I begged Shepherd Aso to flee from mob attack, says wife (Nation)
Funmilayo, the wife of Lagos popular Celestial Church of Christ (CCC) priest, Shepherd Aso James, has said she advised her husband to run away from the mob that beat him to pulp at the weekend.
She said he refused the advice stating it would give a wrong impression of him, believing the Holy Spirit will touch the hearts of his attackers.
An angry mob of Hausa urchins protesting the death of a labourer Dogo attacked the cleric, who is said to be between life and death after the incident. Read more
Subsidy removal: JUSUN, NASU, NULGE, others mobilise members ahead NLC’s strike (Tribune)
As Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) prepares for Wednesday’s nationwide strike against the recent fuel subsidy removal by President Bola Tinubu, more affiliate unions of the Congress have directed their State Chapters and Councils Chairmen across the Federation to commence mobilisation and sensitisation of their members for a total and comprehensive industrial action.
The unions in letters addressed to their State Chapters and Councils’ Chairmen directing them to commence mobilisation, described the subsidy removal and newly fixed pump price as insensitive to the excruciating economic hardship workers and Nigerians are already suffering, therefore must be rejected and reversed until kickstarted negotiation between government and labour is concluded and agreement reached.
Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) in the directive letter signed by M. J. Akwashiki for the General Secretary, reads; “This is to inform all Branches and chapters of our great union across Nigeria to begin mobilisation for a nationwide action and withdrawal of service which would commence on Wednesday 7th June 2023. Read more
Tinubu in meeting with Wike, Umahi, Akpabio at the Villa (Sun)
President Bola Tinubu is currently meeting with former Rivers State governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, former Ebonyi State governor, Dave Umahi and Godswill Akpabio, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
This is the second time the President will be meeting Wike, having met him in the Villa last Friday, along with the Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde, and former Delta State governor, Chief James Ibori.
Although the reason for the visit of the former governors and Akpabio, also a former governor of Akwa Ibom State was not known as at press time, Read more
LAWMA demolishes illegal structures, clears street traders at Lekki-Epe expressway (Guardian)
The Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) has demolished shanties and other illegal structures constructed by street traders and traffic vendors, along the First and Second Toll Gates along Lekki-Epe Expressway.
Lawma disclosed this in a post on their Instagram account.
The agency stated that the Lekki-Epe Expressway has become notorious for traffic congestion and other environmental issues largely aided by the illegal activities of the vendors. Read more
Estate developer in court for duping church of N65m (Punch)
An estate developer, Kelly Nwogu, was on Friday remanded by the Federal High Court in Lagos for allegedly obtaining N65m from a church under false pretence.
The defendant is facing three counts of conspiracy, obtained by false pretence and fraudulent conversion, preferred against him by the Police Special Fraud Unit.
Nwogu was arraigned alongside his company, Livelihood Homes Limited, and others still at large before Justice Peter Lifu. Read more
Corruption Allegation: Court dismisses Keyamo’s case against Atiku (Vanguard)
The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, on Monday, dismissed the suit seeking to compel anti-graft agencies in the country to arrest and prosecute a former Vice President and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the recent presidential election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
The court, in a judgement that was delivered by Justice James Omotosho, held that the suit, which was filed before it by the immediate past Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Mr Festus Keyamo, lacked merit.
Justice Omotosho held that the plaintiff was unable to disclose any reasonable cause of action in the suit to warrant the court to exercise its discretion in his favour. Read more
IGP urges Police managers to develop proactive measures ahead of NLC strike (Channels)
The Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, says the police are gearing up for any possible security threat during the planned industrial action by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
He made the declaration on Monday during a meeting with strategic police managers at the Force Headquarters in Abuja.
The inspector general stated that the police would improve efforts to maintain law and order, especially as the nation prepares to mark the 2023 Democracy Day. Read more
Anxiety as political thugs ‘‘invade” Ogun Election Tribunal (NewTelegraph)
Suspected political thugs, on Monday “invaded” the Magistrate court, the venue of the Ogun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Isabo, Abeokuta.
The thugs in their large numbers came to support their political parties as the Tribunal began sitting.
Some of the thugs were seen holding canes as a minor clash broke out between supporters of two major political parties – the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). Read more
“Barbie” production designer says film’s use of fluorescent pink caused a shortage (NBC)
When you think of Barbie, one colour typically comes to mind: pink.
For the set of the upcoming “Barbie” movie, which is slated to be released in July, the production team couldn’t get enough of the color and even caused a worldwide shortage, says production designer Sarah Greenwood.
There was so much of the color used in set construction that it led to an international shortage of the fluorescent shade made by paint company Rosco, Greenwood told the publication.
“The world ran out of pink,” she said.
Director Greta Gerwig told Architectural Digest in an interview that she wanted the pinks to be “very bright, and everything to be almost too much,” adding that she didn’t want to “forget what made me love Barbie when I was a little girl.” Read more
Priyanka Chopra shows off insane abs in crop top and skirt with high slit (Hello!)
Priyanka Chopra wowed fans and family alike as she enjoyed a night out partying at Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour over the weekend. The Citadel actress attended one of the “Love on Top” singer’s London concerts with her mom and her friend Tamanna Dutt, and looked amazing while doing so.
Stepping out for the evening in a black ensemble, Priyanka’s clingy look was cut at the waist in order to show off her impressively toned body, and also featured a slit skirt so that her gorgeous legs were also on show. The Bollywood and Hollywood star’s look also features some rainbow-colored string tie bows and similarly strapped high heeled sandals.
Quoting from the famous singer’s song ‘Formation’, the 40-year-old actress – who is married to Jonas brother Nick Jonas – captioned her collection of photos from the night which she shared on Instagram: “I dream it, I work hard. I grind ’til I own it, I twirl on them haters.” She then added: “Damn! What a woman and what a night.” Read more
Studio Ghibli will release “How Do You Live?” without any promotional material (FarOut)
Studio Ghibli will release the final film of Hayao Miyazaki’ s “How Do You Live?” without any promotional material, meaning it will not get a trailer or any marketing before it arrives in Japan on July 14th.
Of course, there is little known about the film because of that, but Miyazaki’s swan song is still one of the most anticipated releases to come out of East Asia for many years, a testament to the studio’s prowess.
The film is said to be loosely inspired by Genzaburo Yoshino’s 1937 novel “How Do You Live?” which is a coming-of-age novel about a young boy’s emotional journey following the death of his father. Read more
There is no law to empower GHAMRO to charge for music play – Rex Omar (MyJoy)
The Chairman of the Interim Directors of the Ghana Music Rights Organisation (GHAMRO), Rex Omar has explained why they are not able to make unit charges for songs played by music users.
He said on Showbiz A-Z on Joy FM that a law that is required to give them the power to charge how much a single play of a song costs is non-existent.
He said because of that they only rely on data of the number of plays from their third party company Global Music Monitoring to do the calculation. Read more
NCT’s Taeyong makes solo debut with video game-inspired ‘‘SHALALA’’ music video (NME)
NCT member Taeyong has made his long-awaited solo debut with his mini-album and single ‘‘SHALALA’’.
On June 5 at 6pm KST, the idol unveiled his first mini-album ‘SHALALA’ and the music video for its lead single of the same name. The flashy video game-inspired visual sees Taeyong jumping the metaverse after successfully hacking into a massive computer system. He goes on to win a series of games, from bowling to poker.
“We got the bounce / Wow wow wow wow / Bounce (we jumpin’ around) / We got the bounce / Wow wow wow wow,” he chants in the chorus. Read more
Why humans are surprisingly bad at being happy (BT)
Sometimes, it’s really hard to be happy. And there’s a reason for that: The human brain isn’t hard-wired for happiness. Why? Because happiness isn’t essential for survival. To make matters worse, our minds can deceive us when it comes to happiness, leading us to chase things that won’t make us happy in the long run.
To solve for this, Yale psychology professor Laurie Santos recommends a set of practices, dubbed “re-wirements.” These practices include prioritizing social connection, being other-oriented, focusing on gratitude and blessings, and incorporating exercise into our daily routine.
By understanding the common pitfalls of our thinking and adopting new behaviors, we can achieve true happiness, and make it last. For Santos, happiness isn’t just a state; it’s an ongoing practice. Read more
Sonic boom as US fighter jets intercept plane that later crashed (BBC)
US fighter jets scrambled at supersonic speed to intercept an unresponsive plane as it flew over Washington DC on Sunday.
The F-16 jets caused a loud sonic boom that was heard around the region, prompting concern from some residents.
They were deployed after the plane entered some of the most heavily restricted airspace in the country and failed to respond to the authorities.
It then crashed in a rural area of Virginia after a rapid descent. Read more
FIFA U-20 World Cup: Flying Eagles didn’t disgrace Nigeria, says NFF (Nation)
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) have commended the Flying Eagles for giving a good account of themselves at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Argentina.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Flying Eagles after quite an impressive showing at the tournament, were able to make it to the quarter-finals where they faced Korea Republic.
Two-time runners-up Nigeria dominated for large parts of the game but were eliminated from the tourney by a single goal on Sunday as Korea Republic surged into the semi-finals for the second successive tournament. Read more
Steph Houghton: Manchester City captain signs new 1-year contract (BBC)
Manchester City captain Steph Houghton has signed a new one-year deal.
The 35-year-old has been at City since their formation in 2014 and will reach a decade at the club next year.
The defender, who is not in England’s World Cup squad for this summer, has won eight trophies, including one Women’s Super League title, in 233 games for City. Read more
Thilo Kehrer and West Ham eyeing European silverware (RTE)
Thilo Kehrer has urged his team to write their names into the West Ham history books by winning the Europa Conference League final.
The Hammers face mid-table Serie A side Fiorentina in Prague on Wednesday night with the aim of lifting their first major piece of silverware for 43 years.
The 1980 FA Cup was their most recent major trophy while their solitary success in Europe was clinching the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1965. Read more
Andy Murray: 2-time Wimbledon champion opens grass season with win at Surbiton Trophy (Sky)
Andy Murray’s bid to be seeded for the men’s singles draw at Wimbledon began with a convincing victory over Chung Hyeon in the first round of the Surbiton Trophy.
Less than seven miles separate the Surbiton Racket and Fitness Club and the courts of the All England Club but Murray’s journey has started with a 6-3 6-2 victory in the sunshine.
“The body was good and I’ve been working a lot on my movement that last few weeks to get that sharpness which is such an important part of my game,” said Murray. Read more
Viktor Hovland uses late birdie, playoff to steal victory at Memorial (USAToday)
Viktor Hovland finally bagged a PGA Tour win at one of the biggest events.
The 25-year-old Norwegian made a two-putt par from 58 feet on the first playoff hole to defeat Denny McCarthy and win the Memorial on Sunday.
“I don’t want it again,” Hovland said of the decisive putt with his trademark smile. Read more
Mercedes fined 10k euros over physio breach (StraitsTimes)
Spanish Grand Prix stewards fined Mercedes 10,000 euros (S$14,466) on Sunday for a breach of Formula One’s post-race procedures after driver physios entered areas that were off-limits.
Lewis Hamilton and George Russell finished second and third respectively at the Circuit de Catalunya, the team’s first double podium of the season.
The stewards said video evidence confirmed physios or assistants to Hamilton and Russell entered the ‘parc ferme’ area “in violation of the post race interview and podium ceremony procedure”. Read more