Diva battle, and perhaps politics, in store at Grammys…Read full details

Beyonce Knowles / Al Bello/Getty Images/AFP

Which diva will the music industry select for its top honors? Adele, who conquered the charts with time-tested ballads of heartache, or Beyonce, who has crafted an edgier, confident sound?

The two singers face off in three top categories Sunday night at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles — where much attention will be on whether stars seize the televised moment to weigh in on tense political times in the United States.

Beyonce, who leads the Grammys with nine nominations, is due to make her first public appearance since setting the internet ablaze with news she is expecting twins with her husband Jay Z.

The 35-year-old, who became one of the world’s top stars with her R&B-rooted pop, took a more provocative approach with her latest album “Lemonade,” which she intertwined with a film.

Delving into hip-hop as well as hard rock and even country, Beyonce addresses “Lemonade” squarely at an audience of fellow African American women as she takes on issues from infidelity to police brutality.

Beyonce has won 20 Grammys over her career but, to her fans’ dismay, she has consistently lost out in the top categories of Album of the Year and Record of the Year, which recognizes the top overall song.

She faces a challenge from Adele, who chose to stick to her chart-topping sound on “25,” which features more ballads of heartache and nostalgia such as the ubiquitous hit “Hello.”

“25” proved to be the world’s top-selling album since the English singer’s last work, “21,” which won Album of the Year in 2012.

Beyonce and Adele face competition for Album of the Year from Toronto rapper Drake, who has broken streaming records with his readily danceable tunes.

Dark horses in the category are Justin Bieber’s “Purpose,” in which the tabloid fixture revived his sound with help from electronic producers, and “A Sailor’s Guide to Earth” by Sturgill Simpson, who has given some intellectual heft to country music through lyricism inspired by Buddhist philosophy.

– Forum to attack Trump? –

For many artists at the Grammys, one factor brings them together besides a love of music — intense dislike of US President Donald Trump.

Beyonce, Adele and Drake have all criticized the immigrant-bashing tycoon in their own ways. Other Grammy performers include two leading celebrity campaigners for Hillary Clinton’s unsuccessful run — Katy Perry and Lady Gaga.

Since Trump’s unlikely ascent from the celebrity world to the planet’s most powerful job, artists have been eager to take him on — and Trump, an avid consumer of television, has been quick to hit back through Twitter.

Perry is expected to debut her new song “Chained to the Rhythm” after she set off a global frenzy by providing clues on Twitter, where she is the world’s most followed person.

Perry, who has released little new music since her blockbuster 2013 album “Prism,” shared a map with directions to more than two dozen disco balls around the world, which lucky fans can find to hear the song.

Lady Gaga will take part in one of the more unlikely collaborations at the Grammys as she performs with metal legends Metallica.

The performance comes one week after Gaga’s well-received performance before more than 117 million television viewers at the Super Bowl, where she offered a subtle message of social acceptance.

– Tributes to Prince, George Michael –

The awards will also see the return of Daft Punk, the reclusive French electronic duo who unfailingly appear in robot costumes and have not performed publicly since the 2014 Grammys.

Daft Punk will play with R&B sensation The Weeknd, whose music the duo has produced. Fans will be watching closely for signs of a larger return of Daft Punk, who heightened speculation by announcing a pop-up store to open Saturday in Los Angeles.

The Grammys will also feature tributes to two late pop icons, Prince and George Michael. The Prince performance may herald the wider availability of his music on streaming sites such as Spotify, which has run Grammy advertisements in Prince’s signature color purple.

Contenders in the closely watched Best New Artist category include Chance the Rapper, the gospel-incorporating hip-hop artist who has taken advantage of new Grammy rules that consider streaming exclusives, and Anderson .Paak, an experimental rapper and drummer who will take the stage with hip-hop legends A Tribe Called Quest.

Group urges President Trump to return alleged $500m Abacha loot (Read full details)

Gen. Sani Abacha

United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump has been urged to return over $500 million looted funds to Nigeria.The monies are proceeds of corruption traced to former Nigerian dictator, Gen. Sani Abacha.

A Lagos-based group, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), in an open letter to Trump with a copy sent to The Guardian yesterday, said that the proceeds were separate from the $480 million of Abacha-origin funds that have been forfeited to that under an August 2014 U.S. federal district court order.

SERAP in the letter signed by its U.S. Volunteer Counsel,Prof. Alexander W. Sierck and Executive Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, told Trump that “the U.S. Department of Justice must promptly initiate civil asset forfeiture proceedings against these proceeds so as to fulfill several non-controversial commitments by the U.S. government to assist Nigeria in recovering assets looted by former Nigerian government officials.”

The letter, a copy of which was also sent to the U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Stuart Symington, and Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, reads in part: “SERAP urges your new administration to initiate discussions with the Nigerian government to fulfill these objectives within an agreed frame-work and timeline. Simultaneously, the administration should instruct the justice department to initiate civil asset forfeiture proceedings in regard to the above-referenced $500 million in assets described above.”

“Any bilateral discussions between the U.S. and Nigeria concerning these assets should include clear acknowledgement of the significant role that civil society plays in asset recovery matters.

“To that end, the respective governments ought to commit to promptly sharing information with relevant civil society organisations on stolen assets of Nigerian origin located in the U.S. or otherwise subject to U.S. jurisdiction. This proposed commitment is similar to one between the U.S. and Kenya as well as consistent with Articles 46(4) and 56 of the UN Convention Against Corruption.

“SERAP notes that Article 51 of the UN Convention against Corruption provides for the return of “corrupt” assets to countries of origin as a fundamental principle. Article 43 provides likewise. Similarly, under Articles 47(3)(a) and (b) states parties have an obligation to return forfeited or confiscated assets in cases of public corruption, as here, or when the requesting party reasonably establishes either prior ownership or damages to the states.”

Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Prof. Itse Sagay, had last month raised the alarm that Nigeria risked losing another $550 million recovered from the Abacha family to the government of U.S.

Sagay said that the amount represented a separate tranche from the earlier $480 million forfeited to the country following a court judgment.According to him: “Nigeria presently stands to lose another $550 million recovered from the Abacha family to the U.S., contrary to the earlier promise by the U.S. to return same to Nigeria.”

Group raises concern over number of IDPs in Taraba (Read full details)

IDPs’ camp. PHOTO: hrw.org

A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) – the Protection Sector Working Group (PSWG) has expressed concern over the rising number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Taraba State.

The group spoke in Jalingo yesterday during a meeting in the office of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR).Led by the chairman, Daniel Istifanis Bisu from UNHCR and Secretary, Paul Tino from the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), the group noted that the rising number of displaced persons can be reduced if governments at all levels, NGOs and individuals assist them by providing basic facilities at their camps.

According to PSWG: “The crisis in Ardo Kola, Gassol and Lau local councils has led to an increase in the number of displaced persons. Between December and now, about 10,000 people have fled the violence in the state. SEMA, NEMA, Red Cross and UNHCR have visited these areas to assess the situation.”The group commended Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for donating 40 boreholes to communities hosting displaced persons in the state.