COVID-19: Lagos records six deaths, 519 cases in two days (Nation)
We have quite a long way to go and we do not know how many more waves of infections ahead.”
With these words, the Lagos State government yesterday cautioned Nigerians against letting down their guard on the prevention of COVID-19 infections.
Speaking through its Health Commissioner Prof Akin Abayomi, the state said it recorded six COVID-19-related deaths and 519 cases of infection within two days.
The commissioner dropped the hint through his Facebook account @ProfAkinolaAbayomi, yesterday, while giving the state’s COVID-19 update for July 30 and July 31. Read more
Lagos prosecutes man for alleged assault on LASBCA officers (Guardian)
The Lagos State Government has commenced prosecution of one Mr Kelly Omaneka for assaulting officers of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LABSCA) on official assignment.
General Manager of the agency, Gbolahan Oki, an architect, said the assault happened on Thursday at 6 Omoyele Close, Ilamose in the Oke Afa area of Lagos State during a routine monitoring exercise by LABSCA’s officers.
Oki explained that in line with the law, LASBCA officers were at the site to demand planning permit or authorisation for the building construction when suddenly, the assailant came down from a black 4matic Mercedes Benz jeep and attacked a member of the LASBCA team, thereby injuring him with a head butt.
Against all pleas, he threw caution to the wind and charged further at other officers, harassing them with the aid of hired thugs. Read more
Lagos govt demolishes shanties on Lekki coastal road (Punch)
Lagos government has demolished all shanties and illegal structures on Lekki coastal road which serves as alternative to Lekki-Epe route.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the demolition was carried out after a three-day removal notice had reportedly been issued to affected persons.
Chairman of the State Environmental and Special Offences Unit (Task Force), CSP Shola Jejeloye, confirmed the demolition in a statement issued by Head, Public Affairs of the unit, Mr Femi Moliki, on Sunday in Lagos. Read more
One feared killed as crisis erupts in Shasha market (Guardian)
One person has been reportedly killed in a renewed clash in Shasha market area of Akinyele Local Council, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
It was gathered that the deceased, identified as Idris, was allegedly killed when a fresh crisis erupted in the early hours of Saturday in the area.
According to the report, the deceased was allegedly shot by Amotekun operatives and later died on Saturday afternoon. Some of the residents that spoke with journalists, yesterday, said they were currently living in fear.
The residents and leaders in the area, however, gave conflicting narratives of what led to the fresh crisis. A resident, who pleaded anonymity, claimed that the problem was as a result of the invasion of a house by some thugs who robbed the inhabitants of their belongings. Read more
Man beats Ogun Okada operator to death for refusing him ride (Punch)
Men of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested a 40-year-old man, Michael Salako, for allegedly beating a motorcyclist, who refused to give him a ride.
The incident happened last Wednesday on Sanni Street, Lafenwa, Abeokuta.
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
Oyeyemi said the suspect was arrested following a distress call received by the Divisional Police Officer, Lafenwa Divisional Headquarters, around noon on the day of the incident that an Okada rider had been beaten to death. Read more
Pro-Tinubu group in Ekiti rejects ward congresses, urges fresh exercise (Guardian)
The South-West Agenda for Bola Ahmed Tinubu 2023 (SWAGA) has rejected the ward congresses of the All Progressives Congress (APC) held at the weekend in Ekiti State, describing it as a charade that cannot pass the test of democracy.
It, therefore, urged the Caretaker/Extraordinary National Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) to set them aside and fix a new date, as well as appoint a neutral committee to come to the state to conduct the exercise.
Meanwhile, one person was feared killed and many others injured during the violence that marred the ward congresses of the party in the state.
It was gathered that the deceased, who was simply identified as Jide, was stabbed to death following the violence that erupted in Ado Ward 10 after the exercise. Read more
190m Nigerians shun health insurance scheme –experts (Leadership)
No fewer than 190 million Nigerians have shunned health insurance schemes in the country, operators in the insurance industry have said.
This figure leaves only 10 million Nigerians out of the estimated 200 million people with health insurance schemes.
This translates to about 5 per cent health insurance coverage, leaving about 95 per cent of the populace paying out-of-pocket for health care services.
Nigeria enacted a law on health insurance coverage in 1999 and 21 years after, health insurance penetration is still abysmal, a development experts advised must be quickly addressed to allow more Nigerians access to quality and affordable health care. Read more
Estate surveyors reject Fashola’s monthly house rent proposal (Punch)
The Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers have rejected the monthly house rent proposal of the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola.
NIESV President, Emmanuel Wike, told journalists at a press briefing in Abuja on Sunday that although the institution would meet the minister on the matter, surveyors viewed Fashola’s position on monthly rent differently.
About two weeks ago, Fashola identified exorbitant amounts of rent, ranging from one to three years demanded by landlords and property owners before they let out their properties as the major cause of housing challenges in Nigeria.
The minister also dismissed the 17 million housing deficit figure being brandished in Nigeria, stressing that the claim had no scientific proof. Read more
Operators lament as car robbers stab FCT Uber driver to death (Punch)
An Abuja Uber driver, Akin Awojobi, has been stabbed to death by suspected car snatchers.
The slain driver, it was gathered, was attacked on Friday t around the National Mosque area and died at the National hospital, Abuja on Saturday as a result of the injuries he sustained.
Colleagues of the driver could not confirm to our correspondent if he was on a trip or not.
They, however, said his assailants attacked him, left him conscious, and left his car behind. Read more
DaBaby dropped by US music festival Lollapalooza (BBC)
US music festival Lollapalooza has dropped rapper DaBaby from its Sunday line-up over comments he made about people with HIV and Aids.
The Chicago festival tweeted that “Lollapalooza was founded on diversity, inclusivity, respect, and love.
“With that in mind, DaBaby will no longer be performing at Grant Park tonight.”
The rapper has been widely condemned for homophobic and derogatory comments he made about HIV and gay men. Read more
Dwayne Johnson celebrates his highest Rotten Tomato score ever with Jungle Cruise (Metro)
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson has taken to social media to celebrate his highest-ever Rotten Tomato score with Jungle Cruise, which released on Friday in cinemas and on Disney Plus via Premier Access.
The 49-year-old star, who is one of the world’s highest-grossing and highest-paid actors, stars as Frank ‘Skipper’ Wolff in the action-adventure comedy, which is based on the iconic Disney Parks attraction that Walt Disney conceptualised for Disneyland’s opening day in 1955.
The film had originally been sailing towards a summer 2020 release before Disney postponed its release amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Posting near-identical remarks on both Twitter and Instagram, the former wrestler wrote: ‘Just blown away. Thank you!!! Highest @RottenTomatoes audience score of my entire career ~ and that’s a long ass time cause I’m a dinosaur. Read more
Charity to reveal if Amber Heard donated $7M Johnny Depp divorce settlement (PageSix)
Johnny Depp snagged a victory in his court battle against ex-wife Amber Heard that will force a charity to reveal whether the actress lived up to her promises to donate her $7 million divorce settlement.
The “Pirates of Caribbean” star, 58, was granted a partial petition by a judge in New York that ordered the American Civil Liberties Union to release documents to confirm whether Heard, 35, donated the payout from their 2017 divorce, USA Today reported.
“Mr. Depp is most gratified by the Court’s decision,” Depp’s attorney Benjamin Chew the outlet in a statement.
His lawyers have alleged that Heard was lying about donating the entirety of her divorce settlement to the ACLU and to the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles — and may have cost him his libel case against a British newspaper in November 2020. Read more
Madagascar arrests generals over plot to kill President Rajoelina (BBC)
High-ranking army and police officials have been arrested in Madagascar in connection with a failed attempt to kill the country’s president.
The arrested include five generals and several active police officers, meaning 21 people are now being investigated over last month’s foiled assassination.
Authorities have also seized a gun and $250,000 (£180,000), local media said.
The attempt on President Andry Rajoelina’s life was among ongoing turbulence rocking the island nation. Read more
Ariana Grande encourages fans to get vaccinated to protect themselves against Delta variant (Metro)
Ariana Grande has encouraged her fans to get vaccinated in order to protect themselves against Covid-19 and the Delta variant.
The singer also revealed she herself has been vaccinated, although it is unclear if she has received both doses or just one.
Taking to Instagram, she posted a glam selfie of her wearing a face mask, and shared some important information on the Delta variant for her followers in the caption.
In particular, Ariana wants to help those who are ‘hesitant or curious’ about taking the Covid-19 vaccine to make their decision a lot easier. Read more
Zoom settles US class action privacy lawsuit for $86m (BBC)
Video-conferencing firm Zoom has agreed to pay $86m (£61.9m) to settle a class action privacy lawsuit in the US.
The lawsuit alleged that Zoom had invaded the privacy of millions of users by sharing personal data with Facebook, Google and LinkedIn.
It also accused Zoom of misstating that it offers end-to-end encryption and for failing to prevent hackers from “zoombombing” sessions.
The firm denied any wrongdoing, but has agreed to boost its security practices. Read more
Edo prepares ‘red carpet reception’ for Adegoke (Punch)
The Edo State Government has praised the outstanding performance of sprinter Enoch Adegoke, who reached the final of the men’s 100m event at the ongoing Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on Sunday.
It was the first time in 25 years a Nigerian male sprinter would reach the final of the Games but he was unable to finish the race after what looked like a hamstring injury after 40 metres of the race won by Italian Lamont Jacobs.
Edo State Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu, on Sunday commended Adegoke for his feat, noting that if not for the bad luck that hit the athlete, he was on the path to claim a medal for Nigeria at the event.
He said despite the outcome of the race, Edo State Government would give Adegoke a red-carpet reception when he returns to the country as he is a worthy ambassador of the state. Read more
Sebastian Vettel disqualified from Hungarian Grand Prix after finishing second (BBC)
Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel has been disqualified after finishing second in the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Officials were unable to take the mandatory one-litre sample of fuel from Vettel’s car after the race.
The decision would promote Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton to second place and extend his championship lead over Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to eight points.
But, unconventionally, for the time being Vettel has been left in the final results pending the appeal outcome. Read more
Nigeria plans building next generation of athletes – Dare (Punch)
Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, says Nigeria has started building a new generation of athletes who will take the country to new heights.
Dare, who spoke on the sidelines of the Tokyo Olympics in Japan, canvassed for support for consistent training and development of the country’s athletes.
“Nigeria should keep the plan that brought us here (Japan). It’s not just about medal winners but as many that meet the qualification standards in their chosen sports, experience matters at the Olympics,” Dare said.
“Most of the medal winners have been to two or more Olympics. I saw how lack of experience robbed two of our young and talented athletes of medals; Elizabeth Anyanacho in taekwando, Uche Eke in gymnastics and Esther Toko in rowing, who eventually secured a good Olympic classification. Read more
Italy’s Lamont Marcell Jacobs succeeds Usain Bolt as 100m champion at Tokyo 2020 (Metro)
Italy’s Lamont Marcell Jacobs succeeded Usain Bolt as the 100m Olympic champion at Tokyo 2020 after running 9.79 to become the first Italian to take gold in this event.
USA’s Fred Kerley claimed silver with a run of 9.84, while Andre De Graase picked up bronze with a 9.89 dash.
De Graase also finished third behind Bolt – who has since retired from sprinting – in Rio
Jacobs is also a long jumper, while he was crowned 60m sprinting champion at the European Indoor Championships this year. Read more
Tokyo Olympics: ‘Can we have two golds?’ – high jumpers share win (BBC)
An incredible Olympic high jump final ended with both Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim and Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi taking gold medals.
After an exhausting two-hour competition, the pair couldn’t be split, having recorded best clearances of 2.37 metres.
The athletes were offered an opportunity to take part in a jump-off.
But in a moment of sportsmanship, they agreed to share the title, sparking huge celebrations. Read more
Alexander Zverev follows up Novak Djokovic shock to seal historic Olympic gold (Metro)
Alexander Zverev dominated Karen Khachanov to win Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020, becoming the first German man to win the singles title.
Zverev, the fourth seed from Germany, had fought back from a set and a break down in the semi-finals to end Novak Djokovic’s Golden Slam hopes but there was no mental or physical hangover as he swept Khachanov, representing the Russian Olympic Committee, aside 6-3 6-1.His huge serve and heavy groundstrokes proved too much for Khachanov – who earned a late code violation for angrily whacking a ball into the empty stands – as Zverev produced another statement win, breaking the world No. 25 four times. Read more