Motorists, commuters agonise as work resumes on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway (Guardian)
It was another day of lamentation yesterday, for motorists and commuters plying Lagos-Ibadan Expressway as they spent hours in traffic, following commencement of rehabilitation work on kilometre 0-5 of the road.
The snail movement started from the beginning of Long Bridge inward Lagos, till after Otedola Bridge, where the contractor, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc was demarcating and mounting diversions, preparatory to commencement of work around Otedola and Secretariat.
A motorist, Asake Clement, said he left home at about 8:00 a.m. and got to Berger by 12.45 p.m.
He said: “The low movement is something else today. Why is the contractor subjecting motorists to another round of suffering.” Read more
LASU warns staff, students against presenting fake medical reports (Tribune)
The authorities of Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo have given a stern warning to members of staff and students of the university to desist forthwith from presenting fake medical reports to the university for the purpose of defrauding the system.
The school said it had detected such practice for some years among workers and students and had issued warnings severally against the practice in the past but the practice still persists despite the warning.
The management explained this position in a statement made available to newsmen by the university’s spokesman, Mr Ademola Adekoya, on Tuesday night.
The management said the current warning would be the last one to be issued by the university as any worker or student found culpable henceforth of the practice would certainly face the consequences of their action. Read more
Full speech: My opponents have nothing to fear, Tinubu says after victory (Punch)
The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, says his opponents have nothing to fear after his victory at the party’s primary.
Tinubu said this while giving his victory speech at Eagle Square, the venue of the APC primary.
The PUNCH had reported that Tinubu scored 1,271 votes to clinch the APC ticket.
Tinubu, also the National Leader of the party, defeated 13 other aspirants to emerge the candidate at the end of the Special National Convention of the party on Wednesday in Abuja.
The other aspirants included Mr Chukwuemeka Nwajuba, Pastor Tunde Bakare, Chief Ikeobasi Mokelu, Senator Rochas Okorocha, Mr Tein Jack-Rich and Governor Ben Ayade. Read more
Atiku, PDP govs in closed door meeting after Tinubu’s victory (DailyTrust)
The Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general election, Atiku Abubakar, is currently holding a crucial meeting with governors of the party in Abuja.
The meeting commenced few minutes after the emergence of former Lagos state Governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), for the 2023 elections.
Daily Trust gathered that the choice of the running mate to Atiku Abubakar will top the agenda of the meeting.
Other issues might also has to do the constitution of the Presidential campaign council, the emergence of Tinubu and strategies towards uprooting the APC from power in 2023. Read more
Sparklight Newspaper holds lecture, award in Lagos (Nation)
The 2022 Edition of Sparklight News Award and Media lecture organised by Sparklight Newspaper is scheduled to hold in Lagos.
The Sparklight News award is a debut award to recognise individuals and organisations doing well in their chosen professions and careers leading to national development.
Chairman of the Award Planning Committee, Tosin Adesile, said the event is aimed at celebrating excellence and encouraging Nigerians to contribute positively to the development of the country at this crucial time.
The theme of the award is: “The role of media in the electioneering campaign in a changing media landscape.” Read more
Bridge Clinic celebrates 20th anniversary (ThisDay)
In commemoration of this year’s World Fertility Day, Bridge Clinic has hosted IVF babies born via its clinics to a Children’s Party celebration.
Bridge Clinic, Nigerian foremost fertility-focused centre, which was founded in 1999, also celebrated its over 20 years of ‘bringing joy to the world’ through its Assisted Reproductive Technology.
As of June 2022, Bridge Clinic had recorded over 3,000 live births across all their clinics.
It said the 3,000th birth is a testament to the over 20 years of hard work, ethical practice and diligent delivery of their services.
Speaking at the party which took place over the weekend in Lagos, Counsellor at the Bridge Clinic Fertility Centre in Lagos, Efang Abang, gave glory to God for the successes recorded so far in the over 20 years of the clinic’s practice of IVF. Read more
5 storey building collapses in Ebonyi (Vanguard)
An uncompleted 5-storey building located at Ngbabor, Presco campus of Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki has collapsed to the amazement of residents of the area.
So far, no casualty has been recorded.
When Vanguard visited the scene of the incident at Presco campus, opposite prince Marice Hostel, sympathizers, including government officials were seen inspecting the collapsed building in order to ascertain the cause of the incident.
A team of police officers and Ebubeagu operatives were on ground to cordon off the collapsed building to avoid any form of casualty. Read more
Owo attack aims to divide Nigerians – Arewa forum (Punch)
The Arewa Consultative Forum has condemned the terrorist attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo in Ondo State, in which scores were killed while several others worshippers sustained injuries on Sunday.
This was contained in a statement by the Secretary-General of the ACF, Murtala Al toiyu, issued in Kaduna on Wednesday.
The ACF described the attack as an unimaginable erosion of inhumanity enveloping the nation, and aimed at setting peace-loving people against each other.
The group said the perpetrators of the dastardly act must be brought to book, noting that there should be no excuse linking “such a dastardly act to only unknown gunmen, as we live and dine with the perpetrators in our communities.” Read more
AEDC vows legal actions against EFCC over alleged staff assault, invasion (Leadership)
The management of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has said it will explore all legal measures to ensure redress for the alleged invasion of its headquarters by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The AEDC who made this known in a statement yesterday, said staff of the company were physically assaulted, unlawfully arrested and arbitrarily detained without cause or justification, describing the incident as an unrestrained and brazen assault against members of its staff.
According to the statement, the operatives visited their premises without notice or any warrants and violated the rights of law-abiding citizens, insisting that the operatives acted unprofessionally and in absolute disregard of the laws and precepts of the country.
“We write in response to the ugly incident that occurred at our Corporate Headquarters on the 6th of June, 2022. Read more
“Black Adam” Trailer: Dwayne Johnson stars in DC’s anti-hero movie (Variety)
DC Comics fans are getting a closer look at Dwayne Johnson’s “Black Adam” in a new, action-packed trailer.
“Black Adam” stars Johnson as the powerful anti-hero and sworn nemesis of Shazam, who was played by Zachary Levi in a 2019 origin movie and in the upcoming sequel, “Shazam: Fury of the Gods,” coming next year. After over a decade in development, “Black Adam” will be released on July 29.
Johnson was originally supposed to enter the DC universe as Black Adam in 2019’s “Shazam;” however, his role was scrapped when the spinoff for his character was greenlit in 2017.
In October of 2021, Johnson debuted a first look at the film on Twitter — which showed Black Adam breaking out of imprisonment after 5,000 years of captivity. “This character, this film, this universe has been a gigantic passion project of mine for a very long time,” said Johnson in the October video. “And the truth is, I was born to play Black Adam.” Read more
Armed man arrested near Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s home (NYPost)
An armed California man incensed about the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion expected to overturn Roe v. Wade was arrested near Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s Maryland home Wednesday, officials and a report said.
The man, who was not identified, allegedly told police officers he wanted to kill Kavanaugh, the Washington Post reported.
In a statement, the Supreme Court said the man was armed and “made threats against Justice Kavanaugh.”
The suspect was taken to a local police station after he was arrested at about 1:50 a.m., the Court spokesperson said.
He was carrying an unspecified weapon and burglary tools, according to the Post. Read more
Film about Prophet Muhammad’s daughter pulled by Cineworld (Sky)
Cineworld has cancelled screenings of a film about the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad which has led to protests outside some cinemas and been branded “blasphemous” by a Muslim council.
The cinema chain said it made the decision to remove The Lady Of Heaven, which was released on Friday, “to ensure the safety of our staff and customers”.
More than 120,000 people have signed an online petition describing the film as “racist” and calling for it to be removed from all UK cinemas, and protests have taken place in Bradford, Leeds, Sheffield, Bolton, Blackburn and Birmingham.
And in a letter to Cineworld shared on its social media sites, the Bolton Council Of Mosques said the film had caused “much distress to Muslims across the globe”. Read more
Former film mogul Harvey Weinstein facing UK indecent assault charges (Standard)
Former Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein is facing two criminal charges of indecent assault against a woman in London in 1996.
The Crown Prosecution Service said on Wednesday that it had authorised the Metropolitan Police to charge the 70-year-old following a review of evidence gathered by the force.
Rosemary Ainslie, head of the CPS special crime division, said: “The CPS has authorised the Metropolitan Police to charge Harvey Weinstein with two counts of indecent assault against a woman in August 1996.
“Charges have been authorised against Harvey Weinstein, 70, following a review of the evidence gathered by the Metropolitan Police in its investigation. Read more
Foo Fighters announce two tribute shows to honor late band member Taylor Hawkins (CNN)
The Foo Fighters will perform two special tribute concerts in London and Los Angeles to honor the life of their former drummer, Taylor Hawkins.
“For our dear friend, our bada** bandmate, our beloved brother…Foo Fighters and The Hawkins family bring you the Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concerts,” the band announced Wednesday in a post on its official Instagram account.
The concerts will take place with the group’s remaining members — Dave Grohl, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett, Pat Smear and Rami Jaffee — on September 3 at London’s Wembley Stadium and on September 27 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles.
The band has teamed up with Hawkins’ family for the shows. Read more
Katy Perry ‘to become highest-paid reality TV star in US with £24m American Idol salary’ (DailyStar)
Music superstar Katy Perry could be on course to take home as much as a staggering $30m (£24m) for returning to American Idol in the next year.
Executives at US TV station ABC are reportedly thrashing out a deal to keep Perry on the judging panel as well as raises for her fellow stars and host Ryan Seacrest.
The negotiations could see talent pay over $80m (£63m) for the series.
Perry is also being honoured with a Key to the Vegas Strip for her astonishing success in just SIX months with her Resorts World music residency. Read more
Zimbabwe leaning to Russia as others shun Moscow for invading Ukraine (VOA)
As much of the world is shunning Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, Zimbabwe this month hosted Russia’s third highest ranking official. Analysts say Zimbabwe is looking to Russia for fuel as well as cooking oil and wheat that it used to get from Ukraine, while Russia has its eyes on Zimbabwe’s minerals.
During a visit to Zimbabwe last week, Valentina Ivanovna Matvienko, chairperson of the Federation Council of Russia, said Moscow would improve trade relations between the two countries given that the West was shunning them.
Alexander Rusero, who heads international relations studies at Africa University in Zimbabwe, says the nation’s ties with Russia are both ideological and historical.
He says the relationship goes back to when Russia supplied arms to the now-ruling ZANU-PF party as it fought for Zimbabwe’s independence in the late 1970s. Read more
2023 AFCON Qualifiers: Peseiro sweats on Eagles’ fitness (Nation)
Determined to win his first competitive match with the Super Eagles, Portuguese coach Jose Peseiro wants the Super Eagles to be as fit as a fiddle when they face the Leone Stars of Sierra Leone in their 2023 AFCON Group A opener tomorrow at the Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja.
Yesterday, the Portuguese drilled the Super Eagles in fitness as they fine-tuned preparations for his first official games as Nigeria national team manager.
Peseiro was reportedly not comfortable with the ‘slow and start’ performance of the team as they lost to Mexico and Ecuador on a recent tour of the USA hence emphasis on fitness drills.
Midfielder Oghenekaro Etebo said the Super Eagles are not oblivious of the task ahead for tomorrow’s tie against the visiting Leone Stars in Abuja. Read more
Bayern Munich insist wantaway Lewandowski will stay (France24)
Bayern Munich have doubled down by again telling Robert Lewandowski that he cannot leave before his contract expires next year.
The 33-year-old Poland star has been linked with a transfer to Barcelona, but Bayern insist Lewandowski must fulfil his contract which runs out in June 2023.
Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic told German daily Bild that during a phone call with Lewandowski on Tuesday he “clearly explained our position on his contract situation to him”.
Media reports suggest Barcelona want to pay 32 million euros ($34 million) for the two-time FIFA best male player of the year. Read more
Team Nigeria explains Oduduru’s absence from trip to Mauritius (Guardian)
The 22nd African Senior Athletics Championships will begin today in Mauritius without one of Africa’s top sprinters, Divine Oduduru, who holds Personal Bests of 9.86 seconds in 100 metres and 19.73 seconds in 200 metres.
Oduduru has been a delight to watch in the continent’s track and field since his days at Youth and Junior level, winning titles in all these categories. He is a two-time champion at the African Youth Athletics Championships and five-time African Junior champion in the sprints.
In 2013, Oduduru won the hearts of many athletics fans in Mauritius with a spectacular race to win the 200m, which catapulted Team Nigeria to the top of the medals table during the Africa Junior Championship.
Since he moved to the senior cadre, Oduduru has represented Nigeria at various international events, including the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and 2014 African Athletics Championships before winning the 200m silver medal at the 2015 African Games. He won a gold and silver for Nigeria at Asaba 2018 African Senior Athletics Championship. He was at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Read more
Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini fraud trial delayed by day because of illness (BBC)
The start of the trial of Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini has been delayed by a day after Blatter said he was too ill to testify.
Once the most powerful men in world football, the pair were due to go on trial on Wednesday accused of fraud.
But Blatter told a court hearing in Switzerland that he is unable to testify because of chest pains.
“The pain will come back and I am having difficulty breathing,” said the 86-year-old in a whisper. Read more
Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed joining LIV Golf Invitational Series (ABC)
Two more major champions, Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed, are joining the LIV Golf Invitational Series, according to multiple reports on Wednesday.
DeChambeau, the 2020 U.S. Open Champion, and Reed, the 2018 Masters champion, are expected to compete in LIV Golf’s first United States-based event, scheduled at Pumpkin Ridge in Portland, Oregon, from June 30-July 2.
An LIV Golf spokesperson declined comment.
“Bryson has always been an innovator,” DeChambeau’s agent, Brett Falkoff of GSE Worldwide, told ESPN on Wednesday. “Having the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of something unique has always been intriguing to him. Professional golf as we know it is changing and it’s happening quickly.” Read more
South African boxer Simiso Buthelezi dies in hospital at 24 (DailyMail)
South African boxer Simiso Buthelezi has died at the age of 24, two days after he was filmed disorientated and swinging into thin air during a title fight on Sunday.
He was receiving medical treatment after his WBF African lightweight title fight against Siphesihle Mntungwa was waved off in the final seconds of the last round.
Buthelezi was seemingly cruising towards victory and had his opponent in deep trouble when he sent him through the ropes with a blistering combination.
Mntungwa bravely fought on but as he returned to his feet, the fight took a worrying turn for the worse, as Buthelezi moved his focus away from his rival and started moving towards the corner of the ring, throwing punches into empty space. Read more
Daniel Ricciardo receives damning Lando Norris verdict from F1 icon Damon Hill (Express)
Damon Hill has warned Daniel Ricciardo that he has been ‘ended’ by Lando Norris during his time at McLaren since joining the British outfit at the start of last year. Ricciardo appears to be facing an uncertain future in Formula One as a result of his lacklustre form since leaving Renault, with Norris outperforming the Aussie driver at almost every Grand Prix weekend this year.
Ricciardo trailed his McLaren team-mate by a margin of 55 points at the end of last season and was even lapped by Norris in an embarrassing low point at that year’s Monaco Grand Prix. He currently sits 37 short of the young Brit after just seven races in 2022 and has seen his long-term future at McLaren called into question over the last few weeks despite having another year left to run on his current deal with the team.
“When Daniel Ricciardo was signed, he came up to us in the paddock and he said [to Norris]: ‘I’m going to end you’,” Hill told the F1 Nation podcast when quizzed on Ricciardo’s struggles.”I remember thinking: ‘That is always a risky thing to say.’ Because it looks like the other way around, that Daniel Ricciardo has been ended by Lando. Read more