Author: Editor

THE Flying Eagles have booked a spot in the semi-finals of the CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations after seeing off the Junior Cranes of Uganda 1-0. Thursday’s win at the Suez Canal Authority Stadium in Egypt also sealed the team’s place in the FIFA U-20 World Cup billed for Indonesia later in the year. While the Ugandans gave Nigeria a tough game, Ibrahim Jumia scored an own goal to hand victory to the West Africans in the tightly-contested match. The win makes Ladan Bosso’s team the second side after Senegal to book a place in the semi-finals of the…

FRENCH President Emmanuel Macron reiterated Thursday that France harboured no desire to return to past policies of interfering in Africa after he began a four-nation tour of the continent. “The age of Francafrique is well over,” Macron said in remarks to the French community in Gabon, referring to France’s post-colonisation strategy of supporting authoritarian leaders to defend its interests. Macron is visiting four central African countries at a time when France finds itself facing a wave of hostility among troubled former colonies in the Sahel, forcing it to withdraw its troops. Ahead of his visit, Macron on Monday gave some…

AT least 36 people were killed and dozens injured after two trains collided near the northern Greek city of Larissa, in one of Europe’s most deadly recent train disasters. Here are the most deadly rail accidents in Europe over the past 25 years. 1998: Germany, 101 killed On June 3, a high-speed train operated by state-owned Deutsche Bahn derails in Eschede in Lower Saxony, due to a suspected faulty wheel, killing 101 people and injuring 88. It marks the worst German train accident since 102 people were killed near Munich in 1945. 2013: Spain, 80 killed On July 24, a…

POLICE in Katsina State on Wednesday neutralized two terrorists and injured several others at Yasore village in the Batsari Local Government Area of the state. The incident occurred at about 07:30hrs after the command received a distress call that terrorists in their numbers, shooting sporadically with AK 47 rifles, attacked the village. Consequently, the Divisional Police Officer of Batsari led a combined team of Police and vigilante groups to the area, engaged the hoodlums in a fierce gun duel, and repelled them. In the process of repelling the terrorists, two AK-47 rifles alongside ninety-seven (97) rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition,…

TRANSCORP Hotels Plc (NGX: TRANSCOHOT), a leading hospitality brand, has reported its financial results for full year 2022. The Group reported a profit before tax (PBT) of N4.5 billion, a 172 percent increase year-on-year, having ended 2021 with a PBT of N1.7 billion. Transcorp Hotels Plc also reported a 47 percent growth in revenue to N31.4 billion in 2022 from N21.4 billion the previous year. The Group also reported a N2.6 billion profit after tax. Dupe Olusola, Managing Director/CEO of Transcorp Hotels Plc in her comments noted that Transcorp Hotels delivered another year of exceptional revenue growth amidst the uncertainty…

A CHIEFTAIN of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dele Momodu says the flag bearer of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi won in Lagos State in the just concluded presidential election because of the “preponderance of the Igbo people in Lagos”. “What transpired last Saturday, the major factor was ethnic: the Labour Party was able to take over the APC behemoth because of the preponderance of the Igbo people in Lagos. They are everywhere,” Momodu said on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily breakfast show on Thursday monitored by News Point Nigeria. Momodu, a campaigner for PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, said…

BOLA Ahmed Asiwaju Tinubu, 70, has been declared the winner of Nigeria’s most competitive election since the end of military rule in 1999. Widely credited with reshaping Nigeria’s commercial hub Lagos, Tinubu saw off a divided opposition party and a youth-backed third-party candidate and is set to replace President Muhammadu Buhari in May, unless the opposition claims of manipulation lead to a rerun. Africa’s most populous country is facing a crumbling economy, widespread insecurity and high inflation. Many will want Tinubu to hit the ground running when he takes on one of Africa’s most daunting jobs. Once forced into exile…

THE Independent National Electoral Commission has so far uploaded 147,578 results from 176, 846 polling units, five days after the presidential election. The figure represents 83 per cent of results from all the polling units. As of the time of filing this report, the electronic transmission of results was still ongoing. Nigerians expected that the election results would be uploaded on election day as promised by the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu. However, INEC came under fire for its failure to upload results to its viewing portal which led to the walkout of some parties agents on Monday, at the…

THERE were jubilant scenes at the home of President Muhammadu Buhari, Wednesday evening, when the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Vice President-elect Senator Kashim Shettima made a triumphal entry into the private residence in Daura, with each of them brandishing their certificates of return. The certificates are symptomatic of their victory in the presidential election as issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. Apparently overcome with a lot of emotions, seeing the “phenomenal election result,” President Buhari kept repeating, “My Good Lord, My Good Lord,” “Fantastic.” “We are very lucky,” the President uttered as he warmly clasped…

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari is of the opinion that the challenges encountered during the February 25th general elections did not pose a challenge to the transparency of the electoral process. The president stated this in a communique where he congratulated the winner of the just concluded presidential election, Bola Tinubu, saying that he is best the man for the job. Further reacting to the victory the president said it is not that the exercise was without fault but that “none of the issues registered represent a challenge to the freeness and fairness of the elections”. President Buhari while agreeing that there…

JUST Fontaine, who holds the record for the most goals scored at a single World Cup, has died at the age of 89. Fontaine scored 13 goals in just six matches for France at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden as they finished third. He is joint-fourth on the all-time World Cup goalscorers list alongside Argentina’s Lionel Messi. “A star of French football, an outstanding striker, a legendary Reims player,” said his former club Stade de Reims. Another of his former clubs, Paris St-Germain, said: “A thought for Just Fontaine. An icon of French football who has left us.” The…

PRINCE Harry and his wife Meghan are being evicted from their home on the British royal family’s Windsor estate, leaving them without a UK base, reports said on Wednesday. Frogmore Cottage, which they refurbished at a reported cost of £2.4 million ($2.9 million), had been a wedding present from the late Queen Elizabeth II in 2018. It has now been offered to Prince Andrew, King Charles III’s disgraced brother, reports in the The Sun and Daily Telegraph said. Harry and Meghan, also known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, were reportedly told to vacate the property in January just…

IN what appears like a Tsunami, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently issued a circular stipulating a cumulative 20 years for executive management and Non-executive Directors (NEDs) of deposit money banks (DMB) and financial holding companies (HoldCos) will see many of the bank chairmen affected. The rule says bank executive directors (EDs), deputy managing directors (DMDs), managing directors (MDs), and non-executive directors (NEDs) can only serve a cumulative tenure of 20 years across the banking industry. The directive is contained in a circular addressed to all deposit money banks (DMBs), signed by Chibuzor Efobi, director of the financial policy…

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated the winner of this year’s Presidential Election, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Reacting to the presidential election results announced this morning by Chairman of the Independent National ElectoralCommission (INEC), Prof Mahmoud Yakubu, President Buhari said: “I congratulate His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu on his victory. Elected by the people, he is the best person for the job. I shall now work with him and his team to ensure an orderly handover of power.” According to the President: “The election was Africa’s largest democratic exercise. In a region that…

THE presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi has defeated his counterparts Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, in the February 25th presidential polls which held in Abuja. Obi made some massive wins in the Federal Capital Territory, taking four out of the six Area Councils. Obi who had been in an early lead since Sunday, took Bwari, Kuje, Gwagwalada and AMAC with a good number of votes. In the final collation, the LP Candidate polled a total of 281,717 votes beating the APC who polled 90,912 votes. The PDP came in third place with a total…

THE collation centre for the presidential and National Assembly elections situated in the Jos North Local Government secretariat was invaded by thugs who attempted to scuttle the collation and announcement of the results on Monday. Reinforcement of security personnel to the venue temporarily prevented the thugs from gaining access to the hall after forcefully entering the premises while sorting and collating for polling units from parts of the local government. Trouble started after the announcement of results from Bassa and other parts of Jos North were declared by the returning officers but when it was the turn for the presentation…

AT least 14 journalists and media workers were detained, harassed, or attacked while covering the 2023 Presidential and National Assembly elections, including private news website WikkiTimes‘ owner, Haruna Salisu, who remains in police custody without charge, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Monday. Police detained Salisu on February 25 in Duguri town, southeastern Bauchi state, shortly after he and other reporters had met with the state governor, according to WikkiTimes editor, Yakubu Mohammed, who spoke to CPJ, and a local coalition of press freedom groups. Police said they took Salisu into custody to protect him after supporters of the…

ARGENTINA and Paris St-Germain forward Lionel Messi has been named men’s player of the year at the 2022 Best Fifa Awards. The 35-year-old beat French forwards Kylian Mbappe and Karim Benzema to the prize. Messi helped Argentina win the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, scoring 27 goals in 49 games for club and country in 2021-22. Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas was named women’s player of the year. Messi, who won the award for a second time, said: “It’s amazing. It’s been a tremendous year and it’s an honour for me to be here and win this award. Without my team-mates I…

THE Chief Whip of the Senate and the candidate of the All Progressives Congress for Abia North Senatorial district election, Senator Orji Uzor-Kalu, has been declared the winner of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission. According to the Nation’s Electoral umpire, the former Governor polled a total of 30,805 votes to defeat his closet rival, Nnamdi Iroh of the Labour Party, who polled 25,540 votes, while Chief Mao Ohuabunwa of the Peoples Democratic Party got 15, 175 votes The returning officer for Abia-North, Mr Chinedu Nnamdi, declared Kalu, the winner having polled the highest number of valid votes…

THE member representing Yagba in the Kogi State House of Assembly, Jimoh Omiata, is dead. He was said to have died in the early hours of Monday at a Lagos hospital where he had been recuperating from an undisclosed ailment. The Chief Press Secretary to the Kogi State House of Assembly Speaker, Femi Olugbemi, wrote on his verified Facebook page, “Very sad, we lost a vibrant, articulate and outstanding lawmaker, Hon. Musa Jimoh Omiata, I sympathise with his immediate family, traditional rulers and people of Yagba East State Constituency, may Allah grant his soul perfect rest.” Omiata, who hailed from…