Church donates N30m bus to Ikoyi Correctional Centre (Guardian) Trinity House Church has donated a N30 million coaster bus to the Ikoyi Correctional Centre in Lagos to ease the transportation of inmates to and from court.
Presenting the bus to the Deputy Controller of Corrections and Officer-in-Charge of the facility, DCC Julius Ogueri, the church’s Senior Pastor, Pastor Itua Ighodalo, said the gesture aimed to enhance operational efficiency, improve inmate welfare, and mark his birthday with a visit to society’s often-forgotten members.
He emphasised the importance of partnerships between faith-based organisations and government institutions in driving positive change, especially in rehabilitation efforts. Read more
Burna Boy gifts Portable N20m after defeating Speed Darlington in boxing match (Nation)
Grammy-winning singer Burna Boy has gifted Portable N20 million to celebrate his victory over Speed Darlington in a celebrity boxing match.
Portable won the match, dubbed “Chaos in the Rings,” after Speed Darlington reportedly broke his arm in the first round and failed to show up for the second round.
Burna Boy, who has had a history of conflict with Speed Darlington, shared his support for Portable through a generous cash gift. Read more
5 bodies recovered, 15 rescued from Lagos building collapse (Channels)
The death toll from the collapse of the three-storey building on Oremeta Street in the Ojodu-Berger area of Lagos State has risen to five.
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) confirmed this in a statement on Sunday, adding that 15 people have so far been rescued.
The building housing a local restaurant collapsed at about 8 am on Saturday, leaving an unspecified number of people trapped beneath the rubble. Read more
NDLEA intercepts Saudi-bound cocaine concealed in religious books (Punch)
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency on Sunday said its operatives intercepted 500 grammes of cocaine concealed in the pages of religious books and bound for Saudi Arabia at a courier company located in Lagos State.
The NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement released on Sunday, noting that the illicit drug was intercepted on April 15.
He added that 2.8 kilogrammes of cannabis and a strain of Loud were intercepted at another courier firm in Lagos on the same day. Read more
Nigeria gradually becoming a national morgue – Kukah (DailyTrust)
The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Hassan Kukah, has expressed deep concern over Nigeria’s deteriorating security situation.
In his Easter message delivered on Sunday, Bishop Kukah warned that the country is slowly turning into a vast national morgue due to incessant killings and widespread violence.
He lamented the scale of human suffering across the nation, describing the current climate as marked by “a culture of brutality and savagery never witnessed in the history of our dear country.” Read more
Easter: Let’s promote unity, dialogue, reconciliation in Nigeria – CAN (Nation)
National leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), on Sunday urged Nigerians to always promote unity, dialogue and reconciliation in the country.
CAN President Archbishop Daniel Okoh in his Easter message advised Christians to remain strong in the face of challenges.
Okoh urged all Christians to use this Easter season as a time for deep reflection, earnest prayer, and spiritual renewal. Read more
Tinubu cannot solve Nigeria’s worsening insecurity — Atiku (Tribune)
Amid ongoing violence in Benue State and across parts of Nigeria, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has again sharply criticised President Bola Tinubu, accusing him of being incapable of addressing the country’s deepening security crisis.
In a strongly worded statement posted late Saturday on X (formerly Twitter), Atiku condemned what he described as Tinubu’s “disturbing indifference” and failure to lead with empathy in the face of national trauma.
The former vice president’s remarks come after dozens were killed in fresh attacks on the Logo and Gbagir communities in Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State. Read more
Insecurity: Rise up and defend yourselves, TY Danjuma renews call for self-defence (DailyTrust)
Former Minister of Defence, General T Y Danjuma (rtd), has again emphasized that the fight against insecurity in Nigeria cannot be left to the government alone.
He made the call during a get-together organised in honor of his staff at Takum in Taraba State at the weekend.
He told staff, partners, and companies working with him that the citizens should not fold their arms and allow bandits and terrorists to run their commodities. Read more
Box Office: Sinners beats Minecraft with Good Friday haul of $19.2m (THR)
Ryan Googler’s highly anticipated new movie Sinners, starring Michael B. Jordan, is finding redemption at the Easter weekend box office. Ditto for Warner Bros.
The critical — and audience darling — topped Friday’s chart with $19.2 million from 3,308 theaters, including Imax screens. That put the supernatural period vampire pic ahead of fellow Warner’ release A Minecraft Movie, although the latter is expected to pull ahead of Sinners sometime on Saturday.
Based on Friday numbers, Minecraft is expected to stay atop the chart for its third consecutive weekend with $45 million from 4,032 locations as it nears the $350 million mark domestically and approaches $700 million globally. Read more
Vance meets with Pope Francis after pontiff’s criticism of Trump policies (Axios)
Pope Francis met with Vice President JD Vance for “a few minutes” on Easter Sunday, the Vatican said.
Why it matters: The previously unannounced meeting came one day after the Vatican said Vance had “an exchange of opinions” during a meeting with its top officials on matters including “countries affected by war, political tensions and difficult humanitarian situations,” in particular immigration and prisoner.
The brief meeting comes as the 88-year-old leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Roman Catholics recovers from double pneumonia, which saw him hospitalized for over five weeks after being admitted with bronchitis symptoms. Read more
Ukraine and Russia report fighting as ‘Easter truce’ ends (BBC)
Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of breaching a 30-hour “Easter truce” announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday, which has now expired.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian troops had violated the ceasefire nearly 3,000 times since the start of Sunday.
Russia’s defence ministry said it had “repelled” assaults by Ukraine and accused Kyiv of launching hundreds of drones and shells. The BBC has not independently verified claims by the warring sides. Read more
Documentary “The Children of October 7” chronicles stories of young survivors of Hamas terror attack (CBS)
A new documentary tells the story of the youngest survivors of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel.
11-year-old Yael Idan said she “couldn’t breathe” as she saw her sister killed and her father taken hostage. She told her story in the new documentary “The Children of October 7.”
Rotam Mattias, another young survivor, said his mother died protecting him. Read more
Metallica breaks attendance record at New York concert, close out show with “Enter Sandman” (AmericanSongwriter)
Metallica just set a new record. The heavy metal band performed April 19 at the JMA Wireless Dome on the Syracuse University campus and had a record number of people in attendance, a university official told Syracuse.com.
Lyrics From 3 Kris Kristofferson Songs That Hit Harder Than Poetry
Until Metallica’s performance, the attendance record at the former Carrier Dome was held by The Who. In 1982, the rock band packed the venue with 47,319 people.
While official numbers for Metallica’s concert have yet to be released, the official confirmed to the outlet that enough people were there to notch a new entry in the record books. Read more
Brett Goldstein responds to Ted Lasso returning: “We had a funeral” (FarOut)
Ted Lasso star Brett Goldstein has responded to the news that the hit Apple TV+ series is set to return for a fourth season and shared his mixed emotions on the comeback.
Despite speculation surrounding a potential fourth season, the third series, which aired in 2023, seemingly brought the show to its natural conclusion. After enjoying an adventure in England, Lasso decided it was the right time to walk away from AFC Richmond and return home to the United States.
Then, last month, during an episode of New Heights with Travis and Jason Kelce, Jason Sudeikis revealed, “I think you can ask it, yeah. That’s what we’re writing, we’re writing season four now. That’s the official word. Ted’s coaching, yeah, a women’s team. So there, that’s it.” Read more
Flamingos wallop Algeria 4-0 to move nearer 2025 World Cup (Nation)
Nigeria’s U-17 women’s national team, the Flamingos, took a significant step toward qualification for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco with a commanding 4-0 win over Algeria on Saturday evening at the Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne.
A brace from forward Queen Joseph and powerful strikes from Zainab Oluwaseun Raji and Aishat Animashaun sealed the win for the hosts in the first leg of their final qualifying round.
Joseph wasted no time in setting the tone, calmly finishing a low cross from inside the box to put Nigeria ahead in the opening 60 seconds. The early lead unsettled the Algerians, and the Flamingos pressed forward with relentless intent. Read more
Verstappen says ‘people can’t handle the full truth’ after Saudi penalty (BBC)
Max Verstappen refused to discuss his unhappiness with a penalty he was given in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix because he was concerned about retribution from Formula 1’s governing body the FIA.
The four-time champion’s five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in a first-corner battle with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri potentially cost him the race win to the Australian.
Verstappen said: “You can’t share your opinion because it’s not appreciated apparently, or people can’t handle the full truth. Honestly, it’s better if I don’t say too much. Read more
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and wife Mamiko welcome the birth of first child (CNN)
Los Angeles Dodgers’ designated hitter and global superstar Shohei Ohtani announced Saturday on Instagram that he and his wife Mamiko welcomed a baby girl – the couple’s first child.
“I am so grateful to my loving wife who gave birth to our healthy beautiful daughter,” Ohtani wrote in the post. “To my daughter, thank you for making us very nervous yet super anxious parents.
“I would also like to thank the Dodgers organization, my teammates, and the fans for their constant support and kind words of encouragement.” Read more
How Ty Jerome and the Cavaliers mercilessly targeted Tyler Herro in their Game 1 win over Miami (CBS)
Who had “Ty Jerome does an imitation of LeBron James in Game 5 of the 2007 Eastern Conference finals” on their playoff opening weekend bingo card? Anyone? Anyone at all? Jerome scoring 20 out of 28 points during one stretch for Cleveland isn’t quite as unprecedented as James scoring 29 of Cleveland’s last 30 against a championship defense, but think about the context here.
LeBron James is … well … LeBron James. Jerome was a relatively anonymous reserve before the season. He has 1,986 career points. LeBron pretty regularly exceeds that in single seasons. What James did was more meaningful. What Jerome did was more surprising. When was the last time you saw a bench player take over a playoff game so thoroughly? What has to happen for that to even be possible.
The answer, once again, depends on context. Jerome wasn’t playing against the 2007 Detroit Pistons. He was playing against the 2025 Miami Heat. More accurately, I suppose, he was playing against one member of the 2025 Miami: Tyler Herro, who Cleveland attacked mercilessly during its Game 1 victory. Read more
Amorim: We’ll tell the fans the truth (ManUtd)
Ruben Amorim stressed that Manchester United fans deserve to be told the truth following our Premier League defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday.
After the 1-0 loss, decided by a late free-kick from Wolves substitute Pablo Sarabia, with the visitors’ first attempt on target, Amorim was asked what message he could give to fans looking for something positive to latch onto.
The boss was straightforward in his assessment, suggesting that simply being honest with supporters about our shortcomings is the only thing he can do. Read more