2021 UTME: Fate of over 600,000 eligible eandidates hanging in balance (Tribune)
THE Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has directed all tertiary institutions in the country to expedite action on the completion of the 2021 admission exercise.
This came as parents and some stakeholders expressed concern over delayed admissions in which case the fate of over 600,000 eligible candidates who participated in the 2021 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) is hanging in the balance.
JAMB revealed that over 1.4 million candidates registered for both the 2021 UTME and Direct Entry, out of which only about 600,000 possessed the requisite qualifications to be admitted based on available records with the Board.
Nigerian Tribune checks revealed that the majority of tertiary institutions, especially public universities, are still processing their 2020 admissions, which were affected by the prolonged strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) last year. Read more
Nigeria’s Amina Mohammed reappointed as UN Deputy Secretary-General (Channels)
Nigeria’s Amina Mohammed will continue in her role as the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations.
UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, made the assertion on Monday to formalise his prior announcement that the former Minister of the Environment would continue in her role during his second term.
In delegating development coordination to the Deputy Secretary-General, the UN scribe set in motion the most ambitious reform in the history of the organisation’s development system.
“Ms. Mohammed’s leadership helped advance the conceptual shift from the United Nations that member states called for in adopting the Sustainable Development Goals,” the UN said in a statement. “Over the last five years, the United Nations Sustainable Development Group was strengthened to enhance global leadership and oversight for development and the United Nations established a strengthened United Nations Resident Coordinator system as the foundation of a more effective development system.” Read more
‘No vehicle inspection, no road – worthiness certificate policy’ is not revenue generation drive — LACVIS (Vanguard)
Following feedback from the public about the newly introduced ‘no-vehicle inspection, no road-worthiness policy’ in Lagos State, in the new year, the state government has debunked allegations that the policy is an exercise targeted at generating money for the state.
The Director, Vehicle Inspection Service, (VIS) Engr. Akin-George Fashola who stated this during an interview session on a radio programme, appealed to vehicle owners in the State to come forward with their vehicles as the cost is already inclusive in the total package they paid for the renewal of vehicle particulars.
The Director disclosed that the old format of issuing a roadworthiness certificate and then expecting the vehicle owners to come and present their vehicle for inspection within 30 days is no longer sustainable as most vehicle owners do not bring their vehicles for the said inspection once the certificate is issued.
“The referral note that we give when you come to us is just for a grace period that covers 30 days in which we expect you to have checked and fixed the vehicle. The referral note is not an automatic clearance”, the Director informed. Read more
EFCC grills 22 suspected oil thieves in Port Harcourt (VON)
Twenty two suspected oil thieves and a vessel: MT. TIS IV handed over to the Port Harcourt Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, by the Nigeria Navy are being quizzed in connection with alleged illegal dealing in petroleum products.
The Head of Media and Publicity, EFCC headquarters Mr. Wilson Uwujaren disclosed this in a press statement.
The statement said, “the suspects were arrested by the Nigerian Naval Ship, (NNS) Soroh, Naval Base, Camp Porbeni, Yenagoa along Akassa Rivers, Bayelsa state, on December 6, 2021 and handed over to the EFCC on Friday, January 7, 2022, include: Levi Jonathan; Eze Kenneth; Enemari Peter James; Sunday Ereku; Emmanuel Ogbonna; Timi Amos; Fatai Kareem; Chuks Egbo, Tony Atawo and Saviour Martin.”
Others are: “Yoosu Alex; Isac Iboro; Bassey Okon; Kingsley Edet; Taye Poto; Saturday Sobere; Alfred Atiemie; Owei Ibolo; Felix Onome; Odus Osita, Etim Edet and Mudashird Tarheed”.
NCDC reports 8 more deaths, 420 new Covid-19 Cases (Channels)
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said eight more people have died of complications related to COVID-19.
The agency disclosed this in a Facebook post on Tuesday while giving an update on the management of the disease in the country.
It added that 420 more infections were confirmed on Monday from 12 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Lagos topped the states reporting more cases with 103 infections and was followed by Kwara and Akwa Ibom which logged 90 and 49 additional cases respectively. Read more
Buhari okays establishment of Nigerian Diaspora Investment Trust Fund (Punch)
The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Tuesday, endorsed the establishment of the Nigerian Diaspora Investment Trust Fund, a private sector investment window for Nigerians in the Diaspora to be able to support direct investments in the country.
Buhari also pledged support for the establishment of the Diaspora Intervention Fund to support the Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission to fulfil its mandate.
He noted that the foreign exchange remittances by Nigerians in the Diaspora have not only helped families but enhanced the development index of Nigeria.
This is as he said Nigeria is open to welcoming the Diaspora Direct Investment by compatriots abroad. Read more
Accident claims 2 lives on Lagos-Ibadan expressway (Nation)
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) says two persons have died in an accident involving a Toyota Camry car and Boxer motorcycle at Mile 2 Roundabout, near Ogere on Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
Mr Ahmed Umar, the Ogun Sector Commander of FRSC, confirmed the incident to newsmen in Abeokuta on Tuesday.
According to him, the accident occurred on Monday at 3:41p.m.
Umar said that the accident was caused by excessive speed on the part of the driver of the Toyota Camry car marked KRD 275 HG who hit the motorcycle marked LAR 363 VH. Read more
I called my father day I lost my virginity- Kizz Daniel (Punch)
Nigerian singer, Daniel Anidugbe, has revealed that his father was the first person he called when he lost his virginity at the age of 21.
The artiste in an interview on TheWill Downtown Magazine’s current edition spoke about becoming a parent, his social media outrage last year, and his relationship with his father.
Kizz Daniel said “My dad is my best friend. I used the word ‘is’ because he’s still in my heart after him, then my brother. So I was really close to my dad but not so much with my mum.
“As a normal dude, the day I lost my virginity, I should have called my friends but it was my dad. I lost my virginity at the age of 21 —as a kid, I was a bookworm and a huge nerd. Read more
Nigerian rapper arraigned over death of another Nigerian in South Africa (Guardian)
South African police have arraigned Nicholas Ogbeifun, a Nigerian rapper over the killing of another Nigerian man.
Nigeriabroad reported that the Nigerian was killed at a petrol station on Central Avenue, in the Kempton Park area, Gauteng, on Monday last week. It led to a police chase and a deadly shoot-out.
Two Nigerians were left dead during the shooting and three were arrested, including Ogbeifun.
Spokesperson for the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) Grace Langa said Ogbeifun, John Ohami, and Jeda Quadri appeared in the Kempton Park magistrate’s court on Wednesday in connection with the murder of the Nigerian man in Kempton Park. Read more
Dune Star Rebecca Ferguson, Luca Guadagnino to receive Dragon Awards at Goteborg Film Festival (THR)
Dune star Rebecca Ferguson and Call Me By Your Name (2017) director Luca Guadagnino will be honored at the 2022 Göteborg International Film Festival with honorary Dragon Awards in tribute to their careers’ work.
Sweden-born Ferguson played Lady Jessica Atreides, the mother of Timothée Chalamet’s character Paul Atreides, in Dune and is familiar to action fans for her recurring role as Ilsa Faust in the Mission: Impossible franchise.
Guadagnino received a best picture Oscar nomination for Call Me By Your Name, which, coincidentally, also starred Chalamet. Alongside his feature work — the Tilda Swinton-starring I Am Love (2009) and A Bigger Splash (2015), the horror remake Suspiria (2018) — Guadagnino has won acclaim for his recent HBO Max series We Are Who We Are, which follows two American teenagers coming of age while living on an American military base in Italy. Guadagnino is currently in post-production on Bones and All, a horror romance featuring Chalamet alongside Mark Rylance, Michael Stuhlbarg and Chloë Sevigny. Read more
Morgan Wallen’s Grand Ole Opry performance criticised by a number of country artists (NME)
Morgan Wallen‘s surprise appearance at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee last weekend has been criticised by a number of country artists.
Wallen sparked controversy back in February 2021 after footage of him using a racial slur surfaced. He was subsequently dropped by a number of radio stations and temporarily suspended from his record label, Big Loud, before he was then banned from attending last year’s CMA Music Awards.
Despite this, sales of his recent album ‘Dangerous’ surged and Wallen maintained the Number One spot on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart in the US for a record-breaking 10 weeks.
Wallen joined the country singer/songwriter Ernest on stage in Nashville on Saturday (January 8) to perform their collaboration ‘Flower Shops’, which follows on from Ernest co-writing Wallen’s 2020 hit ‘More Than My Hometown’. Read more
Dua Lipa to film tour for potential concert film or documentary (MusicNews)
Dua Lipa will be joined by a camera crew on her upcoming ‘Future Nostalgia’ tour.
The pop megastar is said to be considering whether or not to release a concert film or documentary of her upcoming run, which is due to kick off in Miami on February 9.
If she does, the ‘Levitating’ hitmaker would follow in the footsteps of the likes of Pink and Lady Gaga, who released ‘ All I Know So Far’ and ‘Five Foot Two’ on Amazon Prime and Netflix, respectively.
An insider told The Sun newspaper’s Bizarre column: “Dua is one of the most in-demand stars in the world right now. Everyone wants a piece of her.
“Her team has been approached by various companies who are really eager to get a concert film or documentary with the singer.
“Dua is particular about what she does and won’t agree to anything she is not happy with. But she has signed off on having a cameraman on the road with her to capture everything that goes down. Read more
Prince Harry set to swerve A-listers at the Oscars ‘over Kristen Stewart’s Diana film’ (DailyStar)
Meghan Markle is eager to attend this year’s Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, say insiders, but Prince Harry is reportedly not at all keen.
The couple would be very likely to bump into Kirsten Stewart at the annual Academy Awards ceremony, as the Twilight star has been widely tipped for an award for her portrayal of Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, in Spencer.
But the Duke of Sussex is said to have been deeply unimpressed by the movie, with one source saying he was “appalled” by how his mother had been represented.
Harry and Meghan “have been invited to all the big events and planned on attending the Oscars too, but they’d almost certainly come face-to-face with Stewart since she’s a lock for a best actress nomination,” the source claimed to OK! Magazine’s US edition.
While Meghan’s years of experience as an actress might enable her to exchange a few polite words with Stewart, Harry is “not one to be fake, and his nerves are still raw”.
This leaves the prince with a dilemma, as while he might be happy to just skip the Academy Awards altogether, “Meghan really wants back into the Hollywood scene,” it’s been claimed. Read more
Hollywood legend Sidney Poitier and beloved comedian Bob Saget honoured on People
Covers (People)
Hollywood is reeling from the loss of two celebrated stars.
In this week’s dual PEOPLE cover stories, family and friends pay tribute to legendary actor Sidney Poitier, who died Thursday at the age of 94, and Full House star Bob Saget, who died Sunday at 65 years old.
Poitier was known both as a trailblazing performer and activist. In 1964, he became the first Black actor to win the Oscar for Best Actor for his work on the 1963 film, Lilies of the Field.
“He just had this power and charm and wit and humor and danger,” actress Lee Grant, who co-starred with Poitier in 1967’s In the Heat of the Night, tells People. “He had a sense of morality that went through all of his films.” Read more
Maya Angelou becomes first black woman to appear on a US quarter (Guardian)
Maya Angelou has become the first Black woman ever to appear on a US quarter, after a coin featuring the late poet and activist image went into circulation on Monday.
The quarter features an image of Angelou with her arms uplifted, a bird in flight and a rising sun behind her, with a portrait of George Washington on the “heads” side. The US Mint said the image of Angelou was “inspired by her poetry and symbolic of the way she lived”.
The poet and writer, who died in 2014, was the author of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, in which she wrote about the racial discrimination she experienced growing up. The author of 36 books – and the recipient of more than 20 honorary degrees – she read her poem On the Pulse of the Morning at Bill Clinton’s 1992 inauguration, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Barack Obama in 2010.
“Each time we redesign our currency, we have the chance to say something about our country – what we value, and how we’ve progressed as a society. I’m very proud that these coins celebrate the contributions of some of America’s most remarkable women, including Maya Angelou,” said Janet Yellen, US treasury secretary. Read more
Danish spy chief Lars Findsen named as mystery leak suspect (BBC)
The head of Denmark’s foreign intelligence agency has been in prison for a month for allegedly leaking highly classified information, local media have revealed.
Lars Findsen was arrested and charged over alleged leaks late last year. He has branded the charges “insane”.
At the time Danish officials said four serving and ex-members of intelligence agencies had been arrested.
None of them were known publicly until Mr Findsen appeared in court on Monday. Read more
AFCON 2021: Awoniyi, Iheanacho lead Nigeria attack as Super Eagles battles Egypt (Guardian)
Union Berlin striker Taiwo Awoniyi and Leicester City forward Kelechi Iheanacho are leading the attack for Nigeria in their first game against Egypt at the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2021.
Nigeria coach Augustine Eguavoen named Maduka Okoye in goalkeeping position for Super Eagles opening Group D game against an Egypt side led by Liverpool’s Mohammed Salah.
In the defence, Nigeria has Ola Aina, William-Troost Ekong, Kenneth Omeruo and Zaidu.
Leceister City midfielder Wilfred Ndidi starts in defensive midfield position playing alongside Joe Aribo. Read more
AFCON 2021: Super Eagles meet Pharaohs today (Leadership)
Nigeria’s Super Eagles will kick start their AFCON 2021 campaign with a true test of readiness when they trade-tackle the Pharaohs of Egypt in Group D opener game today at the Estadio Roumde Adjia in Garoua, Cameroon.
Both sides enjoyed a fairly comfortable Africa Cup of Nations qualification, and will hope to make a statement winning their first match of the tournament.
The Super Eagles and the Pharaohs have faced off nine times at the Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria holding the upper hand with three wins to Egypt’s two, although their last encounter in 2010 went to the Pharaohs (3-1 in the group phase).
Nigeria’s Super Eagles are three-time AFCON Champions while their Egyptian opponent have lifted the trophy an impressive seven times. The North African side’s impressive tally makes them the most successful team in the tournament’s history. Read more
Mohamed Salah explains how Jose Mourinho’s brutal Chelsea rejection changed his life (Mirror)
Liverpool star Mohamed Salah has lifted the lid on how he turned his career around after being snubbed by Jose Mourinho at Chelsea.
The 29-year-old – now widely considered the best player on the planet this season – at one stage looked to be a Premier League flop rather than a world beater.
In January 2014 Chelsea paid £11million to Swiss champions Basel for Salah’s signature, with the young Egyptian one of Europe’s hottest properties.
But the winger made just 19 appearances for the Blues across two-and-a-half years, with Mourinho unwilling to give Salah the required game-time to develop. Read more
PSG star Wijnaldum ‘not interested’ in making Newcastle return (Football365)
Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum has no interest in returning to Newcastle United in January, according to reports.
The Netherlands international moved to PSG in the summer on a free transfer after his contract ran down at Liverpool.
Wijnaldum has played 24 times for the French club in all competitions this term, contributing three goals and an assist.
In October last year, it was reported that Wijnaldum “hasn’t got the support of the South American players” at PSG. Read more
Emma Raducanu loses 6-0 6-1 in Sydney in first match since recovering from Covid – days ahead of Australian Open (TalkSport)
Emma Raducanu’s preparations for the Australian Open hit a snag at the Sydney International in her first match since recovering from coronavirus.
The British no.1 was dominated 6-0 6-1 by Elena Rybakina, who sits five places ahead of Raducanu in the world rankings in 13th.
Raducanu, 19, rose to prominence at the US Open in September when an historic first Grand Slam win saw her not drop a single set at the tournament as she defeated Leylah Fernandez in the final.
However, 2022 has started in unsteady fashion for the teenager, whose humbling loss comes just days before her Australian Open debut. Read more
Olympic 4x400m medallist Deon Lendore killed in car crash (AthleticsWeekly)
Trinidad and Tobago 400m runner dies in a road accident in Texas at the age of 29.
Deon Lendore, who won Olympic 4x400m bronze, world 4x400m silver and was a three-time world indoor bronze medallist, has died.
According to four-time Olympic medallist Ato Boldon, Lendore was killed in a car crash in Texas.
The Trinidad and Tobago athlete was just 29 years old and last year competed in his third consecutive Olympic Games, finishing ninth in his 400m semi-final and eighth in the 4x400m final in Tokyo. Read more
Pinot, Gaudu, Storer to lead Groupama-FDJ at Tour de France (CyclingNews)
Thibaut Pinot will return to the Tour de France this year, leading the line for Groupama-FDJ alongside his understudy David Gaudu, as the team sends sprinter Arnaud Démare to the Giro d’Italia.
The French team held a press event on Tuesday to launch their 2022 season, with team manager Marc Madiot underlining the importance of the three Grand Tours after what he termed ‘failures’ in 2021.
Groupama-FDJ claimed 22 wins and finished eighth in the UCI rankings in 2021, but came away without a Grand Tour stage win for the first time in 10 years, and didn’t manage a top-10 overall finish in any of the three. As such, Madiot explained that success in 2022 will largely be measured against the three-week races, as he outlined the structure of the team’s plans this season.
The alternation of Tour de France leadership between Pinot and Démare continues, with the former returning after a year dominated by injury and the latter switching to the Giro after failing to land a stage win at the 2021 Tour. Démare will have a full lead-out train in Italy but the team also have a potential GC presence in Attila Valter, who wore the pink jersey and finished 14th overall last year. Read more