Fraudster sent me fake alerts twice, says PoS operator (Punch)
A Point of Sale operator who plies her trade on Obafemi Awolowo Way, Ikeja, Lagos has lamented how a fraudster duped her twice by sending fake bank alerts to her.
The lady, who identified herself simply as Fiyinfoluwa, in an interview with our correspondent on Monday, said she lost N100,000 to the fraudster on Saturday.
She regretted that while the suspect was caught on his second attempt, he managed to escape in a waiting car. Read more
Lagos Assembly committee visits victims of demolished buildings (Vanguard)
The Lagos State House of Assembly Ad hoc Committee has visited those whose buildings were demolished by the State Task Force in Mosafejo Oworonshoki Community of the state.
The committee led by its Chairman, Mr Nureni Akinsanya (Mushin I Constituency), visited the area for an on-the-spot assessment of the demolished buildings on Tuesday.
The other members of the committee included, Mr Lukmon Olumoh, Mr Sanni Okanlawon, Mr Kehinde Joesph and Mr Obafemi Saheed. Read more
Election Tribunal: Fashola petitions IGP to probe claims he is drafting PEPC judgement (Tribune)
The immediate past Minister of Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to probe a claim that he and some All Progressives Congress (APC) lawyers are drafting the judgment for the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT).
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) is also seeking an investigation of further allegations that he not only supervised the rigging of the 2023 Presidential election in favour of President Bola Tinubu, but that he also wrote the judgment for Judges in the 2019 election tribunal that sealed Mohammadu Buhari Presidential election victory.
He requested the Police chief “to cause the publications to be investigated with utmost urgency and seriousness” noting that they have implications not only for his person but also for the “independence, impartiality, and integrity” of the judiciary. Read more
Niger: Lone protester storms Kano streets, says military action not viable (ThisDay)
A 23-year-old secondary school student, Adam Usman, has taken to streets of Kano in Kano State to protest against a move by the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS) for military action on Niger Republic.
Usman, who trekked about 15 kilometers, carrying a placard with an inscription: ‘I’m against any war in Niger Republic, dialogue is the best option, War will hurt both Nigerians and Niger citizens’, was sighted along Maiduguri road, Zaria road, Marhaba, Tarauni, Nassarawa, and Government House, but denied entry by the security operatives manning the gate.
The protestant, who wore new attire made with Nigerian and Nigerien flags, which he said signifies brotherhood, explained that waging a war against Niger Republic is like waging a war on Nigerian soil. Read more
Ganduje’s emergence creating tension in PDP, LP, says APC Professionals Council (Leadership)
APC Professionals Council has chided the ranks of opposition parties in the country, especially the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP) for coming under intense pressure over emergence of the former Governor of Kano state, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje as the national chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC).
The council in a congratulatory message co-signed by its National Director Hon. Seyi Bamigbade and National Deputy Director, Hon. Abba Rabbeu who also served as Senior Special Assistant On Political Awareness to the former Governor Ganduje said the opposition parties were currently jittery over the newly elected chairman who wields an array of experience in the management of humans and resources. Read more
Lagos PR Conference to address employment creation (ThisDay)
The Lagos State Chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), has announced that the tenth Lagos Public Relations Stakeholders’ Conference will address Employment Creation and Nation Building.
The August gathering, which will be held in Lagos, is expected to have in attendance some distinguished guest speakers and capture highlights of previous editions of the highly celebrated conference.
Speaking on the conference, the Chairman, Lagos NIPR, Mrs. Comfort Obot Nwankwo, explained that “the theme for this landmark edition, Stakeholders’ Conversations on Employment Creation and Nation Building, will discuss possible solutions to the increasing rate of unemployment and related issues in the country.” Read more
Landlur targets Africans in Diaspora to address housing deficit in Nigeria (Leadership)
Pan-African housing development organisation, Landlur, is targeting Africans in the Diaspora to enhance the real estate market across the continent, with Nigeria being its current primary focus.
Speaking to journalists at a press conference in Abuja on Monday, where he shared insights on innovative solutions for addressing Africa’s housing deficit, the CEO and founder of Landlur, Mr. Dipo Adesina, said over 170 million people of African descent that live all over the world present a formidable resource pool for the continent’s infrastructure development, including housing.
Adesina said that the idea of Landlur was birthed from seeing Africans in the diaspora wanting to invest back home but not having a trusted partner to work with especially since many had relied on family members and had been disappointed on many occasions. Read more
Hundreds gather to say goodbye to Sinéad O’Connor at funeral procession in Ireland (CNN)
Hundreds of people lined the streets to pay tribute to the late Irish singer Sinéad O’Connor on Tuesday, cheering, clapping and throwing flowers as her funeral cortege drove past her old house in Bray, County Wicklow, in Ireland.
O’Connor’s coffin was covered in blue, white and pink flowers. A photograph of the singer was also visible through the back window of the cortege. The singer died last month, aged 56.
Some in the crowd had been waiting for more than two hours, singing along and dancing to O’Connor’s music which was being played from a Volkswagen Beetle van draped in rainbow flags. Read more
Ne-Yo takes back apology for trans comments (Standard)
Famed R&B singer Ne-Yo has now taken back the public apology he has made for comments that had been widely received as transphobic.
During an interview with Gloria Velez for VladTV, the singer had said: “I just personally come from an era where a man was a man and a woman was a woman. And there was [sic] two genders, and that’s just how I rocked.”
The 43-year-old had added: “You could identify as a goldfish if you feel like, I don’t care. That ain’t my business.
“It becomes my business when you try to make me play the game with you. I’m not gonna call you a goldfish. But if you wanna be a goldfish, you go be a goldfish. We live in a weird time, man. We do.” Read more
Sylvester Stallone Netflix doc ‘‘Sly’’ to close Toronto Film Festival (THR)
“Sly”, Sylvester Stallone’s career-spanning documentary for Netflix, recalling the action icon’s famous performances in Rocky to Rambo to The Expendables, is set to close the Toronto Film Festival on Sept. 16 with a world premiere at Roy Thomson Hall.
While a Netflix title, Sly is a documentary film not covered by the SAG-AFTRA TV and theatrical agreements, so the Hollywood actor, writer, director and producer could potentially be in Toronto to walk the red carpet, though his presence is not assured amid the actors strike.
Stallone’s retrospective in Toronto follows a career resurgence on TV where he stars in the Paramount+ dramedy Tulsa King, which has been renewed for a second season, and his Paramount+ family reality show, The Family Stallone, which just finished airing its eight episodes and has also been renewed for a second season. Read more
‘‘Barbenheimer’’ stays atop U.K. box office as Meg 2, TMNT make strong debuts (Variety)
Barbie and Oppenheimer ruled the U.K. and Ireland box office for the third consecutive weekend with a combined £13.4 million ($17 million), per numbers from Comscore.
Warner Bros.’ Barbie topped the charts again with £7.9 million and now has a total of £67.5 million. In second place, Universal’s Oppenheimer collected £5.4 million for a total of £39.1 million.
In third position, Warner Bros.’ Meg 2: The Trench debuted strongly with £3.7 million, while Paramount’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem was close behind in fourth place with £3.6 million. Read more
Senior US Diplomat visits Niger for talks with country’s military leaders (VOA)
A top U.S diplomatic official has visited Niger to urge the nation’s new military rulers to restore the West African nation’s democratically elected president to power.
Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said on the social media platform X, formally known as Twitter, that she traveled to the capital Niamey “to express grave concern at the undemocratic attempts to seize power and urged a return to constitutional order.”
Nuland told reporters in a conference call Monday that she met with the “self-proclaimed chief of defense” Brigadier General Moussa Salaou Barmou and three other military officials during her visit, describing the talks as “extremely frank and at times, quite difficult.” Read more
Barry Keoghan movie to open BFI London Film Festival (RTE)
The Barry Keoghan-starring film Saltburn will open this year’s BFI London Film Festival.
Set in the mid-2000s, Keoghan plays student Oliver Quick, who struggles to find his place at Oxford University and finds himself drawn into the world of the charming and aristocratic Felix Catton, played by Euphoria actor Jacob Elordi.
Felix invites Oliver to Saltburn, his eccentric family’s sprawling estate, for a summer never to be forgotten. Read more
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 teases a surprise Captain Marvel crossover (DigitalSpy)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 might be the final movie of the series, but James Gunn couldn’t resist including some new characters that could have a big part to play in the MCU’s future.
Alongside the return of Cosmo (voiced brilliantly by Maria Bakalova), the threequel introduced Will Poulter’s Adam Warlock who, by the end of the movie, was part of the new Guardians team.
That new team, which we might see again, also included another powerful new character called Phyla, played by child actress Kai Zen. She’s one of numerous experiments by the High Evolutionary who we first see running round a giant hamster wheel, and she’s showing no signs of fatigue. Read more
Falcons among world’s best teams – Waldrum (Punch)
Super Falcons coach Randy Waldrum believes the 11-time African champions should rank among the best countries in women’s football, following their performance at the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Nigeria were knocked out of the competition 4-2 on penalties by England in the round of 16 on Monday after regulation and extra time ended goalless.
The Falcons were also the least ranked team in their group and qualified at the expense of Olympic champions Canada, who are currently ranked seventh in the world. They beat co-hosts Australia, who are 10th 3-2, before being forced to a goalless draw by No. 22 placed Ireland in their last group game. England, who beat the Falcons in the last 16, are the fourth ranked team in the world. Read more
Lauren James apologises for Lionesses red card with vow to ‘‘learn from my experience’’ (Standard)
Lauren James has apologised for her red card in England’s last-16 win over Nigeria at the Women’s World Cup.
England reached the quarter-finals by beating Nigeria on penalties after a 0-0 draw, but spent extra-time down to ten players after VAR spotted James’ stamped on Michelle Alozie’s back after losing the ball.
After the game, Alozie stated her “respect” for the Lionesses star via social media. She tweeted: “We are playing on the world’s stage. This game is one of passion, insurmountable emotions, and moments. All respect for Lauren James.” Read more
Chelsea’s Christopher Nkunku could be out until December after knee surgery (IrishIndependent)
Chelsea forward Christopher Nkunku is set for an “extended period” on the sidelines after the Blues confirmed their summer signing has undergone knee surgery.
The 25-year-old France international moved to Stamford Bridge from RB Leipzig for a reported £52 million but suffered an injury in Chelsea’s pre-season draw against Borussia Dortmund in Chicago.
“Nkunku has sustained a knee injury which will rule the forward out for an extended period,” Chelsea said in a short statement confirming the attacker had gone under the knife. Read more
Carlos Sainz camp speak out on rumours Ferrari star has signed a deal to join new F1 team (Express)
A member of Carlos Sainz’s entourage has denied rumours that the Spaniard has agreed a deal to join Sauber for the 2025 season ahead of their Audi rebrand, instead reiterating his desire to secure a new, long-term contract with Ferrari. Sainz’s desire to be a team leader was cited as the driving force behind the switch.
However, according to Motorsport.com Italy, the Spanish driver has signed no such agreement, with an anonymous member of his camp confirming “Plan A is Ferrari. Plan B is Ferrari, and plan C is also Ferrari.”
While Sainz’s camp has denied the rumours linking him to the Audi project, there is likely to be some interest in the move, at least on the side of the German manufacturer. The project will be headed by Andreas Seidl, who worked with the 28-year-old during their time at McLaren and is familiar with the workings of the ‘smooth operator’. Read more
South Africa World Cup squad: Handre Pollard and Lukhanyo Am miss out on selection (BBC)
Fly-half Handre Pollard and centre Lukhanyo Am have been left out of South Africa’s 33-man Rugby World Cup squad through injury.
Both players started in the World Cup final win over England in 2019.
“This was one of the hardest selections we have ever had to make,” said Springboks head coach Jacques Nienaber.
Captain Siya Kolisi, 32, has been included having not played since April after he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. Read more
Moises Caicedo gets desperate as Chelsea call Brighton’s bluff with transfer alternative (Mirror)
Chelsea target Moises Caicedo missed training for Brighton on Monday amid suggestions that the in-demand midfielder is frustrated over his club’s reluctance to sell him.
Caicedo, 21, has been vying for a move throughout the summer transfer window but Brighton are said to be demanding as much as £105 million for him – the same amount that Arsenal paid West Ham to sign Declan Rice last month. Brighton’s lofty asking price has prompted Chelsea to search for cheaper midfield solutions, with September 1’s deadline day edging closer.
The Blues have had a series of transfer bids rejected for Ecuador international Caicedo but now appear to have found a handy alternative, Leeds star Tyler Adams. The United States captain reportedly has a £20 million release clause in his contract, having been relegated with the Yorkshire side last season. Read more