Monday
Zinedine Zidane reveals Real Madrid’s plan against Granada
Los Blancos manager Zinedine Zidane has revealed his team’s plan against Granada in their next La Liga match on Monday night at the Los Carmenes. Zidane’s men will be up against a Granada side that is chasing a slot to play in the Europa League next season and the manager insisted that the fixture is the only thing on his mind. “Here we are in the final week, with three matches,” he said. “Surely it’s the most difficult week because it’s the end of the season. Almost everyone is playing for something. But, we aren’t thinking about the three matches right now. We’re putting all of our energy into tomorrow’s game. We’re not thinking about the maths of when we could win the league, as we’re just thinking about tomorrow’s match.” Marcelo is expected to miss the rest of the season and the Brazi...
Ibrahim Magu failed to account for interest on N550 billion recovered loot – panel
Voice of Nigeria A prior presidential panel, which investigated the suspended acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, indicted him, a report has alleged. The report noted that the embattled EFCC boss had been unable to account for the interest generated from N550bn cash recovered from 2015 to 2020. The panel is separate from the panel led by a former President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Salami, which is currently probing Magu and other top officials of the agency. The chairman of the previous committee was Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim and the members were DIG Anthony Ogbizi; a member from Federal Ministry of Justice; Mualledi Dogondaji from the EFCC; Hassan Abdullahi from the DSS; an unnamed member from the Office of the Accountant General of the...
Presidency: Ibrahim Magu’s probe shows anti-corruption fight is real
The Presidency on Saturday said those who hold the belief that the ongoing investigation of the suspended acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, is an indication of the administration’s failing anti-corruption fight have missed the point. It said rather, the development was a further proof that the fight is real and active. The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said this in a statement titled “Presidency’s statement on the suspension of Mr Ibrahim Magu.” This is the first time the Presidency will react officially since Magu’s travails started on Monday when he was arrested and brought before the Justice Ayo Salami-led presidential panel. The statement read, “Those who see Magu’s investigation, as a signal ...
Lagos Assembly urges governor to probe highway workers protests
The Lagos House of Assembly has urged Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu to investigate the recent protest by street sweepers engaged by Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) over non-payment of their salaries. The resolution followed a motion, entitled; “Need to Enhance Waste Management In Lagos State,” moved by Mr Desmond Elliot (Surulere Constituency I) during plenary on Monday. Newsmen report that highway workers had on June 23 embarked on protest over non-payment of their three-month salaries. The sweepers also took to social media to express their grievance. In a video posted on Twitter, the sweepers were seen removing their uniforms and dumping them on the floor, which formed a huge pile. Elliot said the House condemned those behind the videos that went viral on the issue of non-payme...
China criticizes US joint carrier drills in South China Sea
China on Monday accused the U.S. of flexing its military muscles in the South China Sea by conducting joint exercises with two U.S. aircraft carrier groups in the strategic waterway. Foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said the exercises were performed “totally out of ulterior motives” and undermined stability in the area. “Against such a backdrop, the U.S. deliberately dispatched massive forces to conduct large-scale military exercises in the relevant waters of the South China Sea to flex its military muscle,” Zhao said at a daily briefing. The U.S. Navy said over the weekend that the USS Nimitz and the USS Ronald Reagan along with their accompanying vessels and aircraft conducted exercises “designed to maximize air defense capabilities, and extend the reach of long-range precision ...
Donald Trump’s niece to release memoir on July 14
Donald Trump’s niece will release her unflattering book on the US president on July 14, her publisher announced Monday, after a judge lifted a temporary ban on publication. Simon & Schuster has brought forward the release of the memoir by two weeks, according to an update on its website. In her 240-page book, Mary Trump dubs America’s leader “the world’s most dangerous man.” It is set to be the latest bombshell book to dish dirt on Trump after former aide John Bolton’s tome, which describes Trump as corrupt and incompetent, hit shelves last month. Last Wednesday, an appeals court judge in New York ruled that Simon & Schuster is allowed to release Mary Trump’s book “Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man.” The president’s brother Robert Trump...
Lagos, Abuja, Kano airports ready for operations
Akintunde Akinleye/Reuters The Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, says that Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos and Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, are ready for recommencement of domestic flights. The minister said during the daily Presidential Task Force briefing on Monday in Abuja that Lagos, Abuja and Kano airports would recommence domestic flights on Wednesday. He urged all passengers and crews to obey the COVID-19 protocols to ensure safety of the airports and airplanes against the virus. Sirika said that five countries in Africa and over one hundred countries across the globe have already started domestic air service. On the preparation on the airplanes, the minister stated that the last row of the aircraf...
No factions in Oyo APC – chairman
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State says there is no division within its fold. The party’s Chairman, Chief Akin Oke, said this in a statement issued on Monday in Ibadan. Recall that some members of the party had been parading themselves as a faction of the APC in the state. The APC in the state, which was recently thrown into mourning following the death of its leader, Sen. Abiola Ajimobi, had in 2018 witnessed internal wrangling. This had resulted in the floating of a splinter group, ‘Unity Forum,’ through which virtually all the aggrieved members left the party to join opposition parties in the build up to the 2019 general elections. Oke, however, warned those peddling rumours indicating existence of factions or warring groups in the party to desist from such acts. “These gr...
NSE market capitalisation opens week with N162 billion loss
The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) market capitalisation opened the week on Monday with a loss of N162 billion in a day. Specifically, the market capitalisation which opened at N12.695 trillion lost N162 billion to close at N12.533 trillion. Also, the All-Share Index (ASI) shed 310.07 points or 1.27 per cent to close at 24,026.05 compared with 24,336.12 achieved on Friday. The downturn was impacted by losses recorded in medium and large capitalised stocks, amongst which are Nestle, Beta Glass, BUA Cement, Julius Berger and C & I Leasing. In spite of the decline on the first trading day, analysts at Afrinvest Limited expected bargain hunting to drive gains in the next trading session. Analysts at APT Securities and Funds Limited, on their expectations, said, “We expect a slowdown in mark...
Jose Mourinho claims Arsenal are ‘in trouble’ ahead of upcoming derby
Jose Mourinho has hit back at Arsenal after their social media account taunted his side after they failed to beat Sheffield United on Thursday evening. The Gunners moved to taunt our rivals with a post of our side beating Sheffield United the morning after Spurs were beaten 3-1 by the same side below. The Spurs boss moved to react to the post, claiming that we wouldn’t be enjoying their misfortune in such a way if they had more to celebrate themselves. “I think if they were top of the league or fighting for top four in a really good moment they wouldn’t enjoy the problems of others,” he said ahead of his side’s game with Everton on Monday night. “You only enjoy the problems of others when you are also in trouble. “In the end it says more about them, they don’t have much to celebrate, they ...
NGO laments dilapidated infrastructure in Enugu
Enugu-based Non Governmental Organisation, Daniel Ukwu Leadership Foundation, has urged the state and local governments to pay adequate attention to public schools and hospitals in the state. Mr Daniel Ukwu, Executive Director of the foundation, made the call during a courtesy visit to newsmen in Enugu on Monday. Ukwu decried the deplorable state of government schools and health centres in the state. He said that he discovered the deplorable situation when the foundation went on inspection tour of over 12 local government areas in the state. The councils areas visited were Ezeagu, Nkanu West, Udi, Awgu, Oji River, Igboeze North, Isi-Uzo, Nkanu East, Enugu North, Enugu South, Igbo Etiti and Nsukka local government. The executive director attributed the infrastructure problems to lack of pol...
Police seek media support to reunite three children with families
The Police on Monday called for media support in reuniting three stolen children with their families. The Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Mr Frank Mba, made the call at a media briefing in Abuja. He said that the children were rescued from a criminal syndicate that specialises in stealing and selling children. He said the three children, two girls and a boy were among the six children rescued by the police following report of incessant child stealing in some parts of the country in 2019. According to him, today, we are being compelled by the exigency and peculiarity of this case to do what we normally don’t do. “By the nature of our rules, particularly our standard operating procedures, we don’t show the faces of children whenever we are having a press briefing, particularly, when c...
