Lagos in lockdown as Africa virus closures spread (Guardian)
Africa’s largest city Lagos was deserted Tuesday after Nigeria locked down its economic hub and shuttered its capital, in the continent’s latest effort to break the juggernaut of coronavirus.
Businesses were closed, markets abandoned and streets empty as the usually chaotic megacity of 20 million, along with the capital Abuja, shuddered to a halt on the first full day of a two-week shutdown.
Police in protective equipment manned checkpoints, trucks carrying non-essential items were turned back and youths were spotted playing football on a usually traffic-clogged highway. Read more
Lagos lockdown: We don’t know how to survive without working for two weeks – Residents (Punch)
Africa’s largest city Lagos was deserted Tuesday after Nigeria locked down its economic hub and shuttered its capital, in the continent’s latest effort to brake the juggernaut of coronavirus.
Businesses were closed, markets abandoned and streets empty as the usually chaotic megacity of 20 million, along with the capital Abuja, shuddered to a halt on the first full day of a two-week shutdown.
Police in protective equipment manned checkpoints, trucks carrying non-essential items were turned back and youths were spotted playing football on a usually traffic-clogged highway. Read more
Lockdown: Streets deserted in Lagos as coronavirus spreads across African cities (DailyTrust)
Roads in Africa’s largest city Lagos were deserted Tuesday after Nigeria locked down its economic hub and shuttered its capital, in the continent’s latest effort to brake the juggernaut of coronavirus. Businesses were closed, markets abandoned and streets empty as the usually chaotic megacity of 20 million, along with the capital Abuja, shuddered to a halt on the first full day of a two-week shutdown. Police in protective equipment manned checkpoints, trucks carrying non-essential items were turned back and youths were spotted playing football on a usually traffic-clogged highway. “It is like putting people in prison,” minibus taxi driver Mutiu Adisa told AFP. Read more
Lockdown: Lagos CJ suspends all court activities (Nation)
All court activities have been suspended in the five judicial divisions of the Lagos state Judiciary, the Chief Judge, Justice Kazeem Alogba has said.
Justice Alogba issued the order following the lockdown announced by President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State to combat the Coronavirus pandemic in the state.
The order was contained in a circular titled: “Entry Into Court Premises Guidelines No. 2” dated March 30, 2020 and signed on his behalf by the Chief Registrar, Mrs Taiwo Olatokun. Read more
Coronavirus not death sentence, say survivors (Guardian)
Five persons who had tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) were discharged yesterday from the Infectious Diseases Centre, Yaba Mainland Hospital.
The survivors, four males and a female, had been undergoing treatment for two weeks at the facility.
Looking calm and stable, they expressed gladness at receiving a clean bill of health. They were also full of gratitude to the health officials who cared for them, the state government and Governor BabajideSanwo-Olu.
“Coronavirus is not a death sentence. People can survive and I HAVE!” said Oluwaseun Ayodeji Osowobi.The executive director, StandtoEndRape, who took to her Twitter handle, @AyodejiOsowobi, to proclaim her triumph said: “This is another phase of my life and I have won! I celebrate my resilience and strength. Call me SURVIVAYO. I encourage people to get tested and stop the stigma. Practise social distancing and stop the spread.” Read more
Coronavirus: Ekiti index case recovers, discharged (Punch)
Ekiti State on Tuesday discharged its index case from isolation centre after testing negative.
Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, made this known on Tuesday via his verified Twitter handle.
The PUNCH reports that the index case in Ekiti was a man who drove a 27-year-old American to the State.
Though the American died and his coronavirus result declared inconclusive, the driver tested positive and his female caregiver negative. Read more
NERC suspends increase in electricity tariff till July (Guardian)
Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) Tuesday said there will be no increase in electricity tariff for end-use customers until July.
NERC had in a December 2019 Minor Review of Multi-Year Tariff Order 2015 and Minimum Remittance Order for the Year 2020 disclosed that it would increase tariff from April 1st 2020.
But the increase was described by most stakeholders as one of the most callous decisions in the face epileptic power supply as well as lockdown of economic activities and the many implications of the Corona Virus outbreak. Read more
COVID-19: FG to reach 11 million Nigerians with palliatives (Nation)
Federal government has said it will be reaching more than 11 million Nigerians with palliatives to cushion the harsh effects of the measures set to fight back outbreak of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic.
Also, the government has said it will continue to increase capacity to test for cases of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) on weekly basis.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Farouk, while reacting to questions on Tuesday at the daily media briefing by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja, also disclosed that internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Northeast part of the country already received two months rations of relief materials. Read more
Food stuff prices soar as residents rush to stockpile (DailyTrust)
Foodstuff prices soar as residents rush to stockpile Ahead of the official lockdown of Abuja, residents yesterday rushed to markets to buy food stuffs and groceries to stockpile in their homes. The scramble gave traders opportunity to hike the prices. President Muhammadu Buhari had on Sunday evening announced restriction of movement in Abuja, Lagos and Ogun States, starting from Monday 11 PM, as part of procedures adopted to contain the COVID-19. When our reporter went around Abuja on Monday morning, he saw residents rushing to markets, supermarkets and shopping malls to make last minute shopping that would see them through the 14-day lockdown imposed by the Federal Government. Read more
Sajid Hussain: Fears for Pakistan journalist missing in Sweden (BBC)
A Pakistani journalist who fled the country to escape death threats has gone missing in Sweden where he was granted political asylum.
Sajid Hussain was last seen boarding a train in Stockholm on his way to Uppsala on 2 March, according to the group Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
The group said it was possible he had been abducted “at the behest of a Pakistani intelligence agency”.
Hussain, 39, fled to Sweden in 2012 after writing about crime. Read more
Harry and Meghan formally quit royal life (Guardian)
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan formally step down as senior members of the British royal family on Tuesday, as they start a controversial new life in the United States.
The couple have already relocated to California, according to reports, after announcing in January that they intended to quit royal life and “work to become financially independent”.
The decision means they will no longer carry out duties on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II and are giving up their office within the monarchy in Britain.
It follows reports Meghan was deeply unhappy with life inside the centuries-old institution and increasing complaints from the couple about media intrusion.
Their shock announcement rocked the royal family, appearing to blindside the queen and other senior family members. Read more
Dwayne Johnson confirms Hobbs & Shaw sequel (Metro)
Fans can breathe a sigh of relief, Dwayne Johnson has confirmed that a Hobbs & Shaw sequel is going to happen. The 47-year-old star appeared in the popular Fast & Furious spin-off with Jason Statham last year and are already getting excited about the sequel that is coming our way. During an Instagram Live Q&A, Dwayne said: ‘We are developing now the next film, the next (Hobbs & Shaw) movie, and I’m pretty excited about it … Just gotta figure out the creative right now, and the direction we’re going to go.’ Read more
Peacock spiders show more of their colours (BBC)
OK, a lot of people don’t like arachnids. But c’mon, these little guys are simply stunning.
Seven new peacock spiders have been described in the journal Zootaxa.
And just like their cousins in the Maratus genus, they all live in Australia and they all feature those amazing iridescent colours that the males will flaunt during courtship.
The man behind the descriptions is Museums Victoria’s Joseph Schubert, a 22-year-old peacock spider specialist. Read more
Russia’s top coronavirus doctor who met Putin tests positive (Punch)
The head of Moscow’s main coronavirus hospital who met with President Vladimir Putin a week ago has tested positive, he said on Tuesday, as the Kremlin announced the Russian leader’s health was fine.
Last Tuesday Denis Protsenko met with the Russian leader who inspected the Kommunarka hospital while wearing a bright yellow hazmat suit. But the 67-year-old Putin was also seen talking to Protsenko without any protective gear.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov swiftly told Russian news agencies that Putin took regular tests and there was no reason to worry about his health. Read more
Spain sees record 849 deaths but downward trend on track (Guardian)
Once again, Spain hit a new record with 849 coronavirus deaths in 24 hours on Tuesday although health chiefs said the rate of new infections was continuing its downward trend.
After Italy, Spain has suffered the world’s second most deadly outbreak which has now claimed 8,189 lives there. The latest figures came a day after the death toll fell slightly, raising hopes the epidemic could be peaking.
Over the same period, the number of confirmed cases rose to 94,417 after another 9,222 people tested positive: a nearly 11-percent increase. Read more
Rihanna says she wants to have three or four kids (NYPost)
Rihanna plans on becoming a mother at least three or four times over in the next 10 years — with or without a partner by her side.
“I feel like society makes me want to feel like, ‘Oh you got it wrong…’ They diminish you as a mother if there’s not a dad in your kids’ lives,” the 32-year-old singer said in the new issue of British Vogue. “But the only thing that matters is happiness, that’s the only healthy relationship between a parent and a child. That’s the only thing that can raise a child truly, is love.”
The Fenty fashion boss also confirmed her recent split from her boyfriend of three years, Saudi billionaire businessman Hassan Jameel. Read more
Star Wars actor Andrew Jack dies aged 76 from coronavirus (Metro)
Star Wars actor Andrew Jack has died aged 76 from the coronavirus. The star, who was also a dialect coach, passed away this morning at a hospital just outside of London as a result of complications developed from the virus. His representative Jill McCullough told Metro.co.uk: ‘He died this morning of Covid-19 at St Peter’s Hospital, Chertsey. Andrew lived on one the oldest working houseboats on the Thames, he was fiercely independent but madly in love with his wife; also a dialect coach; Gabrielle Rogers. Read more
Wimbledon cancellation seems inevitable as emergency meetings held (BBC)
A series of emergency meetings is under way to decide whether Wimbledon can go ahead this year.
The All England Club says a final decision is yet to be made, but the cancellation of the Championships for the first time since World War Two now seems inevitable.
The Wimbledon Championships are due to run for two weeks from Monday 29 June.
The French Open has already been pushed back four months to late September because of the coronavirus pandemic. Read more
Dortmund’s Can banned two games over Neymar clash (Guardian)
Borussia Dortmund midfielder Emre Can received a two-match ban from UEFA on Tuesday following his sending-off in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Paris Saint-Germain.
Can was shown a red card in the closing minutes of a 2-0 defeat at the Parc des Princes on March 11 after an altercation with Neymar in which he pushed the Brazilian to the ground.
PSG won the tie 3-2 on aggregate after overturning a 2-1 first-leg loss. However, UEFA has since postponed both the Champions League and Europa League because of the coronavirus pandemic. Read more
Didier Drogba: How Ivory Coast striker helped to halt civil war in his home nation (BBC)
Al-Merrikh Stadium, in Sudan’s second largest city of Omdurman, is not one of the world’s great gladiatorial arenas. Yet this small ground – known as the Red Castle – became the setting for one of football’s most extraordinary tales.
The date was 8 October 2005. The mathematics of qualification for World Cup 2006 were simple. A win for Cameroon in Egypt would see them reach their sixth tournament. Anything less would allow Ivory Coast, playing in Sudan and just a point behind, to leapfrog them and qualify instead – for the first time.
The tag “golden generation” can be a substantial yoke to bear, but the Ivorian squad in 2005 was just that. They were led by the artfully bruising Didier Drogba, with Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Eboue, and Didier Zokora all also shining in the Premier League, a world away in London. Read more
Ajax end contract of brain-damaged former wonderkid Nouri (Guardian)
Ajax have terminated the contract of former wonderkid Abdelhak Nouri, severely brain-damaged and in a coma since collapsing three seasons ago, the Dutch daily De Telegraaf said Tuesday.
The club intervened ahead of the July 1 date when the contract was due to renew for the 22-year-old who collapsed while warming up for a pre-season friendly against German club Werder Bremen in July 2017.
Known to fans and teammates as Appie, Nouri joined the Amsterdam club aged seven and developed into a teenage sensation. Read more
Doping athletes not off radar despite reduced drug testing, warns Ukad chief (BBC)
Potential drugs cheats are “strongly mistaken” if they think they can get away with doping while there is reduced testing because of coronavirus, the head of UK Anti-Doping has warned.
Nicole Sapstead, chief executive of the national agency, said it would be “naive” for athletes and coaches to think they would leave no trace of their activity.
Ukad announced it had significantly scaled back its programme of testing during the coronavirus pandemic, which has so far claimed 33,000 lives. Read more
UEFA issues raft of fines to European clubs (Guardian)
UEFA on Tuesday issued a multitude of fines to clubs in both the Champions League and Europa League, with deposed European champions Liverpool and Manchester City among a long list of teams punished.
Liverpool was fined 3,250 euros ($3,565) for the setting off of fireworks during a 3-2 extra-time defeat in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie at home to Atletico Madrid.
Atletico also received a fine of 24,000 euros for the “blocking of public passageways” during the first leg in the Spanish capital. Read more
Garba Lawal shocked by ‘Mikel is the greatest Nigerian footballer’ report (DailyTrust)
A former Nigerian international, Garba Lawal has expressed shock over the report which quoted his former team mate, Daniel Amokachi as naming John Mikel Obi as the greatest Nigerian football player. Completesports.com last Monday quoted Amokachi as saying he considers Mikel to be the country’s standout player based on his achievements. ”Mikel is the greatest player,’’ Amokachi said on Brila FM’s Show “The Bull’s Pit”. ‘‘He has won everything that a player can hope to; the Champions League, Europa, AFCON in 2013 and he also captained the national team. Read more