Welcome to our weekly COVID update with Dr. Satyajit Rath. Thank you Dr. Satyajit for joining us today. And to start our show, you want to first look at the situation in India, where we see that we're again seeing a surge in the number of cases. It's been called the second wave or perhaps it's not really the second wave. We have had many waves now. So what do you think about this? What is the reason behind this? Why is there a spike in cases again? The virus does not recognize political geography. This should be self-evident, but is quite frequently forgotten. So it's worth underlining. As a result, what we are really looking at when we speak of a national surge is simply an increase in aggregate numbers. That's not necessarily saying that cases in every town or every state or every neighborhood are increasing all at the same time. It's essentially a convergence of a large number of small local outbreaks where transmission numbers are increasing. The pandemic is still going on. Every time national numbers decline, not simply in India but across the world, communities and societies and even more so governments who really should know better begin to pretend that they have won a victory and that the virus is vanquished. None of this is true. The pandemic is still going on. The virus needs to be present in some infected people from whom transmission will happen efficiently in order for a local outbreak to occur. These local outbreaks at some level are statistically random events. So they're helped by all sorts of things as we will come to in a minute. But essentially this is simply a convergence of many small outbreaks. So a reasonable question to ask is, are we seeing a lot of small outbreaks? And the answer to that is yes. We are seeing these small outbreaks and we will see that in metropolitan cities such as Pune where I'm sitting, case numbers are increasing. Once again they are increasing in urban, hyper crowded, working class communities and neighborhoods only this time in communities where case numbers were not that high six months ago. When we had our first national peak as we insist on calling it. So it's really a matter of the virus beginning to pop up in communities where it hasn't so far been over the past year. And as a result beginning to spread. The second thing is that we are beginning to see cases happening in not in so-called Chuggi Chowdhury neighborhoods, but also in so-called apartment complex neighborhoods. In other words shifting from hyper crowded working class neighborhoods into somewhat more lower middle to middle class neighborhoods. And because distances between people are inevitably a little bit more in middle class neighborhoods the speed of transmission still remains relatively low even when case numbers are increasing. So there is a pattern under all the statistical uncertainty of the pandemic. What this search really does say is that the whole notion of a country achieving herd immunity and with natural infection and thereby overcoming the epidemic and the disease or at least the epidemic nature of the disease is really a pipeline. Of course an important way to overcome from this pandemic is through our vaccinations. But even there we are seeing that in India again healthcare workers, frontline workers are skeptical of getting vaccinated from our indigenously developed vaccine coaxing. So and at the same time we have our health minister, Harshvardhan promoting another cure so-called cure, Patanjali's Coronial, which is again without any evidence backing it. So you know what sort of message does this convey and also what do you feel about this skepticism towards coaxing? It's not entirely skepticism. So I think that we need to keep in mind three factors that have contributed to the massive shortfall of vaccination uptake amongst healthcare workers. Clearly there has been a massive shortfall of vaccination uptake. But all the reasons are not necessarily connected to vaccine skepticism. So a major reason is that the way that vaccination has been structured for them, as I for example have been told in the city by French colleagues and acquaintances, is that when your name comes up in the list for vaccination on a particular day, you get that information with very little time. So for many physicians, for many nurses, it has simply not been possible to turn up on that day at that time, especially given that you inevitably have to wait and so on and so forth. So clearly that has been one factor. A second factor has been the repeated examples of the Covina app glitches, which again are not to do with any vaccine skepticism, but instead to do with the practicalities and logistics of the vaccination campaign. There is one component of vaccine skepticism that we have heard repeatedly articulated that says, I'm not going to take the vaccine right now. I'll wait for six months and let other people take vaccine and depending on how it all looks, I will decide six months later whether to take vaccine or not. And I find it very hard to think of a less community oriented viewpoint than this. More, let me be blunt, a more capitalist viewpoint than this. But there are two other issues that contribute to vaccine skepticism. The first is, of course, that the upper classes, metropolitan upper classes in India have imbibed some of the anti-vaxxer, anti-science perspectives that have gained some traction in Europe and North America against vaccines as with vaccines as bad, vaccines as evil, vaccines as toxic and so on and so forth. But apart from that, there are two components that have fed the narrative of vaccine skepticism or fed the idea of vaccine skepticism. One is that all said and done, the ICMR-Bharat biotech vaccine, I guess we have to call it, Covaxin, as you point out, has been given approval without even today, over a month and a half, I think, after approval has been given, any preliminary evidence of protective efficacy? Exactly. That has led to very many people saying, you know, who all sorts of approvals are given without making the necessary nuanced distinction between the Oxford AstraZeneca serum Institute vaccine, the Covishield vaccine, which has been given approval for emergency use without, with these kinds of preliminary data and numbers for protection. And Covaxin, for which we were told a month and a half back that within the fortnight, there would be data. Now we've been told yesterday that within a fortnight, there would be data. So, again, I think that the data will show protective efficacy. And we've discussed on these updates, on these updates, why I think so. But on the other hand, the way that the government of India, in its anxiety for its own version of vaccine nationalism, has handled the approval process, has fed inadvertently into an additive of vaccine skepticism. Added to this is another component that the government of India has inadvertently fed into. And this time it is fed by this government's enormous love for slogans. And one of the slogans that has been promoted, that has caused confusion, is the government slogan, or more correctly, the prime ministerial slogan of, and what is apparently meant by the way is vaccine. In other words, it's a perfectly praiseworthy idea to try to convey that you should take the vaccine, but you should still keep physical distancing. But for pity's sake, the way means medicine and medicine is something you take when you're sick. Repeatedly, amongst healthcare workers, especially in the supporting nursing assistant level and category of workers, I have heard anecdotal stories saying, oh, the prime minister has said, So when you get sick, you'll take the vaccine. And this really attempting to create a slogan-based publicity-based bragging point has again inadvertently contributed to vaccine skepticism. So these are the components, I think, of the present situation of vaccine skepticism. The other question you ask, which is related to the recent presence and support from not one, but two union ministers, not simply the minister for health and science and technology, Dr. Harshvardhan, but also Mr. Nitin Karkarigu, who was present and who was greatly supportive of this medication called Koronil, which first came to light for six months or so ago, and then went through a very large number of contortions before acquiring some sort of an approval, the basis of which is quite unclear, from the Ayush department of the regulatory authority. Again, to have approval given without evidence of efficacy damages both the integrity of the process, as well as feeding both an anti-science narrative as well as feeding a science skepticism narrative in the vaccine context. So none of this is helping. And moving on to the United States, which is another interesting example of all of these factors playing together. We see that on February 22nd, the country crossed 500,000 deaths. It still has the highest number of cases by a large margin, I think 28 million cases over 28 million cases, which is over a quarter of all infections. And India is, you know, the second highest, which is far behind at 11 million cases. We see these extremely high numbers. And we also see that the US is also the country which has administered the highest number of vaccine doses. I think around 60, over 60 million doses or so. So what explains this sort of contradiction? Well, there isn't really a contradiction. We should all keep in mind that a vaccine is not a magic bullet. It doesn't instantly cover you like one of these Avengers movies in an impenetrable, virus impenetrable shield the moment the needle enters your eye. It takes at least a fortnight for good, substantial, high quality antibodies to be generated in response to a vaccine. And in fact, at least for some people, it takes the second dose, which is taken four months later in order for those antibodies to be generated. That's not true of everybody, but it is true of some fraction of the vaccinated population. And if you look at the, if on the worldometer site, you look at today's graph of the daily case numbers for the United States. You will see that over the past fortnight or more, I think ever since the end of January or late January, case numbers in the United States have been steadily declining. So unlike for India, where over the past 10 days or so on the same website, case numbers have begun to show a modest increase. So these are patterns that are driven where we identify cases, but the cause causation of the cases is back in time. So it's perfectly plausible for American authorities, health authorities, as indeed they have argued to claim that vaccination to a certain extent is working because case numbers are declining. Now, is that necessarily the case? Again, as we repeatedly pointed out on this program, we should be, we should learn a little bit of humility in the face of the sheer unpredictable nature of any kind. Something that sounds reasonable and rational and kind of sort of evidence based for us to adopt. If we do that and case numbers decline, we shouldn't be in a hurry to say that that has necessarily worked. There are coincidences in these kinds of situations. So we will wait and see. But to all appearances, American case numbers are steadily declining. There are other places in the world where case numbers are increasing. The pandemic is still under its course. Is vaccination going to bring speeds of transmission down, reduce the numbers of outbreaks? Absolutely. Is that going to happen even in a place like India where the rate of vaccination and the uptake of vaccination is much, leaves much to be desired? Yes, it will. But vaccination is not some sort of a magic bullet that's going to terminate the pandemic. So thank you, Dr. Satyajit, for joining us today in this discussion. Again, we'll come back to you next week to continue these updates. Thank you for watching NewsTik.


The workshop was good and particularly very important for us now at the stage where we are, just going out of the piloting phase is the role of the researchers and the research that is going into the product and whose outcome really we need to improve this product in terms of delivery, in terms of pricing, in terms of taking care of changes in the climatic conditions over the coming years. The single biggest challenge is managing delivery costs to the project over a large expansive region over a very difficult terrain, over fairly weak communication systems. So that's the biggest, it's a huge geography that we have to cover, very sparsely populated community that must be reached and must be touched for us to be able to convince and sell the product. So the biggest challenge is meeting that initial cost as we go towards critical mass. The biggest potential is we're looking at, you know, a 20 million strong community in the Horn of Africa region with significant amount of wealth that really provides a huge reservoir for an insurance company in terms of growth and expansion. So we're very, very optimistic about the product and it's a product that requires a significant amount of patience and time, but we have no doubt that it will come to fruition. And we are using the EDX based life-talk insurance concept to learn the Kenya Life-talk Insurance Program and the recommendations from this conference, I suggest that we all share and be able to implement them in policy decision making, implementation of programs and generally transforming research and academia into practical actions. I think the biggest concern is one is awareness creation. Insurance is not very easy. For the past roleists that we are targeting, we require a lot of capacity building, a lot of awareness creation before we can say that insurance will be acceptable to them. Our role therefore as a market facilitator is to see how insurance companies and underwriters would be able to interact with pastoral communities. So we help insurance companies and underwriters, we facilitate them to ensure that they're able to speak with pastoralists, they're able to sell their products to pastoralists, they're able to understand the pastoralists better and the pastoralists in turn understand the underwriters so that the information gap is filled and the pastoralists are able to make demand kind of a choice, choice which is driven by demand, that they're able to ensure their life-stock because there is an insurance firm here which is ready to provide this service. In Ible, we act as the implementing partners of the insurance program on the ground. The use of technologies, the emerging technologies that can help us to reach the pastoralist communities in a better way is also important because the communities are widely dispersed and there have been challenges in terms of the cost of reaching the pastoralists. What excites me about Ible is we are able to come with a product that targets communities that a few years ago you would not have thought that we'd be reached with such a product. We see this as opening also other opportunities in these regions because in a few years time we will not only be talking about index-based life-stock insurance but we'll be talking about other products that these communities can be able to access. We are really excited and proud to have been supporting Ible and Ible for a long time and our expectation is that at some point the donors would not need to support it any longer because the market will take our place. I appreciate the variety of perspectives and views that are around the table today and all the amazing work that is behind Ible and what Ible is today. And Ible is a very good example how you can translate research into products that are useful and can make a difference for the poor and that can be sustainable because the market and the private sector can take on. So you don't just generate dependency from donors' intervention or the public sector intervention. The public agents will always play a role but what makes me passionate about this program is that potentially this can be a good instrument for posturalists to reduce their risk with their own resources. And I'm meeting a posturalist who has lost the whole heart of their cattle. Sometimes it really moves me and over the years when I have been in development work, I have been asking myself how can we cushion them? How can we support them? What kind of safety net can we provide to the pastoralists so that even if they have lost their livestock due to drought or due to lack of forage or due to unknown circumstances or due to lack of water, how can we provide a bounce back for them? And for me, this product provides the bounce back that they so need. That is why I'm so excited about this and I'm even more excited because the government has come in and is taking it even further and providing even more support to the most vulnerable.


A student from Park Rapids High School is getting some praise for her massive mural. Reporter Cheryl Moore has that story behind what inspired this young artist for this week's in focus. The picture that I have behind it is like the Hogwarts scene, which is the first year that Harry, Hermione and Ron and Draco and all of them really get there. It took countless hours and tons of paint, but Victoria Campbell, also known as Tori, has completed a spellbinding new art piece for her school. It's been making me all of the last try from last year and the first try of this year. The Harry Potter mural is 10 feet tall and 22 feet long. Her inspiration came from her love of the books. I enjoy painting and I like reading and Harry Potter just kind of stood out to me and I knew I wanted it to be something that has to do with literature because this is the English hallway. Park Rapids High School has 11 different art classes. Tori is a part of the advanced studies class. Our teacher, Mr. Hartung, sits down with each student to discuss what type of projects they want to work on. I love encouraging them to say, okay, we're going to look at this, we're going to be working on it for three months, you know, let's carefully plan this. So there's a series of days and you can go weeks of planning. Dozens of murals lined the walls here at Park Rapids High School, just like Tori's, reminding kids to dream big and imagine the possibilities. It's interesting to see her, you know, it's a story. She's telling a story and there's multiple things here. You have to step back and take a look at it and you'll have to know a little bit about Harry Potter. But part of it is that it's massive and it's really intricate and it has a lot of meaning behind it. I don't know if very many people can tell, but I actually did make these ones Harry Run and Hermione and a few other ones, I guess, like Luna and Lavender, Cho-Chang. Tori says her favorite part about the mural is definitely the moon. Looking back, she's proud of her work and has this advice for other students. Even though I didn't have much time or the space to do so, I still made a very big mural and I don't know, if people don't think they can do something, if you put your mind to it, you can do it. Reporting in Park Rapids with this week's In Focus, Cheryl Moore, Lakeland News. Tori and other Park Rapids art students will be participating in a visual art show that's happening in Boston coming in March. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.


My intention the other day was to record a quick video demonstrating that statistical parametric mapping might be easier than you think But since then I've had a few discussions with various people One question led to the how do you manually edit the graphs? Video and then potentially there was a missing step between the two videos so a couple of people have asked how do I plot p values and How do I plot the alpha level of the critical t value? So the intention of this video is just to show the two missing lines of code that will enable you to add those labels onto the default plots So from where we were at the end of the SPM in six minutes video We would have developed a Plot of the SPM results that would look something like this But there's no label for either the p-value of these shaded gray areas or the critical t-value or alpha level at these dashed red lines So to do that if we go back into Matlab The two missing lines of code after our SPMI plot is just a little bit more detail So we want SPMI plot again, but this time underscore threshold underscore label and That will add the label at the critical threshold and then for the p-value it's SPMI plot and then this time underscore p underscore Values and if we run it again with those extra two lines We see the same Plot again, but this time we do have the labels for p-values and at the critical threshold if you want to know how to Manually edit the visualizations or these labels then the video I recorded yesterday will demonstrate that. Thanks a lot


Hi, it's Linda again from the Linda Living in China blog and today I was very very ambitious because I had a lot of free time and I actually finished two units Today so that was unit 9 and unit 10 Because I think they're also they fit together very well Unit 9 is lesson planning. So I was really happy that This unit finally came up because I think lesson planning is one of the most important things for a teacher to know and It explains first of all, why should we plan a lesson? Why should we like make a lesson plan? what are the benefits and What why is it useful? And different types of lesson plans. So everybody has their own style and they're different Yeah, different forms of lesson plans. So that's very interesting And then it had a lot of examples and it was very very useful So I was very happy about that and then unit 10 was completely different than all the other units before It was a video lesson basically. So you had to watch two videos of It was a British. Yeah, a British teacher in Thailand Two times the same teacher, but One video was a bad example of teaching and the other one was a good example And you had to spot which one is the bad one, which is the good one and I was very happy because I Figured out which one was the bad one in like seconds. So that shows that I'm already confident with that material and all the information. So I I don't know. I was really happy because that shows I already learned so much and I know what a good teacher is and I think that's very important and for being Unit 10 so 10 out of 20 so already in the middle of the whole course You actually already know what's good and what's bad and how you should teach and that's really good so I really like those two units and I feel accomplished that I finished two units today, so I'll keep you updated on my progress Yeah, bye-bye


So when you buy the game of desire and you open up the book the literal first word you're going to read is Courtney Courtney so introduce everybody to what they're about to watch. So what you're about to see is how I Nailed this date this very first date with the help of Shan sitting here And yes coaching me through it along in a very unconventional way, but it worked. But it works. Yes. Yes prologue Courtney seemed stuck Caught between two thoughts two versions of herself, but mostly between two colors Should I make the smiley face red or black? She asked with her marker hovering over a stack of note cards I glanced around her office a place that I knew she spent far too much time in then replied The next action card in the routine is the physical challenge So why not make that one black then you can make the smiley face red The colors did not matter in the least and we actually didn't even need to make cue cards since Courtney had Rehearsed the routine until she knew it by heart But I invited her to use her marker collection because I knew it would calm her nerves I suspected that she knew this too Courtney had gone on at least a dozen dates since we began working together months ago But this meetup with Derek was special Derek was her target to a tee a conscious thinker A health nut and a hot firefighter who looked like his nickname was Mr. October She had been crushing on him from afar But had only mustered up the courage and skill set to ask him out a few days ago The Derek type was exactly what we had been working toward and best of all He wasn't the only high-interest playmate that Courtney had lined up Another man named River whom she described as a potential soulmate Was flying in from Dallas in a couple of weeks to see her as well Don't stress out too much about getting this day in the can okay Derek is the one who should be scared of you with yet dangerously seductive self Courtney exhaled into a half-smile and emphatically pressed the cap on her marker as if to say amen She handed me the cue cards grabbed her purse then looked back up at me Okay, we should probably head out. He'll be there soon I stood in agreement and looked her over one more time Okay Think I can do it. You're doing so great. How do you feel about no bra? I'm fine. I'm fine with it. Oh We left her office in separate cars and by the time I got to the restaurant Courtney and her freed nipples Were already outside on her faux good news phone call, which was the first technique of the routine After working with me to fix her struggling love life Courtney was inspired to begin her own workshop for women who like her had been bullied in high school The caller was a web designer who had agreed to take on her new passion project pro bono All of this was true, but of course it didn't just happen But it did happen to be something we could use to her advantage because positive first impressions are well worth their weight in gold and white lies Courtney pointed through the window at a man sitting with his back to us I nodded and flashed three cards at her for a final reminder a red smile Make sure this is the first thing that he sees Blue connected arrows touch consensually asap and a newspaper share good news I slid into the table behind Derek and a beat later Courtney walked in with a tsunami of positive vibes She finished up her call loudly then approached Derek who had now gotten to his feet It's so good that we're finally doing this She said and she hugged him tightly I just got some awesome news that I have to share Maybe you're my new good luck charm I did a fist pump under my table and waved the fourth cue card with a drawing of a keg A symbol to remind her to be the life of the party A few minutes later the waiter sauntered over to their table and Courtney Cradled her chin in her hands and struck up some small talk The waiter took the bait shifted his body toward her and stood taller You've been here before right? We have some new things on the menu. Do you want some recommendations? In response to this Courtney switched her attention back to Derek What do you think I should get? She appraised him and smiled with approval I trust you know what you're doing When the waiter left Courtney proceeded to tell Derek about the phone call He asked a series of rapid-fire follow-ups then Surprisingly revealed that he too had been severely picked on growing up They shared a moment exchanging their high school pitfalls and triumphs that I'm sure would have gone on longer if I weren't there I held up the fifth card a swiggly face and waited for Courtney to find something to disagree with Derek about After all fire isn't just created with sunlight alone to create sparks. You also got to have friction Derek started talking about football and how it helped him gain the confidence that he lacked in high school With this Courtney sat up straighter to investigate You're a football guy, huh?   I'm a rams fan Up to that point Courtney had mirrored his body position plus She had been given him the full flirtatious treatment. Her speech was slow Her body language was in a perfect s formation And she had been picturing him naked to keep her pupils dilated But the rams comment changed everything She sat back to put distance between them closed her body by crossing her arms and pointing her feet toward the door The rams seriously Just when I thought we could be friends for the next few minutes Courtney barraged him about his awful taste in football. He defended himself and his team But she was unrelentingly displeased with him I held the red smiley face card up indicating it was time to turn the disagreement into an opportunity to tease And to create their first inside joke I couldn't hear what she said, but I noticed her uncross her arms and poke out that hip again You're welcome Derek.  It's stupid, but me and my friends are doing this 21 day physical challenge. That's kind of turned into a competition This is awkward But I have to squat now Will you do it with me? Here? No, he said flatly like the professional that she was she did not back down Please just 30 seconds so I don't look like a dork in here alone We don't even have to get up. We can just hover over our seat He shook his head but this time with a smile that said you win The two of them then scooted back their chairs and squatted This technique may sound a little crazy, but let's analyze the genius behind it One exercise increases the heart rate, which is also the same physiological response you get when you like someone new Two misbehaving in a civilized place brings us back to the joys of childhood Three doing something physically exerting while you're inches away from the face of someone you have chemistry with Is the closest thing you're going to get to sex in public without drawing stares or sirens Courtney wavered on her heels and placed her hand on Derek's for balance as they kept their eyes locked on each other Okay, done They both collapsed back and laughed until their breathing returned to normal What other alerts do you have on there asked Derek? Courtney took this as an opportunity to cross the physical barrier again to show him her watch and to examine his Most women are afraid to introduce touch on the first few dates, which is precisely why I taught Courtney not to be Everything she had done from the moment she asked him out was designed to make it abundantly clear She was far from average Courtney inspected his watch and turned his wrist over in her hand until it naturally fell into her palm She held it there for a second Then gestured for him to take it back as he retracted She let her fingers brush against his I later learned that our good sport Derek had brushed back I held up the card with three x's on it a prompt for Courtney to begin mind Derek She nodded subtly in a way that looked like she was agreeing with him Even though I was certain that gesture was for me As they chatted some more she casually lifted her hand and gripped then stroked her glass up and down Then down and back up She also took every opportunity to expose her neck and draw attention to her mouth The goal of mind is to activate someone's sexual responses without them overtly understanding Why they're becoming aroused? I pulled out the card with the bathroom symbol drawn on it and a few beats later Courtney excused herself being mindful to touch Derek's shoulders reassuringly as she left If you have a problem introducing touch on dates The bathroom technique should solve that dilemma by giving you a natural excuse to touch a neutral place This break also provides a crucial opportunity to freshen up not just physically but mentally Professional sports teams take a halftime break to regroup. So why shouldn't you? I encouraged Courtney and the other women in the group who you will get to know later on in this book To use this time to re-center themselves by Rapids their favorite pump-up verse re-applying their vaginal fluids Again more on this later in the book and most importantly to use this time to stare at themselves Ravenously in the mirror until they could not resist the woman gazing back The waiter approached with my soup and salad, which I had totally forgotten. I'd even ordered I looked up at him apologetically and asked can I get this to go and the bill please I wanted to be gone before she got back to communicate that I had total confidence in Courtney's ability to close without further prompts. This was the moment the training wheels came off Before I left I threw the remaining cue cards in the trash. They were ask a bold question like why are you still single?  Then leave him with an anecdote or story to think about and finally to get the out of there With that last note in mind. I sent Courtney a reminder text once I got back to my car Do not let him extend the date beyond dinner no matter how good things are going About an hour later. She called and practically yelled girl. The date went so damn smooth I got a second date on the date literally while we were eating. He said I want to see you again I smiled you are officially and indisputably a pro now. She laughed and clapped her hands joyfully Oh, thanks to you shin.  That's not true But I do have my own light, but you're like you're the reflector. You're like, yes in the right direction court Wait, let's turn this. Do you know why I decided to do this with you? Why you don't know. No, we never had this discussion No, I felt like you had all of the right criteria. It's like making food Like you had the pasta the marinara sauce the time you had the hot water the pot But just your proportions were off So I felt like on dates you sometimes might have just given too much Vulnerability Yes. Oh, yeah. Remember the couple dates you told me about where like the guy just talked non-stop about their x and it happened to you twice Yes Okay, like corny does a really good job Which is an excellent listener and she's really good at communicating and connecting But you have to also have a little bit of fun in there too. Yes has to also be some sexuality You have to challenge the person you have to assert your expertise And so oh girl you was taking all my ingredients and making sure I can make the spaghetti, right?  You have to be really really mechanical at first like take two steps Arm extend up off the backboard layup and you do that 17 times until it now becomes one fluid motion Yes So this was you practicing how to do a layup Yes, and I keep practicing because I keep laying them when I land up with them, but I keep laying up All my debt but putting that little twerk on it same time while we outside in mother nature It's a balance of it all it's about balance. Yes It's about balance y'all moral of the story. Yes. All right, peace Yes, are we done? Yeah, that was it. Uh, let's do something else


Very good morning to you and thanks for joining us on the breakfast on PLOS TV Africa. My name is Nyam Gul Agadji We do hope that yesterday was awesome for you. You had boxes to Unbox and open your or reveal your presents for Christmas. That's the essence of Boxing Day. I saw so many Pictures on the internet where people were inviting orders for a boxing bout and all that well Actually Boxing Day is not for fighting Boxing Day is to reveal what is in the box You know so to speak that was given to you that is a Christmas presents that were put under your Christmas tree As the case may be. We do hope you had a wonderful time anyway Even if you have not achieved anything your life today is an achievement to be grateful for and we're looking up For 2024 to be a better year than 2023 There are a lot of things that went crazy in 2023 But we're hoping that if the things won't get better at least we will be so used to it that we would see them Something that is so biting anymore because sometimes what you really suffer is what is on your mind Okay, so today we'll be discussing the fact that finance ministry gets a 5.6 million dollars World Bank loan for stationery and Others once again welcome to the program Well, the traffic may return to return today because so many so many offices are opening again today 27th of December 2023 and that will close again Maybe for the New Year celebration on Friday after the after work on Friday And then Monday will be a public holiday But Tuesday is not a public holiday at least according to what the federal government said It was 25th and 26th and then the 1st of January, which is Monday The 1st of January 2024, but whatever be the case We do hope that you will be well rested to start the new year in a very or the very good footing To the 2024 promises to be very very wonderful Well, we're going to go to our top trending issues This morning right away The first top trending issue is that to the book condemns heinous attacks in plateau orders arrest of culprits Now the president Bola Tinnabu on Tuesday condemned the attack in flatou state describing it as heinous Gunmen had stormed over 15 communities in the Bocos and Birkin Ladi local government areas of the state on Christmas Eve killing over 250 people and this is very the conservative number because reports reaching or say over 160 people were killed, but this is the official figure Several houses were set ablaze by the attack as on Sunday night the gun-wielding and blood curling men also looted farm produce and Destroyed properties as they butchered the residents. No group has claimed responsibility for the tragic attack Reacting to the incident president Tinnabu ordered security agencies to arrest the perpetrators of the attack According to the president spokesman a during gilali the president also directed the immediate mobilization of relief resources for survival Surviving victims of the primitive and cruel attacks as well as medical treatment for the wounded the attacks Which started in the Bocos areas peeled into neighboring Birkin Ladi where 30 people were found dead according to local chairman Danjuma that kill on Sunday plateau state governor Caleb muthwang Condemned the violence calling it but barric brutal and unjustified and promised proactive measures to be taken by the government to curb ongoing attacks against innocent civilians according to governor spokesman of folks persons gian beret Amnesty International criticized the government in the wake of the attack saying the Nigerian authorities have been failing to end Frequent deadly attacks on rural communities of plateau state in a post-on-ex formula tutor Not west and central Nigeria have been long terrorized by bandits militias operating from bases deep in forest and raiding villages to loot and kidnap residents for ransom Competition for natural resources between nomadic headers and farmers intensified by rapid population growth and climate Prejudice has also exacerbated social tensions and sparked violence The jihadist conflict has raged in northeastern Nigeria since 2009 killing tens of thousands of people and Displacing around two million as Boko Haram battles for supremacy with rivals linked to the Islamic State group President Bohari or President Tino Borada a former Lagos governor elected in February in a highly contested ballot has Promised to attract more investment in Nigeria's largest economy and most populous country in a bid to tackle its persistent security challenges and we asked the question when will a state of emergency Be declared in Nigeria especially in the north of Nigeria What are the parameters for declaring a state of emergency in a particular? section or a particular situation Be it education security or anything, especially security We're trying to move investments and a lot of people will not come to Nigeria when they see that the security situation is so bad Let's look at the things that are causing this security situation Farmer headers clash can't there be a solution to this do we leave things to nature or let let nature take its course Let things play out the way they should play out when can we declare a state of emergency? in Nigeria on security Sometime ago when 70 people or so were killed or about 70 people were killed in Ben Weston We thought that was the highest number of people being killed in one day where there is no war at all now We're looking at if not only a hundred but over a hundred and sixty people according to reports of eyewitnesses in Plattus states according to the calls that we have made from when the incident happened to a date 100 over a hundred and sixty people even if it's the number given officially as 115 people that's quite a number when I still ask the question Will the federal government declare a state of emergency on security and get this people flushed out? Bandits as we know are people who? Who read the community? They are thieves. That's another name for thieves and all that but for people to come and Massacre up to a hundred and sixty people. These are not people who were fighting them and saying that they are not going to give their grains Or whatever else they were asking them. They were moving from village to village and Killing these people. These are not ordinary bandits. So President for Latino group, please help us declare a state of emergency if you need to and get these people flushed out of Nigeria. Nigeria used to be the giant of Africa and everybody wanted to come to Nigeria now It's not happening anymore because it's not safe. We hear that Part of the village is ravaged by these bandits and where people were killed In the Plattus state is one of the coldest if not the coldest village or area in Nigeria and that means it is a place that can attract a lot of tourists that want to come and still have that Kind of climate that kind of weather that they experience where they come from and it would have been a place of Attraction to a lot of people now people are being killed left right and center in places like that Plattus state is a very strategic place if it comes to tourism And I don't know what the government is doing. So please President Timu President Vice President Shatima and all the relevant people who are listening to us right now Please do something about it. Nigerians should not be killed and then when things like this happen We expect that the president will maybe pay a visit to that state and Condole with the people and make very very strong statements But instead of that we saw our president celebrating Christmas in Lagos not even a Buddha that is closer to Plattus state Celebrating Christmas in Lagos and then having a long key of people that went to celebrate Christmas with him who? Eventually, I'm sure will get some handouts from the president now if everything is working out Well, some of these people will be in their villages with their loved ones because they have the money to spend at Christmas If things were working well, some of them will be at work if they were working They had essential duties like broadcasters and journalists have like policemen the security people and The health workers and so many other people a lot of people will be content and they will stay at home They will be thanking God to get as a family But instead old men and women mature men and women who should be doing something else and being somewhere else We're cleaning at the house of the president for some largesse for some handouts And this is not a thing that we should be very proud of when things like this happen in maybe a place like America or The UK or Canada or any other place where our people are running to the president will go to that place At least even if you're not going to be in the bush to show That you are very hurt by what is happening the people will see you as a father and you have come to console Them and you've come to make pronouncements. They will have some confidence that you are concerned about what is happening to them It takes more than just talking from the comforts of a so villa or from Lagos that these people should be arrested It's not a see that people that they can say, okay, we know them. This is what we are going to do What are you doing to comb this forest and get these people out unless something very proactive is done Then we'll keep seeing this killings and killings from three people being killed to five people to ten people to seventy people Now we're looking at hundreds It's it's really not it's made the souls of those who Died in this conflict. I don't even know if I'll call it conflict in this unfortunate event Find peace in God's bosom. The second trending issue is tinnable Lord's fubara for resolving face-off with wiki President Bola Ahmed tinnable on Tuesday commanded the River State governor similar similar lie fubara What he described as the governor's statemanship in resolving the political Ampass between him and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory FCT yes of wiki President said the federal and subnational governments of Nigeria have the mutual responsibility of ensuring the country's peace and stability Speaking during a meeting with the Niger governor's forum NGF at his residence in Lagos the president reiterated his condemnation of the latest killings in plateau state Addressing the governor's the president issued a stand directive to security agencies to halt the carnage in Plato state and intensified a pursuit of those responsible for the recent tragic events in Boko's and Burkina Ladi local government areas Condoling with the victims the president tinnable emphasized the sanctity of human life and court for a paradigm shift among those with Contrary beliefs cautioning them about the inevitable consequences of their actions A statement by the presidential spokesman quoted tinnable are saying and I quote Nigeria needs peace and stability to move forward Nigeria belongs to all of us and we have to take care of it and of court President tinnable acknowledged the presence of our governor similar lie fubara of river state at the meeting commanding him for his efforts in peacefully resolving the political challenges in the state on the 20 On the 20 24 budget proposal before the National Assembly the president informed the governor's and That he had a review meeting earlier in the data certain elements On certain elements in the appropriation bill with the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the economy Mr. Wally a dune and the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning Center at Tiku Bagulu emphasize the need for joint Responsibility and close our collaboration between the federal and sub-national governments to foster rapid infrastructural development in every part of the nation the chairman of the Niger governor's forum and choir state governor Abdul Rahman Abdul Razak expressed solidarity with the government and the people of plant estate Governor Abdul Razak reaffirmed the state government support for the bold decisions and reforms initiated by president tinnable's administration Okay, the governor's had a meeting with the president when they should be in their states and also Celebrating with their people, but they had a meeting. It's very important. Have this meeting is good But I still call on the government to do something more drastic than just pronouncements and saying I have ordered the arrest of these People what else will the police or the army do differently? That's what we're looking at because if you order the arrest. Yes They're going to arrest them and all that but for Fubara and the political impasse in river state I do not know what we cannot take sides whatever it is. Let it be for the good of rivers people But we must hasten to warn that there are some things that if they are done according to the proposal for the for the settlement of the dispute in River state if they are done that will be the death of democracy in Nigeria For instance, if these people who should be prosecuted are Accepted back and then given all the responsibilities they should have then we'll be asking ourselves What is the rule of law playing? What is what part is the rule of law playing if they they the budget is Represented to a people that had left and they were absent when this budget was passed and rightly so it is Represented to them. We will be asking the question. How is that democracy? How what role is a rule of law playing if they? 27 members who are in in majority now come back and Dictate to the house what should be and maybe on seat they They they lawfully pronounced the speaker of the house Like it was proposed then we'll be asking what the rule of law is playing what what part it is It is playing in our democracy and what democracy is today this eight-point agenda Does not speak well of a democracy that should thrive on the rule of law But let's see how it goes the governor of river state has said that it is not a death sentence It can implement all those things let us see how he's going to implement a thing without Jettisoning the rule of law and everything that democracy holds as the tenets of democracy Let's see how it goes, but for the people of river state We can only wish you luck and let's also listen to what the PDP and the APC will be saying about this The drama that is unfolding is very interesting 2024 is going to be really exciting now PDP releases timetable for by elections Peck Senate form at 3.5 million narrow also understand that APC has released theirs as well But ahead of the February 3 2024 by elections of people's Democratic Party that is PDP has released a timetable and scheduled a shadow of activities for the contestants into senatorial House of Representatives and state assembly seats the PDP timetable released on Tuesday Was signed by the party's national organizing secretary umar baturi the sale of nomination forms expression of interest and delegates forms will begin on December 28th That's tomorrow 2023 and end on January 3 2024 a month to the election while primary elections are scheduled to be held on January 9 2024 the PDP picked the price for the expression of interest and nomination forms for the Senate House of Representatives and House of Assembly at 3.5 million 2.5 million and 600,000 narrow respectively the party said female aspirants and persons living with disabilities are to pay for nomination forms only while youth below 40 years are to purchase expression of interest forms with a 50% discount on nomination forms the independent national electoral commission INEC had fixed February 3 2024 for the conduct of by elections resulting from the resignation or demise of members of the national and state House of Assembly It stated that the vacancies occurred across two senatorial districts for federal constituencies and three state constituencies spanning nine states of the federation Well, it's a lofty thing that the the party has done to give 50 discount to youth under 40 years and also to Give some kind of rebates to the people living with disabilities and women but my fear and my hope also is that when these people get these forms for the for a lower price and all that When they do enter office, there shouldn't be Poppets to the people who let them take this let it not be a case of We give you This forms next to nothing so you have to the to dance to the music and you have to Do according to the bidding of those of us who made it possible if you're giving someone 50 discount it shouldn't be that that person is less important than the person who bought it for the full Amount that they should buy it what is happening in river state? for instance, we heard the minister of the federal capital territory saying that When it but when it was time to choose someone to go we just asked you to go It was a safe. He was handpicked That was the only only qualification. He was handpicked. It wasn't a safe. Everybody else was private to that Information that brought out the governor who is sitting now It was a safe. He was sent like a boy to go and represent the people and so he has no say he has to abide by the rules of Politics that's what has been happening.  You have to abide by the rules What are the rules do politics have that are not covered by the constitution? Because a lot of things that are happening don't seem to be covered by the constitution, but they are just Understandings that we have in politics. We should get to a point where we'll be very very Clear very transparent on the things that we do until we get to that point Our democracy will still be a dictatorship by proxies And that is not very good for the giant of Africa that all other african countries should be looking up to Okay, so politics should be such a clean game that some of us will also be Comfortable going into it and not saying I cannot I cannot Fight the fight that they are fighting in politics and then people will keep calling politics a dirty game Well politics is not a dirty game on its own There's a people that are involved that sometimes make it look like it's dirty politics is everywhere, but the the kind of politics that is played on the global scene on the national scene on the That we call politics nowadays is what people fear But if a lot of good men go go into politics, maybe it'll have a better name than it has now But we want nigeria to grow whatever will make nigeria grow We should support it and one of the things is the rule of law and abiding by the constitution of the federal republic of nigeria We have no problem with laws That's the way I see it We have a lot of laws is to abide by these laws and having the political will to prosecute those who Contravene the laws That is what we're lacking. We hope that one day we'll get that leader whose utterances and actions will make people sit Tight and do what they're supposed to do and be afraid of the consequences of bad behavior Well, that's much talking that we've been talking. Let's just take the weather report and when we return We'll enter The papers and see what the papers are saying what the headlines are this morning. Stay with us Thank you