Storm fells symbolic 400-year-old cotton tree in Sierra Leone

 The tree was a symbol of freedom and had been a national landmark for centuries.

Torrential rains in Sierra Leone’s capital have felled the centuries-old Cotton Tree, a national treasure whose loss has left “a gap” in people’s hearts, President Julius Maada Bio says.

“There is no stronger symbol of our national story than the Cotton Tree, a physical embodiment of where we come from as a country,” Bio told reporters from The Associated Press news agency on Thursday. “Nothing in nature lasts forever, so our challenge is to rekindle, nurture and develop that powerful African spirit it for so long represented.”

The roughly 400-year-old tree, which had stood 70 metres (230 feet) tall and 15 metres (50 feet) wide, has been Sierra Leone’s national symbol for decades.

The Cotton Tree was an important landmark in the West African country, which was founded by formerly enslaved Africans returning from the United States. Locals say when the returnees arrived by boat in the late 1700s, they gathered under its branches to offer prayers in their new home, which they called Freetown.

The tree went on to appear on the country’s banknotes and be celebrated in children’s nursery rhymes. It was also visited by Queen Elizabeth II to mark Sierra Leone’s independence from British colonial rule in 1961.

“It was regarded as a symbol of liberty and freedom by early settlers,” the president wrote on Twitter.

“We have to see what we are going to do to make sure that we keep the history of this tree here,” Bio told the Reuters news agency where it once stood. “I want to have a piece of this history wherever I find myself – at the state house, the museum or city hall.”

While the tree had withstood damage throughout the years, including a lightning strike that has left it scorched, Wednesday’s storm left nothing of the tree but a stump.

Sierra Leone is among the countries most impacted by climate change. In 2017, more than 1,000 people were killed by a landslide due to heavy rains.

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES

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World’s Richest Man, Bernard Arnault Loses $11bn In One Day…

 World’s richest man, Bernard Arnault loses $11bn in one day but is still richer than Tesla CEO Elon Musk by $12bn

The world’s richest man and CEO of Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), Bernard Arnault,  lost $11.2 billion in one day, but is still wealthier than Elon Musk.

Musk is the second richest man in the world, with a net worth of £180 billion, $12 billion less than the 74-year-old CEO’s own $192 billion. LVMH, which encompasses brands such as Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & co., and Christian Dior took a 5% hit to its share price on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg.

The stock blow is the biggest the company has seen in over a year. Before the stock drop, Arnault’s net worth was $203 billion on Monday — $23 billion above Musk’s.

The LVMH mogul’s net worth soared by $29.5 billion over the course of the last year, which can be attributed to the company’s stock rising by 35% during that time.

As per Bloomberg, the stock’s fall caused the European Luxury sector to be slashed by roughly $30 billion.
Despite the struggle, LVMH’s share price is still up 23% for the year. The MSCI Europe Textiles Apparel & Luxury Goods Index has also risen to 27%, Bloomberg reported.

Following Musk’s Twitter buyout in October 2022, his wealth took a steep drop, and he lost his position as the world’s richest man to Arnault.
The purchase knocked his net worth down to $126 billion from $340 billion.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos currently sits at number three in Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index – a $41 billion gap from Musk.

Source: Peacefmonline

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Iconic Sierra Leone tree to be preserved in a museum

 Sierra Leonean President Julius Maada Bio says parts of the iconic cotton tree that was brought down by a storm in the capital Freetown will now be preserved in a museum. He said the tree, which stood for hundreds of years, wasn’t just a tree, but “a connection between the past, present and the future and we must strive to immortalise it”.

The preservation of the tree will be led by the tourism and cultural affairs ministry, he said, and would serve as a reminder of the country’s shared heritage and history. Mr Bio spoke when he visited the site of the fallen tree in the centre of the city.

Earlier, the president had described the tree “as a great loss for the nation” and said the tree was a symbol of liberty for early settlers. It also appears on Sierra Leone banknotes. The 70m (230 ft)-high cotton tree was said to be the oldest of its kind in the country – a government statement estimated it to be 400 years old.

Just 300m away are the Freedom Steps, climbed by newly arrived freed slaves who offered prayers at the tree before making Freetown their home.

Source: BBC

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Celine Dion cancels 2023-24 shows over health condition

Singer posted a video in December 2022 to say she had recently been diagnosed with Stiff-Person Syndrome.

Pop icon Celine Dion has cancelled all her remaining shows scheduled for 2023-24, saying she was not strong enough to tour as she battles a rare neurological disorder.

Last year, the 55-year-old Canadian revealed that her condition – Stiff-Person Syndrome – was affecting her singing.

“I’m so sorry to disappoint all of you once again… and even though it breaks my heart, it’s best that we cancel everything until I’m really ready to be back on stage,” Dion tweeted.

“I’m not giving up… and I can’t wait to see you again!” she added.

A statement released by her tour said, “With a sense of tremendous disappointment, Celine Dion’s Courage World Tour today announced the cancellation of all remaining dates currently on sale for 2023 and 2024.”

Dion, one of the top women singers with an octave-busting voice, is the author of hits like, Because You Loved Me, My Heart Will Go On, and, Think Twice.

In December 2022, she posted a tearful video on Instagram to say she had recently been diagnosed with Stiff-Person Syndrome and would not be ready to start her European tour in February as planned.

She said the disorder was causing muscle spasms and was “not allowing me to use my vocal cords to sing the way I’m used to”.

Sufferers commonly experience stiff muscles in the torso, arms and legs, with noise or emotional distress known to trigger spasms.

The cancellations will affect her 16-country tour in Europe which was due to start in Amsterdam in August and conclude with two dates at the O2 arena in London in April next year.

Her “Courage World Tour” began in 2019, and Dion completed 52 shows before the coronavirus pandemic put the remainder on hold. She later cancelled the North American section of the tour due to her health problems.

“Not surprising, but no less sad. Courage to you Celine, we are with you,” wrote one fan information account @LesRedHeads.

“You don’t have to apologize queen! Take care of yourself. Your health should take number one priority,” wrote @notaerz.

The youngest of 14 children, Dion was born in Quebec, Canada and got her start at 12, when her mother sent a recording of her to Angelil, who mortgaged his own home to finance her first album. She began singing in French, but started bellowing out hits in English after taking English lessons in the 1980s.

She gained worldwide fame in 1997 with, My Heart Will Go On, the theme to James Cameron’s extremely popular film, Titanic.

She parlayed that success into a regular gig at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, playing for audiences night after night for 16 years, with only a few breaks.

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES

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The 7 Anti-Christianity Points In Primary 4 History Textbook

 A primary four history textbook has become the center of discussions after it emerged that it had content that in many parts listed disadvantages of religion, specifically of Christianity.

The book, History of Ghana for Basic Schools, Learner’s Book 4, was authored by Francis Benjamin Appiah and Henry David Appiah.

The cover page sighted by GhanaWeb has the approval of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) even though the outfit has denied approving the said copy.
The contentious page making the rounds on social media platforms is under the section titled: “NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF CHRISTIAN MISSIONARY ACTIVITIES.”

The authors list seven anti-Christianity points which have triggered the social media debates. The points range from religion being a major cause of conflict globally, that Christianity has led to increase in poverty and that the religion missionaries brought “create a sense of fear or timidity in their adherents.”
Find the seven points below:

NaCCA reacts:

The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) in reacting to the book has stated that the version cited is not what was approved.

A Deputy Spokesperson for the Ministry of Education, Yaw Opoku Mensah is quoted by Joy News as stating that NaCCA had not approved the particular copy.

He claimed that per the information provided to him by NaCCA, the approved version of the book did not have the section in question, the Joy News report added.

NaCCA is an entity mandated by the Education Regulatory Bodies Act, 2020 (Act 1023) to develop national curriculum and assessment standards for pre-tertiary education institutions other than technical and vocational education and training institutions.

Source: ghanaweb.com

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Former BBNaija Star, Joseph Ada, Dies In The US

 Joseph, a former BBNaija star who took part in the inaugural season of Big Brother Nigeria in 2006, died on Wednesday, May 24, in Delaware, United States. He had pancreatitis, and on Wednesday, he sadly passed away.

Joseph Ada was in the house in 2006 with Obi-Uchendu, Gideon Okeke, Maureen Osuji, Katung Aduwak, Francisca Owumi, Ify Ejikeme, Helen, and others.

At the time, Joseph was the oldest resident in the Big Brother house at 32 years old. Nevertheless, he showed excellent performance, finishing as the ninth candidate to be booted from the house out of 14.

After the show, Joseph, a former flight attendant with Virgin Atlantic, relocated to the US and resided in Delaware. Joseph Ada died at age 49 in the United States of America after a bout with pancreatitis.

May his soul rest in peace.

Source: Tru News Report

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2 Killed and 23 Injured Following An Attack on Medical Facility in Dnipro

 At least two people have died and 23 people left injured following an attack on a medical facility in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Friday.

A 69-year-old man “was just passing by when the rocket struck the city” and the body of another man “was pulled out of the rubble,” said Serhii Lysak, head of the regional military administration.
He said that 23 people were wounded in the bombardment, with 21 of them hospitalized and three in a critical condition.

At least four people are missing following the attack in Dnipro, according to the Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s Office.
The fire covered 1,000 square meters of the medical facility, where a three-story building was partially destroyed, Lysak added.
He added that rescue workers are searching for people under the rubble.
CNN geolocated the attack to Dnipropetrovsk City Hospital No. 14 and a veterinary clinic in an industrial district north of the Dnipro river in Dnipro.

Source: CNN

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