the sequel be released in theatres or streaming?GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Quinton Morton-Robertson's 16 points helped Purdue Fort Wayne defeat Green Bay 83-67 on Sunday night. Morton-Robertson had three steals for the Mastodons (10-5, 3-1 Horizon League). Jalen Jackson added 15 points while going 6 of 11 from the field and had five assists. Trey Lewis shot 3 for 6 (3 for 5 from 3-point range) and 3 of 4 from the free-throw line to finish with 12 points. The Phoenix (2-13, 0-4) were led in scoring by Preston Ruedinger, who finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Green Bay also got 11 points from Ryan Wade. The loss is the 10th in a row for the Phoenix. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .
Chinese film about Covid-19 wins Taiwan's top Golden Horse prizesWest Ham surprise Newcastle with 2-0 away win NEWCASTLE, England (AP) — Newcastle’s winning run in the English Premier League came to an abrupt end when goals from Thomas Souček and Aaron Wan-Bissaka gave West Ham a surprise 2-0 win at St. James’ Park on Monday. Canadian Press Nov 25, 2024 2:04 PM Nov 25, 2024 2:05 PM Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message West Ham United's Tomas Soucek, center, celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Newcastle United and West Ham United in Newcastle, England, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP) NEWCASTLE, England (AP) — Newcastle’s winning run in the English Premier League came to an abrupt end when goals from Thomas Souček and Aaron Wan-Bissaka gave West Ham a surprise 2-0 win at St. James’ Park on Monday. The Hammers rose into 14th place and the pressure on coach Julen Lopetegui was eased. The London club has been inconsistent all season and Monday’s win was just its fourth in 12 league games. West Ham was worth the win in the end but the three points came courtesy of slack defending by the home side. Emerson whipped in an out-swinging corner after 10 minutes and, with Newcastle defenders rooted to the spot, Souček stole in to nod home the opener. Then eight minutes into the second half, captain Jarrod Bowen found Wan-Bissaka in the penalty box and he was left unchallenged and had time to fire an angled drive past Nick Pope. Newcastle brought on Harvey Barnes, and then Callum Wilson returned from a long-term back injury to make his first appearance of the season but to no avail. The defeat ended a three-game winning streak for Newcastle and left the Saudi Arabia-owned club in ninth place, four points outside the top four. ___ AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer The Associated Press See a typo/mistake? Have a story/tip? This has been shared 0 times 0 Shares Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message Get your daily Victoria news briefing Email Sign Up More Soccer Englishman Davis scores late to rescue point for Udinese and Lecce steals win at Venezia Nov 25, 2024 1:49 PM US goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher is retiring from international soccer Nov 25, 2024 1:43 PM Canada forward Evelyne Viens sidelined by injury ahead of Canada friendlies in Spain Nov 25, 2024 11:39 AM
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Jimmy Carter: Many evolutions for a centenarian ‘citizen of the world’A popular Yoruba proverb says when a rabbit gets old, it suckles on its child’s breasts, which symbolises the prevailing mindset of children as retirement plans in Nigerian society. In this piece, OLUWAKEMI ABIMBOLA explores the multigenerational adverse effects of delayed pensions. Seated under a shed at the Federal Civil Service Club, the venue of their meeting, were about two dozen retirees, who waited patiently, their weathered faces a mixture of resignation and quiet determination. The shed offered a brief respite from the morning heat but not from the burden they carried. Most of the men wore ankara fabrics, paired with caps; the women in Yoruba ‘iro and buba,’ skirt and blouse made from ankara, and others in western-style gowns added a splash of colour to an otherwise sombre gathering. A few of the younger ones, faces lightly made up, stood out as a subtle reminder that retirement does not always come with age. This was the regular bi-monthly meeting of the Concerned Federal Pensioners, a support group formed by retirees from various federal government establishments. For many, it was more than just a meeting; it was an outlet, a moment to step out of their homes and the daily challenges they face. Here, they could air their grievances, share updates, and renew faint hopes that someone, somewhere, might finally listen. A Life of waiting Among them was Amidu Iposi, a former level-seven civil servant with the Federal Ministry of Housing. Retired for nearly two decades, Iposi has spent most of his post-service years battling incomplete pension payments, a struggle that has drained him emotionally and financially. Another retiree, Aremu Musa, retired from the Survey Department of the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing in 1999, but he tells a story of short payment. Between May 2009 and 2010, he said that his pension was inexplicably short-paid, and despite numerous appeals to the relevant authorities, his efforts to recover the funds have yielded nothing. Edevor Sunday, who retired from the Ministry of Defence in 2020 after 35 years of service, was one of the younger faces in the crowd. Though he had begun receiving his pension, he claimed that his unpaid gratuity was a significant amount that could have provided him with the stability he desperately needed as he navigated life after service. Their stories echoed the same refrain: years of loyal service met with broken promises. From unpaid pensions to short payments to outright exclusion from payrolls, these pensioners symbolise a crisis that spans generations and regions. Asked how they have been coping, most of them revealed that they have been dependent on their children. Unfortunately, it was not all the time that their children were able to provide for them because of economic hardship, and for some of them, their children couldn’t be bothered. Speaking on the experience of his members, the chairman of the group, Buraimoh Kasali, noted that what most retirees use their pensions to buy are medications and food. Kasali, who urged the government to pay retirees what it owes them, noted that it was not ideal to owe pensioners who just want to have their basic needs met. Vice chairman of the group, Yele Oludimu, said that with the economic downturn, many of the association’s members have not been finding it easy to feed themselves. “Some have children who have been taking care of them; those who don’t have children who are doing well are left to their fate. They cannot buy food or their drugs,” he lamented. -Younger Nigerians take on the burden of care- Alimot Gambo has written the 2024 West African Senior School Certificate Examination and finished her secondary school education, but while she went through these milestones in her young life, her grandfather’s cry for his pension remained a constant and regular interjection in her life and that of her immediate family and anyone who would lend him an ear. Her grandfather, Abubakar Gambo, retired from Kings College in Lagos as a security man in 2006. His last salary was N35,000. Since he started receiving his pension, he has been paid N25,000, but it was recently increased to over N30,000. However, he has not been paid for months now. Gambo, who lives in the Berger/Ojodu area of Lagos, has been dependent on his two daughters, one who is a petty trader selling pure water and another who is a fashion designer. Although they try their best to provide for his needs, he still asks every one of his family members about his benefits. His daughter, Fatima Rahman, who also spoke with The PUNCH , said, “I have been doing petty trading, selling pure water, and my junior sister is the fashion designer. He’s disturbing us about his money. He said, ‘Christmas is here, and you people promised that my money would be paid by now; is it not yet time?’” However, for Alimot, our first respondent spoke about her grandpa’s unpaid benefits, his experience is not a deterrent to wanting to work with the government, but she wouldn’t want to live the same way. “He has been living with my aunt (his daughter) for years, and she’s the one sponsoring him. He has not received any money for a while now. He has just been going and coming with no results. I will be happy that whenever I start any work, it will have a pension attached, so at the end, I will also have a pension and not experience what my grandpa is going through,” she said. The PUNCH correspondent first met Nkoyo Sereke in August at the meeting of the Concerned Federal Pensioners. She had come to the meeting armed with some documents that would facilitate her dad’s monthly pension, which had not been paid since February. Speaking with her in December, Sereke said that her 83-year-old dad had still not been paid. Her dad is Enenyi Edet, a retiree from the Ministry of Finance (Treasury Department). He was employed in 1961, his appointment confirmed in 1963, and he retired in April 1978. Mr. Edet has been ill in recent times but is recovering. He currently has a part-time care giver who is paid N25,000 and a physiotherapist who comes in three times a week, with each session costing N10,000. “We employed a part-time care giver that we pay N25,000 monthly plus breakfast and lunch. When my dad was ill, we had to pay to bear the cost of fuelling the ambulance to take him from the hospital, amongst all other bills. I employed a part-time home help for N15,000 plus two meals a day. About two months ago, I was told that he fell, which is very risky for someone his age. My dad is getting better but needs to wear a high adjuster device to help reinforce his bone density in the affected area. Feeding cost is there, and the cost of running the home, e.g., power, gas, is about N70,000,” Sereke said. How much is her dad’s pension? She said, N30,000 per month. “We are looking at about N200,000, just small money. My dad has been ill. He’s getting better, but he keeps asking about his pension. I just tell him, ‘You know what? You should thank God that without the pension, you are fine.’ That he has children who can take care of him. But that pension ‘waka,’ I will not do it again apart from checking with the man (Vice Chairman of the Concerned Federal Pensioners) on the phone. I’m tired. I would spend so much to come there, and nothing comes out of it. I just chat with him once in a while whenever my dad won’t stop asking about it. “It is not the amount of the pension that he’s upset about but that he’s not getting his dues,” she lamented. On how her dad’s experience has impacted her, Sereke said, “I have never worked for the government and will never. The only time I worked for the government was during my service, and it was because I didn’t get a private sector placement. I have always worked for private organisations and had my pensions paid. Of all of us, my elder brother worked with the government, but every one of us has worked with private organisations. “Sometimes, when you are experiencing something or staying in an environment, you might be making choices that you don’t know are because of that. With what I saw with my dad, I just knew there was no way I could take that route. Even while working with private companies, I had interacted with government parastatals, apart from maybe NCDMB (Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board). Because of the kind of work that I do, every other one, you go to their offices and it is 30 years backwards. Where I worked, we had a cooperative where I served as the secretary for five years. When we go to the Ministry of Agric, we don’t see anybody in the afternoon. I know that I cannot function in that kind of place. Besides the fact that I want to make money, I also want to make an impact. I want to solve problems. Not that at 11 am, I’m leaving to do small chops business, drive Uber, or just go home and sit down. “And what about the process of getting to work for the government? I know that with my dad’s experience, I can save for my future better than the government can, and I’m not joking,” she asserted. Sereke noted that she always tries to dissuade him from focusing on his unpaid pension. “I try to encourage him not to bother about his pension, but you know that feeling about something that you have worked for and what you have been promised upfront; that’s what this is about. Not that the money would do so much,” she noted. Soji Oloyede, who retired from a subsidiary of the Bank of Industry, lamented that the ill-treatment of pensioners was rampant in the public sector and worse at state levels. “For the private sector, there is compliance in terms of remittance. An employer cannot withhold the contributions of the employee, so by the time the person is retiring, his or her contributions will be up to date at the Pension Fund Administrator. It is better in the private sector because you don’t have to go from one ministry to another, and I think with the National Pension Commission, the whole documentation process can be completed within a month,” he said. Reiterating the poor treatment of retirees by government entities, Oloyede said, “The issue of delayed payment mostly affects the public sector. My wife retired in January 2024. She worked with a federal agency, the National Bureau of Statistics. Till now, she has not collected a dime of her pension. She has done all the processing, but the funds have not been released. “The challenge is mostly on the government side, and for the state governments, it is worse. Go to some states, and you will find that retirees haven’t received anything for three years, and it is because they were not remitting the deductions to the PFAs at the right time. When the employee is retiring, they will now be talking about raising vouchers.” Oloyede, who is an annuitant, lamented that he has become part of his wife’s retirement package pending when the government pays what it owes. “I use an annuity because the monthly pension provided by the insurance company is higher than what the PFA is giving,” he said. Related News Lagos pledges support for pensioners Ogun pensioners hail Abiodun over N20,000 wage hike Pensioners slam Kwara's new minimum wage policy for excluding retirees Asked how his wife is coping, Oloyede said, “She has a husband now. Am I not her husband? Assuming I don’t have anything else I’m doing or she doesn’t have someone or something to fall back on, how do you think our lives would be? I’m a retiree; my wife is a retiree; the only thing is we have worked and have tried to keep some savings. My pension is not enough. It is not even up to one-third of my last salary.” Alternative retirement plans Chike Smart, a businessman selling cosmetics inside Tradefair along the Lagos-Badagry Motorway, told The PUNCH that relying on a pension is “old school.” Smart, who is in his late 40s, said, “I invested my money on land in South-East. That is my pension plan. With the level of uncertainty in this country, if anything happens, I can sell my land in South-East and start another business or feed off it. Every two years, the value of the land will appreciate. That is where I’m keeping my money for my retirement. “Even for my children, instead of saving money for them in the bank, I use it to buy land for them, and I don’t plan for any of them to have their university education in Nigeria. They will go overseas, study, and live there. That is my retirement plan, too, but a pension is not for me at all. Imagine waiting for a pension in this day and time. No, it’s old school.” He added that he had never worked in the formal sector, so a pension was not an option for him. A description of the micro pension scheme for the informal sector also failed to elicit any interest from him. Chinyere Okorie, 52, who sells cello tapes, post-it notes, and carrier bags at the Tradefair market, revealed that her business and her children were her retirement plans. “When I’m old and can no longer work as I used to, I will hand this business over to my children. The profit from the business and whatever my children give me will be what I will be using to do one or two things,” she said. For 24-year-old Chinenye Amadi, a sales girl, retirement is not even on her radar. She said that she has not even done much with her life, so why would she think about retirement? She also didn’t know about the contributory pension scheme or the micro pension scheme, which may be of benefit to her as a player in the informal sector. A lecturer at the Lagos State University, Dr. Olalekan Hassan, said being dependent on pensions alone in his old age was not an option for him. He added that academics were moving to the Nigerian University Pension Management Company Limited, which is the licensed pension fund administrator for the Nigerian University System, maintaining that they offer a better deal for retiring academics compared to other PFAs. He said, “I cannot depend on a pension. Anyways, academics are moving to NUPEMCO. The benefit I see from where I work is that when one or two of our professors retire, they could get a substantial amount to do something tangible. It is like the regular contributory scheme, but it is specialised. ASUU fought for it during one of these strikes. One of the arguments for it was that our people suffer when they retire because they don’t have access to funds, just the monthly payment. With the lump sum they have access to, they can do something, and the other 50 per cent can be staggered over the years.” Younger for longer According to the United Nations, Africa has the youngest population in the world, with 70 per cent of sub-Saharan Africa under the age of 30. The Worldometer on Monday, December 23, 2024, put the current population of Nigeria at 234,980,186 based on its elaboration of the latest United Nations data. Nigeria’s 2024 population was estimated at 232,679,478 people at mid-year. The median age is 17.9 years with a life expectancy of 54.6 years. Experts within the country and outside have often harped on the fact that the Nigerian population would be younger for longer and called for the empowerment of the younger generations to realise their best potential. Meanwhile, the second quarter report from PenCom showed that new registrations to the Contributory Pension Scheme (in the quarter) were 100,063, which brought the total number of Retirement Savings Account Holders to 10,381,019 as of June 2024. A breakdown by age and gender indicated that out of the 100,063 registrations, 83.05 per cent were active contributors below the age of 40 years. Of this number, 12,838, or 12.83 per cent of the new registrations, were between 40 and 49 years old. According to PenCom, this trend, repeated in previous quarters, points to the increasing sustainability of the CPS, as the younger generation is actively enlisted in the scheme. As of October 2024, RSA registrations had increased to 10,535,608. Premised on the remodelling of the micro pension scheme and adoption of technology, the Director-General of PenCom, Omolola Oloworaran, is looking at the possibility of increasing the number of RSA holders to 20 million. At the 2024 PenCom Media engagement in Lagos, Oloworaran said, “What we want to do is remodel the micro pension plan and let it speak to individuals in the informal sector directly, so whether you are a farmer, fashion designer, gatekeeper, etc., we will be meeting their needs with the products that will be coming out, and I’m sure we will be able to get more people in. In addition to rebranding, we are also looking at the technology that can work for us. The numbers we are looking at are enormous. Right now, we have over 10 million contributors under the CPS in the formal sector, but under the informal sector, we have tens of millions of people. “Based on the last numbers I saw; it was north of 70 million. If we can drive this micro pension, I expect us to go up to 20 million Nigerians getting on the scheme, and the only way we can do that is with technology. It is a lot of work we are going to do on that and working with the operators so that we can ensure that between now and next year, we have more contributors.” Pension in Sub-Saharan Africa A lecturer at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Owen Nyang’oro, in a 2022 study for the United Nations University on pension funds in sub-Saharan Africa, found that the pension systems in SSA were characterised by low coverage and participation rates, and they, therefore, failed to guarantee a basic income to the elderly. “The contributory nature of most private pension schemes is also not favourable in SSA due to high levels of informality and low levels of income, which limit contributions, and because such schemes do not promote risk-sharing and redistribution. Pension reforms in regions such as Latin America have not been overly successful, and this offers lessons for SSA countries. The pension sector in SSA is characterised by low assets under management, investment in short-term assets (mainly government securities), low returns on investment, and restrictive regulatory frameworks. “The way out for SSA is to move towards a targeted universal pension system financed through public resources; however, the shift to such a system should be gradual so as not to lead to fiscal strain,” part of the abstract of the study read. In a piece on the study published in The Conversation Africa, it was also indicated that less than 10 per cent of the workers in sub-Saharan Africa save for old age, the lowest rate for any region in the world. This suggests that many of today’s breadwinners may struggle to afford essential items upon retirement. A 2014 report by the International Labour Organisation said that in sub-Saharan Africa, about 16.9 per cent of older persons receive an old-age pension, which would provide him or her with a certain level of income security during old age. The report said that effective coverage ratios are around 5.9 per cent of the working-age population in sub-Saharan Africa due to the high proportion of informal employment in sub-Saharan Africa. As a result, only 8.4 per cent of the labour force contributes to pension insurance and earns rights to a contributory pension. Thus, leaving a significant portion of the population outside of the formal pension scheme. Regulators take The DG of PenCom also revealed that efforts were being made in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance to ensure prompt payment of retirees. “We are working on an initiative with the Ministry of Finance, and before the end of the year, that should come to fruition. The first set of people that should be getting paid at all in government should be contributors under the CPS because they have contributed. For me, it is a lasting solution. We are working with the government to ensure that once you are retired, within a month, you should get your benefits, and I’m optimistic that we should be able to achieve it,” she said. Also speaking at the media engagement, the Head of Benefits and Insurance Department at PenCom, Obiora Ibeziako, shed light on some of the challenges faced by retirees in terms of how much they get monthly. “The government was expected to have paid the lump sum at the start of the new pension regime, and if the government hasn’t paid, it means that the person has lost that income for 20 years.” Now, if you check your RSA statement, the income at retirement or even presently, for those who have worked for 15 years and above, the income recorded by the PFAs is about 40 to 45 per cent of our RSA balance. This is just to explain the magnitude of income that the person has lost because their employers weren’t remitting pension contributions when due. So, when these people retire, their RSA balance is very low; it cannot give them a good monthly pension and cannot give them a good lump sum,” he asserted. While there is a need to bring in more of the working population into the pension scheme, calls have been made, seeking a better deal for those in it. Echoing this call, a retiree, Oloyede, maintained that the pension is often not enough for pensioners and that they deserve a better deal than they are getting. “The truth of the matter is the pension cannot take care of the pensioner. The old people are still part and parcel of society. They have contributed even to the development of the country when they were young, so automatically, whether it is the public or private sector, they should be thinking that the elderly are also part of society and act accordingly. He said, “This is something that the media should be pushing because it is going to affect everyone eventually. In most of the developed countries, the elderly are not worrying about what to eat or drink because there is provision for them. Some of them even dispose of their property or will it to charity, and they are living. One day, I pray that our society will get to that stage where the leadership will be able to think holistically and those at the lower level of government will begin to think positively about citizens’ welfare. Life for the pensioner is not very easy, and it is worse in the public sector,” he affirmed.Israeli official to Arutz Sheva: 'War is not over, ceasefire will be tested on the ground'
WTF?! Google has rolled out a new "feature" on its iPhone app that essentially injects its own links to websites. They are calling this "page annotations" which detects notable names, places, and things mentioned on a webpage (likely good targets for search queries with good ad performance), highlights them, and turns them into links that load up more info from Google when tapped. The idea, Google notes in its Web Search Forums, is to let users "quickly get additional context about people, places or things – without leaving the site they're on." When you tap one of the annotated terms, it opens an overlay window on top of the website showing a Google knowledge panel with more details pulled from the search engine's database. On the surface, it sounds like a handy way to get quick context while browsing. But there are those concerned about Google injecting its own links and content over the top of their websites. It's not quite as egregious as some of the other anti-competitive practices Google has been accused of, but it's another example of the search giant's dominance over the web. To be fair (but not really), Google is allowing website owners to " opt out " of the feature by filling out a form, though it notes that opt-outs can take up to 30 days to go into effect. Just Spotted! Googles New Fake Links On Websites That Take You To A New Google Search! JUST Saw This On A Search Engine Roundtable Article. It Highlights The Text And Then A New SERP Pops Up Inside The Page. This Along With Other Moves Keeps Making Me Think That They Are Doing... pic.twitter.com/x9n6N57Pwn The move comes at a sensitive time for Google, which is facing intensifying antitrust scrutiny and calls to have its search monopoly reined in. Just recently, the US Department of Justice suggested forcing it to sell off Chrome as a potential remedy for its allegedly anti-competitive behavior. It's worth mentioning that in its initial description of this Google app feature, they vaguely state that clicking the annotated links directs users to its own search results page for that entity. However, it later clarified to Search Engine Roundtable that the annotations actually open an "app tray" overlay on the same third-party webpage – without navigating the user away from the original site. If the user wants to return to the third-party content, they can simply close the app tray overlay. The underpinning technology behind Page Annotations seems similar to a new ad format Google launched earlier this year that turns webpage text into sponsored links leading to Google searches.
Key investors question PIL that led to HC stay on Religare AGMPhillies predicted to sign $131 million All-Star in offseason blockbuster | Sporting News(Reuters) - Survivors of sexual violence in Haiti face worsening risks and dwindling support amid the growing influence of armed gangs, a collapsed healthcare system and a frozen justice system, a report warned on Monday. Nearly 4,000 women and girls reported being victims of sexual violence in the first 10 months of 2024, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in the report, noting that many people do not report due to fear of retaliation and poor prospects of receiving help. Those who do seek care often cannot do so within the critical 72-hour window to access drugs to treat HIV exposure or emergency contraception, the report said, as many cannot afford private healthcare and as public clinics shut down due to violence. In October, the U.N. warned that just 24% of health facilities were operating in Port-au-Prince's metropolitan area. This month Doctors Without Borders, a major free healthcare provider, halted operations, citing rape and death threats from police. Haitian feminist organization Neges Mawon said it has this year received reports of some 230 rapes in just two neighborhoods outside the capital, and four pregnant women died due to poor healthcare and blocked medical supplies. Abortion is illegal in Haiti. A 25-year-old mother of four told HRW that she was raped by four men in Port-au-Prince's Cite Soleil area while looking for water. "Now they do whatever they want to all of us," she said. "I couldn't go to the doctor. I didn't have money." In a separate report released on Monday, the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GITOC) said outgunned police, a "woefully" under-resourced international mission, political infighting and violent vigilantism are aggravating Haiti's general crisis. "It is difficult to identify any meaningful inroads on the part of law enforcement," it said, adding that the transitional presidential council's recent ouster of the prime minister resulted in the council's "reigning over a mountain of ashes." The prime minister's replacement saw the two women who previously held senior cabinet positions - foreign affairs and economy - removed from their posts. "More than 150 feminist and human rights groups have endorsed an action plan to ensure the full participation of women," said Neges Mawon on X. "It is clear fighting violence against women and girls is not a priority for this government." (Reporting by Sarah Morland; Editing by Leslie Adler)
Sabres get power-play goals from Zucker and Thompson in 4-2 win over the BluesKyrie Irving scored 23 points and the Dallas Mavericks improved to 4-1 this season without superstar Luka Doncic, beating the New York Knicks 129-114 on Wednesday night. Jalen Brunson tied his season high with 37 points for New York in his second game in Dallas against his former team. Karl-Anthony Towns had 25 points and 14 rebounds, but OG Anunoby was limited to eight points on 3-of-15 shooting two nights after getting a career-high 40. Doncic missed his fourth consecutive game with a sprained right wrist, and the defending Western Conference champions were without two other starters in Klay Thompson (plantar fascia) and Daniel Gafford (illness). Dallas' Naji Marshall scored 24 points, Spencer Dinwiddie added 21 and P.J. Washington had 19 points and 10 rebounds.