Murder of Fasoranti’s daughter act of terrorism — Ex-president Jonathan (Punch)
Former President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday paid a condolence visit to the leader of the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, Pa Reuben Fasoranti over the death of his daughter, Mrs Funke Olakunrin. Olakunrin was reportedly killed along Ore-Shagamu Expressway by some hoodlums suspected to be Fulani herdsmen last Friday. Speaking with journalists, Jonathan described the incident as a painful occurrence to the whole country. Read more
Funke Olakunrin’s classmates want her killers fished out (Nation)
The classmates of Mrs. Funke Olakunrin, who was shot dead Friday by yet to be identified assailants, have called on the government to fish out the killers of the daughter of the leader of Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, Chief Reuben Fasoranti. Reacting to the news of the death of their classmate, members of the 1973/77 Set of Olivet Baptist High School, Olivet Heights, Oyo, condemned the dastardly murder of Mrs. Olakunrin and called on the Federal Government to restore confidence in the citizenry by promptly apprehending her killers, prosecuting them and putting an end to the rising spate of unchecked killings and kidnap of innocent citizens. Read more
Senate screens acting CJN Tanko on Wednesday (Guardian)
The Senate will screen Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad for confirmation as the substantive Chief Justice of Nigeria on Wednesday. Justice Tanko Muhammad has been serving as acting CJN since January 25 this year when the then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, was suspended from office on grounds of alleged corrupt practices. President Muhammadu Buhari had last week Thursday forwarded to the Senate a letter seeking confirmation of Tanko Muhammad as substantive Chief Justice of Nigeria. Read more
Why former finance minister Ahmed deserves reappointment – APC Chieftain (Nation)
Former Finance Minister, Zainab Ahmed has been described as one of the experienced hands needed by President Muhammadu Buhari in piloting the affairs of the country. Ahmed was part of the last cabinet where she served as first Minister of state planning before moving to Finance following the resignation of Mrs. Kemi Adeosun over forged NYSC discharged certificate. This is as President Buhari scouts for capable hands to assist him run the affairs of the country in his second term reign. Read more
Fasoranti’s daughter: Senate calls for National Security Summit (Punch)
The Senate on Tuesday called for immediate convocation of a National Security Summit to address insecurity in the country. This followed a point of order raised by Sen. Ayo Akinyelure (APC-Ondo), over the killing of Mrs Funke Olakunrin. The News Agency of Nigeria, reports that Olakunrin, daughter of Pa Reuben Fasoranti, a leader of the Afenifere Group, was shot dead by gunmen along Akure-Ore Road in Ondo State on Friday. Read more
Magu dissociates self from parody Twitter account (Guardian)
The Chairman of the Economic Financial Crime Commission Ibrahim Magu has dissociated himself from a Twitter account which bears his name and pictures. “The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has discovered a fake Twitter account in the name of its Chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Magu with the username@IbrahimMagu,” EFCC stated in a statement on Tuesday. “The anti-graft agency wishes to state unequivocally that the said Twitter handle does not belong to him and whatever tweet emanating from it is not from the Chairman, neither represents the views of the Commission,” it added. Read more
‘Pirates’ kidnap 10 Turkish sailors off Nigeria coast (Guardian)
Ten Turkish sailors on a cargo ship were kidnapped by armed men off the coast of Nigeria, Turkish state media reported Tuesday. The Turkish-flagged Paksoy-I cargo vessel, operated by shipping company Kadioglu Denizcilik, was attacked on Monday night, state news agency Anadolu said. A Kadioglu Denizcilik employee who wished to remain anonymous told AFP that 10 Turkish sailors were kidnapped among 18 crew members on board the ship. Read more
NYSC boss decries Cotonou varsities that present fake graduates for mobilization (Punch)
Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps, Brig.-Gen. Shuaibu Ibrahim, has condemned some unnamed universities in Benin Republic for allegedly presenting unqualified persons for mobilisation. He added that the Corps has commenced investigations into the activities of such universities. This was was contained in a statement by the NYSC Director, Press and Public Relations, Mrs. Adenike Adeyemi, in Abuja on Tuesday. Read more
Katsina CJ frees 300 Prisoners, promises judicial reforms (Nation)
Katsina State Chief Judge, Justice Musa Danladi Abubakar, Tuesday in Katsina announced the release of a total number of about 300 prisoners from the State’s Prison Custody, following the visit to the various prison camps. Justice Abubakar who made the disclosure during an exclusive interview with The Nation in his office, said the state has decided to take the lead in judicial reforms and prison decongestion. Read more
Over 60,000 Nigerian migrants still in Libya (Guardian)
63, 071 out of of the 641,398 migrants in Libya are from Nigeria, a report by the International Organisation for Migration. The figure represents approximately 10% of the total migrant population in the north African country. About Nigerian migrants 98.5% of traveled through Niger while the 1.5% used routes through Chad, Sudan or Tunisia. Read more
American varsities award 303 Nigerian students $7.5m scholarships (Punch)
More than 303 Nigerian students from the 17 states of southern Nigeria have received no less than $7.5m in full or partial scholarships from 225 American universities and colleges to study in the United States for the 2019-2020 academic session. A statement signed by Information Specialist, Public Affairs Section, Temitayo Famutimi, notes that the Acting United States Consul General, Osman Tat, disclosed this in Lagos on Tuesday during the 2019 EducationUSA pre-departure orientation for students who have received offers of admission and scholarships to attend U.S. colleges and universities this fall. Read more
South Africa pledges to unmask killers of Insurance chief (Nation)
South Africa has promised to unravel the circumstances surrounding to the death of Nigerian Insurance Chief Mrs. Elizabeth Ndubuisi-Chukwu in Emperor Palace Hotel, Johannesburg last month. Ndubuisi-Chukwu, Deputy Director General of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN), was believed to have been strangulated to death by unknown men in her hotel room. The South African Acting High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Bobby Moroe, assured on Tuesday the case has been prioritised. Read more
South Africa’s Zuma, back at inquiry, says his life in danger (Guardian)
Former South African President Jacob Zuma on Tuesday said he had received a death threat after his testimony the previous day to an inquiry on corruption. Zuma told the inquiry on Monday that he had been the victim of a plot to get rid of him and that he could trace that conspiracy to foreign intelligence services and the apartheid government in the 1990s. Read more
London Bridge terrorists lawfully killed after ignoring police warnings (Metro)
The London Bridge terrorists, who killed eight people and injured 48 others, were lawfully shot dead by police, a jury has ruled. Khuram Butt, 27, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22, mowed down pedestrians on the bridge before stabbing random members of the public around Borough Market. They were armed with ceramic knives and had fake suicide belts strapped around their waists during the marauding attack on the evening of June 3 2017. Read more
India building collapse: Dozens trapped and four dead in Mumbai (BBC)
At least four people have been killed and more than 30 are trapped after a four-storey building collapsed in the Indian city of Mumbai, officials say. The cause of the collapse in the Dongri area of southern Mumbai is not clear. Reports say the building was up to 100 years old. Recent monsoon flooding may also have been a factor. Read more
Seven policemen allegedly gang-rape woman (Punch)
A 35-year-old woman was tortured while being held illegally at a police station in India, a man who claimed to be her brother-in-law has said. According to Metro, he said the woman was gang-raped by several police officers and had her nails ripped out after witnessing her brother being killed by Police. Six police officers were suspended from duties at Sardarshahar police station in the northern state of Rajasthan. Read more
Babysitter who made children play twisted sex board game gets just 30 days jail (Metro)
A babysitter who made the children she cared for play an appalling sex ‘board game’ was sentenced to just 30 days jail. Kimberly Hignite, 52, pleaded guilty to 14 counts of child endangerment Monday after three children reported she sexually abused them in her home in Grove City, Ohio. Prosecutors said Hignite, who ran an unlicensed day care from her home, made victims play the ‘silly private game,’ which involved sexual touching. Read more
Ryanair closing bases due to Boeing 737 MAX crisis (Guardian)
Ryanair said Tuesday it will close some of its bases because of problems with Boeing’s crisis-hit 737 MAX jet, which has been grounded after two fatal accidents. The Irish no-frills airline said in a statement that it expected to take delivery of just 30 Boeing 737 MAX 200 jets by the end of May 2020, instead of the 58 that it originally expected for its summer schedule. Read more
Pakistan reopens airspace after India standoff (BBC)
Pakistan has fully reopened its airspace to civilian flights, nearly five months after it was closed following a standoff with India. The closure forced international airlines to reroute around Pakistan and cost them tens of millions of dollars. State-owned carrier Air India and other Indian airlines were worst hit. Read more
Hodan Nalayeh prize: Somalia to honour journalist murdered by al-Shabab (BBC)
Somalia’s government has announced that it will award a prize in honour of journalist Hodan Nalayeh who was killed in an attack by Islamist militants. The annual Hodan Nalayeh prize will be awarded to “outstanding” individuals from the Somali diaspora. Nalayeh, who grew up in Canada, returned to Somalia last year to highlight positive stories about her country of birth. Read more
Fresh Island festival: Croatia music event evacuated as fire breaks out (BBC)
A music festival in Croatia has been evacuated because of a forest fire. Hundreds of people were forced to leave the Fresh Island music festival on Zrce Beach on Monday night, at the beginning of the three-day hip-hop event. The fire forced the closure of the road to the closest town, Novalja, preventing many people from returning to their hotels. Read more
Arsenal target Kieran Tierney should cost more than Aaron Wan-Bissaka, says Celtic boss Neil Lennon (Metro)
Celtic manager Neil Lennon has argued that Kieran Tierney should be worth more than Aaron Wan-Bissaka following Arsenal’s failed £25million offer for the full-back. Unai Emery, who reportedly has a measly £45m budget to spend on reinforcements, has prioritised a move for a left-back and has identified Tierney as his first-choice target. Read more
Benitez exit a surprise, says Newcastle midfielder Ritchie (Guardian)
Newcastle United midfielder Matt Ritchie said on Tuesday that he was “surprised” and “disappointed” to see manager Rafael Benitez leave the Premier League crisis club. Newcastle has approached Steve Bruce over the vacancy and the former Manchester United defender has reportedly resigned as manager of Sheffield Wednesday. But the time is ticking down to Newcastle’s Premier League opener on August 11 and the club has lost key players, while also in limbo over the managerial hot seat. Read more
Tottenham defender Kieran Trippier set to undergo medical at Atletico Madrid ahead of potential move (Metro)
Kieran Trippier is set to undergo a medical at Atletico Madrid ahead of a potential £25m move from Tottenham Hotspur, according to football.london. The 28-year-old has been tipped to leave Spurs since the end of last season and had been linked with moves to Napoli, Juventus, Bayern Munich and Manchester United. However, it now appears as though he is on the verge of signing for Atletico Madrid, who are reportedly close to sealing a deal with Spurs over the England international. Read more
Lampard ‘won’t look backwards’ as he takes over Chelsea (Punch)
Chelsea legend Frank Lampard said Tuesday he won’t be looking backwards as he takes on possibly the biggest challenge of his career: managing his former team. Speaking in Japan where the Blues are playing two friendlies, Lampard said he was “very happy” with his squad but expects to work for the team hard during the pre-season. “For me, the story is not to look backwards,” said Lampard, whose return to his former club as head coach was confirmed earlier this month. Read more
Cristiano Ronaldo channels inner Derek Zoolander as he models new CR7 underwear collection (Metro)
Cristiano Ronaldo has swapped football pitches for photoshoots in order to promote his new underwear collection, for CR7. And it’s…. interesting. The Juventus star went topless in the snaps, leaving very, very little to the imagination as he showed off his latest range of colourful pants. Read more
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer explains Daniel James’ impressive versatility ahead of his debut Manchester United season (Metro)
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says that Daniel James will pop up anywhere across the front line in his debut season with the Manchester United boss impressed with his new signing’s versatility. The 21-year-old has made a great impression since arriving from Swansea earlier this summer, in training and in his first friendly appearance against Perth Glory. Read more
Victor Lindelof speaks out about his Manchester United future amid Barcelona rumours (Metro)
Victor Lindelof has rejected speculation over his future by insisting he is ‘very, very happy’ to play for Manchester United and is looking forward to the new Premier League season. The 24-year-old enjoyed a successful season at Old Trafford despite United’s much-publicised problems, establishing himself as a first-choice regular in the heart of the defence. Read more