FRESH 4RM GIM

Blackberry CEO, John Chen said in an interview with The National, that their first Android smartphone, the PRIV didn’t do as well as they hoped, and that they’ve got two more Android smartphones in the pipeline. “The fact that we came out with a high end phone (as our first Android device) was probably not as wise as it should have been.” That quote right there, tells you all you need to know about the state of things at the Canadian-born company right now. If you read my review of the PRIV, you’d remember that my verdict was that it was a pretty good phone, with very good ideas but they wouldn’t move many units until the price started to drop. (It has).

Sony over the weekend started seeding an Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow-based update to the Xperia Z2 (D6503), Xperia Z3 (D6603), and Xperia Z3 Compact (D5803). As reported by users (via Xperia Blog), the latest firmware comes with a build number 23.5.A.0.570, which is the same that rolled out as a beta release for these three models earlier this month. It is worth mentioning that the company's global support website for the three smartphones still shows Android 5.1 Lollipop as the latest version.

  Minsk, Belarus: Ukraine's embattled prime minister announced Sunday that he is resigning, opening the way for the formation of a new government to end a drawn-out political crisis. In his weekly televised address, Arseniy Yatsenyuk said his resignation would be formally submitted to parliament on Tuesday. The same day, parliament was expected to vote to elect the current speaker, Volodymyr Groysman, as the new prime minister. Yatsenyuk's Cabinet survived a no-confidence vote in February, but two parties left the governing coalition to protest the failure to oust the prime minister, who is under fire over the worsening economy and slow pace of reforms.

Femi Falana A human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), has advised the Federal Government to shelve its plan to obtain $2bn loan from China. He said instead of “plunging the nation into more indebtedness” the Federal Government should intensify efforts to recover some funds totalling about $200bn which were either not remitted to the Federation Account or stolen from the nation’s treasury.

The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has denied claim by the Department of State Service, DSS, that its members killed five northerners and buried them in shallow graves in Abia State. The pro-Biafra group’s denial was contained in a statement jointly signed by its spokespersons, Mr. Emma Mmezu and Dr. Clifford Iroanya. The statement reads, “Yesterday, the DSS announced that IPOB killed five northerners and buried them in a forest near Aba. Again, it is clear for even toddlers to see the game plan here. A government with a predetermined agenda to cloak IPOB in the garment of violent organisation deliberately designed such a cheap propaganda in order to ignite ethnic cleansing. This very cheap blackmail by the DSS is idiotic and unintelligent.

The performance of the current administration under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari has being rated ‘very poor and unimpressive’. A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Alhaji Kawu Baraje, who made this remark on Sunday, said his party had dashed the hope of many Nigerians with its change promises. He also warned the party against repeating the mistakes made by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, which led to its ouster from power during the 2015 general election.

The General Overseer, Latter Rain Assembly, Lagos, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has lampooned politicians and political parties for using the abduction of 219 Chibok schoolgirls to score cheap political points. He pointed out that the nation had not given the girl’s plight the necessary thoughtfulness and seriousness it deserved, adding that those who were in a position to act had shown weakness towards addressing it or even towards calming the anxiety of the anxiously waiting Chibok parents. The statement was contained in a sermon on Sunday during a global action week to mark the second anniversary of the disappearance of the schoolgirls, which was put together by the BringBackOurGirls coalition at the Unity Fountain, Abuja.

  There was panic along the Murtala Muhammed Airport Road, Lagos, on Saturday as motorists fled after three tankers loaded with fuel went up in flames. No fewer than 15 cars were reportedly burnt in the inferno, which raged for more than five hours. Although the cause of the fire was not clear as of press time, our correspondent learnt that the incident happened past 3pm. A police source said the incident happened close to the Mobil Filling Station in the area.

Students of the University of Port Harcourt have shutdown all academic activities in the institution. All entry and exit points in the institution have been placed under lock and key, leaving the management staff and students stranded. The students started the protest as early as 5a.m, Monday morning. The protesters, who are being led by the leadership of the student union, have also barricaded all access roads leading to the institution, including the major East-West road and the Choba-Uniport road.

  A temple in the southern Indian state of Kerala was gutted by fire on Sunday, killing no fewer than 105 people. At least, 500 others were injured in the inferno, which broke out from a fireworks display, marking Hindu new year celebration. The explosion at the Puttingal temple killed at least 105 people and injured more than 500, CNN quoted Indian authorities as saying.