Ex-NADECO chieftain, others granted bail in Lagos (ThisDay)
A Chief Magistrate’s Court, Yaba, Lagos has granted a chieftain of the defunct National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), Ralph Obioha, and four others bail after their arraignment.
The other defendants in the suit No: A/08A/2021 include Olotu Monday, John Sunday, Dairo Olawale, and Ifeanyi Okereke.
Obioha and the other defendants were arraigned on a five-count charge over alleged attack on the former Managing Director of First African Trust Bank, Yomi Tokosi. Obioha and Tokosi were alleged business partners.
When the accused were arraigned in court, they pleaded not guilty to the charges preferred against them. Read more
Again, Bi-Courtney, FAAN face-off over irreconcilable debts (Independent)
Fourteen years after the concession agreement between the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited (BASL), operator of Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos Terminal Two (MMA2), Lagos kicked off, controversies still trail the first Public-Private Participation (,PPP) exercise in the Nigerian aviation industry.
Since the commencement of the agreement in 2007, both parries have consistently accuse each other of not adhering to the terms and conditions of the contractual agreement, thereby leading to loss of revenues and unremitted funds.
While the Federal Government on Thursday through Sen. Hadi Sirika, the Minister of Aviation alleged that BASL was indebted to FAAN to the tune of N14 billion, the terminal operator insisted the agency owed it over N200 billion. Read more
Tears as TB Joshua is interred (Sun)
It was tears, sorrow and deep anguish at the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOA) as the remains of renowned televangelist and founder of the Church, Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua, was interred in the church premises in the Ikotun area of Lagos State.
The 57-year-old prophet was buried in the premises of his church in the presence of his widow, Evelyn; his children, family members, church members and other loved ones.
Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu; Wife of the Ooni of Ife, Olori Naomi Adeyeye; and other guests were in attendance at the interment service. Read more
Drivers license: FRSC commences computer-based test for applicants (Guardian)
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has ordered the commencement of Computer-Based Test (CBT) for fresh applicants of the National Drivers License in all Driving Schools nationwide.
The Corps Marshal, FRSC, Dr Boboye Oyeyemi, said this in a statement by the Corps Public Education Officer (CPEO), Mr Bisi Kazeem, on Friday in Abuja.
Oyeyemi said this is another great move towards enhancing the integrity of the National Drivers license. Read more
40 killed as bandits raid five villages in Zamfara (DailyTrust)
Bandits on Thursday killed at least 40 people in attacks on five communities in Faru district of Maradun Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
Thursday’s attacks are the latest in the series of deadly assaults on the state’s rural communities by armed men.
Customs generates N1tr, seizes 2,333 goods in 6 months
Northern youths to get agric innovation grant
The affected villages include Gudan Baushi, Gidan Adamu, Tsauni, Gudan Maidawa and Wari.
Residents told Daily Trust that dozens of unidentified gunmen arrived at the communities on motorcycles firing at them. Read more
NDLEA nabs 90-year-old, teenagers selling illicit drugs (Leadership)
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has arrested a 90-year-old man, Yusuf Yarkadir, for selling drugs to the youths in his Yarkadir village in Rimi local government area of Katsina State.
NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, said the nonagenarian confessed he has been selling cannabis sativa to the youths in his community for eight years due to their demand for the illegal substance.
Though he failed to disclose his source of supply, he, however, vowed that his arrest on Wednesday July 7, 2021 would now make him to back out of the business having tried in the past to stop the illicit trade without success. Read more
FG reopens Osubi Airstrip for commercial flight (Tribune)
The Osubi Airstrip in Osubi, Okpe Local Government Area of Delta State, was re-opened for commercial flight activities on Friday.
The Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, had, in March 2021, approved the reopening of the airstrip near Warri, for daylight operations in Visual Flight Rules (VFR) conditions.
At the official reopening ceremony on Friday, the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, expressed delight over the return of flight at the Airstrip shut down in February 2020. Read more
Police arraign woman, 27, for allegedly confining 4 pregnant girls in Enugu (Guardian)
The Enugu North Magistrates Court, on Friday, granted one Blessing Eze, standing trial over alleged slave trade and unlawful confinement of four pregnant girls, N500,000 bail.
Eze, 27, whose address was not provided on the charge sheet, had pleaded not guilty to the two count offences when the charges were read to her.
Following the application for bail by her counsel, Mr S.N Solomon, the Magistrate, Mr J.N. Achi-Kanu granted the accused bail with one surety in like sum.
Achi-Kanu directed that the address of the surety should be verified and means of identification submitted to the court. Read more
Polio resurges as Kano, Yobe, Jigawa record 12 cases (Leadership)
Hours after the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) through its executive director, Dr Faisal Shuaib, debunked the report of an outbreak of a new polio variant in some states of the federation, the Kano State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Aminu Ibrahim Tsanyawa, has confirmed one case of the virus in the state.
Tsanyawa also revealed that Yobe State has recorded six cases while there were five cases in the neighbouring Jigawa State.
He stated that the World Health Organisation (WHO) may be left with no option than to shift Nigeria off the pew of polio-free nations, as Kano has recorded a new case of circulating Derived Vaccine Polio Type 2 (cVDPV2).
LEADERSHIP checks at the Kano State Ministry of Health showed that Kano was yet to be free of the virus, which has the capacity of spreading like wildfire if urgent steps are not taken to curb it. Read more
Bangladesh factory fire: At least 52 people killed in overnight blaze (BBC)
A factory fire in Bangladesh has killed 52 people and injured 30 others, emergency services have said.
The blaze broke out on Thursday night at Hashem Food and Beverage factory in Rupganj, an industrial town near the capital Dhaka.
Authorities told AP news agency the fire took hold because of chemicals and plastics stored inside the building.
A fire service official told the BBC that casualty numbers could rise as many workers were unaccounted for. Read more
Pope to lead Sunday Angelus prayer from hospital (Guardian)
Pope Francis will lead Sunday’s Angelus prayer from the Rome hospital where he is recovering from colon surgery, the Vatican said Friday.
“The Angelus will be recited from the 10th floor of the A. Gemelli University Hospital,” spokesman Matteo Bruni said, adding Francis was continuing to improve following last Sunday’s operation.
The pope continues to “eat regularly” and has “resumed his work” just five days after the planned surgery for an inflammation of the colon, Bruni said in his daily update.
The 84-year-old also spends time going for walks in the hospital’s corridor and reading, he said. Read more
Netflix expands deal with ‘Bridgerton’ producer Shonda Rhimes (NYPost)
Netflix on Thursday expanded its deal with “Bridgerton” television producer Shonda Rhimes, adding feature films, gaming and live events to its pact with her company.
Netflix said the deal with Rhimes and her Shondaland Media company would give the streaming platform the opportunity to “exclusively produce, stream and distribute feature films as well as potential gaming and virtual reality content.”
“The pact currently includes a branding and merchandise deal for Shondaland Media content, which will now add live events and experiences,” the company said in a statement.
“Bridgerton,” a modern twist on Jane Austen-style historical romance, was a huge hit for Netflix and three more seasons have already been ordered. Read more
Teenager makes history at US spelling bee (BBC)
A teenage basketball prodigy has become the first African American to win the US Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Zaila Avant-garde, a 14-year-old from New Orleans, Louisiana, cruised to victory with the word “murraya”, a type of tropical tree.
To get to that point she had to spell out “querimonious” and “solidungulate”.
Despite practising for up to seven hours a day, she describes spelling as a side hobby – Zaila’s main focus is on becoming a basketball pro. Read more
Melinda Gates to quit foundation if unable to work with Bill (news.com.au)
Bill Gate’s divorce from Melinda Gates after 27 years could get uglier as compromising allegations have emerged from his past.
Bill Gates’ estranged wife, Melinda, has agreed to quit their foundation in two years if the pair cannot work together amid their divorce, their chief executive announced on Wednesday.
“Since their [divorce] announcement in May, Bill and Melinda have been true to their word and remained fully engaged in all aspects of the foundation’s work,” chief executive Mark Suzman wrote in an update to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s more than 1700 employees. Read more
Lil Wayne shuts down rumours he married girlfriend Denise Bidot (PageSix)
Lil Wayne is not a Lil husband.
The “How To Love” rapper shut down rumors that he and model girlfriend Denise Bidot tied the knot during an Instagram Live interview with Nicki Minaj on Thursday.
“The other day it was some tweets going on, and I was like, ‘Oh, what’s going on?’ and I texted you and I was like, ‘Oh, Congratulations. I can tell you’ve been in a good mood,’” Minaj told Weezy during the Livestream. “And I said, ‘Congratulations,’ because I thought you had gotten married.”
Wayne, 38, then took the opportunity to set the record straight on his relationship status.
“I’m so glad you asked me that. I did not get married,” he said. Read more
Val Kilmer film is poignant yet bittersweet, say critics (BBC)
A documentary chronicling the highs and lows of the life and career of US actor Kilmer has been described by critics as “poignant” yet “bittersweet”.
Val, which has just debuted at Cannes Film Festival, features 40 years of home recordings, including him speaking with a voice box post-cancer surgery.
The home recordings capture the Top Gun star’s “talent, intelligence, and gift for self-sabotage,” said Variety.
Kilmer has also starred in Batman Forever and The Doors.
He will reprise his role as Iceman this autumn in Top Gun: Maverick.
Variety’s Owen Gleiberman wrote: “He was onto the whole obsession with self-recording ahead of everyone else; he kept a video camera running at home, on movie sets, wherever he was.” Read more
Meet the German Olympian dubbed ‘the world’s sexiest athlete’ (NYPost)
Alica Schmidt should be on your radar.
The 22-year-old German track and field star has been dubbed “the World’s Sexiest Athlete” by a number of supporters and websites, but there’s much more to Schmidt than her voluminous blonde hair and stunning blue eyes.
Schmidt is officially Tokyo bound for this summer’s postponed 2020 Olympics, she confirmed in a post on Instagram on Saturday.
Schmidt will compete on the German team in the women’s 4×400 relay and the Games’ first 4×400 mixed relay, according to the Daily Star.
“Still feels unreal! I’m so grateful and at the same time thrilled to experience something I have been dreaming of since I started all of this!,” Schmidt captioned a photo that featured her posing in front of the Olympic Rings symbol. Read more
Bucks’ ‘brutal waste’ of Giannis madness in the NBA Finals game 2 (news.com.au)
Suns take game one over Bucks
Andrew McMurtry news.com.au
Giannis Antetokounmpo came to life in the second half of game two of the NBA Finals but his Milwaukee Bucks still fell painfully short of the Phoenix Suns.
The Suns opened up a 2-0 lead in the series with a comfortable 118-108 win.
But despite coming back from a sore knee to lead the Buck, it was Antetokounmpo that shouldered the burden for his team.
After a 12 point first half, Antetokounmpo piled on the points, finishing with a game high 42-points and 12 rebounds — becoming the first player in Bucks history to have 40-plus points, 10-plus rebounds in a Finals game. Read more
Brazen fan walks onto course, steals club out of Rory McIlroy’s bag (NYPost)
Another Open, another fan intrusion.
Less than three weeks after a streaking fan invaded the 13th fairway during the U.S. Open, an unruly spectator was ejected from the Scottish Open on Friday after crashing the green and plucking a club from Rory McIlroy’s bag.
In a video captured by David Wilson, the fan can be seen nonchalantly walking onto the No. 10 tee box while McIlroy, Jon Rahm and McIlroy’s caddie, Harry Diamond, gathered by McIlroy’s bag before teeing off. The fan calmly reaches into the bag and grabs a club while the stunned trio perform a series of double-takes.
After the intruder took a few practice swings, security intervened to escort him away from the scene. Read more
Fury v Wilder III: Fight off following Covid-19 case in Briton’s camp (BBC)
The trilogy fight between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder in Las Vegas on 24 July has been postponed after the Briton tested positive for coronavirus.
A source close to Fury told BBC Sport the WBC world heavyweight champion was deeply frustrated by the situation.
Fury tested positive on Thursday and after discussions with medical experts the fight was called off – it is likely to be rescheduled for October.
Wilder’s manager Shelly Finkel said: “Deontay is disappointed.” Read more
World reacts as Naomi Osaka breaks her silence in essay (news.com.au)
Tennis star Naomi Osaka has broken her silence after her withdrawal from the French Open and Wimbledon in an essay for Time Magazine’s Olympic issue.
Osaka sparked an international firestorm when she announced she wouldn’t be doing any press conferences at the French Open, citing a lack of care for athletes’ mental health.
It was a stance that split the tennis and wider sports world as fellow players distanced themselves from Osaka’s comments.
After the grand slams threatened to disqualify Osaka, the world No. 2 pulled out of the French Open after being fined following her first round match. She also pulled out of Wimbledon. Read more
Liverpool defenders Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez named in squad for pre-season training camp (BBC)
Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez have both been named in Liverpool’s squad for their pre-season training camp in Austria.
The centre-backs have both been out for extended periods of time with major knee injuries.
Van Dijk, 30, suffered his in the 2-2 draw with Everton on 17 October, whilst 24-year-old Gomez was injured on England duty in November.New £35m signing Ibrahima Konate has also been included. Read more