Lagos seize 30 tonnes of poisonous ponmo worth N10m (Nation)
The Lagos State Government through the Ministry of Agriculture, State Taskforce on Environment and Special Offences Enforcement Unit and officers of the Nigeria Police Force on Monday said it had seized 30 Tonnes of animal hides and skin popularly known as ‘Ponmo’ presumed to be poisonous and unhealthy for human consumption at a ware house located at College Road in Igando area of Lagos State. According to the Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Oluwatoyin Suarau, the special operation which led to the arrest of operators of the factory was based on a tip off by concerned members of the public who became suspicious of activities in the ware house where offensive stench ooze out during the preservation of the consignment. Read more
Wike threatens to dethrone monarchs over kidnapping, cultism (Punch)
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike has warned that the state government would dethrone traditional rulers of communities where cultism and kidnapping were encouraged. The governor also cautioned that communities with a prevalence of cultism, kidnapping and other forms of crime would no longer enjoy the patronage of the state government. Wike issued this warning while addressing a special security meeting at the Government House in Port Harcourt on Monday. Read more
Absence of judge stalls trial of Dino Melaye, Maryam Sanda (Punch)
The absence of Justice Yusuf Halilu of an FCT High Court, Maitama, on Monday, stalled the trials of Senator Dino Melaye and an alleged husband killer, Maryam Sanda, on Monday. The judge was absent due to his official engagement on election tribunal duty in Ogun State. The senator representing Kogi West in the Senate was on January 22 arraigned by the Inspector-General on Police before Halilu. Read more
Call Ngige to order now, Pensioners Union tells Buhari (Nation)
The umbrella body of pensioners in the country, the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to call to order, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige and stop him from plunging labour unions in the country into crisis. The NUP is accusing the Minister of deliberately trying to factionalise the union, pointing out that as a way of achieving his intention, the Minister is sponsoring his tribal people to create a faction of the pension union. The Nation had reported last week that a new pension body known as Federal Parastatal and Private Sector Pensioners Association of Nigeria had approached the Ministry of Labour for registration as a pension union, alleging that the NUP has failed its members. Read more
NYSC confirms abduction of corps member in Borno (Punch)
The National Youth Service Corps on Monday confirmed the abduction of a male corps member, Abraham Amuta, by Boko Haram insurgents in Borno. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Borno State Coordinator, Mr. Rabiu Aminu, confirmed the incident to newsmen in Maiduguri. Aminu disclosed that the corps member was abducted alongside a pastor with the Living Faith Church, simply identified as Oyeleke, in an attack coordinated by the insurgents against motorists on Maiduguri-Chibok road on April 10. Read more
UNIJOS female undergraduate found dead in hostel (Nation)
Emotions were high among students of the University of Jos (UNIJOS) as a female undergraduate student was found dead on her bed in the hostel. The 22-year-old student identified as Mercy Naan, was said to be missing for two days before she was discovered dead in her room. Plateau state Police command, confirmed the sad incidence Monday in a press statement. The statement said; “The incidence was reported to the Angwan Rogo Police Division, Plateau State Command, Jos by the security department of the institution.” Read more
2015 polls: I gave N10m cash to Kwara CP, says Belgore (Punch)
Mr Dele Belgore (SAN), who is being prosecuted for allegedly laundering N450m in the build-up to the 2015 general elections, told the court on Monday that he gave N10m out of the money to the then Commissioner of Police in Kwara State, whose name he gave as Garba. Belgore made the admission before the Federal High Court in Lagos, where he is being prosecuted alongside a former Minister of National Planning, Prof Abubakar Suleiman. Read more
Police parade alleged killer of ex-Anambra lawmaker (Punch)
The police in Anambra State on Monday paraded a 34-year-old man, Ernest Okoye, who claimed to be a worker with the Julius Berger construction company as a principal suspect in the murder of ex-Anambra State lawmaker, Anthony Igboka. Last week, the police paraded one Chigbo Aniegbu, alias transformer, as a kingpin in the murder, while declaring three others, Smart, Chukwuonso alias Nwasami and Obinna Okafor wanted. The Anambra State Commissioner of Police, Mustapha Dandaura, while parading the suspect at the command’s headquarters in Amawbia, Awka South Local Government Area of the state on Monday said Okoye was initially concealed but latter mentioned by the first suspect. Read more
FRSC, Police see us as meal tickets, protesting tricycle operators say (Punch)
Commercial operators of tricycles, popularly called Keke Napep, have withdrawn their services in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, claiming it was in protest against men of the FRSC and Police who have allegedly turned them into meal tickets. Subsequently, commuters and residents of Yenagoa were left stranded for hours on Monday, and had to trek long distance as the operators took to the streets in protest. The operators said they were protesting the “incessant harassment, extortion and intimidation” by officers of the state Ministry of Transport, the Police, men of the Federal Road Safety Corps and other security agencies. Read more
Police arrest man for stabbing friend to death in Ogun (Nation)
Police in Ogun State have arrested one Oni Olohunwa for stabbing his friend to death, following exchange of words between them. The victim, Baraka Taiwo, was rushed to a nearby hospital but died while receiving treatment. His remains have been deposited at the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH) Sagamu for post mortem examination. However, The suspect was arrested on Sunday by the Divisional Police Officer, Ogijo Division, Baba Muhammed, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP). Read more
US attorney general faces contempt vote over Mueller report (BBC)
Democrats in the US House of Representatives have decided to launch contempt proceedings against Attorney General William Barr. They took action after he failed to comply with a House Judiciary Committee subpoena to submit an unredacted version of the Mueller report. The Department of Justice had previously called the request “premature and unnecessary”. The Democratic-led committee said the vote will be held on Wednesday. Read more
Ranjan Gogoi: India’s chief justice cleared of sexual harassment (BBC)
India’s Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi has been cleared of sexual harassment allegations. An inquiry panel ruled on Monday that there was “no substance” to the accusations, adding that its report would not be made public. Mr Gogoi has previously called the allegations “false” and an attempt to “destabilise the judiciary”. The ruling comes days after a woman who accused Mr Gogoi withdrew from the inquiry after questioning its fairness. Read more
British couple trapped in ‘war zone’ holiday resort because they can’t afford to fly home (Metro)
A former soldier and his wife say they’re trapped in a ‘hell hole holiday’ after bagging a last-minute deal online. Mick and Jayney Clark spent £500 on a sun-soaked trip to Agios Gordios, Corfu, but were greeted by scenes reminiscent of Bosnia, where Mick served in 1994. The couple even likened the derelict buildings and streets strewn with waste to a war zone in Libya or Syria. Jayney, 50, said: ‘They might as well have sent us self-catering to Beirut. I’m not kidding, that’s what it looks like – they might as well have packed us off to Libya or Syria for a week.’ Read more
Six firemen face charges over alleged gang rape (Punch)
Six Paris firefighters are set to be charged Monday over the alleged gang rape of a Norwegian student at a fire station in the city, three weeks after the force was hailed for saving Notre-Dame cathedral. The 20-year-old student filed a rape complaint on Saturday against firemen based at the Plaisance station in southern Paris. Legal sources, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said the woman had met a firefighter from the station at a bar on Friday evening and agreed to go back with him to his room. Read more
Jack Wilshere rates Unai Emery’s first season at Arsenal after top-four blow (Metro)
Jack Wilshere believes his former club Arsenal have a had a ‘good’ season despite the Gunners almost certainly missing out on a top-four finish in the Premier League. Unai Emery’s side were above Tottenham and Chelsea in the table only last month but have endured a dismal run of form to drop to fifth. Arsenal lost three successive league matches before drawing to Brighton on Sunday, to effectively end their hopes of finishing in the top four. Read more
Iker Casillas: Porto goalkeeper discharged from hospital after heart attack (BBC)
Spain’s World Cup-winning goalkeeper Iker Casillas said he “does not know what the future will be” as he was discharged from hospital after having a heart attack. The Real Madrid legend, 37, suffered “an acute myocardial infarction” during training with Porto on Wednesday. Speaking outside the Hospital CUF Porto he said he would rest for “for a couple of weeks or a couple of months”. Read more
Why Virgil van Dijk missed Liverpool training ahead of Barcelona clash (Metro)
Liverpool fans were given a fresh injury headache on Monday as it emerged Virgil van Dijk had not trained with his team-mates ahead of the Champions League clash with Barcelona. The Reds welcome Barca to Anfield on Tuesday evening, hoping to overturn a three-goal deficit and progress to a successive Champions League final. Jurgen Klopp will be without star forwards Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, however, and there has been concern over the fitness of Van Dijk after he missed the team’s final training session before the Barcelona match. Read more
Qatar FA extends Sanchez’s contract to 2022 (Punch)
The Qatar Football Association announced Monday it had extended the contract of coach Felix Sanchez as head of the country’s national team until 2022. The reason behind the decision was “to continue the technical stability of the national team, which won the AFC Asian Cup title in Jan-Feb this year”, said a statement from the association. Spaniard Sanchez led Qatar to the Asian Cup title — the first continental title in their history, beating Japan 3-1 in the final. Read more
Osaka still atop WTA rankings, Mertens drops (Guardian)
Japan’s Naomi Osaka remained atop of WTA rankings released Monday, ahead of Czech Petra Kvitova and Romanian Simona Halep. The largely unchanged top 20 saw Belgian Elise Mertens drop two places to 20th after being knocked out of the first round of the Madrid Open on Sunday by Slovakia’s Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, 103rd in the world. WTA rankings as of May 6. Read more
Novak Djokovic opens door for disgraced Justin Gimelstob to return to tennis (Metro)
Novak Djokovic welcomed Justin Gimelstob’s decision to step down from the ATP board but suggested he would welcome him back into high-level tennis administration once he has found the ‘right balance and the right state of mind’. Gimelstob entered a no contest plea for felony battery charges in Los Angeles after assaulting venture capitalist Randall Kaplan on Halloween last year – an attack that is alleged to have caused Kaplan’s wife to miscarry. Read more