Lagos arraigns boat driver for death of 12 passengers (Guardian)
A commercial boat driver, Happiness Elebiju, suspected to have caused the incident that killed 12 persons at Ilashe Waterfront on July 29, was yesterday arraigned before a Lagos High Court in Ikeja.
Elebiju was arraigned before Justice Josephine Oyefeso on a 10-count charge brought against him by the Lagos State government. He pleaded not guilty to the offence bordering on involuntary manslaughter. The suspect was alleged to have operated the boat that killed 12 passengers due to overcrowding and illegal activities.
At the resumed proceedings, the Director of Public Prosecution, Mrs Olayinka Adeyemi, said the defendant was being charged with involuntary manslaughter. Read more
State rules out Sanwo-Olu’s examination as commissioner tests positive (Punch)
The Lagos State Commissioner for Information, Mr Gbenga Omotosho, has said there is no big deal about the COVID-19 status of the state Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi.
Omotosho said he was not aware if the Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, would go for another COVID-19 test.
He said, “Apparently, he (the governor) does not see it as a direct issue of concern; this is not the first time someone who works with him will contract COVID-19. This should not be any big deal; you know there was a time we said 10 people tested positive for COVID-19 at the Lagos House in Marina, I don’t think this one will take a different process.” Read more
Lagos takes delivery of COVID-19 disinfectant tunnel (Guardian)
To combat the spread of Coronavirus in Lagos State while schools prepare to reopen fully, an advertising agency, X3M Ideas, has donated a handwashing facility and Glo MiFi internet modems with unlimited data to Opebi Senior High School, Ikeja.
The facility, located at the entrance to the Opebi School complex, which houses the Opebi Junior School and Senior High School, is a well-secure, clear-view panel fence where the beneficiary community can walk through the disinfectant tunnel before accessing the school. It also allows free airflow with good headroom to give an appealing ambiance. Read more
UNILAG crisis: SSANU writes Buhari to re-constitute visitation panel (Tribune)
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari, who is the Visitor to the University of Lagos (UNILAG), to re-constitute the special visitation panel set up to investigate the crisis rocking the university.
In a letter written to the president, SSANU said it called for the review of the visitation panel to reflect neutrality, fairness and proper representation.
The union condemned the panel, insisting that the principle of natural justice was lost in the present composition of the visitation Panel. Read more
NIESV to unveil Lagos Property Market Report (Nation)
All is set for the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), Lagos State Branch to launch the maiden edition of its flagship real estate data project, entitled: “Lagos Property Market Consensus Report”.
The Chairman of the Branch, Adedotun Bamigbola, said the report is by the Research and Development Sub-committee of the Lagos State Branch of the Institution, on property market in Lagos with contributions from 172 firms of estate surveyors and valuers across the state, to guide investors, residents and the public sector on real estate investment and housing need decisions.
According to him, the body of estate surveyors and valuers in the state would continue to deliver the report that provides reliable real estate data quarterly, but in this year bi-yearly, because of the effects of COVID-19 on of the economy. Read more
Anxiety as S’Court hears Kogi election petition today (ThisDay)
There was anxiety among political actors in Kogi State ahead of today’s hearing and possible delivery of judgment in the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against the judgments of the Kogi State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, which affirmed the election of Governor Yahaya Bello in the November 16, 2019 election in the state.
The Supreme Court will hear four appeals against the election of Bello and as it’s the habit in recent times, the apex court may deliver its judgment thereafter.
One of the appeals listed for a hearing which was sighted by THISDAY is “SC 388/2020,” filed by the PDP and its governorship candidate, Mr. Musa Wada. Read more
Suspected serial killer hacks Ogun community leader to death (Punch)
Landlords and residents of Oluwatedo community, Ogere, in the Ikenne Local Government Area of Ogun State, have started deserting their houses due to the continuous killing of people by a suspected serial killer, Feyisola Dosumu, aka Spartan.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the latest in the killing spree of the suspect was a community leader, Elder Olatunji Oladeji.
The 53-year-old Olatunji was said to be the Vice-Chairman of the Oluwatedo Community Development Association. Read more
One dead, 150 houses swept by flood in Jigawa (Nation)
A father of two has been reported killed in Samamiya village in Birnin-kudu Local Government Area of Jigawa State.
The victim was said to have been swept away by flood as a result of weeks of downpour which rendered several people homeless at Malamawan Gangara village after their mud houses collapsed.
Also farmlands at Babaldu were destroyed by the flood.
Read Also: FG adopts use of satellite data to mitigate flooding
An estimated 150 houses were destroyed at Malamawa Gangara village but the residents expressed gratitude to God for sparing their lives. Read more
Man robbed, killed in Ibadan after withdrawing money from bank (Guardian)
A middle-aged man, identified as Taoreed Olusola, was yesterday afternoon shot dead by robbers around Agodi Secretariat, Government House Road in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The assailants, according to sources, trailed Olusola from a new generation bank around Bodija where he had gone to withdraw some money. He was shot by two yet-to-be identified gunmen after being attacked on a bike directly opposite the Oyo State Environmental Task Force.
The two gunmen on a motorcycle overtook his bike, and shot him in the process. A small bag containing the suspected money he had collected from the bank, as well as the bike, were also stolen. Read more
South Africa: Massive fire engulfs historic Durban mosque (Aljazeera)
A massive blaze has engulfed a 139-year-old mosque in the South African city of Durban.
The cause of the fire on Monday at the Grey Street Mosque, one of the largest in the southern hemisphere, was not immediately known.
But Faisal Suliman, chairman of the South African Muslim Network, said it was believed to have started in one of seven staff flats located above the mosque and may have been caused by an electrical fault.
“It’s presumed to have been accidental, and not to have been any foul play,” Suliman told AFP news agency. Read more
Republicans paint dark picture of future if Trump loses election at Night 1 of convention (CBC)
Republicans opened Monday night’s prime-time convention with dark warnings about the future if U.S. President Donald Trump doesn’t win a second term, casting him as a protector of religious freedom, the nation’s workers and much more.
A school teacher warned that conservative values were under attack from labour unions. A small business owner charged that businesses across the country were facing unwarranted pandemic shutdowns and riotous mobs. And Rep. Matt Gaetz likened the prospect of Democrat Joe Biden’s election to a horror movie.
“They’ll disarm you, empty the prisons, lock you in your home, and invite MS-13 to live next door,” Gaetz declared. Read more
Sudan’s Jabal Maragha: Illegal gold diggers destroy ancient site (BBC)
Illegal gold diggers have destroyed a 2,000-year-old archaeological site in Sudan in the eastern region of the Sahara desert, official say.
The Jabal Maragha site, which dates from the Meroitic period between 350 BC and 350 AD, is said to have either been a small settlement or a checkpoint.
Officials from Sudan’s antiquities and museums department said when they visited the site, some 270km (170 miles) north of the capital Khartoum, last month they found two mechanical diggers and five men at work. Read more
India building collapse kills one, dozens feared trapped (Aljazeera)
One person has died and at least 100 feared trapped in the debris of a five-storey building that collapsed in an industrial town in western India’s Maharashtra state, officials said.
Not all the roughly 200 residents of the building in Raigad district’s Mahad town, about 165km (100 miles) south of India’s financial capital Mumbai, were at home when it crumbled in the evening, local legislator Bharatshet Maruti Gogawale told the Reuters news agency on Monday.
India’s National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) spokesman Sachidanand Gawde told reporters that emergency workers had retrieved the body of one victim, who has not yet been identified.
“I believe about 100 to 125 people must have been inside at the time of its collapse,” Gogawale, who was present at the accident site, told Reuters. Read more
Instagram deletes account advertising ‘COVID parties’ at Arizona State University (NYPost)
Instagram has deleted an account that claimed to throw “COVID parties” at Arizona State University after the school sued Facebook and the owner of the account on Thursday on allegations that the account improperly used the school’s logos and trademarks.
“We have removed the account in question for violating our policies,” a spokesperson for Facebook, Instagram’s owner, told the Arizona Republic. “We disagree that the account infringes any trademark rights ASU might have.”
It is unclear who ran the account. ASU’s lawsuit names “John Doe aka ‘asu_covid.parties’” as the defendant alongside Facebook. Read more
Hong Kong reports ‘first case’ of virus reinfection (BBC)
Hong Kong scientists are reporting the case of a healthy man in his 30s who became reinfected with coronavirus four and a half months after his first bout.
They say genome sequencing shows the two strains of the virus are “clearly different”, making it the world’s first proven case of reinfection.
The World Health Organization warns it is important not to jump to conclusions based on the case of one patient.
And experts say reinfections may be rare and not necessarily serious. Read more
Kevin Hart tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this year (PageSix)
Kevin Hart said in a stand-up set over the weekend that he tested positive for COVID-19 early in the pandemic.
Performing at the latest iteration of Dave Chappelle’s An Intimate Socially Distanced Affair show in Yellow Springs, Ohio, Hart said of his diagnosis, “The problem is that I had it around the same time as Tom Hanks, and I couldn’t say anything because he’s more famous than I am.”
A source told Page Six that Chappelle has spent $100,000 on coronavirus rapid testing for attendees of the outdoor shows he’s held this summer, with other performers including Donnell Rawlings, Bill Burr, Michelle Wolf, Questlove and Tobe Nwigwe. Read more
Israel Adesanya not fazed by Paulo Costa’s challenge (Guardian)
As the countdown to the September 26 UFC 253 fight begins, Nigerian born New Zealand-based Mixed Martial Art (MMA) fighter, Israel Adesanya, has vowed to show his challenger, Paulo Costa, that he is a true fighter. The fight, a Pay Per View (PPV) contest, is slated for the Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Adesanya, who is UFC middleweight champion, and the challenger, Costa, were featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsCenter’ in a heated, but entertaining exchange that had both fighters taking stabs at each other at the weekend.
“I’ve got many, but that’s just one,” Adesanya said. “I am a fighter. When someone brings the fight, I (expletive) fight. And you said you’re going to bring the fight, right? Cool, bring that (expletive), I’ll show you what I’m about.” Read more
Serena Williams reaches Western and Southern Open third round (BBC)
Serena Williams overcame a scare against Dutch qualifier Arantxa Rus to reach the Western and Southern Open third round in New York.
American Williams, 38, stopped Rus serving out the match at 6-5 before winning 7-6 (8-6) 3-6 7-6 (7-0) in almost three hours.
Rus, ranked 72nd in the world, became edgy as a memorable win loomed and it was costly.
“It was a real physical match,” said 23-time Grand Slam champion Williams.
“I played pretty well, I was being aggressive and hit some good shots, but she just kept fighting.” Read more
Djokovic shrugs off injury to win NY opener (Guardian)
World number one Novak Djokovic shook off neck pain to beat Ricardas Berankis 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 on Monday to reach the third round of the Western & Southern Open.
The Serb star had pulled out of doubles on Sunday with pain in his neck, and he had treatment during the match for a problem that seemed to bother him when he looked up at his service toss.
Twice down a break in the second set he was able to immediately break back both times, and he let out a roar when he broke Lithuania’s Berankis for a 5-4 lead before calmly serving out the match. Read more
Jamaica’s health ministry confirms Usain Bolt has tested positive for coronavirus (CBC)
World-record sprinter and eight-time Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt has tested positive for the coronavirus and is self-isolating at his home in Jamaica after last week celebrating his 34th birthday with a big bash mask-free.
Jamaica’s health ministry confirmed late on Monday that Bolt, who holds world records in the 100m and 200m distance, had tested positive after he posted a video on social media around midday saying he was waiting to hear back on his results. Read more
Gymnasts allege mistreatment by GB coach Amanda Reddin (BBC)
Two gymnasts have made allegations of mistreatment by British Gymnastics head coach Amanda Reddin.
One, named Jenny, made claims dating back to the 1980s which include accusations of physical abuse from the ages of 9-12, which caused “immense pain”.
Rio Olympian Ruby Harrold said Reddin presided over a “culture of fear” at the Team GB camps in Lilleshall.
She described food portions that left her and her fellow gymnasts hungry. Read more
Amuneke warns Barca against selling Messi, backs Koeman (Punch)
Former Barcelona winger Emmanuel Amuneke has warned his former club against trading Lionel Messi.
The 33-year-old has one year left on his current deal, with speculations over his future at the Spanish giants after their Champions League 8-2 humiliation by new champions Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.
A mass exodus at the club has been widely reported in the Spanish dailies following the arrival of new manager Ronald Koeman, but Amuneke believes the six-time Ballon D’Or winner will still be needed at that club. Read more
