The Taraba House of Assembly has said that it’s approval for the Executive to secure a N350 billion bond from the Capital Market was in line with provisions of the 2025 appropriation law.Mr Jetro Yakubu, Majority Leader of the assembly, made the clarification on Friday while speaking to newsmen in Jalingo.

Yakubu revealed that the request to secure the loan was in tandem with the provisions of the 2025 appropriation bill passed into Law by the assembly. He stressed that Gov. Agbu Kefas of Taraba had already indicated in the budget proposals his intention to fund part of it through loans from financial institutions.According to him, the request could only become abnormal if it is outside the budgetary provision. Yakubu, who represents Wukari I State Constituency also noted that the assembly approved the loan because the governor had carried the it along right from the preparation of the Appropriation. “The governor is a leader that believes in carrying everybody along. He had already carried the assembly along right from when the appropriation was being prepared.“We don’t give approval for any loan that is not in the appropriation.“The governor is a very strategic thinker. The bond which is at N20 lbillion per year would be funded through Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and not through Federal Accounts Allocation.“The governor is very passionate about stimulating the economy of the state so that the it can be viable to fund the bond,” he said.Daily Asset recalls that Kefas earlier requested an approval from the house of assembly to secure a N350 billion bond from the Capital Market.The legislators had since granted him the approval to borrow the funds. (NAN)

Vatican Plans For Pope Leo XIV To Meet U.S. VP Vance

Pope Leo XIV, the world’s first U.S. pope, plans to meet with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, a converted Catholic, on Sunday, during an inaugural mass for the new pontiff.

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin said on Friday.

Parolin emphasised that the schedule and organisation for Sunday, with guests from more than 200 delegations worldwide, is very complex.

However, he said the protocol team is working on arranging the meeting.

Vance will lead the U.S. delegation for the 10a.m (0800 GMT) Mass on Sunday.

For the vice president, this marks a quick return to Rome.

He was the last senior international politician to visit with the late pope Francis just before his death.

U.S. President Donald Trump attended Francis’ funeral.

During a potential bilateral meeting between Pope Leo and Vance, international crisis hotspots, such as Russia’s war against Ukraine, are likely to be on the agenda.

After direct negotiations between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky failed to materialise in Turkey this week, the Vatican is being considered as a possible venue for talks.

“The situation is very difficult, dramatic,”said Parolin, who is considered the second most important figure in the Vatican after the pope.

He announced that Leo plans to potentially make the Vatican, the Holy See, available for a direct meeting between the two sides.

The Pope recently hinted that he wants to help in the search for peace in the conflict. (dpa/NAN)

China has called on the United States to immediately reverse what it described as protectionist and unilateral bullying actions, and to stop the suppression of Chinese technology companies and the artificial intelligence (AI) industry.

A spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry made the remarks on Friday in response to recent U.

S. regulatory actions.

According to reports, the U.

S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security recently issued a statement declaring the use of Huawei’s Ascend chips a violation of U.S. export controls.

It also warned of potential risks associated with allowing U.S.-developed AI chips to train Chinese AI models.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian condemned the move, saying the U.

S. was overstretching the concept of national security and abusing export controls and long-arm jurisdiction to unjustly target China’s chip and AI industries.

“These actions seriously violate market principles, disrupt global supply chains, and infringe on the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises,” Lin said.

“China firmly opposes this and will never accept it,” he added, warning that Beijing would take resolute measures to defend its development rights and protect its companies (Xinhua/NAN)