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Ex-UK Leader David Cameron Appointed Foreign Secretary

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Former UK prime minister David Cameron made a surprise return to frontline politics Monday after British leader Rishi Sunak appointed him foreign secretary in a government reshuffle.

Cameron, who was Britain’s leader from 2010 to 2016 before quitting after losing the Brexit referendum, replaces James Cleverly — who was appointed interior minister — in an unexpected move.

He replaced her with James Cleverly, who had been foreign secretary, before announcing Cameron as Cleverly’s surprise replacement.

Cameron, 57, quit as prime minister in 2016 after losing the Brexit referendum. He stood down as an MP the same year.

He became mired in scandal in 2021, after lobbying the UK government for finance group Greensill Capital, which later collapsed and the episode was seen as badly tarnishing his reputation.

Cameron will be made a life peer in the House of Lords, Britain’s upper chamber of parliament, Downing Street announced, meaning that he can sit in government.

The former leader said he “gladly accepted” the role as Britain faced “a daunting set of international challenges”.

“While I have been out of front-line politics for the last seven years, I hope that my experience — as Conservative leader for 11 years and prime minister for six — will assist me in helping the prime minister to meet these vital challenges,” Cameron added.

Following her dismissal, Braverman said “it has been the greatest privilege of my life to serve as home secretary”.

“I will have more to say in due course,” she added.

The changes are part of Sunak’s first major reshuffle of his top ministers since becoming the country’s leader in October last year.

The Conservatives, in power for nearly 14 years, said the changes “strengthen his team in government to deliver long-term decisions for a brighter future”.

Set to be announced throughout the day, they are also expected to reward loyalists and younger emerging MPs, as the party struggles for popularity.

Cameron’s unexpected return surprised even those who comment daily on British politics, and was viewed as having been made with the next general election firmly in mind.

The Tories have trailed the main Labour opposition by double-digit margins throughout Sunak’s time in power, and are widely tipped to lose the contest due next year.

Although he has a high profile and contacts around the world, Cameron’s appointment may not prove a vote winner.

Polling in September showed 45 percent of UK adults felt unfavourably towards him, while only around a quarter held a favourable view.

Tim Bale, politics professor at London’s Queen Mary University, said Sunak was likely drawn to Cameron’s “clout on the international stage” and hoped to appeal to increasingly dissatisfied centrist and centre-right voters.

“I’m very sceptical that it’ll make much difference on that or any other score,” he noted. “It looks desperate — because that is what it is!”

Braverman had stoked controversy throughout her tenure, taking a hardline stance on immigration in particular and regularly wading into so-called culture wars issues which are seen as dividing the electorate.

But her position became increasingly untenable after she last week wrote an explosive newspaper article, without Sunak’s approval, accusing police of bias towards left-wing causes.

The article was blamed for stoking tensions ahead of a weekend of protests calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, which coincided with Armistice Day events, and prompted calls for her to be sacked.

Critics said her comments had encouraged far-right protesters to hold counter demos on the sidelines of the main march on Saturday, which resulted in dozens of arrests.

Downing Street launched an investigation into how the article was published without its consent, as required by the ministerial code.

Braverman’s comments, seen as red meat to the right wing of the governing Conservative party, were also viewed as an attempt to position herself as a future leader of the Tories.

They came after she described the rallies calling for a ceasefire in Gaza as “hate marches”, days after claiming some people were homeless as a “lifestyle choice”.

The right-winger has attacked her critics as liberal “tofu-eating wokerati” while saying shortly after she was appointed that sending asylum seekers to Rwanda was her “dream” and “obsession”.

 

Credit: AFP

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“I Am Getting Better And I Feel Better” Jayboogie Gives Update On Health Post BBL surgery

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Popular Nigerian personality Jayboogie has recently addressed the serious accusations of scamming Nigerians.

These allegations centered around Jayboogie’s health issues and the supposed need for a kidney transplant following complications from a BBL surgery.

In a candid statement on social media, Jayboogie set the record straight. He explained that he never claimed he needed a kidney transplant. The rumors, he says, were not started by him. His real ordeal began with an injury to his kidney, which was a consequence of the BVL surgery. To lend credence to his story, he shared images of himself both in the surgical room and during his painful recovery.


Jayboogie recounted the harrowing experience of not being able to urinate for 12 hours post-surgery, which led to panic and an urgent referral to Lagoon Hospital on October 31, 2023. Despite undergoing a plasma exchange in an attempt to resolve the issue, his condition did not improve.

The situation was further aggravated by intense media scrutiny, prompting Zenith Hospital, where he was admitted, to discharge him and advise dialysis from home. Jayboogie highlighted the mental toll the controversy and public backlash took on him, including receiving death threats. This led him to take a break from social media and limit communication for his mental health, supported by his family’s decision to ensure his privacy.

In his statement, Jayboogie categorically denied allegations of scamming the public. He affirmed that he did suffer from sepsis and acute kidney injury, which necessitated a period of dialysis. However, he joyfully shared that as of November 28, he was discharged and is currently recuperating. He is still under medication but is optimistic about his recovery.

Jayboogie concluded his statement by expressing his sincere gratitude to everyone who supported him financially and emotionally during this difficult time. His response to these allegations sheds light on the complexities faced by public figures when their personal struggles become intertwined with public perception and misinformation.

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‘Waste Of Resources Amid Hardship’, Peter Obi Faults Number Of Nigerian Delegates At COP28

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The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, on Sunday, faulted the number of Nigeria’s delegation at the COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

President Bola Tinubu had on November 29, 2023 departed Abuja for Dubai for the summit expected to end December 12, 2023.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the ex-governor of Anambra State, described sending over 1,000 persons to the summit as a waste of scarce resources by the Tinubu administration.

Obi lamented the “huge contingent” in Dubai at public expense at a time when most Nigerians can hardly afford food and basic needs.

“Nigeria’s contingent to COP28 totaled 1411, the same number as the Chinese contingents. While China’s budget for 2024 is about $4 trillion, about $2,860 per head; Nigeria’s budget is about $33 billion, about $165 per head,” Obi said.

“Nigeria has more people living in ‘Multi-Dimensional’ poverty than China, despite China having seven times our population.”

Obi said majority of those in the Nigerian delegation to COP28 are either non-relevant civil servants or relations of high government officials.

“This huge contingent is out at public expense at a time when most Nigerians can hardly afford food and basic needs as a result of economic hardship.

“As we have kept emphasizing, we must stop waste as a a tradition of our government and nation. We urgently need to cut the cost of governance and invest in production.

“We need to de-emphasize unnecessary ceremony and showmanship as a mode of government behaviour. We need to tie spending to necessity and national Priority. A New Nigeria is possible. We only need to do the reasonable and the necessary.”

Meanwhile, a presidential aide, Temitope Ajayi, in a comment on Sunday, defended the delegation of the President to the summit, saying that “President Tinubu and other officials on the Federal government delegation are in Dubai for serious business not jamboree”.

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COP28 Delegates: Analyst Doubts FG’s ‘Compassion’ For Suffering Masses

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A Professor of Political Science, Jideofor Adibe, has knocked the Federal Government over its “bloated” number of delegates at the COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Adibe, who spoke on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, said, with about 1,000 delegates sponsored by the government to the two-week summit, the compassion of the President Bola Tinubu administration to the hardship faced by Nigerians was doubtful.

The President had on November 29, 2023 departed Abuja for Dubai for the summit expected to end on December 12, 2023.

Controversy has since surrounded the number of Nigerian delegates at the summit which ranked that of China, with many Nigerians on social media berating the government for being “insensitive” to their economic sufferings occasioned by the removal of petrol subsidy mid-2023.

Adibe lamented that with the harsh economy, the Tinubu administration should lead by example and cut cost of governance.

He said, “Amid the binge on loans and borrowings, and the increasing hardship and increasing emigration of Nigerians, these things happening, is not just that it raises the question about fidelity to cutting down the cost of governance, but also the question of whether there is even compassion for suffering Nigerians because if there is compassion for what is going on in the country at the moment, people (government officials) should also be sensitive to the optics about the whole thing.”

The analyst said not just costs of flights of the officials in Dubai were funded by the government but their “Estacodes of about $900” daily and hotel costs for about two weeks of the summit.

The professor said the size of the President’s delegation should be on specific roles and it should not be more than three ministers.

He urged the President to set the tone that his administration abhors waste by sanctioning officials responsible for the large delegation in Dubai.

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