5.0 CGPA: Sanwo-Olu congratulates record-breaking LASU student, Aminat Yusuf (Guardian)
Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has congratulated a law student at Lagos State University (LASU), Aminat Yusuf for obtaining a CGPA of 5.0, thereby breaking a record.
Ahead of its 26th convocation ceremony, LASU has announced Yusuf as the best-graduating student in 40 years with a cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 5.0.
Sanwo-Olu on Friday took to his official Twitter handle to heap plaudits on Yusuf while also congratulating her. Read more
Tinubu meets with Asari Dokubo in Aso Rock (Channels)
President Bola Tinubu is currently meeting with prominent Niger Delta leader and former leader agitator in the oil-rich region, Alhaji Asari Dokubo, at the State House.
Although the agenda of the meeting is unclear, it is believed that Dokubo is likely to be part of the President’s ongoing consultations with opinion leaders from the Niger Delta region.
President Bola Tinubu who had last week reiterated a promise to halt crude oil theft in the country, had also met with other key figures from the region, including former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Chief Timi Alaibe, as well as former Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA). Dr Dakuku Peterside. Read more
Asari Dokubo: 90% of oil theft in Niger Delta Perpetrated by Military Officers (ThisDay)
Former Niger Delta militant, Alhaji Asari Dokubo, has accused the Nigerian military of being directly responsible for the incessant oil theft in the Niger Delta region.
Speaking with newsmen after meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja, on Friday, Asari said more than 90% of oil stolen in the Niger Delta are currently perpetrated by top military officers especially from the Nigerian Army and Navy.
He told reporters that he had assured the president that there would be no more incidents of oil theft and vandalization in the oil-rich Niger Delta region. Read more
Immigration boss declares emergency over shortage of passports (Nation)
Piqued by the persistent scarcity of passport booklets across the country, the Acting Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Mrs Caroline Wura-Ola Adepoju, has declared a state of emergency over the development.
Adepoju declared the emergency in Lagos after undertaking a working visit to various offices and centres in Lagos.
The Comptroller in charge of Media and Publicity for the NIS, Mr Tony Akuneme, disclosed this on Friday in a statement in Abuja. Read more
Nollywood actor, Don Brymo, is dead (Tribune)
One of the prominent actors in the Nigerian movie industry, Mr Brymo Uchegbu, otherwise known as Don Brymo, is dead.
Brymo’s demise was confirmed by one of his colleagues, Mr Mayor Ofoegbu, who is also a well-known movie director in Nollywood.
According to the information gathered, the actor, who prominently plays the role of an Igwe (king) in movies, passed on in his sleep last night. Read more
Benin feels pinch as Nigeria ends fuel subsidy (Punch)
Sitting on top of a yellow jerry can of fuel, Jeannine waits for customers on a sidewalk in Benin’s economic capital Cotonou, but business is slow. The motorbikes and cars she normally supplies are no longer stopping to stock up on her cheap gasoline, which is smuggled in from neighbouring Nigeria.
Since Nigeria’s new president Bola Ahmed Tinubu abruptly ended his country’s long-standing subsidy on petrol two weeks ago, prices of black market fuel over the border in Benin have also doubled.
”Since this morning, barely five people have stopped,” said Jeanine. “Everyone prefers to go to the petrol station now.”
Two weeks ago, a litre of “Kpayo,” the smuggled gasoline sold on the side of Beninese roads, doubled from 350 to 700 CFA francs (0.5 to 1 euro).
That is now higher than the petrol in service stations at the market price of around 650 CFA a litre. Read more
Ganduje commiserates with Daula Hotel building collapse victims (Vanguard)
Former governor of Kano state, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has commiserated with families of the victims of the halfway demolished building of the Daula Hotel in the state.
In a statement signed by the former commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Kano state, Malam Muhammad Garba, the governor stated that the incident and the attendant death and injuries are regrettable and a huge loss to the state.
He prays that Allah gives the family of the dead victim the fortitude to bear the loss and quick recovery for the injured. Read more
Wema Bank spearheads innovation in Nigeria, fueling health, education startups (Sun)
Wema Bank has shown support for the tech sector by hosting an executive meet and greet in alignment with a budding partnership with Emergency Response Africa, a health startup and Dozzia, an education startup.
The health start up offers a digital platform for first aid responder services, while the education startup provides safety management system designed to collect and store accurate data for schools, parents and their wards.
This bank said the event underscores its unwavering commitment to nurturing entrepreneurial ventures of startups within the health and education sectors, cementing its position as a catalyst for transformative change. Read more
Gloria Estefan makes history as the 1st Latina to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in NYC (DailyMail)
Three-time Grammy winner Gloria Estefan made history Thursday by becoming the first Latina to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame during the 52nd annual ceremony, which was held at the New York Marriott Marquis in Manhattan’s Times Square.
‘Tonight is going to be a very special night!’ the Cuban 65-year-old pop star – who boasts 3.7M social media followers – wrote on Instagram.
‘I am thankful and blessed and feel honored to be able to do what I love and share my words and music with everyone!’ Read more
Doja Cat releases ‘Attention,’ her first song of 2023 (UPI)
Doja Cat is back with new music. The 27-year-old singer and rapper released a single and music video for the song “Attention” on Friday.
The “Attention” video shows Doja Cat be mobbed by adoring fans and walk the streets of Los Angeles.
The singer had teased the video Thursday on TikTok.
“Attention” is Doja Cat’s first new music of 2023.
She shared Scarlet Letter-themed teasers leading up to the song’s release, including cover art that showed her nude and covered in fake blood with an upside-down “A” covering her body. Read more
Charlie Puth wrote a song in the middle of having sex (People)
Charlie Puth’s dedication to music seemingly takes precedence over everything, as the artist recently shared that he once stopped having sex midway through just to jot down a song idea.
The idea ended up becoming “Marks on My Neck,” from his 2022 album Charlie — and Puth, 31, has since recounted the story behind it to Interview.
“I wrote the song in the middle of the act,” he said, adding, “Maybe I should have focused on the act a little bit more, but the melody just kind of popped into my head.” Read more
Sudan war drives one million children from homes: UN (France24)
The conflict in Sudan has displaced more than one million children, 270,000 of them in the Darfur region, the UN children’s agency (UNICEF) has said, warning more were at “grave risk”.
Fighting has raged in Sudan since mid-April between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
As well as the more than one million displaced, at least 330 children have been killed and more than 1,900 wounded, UNICEF said in a statement on Thursday.
“Many more are at grave risk”. Read more
Super Mario Bros producer denies Legend of Zelda movie rumour (DigitalSpy)
Legend of Zelda fans better not keep their hopes high as it seems that a movie about Link isn’t in the works at present.
In the wake of the success of The Super Mario Bros Movie, rumours started circulating on the possibility of having another Nintendo game being made into a film. Turns out this isn’t true, according to Super Mario producer Chris Meledandri.
“I don’t know where that came from,” he told TheWrap at the Annecy International Animation Festival. Read more
John Boyega reveals he’s been calling co-star Jamie Foxx after actor suffered medical issue on set (Standard)
John Boyega has revealed that he’s been trying to get in touch with his co-star Jamie Foxx after the American actor sustained a medical issue in April.
Boyega, 31, stars opposite the Oscar winner in the forthcoming Netflix film “They Cloned Tyrone”.
The 55-year-old was notably absent from the film’s premiere in Miami Beach on Thursday as he continues his recovery from an undisclosed health issue. Read more
Russia’s Putin thanks UAE leader MbZ for Ukraine help, hails growing economic ties (NewArab)
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday thanked the president of the United Arab Emirates for his efforts in freeing prisoners of war in Ukraine and hailed what he said were expanding economic ties between Moscow and Abu Dhabi.
Putin made the comments during talks with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on the sidelines of Russia’s annual economic forum in St Petersburg, where UAE companies are prominent unlike many Western counterparts who have stayed away because of the Ukraine conflict.
The UAE, like Saudi Arabia, is a member of the OPEC+ oil alliance that includes Russia and it has maintained good ties with Moscow despite Western pressure to help isolate and punish it for sending tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022. Read more
Ebi, Oparanozie named in Super Falcons’ World Cup squad (Punch)
Super Falcons head coach, Randy Waldrum, on Friday, named Onome Ebi and returning Desire Oparanozie in his squad for the Women’s World Cup scheduled to be held in Australia and New Zealand.
Ebi is set to become the oldest player to appear at the World Cup after she turned 40 last month.
The mundial will also be the captain’s sixth appearance at the biggest Women’s football showpiece. Read more
Man United retain Greenwood for 2023-24 season (Vanguard)
Manchester United have included Mason Greenwood on their retained list ahead of the 2023-24 season.
The club announced this on their official website on Friday.
The 21-year-old has been suspended from matches and training since he was charged with attempted rape, assault and controlling and coercive behaviour in January 2022 — charges that which subsequently dropped in February 2023.
United immediately opened their own investigation with the process ongoing. Read more
Gregg Berhalter agrees to return as US men’s national soccer team coach (ABC)
Gregg Berhalter has agreed to return as U.S. national team coach, a surprising turn of events 5 1/2 months after his contract expired amid conflict with the Reyna family and an investigation of a three-decades-old domestic violence investigation.
Berhalter agreed to coach the team through the 2026 World Cup, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Thursday night because an announcement had not been made.
The U.S. Soccer Federation was likely to make an announcement Friday, the person said. The decision was first reported by The Athletic. Read more
Mahmoud Dahoud: Brighton to sign Borussia Dortmund midfielder on free transfer (BBC)
Brighton have agreed a deal for Germany midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud to join on a free transfer when his contract with Borussia Dortmund ends on 1 July.
The 27-year-old is a Syrian-born defensive midfielder and will join on a four-year contract.
The Seagulls have also signed Brazil forward Joao Pedro from Watford and Liverpool midfielder James Milner. Read more
Deontay Wilder brands Floyd Mayweather’s exhibition bout against John Gotti III a “mess” (DailyMail)
Deontay Wilder has branded Floyd Mayweather’s latest exhibition bout against John Gotti III as a total “mess”.
The fight was waved off in the sixth round by referee Kenny Bayless after Gotti continually held onto the boxing legend.
Angered by the referee’s call, Gotti decided to vent his frustrations on Mayweather and continued to swing at his rival despite the final bell being sounded. Read more
Cyclist Gino Mader dies after falling down a ravine during Tour de Suisse (ITV)
Swiss cyclist Gino Mader has died at the age of 26 as the result of injuries suffered in a crash at the Tour de Suisse, the Bahrain-Victorious team has announced.
Mader was involved in a high-speed crash on the descent of the Albula Pass late on stage six of the race on Thursday along with American Magnus Sheffield.
Both riders fell into a ravine and Mader was found “motionless in the water” according to a race statement. Read more