News
Canada Gets Fresh Prime Minister
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Mark Carney was sworn in as Canada’s prime minister on Friday, taking charge of a country rattled by a breakdown in US relations since President Donald Trump’s return to power.
The ruling Liberal Party overwhelmingly backed Carney to replace Justin Trudeau, betting his experience leading two central banks through historic crises will reassure Canadians facing a potentially devastating trade war.
Carney, who turns 60 on Sunday, is a political novice who has never won an elected public office but his campaign skills will be tested soon with Canada likely headed for a general election in weeks.
The threats posed by Trump are expected to dominate the vote.
The US president has sought to bludgeon Canada, imposing sweeping import tariffs and threatening further levies while claiming the country is not “viable” on its own and should be annexed by Washington.
Carney, who was sworn in as Canada’s 24th prime minister at a ceremony in Ottawa, has described Trump’s stance as the most serious challenge Canada has faced in a generation
Everything in my life has prepared me for this moment,” Carney said Sunday after winning the Liberal Party leadership race.
He was an investment banker at Goldman Sachs before serving as governor of the Bank of Canada during the 2008-2009 financial crisis and led the Bank of England through the turmoil surrounding the Brexit vote.
He has sought to present himself as purpose-built to lead a country through a trade war with the United States, once Canada’s closest ally but now a country that Carney says Canada can “no longer trust.”
At a Group of Seven meeting in Quebec, Canada’s Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said Carney would bring a “new dynamic” to US diplomacy
Speaking before Carney was sworn in, Joly said she and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is at the G7, were working on setting up a call between Trump and Carney “in the next couple of days.”
Tightening race –
Trump’s tariffs and insults have upended Canadian politics.
At the start of the year, the Liberals were trailing the Conservatives by 20 points in the polls.
But in the weeks since Trudeau announced his plans to resign on January 6, the race has tightened to a near draw.
“Carney is arriving at a good time. He has emerged as a figure people seem to trust to take on Donald Trump,” University of Winnipeg politics professor Felix Mathieu told AFP.
On the week Trump’s sweeping 25 percent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports came into force, Carney visited a steel plant in Hamilton, an industrial city near the US border in the province of Ontario.
Wearing a hard hat and goggles, Carney said he was ready to work out a trade deal with Trump.
But he insisted there must be “respect for Canadian sovereignty” in any negotiation.
– Distance from Trudeau –
Trudeau posted a goodbye message to Canadians on Thursday after nearly ten years in power, saying he was “proud to have served a country full of people who stand up for what’s right.”
Trudeau’s support had plummeted over the past year, but his standing partially rebounded following a series of resolute speeches in response to Trump.
Carney has made clear efforts to distance himself from Trudeau with moves aimed at attracting more centrist voters.
He has said addressing climate change will be a top priority but he is scrapping Trudeau’s “divisive” carbon tax on individuals and families while advancing market-led solutions.
And he is stopping a tax on capital gains that would have applied to the wealthiest Canadians, which the Trudeau government said was essential to shore up Canada’s finances.
We think builders should be incentivized for taking risks and rewarded when they succeed,” he said on Sunday.
AFP
Former Plateau State Deputy Governor Professor Sonnie Gwanle Tyoden has died.
He passed away at the age of 74, though the cause of his death was not confirmed as at the time this report was filed.
Tyoden served as the deputy governor of Plateau State from 2015 to 2023, working under Governor Simon Lalong during the administration of the All Progressives Congress.
Before his time in government, he was the Vice Chancellor of the University of Jos, a role he held between June 2006 and June 2011.
Born on September 22, 1950, Tyoden was a professor of political science known for his work in academia and politics.
His contributions to the development of Plateau State were well-known, and his death has drawn attention across the state and beyond.
US President Donald Trump has denied that he is considering running for a third presidential term, a move which experts agree is banned under the US Constitution.
“I’ll be an eight-year president, I’ll be a two-term president. I always thought that was very important,” Trump told NBC’s Meet the Press with Kristen Welker in an interview that will air on Sunday.
Trump has previously said that he was “not joking” about wanting to serve a third, or even fourth, term as US president.
He later said his statements were meant to troll the “fake news media.”
His company, The Trump Organization, has been selling “Trump 2028” hats, fuelling armchair speculation that he may seek to remain in office after his second term ends in January 2029.
In the interview, recorded from his residence in Florida, Trump said that he has had many “requests” from people asking that he consider seeking to remain in office.
“So many people want me to do it,” Trump said, just days after celebrating his first 100 days of his second term.
“It’s something that, to the best of my knowledge, you’re not allowed to do. I don’t know if that’s constitutional that they’re not allowing you to do it or anything else,” Trump said.
He added that “there are many people selling the 2028 hat.”
“But this is not something I’m looking to do,” he said, going on to list several Republicans who could take his place, including Vice-President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“I think four years is plenty of time to do something really spectacular,” he added.
The Constitution’s 22nd Amendment says that “no person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice.”
Changing the constitution would require two-thirds approval from both the Senate and the House of Representatives, as well as approval from three-quarters of the country’s state-level governments.
However, some Trump supporters say there is a loophole in the constitution, which has been untested in court.
Asked by NBC whether anyone has approached him with these theories, Trump deflected, answering that “in a capacity of being a big supporter, many people have said different things.”
During the interview, Trump also rejected criticism of his handling of the economy.
“Look, yeah. Everything’s OK,” he said after his tariff plan roiled international economies, leading the US economy to shrink for the first time since 2022.
“I said, this is a transition period. I think we’re going to do fantastically,” he added.
Asked if the US economy may continue to shrink, he responded: “Anything can happen. But I think we’re going to have the greatest economy in the history of our country.” [BBC]
Popular Nigerian singer, David Adeleke popularly known as Davido has appealed to the EFCC to immediately release his guy VeryDarkMan.
The reason for his arrest is still at the time of writing unknown, and the anti graft agency is yet to acknowledge having him in their custody.
Davido took to his X page to remark on the support displayed by individuals for Verydarkman.
Davido speaks up for Verydarkman, calls for his release
Verydarkman.
He noted that the display of support makes him wants to do more for the masses.
The singer asked the powers that be to free his friend, Verydarkman.
His words …
“Outside all the noise it’s good to see that the good one does actually impacts lives and Pple actually appreciate! The support I’m seeing for VDM everywhere is encouraging.. makes one want to do more for the masses 
FREE MY GUY”
Check out reactions…
@bigwizarrdd said: “So you for address this one but you no fit address wetin Spotify do you, we your fans are tired of the fraud you’re doing on Spotify.. FIX UP”
@TheDamiForeign wrote: “I’m giving Gtbank 24hours to release VDM, or else I will step in!”
@Street__lawyer wrote: “@davido
has the fame, power and resources to bring VDM out. We should all remember his a national figure. OON, is not a small name.”
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