A young Nigerian woman, Ms. Esther Agbaje has made history in the United States by winning a seat in the state Assembly.

According to NAN, Ms. Esther has been elected into the Minnesota House of Representatives in Tuesday’s U.S. general elections.

She will represent District 59B in the 134-member House on the platform of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), an affiliate of the U.S. Democratic Party.

Esther, 35, won by a landslide, polling 17,396 votes or 74.7 percent of the total ballots cast.

Her closest rival, Alan Shilepsky of the Republican Party, secured 4,128 votes, representing 17.7 percent of the total.

Elections to the lower chamber of the state legislature hold every two years, and there are no term limits for the lawmakers.

The daughter of Nigerian immigrants, Agbaje was born in St. Paul, the state capital of Minnesota.

Her father, Rev. John, an Episcopal Church priest, met her mother, Bunmi, a librarian, at the University of Minnesota where they were studying.

She graduated from George Washington University, Washington, D.C., with a degree in political science.

Esther holds a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Pennsylvania, and also a law degree from Harvard University.

She currently works as an attorney in Minneapolis with a focus on general civil litigation and medical malpractice.

She once served at the U.S. Department of State as a Foreign Affairs Officer, charged with managing the rule of law projects in the Middle East.

Her priorities as a lawmaker include affordable housing, environmental justice, police reform, public safety, and racial equality.

Angry students have protested at the Ogun State Institute of Technology following the death of a student, who died in a motorcycle accident.

The death of Malik Omoty, a student of Ogun State Institute of Technology (OGITECH), Igbesa has caused serious unrest in the area.

Angry students have staged a protest shutting down the institution.

It was gathered that the late student died at the institution’s clinic. The late student was an ND I Computer Engineering undergraduate.

He died after getting involved in a motorcycle accident on Monday.

It was gathered the accident occur in front of the institution owing to over speeding by the commercial motorcyclist.

Omoty, according to witnesses, was rushed to the school clinic but was not treated.

His friends were raising money for ambulance to take him to an hospital when he died in the clinic, it was learnt.

The development enraged students who blocked the entrance gate of the institution on Wednesday morning. They also sent lecturers and non-teaching staff packing from the school.

The protesting students also sent away the Dean of Students Affairs and rebuffed attempted by the Special Assistant to Governor Dapo Abiodun on Students Affairs, Hon Adeyemi Azeez to pacify them.

They insisted their colleague won’t have died if the clinic was properly equipped.

President of The Students Union Government (SUG) Comrade Eniola Ogunleye vowed school activities will be postponed till further notice in honour of the deceased.

The Federal Government is seeking the approval of the National Assembly for $1.2bn loan from Brazil to finance agriculture in 2021.

Zainab Ahmed, the minister of finance, budget and national planning, made this known while defending her ministry’s 2021 budget before the House of Representatives Committee on Finance in Abuja on Tuesday.

She revealed that the Federal Government forwarded an approval request to the National Assembly for the loan from the Brazilian government to address issues in the agriculture value chain as Nigeria.

The minister also said 100,000 hectares of land would be required in each state for food production, adding that link roads would be built in such locations to provide access for farmers to move farm produce to markets and reduce post-harvest losses.

Speaking in response to a question on diversification of the economy posed by Chairman of the committee, Mr James Faleke, the minister said;

“For borrowing to improve industry, we are before the parliament. I request for the approval for loan that we call the Green Imperative Programme which is for loan of $1.2bn from the Brazilian government.

“It is a programme that is addressing the whole of agricultural value chain from mechanisation, production, processing and selling. It is meant to lend to businessmen for tractors, plants at all levels,”

A 51-year-old convicted rapist, Ajayi Peter has been publicly named and shamed in Ekiti for raping a 12-year-old girl.

The man was been publicly name-shamed in Ekiti state’s name and shame initiative.

Peter who is said to be a native of Itapa Ekiti in the Oye council area and resident of Ijero Ekiti in the Ijero Local Government Area of the state, was sentenced to life imprisonment by the High Court of Ado Ekiti for raping a 12-year-old girl.

Ekiti State Attorney General, Mr Olawale Fapohunda in a statement released on Tuesday November 3, said the name and shame publication was in furtherance of the state government’s zero tolerance for sexual violence in the state.

Fapohunda also said that pictures of convicted sex offenders will now be pasted in their last known address as well as the most prominent place in the offender’s community.

He said; “Under the initiative, names and photographs of convicted rapists are pasted on billboards in prominent public spaces in their communities and their council headquarters and as well uploaded on the website of the ministry of justice and other state government platforms in addition to being recorded in the sex offenders’ register and as well disqualified from benefitting from the governor’s power of prerogative of mercy.”

The Federal govt has revealed that in the next two weeks, there would be an increase in COVID-19 infections in the country.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. Most people who fall sick with COVID-19 will experience mild to moderate symptoms and recover without special treatment.

The warning was issued by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha yesterday.

He condemned the careless act of travelers failing to present themselves for Coronavirus tests upon arriving the country.

The SGF said statistics from the nation’s records showed that only one out of three passengers had shown up for the in-country test they signed up for before arrival.

He said;

“The PTF at the last briefing cautioned on the need to avoid complacency on account of the low number of infections published daily and the possibility of a second wave. That advice was premised on the fact that risk perception remains very low and sample collection has been on the decline.”

Mustapha also expressed fear of the recent governorship elections in Edo and Ondo States as well as the #EndSARS nationwide protests triggering an increased Coronavirus infection in the country. He said;

“The PTF is highlighting these issues repeatedly because we remain at risk of importation, having opened our airspace and massive spread as a result of the protests. The next week or two remain critical.

“The PTF similarly announced sanctions as a consequence of any infraction. Having observed serious non-compliance to the level of 65%, the need has arisen to activate the sanctions, including the suspension of the passports of such defaulting individuals for a period of six months minimum.”