Why a restaurant at the Japan Pavilion #Expo2020Dubai was shut down temporarily

Don't I just love the way the UAE, especially Dubai is tackling the COVID-19 and Omicron?

Venues at Expo 2020 Dubai may close temporarily for deep cleaning and sanitization if Covid-19 cases are detected, organisers have said. This is part of Expo’s “stringent Covid-19 safety measures” that are “designed to protect everyone on site”. The venues may also close down for “maintenance, private events and staff shortages”. This came as the organisers announced on Monday that the mega event had registered over 8 million visits. 

Last week, a restaurant in the Japan Pavilion was closed temporarily after a number of restaurant staff tested positive for Covid-19. "The cases were identified as part of the regular testing of the Expo workforce, participants and volunteers," Expo 2020 had said in a statement. Organisers also said they were "doubling down" on its commitment "to continue hosting an exceptional and safe World Expo". 

The mega event has expanded the number of on-site PCR testing facilities to four, and is providing free testing for all country pavilion staff. 

"While all frontline workers and entertainers continue to be tested on a regular basis, some close contact events, such as parades and roving entertainers, have been temporarily suspended as a short-term precautionary measure,” read a press release. 

All visitors and staff have to mandatorily wear masks indoor and outdoor. 

“The health, safety and wellbeing of everyone continue to be of the highest priority and organisers remain committed to working with participants to welcome visitors to a safe and exceptional Expo,” a Press release issued on Monday said.

Pope Francis pens a letter to married couples & reveals 3 keys words for a marriage

This is a must-read for all married couples!

Pope Francis sought Sunday to encourage married couples, acknowledging that the pandemic has aggravated some family problems but urging couples to seek help and always remember three key words in a marriage: “Please, thanks and sorry.” 

Francis penned a letter to married couples that was released Sunday, a Catholic feast day commemorating Jesus’ family. It came halfway through a yearlong celebration of the family announced by Francis that is due to conclude in June with a big family rally in Rome. 

Speaking at his studio window Sunday, Francis said he intended the letter to be his “Christmas present to married couples." He urged them to keep having children to fight the “demographic winter" which, in Italy, has led to one of the lowest birthrates in the world. “Maybe we aren't born into an exceptional, problem-free family, but our family is our story — everyone has to think: It’s my story,” he said. “They are our roots: If we cut them, life dries up!" 

In the letter, Francis said lockdowns and quarantines had forced families to spend more time together. But he noted that such enforced togetherness at times tested the patience of parents and siblings alike and in some cases led to real difficulties. “Pre-existing problems were aggravated, creating conflicts that in some cases became almost unbearable. Many even experienced the breakup of a relationship,” Francis wrote.

Nigerian cab driver, Abraham Airaodion in the UAE returns Aed100K found in his taxi

A Nigerian taxi driver has been honoured by Dubai Police for returning AED100,000/$27,397 to someone who left the money in his cab.

Abraham Airaodion, who works for Sharjah Taxi Corporation found the money in his taxi and contacted officials to help return the money to its rightful owner. 

It is unclear when the incident happened, but the organization was delighted at his honesty and honoured him on Monday, 13 December 2021.

Way to go Abraham!

Beyonce reports Osinbajo to Twitter & his tweet was brought down

Twitter said a post by Nigeria’s Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has been withheld, following complaints by copyright owner Beyonce Knowles.

The microblogging site said the March 8 tweet violated the American singer’s copyright. Mr Osinbajo had posted a video tweet featuring Beyonce’s song ‘Run the World’ to mark the 2021 International Women’s Day celebration. The tweet, however, did not attribute it’s content to Beyonce, thereby violating twitter’s copyright regulations. The tweet sparked backlash from Nigerians who believed that the vice president should have been more concerned about other vital issues bedevilling the country. 

In the heat of the backlash, Nigerian Twitter user @olayknowless asked Beyonce to report Osinbajo’s account for violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”). 

“Ma’am @Beyonce, Nigeria’s current Vice President who has never properly done his job has used your song without permission, ask Jack your good friend to take care of his account In accordance with DMCA violation penalties,” the user wrote. 

However, it is unclear if Beyonce immediately responded to @olayknowless’ request. But on Wednesday, @OlayKnowless took to her Twitter page to announce that the vice president’s tweet had been removed. “LMFAOOOOOOOOOOO They actually took Osinbajo’s tweet down for using Beyoncé’s song I AM SCREAMING. My day just got like 5x better,” she tweeted. Twitter explained that the tweet was “withheld in response to a report from the copyright holder.” 

The microblogging platform explained that all unauthorised use of copyrighted materials were infringement.

Olay Knowless is a clown! 

I'm still laughing out loud here.....

Culled From People's Gazette.

Photos: Nigeria's #MissUniverse contestant is Emirates airline flight attendant Maristella Okpala

Miss Nigeria Maristella Okpala was "nearly disowned" by her father when she decided to become a model.

The flight attendant for Emirates airline, who moved to Dubai in 2019, told Nigeria's The Sun that her first foray into the modelling world was not easy because she comes "from a staunch Catholic family". 

"My father nearly disowned me, and in my early days in the modelling industry, I was alone. My mother and grandma were my support systems. But after proving to my dad that I could be a successful model with integrity, he became relaxed," she says. Okpala, 28, who now has a number of beauty titles to her name, will hope to add another one at the Miss Universe 2021 pageant, the winner of which will be crowned on Sunday in Eilat, Israel. 

The public health graduate is among 80 beauty queens competing at the global contest, which is celebrating its 70th year. "She's a strong advocate of early childhood education and the prevention of child abuse. 

Through her work, she has been able to empower more than 1,000 children with free education by providing all the essential materials needed for them to study, and also humanitarian services to people living in the slum area of the Makoto community in Lagos, Nigeria," Okpala's biography on the Miss Universe website reads. A former football player in college, Okpala was crowned Miss Universe Nigeria in September.

"It still feels like a dream. It's such a great honour and a big shoes to fill. I have always desired this opportunity since I was a child," she said after her crowning. Miss Nigeria won Best National Costume in the just-concluded Miss Universe 2021, 70th edition. On Friday, for the national costume round, she paid tribute to her Nigerian roots showcasing a masquerade costume. "This beautiful creation is inspired by a famous traditional masquerade of the south-eastern tribe of Nigeria called Mmanwa. Mmanwa is a female masquerade costume that's designed for ceremonial and festive purposes to celebrate the rich Nigerian cultural heritage, paying a closer attention to the strength women possess," she said. 

"I picked this particular costume because I see a self-reflection of my cause in this Mmanwa which protects children and women against any form of abuse. Finally, this costume pays attention to the strong will of women in attaining whatever heights they want to attain, no matter the challenges faced while reaching their desired goals." 

She walked on runaway in a "Mmanwa" inspired costume at the contest in Israel.

Maristella Okpala representing Nigeria.

Peep through the gallery below for more pictures of the national costume round at Miss Universe 2021:

Photos: #MissUniverse2021: Harnaaz Sandhu of India crowned the 70th #MissUniverse.

Photos: #MissUniverse2021: Harnaaz Sandhu of India crowned the 70th #MissUniverse

India's Harnaaz Sandhu made history today as she was crowned Miss Universe 2021, 21 years after India last brought home the title.

Harnaaz Sandhu of India was crowned Miss Universe 2021 on Sunday, marking the end of a controversial pageant hosted this year in southern Israel. In a speech on stage during the pageant, Sandhu urged young people to "know that you are unique and that's what makes you beautiful, stop comparing yourself to others. 

"I believed in myself, and that's why I'm standing here today," she added, to loud applause from the audience. The pageant was held in the resort city of Eilat, with 80 women from around the world competing for the crown. Sunday night was the last day of the competition, with eliminations narrowing down the number of finalists until the last two remained. Nadia Ferreira of Paraguay and Lalela Mswane of South Africa were the first and second runners-up, respectively. 

The competition was hosted by comedian Steve Harvey, who at one point in the night asked Sandhu, "I hear you do some pretty good animal impersonations, let's hear your best one." Harvey was later criticized online for singling her out with what many have suggested was an inappropriate question. "Oh my god, Steve, I was not expecting to do this on the world stage. I have to do this, I have no other option. Brace yourselves, everyone," she said looking surprised, before demonstrating a few meows. 

At a later Q&A session, when Sandhu had reached the top 5, she took the opportunity to spread a message on climate change. 

"This is the time to take action and talk less," she said. "Prevent and protect is better than repent and repair." After her win was announced, she celebrated with other contestants on stage, shouting to a camera, "Chak de Phatte India," a Punjabi exclamation similar in meaning to "Let's do this, India!" This year's competition marks the second Covid-era Miss Universe pageant. Israel's borders were set to open to vaccinated tourists ahead of the main event this year, which would have allowed thousands of fans to attend. 

But with the emergence of the new Omicron variant, the Israeli government shut its borders to foreigners two weeks before the competition, throwing travel plans and preparations into chaos. One contestant, Miss France, tested positive for the virus upon landing in Israel and had to quarantine -- getting out just in time for the preliminary competition on Friday. 

The pageant was also wrapped in another layer of political controversy, with some critics and countries calling for boycotts -- as with previous international events hosted in Israel.

The official portrait of Miss Universe 2021 @harnaazsandhu_03 

👑 @mouawad 

📸 @benjaminaskinas

New UAE workweek: Dubai & Abu Dhabi, four-and-a-half day working week, Sharjah, four-day workweek

The UAE will transition into a four-and-a-half-day workweek from January 1, 2022.

This will see government employees get Saturday and Sunday, and Friday half-day as the new weekend. Many private sector companies are also likely to shift the weekend to Saturday-Sunday for their employees. 

The UAE has announced that it will transition to a four-and-a-half day working week, with Friday afternoon, Saturday and Sunday forming the new weekend. 

All Federal government departments will move to the new weekend from January 1, 2022. Abu Dhabi and Dubai Governments have also announced that they would follow the new work week structure. The move means new working hours for government staff, with Monday to Thursday workdays now starting at 7.30am and ending at 3.30pm and Friday working hours from 7.30am-12.00pm. 

Friday sermons and prayers across the Emirates will be held from 1.15pm. Government staff will have the flexibility to make arrangements to work from home on Fridays, as well as to arrange their working hours on a flexi-time basis. 

Sharjah has announced a four-day workweek from 2022. 

Accordingly, Friday, Saturday and Sunday will form the new weekend. 

All Federal government departments will move to the new weekend from January 1, 2022. Abu Dhabi and Dubai Governments have also announced that they would follow the new work week structure. The move means new working hours for government staff, with Monday to Thursday workdays now starting at 7.30am and ending at 3.30pm and Friday working hours from 7.30am-12.00pm. Friday sermons and prayers across the Emirates will be held from 1.15pm. 

Government staff will have the flexibility to make arrangements to work from home on Fridays, as well as to arrange their working hours on a flexi-time basis.

Oh NO! Emirates suspends Nigeria flights after new restrictions

This ain't good news!

Emirates airline will suspend all flights to Nigeria from next week after the West African nation imposed new restrictions on its flights, the carrier said on Friday. 

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority announced earlier on Friday that it was restricting Emirates to just one weekly flight from 21 that had been initially approved. "With the recently imposed directive limiting Emirates to operate one flight per week to Nigeria via Abuja, Emirates will be suspending its flights between Nigeria and Dubai from 13 December 2021, until the UAE and Nigerian authorities work on a solution to the ongoing issue," Emirates said in a statement. 

The last flights to operate on December 12 are to/from Lagos and to/from Abuja, Emirates said on its website. 

"Customers holding tickets with the final destinations Lagos and Abuja will not be accepted at the point of origin," the airline added.

Why CNN fired Chris Cuomo following his Gov. brother Andrew Cuomo's sex scandal

This is what you call double jeopardy!

CNN fired anchor Chris Cuomo on Saturday less than a week after new information emerged about how he assisted his brother, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, as the politician faced sexual harassment allegations earlier this year. 

The network had suspended its prime-time host on Tuesday to investigate his conduct, after New York's attorney general released details showing he was more involved than previously known in helping to strategise and reach out to other journalists as his brother fought to keep his job. 

CNN hired a law firm for that review, which it would not identify. The lawyers recommended Chris Cuomo's termination and CNN chief Jeff Zucker informed the anchor of the decision on Saturday. 

“It goes without saying that these decisions are not easy, and there are a lot of complex factors involved,” Zucker said in an email to CNN staff. The network said that “while in the process of that review, additional information has come to light". 

CNN would not discuss that information, or characterise whether it had anything to do with his brother. Chris issued a statement on Twitter calling the decision disappointing. “This is not how I want my time at CNN to end but I have already told you why and how I helped my brother. So let me now say as disappointing as this is, I could not be more proud of the team at Cuomo Prime Time and the work we did," he said. 

Even with the firing, CNN said it will continue to investigate Chris's conduct “as appropriate". 

A year ago the two sons of the late New York Governor Mario Cuomo were flying high: Andrew as a three-term governor praised initially in many circles for his handling of the pandemic, Chris as the top-rated personality on CNN. Now they're both out of work.