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Nigeria’s chief of army staff dies in plane crash
General Ibrahim Attahiru, the Chief of Army Staff, has died in a plane crash. Details of the incident are still sketchy but a military source told newsmen that it happened in Kaduna on Friday. In a statement, the Nigerian Air Force confirmed that there was an accident involving one of its aircraft in Kaduna but did not go into details. “An air crash involving a @NigAirForce aircraft occurred this evening near the Kaduna International Airport. The immediate cause of the crash is still being ascertained. More details to follow soon,” read the statement signed by Edward Gabkwet, the force’s Director of Public Relations and Information. A source said there were eight persons on board the aircraft. Attahiru was appointed Chief of Army Staff on January 26, 2021. Born on 10th August 1966 in Doka,...
CP: Hoodlums in military uniform killed police officer in Imo
The Imo state police command yesterday confirmed that hoodlums in military uniform killed one of its officers, Sergent Loveday Obilonu, at Ukwu Uratta road in Owerri, Imo state. The state Commissioner of Police, Abutu Yaro, stated this to newsmen in Owerri, through the state Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Bala Elkana. Abutu said that Sergent Loveday was among the officers deployed to protect the citizens of the state against criminal elements. In their preliminary investigation, he added that the officer was killed by the hoodlums after they (hoodlums) had identified him as a police officer and was armed with his gun. However, the Imo police command has said that it has commenced investigations to apprehend the perpetrators. He said: “Attention of Imo State Police Command is drawn ...
Bodies of coronavirus victims among those dumped in India’s Ganges – document
Bodies of COVID-19 victims have been found dumped in some Indian rivers, a state government said in a letter seen by Reuters, the first official acknowledgement of an alarming practice it said may stem from poverty and fear of the disease in villages. Images of corpses drifting down the Ganges river, which Hindus consider holy, have shocked a nation reeling under the world’s worst surge in infections. Although media have linked the recent increase in the numbers of such bodies to the pandemic, the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, home to 240 million people, has until now not publicly revealed the cause of the deaths. “The administration has information that bodies of those who have succumbed to COVID-19 or any other disease are being thrown into rivers instead of being disposed of as per p...
Zinedine Zidane ready to walk away from Real Madrid
Zinedine Zidane will almost certainly leave Real Madrid at the end of this season, regardless of whether the team wins LaLiga. They face Granada tonight and if they pick up a win they will still be just two points behind Atletico Madrid with two games to go. But the 48-year-old coach, who has won two league titles and three Champions League crowns in less than four seasons, has all but made up his mind to walk away after the final game of the campaign at home to Villarreal on May 23. Zidane will be an immediate target for Juventus and for the France national side if they make a change after the Euros this summer. Madrid president Florentino Perez will be under pressure to promote Raul to replace him. He currently has the club’s youth team on the verge of promotion but Perez could also turn...
Southampton confirm Arsenal target to leave club on free transfer
Southampton have confirmed that Arsenal and AC Milan target Ryan Bertrand will leave the club for free this summer. Bertrand has spent the last six years of his career on Southampton’s books, scoring eight goals in 240 appearances, but he will walk through the St Mary’s exit doors at the end of the 2020-21 season after failing to reach an extension agreement with the club. The Saints have announced the 31-year-old’s departure, thanking him for his sterling contribution to their cause while insisting he will always hold a special place in the heart of the club’s supporters. “Southampton Football Club can today confirm that Ryan Bertrand will leave the club when his contract expires at the end of the season,” a statement on the club’s official website read. “Bertrand was a key part of the te...
Donny van de Beek accused of making Manchester United move with ‘big boy’ attitude
Donny van de Beek has been accused by Marco van Basten of leaving Ajax for Manchester United with a “big boy” attitude, with the Dutch icon of the opinion that too many players depart Amsterdam believing that they have already made it. Van de Beek is among those to have been brought down to earth with a bump after leaving the comfort zone of life in his native Netherlands. A £35 million ($49m) switch to Old Trafford has not played out as planned for the 24-year-old midfielder, with only two Premier League starts taken in as questions are asked of his value to the Red Devils’ cause. Van Basten, who made his name at Ajax before going on to win the Ballon d’Or three times with AC Milan, told Ziggo Sport of Van de Beek and his struggles in England: “It just shows what a great life they have wh...
Police dismiss explosives in Oshodi market fire
Hours after Lagos Emergency Management Agency said its investigation showed some for of explosive or accelerant was used in the fire which gutted Oshodi Market, police has ruled out any explosive being involved in the incident. It signals a controversy over the cause of the fire, which started with an explosion on Thursday night. Lagos police spokesman Muyiwa Adejobi said police and expert investigations showed the fire was “not caused” by bombing or explosives. “The commissioner of police has debunked the rumour that the Oshodi market inferno was caused by bombing or explosives. The public is hereby urged to disregard such news or rumour,” said Adejobi. The CP visited the scene on Friday in company of Explosive Ordinance Disposal Unit (EOD) operatives to assess the scene and give their ex...
Akwa Ibom first lady leads women’s protest on raped, murdered job seeker
Wife of Akwa Ibom State’s Governor Udom Emmanuel, Dr. Martha Emmanuel, on Wednesday led over 3,000 women from different walks of life on a solidarity march to protest the gruesome murder of Miss Iniubong Umoren. The women took over Uyo metropolis, singing dirges and carrying placards with different inscriptions like: “We want justice for Iniubong,” “Justice for one is justice for all,” “No more rape, no more gender-based violence.” Other inscriptions said: “#Stand in Solidarity with Akwa Ibom State women and demand justiceforIniubongUmoren,” “#Rape is a crime punishable by law,” among others. The women marched from Ibom Connection down to Nuwana Iba and then moved to Wellington Bassey Way leading to the state’s Government House. Other dignitaries who accompanied the wife of the Governor on...
DSS: We’ll no longer tolerate those seeking to throw Nigeria into anarchy
The Department of State Services, DSS, has warned those it described as misguided elements threatening Nigeria’s unity and peaceful co-existence to desist from doing so. Peter Afunanya, DSS spokesman, said that henceforth, the agency would no longer tolerate those whose aim was to “throw the country into anarchy.” In a statement, the DSS said: “While the Service reaffirms its unambiguous support to an indivisible, indissoluble and united Nigerian State in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, it will no longer tolerate deliberate machinations by subversive and hostile groups whose agenda is to throw the country into anarchy so as to serve the interests of their sponsors. “Consequently, the Service is assiduously working with other security and law enforcement agencies to ensu...
Ex-President Obasanjo: Investment in agric will curb youth restiveness
Former president Olusegun Obasanjo, has advised the Federal Government to invest sufficiently in agriculture as a strategy to curb youth restiveness in the country. Obasanjo, who spoke yesterday in Abuja, at the flagged off of new tractors to boost farm mechanization in the country, said agriculture stands in good stead in boosting the country’s earnings. Represented by the Emir of Keffi, Alhaji Shehu Chindu Yamusa, he said: “investment in Agriculture is key to sustainable economic growth and development. Agriculture is the only way to engage the youth and make them productive.” He hailed the All Farmers Progressive Association for the laudable project of contributing significantly to alleviate the sufferings of Nigerians through sustainable modern agro technology. Meanwhile, President of ...
Senate passes amended AMCON bill, empowers agency to seize debtors’ assets
The Senate Wednesday passed the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria Amendment bill after considering the report of its Committee on Banking, Insurance, and Other Financial Institutions. The amendment bill passed by the upper chamber empowers the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria to, among others, take possession, manage or sell all properties traced to debtors, whether or not such assets or property is used as security/collateral for obtaining the loan in particular. It also empowers the corporation to access the Special Tribunal established by the BOFIA, 2020 for dealing with financial related matters. Presenting the report, Chairman of the Committee, Senator Uba Sani (APC, Kaduna Central) said the Committee engaged with stakeholders such as AMCON, Federal Ministry of Finance, ...
Kaduna strike: Northern governors call for calm
The Northern Governors Forum has called for calm and dialogue between Kaduna State Government and organised labour, to resolve the ongoing warning strike by workers in the state. The Chairman of the forum and Governor of Plateau, Mr Simon Lalong, made the call in a statement by his Director of Press and Public Affairs, Dr. Makut Macham, on Tuesday in Jos. He said the forum was concerned of the impact of the strike on the state and its residents following the lockdown of economic activities in the state. The chairman noted that dialogue and negotiations were effective tools of addressing dispute in labour relations. He called for restraint and de-escalation of the situation to enable amicable resolutions. He pointed out that peaceful resolution was only possible when both parties operate wi...