Kaduna: Bandits shoot 1, kidnap 6 in Millennium City (Sun)
Bandits on Friday night attacked Ungwan Maaji, in the New Millennium City area, Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State, shooting one person and whisking away six others.
The attackers according to survivors stormed the area around 9:10 pm and attacked a house close to an Eye Hospital, where they abducted a housewife and her house help.
Residents of the area said the bandits attacked another house on the same street, where they abducted four other persons. Read more
DSS recovers 18 bags of currency, documents from Emefiele’s Lagos residence (Tribune)
No fewer than 18 Ghana-must-go bags containing money and documents have been carted away by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) from the residence of the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, Nigerian Tribune has been reliably informed.
Nigerian Tribune gathered that the money and the documents were taken from the Lagos residence of Emefiele on Friday afternoon after about a day-long search of the property.
Emefiele, who was arrested June 10 by the DSS, has spent eight days in the custody of the agency. Read more
NDLEA arrests 2 Qatar-based drug lords in Lagos, impounds meth consignment (Guardian)
NDLEA has arrested two Qatar-based drug kingpins, following the interception of their methamphetamine consignment at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja.
Its Director, Media and Advocacy, Mr Femi Babafemi stated in Abuja on Sunday that those arrested were Eyah Nnamdi, alias Murphy and Ugwuoke Oluchukwu.
He explained that Oluchukwu was the first to be arrested on June 9 during the outward clearance of Qatar Airways passengers at the Lagos airport. Read more
Gunmen abduct Imam from Ondo farm (Channels)
Gunmen have abducted the Chief Imam of the Uso community, in Owo Local Government Area of Ondo State, Alhaji Ibrahim Bodunde Oyinlade.
Channels Television reports that the 67-year-old Islamic Cleric was reportedly abducted from his farm on Saturday at Asolo Camp in the Southwestern state.
Recovered from the farm were the victim’s car and mobile phone. Read more
Cash crunch hits MDAs over freezing of accounts (DailyTrust)
Civil servants across ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) have lamented the slow pace of activities and other schedules in the discharge of their responsibilities due to the non-availability of fund following the freezing order on their accounts by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Senior government and low cadre officers told Daily Trust on Sunday that the non-availability of funds was hampering the operation and expectation of the workers.
It was reported that the federal government had placed embargo on further payments to the MDAs of the federal government till further notice. Read more
Revenue diversification huge challenge to investments in Nigeria – Cardoso (Nation)
DR. Yemi Cardoso, a financial and development expert, says revenue and its diversification are key challenges that have affected investments in Nigeria.
Cardoso, a former chairman of the Board of Directors of Citibank Nigeria and guest lecturer at the fourth Arthur Mbanefo Lecture Series in Lagos, noted that revenue challenges had contributed to Nigeria’s monolithic economy for too long.
The theme of the lecture put together by the Arthur Mbanefo Digital Research Centre (AMDRC) University of Lagos, is: Impact Investing; The Way of the Future. Read more
Ohanaeze Youth Council tells Tinubu to invite Nnamdi Kanu for discussion (Independent)
Apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide has expressed outrage over the attack on Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), by ex-militant leader, Asari Dokubo.
The Igbo group urged President Bola Tinubu to ignore the likes of Dokubo and invite Kanu for a round table discussion.
Dokubo while speaking to journalists after a meeting with President Tinubu branded the IPOB leader as a criminal, as he also advised Tinubu not to release him. Read more
Nigeria’s Adejola elected ILO’s Governing Board chairman (Vanguard)
Nigerian Ambassador to Switzerland, Mr. Abiodun Richards Adejola, was elected Chairman of the International Labour Organisation, ILO, Governing Body, GB.
On behalf of Nigeria, Ambassador Adejola will Chair the global body’s GB for 2023/2024.
He was elected at the GB meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, after the International Labour Conference, ILC, attended by representatives of Government, employers, Labour leaders, and civil society organisations, across the world including Nigeria. Read more
Rihanna wears nothing but body chains In a sensual nude maternity shoot (Delish)
Is it getting hot in here, or is it just Rihanna?
The soon-to-be mom-of-two is reminiscing about her first pregnancy with her baby son, one-year-old RZA. On Instagram, she shared throwback photos from a sensual nude maternity shoot that took place last year before he was born.
Amongst palm leaves and on a sun-drenched balcony in front of the ocean, the singer posed wearing nothing but a bejeweled body chain draped over her chest, black underwear, black-and-white snakeskin pumps, and plenty of bling. Her jewelry consisted of diamond and gold bracelets, chunky gold rings, and bejeweled anklets. Read more
Terminator star Linda Hamilton joining cast of Stranger Things season 5 (NME)
Linda Hamilton – best known for her legendary role as Sarah Connor in the Terminator films – has been announced to star in the fifth and final season of Stranger Things.
The news came at this year’s TUDUM event in Brazil, where Netflix showed off a suite of news about its upcoming original projects. As noted by The Hollywood Reporter, Hamilton appeared at the event via video link, and was introduced by her Terminator co-star Arnold Schwarzenegger (who attended in-person to announce a new season of his show FUBAR).
At the time of writing, it’s unknown who Hamilton will play in Stranger Things, or how significant her role will be to the overall narrative. Read more
“I received a miracle,” says mother of baby baptized by Pope Francis at hospital in March (CNA)
The story of a Peruvian immigrant family in Italy has come to light during the convalescence of Pope Francis at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome, where he recovered after abdominal surgery on June 7. The pope was released from the hospital on June 16.
During his stay, the pontiff received two large cards from the family of baby Miguel Ángel, whom the pope baptized in March at the same hospital when he was receiving treatment for a lung infection.
Marcela del Rosario Pariona Bárcena, the baby’s mother, considers the event a “double miracle” since Pope Francis became the “godfather” of her son and contributed to his healing. Read more
Harrison Ford says new “Indiana Jones” film “acknowledges his decline” (FarOut)
Harrison Ford, the iconic actor who first embodied the character of Indiana Jones in the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark, will be seen confronting the inevitability of old age in his final venture in the series: “Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny.”
On his determination to depict ageing honestly, Ford said, “I didn’t want this to deny or play with age, but fucking dig into it. How does it feel to be an old fart in this world? The film acknowledges his decline. His fire and passion are almost out. This dude’s not in great shape.” Ford’s raw acceptance of ageing in this new role sets a tone in Hollywood, where age is often seen as a taboo.
The revelation came from an interview in The Times with “Dial of Destiny” co-star and Fleabag writer Pheobe Waller-Bridge, renowned for creating robust roles for mature women, including Fiona Shaw and Harriet Walter in Killing Eve. In the interview, Waller-Bridge shared Ford’s sentiment and remarked on her fascination with portraying characters who’ve “lived a bit more life”, praising the intriguing histories behind their eyes. Read more
Squid Game reality show to air in November (RTE)
Netflix has revealed a trailer for the streaming giant’s new reality competition series based on the hit dystopian Korean drama Squid Game.
In the teaser for “Squid Game: The Challenge”, which is set to be released in November, a warehouse is used to construct an elaborate set where contestants battle through a series of games, inspired by the original show.
The 10-part competition will see entrants try to win a prize of 4.56 million dollars (€4.15m) as they are seen being watched by a similar doll to the Korean series while wearing comparable green tracksuits. Read more
2Pac’s wax figure returns to Madame Tussauds on late rapper’s birthday (HipHopDX)
2Pac shocked the world when he died at the age of 25 in back 1996, and now the rapper has been immortalized again with the help of Madame Tussauds.
On Friday (June 16), the famous wax museum announced that in honor of the late rapper’s 52nd birthday — which would have been on the same day — his wax figure had made its return to the museum’s San Francisco location.
The late legend’s wax figure was first rolled out in 2014 at the same location. It would later be moved to the museum’s Hollywood location and featured in its ’90s exhibit. Now, along with its return, the wax figure has received some upgrades, according to a recent press release. Read more
Blinken meets with Chinese foreign minister as U.S. hopes to open communication channels to avoid military clash (CBS)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday kicked off two days of high-stakes diplomatic talks in Beijing aimed at trying to cool exploding U.S.-China tensions that have set many around the world on edge.
Blinken opened his program by meeting Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang for an extended discussion to be followed by a working dinner. He’ll have additional talks with Qin, as well as China’s top diplomat Wang Yi and possibly President Xi Jinping, on Monday.
Neither Blinken nor Qin made any substantive comments to reporters as they began the meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse. Read more
Emma Raducanu reveals she sometimes wishes she never won US Open (BBC)
Emma Raducanu said “sometimes I think to myself ‘I wish I’d never won the US Open'” as she spoke about her physical and mental struggles since then.
The 20-year-old claimed a stunning 2021 US Open title when she became the first qualifier to win the Grand Slam.
Raducanu has suffered a series of injuries since then and is currently sidelined after wrist and hand surgery.
“I was struggling with the physical pain but the mental side of it was really difficult for me too,” she said. Read more
Eagles aim to seal AFCON spot (Punch)
In their quest for a 20th Africa Cup of Nations appearance, Nigeria travel to Liberia where they face Sierra Leone on matchday 5 of the AFCON qualifiers at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex, Liberia on Sunday (today), PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
While victory will guarantee the Super Eagles their place in Ivory Coast, the Leone Stars head into the encounter needing all three points to keep their hopes of securing successive AFCON appearances for the first time since 1996.
The Eagles are currently second on the log after Guinea-Bissau secured a 1-0 win over Sao Tome and Principe on Thursday to move top of the table with 10 points, while Sierra Leone are third with five points from four matches as well. Read more
Enzo Maresca explains decision to leave Man City for Leicester (MEN)
Former Manchester City assistant Enzo Maresca has insisted Pep Guardiola knew of his desire to return to management after he joined Leicester as their new head coach.
On Friday, the East Midlands club announced Dean Smith had left the King Power Stadium following the Foxes’ relegation to the Championship. In his place is Maresca who worked as part of Guardiola’s backroom staff this season.
At the beginning of the week, the 43-year-old Italian had been in Manchester celebrating City’s historic Treble success. And, while some have raised eyebrows at his decision to leave the Etihad, Maresca explained his departure was always on the cards. Read more
Ruben Neves: Wolves agree £47m fee with Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal to sell Portugal midfielder (Sky)
Wolves have agreed a £47m fee with Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal to sell midfielder Ruben Neves.
Personal terms are not expected to be a problem and Neves is open to the move after a potential transfer to Barcelona stalled.
The 26-year-old, whose contract at Molineux is due to expire next summer, had been linked with multiple clubs in recent transfer windows. Read more
Andy Murray claims Nottingham Open to extend winning streak (StraitsTimes)
Andy Murray claimed a second title in two weeks at the Nottingham Open on Sunday to continue his fine preparation for Wimbledon.
The three-time Grand Slam champion followed up his win at Surbiton last week with a flawless display to beat Frenchman Arthur Cazaux 6-4, 6-4 – converting three of his four break points – to claim the tournament without dropping a set across five matches on grass.
He delivered a dominant serving performance, winning 83 per cent (24/29) of points behind his first delivery, to prevail after 1hr 46min at the lower-tier Challenger 125 event. Read more
Toto Wolff gives encouraging Mercedes prediction for Canadian Grand Prix (PlanetF1)
With his drivers chasing another two-car podium, Toto Wolff says he believes Mercedes “can be there” in the’s Canadian Grand Prix.
Last time out in Spain Lewis Hamilton and George Russell brought home the team’s first two-car podium of the season as they joined Red Bull race winner Max Verstappen inside the top three.
However, questions remained as to whether it was a breakthrough result or a one-off given Aston Martin and Ferrari’s struggles at the Barcelona circuit. Read more