Labour candidate gives out free VR headsets and ECDL classes

Mar 9 2022

Labour candidate Ray Abela on Wednesday distributed virtual reality headsets to a primary school in his third district as well as free ECDL classes.

This comes just days after the Children’s Commissioner warned against using children to gain votes in electoral campaigns.

Abela owns a tech-related business and he went to visit children at a Zejtun primary school on Wednesday, handing out virtual reality headsets to students.

With his name, personal website and electoral details all included with the headset devices, the candidate posted the gesture onto Facebook. However, the general elections act specifically forbids the exchange of goods, food or favours for votes as it lists as corrupt practice.

It is unclear if he had the parents permission to publish photos of the children onto the social media page. The young kids aren’t eligible to vote, but the stunt could influence the adults in their lives to do so in his favour.

When asked about the incident by Times of Malta, Children’s Commissioner Antoinette Vassallo said that it is not right to take advantage of children during political campaigns.

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Justice Minister grants warrants to four new legal procurators

Mar 9 2022

Minister for Justice and Governance Edward Zammit Lewis presented warrants to four new legal proxies after they showed their competence and effectiveness in the legal profession.

Minister Zammit Lewis wished the four new entities all the best, stating that it is their job to guarantee access to justice and legal representation for every citizen. He said that they should carry out their job seriously and with complete respect towards the constitution, the law and the rules of the country.

Attending the ceremony were state lawyer Dr Chris Soler, President of the Room of Legal Procurators Dr Gerald Bonello, Executive Chief for the Agency of Court Service Ms Eunice Grech Fiorini and Vice Chief Dr Vanessa Grech.

#MaltaDaily

Leonardo DiCaprio donates $10 million his grandma’s homeland Ukraine

Mar 9 2022

Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio has just donated $10 million to support Ukraine amid the invasion by Putin’s Russia.

The donation by the actor has a personal connection, as his maternal grandmother Helene Indenbirken hails from Odessa, Ukraine.

Born as Jelena Stepanovna Smirnova, she emigrated to Germany with her parents back in 1917. Caprio’s mother was in fact born in an air raid shelter in Germany in 1943. The actor was subsequently raised by his mother alone following a divorce from his father.

Leonardo, who is known for a stellar acting career, featuring in classics such as Titanic, became very close to his grandmother before she passed away in 2008 at the age of 93.

The donation by the actor was announced by the International Visegrad Fund, a project aimed at financial support for international initiatives, which promotes development in Eastern Europe.

The donation by Caprio joins other initiatives by other Hollywood actors. Mila Kunis (who was born in Ukraine) and Ashton Kutcher pledged to match donations up to $3 million. Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively too pledged a similar initiative up to £1 million.

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Chernobyl could be 48 hours away from radiation leaks Ukraine warns

Mar 9 2022

Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has just issued a warning that the Chernobyl nuclear power plant could be at risk of a leak in just 48 hours.

The warning by the minister came after reports surfaced that Russian forces had disconnected the power plant from the grid, leaving it without any power.

Ukraine’s national energy operator confirmed this today, March 9th, after saying that the site was no longer transmitting data. The operator, Ukrenergo, explained the power plant was fully disconnected from the power grid.

The military operations in the area means there was no possibility to restore the lines. Russian troops seized the plant during the invasion of Ukraine. This prompted the International atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to voice concern for staff working under the Russian guard.

A 750Kw power line connecting the site to the grid has been severed, said Ukraine’s state-run nuclear company Energoatom. The company warned there could be a release of radioactive substances into the air from the plant.

The State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine, the country’s security and intelligence service, explained that there are 20,000 spent fuel assemblies at Chernobyl which require constant cooling. This is only possible with electricity.

‘The temperature in the holding pools will increase’ the agency said. ‘After the evaporation will occur, that will lead to nuclear discharge. The wind can transfer the radioactive cloud to other regions of Ukraine, Belarus, Russia and Europe.’

#MaltaDaily