“Man To Man Is So Unjust”, El-Rufai drops cryptic tweet with Bob Marley’s lyrics (Channels)
Former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, on Sunday, posted a cryptic message on social media weeks after his ministerial nomination was not confirmed by the Senate.
In a message on X, formerly known as Twitter, the ex-governor dropped lyrics of ‘Who The Cap Fit’ by the late Jamaican singer, Bob Marley.
El-Rufai said, “Bob Marley of blessed memory is one of most talented musicians of all time. My love for reggae music is connected with his songs and music.” Read more
Abuja agog as ministers take oath of office (Sun)
The nation’s capital, Abuja, is agog as President Bola Tinubu inaugurates the minister-designate who would constitute the Federal Executive Council (FEC) today.
In a statement by Director of Information, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Willie Bassey, the process was seamless as each of them took less than 10 minutes to conclude the process.
He also said invitation cards for the three guests per minister-designate were successfully handed over to each of them for onward delivery to their invited guests. Read more
Army investigates alleged killing of Lagos driver by soldiers (Leadership)
The 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, on Sunday, said it has commenced an investigation into the alleged killing of a Lagos driver by its officers in Lagos State.
In a statement by the acting Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, 81 Division, Lieutenant Colonel Olabisi Ayeni, he said the Division and the Lagos State Police Command were carrying out an investigation to unravel the identities of the suspects and the circumstances surrounding the unfortunate incident.
Lit.-Col. Ayeni, however, assured Lagosians that if the suspects were identified as serving Soldiers, they would be made to face the full wrath of both military and civil laws. Read more
Tinubu reassigns Momoh to Niger Delta, Oyetola, Marine and Blue Economy; Tunji-Ojo, Interior Ministry (Independent)
President Bola Tinubu has approved the redeployment of Engr. Abubakar Momoh from the Federal Ministry of Youth to the Federal Ministry of Niger Delta Development.
A statement by Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media & Publicity, on Sunday, said the Federal Ministry of Youth is to be re-assigned to a minister-designate soon.
The ministers-designate allocated to the Federal Ministries of Transportation, Interior, and Marine & Blue Economy have been reshuffled as follows: H.E. Adegboyega Oyetola is redeployed as the Minister of Marine & Blue Economy. Read more
Lagos deepens campaign against plastic pollution (Punch)
The Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency has said no stone will be left unturned in its bid to end plastic pollution in the state and promote a circular economy culture.
The General Manager, LASEPA, Dolapo Fasawe, stated this on Saturday during the inauguration of the agency’s ‘Trash for Cash’ zonal office in the Surulere area of the state.
Fasawe said more attention needed to be paid to the dangers of plastic pollution, adding that it was high time Lagos State embraced a culture of circular economy of recycling plastics and other waste into raw materials. Read more
Brutally Frank: Many governors wealthier than their states — Clark (Vanguard)
Former Federal Commissioner for Information and South-South Leader, Pa Edwin Clark has accused many state governors of using the position to amass wealth overnight to the extent of being wealthier than their states.
He also accused them of spending their security votes without accountability.
Clark, who stated these in his 688-page autobiography titled: “Brutally Frank,” regretted that corruption has being the undoing of Nigeria. Read more
Falana demands Bawa’s release (DailyTrust)
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana SAN at the weekend demanded for the release of former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Abdulrasheed Bawa, having spent 67 days in the detention of DSS without any charges and trial.
According to Falana, Bawa’s remand order has since expired.
He said Bawa’s detention is against the provisions of section 493 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act(ACJA) 2015, or section 35 of the Constitution of Nigeria to authorise the detention of a criminal suspect for 67 days without trial. Under the Act, the cumulative lifespan of a remand order is 56 days. Read more
Textile manufacturers seek revival of moribund industries (Guardian)
Textile manufacturers in Nigeria are seeking special grants from the Federal Government to revive the country’s extinct textile industry. President of the Carpet Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (CMAN), Otuekong Sunny Udoh, in Calabar, at weekend, said that over 30 textile companies in Nigeria have gone moribund, taking a toll on the country’s economy.
According to him, over 60, 000 textile industry workers have lost their jobs and the auxiliary companies, suppliers, distributors, transporters and others, have also lost their jobs and businesses. Consequently, he said, the country has lost billions of naira.
The CMAN president said that the entire indigenous textile manufacturing companies, such as Jackson Devos, Aswani and many others, are no longer in existence. He pointed out that the two surviving ones are owned by foreigners. Read more
Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo locked in race for number 1 (MusicNews)
Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo are currently in a three-way race to claim the UK’s Number 1 single this week, with less than 1,000 chart units separating the trio.
Dua is on top at the moment aiming for her fourth chart-topper with Dance The Night (1), but not far behind are last week’s Number 1 single What Was I Made For? by Billie Eilish (2) and a resurgent vampire by Olivia Rodrigo (3).
Following last week’s record-breaking chart feat, female artists are still making up the bulk of the Top 10, with Doja Cat’s Paint The Town Red (7) set to rise eight to join them. Read more
Miley Cyrus shares clip of Selena Gomez from Hannah Montana as they prepare to release music on same day (HITC)
Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez are ready to release music on the same and to make this announcement extra special, the Flower singer shared a clip from Hannah Montana.
Disney fans could not contain their excitement when they saw the sweet clip that Miley Cyrus shared from Hannah Montana after finding out that she and Selena Gomez were releasing new music on the same day. With the two making it big in the music industry, some have been praying for a collab in the near future. Read more
Box Office: Blue Beetle stumbles with $25m debut, ends Barbie’s’ 4-week streak (Variety)
Blue Beetle has dethroned Barbie at the domestic box office. The latest DC superhero adventure claimed the No. 1 spot despite a softer-than-expected debut of $25.4 million.
At the international box office, Blue Beetle, starring Xolo Maridueña as the alien symbiote, added $18 million from 63 markets. With $43 million globally, it’s one of the softest starts in the history of the DC Cinematic Universe.
After four consecutive weekends in first place, Barbie landed on her feet in second place with $21.5 million from 4,003 theaters, a huge result at this point in its theatrical run. After five weeks of release, Greta Gerwig’s fantasy-comedy has generated $567 million and will soon overtake Universal’s animated The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($574 million) as the biggest domestic release of the year. Read more
Charles Schulz’s son hopeful for new “Peanuts” movie (Deadline)
It’s been eight years since The Peanuts Movie was released and there’s been no official word if another movie will be produced.
Ahead of the Apple TV+ special “Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie”, Charles Schulz’s son Craig Schulz said in an interview that he’s hopeful a new “Peanuts” movie would happen.
“I could tell you, but I’d have to kill you. [Laughs] Nothing is off the table,” Craig said in an interview with Screen Rant. “We’re always exploring different ideas and different things in this co-view series that we’ve done, which touched upon the environment, the love for teachers, Mother’s Day, and how it interacts with enough people. All those subjects are just really fun, and as you know, the “Peanuts” universe is sort of endless.” Read more
ITV children’s channel CITV will close in September (DigitalSpy)
ITV children’s channel CITV will officially close next month after 40 years on air.
The channel, which has been home to a number of iconic shows such as Art Attack, My Parents are Aliens, Danger Mouse and Rainbow, will be decommissioned on September 1 to make room for ITV’s new children’s streaming service ITVX Kids, which launched in July.
ITV bosses previously revealed that the average amount of broadcast TV minutes of kids’ TV channels watched by 4-15 year olds per week has declined by 62% since 2019. Read more
Magnitude 5.1 earthquake hits Southern California as “catastrophic” Hurricane Hilary batters state (Telegraph)
Southern California was hit by a 5.1 magnitude earthquake as the state braced itself for the impact of Hurricane Hilary.
There were no immediate reports of damage or injury when the earthquake struck at 2.41pm local time (9.41pm GMT) on Sunday, roughly 4.35 miles southeast of the Southern California community of Ojai in Ventura County.
Buildings rattled from the impact of the shock and several smaller aftershocks followed. Read more
Christian families in Pakistan return to burnt-out homes after religious violence (National)
After daily wage labourer Siddique Masih completed construction of his 75 square metre house last year, his family began mulling over painting their new home.
Little did they know that within 12 months, a mob would torch the house during last week’s unrest in the Pakistani city of Jaranwala, during which several churches and dozens of homes were burned down over allegations of blasphemy.
Speaking to The National, Mr Masih, 45, said that he earns Rs1500 (about $5) daily, which is barely enough to make ends meet. Read more
Insurance pip ASO Chlef 1-0, walk tightrope (Punch)
Bendel Insurance FC of Benin on Saturday defeated visiting AS Olympic Chlef of Algeria 1-0 in the first leg of their first round clash of the 2023/24 CAF Confederation Cup.
Striker Imade Osarenkhoe grabbed the winner inside the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in the 42nd minute, ahead of the return leg on August 27 in Algeria.
Insurance wasted three chances in the first 30 minutes, before Osarenkhoe connected Sunday Anyaneu’s free kick to give the Nigerian side the lead and send fans at the packed stadium into rapturous celebrations. Read more
Mauricio Pochettino gives verdict on Mykhaylo Mudryk’s display after Ashley Cole criticism (Mirror)
Mauricio Pochettino launched a staunch defence of Mykhaylo Mudryk after the Chelsea winger produced another ineffective display in the 3-1 defeat against West Ham.
Mudryk has struggled to live up to expectations since joining the Blues back in January for £87 million from Shakhtar Donetsk and started Sunday’s derby clash against the Hammers on the bench.
The Blues had bossed the first half and went in level at the break but lost their way in the second half – something that former Chelsea left-back Ashley Cole felt was down to the withdrawal of Carney Chukwuemeka, who was replaced by Mudryk after picking up an injury. Read more
Olga Carmona learns passing of father after scoring winning goal in World Cup final for Spain (Eurosport)
Spain’s World Cup final hero and captain Olga Carmona was informed moments after the game that her father had passed away.
Carmona scored the only goal of the game in a 1-0 win over England as Spain won the trophy for the first time in their history.
Spain and Real Madrid, where Carmona plays her domestic football, confirmed the news on Sunday evening. Read more
Carlos Alcaraz in tears after Novak Djokovic loss as Serb comes through “toughest match” (Express)
Carlos Alcaraz was in tears at his bench after losing a thrilling three-hour-and-48-minute final to Novak Djokovic at the Cincinnati Open. The world No 1 had a championship point in the second set and saved four in the third set before he finally went down 5-7 7-6(7) 7-6(4). Afterwards, Djokovic branded the final “one of the toughest matches” of his career.
Alcaraz and Djokovic contested another thriller exactly five weeks after the Spaniard won their Wimbledon final in five sets. This time around, it was the Serb who came through after struggling in the intense heat early on in the match. Djokovic looked down and out when he was a set-and-a-break down but managed to force a final set. Read more
NBA launches inquiry into 76ers-Harden spat (France24)
The NBA has opened an inquiry into Philadelphia 76ers star guard James Harden’s public criticism of Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey, ESPN reported on Saturday.
The move, sources confirmed to ESPN, came after Harden, who has pushed for a trade to no avail, called Morey a “liar” on Monday in China and said Thursday in Houston he considers his relationship with the 76ers beyond repair.
Harden said in China regarding Morey that he would “never be a part of an organization that he’s part of,” which raised concerns at the league office, according to the report. Read more
Iga Swiatek announces mini-break ahead of the US Open (Tennis365)
It would have been a surprise if Iga Swiatek opted to play Tennis in the Land in the week ahead of the US Open.
However, Swiatek has still announced that she would be taking the week off, feeling that she has emptied her tank in successive runs to the last four of WTA 1000 events.
Swiatek is delighted to get some time to put her feet up as she expects a tough title defence in New York. Read more