Nollywood actress, Nkechi Nweje, dies (Punch)
Nollywood actress, Nkechi Nweje, has died after a brief illness.
Nweje’s death was confirmed on Saturday by movie producer, Stanley Ajemba, popularly known as Stanley Ontop, via his Instagram handle.
Ajemba paid tribute to Nweje, describing her as a vibrant actress and his best friend.
He recalled their last conversation was during the Queen’s saga, where she advised him to stop. Read more
I didn’t snatch Asake’s mother from his father – Veteran Fuji singer, Alani breaks silence (Sun)
Musibau Alani, a veteran Fuji musician and stepfather of Afrobeats singer Asake, has denied snatching Asake’s mother, Fali, from his father, Odunsi (also known as Malo).
The controversy arose after Odunsi claimed that Asake had neglected him, leading to widespread social media discussions.
Musibau stated that he met Fali as a single mother who had previously divorced from Malo and married her, caring for Asake and raising three children with her. Read more
Rivers: Suspension of Fubara, lawmakers dents Nigeria’s image — Jonathan (Vanguard)
Former president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has said that the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, and other elected officials of Rivers State, dents Nigeria’s image.
Jonathan said this while speaking as the Chairman at the Haske Satumari Foundation Colloquium in Abuja on Saturday (today).
He expressed disappointment that elected officials had been removed. Read more
How Bishop Kukah was convinced to chair governing council of new varsity – FG (Guardian)
The Federal Government has explained how it successfully convinced Bishop Matthew Kukah, the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, to take on the role of Pro-Chancellor/Chairman, Governing Council at the newly established Federal University of Applied Sciences in Kachia, Kaduna State.
According to Education Minister Dr. Tunji Alausa, Vice President Kashim Shettima played a crucial role in nominating and persuading Bishop Kukah to accept the appointment.
This came to the fore during the inauguration of the university’s Governing Council and Principal Officers in Abuja yesterday.
Speaking at a conference hall at the Ministry’s headquarters, Dr Alausa said: “Bishop Kuka is very busy. Read more
Visa to Invest over $1b in Nigeria (ThisDay)
An American multinational payment card services corporation, Visa Inc; has updated Vice President Kashim Shettima on plans to site data centre infrastructure in Nigeria.
This is in addition to its investments of over $1 billion in the country, including a substantial technological partnership with MoniePoint to foster digital payment solutions, a $200 million investment in Interswitch, and a partnership with ThriveAgric to empower smallholder farmers and enhance food security in Nigeria.
Visa’s Regional President for Central, & Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA), Mr. Andrew Torre, disclosed this when he led a delegation of the company on a courtesy visit to Vice President Shettima at the State House, Abuja. Read more
FAAC disburses N1.678tr to FG, States, councils (Nation)
A total of N1.678 trillion from the Federation Account revenue for February 2025 has been distributed among the Federal Government, State Governments and Local Government Councils.
The allocation was made at the March 2025 meeting of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) in Abuja presided over by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun.
Compared to the N1.703 trillion shared in January 2025, the February disbursement reflects a decline of N25 billion, representing a reduction of approximately 1.47 percent in revenue allocation. Read more
Patients throng hospitals with ailments linked to excessive heat (Leadership)
Thousands of Nigerians across some states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have besieged secondary and tertiary hospitals with illnesses and diseases attributed to the prevailing excessive heat.
Some medical personnel, who spoke with LEADERSHIP Weekend on the impact of the current extreme weather, said their workload had been increased with more patients trooping into their facilities with heat-induced diseases.
Most of the patients seen in the wards by our correspondents mostly had rashes, measles and other childhood diseases the medical personnel attributed to heat. Read more
Voice vote on Rivers a scam, Senators, Reps murdered democracy – Utomi (Channels)
Many Nigerians have been critical of the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State by President Bola Tinubu, the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and members of the state assembly. Many also find the subsequent approval of the emergency rule by the National Assembly distasteful. Pat Utomi, a professor of political economics and founder of the Centre for Values in Leadership, aired his views on the political developments in Rivers State in this interview with Channels Television.
You haven’t hidden your disapproval of the president’s declaration of emergency in Rivers State. I’m wondering if you are surprised by what has transpired on the floor of the National Assembly. Read more
‘Snow White’ awakens with $16m Opening Day (Variety)
Disney‘s Snow White is the fairest of them all on box office charts. The musical earned $16 million across Friday and preview screenings from 4,200 venues. It’s enough of a start to put “Snow White,” which stars Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot, on track to land within projections for an opening weekend north of $45 million.
That would mark the second-biggest debut of the year behind fellow Disney release “Captain America: Brave New World.” But like that Marvel Cinematic Universe entry, “Snow White” is budgeted like a four-quadrant tentpole and needs to play like one. The Marc Webb-directed fairy tale carries a massive production cost north of $250 million, meaning it faces a steep climb to profitability. Read more
Israel strikes Lebanon after first rocket attack since ceasefire (BBC)
Israel has carried out the most intense air strikes on Lebanon in nearly four months, after several rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel for the first time since a ceasefire came into effect in November.
The Israeli military said it had hit dozens of rocket launchers and a command centre belonging to Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militia and political group, in southern Lebanon.
Lebanon’s health ministry said two people, including a child, were killed and eight injured in the strikes. Read more
‘Like That,’ One Year Later: How one Kendrick Lamar Verse Shook Up The Game (Again) (HipHopDx)
It was just another Friday in March. Future and Metro Boomin’s long-anticipated joint album was finally here and fans were looking forward to hearing some menacing trap beats and toxic tales of women, percocet and Gucci flip flops. But Kendrick Lamar had other ideas.
We Don’t Trust You was already a hypnotic ride five tracks in when “Like That,” with its opening burst of frantic laser horns, took it to a new level. With its Eazy-E and Rodney-O & Joe Cooley samples and sinister keys, Metro had conducted his finest opera since “Don’t Come Out the House,” while Pluto flipped the gothic aesthetic into something seductive.
Then the nasally tones of Kendrick Lamar popped up out of nowhere on the second verse. Read more
Trump revokes legal status for 530,000 immigrants in the US (AlJazeera)
United States President Donald Trump’s administration will revoke the temporary legal status of 530,000 people including Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans in the United States, according to a Federal Register notice.
The move, the latest expansion of Trump’s crackdown on immigration, is effective from April 24, and cuts short a two-year “parole” granted to the immigrants under former President Joe Biden that allowed them to enter the country by air if they had US sponsors.
A group of American citizens and immigrants sued the Trump administration for ending humanitarian parole and are seeking to reinstate the programmes for the four nationalities. Read more
Pope Francis to make first public appearance on Sunday, the Vatican says (CBS)
Pope Francis will make his first public appearance on Sunday with a blessing and a wave more than a month after he was admitted into Rome’s Gemelli Hospital.
The 88-year-old pontiff has been battling double pneumonia in both lungs after he was admitted to the hospital on Feb. 14 after a bout of bronchitis that made it difficult for him to speak.
He has remained out of public view since then. Read more
Thousands of Slovaks protest in Bratislava against PM Robert Fico and his Russia-friendly policies (Euronews)
Thousands of protesters took to the streets across Slovakia to participate in regular demonstrations against incumbent Prime Minister Robert Fico and his pro-Russian policies.
Large crowds again took to the streets across Slovakia on Friday to voice their opposition to Prime Minister Robert Fico and his pro-Russian policies.
Over the last three months, tens of thousands of people have rallied every fortnight in Bratislava and beyond, demanding Fico’s resignation. Read more
2026 WCQ: Super Eagles depart Rwanda for Uyo ahead of Zimbabwe clash (Sun)
The Super Eagles players and coaches returned to Nigeria from Kigali, Rwanda, on Saturday morning.
They are due to arrive in Uyo, Akwa Ibom, where they will face Zimbabwe on Tuesday evening.
Their flight is due to land about 4pm local time.
The three-time African champions improved their chances of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup with a 2-0 victory against the Amavubis on Friday. Read more
2026 WCQ: Zimbabwe players promised N300m each to beat Nigeria (Vanguard)
The Super Eagles’ qualification campaign have taken another twist, as their upcoming opponents, Zimbabwe players, have been promised a $150,000 cash incentive to pull off a shock win against the Cheetahs of Benin and the Super Eagles in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Originally, the Warriors, including their technical crew and support staff, were expected to receive $150,000 from the Zimbabwean government if they defeated Benin on Thursday. The encounter ended 2-2.
Another $150,000 has been earmarked should they stun Nigeria’s Super Eagles in Uyo, a reward that could be seen as both motivation to the Warriors and an insult to the three-time African champions by virtue of its modesty. Read more
France survive red to beat Ireland in Six Nations opener (BBC)
France began the Women’s Six Nations with a 27-15 win over Ireland in Belfast despite a 20-minute red card for Gabrielle Vernier.
The centre opened the scoring with the game’s first try but had her 45th-minute yellow card for a high tackle upgraded by the Television Match Official (TMO) bunker.
Scott Bemand’s side drew within two points in the closing stages but, in a game in which both teams scored three tries, France grabbed the contest’s final 10 points thanks to Emilie Boulard’s late score and five points from the tee for Morgane Bourgeois. Read more
New IOC chief hails greater equality in Olympic movement (AfricaNews)
Kirsty Coventry, the newly elected president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), highlighted on Friday the remarkable progress in advancing equality and diversity within the Olympic movement over the past 12 years. Coventry, speaking in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) in Greece’s Costa Navarino, also emphasized the need to build on this progress and ensure its impact extends beyond the IOC.
“We’ve achieved so many good things, especially when it comes to equality and diversity within the movement over the last 12 years, and we’ve now got to leverage off of that. I think we’re doing a really incredible job in the IOC and I would like us to filter that down to the international federations, the national Olympic committees, the national federation. So there’ll be a big focus on that, a lot of work to do, but there is a really incredible momentum right now and I want us to leverage off that momentum,” said Coventry. Read more
Piastri takes first F1 pole after second sprint in China (AlJazeera)
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri seized the first proper pole position of his Formula One career at the Chinese Grand Prix with the fastest lap yet around the Shanghai International Circuit.
The Australian, a two-time race winner who previously only had sprint poles, lapped in one minute 30.641 seconds and was joined on the front row for Sunday’s start by George Russell after the Mercedes driver put in a storming final effort of 1:30.723.McLaren’s Lando Norris, the championship leader and winner of the season-opener in Australia, abandoned his final lap – while Piastri improved his time – and will start third with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen fourth. Read more