Nyesom Wike, minister of the federal capital territory (FCT) and Siminalayi Fubara, governor of Rivers state, have agreed to end the political feud between them.

According to the resolutions reached at the end of a meeting held with President Bola Tinubu at the State House of Monday, all parties to the crisis in Rivers have agreed that all matters instituted in courts should “immediately” be withdrawn.

In the eight-point resolution signed by Fubara, Wike, and other Rivers stakeholders, it was agreed that all impeachment proceedings against the governor should be dropped “immediately”.

They also agreed that Martin Amaewhule should be recognised as speaker while the 27 lawmakers who defected should be taken back as members of the assembly.

“The remunerations and benefits of ALL members of the Rivers state house of assembly and their staff must be reinstated immediately and the Governor of Rivers State shall henceforth not interfere with the full funding of the Rivers state house of assembly,” the agreement reads.

“The Rivers state house of assembly shall choose where they want to sit and conduct their legislative business without interference

and/or hindrance from the Executive arm of government

“The governor of Rivers state, Fubara, shall represent the state budget to a properly constituted Rivers State House of Assembly

“The names of all commissioners in the Rivers state executive council who resigned their appointments because of the political crisis in the state should be resubmitted to the House of assembly for approval.

“There should not be a caretaker committee for the local governments in Rivers state. The dissolution of the local government administration is null and void and shall not be recognised.”

THE RIFT

Over the past few weeks, there has been tension in Rivers over the feud between Fubara and Wike.

In the wake of the crisis, the Rivers house of assembly commenced impeachment proceedings against the governor.

Fubara’s loyalists kicked against the impeachment moves.

Thereafter, 27 lawmakers defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to join the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Subsequently, Edison Ehie, factional speaker of the Rivers assembly, declared the seats of the lawmakers who defected vacant.

 

The Cable

Pope Francis has formally approved allowing priests to bless same-sex couples, with a new document explaining a radical change in Vatican policy by insisting that people seeking God’s love and mercy shouldn’t be subject to “an exhaustive moral analysis” to receive it.

The document from the Vatican’s doctrine office, released Monday, elaborates on a letter Francis sent to two conservative cardinals that was published in October. In that preliminary response, Francis suggested such blessings could be offered under some circumstances if they didn’t confuse the ritual with the sacrament of marriage.

The new document repeats that condition and elaborates on it, reaffirming that marriage is a lifelong sacrament between a man and a woman. And it stresses that blessings in question must be non-liturgical in nature and should not be conferred at the same time as a civil union, using set rituals or even with the clothing and gestures that belong in a wedding.

But it says requests for such blessings for same-sex couples should not be denied full stop. It offers an extensive and broad definition of the term “blessing” in Scripture to insist that people seeking a transcendent relationship with God and looking for his love and mercy should not be subject to “an exhaustive moral analysis” as a precondition for receiving it.

“Ultimately, a blessing offers people a means to increase their trust in God,” the document said. “The request for a blessing, thus, expresses and nurtures openness to the transcendence, mercy, and closeness to God in a thousand concrete circumstances of life, which is no small thing in the world in which we live.”

He added: "It is a seed of the Holy Spirit that must be nurtured, not hindered.”

The document marks the latest gesture of outreach from a pope who has made welcoming LGBTQ+ Catholics a hallmark of his papacy. From his 2013 quip, “Who am I to judge?” about a purportedly gay priest, to his 2023 comment to The Associated Press that “Being homosexual is not a crime,”Francis has distinguished himself from all his predecessors with his message of welcome.

“The significance of this news cannot be overstated,” said Francis DeBernardo of New Ways Ministry, which supports LGBTQ+ Catholics. “It is one thing to formally approve same-gender blessings, which he had already pastorally permitted, but to say that people should not be subjected to “an exhaustive moral analysis” to receive God’s love and mercy is an even more significant step.”

The Vatican holds that marriage is an indissoluble union between man and woman. As a result, it has long opposed same-sex marriage.

And in 2021, the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith said flat-out that the church couldn’t bless the unions of two men or two women because “God cannot bless sin.”

That document created an outcry, one it appeared even Francis was blindsided by even though he had technically approved its publication. Soon after it was published, he removed the official responsible for it and set about laying the groundwork for a reversal.

In the new document, the Vatican said the church must shy away from “doctrinal or disciplinary schemes, especially when they lead to a narcissistic and authoritarian elitism whereby instead of evangelizing, one analyzes and classifies others, and instead of opening the door to grace, one exhausts his or her energies in inspecting and verifying."

It stressed that people in “irregular” unions of extramarital sex — gay or straight — are in a state of sin. But it said that shouldn’t deprive them of God’s love or mercy. “Even when a person’s relationship with God is clouded by sin, he can always ask for a blessing, stretching out his hand to God,” the document said.

Offering such a blessing isn't legitimizing anything. But at the same time, the church shouldn't judge, he said.

“Thus, when people ask for a blessing, an exhaustive moral analysis should not be placed as a precondition for conferring it,” the document said.

The Rev. James Martin, who advocates for a greater welcome for LGBTQ+ Catholics, praised the new document as a “huge step forward” and a “dramatic shift” from the Vatican's 2021 policy.

The new document “recognizes the deep desire in many Catholic same-sex couples for God’s presence and help in their committed relationships,” he said in an email. "Along with many Catholic priests, I will now be delighted to bless my friends in same-sex marriages.”

Traditionalists, however, were outraged. The traditionalist blogger Luigi Casalini of Messa in Latino (Latin Mass) blog wrote that the document appeared to be a form of heresy.

“The church is crumbling,” he wrote.

 

AP

US envoys work for new hostage release deal, scale-down of Israel-Hamas war but say no timetable

The head of the CIA jetted to Europe for talks with Israeli and Qatari officials Monday, sounding out the potential for a deal on a new cease-fire and the release of hostages in Gaza, as the U.S. defense secretary spoke to Israeli military leaders about scaling back major combat operations against Hamas.

Still, there was no sign that a shift in the war was imminent after more than two months of devastating bombardment and fighting. Fierce battles raged in northern Gaza, where residents said rescue workers were searching for the dead and the living under buildings flattened by Israeli strikes.

Pressure is growing, as France, the U.K. and Germany — some of Israel’s closest allies — joined global calls for a cease-fire over the weekend. Israeli protesters have demanded the government relaunch talks with Hamas on releasing more hostages after three were mistakenly killed by Israeli troops while waving a white flag.

U.S. officials have repeatedly expressed concern about the large number of civilian deaths in Gaza. But after talks with Israeli officials Monday, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said, “This is Israel’s operation. I’m not here to dictate timelines or terms.” The U.S. has vetoed calls for a cease-fire at the U.N. and has rushed munitions to Israel.

The U.N Security Council delayed a vote to Tuesday on an Arab-sponsored resolution calling for a halt to hostilities to allow unhindered access to humanitarian aid. Diplomats said negotiations were taking place to get the U.S. to abstain or vote “yes” on the resolution.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted that Israel will keep fighting until it ends Hamas rule in Gaza, crushes its formidable military capabilities and frees hostages still held in Gaza since the deadly Oct. 7 attack inside Israel that ignited the war. Militants killed some 1,200 people and abducted 240 others in the attack.

The war has killed more than 19,000 Palestinians and demolished much of the north into a moonscape. Some 1.9 million Palestinians — nearly 85% of Gaza’s population — have fled their homes, with most packing into U.N.-run shelters and tent camps in the southern part of the besieged territory.

HOSTAGE TALKS

In an apparent sign that talks on a hostage deal were growing more serious, CIA Director William Burns met in Warsaw with the head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency and the prime minister of Qatar, a U.S. official said.

It was the first known meeting of the three since the end of a weeklong cease-fire in late November, during which some 100 hostages — including a number of foreign nationals — were freed in exchange for the release of around 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said the talks were not “at a point where another deal is imminent.”

Aiming to increase public pressure on the Israeli government, Hamas released a video showing three elderly Israeli hostages, sitting in white T-shirts and pleading for Israel to bring their immediate release.

The comments were likely made under duress, but the video signaled Hamas wants to move on to discussions of releasing sick and elderly men in captivity. Israel has said it wants around 19 women and two children freed first. Hamas says the women include soldiers, for whom it is expected to demand a higher price in terms of prisoner releases.

Hamas and other militants are still holding an estimated 129 captives. Hamas has said no more hostages will be released until the war ends.

SCALING DOWN THE WAR

Austin, who arrived in Israel with Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. CQ Brown, said he and Israeli officials exchanged “thoughts on how to transition from high intensity operations” in Gaza and how to increase the flow of humanitarian aid.

American officials have called for targeted operations aimed at killing Hamas leaders, destroying tunnels and rescuing hostages. U.S. President Joe Biden warned last week that Israel is losing international support because of its “indiscriminate bombing.”

Speaking alongside Austin, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said only that “the war will take time.”

Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said the Israeli chief of staff met with Austin and Brown and presented “plans for the continuation of the battle in the coming stages.”

European countries appear to be losing patience. “Far too many civilians have been killed in Gaza,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell posted on X.

Under U.S. pressure, Israel provided more precise evacuation instructions earlier this month as troops moved into the southern city of Khan Younis. Still, casualties have continued to mount and Palestinians say nowhere in Gaza is safe as Israel carries out strikes in all parts of the territory.

Israel reopened its main cargo crossing with Gaza to allow more aid in — also after a U.S. request. But the amount is less than half of prewar imports, even as needs have soared and fighting hinders delivery in many areas. Israel blocked entry off all goods into Gaza soon after the war started and weeks later began allowing a small amount of aid in through Egypt.

MORE DEATH AND DESTRUCTION

At least 110 people were killed in Israeli strikes Sunday on residential buildings in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, Munir al-Boursh, a senior Health Ministry official, told Al Jazeera television.

Fierce fighting continued Monday in Jabaliya and the Gaza City districts of Zaytoun and Shijaiyah, where tens of thousands of Palestinians remain trapped, crowded in homes or schools.

In Jabaliya, first responders and residents searched the rubble of many collapsed buildings. “They use their hands and shovels,” said Amal Radwan, who is staying at a U.N. shelter there. “We need bulldozers and above all the bombing to stop.”

More than 19,400 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Health Ministry, which has said that most are women and minors and that thousands more are buried under rubble. The ministry does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths.

Israel’s military says 127 of its soldiers have been killed in the Gaza ground offensive. It says it has killed thousands of militants, without providing evidence.

Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas, saying it uses them as human shields. But the military rarely comments on individual strikes.

REGIONAL TENSIONS

In Bahrain early Tuesday, Austin said that the U.S. and other nations have created a new force to protect commercial ships passing through the Red Sea from attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The Houthis say their attacks aim to end Israel’s offensive in Gaza, and their campaign has prompted a growing list of companies to halt operations in the major trade route.

“This is an international challenge that demands collective action,” Austin said in statement.

Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah have traded fire along the border nearly every day since the war began. And in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, over 300 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the war, including four overnight during an Israeli military raid in the Faraa refugee camp, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

This has been the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank since 2005. Most have been killed during military raids, which often ignite gunbattles, or during violent demonstrations.

 

AP

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Ukraine's top general criticizes president's firing of recruitment chiefs- media

Ukraine's top general on Monday issued his strongest criticism to date of a previous presidential decision to fire regional military draft office chiefs, Interfax Ukraine reported.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy fired all of Ukraine's regional military recruitment heads in August in a corruption crackdown.

He said at the time a state investigation into centres across Ukraine had exposed abuses by officials ranging from illegal enrichment to transporting draft-eligible men across the border despite a wartime ban on them leaving the country.

Asked by reporters on the sidelines of an event on Monday about whether the decision affected mobilisation levels, Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi bemoaned the recruitment chiefs' sacking.

"These were professionals, they knew how to do this, and they are gone," Interfax Ukraine cited him as saying.

Zaluzhnyi's frank assessment of battlefield realities in a November essay published in The Economist are in stark contrast to the unwavering optimism of Zelenskiy's public speeches.

Ukrainska Pravda, a major Ukrainian media outlet, recently reported of a long history of growing tensions between the two men, citing several anonymous officials.

Asked by reporters to comment on the Defence Ministry's recent plan to boost military recruitment, Zaluzhnyi said the old system should be brought back.

"It is still a little early to evaluate recruiting. As for mobilization issues, it is not necessary to strengthen it, but to return it to those boundaries (and) to those frameworks that worked before," Interfax Ukraine quoted him as saying.

Ukraine, which initially saw tens of thousands of eager volunteers queue up to fight off Russia's invasion, is now trying to conscript more men to replace those currently at the front.

Angry social media posts have abounded in recent weeks purporting to show army recruiters turning up at gyms and resorts to hand out draft notices.

Zaluzhnyi's remarks come a day after it was publicly revealed that an information gathering device had been found in an office that he had been due to move into, with the domestic security service launching an investigation.

** White House plans one more Ukraine aid package, then up to Congress

President Joe Biden is planning one more military aid package in December for Ukraine in its war against Russia, the White House said on Monday, then further assistance to Kyiv will require an agreement in Congress where prospects for a deal were uncertain.

"When that one's done ... we will have no more replenishment authority available to us and we're going to need Congress to act without delay," White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said.

The White House has warned that U.S. aid will run out by the year's end for Ukraine's fight to retake territory occupied by Russian forces since it invaded in February 2022.

Talks continued on Monday in the Senate, where Democrats have a slim majority, on a deal that would include aid for Ukraine and Israel as well as new measures to improve security at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Republicans have insisted that improved border security be part of any deal on Ukraine aid, although it was unclear whether senators had enough time to clinch an agreement in the days remaining before leaving for a holiday break.

Senate Republicans earlier this month blocked an emergency spending billwith $50 billion in new Ukraine aid, demanding tougher steps to control immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border.

"Over the past week, Democrats and Republicans have made important progress towards an agreement on the national security supplemental," top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer said on Monday. "While the job is not finished, I am confident we're headed in the right direction."

However, Schumer's Republican counterpart, Mitch McConnell - whose support would be needed to pass such a bill - said it will "require some time" to reach a deal.

Another top Senate Republican, John Thune, sounded a similar note, telling reporters: "Obviously we are not going to get this done this week. We all know that now."

Even if the Senate were to reach an agreement and pass a bill this week, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives - where a significant number of Republicans have voiced opposition to additional Ukraine aid - is not due to return to work until Jan. 8.

Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited Washingtonbut received a skeptical reception from key Republican lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson.

 

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

Russian air defense shot down two MiG-29, Su-25, 91 drones over day

Over the past 24 hours, Russian air defense systems shot down two MiG-29 aircraft, one Su-25, and 91 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.

"Over the day, air defense systems shot down two MiG-29 and one Su-25 aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Force in the areas of the settlements of Elizavetovka in the Nikolayev region, Druzhkovka and Dobropolye in the Donetsk People’s Republic. <…> In addition, 91 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles were destroyed during the day ", the ministry said.

Two HIMARS MLRS shells and a JDAM guided munition were also intercepted, the Ministry of Defense added.

The Russian Armed Forces destroyed the command post of the 47th mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, a HIMARS MLRS launcher, as well as aircraft fuel depots. "Operational-tactical aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, missile forces and artillery of groupings of troops of the Russian Armed Forces destroyed the command post of the 47th mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In addition, in the area of the settlement of Konstantinovka in the Donetsk People's Republic, a launcher of the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system was hit and fuel depots for aircraft of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were destroyed at the Kanatovo airfield in the Kirovograd region and Starokonstantinov in the Khmelnytsky region," the statement said.

The Russian Armed Forces also repelled nine attacks by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kupyansk direction over the day. "In the Kupyansk direction, competent actions of units of the Western Group of Forces, air strikes, artillery fire and heavy flamethrower systems repelled nine attacks by assault groups of the 115th mechanized and 95th air assault brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the areas of the settlements of Sinkovka and Terny in the Kharkov region. Losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces consisted of over 50 military personnel, an infantry fighting vehicle, and two armored combat vehicles," the statement said.

According to the ministry, two Gvozdika self-propelled artillery mounts and two D-30 howitzers were hit during the fight.

Units of the central group of the Russian Armed Forces in the Krasny Liman direction repelled an attack by a special forces brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. "In the Krasny Liman direction, units of the Center group of troops, with the support of artillery, repelled an attack by the 12th Special Forces Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine southeast of the village of Kuzmino, Lugansk People’s Republic," the statement said.

 

Reuters/Tass

When Francis Fukuyama published his famous 1989 essay, “The End of History?,” he captured the mood in many Western capitals at the time. Not everybody agreed with him that “the endpoint of mankind’s ideological evolution” had been reached, but few could deny the resonance of his message. In anticipating “an unabashed victory” for “economic and political liberalism,” he was channeling both the emerging policymaking consensus and what had already become the standard approach in much of academia.

This late twentieth-century consensus rested on two distinct but synergistic pillars: political liberalism and economic liberalism. In the political domain, democratic institutions had the wind behind them and seemed to be taking root inexorably.

Humanity had been subjected to authoritarian despots and outright lawlessness for much of its existence. But ever since democracy had been “invented” in its modern form, the idea had been spreading around the world. Following the exhaustion of the alternatives (absolutism, fascism, communism) in the twentieth century, many Westerners concluded that their model would ultimately triumph everywhere, even in places with little or no democratic history, such as the Middle East. Ordinary people would demand a voice, and even iron-fisted autocrats would not be able to resist the implications of this “Western idea.”

To be sure, the process would not unfold seamlessly. Fukuyama and the many others who shared his outlook understood that the triumph of democracy would take decades. It would involve rebellions, revolutions, civil wars, and large-scale disruptions to entire societies. Nonetheless, the arc of history was unmistakably bending toward democracy.

The proponents of this view drew heavily from the “modernization theory” of the 1950s and 1960s. Adherents to this school believed that democracy followed naturally from economic growth, and that once a democracy had grown rich enough, it could never be dragged back into authoritarianism. These conclusions also bolstered the old Kantian supposition that democracies do not go to war against other democracies. Thus, a world of democracies would create the conditions for international peace and the establishment of a “rules-based order.”

Politically, the future looked bright, and the economic outlook was no less bullish. By the late 1980s, a kind of free-market fundamentalism had taken hold across the “triumphant” liberal democracies. After all, there was clear evidence to show that market economies vastly outperformed centrally planned ones. They seemed to be better both at fostering innovation and at providing the kinds of goods and services that people wanted. For many, it seemed a short step to conclude that the less fettered markets were, the more innovation and economic dynamism they would produce.

But such arguments conveniently ignored the fact that the United States was a heavily regulated economy when it was outperforming the Soviet Union. The US government actively supported innovation, not only by subsidizing research and development but also by setting the direction of technology. Strong unions and minimum wages helped to institutionalize a norm of reciprocity that ensured that workers’ pay tracked productivity growth, while fiscal policy kept inequality in check by redistributing from the rich to the poor and the middle class.

The Backlash

There has since been a widespread and broad-based backlash against economic and political liberalism. In the US and around the world, people are increasingly dissatisfied with democracy – particularly younger cohorts, which report a growing preference for left-wing or right-wing authoritarian regimes. On both sides of the Atlantic, it is now common to hear arguments advocating new forms of socialism or a move away from economic growth altogether.

This is a dangerous intellectual shift. The core assumptions behind such proposals are even more wrongheaded than the idea that economic and political liberalism are inevitable. As my own work shows, democracies do indeed outperform non-democracies quite consistently, both historically and in recent decades. Democracies deliver not only stronger economic growth, but also better health care and education for their citizens, notably the least well-off.

These benefits are undeniable, but they do not make the rise of democracy inevitable. Democracy takes work, and the processes that sustain it will always be contested. Democratic institutions necessarily reduce the power of elites and autocrats, who in turn will resist them. Democratic governance requires compromise, which can be a tall order in societies with a legacy of ethnic or religious conflict.

Democracy also requires an active and well-informed citizenry. But this is increasingly hard to come by when major television and social-mediachannels routinely spew falsehoods and citizens ignore civic engagement. During America’s long and costly “forever wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq, for example, the vast majority of its citizens were encouraged to go on with their lives, as if they had nothing at stake.

We also know that central planning is very seldom successful, especially when it comes to fostering innovation. History is replete with examples of economic growth being blocked because the state or powerful actors exercised too much control over innovation. In a world where poverty is still widespread, economic growth remains a moral imperative, and markets therefore remain a key part of the solution. But this does not mean that unfettered markets will reliably steer innovation in socially desirable directions. In fact, market economies work much better when they are appropriately regulated.

The seemingly simple solutions proposed by extremists – be it unfettered economic liberalism or some enlightened form of socialism – will not work. But until we have a new paradigm for thinking about the future, they will have a powerful influence on public opinion and policy debates.

In Search of a Roadmap

New paradigms are built collectively, gradually, and through sustained efforts by many stakeholders. But honing our analysis and enriching our thinking in five areas would facilitate the process.

For starters, despite its widespread benefits, democracy will not vanquish autocracy anytime soon. In an age of new disruptive technologies, rising inequalities, and globalization, the “narrow corridor” (specific conditions) in which democratic governance can thrive is likely to become even narrower. Bolstering democratic institutions thus will require even greater efforts than in the past.

To navigate this narrowing corridor, we must abandon the conceit that all our biggest challenges can be understood as engineering problems, as if we can solve everything with the right technologies. The last two decades have provided ample evidence that technology itself is undermining the functioning of democratic institutions, and empowering autocrats to brainwash and control their populations. And yet we currently have neither a good understanding of how new communication technologies disrupt democratic processes, nor a principled strategy for regulating them.

Second, democracy’s future cannot be separated from the global context. We must abandon the idea that trading freely with authoritarian countries will “promote freedom” within their borders or make their governments any friendlier to democracy (as US President George H.W. Bush once claimed). Of course, this observation raises many more questions than it answers. How should democratic criteria influence economic ties and international diplomacy? Should democracies avoid supply chains that rely heavily on non-democratic countries? How should they think about technology transfers, joint research, and related issues? Neither academics nor policymakers have clear answers to such questions.

Third, it can no longer be assumed that economic growth will inexorably create shared gains. The US and the rest of the Western world have enjoyed significant technological progress and productivity growth over the past four decades, but workers, especially those without college degrees and specialized technical skills, have scarcely benefited. Textbook economic models generally suggest that productivity growth should ultimately translate into wage growth, but that has not been happening.

What the standard models usually miss is that the source of productivity growth matters very much, and the manner in which wages are set matters even more. Using machines to do what workers used to do may improve productivity, but it will not automatically bring shared prosperity. When output increases, employers and managers may choose to keep more of the gains for themselves, using automation to undercut workers’ bargaining power whenever the institutional framework allows. Shared prosperity thus depends not only on productivity growth but also on the right composition of technology, institutions, and norms.

After Market Fundamentalism

We also need to rethink innovation policy. Yes, we in the West owe our prosperity, health, longevity, and modern conveniences to the three centuries of technological progress that never would have happened without market incentives. But the necessity of markets for driving innovation does not make them sufficient for producing social benefits. Markets direct investment toward technologies that will generate greater profits, which are not always the same as those that would foster growth or improve welfare.

In health care, for example, high-tech procedures and drugs targeting cures are more profitable than innovations to bolster public health and disease prevention, even though these could bring more social benefits. The market excessively favors the former, leading to underinvestment in the latter.

Similarly, left to its own devices, the market will continue to channel investment to fossil fuels. Taxation, regulation, and societal pressure are all necessary to direct more capital toward renewables. I have also argued that the market may be driving overinvestment in automation, at the expense of the social and economic benefits that would come from improving worker productivity. In all these cases, we must move away from market fundamentalism in designing innovation policy. And yet, once again, much more research is needed to design better alternative frameworks.

Lastly, abandoning market fundamentalism means rethinking some of the key pillars of our regulatory regimes. A common approach in economics is to allow market processes to unfold before stepping in to consider whether there is too much poverty or inequality in the outcome. The standard fiscal tools of redistribution – direct transfers and safety-net programs – are thus considered to be sufficient. But this assumption needs to be questioned.

A new regulatory framework must recognize the systematic distortions that can accompany market processes. Recent research shows that, contrary to the conventional academic wisdom, highly egalitarian countries like Sweden have not achieved more equitable outcomes solely through tax-transfer schemes. No less important is that their pre-tax income distributions are far more equal than in countries like the US. This reflects the more equal distribution of skills among Swedish workers, and that wage negotiations and the broader institutional framework are geared toward ensuring that workers receive a fair slice of the economic pie.

We have entered rough seas without a clear map of how to reach calmer waters. But there is much we can learn from new social-science research and intellectual innovation to help us navigate the way.

 

Project Syndicate

No matter who you are, you won’t become successful overnight — and the sooner you internalize that, the better, says film director Spike Lee.

“One of the worst lies that’s been told to young people is that there’s a thing called ‘overnight success.’ That’s done a lot of damage to people,” Lee, 66, said at the 2023 LinkedIn Talent Connect Summit in New York earlier this year. “It’s not like you’re just out there, and the hand of God is going to come down from the heavens and say, ‘You are the next one.’ That is BS.”

For even the luckiest people, success is usually preceded by a lot of work, said Lee — even if it doesn’t seem apparent on the surface. His message: If you’re simply waiting around for the right opportunity or spotlight, but not doing anything to prepare for it or hasten its presence, you probably won’t achieve what you want.

In Lee’s case, he’s a longtime popular filmmaker with an Oscar, two Primetime Emmys and numerous other award nominations. But he had to “claw” to be taken seriously at first, he told LinkedIn editor-in-chief Daniel Roth in an interview last month.

“When I graduated from Morehouse College [in 1979], I knew I wanted to go to film school,” Lee said. “But that whole thing of ... moving out to LA and working your way up from the mailroom, that don’t work for Black people.”

Lee was rejected from film schools at the University of Southern California and the American Film Institute, but accepted at New York University — based on the quality of his work, rather than his results on standardized tests like the GRE, he said.

Lee’s story isn’t uncommon, across most industries. Mark Cuban, a billionaire tech entrepreneur and investor, started cutting his teeth as a salesman at age 12 — but didn’t feel “successful” for the first time until age 28, or become a billionaire until age 40.

Most of the world’s biggest companies similarly took years of struggle and tight budgets to get off the ground, from tech giants like Microsoft to apparel behemoths like Nike.

Often, an “overnight success” only seems that way because you didn’t see the work that went into it — especially in today’s digital age, where highlights and wins on social media are more prolific than the full stories behind people’s triumphs. That trend contributes to poor mental health and low self-esteem in young people, studies show.

You can address that by embracing the ebbs and flows of your journey, and getting rid of the notion that your dreams will come true instantaneously, said Lee.

“It’s not going to happen overnight. There are going to be times where you want to cry and you want to quit,” he said at the LinkedIn summit. “You can’t quit. You’ve got to keep going!”

 

CNBC

As the yuletide approaches, air passengers are facing increasing discomfort over the high cost of tickets.

Checks by our correspondent showed that ahead of Christmas and New Year, many seats have been booked; and as the festive period draws nearer, available seats are becoming more expensive.

The eastern routes are the most affected, with Enugu flight tickets selling between N171,000 and N200,000.

Checks by our correspondent indicate that the base fare to Port Harcourt is N99,000 and projected to hit N138,000 as bookings increase.

Lagos  to Owerri, from December 5 sells between N114,400 and N190,600 for a one-way economy ticket and N238,200 for business, while the base fare for Lagos-Calabar is N100,000.

At the moment, a 30-minute flight to Ilorin from Lagos costs between 100,000 and N143,000 for economy class.

Lagos to Sokoto ticket goes for N150,000, while a Lagos-Kaduna ticket is N143,000 as the base fare.

How airfares have doubled in one year

Our correspondent reports that an economy ticket one-way flight has increased from N50,000 (by 100 per cent) to over N100,000 on some routes. Airlines are blaming the hike on the prevailing economic challenges, especially high cost of operation.

The airlines had in 2022 increased a one-way ticket to N50,000 from N30,000. This had generated controversy in the travel industry.

But at present, a one-way economy ticket base fare is around N80,000.

Some of the factors cited by airline operators who spoke to our correspondent include high cost of aviation fuel, known as Jet A1, high exchange rate, multiple charges, among others.

Managing director/chief executive of Aero Contractors, Capt Ado Sanusi, recently told our correspondent that with the current rate of exchange, a one-way ticket should sell for over N130,000.

According to him, any operator pricing his ticket low might be cutting corners.

He said, “You can quote me on this: When the dollar was N460 we were selling a Lagos-Abuja ticket at N65,000, but the dollar is now twice that amount. And there is nothing we do in aviation that is not dollarised. You can imagine. So, we should be selling the ticket at N130,000.

“We don’t manufacture the aircraft; we don’t even refine the oil. So, what else do you do? We don’t even do the wheel on an aircraft. We also have to buy the bolts on the aircraft outside the country. So the moment the dollar is rising, we are affected. The fuel we buy is imported, as well as parts of the aircraft, so how would anybody tell me that he would not increase his ticket, except he is cutting corners. The only thing we can control is manpower.”

Another airline operator who spoke on condition of anonymity noted that the aviation industry was not immune to the inflationary pressure in the country.

He said with the rise in the dollar, airlines could not afford to maintain the old prices of tickets.

 

Daily Trust

After recording four bullish trade sessions last week, investors in the Nigerian Exchange gained N464 billion.

The market opened on a positive note and sustained the sentiment till Thursday, with investors earning N501 billion in the process

However, the market suffered a decline on Friday on the back of sell-offs in some banking stocks.

The NGX All Share Index concluded the trading week with a 1.18 per cent week-on-week increase, as it crossed the 72,000 mark to close at 72,389.23 points.

This appreciation in the ASI was underpinned by robust rallies observed across key sectors, namely banking, consumer goods, telecoms, energy, and industrials.

The financial services industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 1.373 billion units of shares valued at N22.165bn traded in 17,300 deals; thus, contributing 72.96 per cent and 70.08 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

The services industry followed with 97.008 million shares worth N616.265m in 1,949 deals, and the consumer goods industry, with a turnover of 86.370 million shares worth N2.136bn in 3,819 deals.

An analysis of the sectoral performances showed that the banking, consumer goods, and industrial indexes were up by 7.01 per cent, 0.22 per cent, and 0.24 per cent, respectively.

The upward movements were attributed to an increased buying interest observed in stocks such as Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank, Sterling Financial Holding Company, AccessCorp, Ecobank and Tantalizer Plc.

On the other side, the insurance and oil & gas indexes dipped by 0.96 per cent and 0.27 per cent, respectively, driven by price decline in Eterna, NEM Insurance, Sunu Assurance Plc and Conoil Plc.

Access Holdings Plc, Guaranty Trust Holdings Company Plc and Zenith Bank Plc (measured by volume) accounted for 491.533 million shares worth N15.466bn in 5,997 deals, contributing 26.12 per cent and 48.90 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.

Despite the market’s overall positive performance, trading activity during the week was lower at a total turnover of 1.882 billion units of shares worth N31.630bn in 33,020 deals traded in the past week by investors on the floor of the Exchange, compared to a total of 2.423 billion shares valued at N45.070bn that exchanged hands in 34,704 deals in the prior week.

The top-gaining stocks for the week included Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank Plc, which gained 59.32 per cent to close at N2.82 per unit; SCOA Nigeria Plc, which added 28.89 per cent to close at N1.74 and Daar Communications Plc was up by 27.78 per cent to close at N0.46.

Other top gainers were John Holt, which added 20.54 per cent to close at 2.23; DEAP Capital Management & Trust Plc gained 14.75 per cent to close at N0.70, and Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc went up 10 per cent to close at N4.18 per unit.

Conversely, stocks such as Secure Electronic Technology Plc lost 16 per cent to close at N0.63; Eterna Plc shed 11.83 per cent to close at N11.55 and Thomas Wyatt lost 11.14 per cent to close at N2.95.

As the market opens on Monday, analysts were of the view that the market may react to the newly-released inflation figure of 28.20 per cent for November and investors may take positions ahead of the release of corporate earnings reports.

 

Punch

Hafize Erkan, Turkey’s central bank governor, says she has been forced to move in with her parents due to the country’s inflation.

Speaking to Turkey’s Hürriyet, Erkan said her decision was hinged on the increase in rents due to the lack of social housing — of which the country’s rising inflation is a contributory factor. 

Erkan, who took up her post in June after two decades in the United States, said when there is a lack of supply and cheap financing, “balances can sometimes be disrupted”. 

“Here, the most important problem for us is the supply of social housing. There is an increase in rents due to the lack of social housing,” she said. 

She said “our President and Vice President also focus on this issue” of increase in rents.

“Home and food are very important. It has been a long time since our state solved the health issue. Is it possible that Istanbul has gotten more expensive than Manhattan? We haven’t found a house in Istanbul. It’s terribly expensive. We settled with my parents and are staying with them,” Erkan said. 

In November 2023, Turkey’s inflation rose 62 percent year-on-year.

This followed a 61.36 percent annual increase in October — a trend triggered by the depreciation of the Turkish currency, lira.

 

The Cable

Israeli army says it uncovered biggest Hamas tunnel yet

The Israeli army said on Sunday it had uncovered the biggest Hamas tunnel in the Gaza Strip so far, just a few hundred metres from a key border crossing.

Such was its size that small vehicles would be able to travel within the tunnel, an AFP photographer granted access to it reported.

The underground passage formed part of a wider branching network that stretched for over four kilometres (2.5 miles) and came within 400 metres (1,300 feet) of the Erez border crossing, the army said in a statement.

It cost millions of dollars and took years to construct, Israeli forces said, with the project lead by Mohamed Yahya, brother of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar, who is believed to have masterminded the October 7 attacks.

The honeycomb of passageways features a drainage systems, electricity, ventilation, sewage and a communication network as well as rails.

The floor is compacted earth while its walls are reinforced concrete and its entrance is a metal cylinder with 1.5 centimetre (half-inch) thick walls.

Footage released by the Israeli army, which it said was filmed by Hamas, showed a small construction vehicle being driven into the tunnel, an extensive temporary warehouse filled with pre-cast concrete for lining the walls and workers digging beneath the earth using crude power tools.

The Israeli army said it had found a large number of weapons stored in the tunnel, ready to be used in an attack.

- People, goods, weapons -

Hamas had expended huge resources in the project, said Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hecht, an army spokesman, and did so to "serve only one purpose -- attacking the State of Israel and its residents".

He said the tunnel was deliberately built near the Erez crossing, which Israel uses to facilitate the strictly controlled entry of Palestinian workers and those travelling for medical care.

"For Hamas, attacking the people of Israel continues to take priority over supporting the people of Gaza," he said.

The Islamist militant group launched a surprise attack against southern Israel on October 7, killing around 1,140 people, mostly civilians, and taking about 250 hostages, according to the latest Israeli figures.

In response, Israel set out to destroy Hamas and launched a relentless bombardment and ground invasion of the Gaza Strip to achieve that goal.

The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says Israel has killed more than 18,800 people, mostly women and children, during the war.

Dubbed the "Gaza Metro" by the Israeli military, the labyrinth of tunnels beneath the coastal territory was initially devised as a way of circumventing the crushing Israeli-Egyptian blockade, in place since 2007.

Hundreds of tunnels were built under the border with Egypt and into the Sinai Desert, allowing people, goods and weapons to cross into Gaza from the outside world.

Since the 2014 war with Israel, the tunnel network has been expanded and Hamas has made frequent use of it to facilitate its rocket launches.

A study published on October 17 by the Modern War Institute at the US military academy West Point said there were 1,300 tunnels stretching over 500 kilometres (310 miles).

The Israeli army said at the beginning of December that it had discovered more than 800 tunnels, with 500 destroyed.

Reports in Israeli media last week said that the army was considering flooding the tunnels with seawater pumped from the Mediterranean and had already conducted succesful tests.

 

AFP