Food prices still high but rebased inflation good for investors – Alaje (Channels)
An economist, Paul Alaje, says the rebased inflation by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is good for investors’ confidence but has not changed the economic realities, including high food prices that Nigerians grapple with.
“Before this announcement, food inflation alone was about 51.8%, but in this new figure, food inflation of the total inflation now accounts for only 40%,” he said on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Tuesday.
“That does not mean that if you go to the market tomorrow that the price of food has improved, that will be a lie, our reality remains the same. Read more
Lagos-Abuja bullet train to cut travel time to three hours (Guardian)
Nigeria’s transport sector is set for a revolution as the Lagos-Abuja High-Speed Bullet Train gains momentum, reducing travel time between both cities from 12 hours to just 2–3 hours.
The Director of Operations at Geofocus Consortium, Engineer Yinka Idris, in a statement made available to journalists on Tuesday, described the project as a milestone in Nigeria’s development.
Idris lauded President Bola Tinubu’s administration for prioritising infrastructure and fostering Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) to drive economic growth. Read more
Kidnappers kill 2 FCT residents over delay in ransom payment (DailyTrust)
Kidnappers have reportedly shot dead two people in their captivity over a delay in the payment of ransom in Gwargwada, Kuje Area Council of the FCT.
Our reporter learnt that the two victims, Mohammed Danladi and Nasiru Yusuf, who are natives of Gwargwada village, were abducted alongside a herder and a woman at Gwombe junction, along the Gwargwada-Rubochi road on Wednesday.
A member of the deceased’s families, Shuaibu Abdullahi, who spoke to our reporter over the phone on Sunday, said the kidnappers demanded N500,000 each for the two victims but that the families were only able to raise N500,000. Read more
Lagos Assembly says Tinubu’s wife not involved in crisis (Punch)
The Lagos State House of Assembly has distanced the wife of the President, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, from the crisis rocking the assembly.
This was made known in a statement issued by the House spokesperson, Olukayode Ogundipe, on Tuesday.
There have been speculations alleging that President Bola Tinubu’s wife may be backing the ousted Speaker of the Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa. Read more
Lagos targets safer motherhood, family planning in new reproductive health policy (Independent)
The Lagos State Government, in collaboration with the Saving One Million Lives Program for Results (SOMLPforR), has taken a bold step in strengthening reproductive health services by domesticating the National Reproductive Health Policy.
The five-day workshop which was held in Lagos brought together stakeholders from across the health sector to refine and adapt the policy framework to align with the state’s unique healthcare challenges.
Organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Health, the workshop aimed to create a more inclusive and effective policy that enhances maternal and child health services. Experts from public health, the private sector, traditional medicine, and government agencies engaged in detailed discussions on ways to improve reproductive health outcomes. Read more
We’re not to blame for FUNAAB lecturer’s death – Ogun govt (Vanguard)
Ogun State Government on Tuesday said it would not take responsibility for the death of a resident of Wole Soyinka-Kemta-Idi-Aba-Somorin road, Prof. Oladipo Ademuyiwa.
The professor of Biochemical Toxicology at the Federal University of Agriculture (FUNAAB) was killed by a hit-and-run driver on February 16.
Dr Ayo Ajasa, the Chairman, Ajebo Road Housing Estate CDA, described the tragic loss of the university lecturer in a statement on Tuesday as very avoidable had the government of the state heeded the community’s several pleas in the past on the need to install speed breakers on the road. Read more
Jonathan faults deployment of military for elections (DailyTrust)
Former President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday faulted the deployment of military personnel for election duties in Nigeria, arguing that it overstretched the military, whose primary responsibility lies elsewhere.
He noted that in many other countries, particularly developed ones, officers of the air force and army are only used to transport election materials to high-risk areas, rather than providing security at polling units, as is done in Nigeria.
Jonathan made the remarks at the Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, during the launch of books on internal and election security written by former Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase. Read more
PSC promotes 3 CPs to AIGs (Nation)
The Police Service Commission (PSC) on Tuesday approved the promotion of Commissioner of Police (CP) Garba Ahmed, CP Yobe State Command; Nemi Edwin Osigoboka Iwo, CP Border Patrol and CP Salman Garba Dogo, CP Kwara State Command to their next rank of Assistant Inspectors General (AIG) of Police.
CP Ahmed from Katsina State was former Deputy Commissioner, Operations, Enugu State Command and Oyo State respectively.
CP Iwo was formerly CP CTU, Force Headquarters, CP Force Intelligence and CP Edo state Command. Read more
Shakira medical record leak sparks Peru investigation (France24)
Peruvian authorities threatened sanctions and hefty fines Tuesday as they investigated how popstar Shakira’s medical records were leaked following her treatment at a Lima clinic.
The 48-year-old four-time Grammy-winning Colombian singer-songwriter was taken to the emergency room on Saturday for an abdominal condition, forcing her to scrap a blockbuster Sunday show.
Shortly after her brief hospitalization, her medical report appeared on social media, sparking widespread outrage among fans and an official investigation. Read more
UN human rights chief accuses M23 rebels of ‘‘summary executions’’ in DRC (AlJazeera)
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk on Tuesday accused Rwanda-backed rebels, who seized a second major city in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, of killing children and attacking hospitals and warehouses storing humanitarian aid.
Turk said in a statement on Tuesday that his office “confirmed cases of summary execution of children by M23 after they entered the city of Bukavu last week. We are also aware that children were in possession of weapons”.
He did not refer to specific events, but UN agencies have previously accused both Congolese government forces and the rebels of recruiting children. Read more
Model Sophie Dahl’s actor father dies aged 80 (IrishIndependent)
Julian Holloway, star of Carry On films and the father of model Sophie Dahl, has died aged 80.
The British actor played various characters across the comedy films Carry On Doctor, Carry On Up The Khyber, Carry On At Your Convenience, Carry On Henry, Carry On Camping and Carry On England.
His agent Damn Good Voices said he died recently, and will be missed. Read more
Kevin Spacey hits back at Guy Pearce in scathing video (DailyMail)
Kevin Spacey has hit back at Guy Pearce’s claims he was ‘scared of him’ on the set of 1997 film, LA Confidential.
The disgraced star, 65, who has been hit by another sexual abuse claim, was blasted by his former co-star, 57, who said on the Awards Chatter podcast, Guy revealed: ‘I was scared of Kevin, he’s quite aggressive, extremely charming [and] holds a room remarkably. I was young and susceptible.’
He added that he felt more comfortable around Kevin when his co-star and fellow Aussie Simon Baker (formerly Denny) was on set. Read more
Rihanna takes kids to court to support A$AP Rocky during assault trial (MusicNews)
Rihanna has taken her sons to court to support their dad, A$AP Rocky, in his assault trial.
The singer took the couple’s children, RZA, two, and Riot, one, to watch the proceedings on Thursday.
Both boys were wearing suits.
One onlooker revealed that the “kids are well-behaved, particularly given how young they are and what they’re doing – sitting quietly in a courtroom packed with strangers,” adding that Rihanna had a children’s book out for Riot. Read more
The Jam drummer Rick Buckler dies aged 69 (BBC)
Rick Buckler, former drummer in The Jam, has died at the age of 69, his ex-bandmates have confirmed on social media.
The Jam rose to fame in the punk and new wave era of the late 1970s and are credited with inspiring a revival in mod fashion and music.
The band were led by singer and guitarist Paul Weller, who posted on X that he was “shocked and saddened” by Buckler’s death. Read more
Pope Francis, 88, fighting double pneumonia in hospital (Independent)
Pope Francis remains in hospital after being diagnosed with double pneumonia.
The 88-year-old pontiff has shown the onset of “bilateral pneumonia” and his condition “continues to present a complex picture”, the Vatican said on Tuesday. Bilateral means it is present in both lungs.
The Holy See earlier cancelled a number of events over the weekend, casting uncertainty over further upcoming Holy Year events. Read more
NFF mourns midfield pearl, Ayo Ogunlana (Nation)
The Nigeria Football Federation has condoled the family of former Nigeria international midfielder Ayo Ogunlana, who died in Kaduna on Friday after observing his early-morning walk.
NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, showered tributes on the departed midfield pearl, who was a star attraction during a number of important Nigeria FA Cup battles in the 1980s and held sway in the middle for the Super Eagles in the late 1980s, and at the 1990 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Algeria.
“We are very sad to learn of the sudden passing of Ayo Ogunlana, only a couple of weeks after the demise of another former Eagle, Moses Effiong (a member of the 1980 AFCON-winning Green Eagles squad, in far-away USA). Ogunlana was a great midfielder who made playing football look so easy with his majestic touches and turns, and his magnificent free-kicks. Read more
Bayern edge out Celtic to reach Champions League last 16 as Milan are dumped out (JapanToday)
Bayern Munich needed a stoppage-time goal to see off Celtic and secure a place in the last 16 of the Champions League on Tuesday, while AC Milan were dumped out by Feyenoord and both Club Brugge and Benfica also advanced.
In Germany, Bayern were defending a 2-1 lead over Celtic in their play-off tie from last week’s first leg but the Bundesliga leaders were unable to put the tie to bed, with Harry Kane hitting the bar before half-time.
Instead it was Celtic who went ahead on the night on 63 minutes thanks to Nicolas Kuehn, the former Bayern player, who slotted low into the net after a failed attempt to win the ball by Kim Min-jae. Read more
Guardiola tells Real Madrid to back off referees after Jude Bellingham red card complaints (IrishExaminer)
Pep Guardiola has told Real Madrid to back off the referees as their complaints over Jude Bellingham’s recent sending off continue to rumble.
England international Bellingham was dismissed for foul language in Real’s weekend LaLiga draw at Osasuna after apparently swearing in the direction of the referee.
A row has erupted over what Bellingham actually said with club and player insisting he used the term “**** off” as an expression of frustration in English, rather than the insult “**** you”. Read more
Hamilton “invigorated” by Ferrari move at F1 launch (BBC)
Lewis Hamilton made his first global appearance as a Ferrari driver as Formula 1 launched its 2025 season with a glitzy, ground-breaking show at London’s O2 Arena.
Hamilton, whose first laps in a Ferrari were watched at the team’s test track by a few hundred fans in Italy last month, was the star attraction during the two-hour show on Tuesday, and received the biggest cheers.
But many of the drivers drew huge reactions from the 15,000 crowd at the event, tickets for which sold out in 20 minutes last year. Read more
More than cricket as Pakistan hosts 1st major tournament in 29 years (TheNamibian)
Pakistan will host a first major cricket tournament in almost three decades from Wednesday in a move hailed as a landmark just a few years after the country was off-limits because of security fears.
Staging the Champions Trophy in three cities over the next two-and-a-half weeks will be a huge boost to the South Asian nation’s reputation if authorities can pull it off smoothly and safely.
“Convincing the world that Pakistan is a safe country and that it is capable of delivering such a global event from an administration point of view took serious hard work and convincing,” former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja told AFP. Read more
Alex De Minaur enjoys late birthday gift with Qatar Open win (DailyMail)
Alex de Minaur has enjoyed a belated birthday present by battling into the last-16 of the Qatar Open with a straight-sets victory over stubborn Russian Roman Safiullin.
Australia’s No.1 had spent his 26th birthday on Monday on the practice courts at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in Doha, and emerged in a sharp mood the day after as he wore down some late resistance from the former Wimbledon quarter-finalist Safiullin to triumph 6-1 7-5.In difficult, blustery conditions on Tuesday, it was the ideal start for de Minaur, who has been handed a pretty kind early draw in his latest quest to win an ATP 500 tournament after being beaten in the final in Rotterdam nine days earlier. Read more