7 killed, one missing as gunmen attack Apostle Suleman’s convoy (Nation)
Seven people, including three fully-armed policemen, were killed yesterday as gunmen attacked the convoy of controversial cleric and General Overseer of Auchi, Edo State-based Omega Fire Ministries (OFM), Apostle Suleman.
Among the victims also were three members of the cleric’s domestic staff while he, his wife and children narrowly escaped gunshots.
The deceased domestic workers include two of Apostle Suleman’s drivers and one female house help, who were killed on the spot, while one person was missing at press time last night.
One of the hoodlums was also said to have been shot dead by the police. Read more
LASTMA announces 3rd Mainland Bridge closure (Punch)
The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority has announced a road closure and traffic diversion on the Third Mainland Bridge from 1pm on Sunday, October 23, 2022.
The development is to aid the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency’s recovery exercise of the waste disposal truck that fell off the bridge into the Lagoon on Tuesday.
The agency, in a statement on Friday, explained that the road closure and traffic diversion would only affect motorists moving from Lagos Island to connect the mainland through Iyana Oworonshoki.
It noted that the recovery exercise would not affect motorists moving from the mainland to Lagos Island. Read more
Yemi Alade set to light up 2022 Creative Africa Nexus Weekend (Sun)
Nigerian Afro-pop singer, Yemi Alade, will be leading the star cast of celebrities that will be attending the Creative Africa Nexus Weekend (CANEX WKND) 2022.
Alade, alongside other eggheads in the creative industry, will be showcasing another bright side of Africa in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, as the success story from the continent continues to captivate the world. The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has already announced that registration is now open for the upcoming Creative Africa Nexus Weekend (CANEX WKND) 2022, taking place from 25–27th November 2022 . African fashion icon Pathe Ouedraogo has enjoined everyone in the creative space to take advantage of the CANEX WKND to advance their course.
“We invite you to participate in the CANEX WKND”, Pathe’O, who is quite famous for doing more to promote African fashion appeal.
Indeed, many creative minds across the world are eager to see how events will unfold at (CANEX WKND) 2022, as registration to attend is being held across multiple venues at the Sofitel Hotel Ivoire free-for-all delegates. Read more
Korea-Nigeria students tour Kia Nigeria assembly plant (ThisDay)
Kia Nigeria, the leading Korean automotive brand in Nigeria played host to the teenagers from the Korean-Nigeria youth camp at its state-of-the-art multi-billion Naira assembly plant in Isolo, Lagos.
The teenage Nigerian students from Hendon College in Abuja had an exclusive tour of the assembly plant and the opportunity to experience what sets Kia apart from other automotive manufacturers. With a capacity to assemble 27,000 vehicles per annum, the students revered the great learning opportunity the tour presented to them to observe the assembling process and see how the auto engineers roll out top-of-the-segment made in Nigeria Kia models that are built to the exact standard of the brand’s global quality.
The Korea-Nigeria Youth Camp is a program sponsored by the Korea-Africa Foundation in collaboration with the Korean Cultural Centre Nigeria and geared towards giving young Nigerian students an experience of Korean cultural and entrepreneurship activities in Nigeria as well as fostering friendly relations between Korea and Nigeria. Visiting the Kia facility for a tour is one of the activities outlined for this year’s camp. The secondary school students were accompanied by 2 of their teachers and 4 staff of the Korean embassy to the assembly plant as part of the activities of the 2022 Korea-Nigeria Youth Camp. Read more
Gridlock: LASG set to improve Apapa traffic flow, reconstitutes mgt team (Vanguard)
The Lagos State Government on Friday reconstituted and inaugurated Apapa Special Traffic Management Team set up to effectively tackle gridlock in Mile 2/Tincan and its environs. The Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, who is also the Chairman of the Team, Sola Giwa, said the measure became necessary to consolidate the gains of improved traffic flow being witnessed in the Apapa axis.
Addressing the newly inaugurated Committee Members at the Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja, Giwa, explained that “the focus of the team is to solely eliminate gridlock on the Mile 2/Tincan axis, sustain the 80 per cent success recorded on Apapa traffic reduction, in line with the Governor, Bababjide Sanwo-Olu’s promise to resolve traffic challenges in Apapa and its environs.”
He added that the task assigned must be carried out with utmost integrity as Governor Sanwo-Olu intended to replicate the success recorded at Apapa axis by focusing more on the Mile 2/Tincan corridor to ensure improved traffic flow in the affected areas.
“The team is poised to achieve the onerous assignment with the full cooperation of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA,” Giwa said. Read more
CBN marks 1st eNaira anniversary (Leadership)
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has unveiled a programme of events to commemorate the first anniversary of the launch of Africa’s first Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) tagged the “eNaira”, which was formally launched by President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Aso Villa on Monday 25 October 2021.
A statement by the director, corporate communications department of the bank, Osita Nwanisobi, said the implementation of the eNaira had put Nigeria in the global spotlight as one of the pioneers to deploy a CBDC into live production.
This, the statement said, had continued to attract the interest of global stakeholders such as the IMF, World Bank, other Central Banks, and the CBDC community.
As part of activities lined up to mark the first anniversary of the eNaira, the statement said the CBN will hold a one-day workshop themed “Leveraging Innovation for Inclusive Growth and Development: The eNaira Advantage” scheduled to take place on Tuesday October 25, 2022 at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
NIMC disowns fake enrolment centre in Niger Republic (Nation)
The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has disowned fake enrolment centre and persons conducting enrolment in Niger Republic following their arrest by personnel of the Nigeria Army.
It said in a statement by its Director General Engr Aliyu Aziz the two persons arrested by the military are not officials of NIMC and were never licensed by the agency to carry the exercise.
“First, it is important to note well the Army’s clarification from the onset, when they referred to the fraudsters as “fake”, meaning their claim to be NIMC staff – if at all they did – was proven from the beginning to be false,” Aziz said.
He noted that a “check with NIMC would have further confirmed the Army’s professional conclusion that the persons apprehended are indeed impersonators and fraudsters. ” Read more
Flood: Prepare for looming hunger, Emir of Zazzau tells North (DailyTrust)
The Emir of Zazzau and Grand Patron of the Kaduna Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (KADCCIMA), Ambassador Ahmed Nuhu Bamali, has called on the northern region to wake up and address extreme hunger.
Speaking at the 3rd KADCCIMA Award of excellence ceremony in Kaduna, the emir said the region does not need a soothsayer to tell it that hunger crisis is coming and it needs to wake up because agriculture is the mainstay of the economy.
According to him, “The issue of hunger crises in the coming year, you do not need a soothsayer to tell you that, but we are praying to the Almighty and this is a clarion call that people should device other means of getting alternatives because if you put your eggs in one basket, certainly you will be confronted with shockers that you cannot contain.
“We should wake up from our slumber and see what we can do because the mainstay of our economy I think is agriculture, especially in the northern region. Agriculture is badly affected this year for two key reasons, one the flood and secondly the banditry unfortunately in our region which is disastrous.” Read more
Matthew Perry remembers Jennifer Aniston called him out for alcohol abuse (PageSix)
Matthew Perry praised Jennifer Aniston for being a good friend amidst his sobriety struggles.
The actor, who recently revealed he “nearly” died from heavy drug use, said his “Friends” co-star confronted him about his scary drug and alcohol use at the height of his career.
In a trailer for his interview with Diane Sawyer — which airs on Oct. 28 — Aniston apparently told Perry, “We know you’re drinking.”
“Imagine how scary a moment that was,” the 53-year-old told Sawyer, adding that “she was the one that reached out the most. I’m really grateful to her for that.” Read more
Cardi B absolved in legal battle over racy mixtape cover art (USAToday)
A jury sided with Cardi B on Friday in a copyright infringement case involving a man who claimed the Grammy-winning rapper misused his back tattoos for her sexually suggestive 2016 mixtape cover art.
The federal jury in Southern California ruled Kevin Michael Brophy did not prove Cardi B misappropriated his likeness. After the jury forewoman read the verdict, the rapper hugged her attorneys and appeared joyful.
Cardi B thanked the jurors, admitting she was “pretty nervous” before hearing the verdict.
“I wasn’t sure if I was going to lose or not,” she said after leaving the courthouse. She was swarmed by several reporters, photographers and more than 40 high schoolers who chanted her name. One fan held up a sign asking if she could take him to his homecoming dance, to which she replied “Yes, I’ll see what I can do.” Read more
Hollywood Foreign Press says no press conferences for 2023 Golden Globes (Deadline)
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association said Friday that the group will not hold press conferences for any movies or TV shows that are eligible for January’s Golden Globe Awards.
The practice of Globes press conferences conducted exclusively for HFPA members came under the microscope in early 2021 amid revelations in a Los Angeles Times exposé that detailed multiple shortcomings at the organization around diversity and transparency.
Actors spoke out about being subjected to intrusive questions that had made them uncomfortable at the pressers, which had been considered mandatory for anyone who wanted a shot at winning.
The HFPA signaled a shift at the end of 2021 when then-interim CEO Todd Boehly announced a proposal for reform that included language that press conferences would no longer be required. Read more
Steve Bannon: Ex-Trump aide jailed for contempt of Congress (BBC)
Former Trump strategist Steve Bannon has railed against the “Biden regime” after being sentenced to four months in jail for contempt of Congress.
Bannon, 68, was convicted in July on two counts – for refusing to provide either testimony or documents to a committee probing the 6 January 2021 riot at the US Capitol.
In addition to the jail time, Bannon must also now pay a fine of $6,500 (£5,833).
He has denied any criminal wrongdoing.
Judge Carl Nichols said that Bannon would be released for the time being, while any appeal to the sentence is resolved. Read more
‘‘The Conjuring 4’’ in the works at New Line with ‘‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’’ writer (THR)
New Line is summoning more paranormal scares, hiring David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick to write The Conjuring 4, the next installment in the juggernaut $2 billion The Conjuring Universe.
Johnson-McGoldrick is a Conjuring veteran, having penned The Conjuring 2 and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, the latter of which opened at No. 1 at the box office in 2021 and pushed the franchise to over $2 billion worldwide.
Returning to produce are James Wan and Peter Safran, the filmmaking team behind every film in the Conjuring Universe, including the eighth installment The Nun 2, currently shooting in France.
The Conjuring films are based on the real-life case files of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, although the exact case for the new installment is being kept secret. Read more
Zac Brown Band denied entry into Canada, cancels concert in Vancouver (People)
Zac Brown Band will not perform in Vancouver Friday night after some of its members were denied entry into Canada at the border.
In a statement shared with PEOPLE, the Grammy-winning group said they were forced to cancel their show hours before it was scheduled to begin at Rogers Arena.
“We’re sorry to announce that we won’t be able to perform in Vancouver tonight. Our Canadian fans are incredible, and we would love nothing more than to share an evening of music together,” they said.
They explained, “Some of our crew members had charges on their records from over a decade ago that have since been removed. Our team has regularly performed in Canada for 10 years, including two performances this year alone.” Read more
Passengers killed in Boeing 737 MAX crashes are ‘crime victims’: U.S. judge (Global)
A U.S. judge in Texas ruled on Friday that people killed in two Boeing BA.N 737 MAX crashes are legally considered “crime victims,” a designation that will determine what remedies should be imposed.
In December, some crash victims’ relatives said the U.S. Justice Department violated their legal rights when it struck a January 2021 deferred prosecution agreement with the planemaker over two crashes that killed 346 people.
The families argued the government “lied and violated their rights through a secret process” and asked U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor to rescind Boeing’s immunity from criminal prosecution – which was part of the $2.5 billion agreement – and order the planemaker publicly arraigned on felony charges.
O’Connor ruled on Friday that “in sum, but for Boeing’s criminal conspiracy to defraud the (Federal Aviation Administration), 346 people would not have lost their lives in the crashes.” Read more
Gusau inaugurates NPFL’s IMC, demands integrity in the Nigeria League (ThisDay)
President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau, said on Friday that it was incumbent on the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) to imbue the nation’s elite domestic cadre with integrity, credibility and a firm hand on management and administration in order to turn things around for the better.
Speaking at the inauguration of the committee inside the NFF Secretariat on Friday, Gusau pinpointed lack of television broadcasting as one of the major drawbacks of the elite League.
“There is a lot of work to be done by this committee of eminent and respectable persons in Nigeria Football, people with the pedigree and real calibre to effect change. One of the changes must be to ensure that our League is back on television, and that there is a lot of integrity and credibility to the way and manner it is being administered.
“I have tremendous confidence in the chairman and members of the committee that they will justify the confidence reposed in them by the Government and people of Nigeria.” Read more
Jurgen Klopp outlines the next Liverpool challenge for Joe Gomez (LiverpoolEcho)
Jurgen Klopp says he is hopeful Joe Gomez is over the worst of his injury problems as he backed the Liverpool defender to continue his “exceptionally high level” of the last three games.
Gomez has started all three of the recent wins against Rangers, Manchester City and West Ham, turning out on the right side of defence in the 7-1 victory at Ibrox before shuffling over to centre-half for the back-to-back triumphs in the Premier League.
The former Charlton Athletic teenager has endured a difficult two years at Anfield having spent 10 months on the sidelines of competitive football following a serious knee injury picked up on England duty in November 2020. Gomez’s return to the Liverpool squad in September 2021 coincided with similar comebacks for Joel Matip and Virgil van Dijk at the same Ibrahima Konate adapted quickly on Merseyside.
As a result, minutes on the pitch for Gomez have been limited but having already matched the total of league appearances as he managed across the entirety of last season this time around, Klopp has tipped the versatile defender to maintain his current form going forward in the absence of Konate and Matip at centre-back. Read more
US Soccer moves quickly to ensure safety following report (Fox)
US Soccer has taken steps to implement the recommendations of an investigation into allegations of abuse, harassment and misconduct in women’s soccer.
Former acting US Attorney General Sally Q. Yates released the investigation this month into the scandals that erupted last season in the National Women’s Soccer League. It found misconduct was systemic in the sport, impacting multiple teams, coaches and players.
Yates’ report made recommendations for the league and US Soccer “aimed at preventing abuse in the future, holding wrongdoers accountable, enhancing transparency, addressing safety in youth soccer, and fostering a professional environment where players are treated with respect.”
Danielle Slanton, a former national team and professional player, was named chair of the US Soccer Board of Directors Yates Implementation Committee. Read more
Simona Halep vows to ‘fight for the truth’ after positive doping test (Guardian)
Simona Halep said she will “fight for the truth” after she was provisionally suspended from tennis for failing a drugs test at the US Open.
In what is the most high profile doping case in women’s tennis since Maria Sharapova was banned from the sport in 2016, Halep, the Romanian former world No 1, was found to have traces of the drug Roxadustat in her urine. An anti-anaemia medicine, Roxadustat promotes the creation of red blood cells and is featured on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of prohibited substances.
The 31-year-old denies knowingly taking the drug and says the results – which were collated by the International Tennis Integrity Agency – showed “extremely low” levels of the substance in her system. Halep lost in the first round of the US Open in August to the Ukrainian Daria Snigur.
In a lengthy statement posted on social media, Halep said: “Today begins the hardest match of my life: a fight for the truth. Read more
Verstappen feeling ‘pretty positive’ after Friday practice (F1i)
Max Verstappen felt that Red Bull had made a positive start to the United States Grand Prix weekend, after finishing second fastest to Carlos Sainz in first practice at the Circuit of the Americas.
The second session was largely given over to a Pirelli tyre test with drivers running an assortment of 2023 prototype tyres and keeping to a test programme laid down by the tyre manufacturer, making the times moot.
Verstappen finished FP2 in seventh place, fourth fastest of those on the test compounds, but felt that the compound he had been assigned to try out was simply not suited to Austin.
“FP1 I think was quite good, we tried a few things with the car and it was pretty positive,” he said. “We did as much as we could in FP1 as we knew we had to test the tyres in FP2. Read more
Historic day for Irish boxing as famous 5 reach women’s European finals (IrishIndependent)
For the first time in the 111-year history of the Irish Athletic Boxing Association, Ireland will have five boxers in action in the finals of an elite championship tournament today in Budva, Montenegro.
Half of the 10-strong squad that travelled have made it to the gold-medal fights while two others, featherweight Michaela Walsh and 48kg fighter Shannon Sweeney, will bring home bronze medals. It is a remarkable strike-rate by any standards.
Granted, Russia, who have topped the medals table at all the European women’s championships since their launch in 2001, were banned due to the war in Ukraine and two of the weight categories, light-welterweight and light-middleweight, in which Ireland will be hoping to strike gold, are not on the current Olympic programme.
Nonetheless, these performances raise
expectations that for the first time Ireland will be represented in all six women’s weight divisions in Paris in 2024. Read more