2 arraigned for gun possession (Nation)
The police on Tuesday arraigned two men before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy, house-breaking and unlawful possession of firearms.
The accused persons: Azubike Egweaka, 22, and Kojo Michael, 31, standing trial before Magistrate O. A. Olayinka, for robbing one Tope Okeowo of her property worth N1.5 million, all denied committing the offences.
The prosecutor, ASP Ezekiel Ayorinde, told the court that the defendants committed the offences on June 10 at More Care area of Seme Border, Badagry.
He said that the defendants broke into the apartment of Okeowo and carted away her property. Read more
Unlicensed driver crushes Lagos motorcyclist, passenger to death (Punch)
The family of a commercial motorcyclist, Osita Chukwu, has been thrown into mourning after the driver of a Sport Utility Vehicle belonging to a fish firm crushed him and his passenger to death in the Odogunyan area of Ikorodu, Lagos State.
PUNCH Metro gathered that Osita was conveying the yet-to-be-identified passenger to a destination in the Odogunyan area when the SUV driver suddenly lost control of the vehicle and rammed them to death at the Sheriff bus stop.
While the passenger reportedly died on the spot, Osita, who was said to have sustained severe injuries due to the impact of the accident, was quickly rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. Read more
Ije-Ododo residents laud Lagos on road project (Guardian)
Residents of Ije-Ododo community in Iba Local Council Development Area (LCDA) have commended the Lagos State government for approving a road to link Ijegun to Ije-Ododo and Abule-Ado areas along the Lagos-Badagry expressway axis of the state.
Speaking on the development, the residents expressed delight that the state government had eventually acceded to their request for the construction of a standard road to link other parts of the metropolis with a view to ending their sufferings over the years.
They said during rainy seasons, residents do experience hard times commuting from Ije-Ododo to other parts of the city, as many usually leave their cars at home or in nearby cities while wading through the muddy waters on foot to get to their various destinations. Read more
Water resources: Confusion over bill as Reps leaders disagree over hearing (Punch)
There was confusion on Tuesday over the Water Resources Bill as two leaders of the House of Representatives sharply disagreed over public hearings on it.
The Deputy Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Peter Akpatason in an interview with The PUNCH, said public hearings would be held on the controversial bill, which was abandoned by the eighth National Assembly.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Rules and Business, Abubakar Fulata, who reintroduced the bill on July 23, 2020, said there would be no more public hearings on it. Read more
Plot to traffic orphan to Ghana by uncle aborted in Ebonyi (Vanguard)
Nemesis caught up with an evil-hearted uncle of three orphans, whose mother was buried last week, when he wanted to traffic the eldest of the children to Ghana, perhaps into a life of servitude.
The three siblings, indigenes of Enyingba community in Abakaliki council area of Ebonyi, were said to have lost their father in 2018, while their mother also died in 2020, and was buried just last Friday.
It was learned that they had lived with their late parents in the Ezeagu Local of Enugu State. Read more
Two die in APC campaign convoy crash (Nation)
Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has called off his rally at Usen, following a crash.
An accident on Tuesday occurred near Oluku junction, as a trailer ran into the campaign entourage of top chieftains of the APC, killing two policemen. Two others were injured.
A statement signed by the Chairman of the APC Media Campaign Council, Mr. John Mayaki, said the party had suspended the scheduled event, to honour the dead.
On behalf of Ize-Iyamu and the APC, Mayaki condoled with the bereaved families, saying they were not alone in their grief. Read more
Okowa’s film village excites Nollywood (ThisDay)
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State is obviously passionate about youth empowerment and job creation. Aside the various initiatives in the state to engender employment among the populace, Okowa is pushing his quest for empowerment into the entertainment industry. He is building a film village in Ugbolu, on the precinct of the capital city of Asaba.
The Delta Film Village and Leisure Park is an
ambitious N5 billion project expected to be delivered by the first quarter of 2021. When completed, it will add more fizz to the nation’s fast-growing movie industry, popularly called Nollywood. Read more
IGP craves traditional rulers’ support in war against banditry (Vanguard)
The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Alhaji Mohammed Adamu, has urged traditional rulers to support the fight against armed robbery, banditry, kidnapping and cattle rustling.
Adamu, who was represented by Alhaji Adamu Usman, Commissioner of Police in Niger, at a meeting with traditional rulers from Kontagora Emirate, told the monarchs that they were very critical to the success of the community policing policy.
The monarchs, led by the Emir of Kontagora, Alhaji Saidu Namaske, were in Minna to thank the Nigeria Police Force over successes recorded in the ongoing fight against crime in Niger. Read more
NLC rejects increase in electricity tariffs by Abuja Disco (ThisDay)
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has rejected the move by the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) to increase electricity tariffs.
The organised labour has also condemned any plan to increase the cost of electricity, stressing that it will inflict further pains on Nigerians at this very time of great economic distress.
A statement issued yesterday by the President of NLC, Comrade Ayuba Wabba said the tariffs hike plan was dead on arrival. Read more
Deepfake detection tool unveiled by Microsoft (BBC)
Microsoft has developed a tool to spot deepfakes – computer-manipulated images in which one person’s likeness has been used to replace that of another.
The software analyses photos and videos to give a confidence score about whether the material is likely to have been artificially created.
The firm says it hopes the tech will help “combat disinformation”.
One expert has said it risks becoming quickly outdated because of the pace at which deepfake tech is advancing. Read more
Zimbabwe: Foreign white farmers can apply to get seized land back (Aljazeera)
Zimbabwe said on Tuesday that only foreign white farmers protected by international investment treaties qualified to retrieve land seized by the government two decades ago.
On Monday, the government announced foreign white farmers settled in Zimbabwe whose land was seized under former President Robert Mugabe can apply to get it back and will be offered land elsewhere if restitution proves impractical.
Information ministry secretary and government spokesman Nick Mangwana clarified in a tweet on Tuesday the offer did not apply to all evicted white farmers, but only to about 37 foreign farmers who benefit from special protection. Read more
Fortnite receives Black Panther monument in latest update (Metro)
Fortnite’s map now has a big panther statue in honour of Black Panther, which further indicates he’ll be getting his own skin. Fortnite’s current Marvel-themed season allows players to enjoy the battle royale as one of several iconic and beloved heroes and villains. So far, this includes the likes of Wolverine, Dr. Doom, and She-Hulk, though hopefully today’s update is an indicator that the king of Wakanda will drop in soon. Read more
Trump denies systemic racism, pushes ‘law and order’ in Kenosha (Aljazeera)
United States President Donald Trump decried violence at recent racial justice protests as “domestic terror” while denying there is systemic racism within US law enforcement during a visit to Kenosha, Wisconsin.
On Tuesday, the president arrived in the city, where protests have continued since police shot Jacob Blake seven times in the back during an encounter on August 23. Local officials and members of Blake’s family had requested that Trump stay away for fear he would further agitate the situation, which has at times turned violent with property damage and two protesters killed last week. Read more
“I Like To Move It” DJ Erick Morillo dies aged 49 (Metro)
Famed DJ Erick Morillo has died at the age of 49, it has been confirmed. The musician, who was best known for his 1993 hit I Like To Move It, was found dead in Miami Beach, Florida on Tuesday morning.
A cause of death has not been revealed and the circumstances are not yet known. One Miami Beach Police spokesperson told Metro.co.uk: ‘The Miami Beach Police Department is investigating the death of Mr Eric A. Morillo (DOB: 3/26/71).
‘We received a 911 call this morning at 10:42 a.m… Detectives are currently on scene and in the preliminary stages of the investigation.’ Tributes have poured in for the musician, with Jersey Shore star DJ Pauly D tweeting: ‘Sad News 🙁 A True Legend. Erick Morillo RIP.’ Read more
Cuba imposes Havana lockdown as coronavirus spreads (Aljazeera)
Cuban authorities have ordered a strict 15-day lockdown of Havana, seeking to stamp out the low-level but persistent spread of the novel coronavirus in the capital.
Aggressive anti-virus measures including closing down air travel, have virtually eliminated COVID-19 in Cuba with the exception of Havana, where cases have surged from a handful a day to dozens daily over the last month.
Starting on Tuesday, Havana was placed under a 7pm to 5am curfew. Most stores are barred from selling to shoppers from outside the immediate neighbourhood in order to discourage people from moving around the city. Read more
Five stars for “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” (BBC)
Imagine if Meet the Parents was remade by the writer of Being John Malkovich, Adaptation and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and by the writer-director of Synecdoche, New York and Anomalisa, and you’ll have a fair idea of what to expect from Charlie Kaufman’s I’m Thinking of Ending Things. To put it another way, you won’t really know what to expect at all, because Kaufman’s films are always weirder, gloomier, and more unsettling than you might assume, and his latest, adapted from a novel by Iain Reid, could be the weirdest of them all.
The premise is as straightforward as it is in the Ben Stiller comedy. Twenty-something Lucy (Jessie Buckley, the vivacious star of Beast, Wild Rose and Misbehaviour) and Jake (Jesse Plemons), her boyfriend of a few weeks, drive out of a city and into the snowy countryside to meet his parents, Toni Colette and David Thewlis. Read more
US Open 2020: Serena Williams beats Kristie Ahn in straight sets (BBC)
Serena Williams began her pursuit of a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam singles title with a dominant 7-5 6-3 win over fellow American Kristie Ahn.
The 38-year-old went a break down in both sets but recovered to win in an hour and a half as she chases Margaret Court’s Grand Slam tally.
Williams gathered momentum late on, winning four straight games against the world number 96 in the second set.
“I was really happy with how I fought for every point,” she said.
“No matter how I was playing, I just had to get my Serena focus back so that was what I was working on today.” Read more
‘Frustrated’ ex-Falcons’ star Vera Okolo sets up football academy in Asaba (Guardian)
Former Super Falcons striker, Vera Okolo has decided to float a football academy with the aim of discovering future stars for various Nigerian national teams.
For more than a decade, Okolo played a vital role in the nation’s women football, leading the Super Falcons to victory at major championships including the 2004 African Women’s Championship in South Africa, as well as securing a gold medal at the 2003 COJA Games in Abuja. Her lone strike secured the Athens 2004 Olympics Games ticket for the Super Falcons at the expense of Bayana Bayana of South Africa. She also grabbed the winner for Nigeria at the All African Games final at Algiers 2007. Read more
Paris Saint-Germain submit £30m offer for Arsenal star Hector Bellerin (Metro)
Arsenal are considering Paris Saint-Germain’s bid for Hector Bellerin after the Ligue 1 giants submitted a £30million offer for the Spanish defender.
Thomas Tuchel is keen on signing a new right-back and the French club have been in constant dialogue with the Gunners over the last week, according to the Guardian.
Arsenal’s board have made it clear to Mikel Arteta that he must recoup some money this summer via player sales after the signings of Willian, Gabriel and Pablo Mari. Read more
US Open 2020: Andy Murray fights back to beat Yoshihito Nishioka (BBC)
Andy Murray staged a stunning comeback against Yoshihito Nishioka in the US Open first round on his long-awaited return to Grand Slam singles tennis.
The 33-year-old came from two sets and a break down against the Japanese to win 4-6 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-4) 6-4.
The Briton, whose last major singles match was at the 2019 Australian Open before career-saving hip surgery, started flat and dispirited.
But he found his fight and saved a match point to set up an epic win. Read more
Gabriel Magalhaes takes Arsenal’s iconic No.6 shirt after completing £27m transfer (Metro)
Gabriel Magalhaes has taken Arsenal’s iconic No.6 shirt after completing his £27 million move from Lille. The Brazilian centre-back becomes Mikel Arteta’s second signing of the summer after Willian completed his free transfer from Chelsea last month.
Arteta was keen to bolster his defensive options and the 22-year-old could now form a new partnership alongside William Saliba at the heart of Arsenal’s defence.
And Arsenal clearly view Gabriel as a player who will become a cornerstone of their defence for years to come by handing him the No.6 jersey. Read more
Playing against Messi would be a dream come true – Greenwood (Vanguard)
Manchester United youngster Mason Greenwood would relish having Lionel Messi in the Premier League – even if that means facing the six-time Ballon d’Or winner in Manchester City colours.
City are viewed as the frontrunners for Messi’s signature after the player handed in a transfer request at Barcelona last week, although the huge finances required to secure his services represent significant obstacles to overcome.
Greenwood, who is in line for his first senior England action in the forthcoming Nations League matches against Iceland and Denmark, is excited by the prospect, even if it would be so beneficial to United’s crosstown rivals. Read more