ICPC nabs 25 suspected driving licence fraudsters in Lagos (Punch)
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has arrested 25 officials of Vehicle Inspection Office, Federal Road Safety Corps, Motor Vehicle Licensing Authority, and other persons in connection with driving licence and vehicle particulars fraud in Lagos State.
The operation which was carried out in collaboration with the Department of State Services and the FRSC was conducted in Ikeja, Somolu, Eti-Osa, and Anthony licence centres.
Other places were Ojo, Oshodi, University of Lagos, Surulere, Agege and Coker centres, all in Lagos.
The ICPC spokesperson, Azuka Ogugua, disclosed in a statement in Abuja on Thursday, that the commission received information that the officials connived with touts to extort extra fees from applicants before their driving licences and vehicle particulars were processed. Read more
UNILAG: Special visitation panel begins sitting on monday (Vanguard)
The Special Visitation Panel set up by the federal government to look into the lingering crisis at the University of Lagos, UNILAG will begin sitting on Monday.
The Monday date, it was gathered, is to allow all the necessary logistics for the welfare and accommodation of members to be put in place and to also allow stakeholders enough time to prepare memoranda to be submitted to the panel.
In a statement signed by the Secretary to the panel, Mrs Grace Ekanem, titled “Special Visitation Panel to the University of Lagos: Call for Memoranda,” sighted by our correspondent on Thursday, the Terms of Reference of the panel were listed as well as how the university community and other stakeholders could make submissions to it. Read more
Gridlock as fire guts car on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway (Punch)
There is gridlock at the long bridge, Warewa section of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
The PUNCH gathered that the standstill was caused by a fire outbreak.
It was learnt a car was gutted by fire in the middle of the bridge around 1.30 pm. Read more
LASU Senate elects Prof. Wahab as new Deputy VC (Vanguard)
The Senate of Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo, has elected Prof. Elias Wahab as the new Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academics) of the university.
Mr Ademola Adekoya, the institution’s Head of Centre for Information, Press and Public Relations, made this known in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos.
Adekoya said that the election took place through e-voting, Wahab defeating the other candidate for the position, Prof. Ayodeji Abari, by 88 to 43 votes.
“The Senate members of the university started the e-voting election at 12.00a.m and ended by 3:30 p.m, and the result was announced by Mr Olayinka Amuni, the Registrar of the university.
“Wahab is a Professor of Sociology, and current Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences. He succeeded Prof. Olumuyiwa Noah, whose tenure ended on Aug. 24, 2020, after serving for two consecutive terms of four years. Read more
Buhari fires Charles Dokubo, appoints Milland Dikio, as coordinator Amnesty programme (Vanguard)
Following allegations leveled against him, President Muhammadu Buhari, Thursday, sacked Charles Dokubo, and appointed Milland Dikio as interim coordinator of amnesty programme.
Disclosing this in a statement, Garba Shehu, said: “President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Col. Milland Dixion Dikio (rtd) as Interim Administrator (Amnesty Programme).
“This followed the President’s approval of the disengagement of Prof. Charles Quarker Dokubo from Office as the Coordinator, Amnesty Programme with immediate effect. Read more
Police arrest five for robbery in Ogun (Guardian)
Nigeria Police Force, Ogun State Command, on Thursday said it arrested five persons suspected for robbery on Monday.
The police spokesman in the state Abimbola Oyeyemi, in a statement, said the suspects were arrested prior to information received by the Deputy Police Officer (DPO) Sango division Godwin Idehai.
The suspects identified as Yusuf Ogundimu a.k.a Agbara, Moses Anthony a.k.a Opa, Moruf Olafimihan, Toheeb Shola and Adeyemi Afeez were arrested while robbing a motorcyclist, Oyeyemi said. Read more
Bill Gates, Dangote, others celebrate polio-free Nigeria, Africa (Punch)
Billionaire philanthropists Bill Gates and Aliko Dangote have hailed the declaration of Nigeria and Africa by the World Health Organisation as being polio-free.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the global health body on Tuesday certified Nigeria and the rest of Africa polio-free.
The WHO Africa Regional Certification Commission said the major milestone was achieved four years after the last recorded cases of wild polio in the country. Read more
Akinwuni Adesina reelected AfDB president (Vanguard)
African Development Bank president, AFDB, Akinwumi Adesina, has been reelected.
Adesina, who returned unopposed, formally requested for a second term as AfDB president, saying he was “doing it with an acute sense of duty and commitment. I do it to serve Africa and our bank, in an unbiased way, to the best of the abilities that God has given me.”
Adesina was cleared of controversial corruption charges after facing questions from a panel on the affairs of AfDB
An independent panel of experts, headed by former Irish president Mary Robinson, has cleared the beleaguered leader of the African Bank of Development (AfDB) of corruption, according to a report obtained by AFP. Read more
West Mathewson: South African conservationist killed by white lions (BBC)
A well-known South African conservationist has died after he was mauled by two white lions as he was taking them for a walk.
The wife of West Mathewson, who followed in a car, tried to distract the lions but it was too late.
He ran a popular safari lodge, Lion Tree Top Lodge, in Limpopo province.
The lionesses have since been moved to another game lodge and are expected to be released into the wild at a later stage. Read more
Tanzania approves 15 candidates for presidential election (Aljazeera)
Tanzanian President John Magufuli will face 14 challengers in elections scheduled for this October, the elections board announced, with analysts saying a divided opposition is likely to ensure he wins a second term.
His main challengers are likely to be Tundu Lissu, who returned to Tanzania last month after spending nearly three years in Belgium for treatment after he was shot during an assassination attempt, and ex-foreign minister Bernard Membe, who was expelled from the governing Chama Cha Mapinduzi party in February.
Opposition parties are heading to the polls without a coalition or alliance that helped them gain more votes in the last election. Read more
Mali junta says it has released ousted president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita (France24)
Mali’s new military rulers said Thursday that former president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, who was detained during the country’s coup on August 18, had been freed.
The announcement came on the eve of a summit by Mali’s neighbours, who are to decide whether to ratchet up pressure on the fledgling junta.
Keita’s ousting by rebel troops sent shockwaves through the region and in France, which sees Mali as a linchpin in its campaign against jihadism in the Sahel, where more than 5,000 French troops are based.
“President IBK is free in his movements, he’s at home,” a spokesman for the junta, Djibrila Maiga, told AFP, referring to Keita by his initials, as many Malians do. Read more
Syria war: Russian and US military vehicles collide (BBC)
The Russian and US governments have blamed each other for a collision between Russian and US armoured vehicles in north-eastern Syria in which several US troops were injured.
Video of the collision was broadcast by a Russian nationalist website, Rusvesna.su, then widely retweeted.
The video appears to show a Russian military vehicle in a desert convoy ramming a US armoured car, as a Russian helicopter flies low overhead.
Russia says the US obstructed a patrol. Read more
US economy suffers sharpest drop ever as GDP crashes nearly 32% during coronavirus peak (RT)
In the worst plunge ever recorded, the US economy contracted by 31.7 per cent in the second quarter at the height of the Covid-19 crisis, according to revised data released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis on Thursday.
The latest US gross domestic product (GDP) reading is slightly better than the estimate issued last month, when the agency said that the world’s largest economy shrank at an annual rate of 32.9 percent in the April-June period.
Despite the upward revision, based on better than previously estimated private inventory investment and personal consumption expenditures (PCE), the GDP drop is still the sharpest on record. The previous worst quarterly drop since tracking began in 1947 was observed in the first three months of 1958, when GDP fell 10 percent on an annualized basis. Read more
Hong Kong: China arrests 10 after intercepting boat ‘fleeing Hong Kong’ (BBC)
Chinese authorities have arrested at least 10 people after intercepting a boat believed to be heading to Taiwan from Hong Kong, local reports say.
China’s coastguard said the arrests were made on Sunday morning off the southern province of Guangdong, near Hong Kong.
Hong Kong media reports said those on board the vessel were trying to reach Taiwan to claim political asylum.
The reports said Hong Kong activist Andy Li was among those detained. Read more
TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer steps down amid feud with Trump administration (RT)
TikTok Chief Executive Officer Kevin Mayer has resigned, stating that the scope of his role as the head of the video-sharing platform was more than he could manage, as the company battles with Washington.
His decision to leave the company comes days after TikTok filed suit against the Trump administration over an executive order that prevents the video-sharing app from making business transactions in the United States.
General Manager Vanessa Pappas will become interim CEO of the firm, according to a memo seen by Reuters. Read more
Rangers, Nasarawa United gear up for 2020/21 NPFL season (Vanguard)
Ahead the 2020/21 season of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), indications are that the Clubs are determined to substantially comply with the provisions of the Club Licensing Requirements.
The League Management Company (LMC) had on August 6 sent a memo to all the 20 clubs with the Confederation of African Football (CAF)/ Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Licensing requirements.
The LMC had while noting that the Federal Government was yet to lift the ban on football activities as a result of the COVID 19 Pandemic, urged the clubs to begin to put in place those requirements that can be achieved within the ambit of the relaxation of the lockdown. Read more
Paul Pogba: Manchester United midfielder tests positive for coronavirus (BBC)
Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba has tested positive for coronavirus, says France manager Didier Deschamps.
The 27-year-old will have to self-isolate for 14 days.
He will miss France’s Nations League game in Sweden on Saturday, 5 September and the home game against Croatia three days later.
However, Pogba could be eligible for selection for United’s Premier League opener against Crystal Palace at Old Trafford on 19 September. Read more
As many as 6 Chelsea players reportedly test positive for Covid-19 (RT)
Frank Lampard’s rejuvenated Chelsea squad has been dealt a blow ahead of the start of the new season as eight players are told to self-isolate as the club deals with a spate of coronavirus infections.
Chelsea officials confirmed that a number of players – reportedly as many as six – have tested positive for Covid-19 upon their return to the club after a brief summer break, with a further two players also compelled to go into quarantine due to a potential risk of infection. Read more
Thabang Moroe: Cricket South Africa sack chief executive (BBC)
South African cricket’s governing body has sacked its chief executive Thabang Moroe for what it says were “acts of serious misconduct.”
Cricket South Africa (CSA) says the decision was based on legal advice after an independent investigation.
Moroe was initially suspended in December over the allegations.
In a statement, CSA said Moroe had “sufficient opportunity” to make representations to the CSA board which he “failed and/or refused to utilise.” Read more
US tennis event suspends play after Osaka pulls out citing ‘continued genocide of black people’ (RT)
Organizers of the ongoing Western & Southern Open in the US have postponed all matches, hours after Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka withdrew from the event to protest social injustice.
All matches in New York will be suspended until Friday in the wake of sporting boycotts triggered by the shooting of a black man, Jacob Blake, in Wisconsin.
The US Tennis Association (USTA) released a joint statement with the ATP and WTA explaining their decision to pause the games for one day.
“As a sport, tennis is collectively taking a stance against racial inequality and social injustice that once again has been thrust to the forefront in the United States. Read more
Lyon reaches 5th straight women’s Champions League final after beating PSG (France24)
Lyon reached the final of the women’s Champions League for the fifth straight time Wednesday after Wendie Renard scored with a 67th-minute header to secure a 1-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain.
Lyon will seek its fifth consecutive title in Sunday’s final against Wolfsburg, which defeated Barcelona in the other semifinal on Tuesday.
Both teams finished the match with 10 players. PSG’s Grace Geyoro was sent off in the 66th and Lyon’s Nikita Parris was ejected in the 75th, both with second yellow cards.
Wolfsburg will be trying to win its third European title after back-to-back triumphs in 2013 and 2014. Read more