Plateau attack: Remi Tinubu donates N1b to victims, says money not from govt coffer (DailyTrust)
First Lady Remi Tinubu has donated ₦1 billion to victims of the recent attacks in parts of Plateau State.
The First Lady who announced the donation during her condolence visit to the state, on Thursday, said the money she donated is not government funds, but money she has personally raised to help others.
“Today, I have come with a donation of ₦1 billion for the Renewed Hope Initiative. I do not have vast sums of money, but what I have is meant to bring life, not to pour money into a basket. Read more
Reports of Buhari’s critical illness exaggerated — Former aide clarifies (Nation)
A former presidential aide has debunked reports claiming that former President Muhammadu Buhari is critically ill and fighting for his life in a UK hospital’s Intensive Care Unit, describing the claims as exaggerated and misleading.
Bashir Ahmad, who served as Special Assistant on Digital Communications to the former president, made the clarification in a post on his verified X (formerly Twitter) handle, @BashirAhmaad, on Thursday, amid growing speculation and concern over Buhari’s health.
“In light of the recent media reports suggesting that former President Muhammadu Buhari is critically ill and has been admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), we find it necessary to set the record straight,” Ahmad wrote. Read more
Oil producers get boost as NNPC clears legacy debts (Punch)
The Chief Executive Officer of Seplat Energy Plc, Roger Brown, says the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has cleared its legacy debts and now operates with improved financial alignment and discipline, a development he described as “a game changer” for indigenous oil producers.
Speaking during a high-powered panel session titled “Harnessing Africa’s Energy Shift – From Acquisition to Optimisation” at the 2025 Nigerian Oil and Gas conference on Wednesday in Abuja, Brown praised NNPCL for its renewed focus on operational efficiency and partnership.
Brown said, “Yesterday (Tuesday), you heard from the GCEO (of NNPC) talking about what NNPC is doing. One of the big things is cash flows and ensuring that, and I will tell you a story. When we listed in 2014, we raised $500m, that is half a billion dollars. And NNPC owed us $550m. More than we raised in our IPO. And that is a thing of the past.” Read more
Nigeria launches skilled manpower deployment to Saint Lucia, signs key agreement to boost Caribbean ties (Sun)
Nigeria has officially commenced the deployment of skilled professionals to Saint Lucia following the signing of a Technical Manpower Assistance (TMA) agreement between the two countries.
According to a statement issued by Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the agreement, signed on Wednesday in Castries by Director-General of the Nigerian Technical Aid Corps (TAC), Yusuf Yakub, and Acting Permanent Secretary of Saint Lucia’s Ministry of External Affairs, Janelle Modeste-Stephen, paves the way for Nigerian experts—including teachers, medical personnel, and agriculturists—to serve two-year terms in Saint Lucia and potentially other Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) members.
The manpower programme is a key component of President Bola Tinubu’s “4D” foreign policy strategy—Democracy, Development, Diaspora, and Demography—aimed at enhancing Nigeria’s global influence while fostering professional growth, cultural exchange, and solidarity with historically connected nations. Read more
ADC, a coalition of failed politicians – Wike (Vanguard)
Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister Nyesom Wike has slammed the anti-Tinubu coalition which on Wednesday took over the structure of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), describing them as a gang of failed and expired politicians.
Taking on the coalition leaders one by one, Wike said they have nothing to offer to Nigerians.
According to him, Senator David Mark wanted to be chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) but was resisted and has now gone to take that of the ADC. Read more
Coalition: Why we settled for ADC — David Mark (Tribune)
Former Senate President, Senator David Mark, has explained why the National Coalition of Political Opposition Movements in Nigeria, which he chairs, adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as the party to unseat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general elections.
Mark, addressing the media in Abuja on Wednesday in a speech titled “Adoption of African Democratic Congress,” said the move signals the beginning of a journey not only to rescue Nigeria from what he described as the ruling All Progressives Congress’ (APC) misrule but also to “save our hard-won democracy.”
In an earlier statement personally signed and made available to journalists, Mark announced his resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He also confirmed his assumption of leadership as interim chairman of the ADC, taking over from the party’s longtime chairman, Chief Ralph Nwosu. A former ally of President Tinubu and former Governor of Osun State has been named interim national secretary. Read more
Beta Glass doubles dividend to N1.76b as PAT surges (Guardian)
Beta Glass Plc, a member of Frigoglass Group and the leading glass packaging manufacturer in West and Central Africa, has announced a N1.76bn dividend at the company’s 51st Annual General Meeting (AGM), which was held recently at Landmark Event Centre in Lagos.
The event, attended by shareholders, institutional investors, and regulators, provided a platform to review the company’s Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2024, and set the course for future expansion and sustainability.
As Beta Glass Plc enters a new fiscal year, the company is expanding its export footprint and investing in alternative sustainable energy sources to boost efficiency and support growing domestic and international demand. Read more
Miley Cyrus shares sweet memory of father in reaction to her Hollywood Walk of Fame star (RollingStone)
Miley Cyrus is having a phenomenal year.
Following the release of her ninth studio album, the heralded Something Beautiful, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce announced that the Grammy winner would be getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The news is fitting, given that her latest LP features the glitzy track “Walk of Fame.”
In response to the announcement, Cyrus took to social media to reflect on the full circle moment, sharing a memory of her father, Billy Ray Cyrus. “Honored to be receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,” wrote the singer. “When I first came to LA from Nashville as a little girl, my family would stay at a hotel on Hollywood Blvd, and I would go on late night walks with my dad when no one would recognize him. We’d have the gift shops to ourselves & buy knock off Oscars and Marilyn Monroe merchandise.” Read more
The radical erotic novel that has divided readers (BBC)
“Life-changing” for some, hateable to others, Miranda July’s wildly successful erotic novel All Fours about the female midlife experience has dominated the conversation.
Every year brings its share of buzzy books: the tomes that top TBR piles, pop up all over social media and are mentioned in countless best-of lists. But it’s a rare novel that not only transcends the literary world to dominate the wider cultural conversation, but is still making waves a year after it was first published.
That’s the case with Miranda July’s All Fours, a strange, sexy and surprising book about a woman tearing up her life in her mid-40s. Read more
RFK Jr. wants everyone to use wearables. What are the benefits, risks? (ABC)
Last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the agency was launching a campaign to encourage all Americans to use wearables to track health metrics.
Wearables come in the form of watches, bands, rings, patches and clothes that can be used for a variety of reasons including monitoring glucose levels, measuring activity levels, track heart health and observe sleeping patterns.
“It’s a way … people can take control over their own heath. They can take responsibility,” Kennedy said during a hearing of the House Subcommittee on Health. “They can see, as you know, what food is doing to their glucose levels, their heart rates and a number of other metrics as they eat it. and they can begin to make good judgments about their diet, about their physical activity, about the way that they live their lives.” Read more
Lily Allen admits she ‘can’t remember’ how many abortions she’s had (Unilad)
Lily Allen has admitted she ‘can’t remember’ how many abortions she’s had in an honest discussion in a recent episode of her podcast.
While Allen certainly made a name for herself with some extremely catchy bangers, the ’22’ singer has launched her own podcast in recent times.
Hosted alongside Miquita Oliver, ‘Miss Me?’ offers a rare insight into the star’s life, and many of its episodes are formed by honest and frank discussions. Read more
Republicans want to tax the money migrants send home. It could backfire (QZ)
Republican lawmakers are barreling ahead with a proposal to tax remittances in their sweeping domestic policy bill that’s nearing the finish line, a first-of-its-kind measure that attempts to restrain illegal immigration.
The proposal to tax funds that migrants send back to their home countries could punch a hole in economies across Central America, including one country led by a close ally of President Donald Trump. And it may even eventually increase the rate of illegal migration to the US.
The little-noticed provision would impose a 1% excise tax paid by all remittance senders, including US citizens. Those using a cashier’s check, money order, and cash would be subject to the new tax. The remittance tax wouldn’t be collected if it’s paid with a US-issued credit or debit card. Digital transfers from bank accounts and other financial institutions would be exempted, along with cryptocurrency and stablecoins. Under the Senate-passed legislation, the tax would kick in next January generate $10 billion in revenue over a decade. Read more
Donald Trump’s approval rating surges among black voters (Newsweek)
President Donald Trump is seeing a notable surge in support among Black voters, according to a new poll.
The latest Quantus Insights poll, conducted June 23-25 among 1,000 registered voters, shows Trump’s approval rating among Black voters has grown by 8 points since the beginning of the month.
According to the poll, Trump’s approval rating among Black voters currently stands at 31 percent, up from 23 percent at the beginning of June. Meanwhile, his disapproval rating is down 4 points, from 68 to 64. Read more
Liverpool & Ronaldo lead tributes to Jota (BBC)
Liverpool say they are “devastated” by the “unimaginable loss” of forward Diogo Jota, who has died in a car crash aged 28.
The Portugal international and his brother Andre Silva, 25, were killed after their car left the road because of a tyre blowout in the Spanish province of Zamora.
Jota married his long-term partner Rute Cardoso, with whom he had three children, just last month. Read more
Akinyosoye tops Nigeria’s global fencing rankings (Punch)
Following an impressive performance at the 23rd African Fencing Championships, Oluwafolayemi Akinyosoye, has become Nigeria’s highest-ranked fencer on the global stage.
Latest rankings released by the International Fencing Federation place Akinyosoye at 65th in the men’s senior sabre category.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Akinyosoye reached the quarterfinals of the individual men’s sabre event. Read more
Max Verstappen’s ‘astronomical’ asking price under scrutiny as Hill weighs in (PlanetF1)
Max Verstappen will set an “astronomical” asking price for teams attempting to lure him away from Red Bull for the F1 2026 season.
That is the belief of Damon Hill, the 1996 World Champion and former Sky F1 pundit, who is not ruling out Aston Martin or Ferrari joining Mercedes in the race to sign the reigning four-time World Champion.
Damon Hill: Max Verstappen will set ‘astronomical’ asking price
Despite being officially under contract until the end of the F1 2028 season, Verstappen has been heavily linked with a move away from Red Bull in light of the team’s recent competitive decline. Read more
CAF unveils new trophy ahead of WAFCON 2024 (Sun)
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Wednesday presented the new trophy for the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
CAF introduced the new trophy during a lavish event in Rabat, Morocco.
The initiative is part of CAF’s efforts to reposition women’s football throughout the continent. Read more
Wimbledon: Sabalenka, Keys advance to 3 round (Leadership) Aryna Sabalenka and Madison Keys are through to the third round of the ongoing Wimbledon 2025.
Top seed Sabalenka dismantled Czech Marie Bouzkova 7-6(4) 6-4 to advance, while pricelessly eased past Olga Danilovic 6-4 6-2 to reach the third round.As the sun played hide-and-seek with the grey clouds that hovered over Centre Court, Sabalenka kept knocking on the door in the opening set, but was shut out by Bouzkova each time and dropped serve with a double fault in the 11th game. Read more