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Following Trump Footsteps, Argentina Quits World Health Organization

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Argentina said Wednesday it will quit the World Health Organization, following in the footsteps of Donald Trump’s United States and citing similar complaints over the UN body’s management of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Railing against the economic fallout of Covid-19 lockdowns, President Javier Milei lamented “one of the most bizarre crimes against humanity” as he explained the reasons for the move.

Argentina’s self-declared “anarcho-capitalist” leader said the WHO had been “the executing arm of what was the greatest experiment in social control in history

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The South American country announced its withdrawal from the UN health agency two weeks after Trump, an ideological ally and hero of Milei, signaled Washington’s planned exit.

Milei’s decision was based on “deep differences regarding health management especially during the pandemic,” spokesman Manuel Adorni told reporters earlier, adding Argentina would not “allow an international body to interfere in our sovereignty.”

Argentina had been hard hit by the pandemic, with about 130,000 deaths, and Milei’s predecessor Alberto
Fernandez imposed a five-month lockdown in 2020 widely perceived as crippling for a struggling economy.

Adorni insisted withdrawing from the WHO gave Argentina “greater flexibility to implement policies adapted to the context” locally, while ensuring “greater availability of resources.”

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The WHO did not immediately comment on Argentina’s departure.

WHO data shows Argentina contributed about $8.75 million in membership fees to the organization across 2022 and 2023 — 0.11 percent of the total budget.
It was slated to contribute $8.25 million for 2024-2025.

The vast majority of the UN agency’s budget comes from voluntary contributions, however, and Argentina has made none in recent years.

Adorni said Argentina “does not receive funding from the WHO, so this measure does not represent a loss of funds for the country.”

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He also accused the body of “a lack of independence.”

‘Endless quarantines’ –
Last year, Argentina refused to join a new pandemic protocol drawn up by the WHO and gave notice of its intention to withdraw from the agency altogether.

International relations expert Federico Merke, of the University of San Andres in Buenos Aires, said the move would leave Argentina isolated when it comes to information-sharing and cooperation in the case of a new pandemic or other health threat.

Milei is an avowed fan of Trump, who signed an order within hours of his January 20 inauguration for the United States to withdraw from the WHO, which he has also criticized for its pandemic handling.

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Washington was the biggest contributor to the Geneva-based organization, which Trump claimed had “ripped us off,” and the US withdrawal leaves global health initiatives short of funding.

Since taking office in December 2023, Milei has gutted public spending, having vowed to maintain a zero budget deficit after years of overspending.

His austerity measures are estimated to have tipped millions more people into poverty, but the country last year recorded its first budget surplus since 2010 while inflation fell by nearly half.

Milei was the first foreign leader to visit Trump at his Mar-a-Lago Florida estate after the Republican’s November US election victory.

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His decision also casts new doubt on Argentina’s future adherence to the 2015 Paris climate change agreement, under which countries committed to limiting greenhouse gas emissions to keep global average temperature rise below a critical threshold.

Withdrawing the United States from the Paris pact was another of Trump’s first moves after taking office.

Milei’s Argentina, pushing for a free trade deal with the United States, has previously said it was “reevaluating” its strategy “on all climate change-related issues.”

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Just in: Abducted Anambra lawmaker’s corpse found near 2nd Niger bridge

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A jount security team has found the decomposing body of Hon. Justice Azuka, a member of the Anambra State House of Assembly, at the 2nd Niger Bridge.

Recall on Tuesday, December 24, 2024, gunmen abducted Azuka, the representative of Onitsha 1 North Constituency in the Anambra State House of Assembly.

Azuka was reportedly kidnapped while returning home on Ugwunaobankpa Road in Inland Town, Onitsha.

The abducted lawmaker, a chieftain of the Labour Party (LP), had regained his mandate after a court ruling ousted the previous winner, Hon. Douglas Egbuna of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who was initially declared the winner of the 2023 election.

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Azuka was reportedly kidnapped at gunpoint in a swift operation that lasted less than five minutes on Ugwunaobankpa Road.

“We have arrested the culprits that kidnapped and killed him. They were arrested very late last (Wednesday) night and they now went and showed the security men where they dumped the corpse,” a security source revealed.

“It is sad and tragic. What a huge loss. May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace. Amen. Our condolences and heart-felt sympathy to his family, traditional ruler of Onitsha, Obi of Onitsha, Dr Alfred Achebe and the entire people of Onitsha North Constituency 1.”

This highlights the ongoing security issues in Anambra State, where a sitting lawmaker was abducted in the heart of Onitsha.

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“Two nights ago, on Tuesday, kidnappers had a field day along Awka Road in the centre of Onitsha, firing several gunshots during an attempted abduction,” the source added.

Attempts to contact SP Tochukwu Ikenga, the spokesman for the Anambra State Police Command, were unsuccessful. He requested that our reporter send him a message with the questions, but as of the time of filing this report, no response had been received.qs

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Google Drops Pledge Not To Use AI For Weapons

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The technology giant had rewritten the principles that guide its development and use of AI which is published online, but a section pledging not to develop tech that cause or are likely to cause harm has now been removed.

That section said the firm would not pursue applications in the areas of weapons or “that gather or use information for surveillance violating internationally accepted norms”

Instead, the new principles feature a section on responsible development and deployment which implement “appropriate human oversight, due diligence,feedback mechanisms to align with user goals, social responsibility, and widely accepted principles of international law and human rights.”

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In a blog post, Google senior vice president James Manyika and Sir Demis Hassabis, who lead the firm’s AI lab, Google DeepMind, said the company needed to update its AI principles as they had been first published in 2018 and the technology has “evolved rapidly” since then.

Billions of people are using AI in their everyday lives. AI has become a general-purpose technology, and a platform which countless organisations and individuals use to build applications,” they said.

“It has moved from a niche research topic in the lab to a technology that is becoming as pervasive as mobile phones and the internet itself; one with numerous beneficial uses for society and people around the world, supported by a vibrant AI ecosystem of developers.”

They said this had meant increased international collaborative efforts on common principles, which the blog post said Google was encouraged by.

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But Manyika and Hassabis said “global competition” for AI leadership was taking place within an “increasingly complex geopolitical landscape”.

We believe democracies should lead in AI development, guided by core values like freedom, equality, and respect for human rights,” they said.

And we believe that companies, governments, and organisations sharing these values should work together to create AI that protects people, promotes global growth, and supports national security.”

There is an ongoing debate among AI experts, governments, regulators, tech firms and academics about how the development powerful emerging technology should be monitored or regulated.

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Previous international summits have seen countries and tech firms sign non-binding agreements to develop AI “responsibly”, but no binding international law on the issue is yet in place.

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Again, Tiwa Savage, Ex-Husband Coming Together After Six Years Of Separation

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Tiwa Savage and her ex-husband coming back together after six years of being divorced should tell you a lot about what men can really do for love.

They got married in 2013 but divorced in 2018 when Tiwa Savage’s husband accused her of cheating.

After their divorce, Tiwa Savage dated several other men, but those relationships didn’t end well at all.

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She even said it herself that one thing she regrets the most was divorcing her husband because of the men who came after her when she got really famous.

Tiwa didn’t get married after divorcing Teebillz but dated several other men, and even got her knacking video leaked.

Today, they have settled everything and are reportedly back together! Teebillz didn’t think about the men Tiwa dated after their divorce; he thought about the value Tiwa had in his life and their son Jamil, then decided to settle things and take her back as a partner.

When Tiwa Savage saw his message publicly asking her back on Instagram yesterday, she lowered her pride, took accountability for what happened to their relationship, and publicly apologized to her ex-husband.

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In less than 24 hours, they fixed things and are now back together.

Tiwa who is now 44 years old is ten times richer than her ex-husband, but that video of her apologizing and telling her ex how much she loved him really touched me.

Men can forgive women for cheating, too. It just takes more time than it might for women.

We wish them a happy life and hope to see them remarry again. 😍♥️

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This is a sign for you to go and fix things with your baby daddy if you want to be happy again!

Source: Adesanya Idowu Paul

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