Commuters groan as fallen tanker grounds Otedola bridge (Punch)
A number of commuters and motorists were trapped in gridlock for hours on Saturday after a 33,000-litre tanker laden with fuel fell on Otedola Bridge, outward Berger, Lagos State, and spilled its content.
Although no life was lost in the accident, it resulted in a traffic snarl that extended to other parts of the state, including Ojota, Ikorodu Road and Ogunusi Road, Ojodu-Berger.
The tanker which fell around 10am was removed around 3pm by a combined team of the Lagos State Fire Service, the state emergency management agency, Federal Road Safety Corps and the police. Read more
Lagos partners Uber on marine transportation (NewTelegraph)
Lagos State Government on Friday announced that it has gone into partnership with Uber Technologies, Inc. an American multinational ridesharing company in the area of marine transportation.
Speaking during a press conference in Lagos, the state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu said the government is entering into the partnership to leverage on modern technology to expand water transport share of the over 14 million people the state move from one point to the other daily. Read more
Saidi Balogun, Rykardo Agbor, Tobi Bakre star in movie on drug abuse (Punch)
Worried by the spate of drug abuse among youths, especially secondary school students, a non-governmental organisation, Trauma Savers Life Support Foundation is set to premiere a new movie, Scourge, that will ‘address the menace and proffer workable solutions’.
The movie, which features popular actors such as Saidi Balogun, Rykardo Agbor, and Tobi Bakre, was conceived by the convener of TSLSF, Beth Ola, whose team of experts has been going round public secondary schools in Lagos State to educate students about the menace of drug addiction and the danger it portends. Read more
Eye diseases, blindness can be prevented by regular checks – Experts (Guardian)
The need to go for regular eye checkup to prevent blindness has again been highlighted, as the World Sight Day was observed on 0ctober 11.Dr. Olubanke Ilo, a consultant ophthalmologist and lecturer at Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH)/College of Medicine, University of Lagos, said though glaucoma, commonly referred to as the ‘thief of sight,’ is a major cause of blindness, when detected early and properly treated, does not lead to blindness. Read more
Copyright Commission warns cable operators against broadcast piracy(Guardian)
Though Nigeria has a relatively strong copyright law, and the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) takes its mandate seriously through its many commendable programmes, however, efficient enforcement of copyright is a critical element in enabling the future development of Nigeria’s creative industries.
Many have argued that the protection and enforcement of Intellectual Property rights is pivotal to the development of the creative industry. Read more
Burkina Faso mosque attack kills 15 worshippers (BBC)
At least 15 people have been killed and two seriously injured in an attack on a mosque in northern Burkina Faso.
Gunmen entered the Grand Mosque in the village of Salmossi on Friday evening as those inside were praying.
The attack prompted many locals to flee the village which is close to the Malian border. Read more
Japan hit by biggest typhoon in decades (BBC)
As least five people are reported dead and others are missing as Japan endures what could be its worst storm for 60 years.
The eye of Typhoon Hagibis made landfall shortly before 19:00 local time (10:00 GMT), in Izu Peninsula, south-west of Tokyo.
It is now moving up the eastern coast of Japan’s main island, with wind speeds of 225km/h (140mph). Read more
Elton John talks sex, alcoholism and the wedding present Eminem gave him (PageSix)
When fellow musician Bob Dylan recently asked the flamboyant pop musician, 72, a technical question about his hit song “Tiny Dancer,” John didn’t hesitate to describe it in lurid terms.
“Writing a song like that’s a bit like having a wank, really,” he said, in a recent article in The Guardian newspaper. “You want the climax to be good, but you don’t want it to be over too quickly – you want to work your way up to it.” Read more
Support grows for a new Brexit poll amid fears over Johnson’s plan (Guardian)
Pro-remain MPs predicted on Saturday that they were gaining sufficient cross-party support to secure a second Brexit referendum as fresh doubts were raised over whether Boris Johnson can secure a deal with the EU that can pass through parliament.
The push for a second vote appeared to be gaining momentum before what promises to be a dramatic “super Saturday” showdown in parliament next weekend. Read more
Drug addict turned social worker gets highest honour given to ex-offenders (Independent)
As a teenager, Mr Kelvin Quak was a gang member who tried heroin to “gain the acceptance” of his fellow gang members.
But he got addicted to the drug and spent almost a decade behind bars for drug-related offences between 1977 and 1990.
It was only after his last stint in prison, that Mr Quak finally found the resolve to kick his habit while staying at The Helping Hand, a halfway house. Read more
One dead and three missing after New Orleans Hard Rock Hotel collapses (Metro)
A person has died and three people are missing after a Hard Rock Hotel collapsed in New Orleans, with its top floors plunging to the street below.
Dramatic footage shows the moment the top of the 18-storey building, which has been under construction for months, suddenly gives way and crashes down at around 9am in the city’s historic French Quarter. Crains, scaffolding, top floors and most of the front half of the hotel tumble down as construction workers, dressed in orange, are seen sprinting out of the bottom of the building and into the road. Read more
Coco Gauff reacts to reaching her first-ever WTA final (Metro)
Coco Gauff was almost overcome with emotion after reaching her maiden WTA Tour final. The American teenage sensation, who shot to prominence following her run to the fourth round of Wimbledon earlier this year, defeated Andrea Petkovic 6-4 6-4 and will face either Ekaterina Alexandrova or Jelena Ostapenko tomorrow. Gauff was only granted a place at the tournament as a lucky loser after an injury to former Wimbledon winner Angelique Kerber. The 15-year-old has capitalised fully having been granted a second opportunity and displayed all her battling qualities to beat Petkovic, saving nine breakpoints. Read more
Italy clinch place at Euro 2020 as Spain made to wait (Guardian)
Italy became the second team to qualify for Euro 2020 after a 2-0 win over Greece on Saturday, while three-time champions Spain edged closer to the finals despite conceding a stoppage-time equaliser away to Norway.
Chelsea midfielder Jorginho dispatched a second-half penalty as Italy, wearing green kits for just the second time in history, registered a seventh straight win in Group J. Read more
High expectations as Nigeria, Brazil go head-to-head (Independent)
The Super Eagles will this afternoon take on the Samba Boys of Brazil in a highly publicised friendly match taking place at the 55,000-capacity Singapore National Stadium, Kallang, Singapore. The match is coming after the South Americans were forced to a 1-1 score line by the Teranga Lions of Senegal at the same arena on Thursday.
Brazil have met Nigeria a couple of times with the Super Eagles yet to record noticeable result against their more illustrious opponents. Read more
King penalty denies Spain in dramatic Norway draw (Guardian)
Joshua King’s 94th-minute penalty snatched Norway a 1-1 draw with Spain in Oslo on Saturday as the three-time champions were made to wait to qualify for Euro 2020.
Victory would have booked Robert Moreno’s Spain a spot at next year’s finals, to be played at 12 venues across Europe, if Romania had failed to beat the Faroe Islands or Malta had beaten Sweden. Read more
Lagos Open: LOC plans special treat for fans as 1st leg finals hold today (Independent)
The Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the Lagos Open Tennis Championship is planning to give fans who come to watch the finals of the first leg of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Tour special treats while enjoying exciting matches at the Lagos Lawn Tennis Club (LLTC), Onikan.
Tournament Director, Prince Wale Oladunjoye, told reporters at the venue of the competition that the finals of the first leg would hold on Sunday (today) beginning from 12 noon. Read more
Gareth Southgate ponders formation switch after Czech Republic defeat (Guardian)
Gareth Southgate has said he would consider a switch back to a three-man defence as he picked over the tactical flaws that led to Friday’s 2-1 defeat against Czech Republic in Prague.
The England manager, whose team face Bulgaria in Sofia on Monday in the second game of the Euro 2020 qualification double-header, felt the tremors from the Czech reverse more keenly because of how smoothly his team had progressed in the campaign up to that point. Read more
Friendly: Sanwo-Olu, Dare charge Eagles to beat Brazil (NewTelegraph)
Youth and Sports Minister, Sunday Dare and Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State have pumped up the spirit of the Super Eagles while charging the three-time African champions to defeat Brazil in Sunday’s prestige friendly in Singapore.
Both top Nigerian officials spoke to the players and officials of the Super Eagles on telephone when President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick, visited the team camp on Saturday evening. Read more
Selecao clash crucial for Eagles – Rohr (Punch)
Super Eagles coach Gernot Rohr on Saturday in Singapore told the media he is preparing three-time African champions Nigeria for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Benin Republic and Lesotho, with Sunday’s friendly against Brazil.
“The game against Brazil will show how much we are progressing after finishing third at the Africa Cup in Egypt. It is a fantastic opportunity for us to learn a few more things that will make us better and stronger for future challenges,” Rohr stated at the pre-match conference ahead of the clash with the five-time world champions at the Singapore National Stadium in Kallang. Read more
Arsene Wenger names the ‘Invincibles’ as his greatest Arsenal team (Metro)
Arsene Wenger believes his title-winning 2003/2004 side was the greatest team he managed at Arsenal. The Frenchman won three titles and seven FA Cups during his 22-year reign with the Gunners, which came to an end in 2018.
Wenger guided Arsenal to the title in his second season in 1998 before further championships in 2002 and 2004. The 2004 team – of course – are now known as the ‘Invincibles’ for managing to go the whole campaign unbeaten and Wenger admits they were his greatest side. Read more
FirstBank Georgian Cup hits centenary mark (ThisDay)
As part of its commitment to the growth and development of sports across the country, First Bank of Nigeria Limited has announced its sponsorship of the Georgian Cup of the Kaduna Polo Tournament for the 100th consecutive year.
The sponsorship deal is one of the longest-running sports sponsorship in the country and the world at large, and thus a Guinness Book of Records potential, analysts say. Read more