Foreign news
Carrie Lam exclusive: U.S. sanctions are for Trump’s self-serving interests
Chief Executive of China’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Carrie Lam Monday said the U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration used so-called sanctions against some Chinese officials to serve their own interests.
Lam made the remarks during an exclusive interview with CGTN.
The U.S. earlier imposed sanctions against heads of Chinese government agencies responsible for Hong Kong affairs and officials of the HKSAR including Lam.
When asked what the U.S. is trying to convey through imposing sanctions, Lam said “By now I think it’s quite clear that all this is part of a ploy of the U.S. administration for their self-serving interest.”
“Hong Kong is a ready to point for them to do such a thing because we are such an open society and we have a small portion of people who tend to be more radical and critical of the government of the mainland,” she added.
The chief executive voiced strong opposition against such U.S. acts, saying it should be condemned not only by people of Hong Kong but also by the international community.
Because of the sanctions, the chief executive said she may meet some inconvenience when using some financial service.
However, Lam called the sanctions meaningless. From her perspective, the most important thing is that she and other HKSAR officials feel honored at this historical moment being trusted by the central government to enforce a piece of national law to safeguard national security.
She said the more attacks they meet means the more effective the legislation is, adding that she and her colleagues are determined to continue their work and won’t be intimidated.
When talking about the postponement of the 2020 Legislative Council (LegCo) election in the HKSAR, Lam said she knew she could meet all kinds of speculations for making the decision since the participation of LegCo election is always high and Hong Kong society is now going through the highly politicized and very polarized situation.
However, she stressed, “nothing is more important than people’s life”.
As more than 4,500 cases have been reported since the epidemic broke out in the HKSAR, Lam said she cannot take risk of Hong Kong people’s life and safety.
She believes it is a right and responsible decision to postpone the LegCo poll so as to ensure a safe and fair election.
Foreign news
NTAC Hails Tinubu; Volunteers Ready to Positively Impact Nigerians
Joel Ajayi
The Nigerian Technical Aid Corps (NTAC) has commended President Bola Tinubu for funding the Technical Aid Corps (TAC) Scheme.
The Director General (DG) of NTAC , Dr Yusuf Yakub, made the commendation during a ceremony to receive five returning TAC volunteers from Zanzibar, Tanzania on Tuesday in Abuja.
The returning volunteers also expressed readiness to impact knowledge gained from participating in the programme on Nigerians.
TAC is a mechanism for Nigeria’s foreign aid and technical assistance to African, Caribbean and Pacific countries through the use of Nigeria’s abundant trained manpower.
Yakub lauded Tinubu’s visionary leadership and steadfast support for the TAC Scheme.
Welcoming the volunteers who had discharged themselves as worthy ambassadors in Zanzibar, the D-G thanked them for their patriotism, dedication to service and for making Nigeria proud on the international arena.
The NTAC boss highlighted the importance of knowledge-sharing, while announcing that certificates of completion will be presented to the volunteers in line with the noble objectives of the service.
He also emphasised the volunteers’ crucial role in passing on the skills and experiences gained in Zanzibar.
He expressed optimism that their efforts would positively impact the lives of Nigerians across the country and shape the expectations and service-delivery of future prospective volunteers.
Earlier speaking, Amb. Zakari Usman, the Director of Programmes for NTAC, expressed gratitude to the D-G for his unwavering support and provision for the volunteers throughout their service period.
He said that the volunteers had so delivered on the mandate of the agency that citizens of Zanzibar did not want them to leave their country.
Popoola Adegoke, the Team Lead and a Mathematics Instructor for the batch of returning volunteers, was full of gratitude to the Federal Government for providing them the opportunity to participate in the scheme.
Adegoke said that Nigeria, was well blessed and had the abundance of both human and natural resources to contribute meaningfully to the development of many countries of the world.
He said that the need to continue the TAC Scheme was not negotiable, owing to its high impact and results.
Mohammed Salisu, a Physicist, said that the experience had broadened his horizon as his orientation during the last 24 months in Zanzibar, especially on the cultural exchange.
He lauded the government for the scheme, saying that Nigeria is seen and perceived to be higher in all ranking, especially in the standard of living and educational system.
He also appealed to the government to sustain the scheme to close the gaps both the educational and professional systems in the African, Caribbean and the Pacific Countries.
NAN
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