Forex crisis: Naira plunges to 1,025/$, job losses, factory shutdown loom (Punch)
The naira fell further on Tuesday as it exchanged for the dollar at the parallel market between 1,005/$ and 1,025/$.
Owners of small-scale enterprises, Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association, and manufacturers, who spoke to The PUNCH, expressed concern about the falling value of the naira, warning that it would lead to the shutting down of factories and attendant job losses.
The naira has maintained a downward trend since the Central Bank of Nigeria allowed a free float of the national currency against the dollar and other global currencies in June. Read more
Pregnant woman, motorcyclist rescued from Lagos auto crash (Vanguard)
A 35,000-litre tanker, belonging to Conoil Plc., which reportedly lost control on the National Stadium bridge, Surulere, Lagos, ran into a Volkswagen Golf saloon car with registration number KRD 810 EA, with two occupants on board.
Two persons, including a pregnant woman, in the car, and a motorcyclist, sustained injuries in the process.
The truck was said to have taken off from Apapa, heading to discharge its content in Ikeja area, when it had a brake failure.
Eyewitnesses said as the driver struggled to control the tanker, it trapped the saloon car. Read more
Bayelsa Gov’ship: Why court disqualified Sylva (DailyTrust)
A Federal High Court in Abuja has disqualified the Bayelsa State All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the November 11 governorship election, Timipre Sylva.
The judgement, delivered on Monday by Justice Donatus Okorowo, ruled that Sylva having been sworn in twice and ruled for five years as governor of Bayelsa would breach the 1999 Constitution as amended if allowed to contest again.
The judge also declared that Sylva was not qualified to run in the November poll because if he wins and is sworn in, he would spend more than eight years in office as governor of the state. Read more
Amid Scarcity: Litre of petrol sells for N700, N650 in Sokoto, Gombe, others (Leadership)
The price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, has increased in parts of the country after marketers adjusted their pumps to reflect the new price yesterday.
This measure by marketers stems from the rising cost of diesel which has disrupted distribution of products across the country.
LEADERSHIP reports that due to infrastructure challenges and inadequate depot facilities especially in the Northern part of the country, marketers rely mostly in trucking petroleum products to their service stations from long distances. The trucks run on diesel. Read more
Lagos sets 40% food self-sufficiency target (Guardian)
Lagos State Government has reiterated its commitment to achieving 40 per cent self-sufficiency in food production by 2025, from the current 20 per cent production level.
Commissioner for Agriculture, Abisola Olusanya, who disclosed this, yesterday, during a press conference on the 2023 World Food Day, said the roadmap developed by the ministry highlights plans to encourage youth participation, stimulate private sector investments, attract donor agency funding for agricultural projects and create new partnerships along the various agricultural value chains, especially where the state has competitive and comparative advantages.
“Today, we can proudly present the initiatives of Lagos State in the agricultural sector, which are the evidence of our unwavering dedication, and the resilience of our farmers.” Read more
Father in court for sexually molesting 2 underage sons (Punch)
A 38-year-old man, Afeez Gbadamosi, was on Tuesday arraigned before the Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence court by the Lagos State Government for allegedly sexually molesting his two underage sons who are between ages three and seven.
Gbadamosi is facing four counts of sexual assault and indecent behaviour preferred against him by the state.
The state prosecuting counsel, Abimbola Abolade, told the court that the incident occurred sometime between 2021 and 2022. Read more
General jailed 7 years by Army Court-martial for stealing N3b (Vanguard)
The Nigerian Army Special Court Martial, yesterday, convicted a former Group Managing Director of Nigerian Army Properties Limited, NAPL, Major-General Umaru Mohammed, to seven years imprisonment.
The court also ordered the convicted senior officer to refund $2.17 million dollars and N1.06 billion, being the amount of monies he stole, back to the company’s coffers.
Major General Umaru Mallam Mohammed, found guilty on October 4, 2023, of 14 out of 18 counts of charges preferred against him by the Nigerian Army, was sentenced by a Special Court Martial to seven years imprisonment. Read more
Impeachment: Court strikes out Ondo deputy governor’s suit (Nation)
An Ondo State High Court, sitting in Akure, has struck out a suit instituted by Deputy Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, for lack of jurisdiction and abuse of court processes.
Aiyedatiwa had approached the court to stop the House of Assembly from impeaching him for alleged gross misconduct.
At the last court sitting, Ondo Assembly filed a motion, challenging the competence of the substantive suit by relying on Section 188 (10) of the Nigerian Constitution. Read more
Fans predict new music as Dua Lipa wipes Instagram and changes profile picture (NME)
Dua Lipa Fans are predicting that a new era of music is on the way from the musician due to a change in her social media profiles.
The musician’s Instagram account was wiped and a new profile picture appeared on her X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram accounts. It’s of a light blue jewel-like material in which Dua Lipa is seemingly reflected.
The singer’s highly anticipated follow-up to 2020’s ‘Future Nostalgia’ has been teased for a few years. In March last year, she told Elton John that the record was “50 percent done”, before walking the statement back in December. “When I was speaking to Elton I really felt like I was halfway done,” she said. Read more
Malawi Begins Free Food Distribution to Hunger-Stricken Citizens (VOA)
Malawi has started distributing free corn and cash to more than 4 million people facing food shortages largely because of the impact of Cyclone Freddy, which washed away thousands of hectares of crops in March. The move is in response to a recent report that said the situation is expected to worsen until the next harvesting season in March 2024.
According to the report by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, the number of people projected to face hunger this year in Malawi has increased to 4.4 million from 3.9 million last year.
Charles Kalemba is the commissioner of the Department of Disaster Management Affairs in Malawi. He said the hunger response effort for this year would cost Malawi about $226 million. Read more
Jerry Seinfeld hints at return of Seinfeld (FarOut)
Jerry Seinfeld has teased a potential Seinfeld reunion during a recent stand-up performance.
Appearing at Boston’s Wang Theatre, the show’s co-creator and protagonist discussed “something” which will occur in the future regarding the show’s finale.
Seinfeld ended in 1998 after airing for 180 episodes. The two-part finale ended with some of the main characters on trial after they accidentally break a duty to rescue law. Over 76 million people tuned in to watch the ending of the beloved comedy, which was co-written by Larry David, who returned after leaving the series a few years before. Read more
“The Color Purple” musical film adaptation gets new trailer (UPI)
Warner Bros. Pictures is giving a glimpse of the new film “The Color Purple”.
The studio shared a trailer for the musical drama Tuesday featuring Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson and Danielle Brooks.
“The Color Purple” is based on the Broadway musical and Alice Walker novel of the same name. The film is written by Marcus Gardley and directed by Blitz Bazawule. Read more
Hailey Whitters’ “I’m In Love” is most added at country radio (AS)
Hailey Whitters continues her reign at country radio with her new single “I’m In Love.” The song is the most-added at country radio this week with 58 first-week stations. “I’m In Love” follows the success of the Top 20 single “Everything She Ain’t.”
In an interview with Whitters at Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival, the singer described the track as “fun.” “It’s very country-sounding,” Whitters tells American Songwriter. “It’s light, it’s fun.”
“I’m In Love” serves as the title track to Whitters’ latest EP, released in July. Nicolle Galyon, Lee Miller, and Cameron Bedell penned the song. Read more
Afghanistan hit by 2nd earthquake in days (BBC)
A second large earthquake has hit Afghanistan just days after a 6.3 magnitude quake in the same region killed more than 1,000 people.
The new quake, of the same magnitude, struck at around 05:10 local time (00:40 GMT) on Tuesday.
The epicentre is 28km (17 miles) north of the city of Herat.
The impact of the new quake is not yet clear, but many are already sleeping in the open after their homes were destroyed on Saturday. Read more
Major international airlines suspend flights to Israel amid war on Gaza (AlJazeera)
Leading international airlines have suspended or reduced flights to Israel’s capital Tel Aviv amid the conflict with Hamas and escalating attacks on Gaza.
About half of all scheduled flights at the airport did not operate on Sunday and a third were cancelled as of Monday evening.
American Airlines, Air Canada, Air France, Delta Air Lines, Egypt Air, Emirates, Finland’s Finnair, Dutch carrier KLM, Germany’s Lufthansa, Norwegian Air, Portugal’s TAP, Polish carrier LOT, Ryanair and United Airlines were among those suspending or reducing flight to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport. Read more
“D’Tigress’ path to Paris 2024 Olympics smooth, but also slippery” (Guardian)
Nigeria’s women national basketball team, D’Tigress, have been presented with the opportunity to make a back-to-back outing at the Olympic Games with the draws released by FIBA yesterday, a stakeholder, Sabinus Ikewuaku, has said.
He added, however, that the country could easily fail to make it to Paris if the team and the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) do not prepare adequately for the challenges ahead.
Nigeria has been drawn with defending champions, United States, Belgium, and Senegal in a qualifying competition to hold in Belgium. 12 other teams will battle for qualification in three other venues. The qualifying tournaments are due to be played between February 4 and 11. Read more
Why Cardiff stopped Collins from Eagles friendlies (Punch)
Cardiff City boss Erol Bulut says protecting Jamilu Collins is paramount hence the need to have the player withdrawn from Nigeria’s upcoming international friendlies against Saudi Arabia and Mozambique.
Nigeria take on the Green Falcons of Saudi Arabia in the city of Portimão, Portugal on Friday, October 13 before a clash with Mozambique in the same city three days later.
PUNCH Sports Extra had earlier reported that Collins was a major doubt for the friendlies but surprisingly, Super Eagles Portuguese coach Jose Peseiro invited the left-back for the game. Read more
UK, Ireland to co-host UEFA Euro 2028; Italy and Turkey land 2032 (France24)
The United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland will co-host Euro 2028, while Italy and Turkey will be joint hosts of the 2032 tournament, UEFA announced on Tuesday.
Both bids ran unopposed but still needed official approval from European football’s governing body, which they received at a meeting in Switzerland.
Turkey last week withdrew from the bidding process for Euro 2028, clearing the path for Britain and Ireland, who shelved plans to bid to host the 2030 World Cup to focus on staging the European Championship. Read more
Ex-Real Madrid, Chelsea forward Hazard retires from football (ABC)
Eden Hazard announced his retirement from professional football on Tuesday at the age of 32, bringing an end to his 16-year career.
The forward enjoyed successful periods at Lille and Chelsea before ending his club career with a disappointing spell at Real Madrid.
“You must listen to yourself and say stop at the right time,” Hazard wrote in an Instagram post. Read more
KSI told “cats hit harder” after training footage leaked ahead of Tommy Fury fight (Mirror)
Boxing fans have mocked KSI for leaked footage from his London Shootfighters training camp for Tommy Fury, with some joking that “cats hit harder” than the YouTube star.
The social media sensation has been put in the camp of a lifetime in order to prepare for Fury, with some footage even showing him struggling to stay conscious while working thoroughly through drills. But in a video that was initially resurfaced by former UFC fighter Darren Till, he can be seen punching the heavy bag slowly.
And after the clip was shared by Boxing Kingdom, fans of the sport from a more traditional background expressed their concerns about his abilities. The Twitter outlet had just days earlier been slammed by KSI for claiming that he wouldn’t beat Fury, with the YouTuber telling them to “f*** off”, and they were likely retaliating by sharing the footage, believed to be from earlier this year. Read more
Carlos Alcaraz told to be ‘‘careful’’ about obsessing over Novak Djokovic (Tennis365)
Carlos Alcaraz has been given some advice by tennis great Jimmy Connors following his recent comments about Novak Djokovic.
Two-time Grand Slam winner Alcaraz and Djokovic have enjoyed a great rivalry this season as they have played each other four times with each coming away with two wins.
The Spaniard won their Madrid Open encounter before Djokovic stormed back in the semi-final at Roland Garros. Alcaraz then turned the tables with a stunning win in the Wimbledon final, but his great rival proved that he is still the master with victory in an incredible match in the Cincinnati Masters final. Read more