BRT bus crushes motorcyclist in Lagos (Punch)
A yet-to-be-identified motorcyclist has lost his life after he was crushed by a BRT bus around Cement Bus-Stop on the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway, Lagos State.
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, in a statement on Thursday, said the motorcyclist lost control while plying the BRT corridor.
He said, “In furtherance of the directive of the state Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, operatives of the Lagos State Rapid Response Squad, on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, successfully prevented a reprisal on 22 BRT buses and robbery of passengers caught in a fracas that ensued after an accident involving a BRT bus and one motorcyclist at Cement Bus-Stop along the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway. Read more
Kara Bridge gridlock worsens as motorists get stranded (Guardian)
Gridlock on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway has deteriorated at the Magboro end of Kara bridge, causing nightmare to motorists. Yesterday, motorists heading towards Ibadan spent between three to five hours on the long bridge.
When The Guardian visited the area, the standstill traffic had stretched from OPIC to Mountain of Fire Ministries, heading towards Ojodu Berger.
At 10.30am, some travellers were still trapped on the bridge, scampering for spaces with impatient petrol tanker drivers.The traffic situation may have been worsened by absence of traffic control agents and alternative routes on both sides of the busy road. Read more
Collapsed Synagogue building: Court adjourns for final argument (Punch)
A Lagos State High Court in Ikeja has adjourned till May 27, 2021 for the adoption of final written addresses in the case of a collapsed guesthouse of the Synagogue Church of All Nations.
The Lagos State Government had prosecuted the SCOAN over the collapsed building, which killed 116 worshipers of the church on September 12, 2014.
The defendants were two engineers, Oladele Ogundeji and Akinbela Fatiregun, charged alongside their companies — Hardrock Construction and Engineering Company and Jandy Trust Ltd. Read more
PPPRA projects fuel price at N212 per litre (DailyTrust)
The Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) has projected the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), better known as petrol, at N212.11 per litre.
The agency announced this in its pricing template for the month of March.
PPPRA based the price on the average costs of imported petroleum products.
The average littering expenses were put at about N4.81 per litre; Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) charge N2.49 per litre; NIMASA charge N0.23 per litre; Jetty Thru put of N1.61 per litre and Storage charge of N2.58 per litre and average finance cost of N2.17 per litre, translating to an expected landing cost per litre of N189.61. Read more
No reported cases of adverse reactions after AstraZeneca vaccination in Nigeria, says NPHCDA (Vanguard)
Following the suspension of the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine by several European nations on Thursday, due to reports of a serious blood clot incidents, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, NPHCDA, has said no such reactions have been reported in Nigeria.
Several European nations had suspended use of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on Thursday due to the incident that reportedly caused about 30 incidents of harmful blood clots in patients who received the vaccine, including at least one case in Denmark where the patient died.
In a press statement posted on its Twitter handle on concerns about the safety of the vaccine, the NPHCDA however said it was monitoring the situation.
“We are aware of precautionary concerns that have been raised regarding one specific batch of the AstraZeneca vaccine, namely ABV5300. Read more
EFCC arrests Nigerian who impersonated to receive $8,000 US COVID-19 benefit (Guardian)
Collins Samuel, an alleged fraudster, who obtained $8000USD as Covid-19 benefit from the US state of Virginia, has been remanded in EFCC custody by Justice P. Mallong of the Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna, Kaduna State.
Samuel was remanded, after pleading not guilty to a one-count charge that borders on impersonation and obtaining by false pretences, brought against him by the Kaduna Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
He was arrested in Jos, Plateau State where he fraudulently represented himself as Ashley Coopper, an American citizen affected by Covid – 19, and obtained $8,000 in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) from Virginia, United States. Read more
Customs arrest two suspects, seize N70m contraband (Punch)
Two suspects were arrested and contraband worth N70m seized within six months by men of the Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit, Zone D.
The Comptroller, Adesanmi Omiye, who stated this during a press conference at the zonal headquarters in Bauchi on Thursday, said the two suspects were arrested for being in possession of 162 kilogrammes of Indian hemp valued at N30m.
He stated that 12 vehicles used to convey the contraband and 674 rounds of 70mm cartridges were also seized. Read more
How I’ll engage younger generations- Akeredolu (Vanguard)
Though sworn in on 24th February amidst fanfare, the activities marking the second term inauguration of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State came to an end last week with a golf tournament organised and fully sponsored by some individuals known as Friends of Aketi.
The event, tagged: Aketi Second Term Inauguration Golf Tournament, held Saturday, March 6th, 2021 at the Smokin Hills and Golf Resort, Ilaramokin, Ifedore Local Government Area of the state, was attended by many bigwigs and 10 golf clubs across Nigeria.
Speaking while teeing off at the flag-off of the tournament, Akeredolu said the Ilaramokin Golf Resort, owned by the Chairman of Elizade Group of Companies, Chief Michael Ade-Ojo is of great importance to the state because sports will be meaningfully and purposefully used to develop the state, especially the younger generation, in his second term. Read more
Gov Diri signs law criminalising open grazing in Bayelsa (DailyTrust)
The Bayelsa State governor, Senator Douye Diri, has signed into law, a bill prohibiting open grazing of livestock and criminalising same. It is tagged, “Livestock Breeding, Rearing and Marketing Regulation Law, 2021.”
While signing the bill into law yesterday at the executive chamber of the Government House, Yenagoa, Diri said it was meant to ensure a harmonious living between cattle dealers and other inhabitants of the state and forestall violent clashes being experienced in other parts of the country.
“Bayelsa State welcomes all and sundry to eke out their living legitimately. The people of Bayelsa want to have a mutual and harmonious relationship with non-natives and natives. The essence of the law is to avert and forestall any clash between herdsmen, farmers, natives and non-natives as experienced in some states. Read more
Netflix considers crackdown on password sharing (BBC)
Netflix is trialling a crackdown on password sharing.
Some users have reported seeing a screen saying, “If you don’t live with the owner of this account, you need your own account to keep watching.”
A spokesperson told the BBC: “This test is designed to help ensure that people using Netflix accounts are authorised to do so.”
A decision has yet to be made as to whether the company will roll this out across its network. Read more
Michael B Jordan confirmed to direct ‘deeply personal’ Creed III (Metro)
Michael B Jordan will be stepping behind the camera for the first time as director of the upcoming sequel Creed III. The 34-year-old actor has starred in the lead role as Adonis ‘Creed’ Johnson in the first two installments of the Rocky spin-off, but will be taking on the much bigger role of helming the third movie as well as reprising his role as the tenacious boxer. Announcing the exciting news, Michael said in a statement: ‘Directing has always been an aspiration, but the timing had to be right. Read more
COVID: Several European countries halt use of AstraZeneca vaccine (DW)
Health authorities in Denmark, Norway and Iceland on Thursday suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine after reports of blood clots among some people who had received the inoculation.
The Danish Health Authority on Thursday halted the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine for 14 days.
It follows reports of “serious cases of blood clots among vaccinated people,” a statement read. Read more
Twins peak with more born than ever before (BBC)
More twins are being born than ever before but the world may now have reached peak twin, researchers say.
About 1.6 million twins are born each year worldwide, with one in every 42 children born a twin.
Delayed childbearing and medical techniques such as IVF have seen the rate of twin births rise by a third since the 1980s.
But it could be all downhill from here as the focus shifts to one baby per pregnancy, which is less risky. Read more
Judge reinstates third-degree murder charge against Derek Chauvin over George Floyd death (RT)
Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is now facing an additional charge in his trial over the May 25 death of George Floyd, after Judge Peter Cahill reinstated a previously dismissed charge of third-degree murder.
The Hennepin County judge granted prosecutors’ request to add the charge on Thursday, giving jurors more options when weighing the potential punishment for Chauvin over Floyd’s death. The selection process for the jury will continue on Thursday. Five members have been seated thus far.
Chauvin is also being charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter. Prosecutors argue the former officer killed Floyd after having his knee pushed against his neck for approximately nine minutes while Floyd was handcuffed and on the ground. Read more
Pentagon rebukes Fox host Tucker Carlson for mocking female troops (BBC)
The Pentagon has condemned a Fox News host who called female troops “a mockery of the US military”.
Tucker Carlson, one of the most popular hosts on the network, made the remark on his Tuesday programme.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Mr Carlson’s programme “essentially demeaned the entire US military” and hoped he would realise his error.
Other top brass, as well as veterans’ groups, have also rebuked Mr Carlson. Read more
Piers Morgan says he ‘won’t be going back’ to Good Morning Britain (RT)
UK TV host Piers Morgan said he will not be coming back to Good Morning Britain despite more than 200,000 fans calling for his return in a series of petitions, amid drama over the presenter’s on-air criticisms of Meghan Markle.
“I won’t be going back, but thanks to everyone who has signed these petitions. Normally, people start petitions to have me fired or deported, so this is a pleasant surprise,” he tweeted on Thursday, pointing to petitions that have accumulated in excess of 200,000 signatures in total.
Morgan walked off the set of his own show in outrage earlier this week after receiving pushback from colleagues who objected to his harsh comments toward Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, and her recent sit-down with Oprah Winfrey. While his critical GMB segment prompted more than 41,000 complaints to UK media regulator Ofcom and ended Morgan’s eight-year stint hosting the show, hundreds of thousands of supporters have demanded his return. Read more
Pinnick’s supporters hopeful as FIFA Council election holds in Rabat (Guardian)
Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President Amaju Pinnick hopes to pick not less than 40 votes out of the 53 in today’s FIFA Council election in Rabat, Morocco, if the projection by NFF Secretary General, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, is anything to go by.
The 43rd Ordinary General Assembly of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) holds today with 14 candidates contesting for six seats allocated to the continent in the FIFA Council. There are 37 members in the exalted chamber of football’s world governing body.
The Guardian learnt yesterday that two candidates out of five in the Anglophone zone stepped down for the Nigerian candidate, Pinnick, yesterday. The five countries are Tanzania, Kenya, Zambia, Malawi and The Gambia. Read more
Babangida charges Umar to grab Super Eagles chance with both hands (DailyTrust)
A former international, Tijani Babangida has called on Super Eagles invitee, Sadiq Umar to make the best use of the opportunity given to him by Gernot Rohr.
The lanky striker who plays for Spanish Segunda Division side, UD Alimera is among the 23 players invited for the 2021 AFCON qualifiers against Benin Republic and Lesotho later this month.
Speaking to Daily Trust yesterday, Babangida who is the president of Professional Footballers Association of Nigeria (PFAN) advised the youngster to justify his selection by giving his best anytime he is called upon to play.
He said the invitation of the member of the 2016 Olympics bronze winning team didn’t come to him as a surprise because he has shown his scoring abilities especially now that he is playing regularly for UD Alimera. Read more
Odegaard stunner helps Arsenal to commanding lead over Olympiakos (BBC)
Mikel Arteta says his Arsenal side need to stop being their own worst enemy after defensive lapses undermined their last-16 first-leg victory over Olympiakos in the Europa League.
While Martin Odegaard’s opener paved the way for their win, familiar failings at the back saw the Greek champions level and made life uncomfortable until late goals from Gabriel and Mohamed Elneny swung the contest back in Arsenal’s favour.
“We have to be very clear and honest with ourselves. We gave three chances to the opponent, they took one and at that level they are going to punish you,” Arteta said.
“If we want to go to the next level we have to stop that and be more ruthless and when we are that dominant, kill the games off.” Read more
Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho plays down Harry Kane injury fears ahead of Arsenal clash (Metro)
Jose Mourinho has played down fears Tottenham striker Harry Kane suffered an injury in the Europa League victory over Dinamo Zagreb, just three days before the north London derby against Arsenal. Kane scored twice to help Spurs take control of their Europa League last-16 tie with Croatian side Zagreb before limping off late on with a knock to his knee. Tottenham fans wondered if the win had come at a cost as Kane was spotted on the sidelines with an ice pack over his knee, but Mourinho expects him to be fit for Sunday’s clash with Arsenal. Read more
Roger Federer reacts to Nikoloz Basilashvili loss in Doha comeback (Metro)
Roger Federer was beaten in the second match of his comeback in three sets by Georgia’s Nikoloz Basilashvili but revealed this loss was ‘super easy’ to get over. Federer, the 20-time Grand Slam champion from Switzerland, defeated Britain’s Dan Evans in his first match after 405 days away from the ATP Tour but succumbed to a 3-6 6-1 7-5 loss on Thursday. The second seed started well, handling the Georgian’s unpredictable attacks with aplomb, but fatigue soon caught up with the eight-time Wimbedon winner. He was, in truth, comfortably second best in the second and third sets but still managed to craft a match point at the end of the third. Read more
Naomi Osaka’s sister Mari, who champ said was ‘up by like a million’ against her, retires aged 24 (RT)
Mari Osaka, the low-ranked sister of four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka, has announced her retirement from professional tennis, candidly admitting that she didn’t “enjoy” her unspectacular career on the court.
The 24-year-old, who has always been in the shadow of her superstar sister’s success in the sport, explained that she wants to concentrate on projects away from the game.
“I am retired from playing tennis,” Mari wrote on Instagram. “But I’m grateful for all the memories and support I’ve gained and received over the years from the sport. Read more
Late AC Milan equaliser denies Man Utd win after Diallo’s first goal (BBC)
Manchester United’s defensive vulnerabilities returned as AC Milan grabbed an injury-time equaliser in their Europa League last-16 first-leg tie at Old Trafford.
Amad Diallo’s stunning header five minutes into the second half looked like giving United a first-leg lead.
But Milan, who had already been harshly denied a goal when Franck Kessie’s first-half volley was ruled out for handball, replied when Simon Kjaer evaded the attentions of Nemanja Matic at a corner right at the death and steered a near-post header past Dean Henderson’s weak attempt to save. It was the least a Milan side lacking former United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic deserved. Read more