NLC members picket LP headquarters, demands Abure’s sack (Leadership)
Members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), on Wednesday, stormed the national headquarters of the Labour Party (LP) in Abuja, to express their displeasure with current party leadership and the perceived betrayal of the party’s foundational principles.
The Labour Centre called for the resignation of the national chairman, Barrister Julius Abure, whom it said has converted the party to personal gain and straying from the party’s ideology which NLC said was established to champion the cause of the working class and serves as an advocate for the betterment of Nigerians.
The acting general-secretary of the NLC, Comrade Ismail Bello, who led members of the Congress’ political commission to the LP office, asserted their determination to take the party back and restore its original vision. Read more
US govt announces three new initiatives for Nigeria’s creative sector (Vanguard)
The US government, on Wednesday announced three new opportunities for Nigerians in the creative economy sector.
Ms. Lee Satterfield, US Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs made the announcement while delivering a foreign policy speech at the University of Lagos.
She is currently in Nigeria on an official visit till March 22. Read more
Fire guts Idumota market in Lagos (Tribune)
A fire broke at the intersection of Nnamdi Azikiwe and Docemo in Idumota, Lagos Island, Lagos State on Wednesday.
The state Fire and Rescue Service took to their X handle to confirm the incident, saying it affected two two-storey buildings and one three-storey building.
Firefighters were at the scene to control the fire. and also reduce the rate of damages. Read more
Service Chiefs, Senators in closed-door session over soldiers’ killing (Channels)
Service chiefs, on Wednesday, appeared before the Senate Joint Committee (comprising Army, Navy, Defence and Airforce committees) to begin an investigative hearing on the gruesome killing of military personnel in Okuama community in the Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, last Thursday.
A minute silence was first observed for the souls of the slain soldiers.
Given the sensitivity of the matter, the Chairman of the joint committee, Ahmed Lawan, disclosed that the investigative hearing will be held behind closed doors. Read more
Fire razes 37 shops in Kano (DailyTrust)
Kano State Fire Service says a fire has razed 37 shops in the Zawaciki area in Kumbotso Local Government of Kano State.
The spokesman of the Service, Alhaji Saminu Abdullahi, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the fire occurred at about 01:37 am on Wednesday.
According to Abdullahi, “We received a distress call at about 01:37 am from one Malam Baba that there was a fire outbreak at Zuwaciki. Read more
LASTMA rescues 3 crash victims as truck rams into other vehicles (Independent)
Operatives of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) today rescued 3 injured crash victims at Anthony Service Lane inward Town Planning Way, Lagos.
Mr. Adebayo Taofiq, Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA confirmed that the three rescued crash victims were passengers inside one of the Volkswagen Commercial buses involved in the accident.
Preliminary investigations revealed that a Volvo 6-tyre truck (T-17138LA) while on high speed lost control after a brake failure and rammed into a Nissan Car (LSD 497 EY) and 2 Volkswagen commercial buses (EKY 129 XT / KSF 815 XS). Read more
Activist seeks travel restrictions on MohBad’s wife, writes embassies (Punch)
A human rights activist, Akinola Adelabu-Soul, is currently seeking travel restrictions on Omowunmi, the wife of the late singer, Ilerioluwa Aloba aka MohBad, and their son, Liam.
This was contained in a letter titled, “Urgent Request to Monitor and Prevent Departure of MohBad’s Wife and Child,” and sent to PUNCH Metro on Tuesday.
Adelabu-Soul, in the letter addressed to 13 different consulates domiciled in the country, noted that the demise of Mohbad had left fans and fellow artistes in shock, adding that there were lingering questions surrounding the incident. Read more
Senate passes Student Loan Act Bill (Nation)
The Senate on Wednesday, March 20, passed the Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bill, 2024.
The resolution of the Senate followed its consideration of the report of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND that considered the Bill.
The chairman of the committee, Senator Muntari Dandutse (APC – Katsina South) presented the report during plenary. Read more
Downtown Abbey returning for “final” movie, Staunton says (BBC)
Actress Imelda Staunton has said a third and “final” Downtown Abbey movie is in the pipeline.
Staunton played Queen Mary’s lady-in-waiting Lady Maud Bagshaw in the first two films, while husband Jim Carter played butler Mr Carson in the TV series and movies.
Asked by BBC Radio 2 breakfast show host Zoe Ball about reports that more Downton Abbey is coming, Staunton said: “There will be the final film – there you go.” Read more
Sharon Stone “shocked” Hollywood career never matched Casino success (Standard)
Sharon Stone expressed her “shock” that her career didn’t maintain the momentum she had hoped for following the success of her film Casino.
The actress, 66, received an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Ginger McKenna in the 1995 crime epic film, alongside Robert De Niro as Sam “Ace” Rothstein.
Stone revealed that her portrayal of Ginger is the role she takes the most pride in, although she is equally recognised for her portrayal of the femme fatale Catherine Tramell in Basic Instinct. Read more
Attackers shoot 15 dead in South Sudan (AfricaNews)
Unidentified assailants have taken the lives of 15 individuals in South Sudan’s Pibor region, including the commissioner, according to a senior official on Wednesday. This incident marks an escalation of violence within the country.
South Sudan, battling with internal conflicts, has faced significant turmoil since gaining independence from Sudan. The strife, primarily along ethnic lines between Dinkas and Nuers, resulted in widespread casualties from 2013 to 2018.
The fatal attack occurred on Tuesday as the commissioner of Boma County in Pibor was returning from a village visit. “The commissioner and his team visited Nyat village, and upon their return, they were ambushed, resulting in the deaths of 15 individuals, including the commissioner,” stated Abraham Kelang, the information minister of Greater Pibor Administrative Area. Read more
Kris Jenner’s sister Karen Houghton’s cause of death as she passes away at age 65 (Mirror)
Kris Jenner’s sister Karen Houghton was tragically found dead at the age of 65.
Speculation has been rife over what caused the younger sister of Kris and aunt of her famous daughters to unexpectedly die, but for now, officials are attributing it to natural causes. A call for medical help was placed to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department at around 1:30 p.m. Monday.
Why the call was made is not clear, with authorities not disclosing the information, but when deputies from the department arrived, the fire crew was already attempting to provide life-saving measures for Karen. Her sister Kris announced on Tuesday that with the “heaviest heart” that her “beautiful” younger sister has died. Read more
Israel stripped of ‘liberal democracy’ status by prominent global index (MEMO)
Israel has been stripped of its “liberal democracy” status by a prominent global index which measures the democratic health of countries. The downgrade means that for the first time in 50 years Israel has been demoted to the level of less democratic countries.
V-Dem is a leading international database for measuring the type of democracy found in over 200 countries. The database classifies countries into four categories: Closed autocracies, electoral autocracies, electoral democracies and liberal democracies.
On its website, V-Dem states that it provides a multidimensional and disaggregated dataset that reflects the complexity of the concept of democracy as a system of rule that goes beyond the simple presence of elections. Read more
The Crown leads nominations at BAFTA TV awards (ITV)
Netflix series The Crown is leading the way at this year’s British Academy Film and Television Awards (BAFTA) and BAFTA Craft Awards.
The final series of the royal drama is up for eight awards including leading actor nomination for Dominic West, who plays the then Prince Charles, and Elizabeth Debicki for her role as Princess Diana.
Lesley Manville who plays Princess Margaret, and actor Salim Daw, who portrayed Mohamed Al-Fayed, are also nominated in the supporting categories. Read more
Irish leader Varadkar to resign, as parliament fails to find new leader (CNN)
Irish leader Leo Varadkar has told parliament that he will resign on Thursday night, after suffering a crushing defeat in a parliamentary vote. No clear successor has emerged from the process to lead the country.
Varadkar said he would stay on as caretaker leader after he tenders his resignation to Irish President Michael D. Higgins.
Ireland had been in political deadlock since general elections on February 8 ended with no single party winning a mandate to govern. On Thursday, newly elected representatives in parliament voted on candidates for the next taoiseach, equivalent to a prime minister. Read more
Why Turkish FA may not punish Osayi-Samuel (Punch)
Contrary to reports that Super Eagles star, Bright Osayi-Samuel, could be handed a possible five to 10-game suspension following an altercation with a pitch invader during Fenerbahce’s clash with Trabzonspor, the Nigerian may escape a ban by the Turkish FA, The PUNCH reports.
The brawl broke out after the final whistle as Fenerbahçe celebrated its 3-2 win. Security forces tried to shield Fenerbahçe players, as fans stormed the pitch.
Following the match Turkey’s interior minister Ali Yerlikaya confirmed in a post on X, that authorities had launched an investigation into the brawl and to identify the fans who had stormed the pitch. Read more
African Games: Falconets good enough to retain gold – Danjuma (Leadership)
Coach Chris Musa Danjuma is expectedly sanguine following his Nigeria U20 girls’ progress to the final of the women’s football event of the ongoing 13th African Games in Ghana.
The experienced tactician watched with delight as substitutes Judith Adaobi Okah and Chiamaka Okwuchukwu, off the bench, provided the goals that sent Uganda’s U20 packing in the semifinals yesterday and booked their place in Thursday’s final against hosts Ghana.
“We should have put away some of the chances we created in the first half, but we are happy to get two second-half goals and reach the final. It is an opportunity to retain our gold medal from the last edition in Morocco and we will do everything to win and make Nigerians happy. Read more
Dani Alves to be freed 4 weeks after rape sentence as he’s told to pay €1m bail (Sun)
Ex-Brazil star Dani Alves is set to walk out of prison today after allegedly getting Neymar’s dad to pay his one million euro (£850,000) bail.
Alves, 40, won his fight to appeal his four-and-a-half year jail sentence from the comfort of his own home – which the lawyer of his victim branded as “justice for the rich”.
The Barcelona court’s ruling came a day after his lawyer requested the disgraced footballer’s release on grounds he had already served a quarter of his sentence in pre-trial detention following his arrest in January 2023. Read more
Ajax Women 0-3 Chelsea Women: Blues seize control of Champions League quarter-final (Sky)
Chelsea continued their quest for a maiden Women’s Champions League crown as a 3-0 first-leg victory seized control of their quarter-final against Ajax.
Lauren James’ 15th goal of the season set Chelsea on their way before a double from Sjoeke Nusken saw the Blues overpower a youthful Ajax on their first quarter-final appearance.
Chelsea welcome Ajax to Stamford Bridge on March 27, with Emma Hayes’ side in pole position to reach a fifth European semi-final in six seasons. Read more
Russia rages against Olympic chiefs, accuses them of ‘‘neo-Nazism’’ (France24)
Russia launched a furious tirade at the International Olympic Committee on Wednesday, arguing the IOC’s restrictions on Russian athletes and its criticism of the Moscow-organised Friendship Games amounted to “neo-Nazism”.
The IOC on Tuesday both barred Russian athletes from taking part in the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics on July 26 and criticised the Kremlin for planning to hold its own “Friendship Games” to rival those held in the French capital.
“These decisions demonstrate how far the IOC has moved away from its stated principles and slipped into racism and neo-Nazism,” Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a briefing.
Fresh Carlos Sainz fitness concerns on eve of Australian Grand Prix return (PlanetF1)
Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz is still “not moving freely” and may not be “ready for the rigours” of an F1 race ahead of his planned return at the Australian Grand Prix, it has been claimed.
Sainz was ruled out of the last race in Saudi Arabia after appendix surgery, with Ferrari reserve driver Oliver Bearman taking his place and finishing seventh on the streets of Jeddah.
The Spanish star is aiming to return to action at this weekend’s Australian GP and has travelled to Melbourne with the ambition of retaking his place in the Ferrari cockpit, with Ferrari themselves stating: “Carlos Sainz is expected to be back in the car.” Read more