Opposition coalition scores Tinubu low on economy, governance (Guardian)
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar disclosed on Thursday that the formation of a coalition of opposition parties is aimed at offering an alternative to the current administration, citing concerns over rising economic hardship and governance challenges.
In a statement posted on his verified X status, Abubakar said the coalition intends to address what it views as a deteriorating economic situation and growing inequality across the country.
“We are here to rescue Nigeria,” he said, outlining the coalition’s goal of providing what it considers a more effective approach to leadership. Read more
Examination hall collapses on WASSCE candidates (Punch)
Dozens of students sitting for the ongoing West African Senior School Certificate Examination at Government Secondary School, Namnai, in Gassol Local Government Area of Taraba State narrowly escaped death on Wednesday evening after their classrooms collapsed during a downpour accompanied by a windstorm.
The students, along with teachers, corps members, and external supervisors, were reportedly trapped in the collapsed structures and had to be rescued by local residents who responded swiftly to the incident.
Several students, both male and female, sustained varying degrees of injuries, with some reportedly suffering fractures to their limbs. Read more
WAEC apologises for night WASSCE, blames logistics challenge (Channels)
The West African Examination Council (WAEC) has apologised for the logistics delay that forced candidates to write the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) at night.
The Head of the Nigeria National Office of WAEC, Amos Dangut, told Channels Television’s The Morning Brief crew on Thursday that the examination body got information that the paper to be taken on Wednesday was about to be compromised, hence the need to take immediate action.
Many had raised concerns when videos showed some secondary school students in Taraba State, North-Eastern Nigeria, and Ogun State, in the South-West zone of Nigeria, sitting for WASSCE at night on Wednesday. Read more
WAEC given ultimatum to appear before Reps over ongoing exams (Sun)
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has been issued a 24-hour ultimatum to appear before the House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education and Examination Bodies over concerns around the ongoing Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE).
The directive was given on Thursday by the Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Oboku Abonsizibe Oforji, after WAEC failed to show up following an earlier invitation.
Oforji disclosed that WAEC has been summoned to explain widespread complaints and irregularities reported during the ongoing exams. Read more
Cardoso named Central Bank governor of the year at African Banker Awards (Nation)
Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, has been named the Central Bank Governor of the Year at the 2025 African Banker Awards Gala.
A statement from the CBN on Thursday said the ceremony, which held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, brought together senior government officials, development finance leaders, and top executives from across Africa’s banking industry.
The award was presented by African Banker magazine and celebrates Mr. Cardoso’s leadership in spearheading critical monetary and regulatory reforms that have helped restore stability to Nigeria’s financial landscape. Read more
How native doctor declared wanted in Enugu was nabbed on a bike in Lagos (DailyTrust)
Obi Obieze, a native doctor also known as Obu Onyeka, has been arrested for alleged involvement in abduction, kidnapping, and ritual killing.
A native of Umuojor village in Isiagu Community of Enugu, he was allegedly involved in the abduction of a 13-year-old girl on Tuesday, May 27.
According to reports, the girl was kidnapped by three men while walking to the farm with her father. Read more
Flood Alert: NEMA, NASEMA intensify awareness campaign to avert disaster in Nasarawa (Vanguard)
As warnings of impending floods grow with the intensifying rains, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), in collaboration with the Nasarawa State Emergency Management Agency (NASEMA), has launched the National Preparedness and Response Campaign (NPRC) on flood disaster in Nasarawa State.
Speaking at a one-day stakeholders’ engagement on the NPRC in Lafia, NEMA Director General, Mrs. Zubaida Umar, represented by Mr. Aliyu Waziri, Director of NEMA’s North Central Zonal Directorate, said the campaign is focused on prevention, preparedness, mitigation, and response to flood disasters.
According to her, the NPRC is designed to minimize the annual impact of floods, protect livelihoods, and promote socio-economic development in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. Read more
Benedict Cumberbatch, Dua Lipa, Riz Ahmed & Annie Lennox Among 300 signatories of letter calling on UK PM Keir Starmer to act on Gaza (Deadline)
Benedict Cumberbatch, Riz Ahmed, Dua Lipa and Annie Lennox are among 300 public figures to have signed an open letter calling on UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to end the country’s “complicity” in the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
“We urge you to take immediate action to end the UK’s complicity in the horrors in Gaza,” read the letter.
“Right now, children in Gaza are starving while food and medicine sit just minutes away, blocked at the border. Words won’t feed Palestinian children – we need action. Every single one of Gaza’s 2.1 million people is at risk of starvation, as you read this. Read more
Mother who sold six-year-old daughter given life term in South Africa (BBC)
A South African woman convicted of kidnapping and trafficking her six-year-old daughter has been sentenced to life in prison, along with her two accomplices.
The jail terms for Racquel “Kelly” Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and their friend Steveno van Rhyn’s come more than a year after Joshlin Smith mysteriously disappeared outside her home in Saldanha Bay, near Cape Town.
Despite a highly publicised search for the girl, who vanished in February 2024, she is yet to be found. Read more
Mauritania’s Sidi Ould Tah Elected New AfDB President (Channels)
Mauritania’s former economy minister Sidi Ould Tah was on Thursday elected to succeed Nigeria’s Akinwumi Adesina as president of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and tackle the withdrawal of US financing from the institution.
In 2015 Adesina took six rounds of voting to become Africa’s “super banker” but Tah, 60, secured the prestigious post in only three, winning 76.18 percent of votes.
Zambian economist Samuel Munzele Maimbo trailed well behind in second on 20.26 percent, with Senegal’s Amadou Hott third on 3.55 percent. Read more
Here’s what to know about Trump’s tariffs after a US trade court rules them illegal (CBS)
President Trump’s sweeping tariffs on goods imported from almost every foreign nation have been ruled illegal by the U.S. Court of International Trade, marking a setback for the president’s trade agenda — and adding another level of uncertainty for U.S. consumers and businesses.
The Wednesday ruling from the court halted the tariffs Mr. Trump assessed on virtually every other country on April 2, a day he termed “Liberation Day.” Some trading partners faced substantially higher import duties, with the president hiking tariffs on China-produced goods to as high as 145% before easing them temporarily earlier this month.
The ruling raises a host of questions about what happens next, given that Mr. Trump’s trade agenda hinges on wide-ranging tariffs that he has promised will help bring back U.S. manufacturing jobs while also raising trillions in new revenue for federal coffers. Meanwhile, the court decision will likely provide a measure of relief to American businesses and consumers, given that they’re typically on the hook for paying the tariffs when imports reach U.S. soil. Read more
One person missing after glacier collapse buries Swiss village (UPI)
Rescuers in the Swiss Alps were searching for at least one person missing after 1.5 million cubic meters of ice, rock and mud from an imploding glacier engulfed a village in the Lotschental Valley in the southwest of the country.
Authorities, including the military, were using drones and helicopters to access the area to search for casualties and assess the damage after a huge section of the Birch glacier, which sits atop Kleine Nesthorn above the village of Blatten at an altitude of between 8,350 and 11,000 feet, broke off Wednesday afternoon.
“An unbelievable amount of material thundered down into the valley,” said Valais Canton spokesperson Matthias Ebener, who confirmed one person was unaccounted for but gave no further details. Read more
US envoy visits Damascus, says Syria-Israel conflict ‘solvable’ (AlJazeera)
The United States envoy to Syria says the conflict between Israel and Syria is “solvable” as he visited the capital, Damascus and praised the interim government, as the political and economic thaw between the nation and Western powers continues apace.
Thomas Barrack, who raised the flag over the US ambassador’s residence for the first time since it closed in 2012 amid Syria’s civil war, said solving the issues between Syria and Israel needed to start with “dialogue”.
“I’d say we need to start with just a non-aggression agreement, talk about boundaries and borders,” he told journalists on Thursday. Read more
Olanrewaju’s body will arrive Nigeria soon – Ghana (Punch)
Ghana’s Ministry of Youth and Sports has assured that the remains of Nigerian boxer Segun Olanrewaju will be repatriated to Nigeria soon, with Sports Minister Kofi Adams confirming that all necessary clearances have now been obtained for the evacuation process, The PUNCH reports.
Adams explained that the delay in repatriating the boxer’s body was due to legal requirements that had to be fulfilled following the circumstances of his death.
“The body was not detained for no reason. In the circumstances of his death, the coroner act is invoked and the report of the coroner is needed to carry on with the burial or evacuation process,” Adams told The PUNCH. Read more
Russian teen Andreeva eases into French Open 3rd round (Channels)
Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva cruised into the French Open last 32 on Thursday with a straight-sets victory over American Ashlyn Krueger.
The 18-year-old, seeded sixth at Roland Garros, wrapped up a 6-3, 6-4 win on Court Simonne Mathieu in just 73 minutes.
Andreeva, who reached the semi-finals last year, will face either Taiwan’s Joanna Garland or Kazakh 32nd seed Yulia Putintseva in the third round. Read more
Why US Open comes at crucial moment for women’s golf (BBC)
Britain’s Charley Hull tees off alongside world number one Nelly Korda for the first two rounds of this week’s US Open, the biggest championship in women’s golf.
Worth a record-equalling $12m, the event comes at a crucial moment. A new LPGA Tour boss has just been appointed with an immediate priority to halt a perceived period of damaging stagnation.
While other elite women’s sports have boomed, golf has drifted despite attracting larger prize funds for its biggest events. Observers talk of the female game now being “at a crossroads”. Read more
With player option looming, Julius Randle expresses love for Timberwolves (SI)
The Minnesota Timberwolves’ season ended on Wednesday night with a 124-94 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals.
Members of the Timberwolves spoke with reporters on Thursday morning as the team formally concluded its season.
Timberwolves star Julius Randle shined in his first season with the team. After an offseason blockbuster trade sent him to Minnesota from the New York Knicks, Randle played a key role in helping the franchise reach the Western Conference finals. Read more
Charlie Woods wins first junior tournament (CBS)
Golf fans have watched Tiger Woods’ son, Charlie Woods, grow up as the two have played in the PNC Championship for the past few years. Over that time we’ve seen the younger Woods show some impressive talents of his own, albeit not quite in the same prodigious manner as his father.
This week, Charlie Woods competed in his first AJGA invitational event at the Team TaylorMade Invitational at Streamsong resort in Bowling Green, Florida, which featured a field with six of the top-10 ranked junior players in the country — including No. 1 Miles Russell. There were modest expectations for Woods in one of his first starts in a major junior tournament, as he entered the week ranked 606th in the Rolex AJGA rankings, but he made quite the statement as he ends his sophomore year in high school by not only being competitive, but winning the tournament with a three-day total of 15 under. Read more