Gist
George Floyd: Who He Was, And What Happened In Minneapolis During Arrest That Led To His Death?

The police death of George Floyd has sparked peaceful protests and scenes of violent unrest amid calls for justice in the US city of Minneapolis.
Mr Floyd, who worked as a club security guard, died after he was pinned down in the street while being arrested by four police officers.
A white police officer, Derek Chauvin, 44, put his knee on the back of Mr Floyd’s neck for about eight minutes as the 46-year-old unarmed black man lay face down gasping for air and pleading “I can’t breathe”. A bystander shouted “you’re killing him”.
Mr Floyd was arrested after he allegedly tried to use a fake $20 bill at a corner shop on Monday night, and police claim he was “under the influence” in the driver’s seat of a car.
Witnesses have disputed the Minneapolis Police Department’s claims that he was resisting arrest.
A witness captured video of Mr Floyd begging to be freed as police pinned him to the street and witnesses screamed “get off him” before he lost consciousness.
He was later pronounced dead in hospital.
The footage was posted on social media and quickly sparked outrage and calls for the officers to be charged with murder.
Protests have taken place in Minneapolis every night since Mr Floyd’s death and the National Guard has been activated to try to restore order in the Midwest city after peaceful rallies gave way to gunfire, arson, looting and vandalism.
The fallout from Mr Floyd’s death has overshadowed the man himself.
Who was George Floyd?
Mr Floyd lived in St Louis Park, a suburb of Minneapolis, and moved to the state of Minnesota from Houston, Texas, where he lived most of his life, about six years ago.
Known as “Big Floyd” to family and close friends due to his 6ft 6in frame, for five years he had worked as a security guard at Conga Latin Bistro, a restaurant and live music club that was shut due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Mr Floyd, described as a “gentle giant” by family, was a father whose two daughters, aged six and 22, from a previous relationship and granddaughter lived in Houston. He never met his granddaughter before his death.
In the video, he is heard calling out for his mother, who died about a year ago.
His siblings and his fiancée, Courteney Ross, have called for the four officers involved in his arrest to be charged with murder.
His brother, Philonise, told CNN: “Knowing my brother is to love my brother. He’s a gentle giant, he don’t hurt anybody.
“He was a very loving person and he didn’t deserve what happened to him.”
Ms Ross, his fiancée, told CBS News: “He stood up for people, he was there for people when they were down, he loved people that were thrown away.
“We prayed over every meal, we prayed if we were having a hard time, we prayed if we were having a good time.
“He came to Minnesota to get a fresh start, and Minneapolis to him we like this place where people were just kind and open to him.”
Mr Floyd was friends with former professional basketball player Stephen Jackson, who described him as his “twin” in an Instagram tribute.
Why was Mr Floyd arrested?
Four Minneapolis Police Department officers encountered Mr Floyd after a 911 call from a worker at the Cup Foods corner shop just after 8pm on Monday night.
Owner Mahmod Abumayaleh, who was not there at the time, told CBS News that one of his employees called the emergency line because Mr Floyd tried to use a fake $20 bill to buy cigarettes.
According to a transcript of the 911 call, a staff member claimed a customer passed “fake bills” and was sitting on a car parked outside after leaving the store.
The caller said the man refused to give the cigarettes back and was “awfully drunk”, “not in control of himself” and “not acting right”.
After taking a description of the man and the car, the 911 operator tells the staff member: “All right, I’ve got help on the way.
“If that vehicle or that person leaves before we get there, just give us a call back, otherwise we’ll have squads out there shortly, OK?”
Despite it being a non-violent alleged offence, Mr Abumayaleh said his employee followed protocol by calling the emergency line.
What happened when police arrived?
Minneapolis police said its officers responded to a “forgery in progress” and found Mr Floyd, who was with two other people, inside a parked car.
Following Mr Floyd’s death, the force claimed he “appeared to be under the influence” and “physically resisted” as he got out of the car.
Footage captured by a witness shows a struggle as Mr Floyd is dragged out of the driver’s seat of the car and handcuffed.
CCTV from the Dragon Wok restaurant shows him handcuffed and sat against a wall as police speak to him and the two other people – a man who got out of the front passenger seat and a woman who exited the back.
An officer lifts Mr Floyd back onto his feet, and he is seen speaking as he is marched across the street towards police vehicles outside Cup Foods. The man and woman who were with him are spoken to by police.
Mr Abumayaleh, the owner of the shop, told CBS News CCTV from his store shows Mr Floyd was not resisting officers during the incident.
He said he has been asked not to release the video to the public.
Rashad West, who owns the Dragon Wok restaurant, told CNN after reviewing his CCTV footage: “Did not see any resistance, not at all.”
CCTV footage obtained by Fox 9 shows handcuffed Mr Floyd falling to the floor along the driver’s side of a waiting patrol car after being taken across the street. A second police vehicle blocks the view of the surveillance camera.
Video taken by witness Darnella Frazier, who began recording moments after Mr Floyd fell, shows him pinned to the floor next to the rear passenger side of a police vehicle.
In footage taken from a different angle, three officers are seen pinning him down while a fourth stands close by.
For about eight minutes, Chauvin kneels on the back of Mr Floyd’s neck as he repeatedly gasps “please, I can’t breathe” before losing consciousness.
Witnesses beg the officers to get off him.
One of the officers shouts: “Get up, get in the car.”
Mr Floyd responds: “I will, I can’t move.”
Paramedics arrive and load Mr Floyd into an ambulance, where his cuffs are removed.
An official EMS report said paramedics were called at 8.30pm and they arrived two minutes later.
Mr Floyd was unresponsive and did not have a pulse.
He was pronounced dead at the Hennepin County Medical Center at 9.25pm, about 90 minutes after police were called to the store.
Police officer who kneeled on George Floyd’s neck allegedly ‘tried to kill’ black man in 2008

Gist
Why Buhari’s Government Needs To be Sincere With ASUU Members- Professor Aderemi Adeyemo, VC, Lead City, Ibadan
On our Radio Show last Tuesday, Parrot Xtra Hour on Radio broadcast live on Splash 105.5 FM, our guest, the Vice Chancellor of Lead City University, Professor Aderemi Adeyemo revealed how the institution has been able to continue to expand.
He also used the opportunity to admonish the Federal Government of Nigeria on what it should do to end the perennial Academic Staff Union Of Universities’ industrial action in the country’s public universities.
Can you briefly introduce yourself sir?
By the grace of God, I am the Vice Chancellor of Lead City University, which is the first private university in Ibadan. It was established in 2005, we are 17years old now and to the Glory of God, we are doing very well, we are the best and presently, we have over 10 faculties.
We have Faculty of Law, College Of Medicine, Faculty Of Pharmacy, Faculty Of Social And Management Sciences, Faculty Of Arts, Faculty Of Education, Faculty Of Communication And Information Sciences, Faculty Of Basic Medicals And Applied Sciences, Faculty Of Engineering. We thank God, and for where we are today, it is God that has brought us this far, it is not by our doing. I am also the Chairman of Association of Private University VCs and Registrars of Nigeria.
Briefly, what was life like during your undergraduate days?
During our own time, things were not like this, we had only public universities at that particular point in time. I attended the University of Ife now Obafemi Awolowo University, I attended University of Ibadan, I attended University of Nigeria and I did a program in Lead City University. I also attended a foreign university, Charisma University.
How did you actually get to become the VC of Lead City University?
That is a good question. You see, I have always wanted to be a teacher. I started my career as a secondary school teacher in Ile-Ife, before moving to Olode Grammar school, but Ife being a university community, I was able to use that opportunity to develop myself, after that I moved to Osun State College of Education, Esa-Oke as an assistant lecturer before I became a principal lecturer.
Later, I moved to Ladoke Akintola University, before joining Lead City University in 2006 and I became the pioneer HOD of Accounting Department, and to the glory of God with the support of my governing council, the teaching and non-teaching staff, it was my department that was first granted accreditation from NUC and ICAN.
Later, the department was merged with Business Administration, Management and Accounting, and later got full accreditation for management and accounting.
Later, I was appointed as Director of part time program, I was also appointed as Vice Dean, Faculty Of Social Sciences in 2017. To the glory of God, I was appointed as the Deputy Vice Chancellor in November 2017 before becoming the acting Vice Chancellor in 2018 before later being confirmed as the substantive Vice Chancellor.
Can you tell us more about some of your achievements since you became the institution’s Vice Chancellor?
Lead City University is a specialized university and all members of staff ranging from the principal officers, teaching and non-teaching staffs are friendly.
Our doors are always opened for students to interact with us, unlike during my own days in the university, I saw my Vice Chancellor just during the convocation.
In our institution, we deal with knowledge for self-reliance, we want our students to be job creators so that at the end of the day, they will be employers of labour and this is a recognition of the power of education and this has been our mission.
The vision of the university is to contribute to the development of tertiary education in Nigeria by providing qualitative access to knowledge and training with innovative and challenging teaching techniques that guarantee a balanced education and we have been moving towards this.
Our students are doing very well and most of our graduates are employers of labour and they are doing very well in their chosen professions and I am very proud to say that Dr. Kola Ladoke, your manager at Lagelu 96.7fm here is one of us, we are very proud of his achievements.
What is the process or what are the processes involved in getting admission into your institution?
Lead City University is a school of choice for any parent to enroll his or her ward. We want our students to be independent once they are done at our school and avoid searching for jobs. Our graduates are doing well in their chosen fields and some of them are currently members of staff of our institution.
Some students in software engineering department developed an application that our students use in eating in school, it wasn’t free, the university funded it. We have some graduate students that studied Nursing, Medical Laboratory Science who are currently working in the university’s hospital. Our courses range from diploma, certificate to degree programs among others.
Any prospective student for a degree program will apply through Joint Admission Matriculation Board, (JAMB) and pick our institution as the choice university and our school fees are affordable. Our admission hotline is 08153318708, 08061633228. For people based in Lagos, Ogun state, they can pick up the form and visit our liaison office in Lagos and can call the number 07044043333.
Our students upon graduation are given two certificates both in their field of study and in professional training they undertook on campus – it could be on tailoring, photography or based on their interest. We also have an institute which is known as the Institute Of Personality Development – and when our students are done, they will get their certificates on that.
I want to reemphasize it that our students are of good behavior, they behave decently and responsibly. We also give them different trainings and invite people to the university environment to train our students.
How have you been promoting harmony in your University?
Many Nigerians believe that most private universities are expensive but our own is not like that. In our university, at least the council is so benevolent and we do not believe in charging outrageous fees and people can pay in installments. God is the founder of Lead City University and what God has placed his hands on, no man can disrupt. Our university is not a school for one religion, for those that are Muslims, there is a mosque for them and for the Christians, there is a chapel popularly known as Chapel Of Peace where they can worship. Our vision is to be one of the best and that is our next target now, to transform the university to global visibility.
Talking about the global visibility you just spoke about now, can you attempt to enumerate some of the partnerships you’ve been able to establish?
Our university has been getting so many awards and we were able to secure grants in 2018 from the United States of America. We won a grant worth over 100million, we are one of the private universities in Nigeria that accessed it. I and three other lecturers went to the US to receive the award. Our workers and lecturers too are also getting grants from the World Bank and I even presented a paper at a World Bank-organised event and it was one of the best.
I will like you to talk about how you have been surviving the National Universities Commissions (NUC) accreditation hurdles?
In 2017, the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Professor Abubakar Rasheed, came to our university twice and he was really impressed. In fact, Professor Abubakar was so impressed to the extent that he told us that he had never seen a private university like this.
We have full accreditations for all our programs and we have started our MBBS program, medicine, pharmacy, Pharm. D, physiotherapy and dentistry.
If you are given the opportunity, what advise will you give the Federal Government on how to permanently solve the issue of constant ASUU industrial actions?
I will appeal to the government to please find a lasting solution to this lingering ASUU industrial action for the interest of the Nigerian educational system because it is worrisome, it is uncalled for, for universities to be closed for more than eight months. I think the government should find practical approach.
In terms of practical approach, I think we run a system and our own system is different. You cannot compare our own university with public universities in terms of ownership, but I think to a large extent the public universities have seasoned scholars.
The governing council of each university and ASUU should come together and have a framework, you know you cannot compare the system of a federal university to a state university, the ownership differs and even the employees/employer relationship, teaching staff and non-teaching staff, I think there is need for university councils to have a framework to find an holistic way of trying to make sure that things work.
I know lecturers must be paid and paid fully. I will never subscribe to a situation whereby the lecturers will just be treated shabbily.
ASUU and the government should come out with a framework that will give us a very good blue print in order for the Nigerian university system will become more stable and vibrant. The Federal Government should fulfill its promise to ASUU and the situation whereby you sign an agreement and you fail to honour it is unfair.
I think the two parties are learning their lessons now, I believe that at least to a large extent, something positive will come out of it. What I am saying in essence is that the government should be sincere and make sure that the Nigeria University system works out.
At least Nigeria is blessed, go to some of our public universities, we have great scholars that are globally recognized; the government should come up with a holistic approach to solve the ASUU problem. The governing councils of public universities also have roles to play and the strength of each university is taken into cognizance.
Gist
Video: David Hundeyin Releases Documentary On Bola Tinubu Drug Allegation
A documentary about Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s alleged involvement in drug trafficking and money laundering in Chicago has been released by Nigerian investigative journalist David Hundeyin.
In response to Tinubu’s alleged involvement in the cocaine trade when he was a young man in the United States, David created a piece about him that he titled “From Drug to Presidential Candidate.”
In connection with Bola Tinubu’s drug trafficking and money laundering case in Chicago, a court in the United States recently released certified true documents.
The records indicate that Bola Ahmed Tinubu forfeited $460,000 to the US government.
Although there was no new material in the 56-page document made public by the district court’s Chicago headquarters, it did validate some details of the case that had been discussed informally by the media for years.
Watch the video below:
Gist
Lady Reveals Interesting Story Of How She Got Married To Neighbor’s Younger Brother
Patience Patrick, a lady, has an interesting story about how she married her neighbor’s younger brother, Nigeria News reports.
Patience wrote in a closed Facebook group about how her neighbor moved into her family compound when she was four or five years old and always claimed to be her younger brother’s wife.
Patience stated that her neighbor also requested permission from her parents to visit Gombe state, where she met other family members. She went on to say that the lady made them wear a little brides gown and a suit and photographed them together.
Patience told how, in a full circle, she and her husband began.
Read her story below:
”My husband’s elder sister came to stay in our family compound as a tenant wen I was about 4 or 5 years. She loves children and was very fond of me and my younger brother then, so she would always tell my mum dat she has found a wife for her younger brother (me oh) and they will just laugh about it.
So dat year December she pleaded with my mum to allow me follow her home to see her parents for Christmas, because they were already friends with mumcy it wasn’t hard for my parents to agree oh and we traveled to Gombe together with her.
She told her parents and siblings that she brought wife for Joseph, and they will always joke and tease him with him, while huncle was feeling shy and not liking it, It was sweeting me my thing( I was young and naive abi??).
One Sunday morning when we came back from church my husband’s elder sister wore this gown for me oh ( can’t remember how she got the gown though, I think it was the one her little bride used cos she was recently married), she made him wear his one in town suit too, she called photographer oh and we took pictures. She kept saying she had joined us oh remain God’s own.
Holiday was over and we came back to Jos, she brought the pictures and gave my mum one copy of it.
Fast-forward to many years later when I was in ss1 and huncle (my husband) had just graduated from sec school, he came to his elder sister’s house in Jos though she was not in our compound again but she wasn’t staying very far, so I used to still visit her sometimes with my parents and other times I go alone to help her children out cos of the nature of her job (am older than them of course).
So as usual na one time I went to the house and I met huncle there. And then we got talking, he asked me out ahhhh brother calm down I still dey secondary oh till I graduate. He agreed and waited for me till I graduated from sec school, we started dating.
I got admission to university and he also went for force training. He did something that hurt me and I broke up with him. He pleaded and I refused cos there was also one guy in head too dat time, after trying to no avail he just told me ” he certain that I am his wife so no matter where I go or who I date I will still come back” and I was like abeg gatat. I think he got and angry and even blocked me on his social media handles, ahhhh wetin concern me.
Later on once in a while we got talking again just as friends though even though I knew he still liked me, i even told him how my one of my boyfriend broke my heart, guess wat he said??? ” That’s how they will keep breaking ur heart till you decide to come back to me”
That was how huncle started posting one girl’s picture on his wastapp status with love emojies ahhhhh na so jealousy start oh ( no b like say we dey date oh).
One day I asked him he was posting her picture oh, he said he was getting married to her November 2020!!
Ewooooo my blood is not flowing again. Dat was wen i realised I was really in love with this guy ahhhhhhhh later told me he was just joking oh, and we came back together, the next thing was I want to come and see your parents and that was how God’s work was completed in our lives”
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