Nigerians to make payments using Facebook messenger as Mastercard launches new feature

Mastercard on Wednesday announced that it will use Facebook Messenger to provide technology to small businesses in Africa and Asia to drive affordable acceptance of electronic and mobile payments. 

This announcement was made at Mobile World Congress (www.MobileWorldCongress.com). 

Access to digital payments will help these businesses expand to new markets, and unlock financial services and products that enables them to grow their livelihoods.

This Messenger experience will launch in Nigeria, where Mastercard will pilot a new Masterpass QR (https://Masterpass.com) bot to help business owners’ move beyond cash transactions to accepting QR payments. Ecobank (www.Ecobank.com) and Zenith Bank will support this inaugural program. The pilot in Nigeria is the beginning of a larger plan by the two companies to include more businesses into the digital economy.

According to research done by The Fletcher School and Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, of the $301 billion of funds flow from consumers to businesses in Nigeria, 98 percent is still based on cash.

“Every business owner is looking for ways to increase sales and draw new customers into their stores. By offering QR-based digital payments, smaller retailers can achieve these goals and create greater customer stickiness with little to no investment beyond the phone they already have,” said Jorn Lambert, Executive Vice President, Digital Channels and Regions, Mastercard. “Masterpass QR opens up new commerce channels for these merchants and enables them to create auditable transaction records. These advances open doors to other financial tools and products such as loans to drive added business growth.”

To get started, businesses can send a request to the bot to enable QR payments, receive approval from the bank, set up an account and start accepting digital payments in a fast, simple and secure manner. Once the account set up process is complete, business owners can print and display the QR code in their stores or save the code on their phones. Customers can pay by either scanning the code from their smartphone or by entering the merchant ID associated with the QR code into their feature phone.

“Brands and developers around the world are turning to messaging to connect with the 1.3 billion people who use Messenger each month,” said Kahina Van Dyke, Director of Payments and Financial Services Partnerships at Facebook. “We are pleased that Mastercard is developing a service on the Messenger Platform to help small merchants use messaging to manage their business and connect with their customers.”

Launched in 2016, Masterpass QR provides people with any type of mobile phone the ability to safely accept and make in-person purchases without cash or a plastic card. It provides greater choice in payments and complements Mastercard’s investment in contactless payments to provide merchants of all sizes – from international chains to individual shop owners and street vendors – a fast, secure and inexpensive way to accept payments.

Bankers in Nigeria are already reacting to the new feature.

“In line with our goal to serve 100 million Africans by the end of 2020, Ecobank is delighted to collaborate with Facebook and Mastercard to enable underserved and unbanked micro-merchants with the opportunity to open an Ecobank account almost immediately and begin to receive instant payments using Ecobank Masterpass QR on the Facebook Messenger platform. Micro merchants in Nigeria are already benefiting from Masterpass QR and will soon be in 32 markets across Africa, enabling them to move away from cash. That is true economic empowerment,” said Patrick Akinwuntan, Group Executive, Consumer Bank, Ecobank Group.

“Our Bank is partnering with Facebook and Mastercard to introduce Masterpass QR as a means of driving financial inclusion and creating a new payment ecosystem for MSMEs and consumers,” said Peter Amangbo, MD/CEO of Zenith Bank Plc. “This initiative will help us encourage financial inclusion within the country in line with the strategic thrust of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Buyers and sellers now meet and conclude transactions in-store, online and on social media, so we are ensuring payments can also be made on these platforms via QR codes, without having to log onto other solutions or even take a break from what you are doing on Facebook.”

Press Release

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Hate speech offenders to die by hanging in Senate’s new bill

Any person found guilty of any form of hate speech that results in the death of another person shall die by hanging upon conviction, reads a new bill by the Senate.

The bill, which reflects the growing concern over the spate of violence in the nation, was sponsored by the spokesman of the upper chamber, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi (APC, Niger).

It also seeks the establishment of an ‘Independent National Commission for Hate Speeches’, which shall enforce hate speech laws across the country, ensure the elimination of the menace and advise the Federal Government.For offences such as harassment on the grounds of ethnicity or racial contempt, a culprit shall be sentenced to “not less than a five-year jail term or a fine of not less than N10 million or both.”

The bill notes: “A person who uses, publishes, presents, produces, plays, provides, distributes and/or directs the performance of any material, written and/or visual, which is threatening, abusive or insulting or involves the use of threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour, commits an offence, if such person intends thereby to stir up ethnic hatred, or having regard to all the circumstances, ethnic hatred is likely to be stirred up against any person or person from such an ethnic group in Nigeria.”

It notes that “a person subjects another to harassment on the basis of ethnicity for the purposes of this section where, on ethnic grounds, he unjustifiably engages in a conduct which has the purpose or effect of (a) violating that other person’s dignity or (b) creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for the person subjected to the harassment.

“Conduct shall be regarded as having the effect specified in subsection (1) (a) or (b) of this section if, having regard to all the circumstances, including in particular the perception of that other person, it should reasonably be considered as having that effect.”The National Commission for Hate Speeches shall be headed by an executive chairperson who would be appointed by the president on recommendation of the National Council of State, subject to the confirmation of at least two-third majority of the National Assembly.

The commission shall discourage persons, institutions, political parties and associations from advocating or promoting discrimination or discriminatory practices through the use of hate speeches; promote tolerance, understanding and acceptance of diversity in all aspects of national life and encourage full participation by all ethnic communities in the social, economic, cultural and political life of other communities.It shall also plan, supervise, coordinate and promote educational and training programmes to create public awareness, support and advancement of peace and harmony among ethnic communities and racial groups.

It shall furthermore promote respect for religiouss, cultural, linguistic and other forms of diversity in a plural society; promote equal access by persons of all ethnic communities and racial groups to public or other services and facilities provided by the government.

The Senate also disclosed that its bid to pass the 2018 budget was being frustrated by ministers and heads of parastatals who have refused to provide details on allocations to their ministries.Without mentioning names, the upper chamber issued a fresh seven working-day ultimatum to the affected ministries.

Similar ultimatums in the past had done little to facilitate the budget preparation.The Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Sunny Ogbuoji, said: ” The majority of the Ministries, Departments and Agencies are not coming forward to interface with the standing committees. Some of the ministers will tell you they are going outside the country, and because of that, the MDAs are not fully ready.”

The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, stressed that the upper chamber wants the process concluded as early as possible, regretting: “The perception is that it is the parliament that delays these things.”He said: “The Senate Majority Leader will communicate and get in touch with the executive arm of government, so that these MDAs can be told to play their part to ensure that this exercise can be completed.

“I appeal to all these ministers and managing directors that keep on travelling that this is a time for them to be on ground and ensure that they finish this report.”The Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, said it was unfair for the heads of parastatals to “hold the country down.” He noted: “It has come to a stage where we have to consider taking what has already been presented by the president from those MDAs as the position of the MDAs, instead of waiting for them for ever.

“We gave them an opportunity about three weeks ago to make this a priority but it seems that has not happened. So, instead of the country suffering, it is better to give them just few more days. And after that, the relevant committees will adopt what was sent to us by the president as the positions of the MDAs. We cannot continue to be running the country like this.”

The Senate furthermore faulted the assumption of office by the newly nominated acting Executive Secretary of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Anthony Okechukwu Ojukwu, ahead of a confirmation.It also mandated its committee on judiciary to investigate the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, for directing Ojukwu to do so.

The upper chamber reached the resolutions following a motion by Senator Dino Melaye who noted: “If the attorney general, who is supposed to be the custodian of our laws, will flagrantly ask an individual who has been nominated by Mr. President but has not been confirmed by the Senate to go and assume duty, and the person has since resumed, then we are not practising democracy. We have no regard for the rule of law.”

The Guardian

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How my ‘coup’ against Americans backfired – Obasanjo

Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has revealed how his action, during military rule, against Americans over occupation of an office backfired.

This is coming at a time ex-National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ahmadu Ali, yesterday, admitted that his generated made some mistakes just as he said they did their best for the country.

Speaking in Abuja, yesterday, at the launch of a biography on Ali, Obasanjo said his consipracy with the former PDP chairman to retrieve an office from Americans led to his reprimand by the then Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon.

Gowon also confirmed that Obasanjo’s action caused diplomatic row between Nigeria and the United States of America.

Obasanjo told the audience of how he conspired with Ali to evict the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) from its office, around the Tafewa Balewa Square, Lagos. He also confessed that he and Ali kept what led to the incident away from Gowon for 43 years.

Said Obasanjo: “Ahmadu Ali had been appointed Director of the National Youth service Corps and he needed an office; one being occupied by the American Embassy had been identified.

“That office was too close to the Cabinet Office, it had been what we had talked about, complained about and even requested the Americans to vacate and be given an alternative office. So, Ahmadu Ali and I conspired that we will remove the Americans.

“Of course, I belonged to the Nigerian Army Corps of Engineers and had military men under my command, Ahmadu had no military men. I had to be used or should I say I had to concur by performing the task and I made it a military operation. By 4:00am, soldiers had surrounded the office and by the time the Americans were arriving for work, they were not allow to go inside. Of course, I didn’t realise the diplomatic implications. Then the Americans violently protested and it was reported to the Commander-in-Chief, General Gowon, and I was carpeted, tongue-lashed and thoroughly washed down.”

Gowon, who was Head of State in 1975 when the incident occurred corroborated the story but said he did not know of Ali’s involvement until yesterday.

Gowon described the dislodgment of the Americans by Obasanjo as a huge embarrassment to the nation, but that the latter could not be punished because of the good work he was doing for the country then.

He said: “Of course, the Minister of External Affairs came and reported to me what was happening; that it was done by Obasanjo. Then between the Chief of Staff; Gen. David Ejoor and myself; we really dressed him down because he exactly started a very serious diplomatic incident.”

Earlier, Ali, said his generation made some mistakes. He urged youths to be resourceful and not allow themselves; to be used as willing tools in the hands of desperate politicians.

He challenged the youths not to keep lamenting and pointed out that his generation did much for the country,  at their youthful age.

Ali said: “We’ve tried our best. We expect you younger ones to try your best. Get up and do something; have a second address, politics is no job…

“When General Yakubu Gowon became the head of state of Nigeria, all the young people he kept quoting were 32.

“At 32, he was a Battalion Commander of 1,000 men and 5,000 extra family members. And, I was going to the United Kingdom in 1965 for post-graduate studies and I met him; he was in London, attending the highest institution of administration in the whole world; for military and civilians, from the 54 nations of the Commonwealth to receive training on how to rule the world; not only their countries.”  

Sun News

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For the love of gun: US church asks members to bring AR-15 rifles to attend service (PHOTOS)

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Dozens of US couples donned crowns and cradled guns at a controversial ceremony in a Pennsylvania church on Wednesday, forcing a nearby school to close and angering protesters.

World Peace and Unification Sanctuary in Newfoundland, Pennsylvania believes the AR-15 symbolizes the 'rod of iron' in the biblical book of Revelation.

The incongruous event in Newfoundland, part of rural Pennsylvania that voted 68 percent for President Donald Trump in 2016, underscored the gulf between those who fiercely defend the US constitutional right to bear arms and advocates of greater gun control.

The event, in which couples commit to each other, was organized by Hyung Jin Moon, younger son of the late Sun Myung Moon, whose World Peace and Unification Sanctuary is a tiny spin-off of the Unification Church founded by his father, a self-declared "messiah" considered a charlatan by critics.

The younger Moon is homophobic and close to the extreme right, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

He extols a religion of weapons and prayer, in which congregants are "sovereign" of their own families, required to defend faith and kin alike.

Moon speaks regularly on YouTube alongside an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and arrived at Wednesday's celebration accompanied by three armed men in fatigues.

While the commitment ceremony, attended by around 500 people, evoked some of the mass weddings for which his father was famous, the younger Moon deviated in encouraging congregants to carry an AR-15 -- albeit locked and not loaded.

It fell on the same day that students returned to their high school in Parkland, Florida for the first time since a 19-year-old used an AR-15 to kill 17 students and school staff two weeks ago.

With the United States again riled by torturous debate on gun controls, an elementary school near the Sanctuary closed for the day.

Last Saturday, the younger Moon organized a dinner "in thanks of President Trump" to benefit the Gun Owners Foundation.

A dozen protesters gathered outside the event on Wednesday, holding up posters that read "Worship God, Not Guns" and "God Does Not Bless Guns."

- Guns in the room -

"I got to the tipping point," said Sheila Cunningham, a demonstrator from Milford 30 miles (48 kilometers) away who came with her 18-year-old daughter Sophie to protest.

She said she was "very annoyed" that the event was tantamount to political endorsement and that it was "time to revoke" the non-profit status of such religious groups.

But those in the congregation, like many other Americans, believe US school shootings do not justify stricter gun laws in a country where firearms are linked to more than 30,000 deaths annually.

"Unfortunately in most of the world, people seem to feel that the only people that should have arms are the ones that govern us," says Andrew Kessler, a lawyer from the affluent suburb of Westchester, New York, dressed in a black suit and red tie.

"I don't think restricting gun ownership has proven that where there are less guns, there will be less violence," he said, carrying the AR-15 he purchased a few months ago.

A long-time hunter, Kessler says he became "more favorable to gun ownership" after attending the Newfoundland church.

John Paul Harris, 68, from nearby Scranton and wearing a black NRA cap, called himself "a proud life member" of the National Rifle Association, the powerful American gun lobby group.

"I wish never to have to use it on a human being," he said of his weapon. Yet with all the guns in the room, the church at times gave off the air of a private militia.

"In essence, you know, we believe in a peace police, in a peace militia," said Kyle Toffey, a helper at the ceremony wearing a metal crown. "It's just that we need to be God-centered when we are armed.”

AFP

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15-year-old Indian girl married off to an older Nigerian man (PHOTOS)

This is the moment a gloomy teenage girl is being married off to an older Nigerian man. 

Social media users in India have been reacting to the union with anger.

According to Raj Kumar Rai, the name of the girl is Sabiha Banu and the man Abu Bakr Al Moum.

He wrote: “Sabiha Banu from Mangalore married (or sold) to Abu Bakr Al Moum of Nigeria.”

The girl is believed to be around 15 years old while the man looks 60.

The wedding ceremony took place in Karnataka, a state in South western region of India.

Below are a few reactions to the marriage: 

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Alleged $1.6b fraud: How Omokore, Diezani’s ally bought 23 exotic cars for Muazu, 25 for Secondus – Witness

Oloyede Olawale, fifth prosecution witness in a $1.6billion fraud trial involving Jide Omokore, Diezani’s ally on Thursday, March 1, 2018 told Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court sitting in Maitama, Abuja, how the defendant bought exotic cars with millions of naira suspected to be proceeds of oil fraud for some politicians.

Documents in support of the claim were tendered and admitted in evidence by the court.

Led in evidence by Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, counsel to the EFCC, Olawale, an accountant and admin manager with Skymit Limited (a company that specialises in sale and services of automobiles ) told the court what he knew about the case in relation to Omokore.

“Some time ago, we got an invitation from the EFCC, which we honoured. When we got there, we were told to write statements and they made some requests relating to sales and delivery in connection with Chief Omokore, which we did.

“The transaction borders on supply of vehicles. As a customer of the company, we supplied vehicles to his company (Spog), on his order”, he said.

He added that “when his request is made, we debit his account, but when payment is made, we credit his account accordingly”.

Jacobs then asked the witness if the witness could recognize the copy of the document that shows the supply of vehicles and the details, the witness answered in the affirmative.

The document included the defendant’s personal statement of account and two invoices.

The admissibility of the documents when sought to be tendered by the prosecution was strongly objected to by counsel representing the fourth defendant, Tayo Oyetibo, SAN.

The learned silk argued that “the tendering of Certificate of Identification, does not meet the requirements of Section 84 (4) paragraph ‘P’ as to the detailed particular of the device involved in the production of this document.

While urging the court to reject the document, Oyetibo argued that “They should have provided the serial number of the computer. Each computer must have a serial number and that is what distinguishes them”. 

Responding, Jacobs argued that the documents met the requirements of the said section of the Evidence Act.

“My Lord, the fact that the type of the computer mentioned (HP) and the printer, HP printer has sufficiently described and gave sufficient particulars of the device involved.

“If your Lordship will accept the interpretation placed on that Section 84 (4) by the defendant, then no single computer generated document will be admissible unless we look for an expert; maybe a computer engineer, or we subpoena Bill Gate to come and give the particulars of the particular device used. That is not the intention of the law”, Jacobs submitted. 

He urged the court to discountenance the submissions of the defence and admit the documents in evidence.

After heated arguments, Justice Dimgba admitted the two invoices in evidence as ‘Exhibit Atlantic 35 and Atlantic 36”, and the statement of account as ‘Exhibit 37’.

The witness further told the court that several exotic cars were supplied to individuals on the order of Omokore.

“We supplied 23 cars to Adamu Muazu, among them were 5 Land Cruiser Jeeps.

“We also supplied 25 cars to Prince Uche Secondus by order of Omokore and we also supplied 9 vehicles to Albert Bassey”, the witness revealed.

The case has been adjourned to March 2, 2018, for continuation of trial. 

Omokore is standing trial alongside Victor Briggs, Abiye Membere, David Mbanefo, Atlantic Energy Brass Development Limited and Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Limited on a 9-count amended charge, of criminal diversion of about $1.6 billion, alleged to be proceeds of petroleum products belonging to the federal government.

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Ghana man teaches computing without computers and now Microsoft has promised him free equipment (PHOTOS)

A teacher from Ghana has received worldwide praise after a photo of him teaching students how to use Microsoft Word on a blackboard went viral.

Because there are no computers at the middle school where he works he uses coloured chalk painstakingly to draw a version of the computer screen onto the blackboard.

In mid-February, he shared a Facebook post showing photos of his 'needs must' method of teaching.

 'Teaching of ICT in Ghana's school is very funny,' Owura Kwadwo - better known as Richard Appiah Akoto - said in a Facebook post alongside the photos.

'I love my students so have to do what will make them understand what [I] am teaching.' 

The information and computer technology (ICT) teacher has subsequently been contacted by Microsoft after the images were shared thousands of times online. The company has promised to send him new computer equipment and give him access to its 'professional development resources'.  

Akto for the past six years has taught at Betenase M/A Junior High School, about three hours north of the second largest Ghanaian city of Kumasi.

The school does not have any computers even though in recent years 14 and 15-year-olds are expected to write and pass a national exam, with ICT being one of the subjects.

'This is not my first time [of drawing] it. I have been doing it anytime I am in the classroom,' Akoto told Quartz Africa.

'I like posting pictures on Facebook so I just felt like [sharing it]. I didn't know it would get the attention of people like that,' he said. 

His story was brought to the attention of Microsoft by entrepreneur Rebecca Enonchong who tweeted the company to point that he was teaching the use of their product without having physical access to it.

'Surely you can get him some proper resources,' she suggested.

Supporting teachers to enable digital transformation in education is at the core of what we do. We will equip Owura Kwadwo with a device from one of our partners, and access to our MCE program & free professional development resources on https://t.co/dJ6loRUOdg

— Microsoft Africa (@MicrosoftAfrica) February 27, 2018

On Tuesday, the software giant acted on her request. 

Quartz subsequently pointed out that Akoto's situation typifies an 'under-resourced dysfunctional public school system'.

It said that many economically disadvantaged families throughout Africa 'are forced to choose private schools over free public primary schools' due to a lack of resources. 

In Ghana, there have been calls for more resources to help rural schools like Betenase which 'struggles with teaching logistics challenges'.
DailyMail

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