Police rescue kidnap victim denied food for six weeks (Punch)
The Zamfara State Police Command has rescued a kidnap victim, Mudassiru Malan, who was reportedly denied food for six weeks by bandits for failing to pay a ransom.
The state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Mohammed Shehu, said the hoodlums refused to give the victim food for six weeks because his family could not raise the ransom they demanded.
Shehu said Malan was rescued following a raid on hideouts of bandits in the state, coupled with extensive search and rescue operations by the police in collaboration with other security agencies.
He said, “On October 2, 2021, the police tactical operatives in conjunction with the vigilantes deployed along the Maradun Kaura Namoda axis succeeded in the rescue of one Mudassiru Malan of Sabon Garin Rini village in the Bakura LGA. Read more
FAAN to close MMIA departure drop off zone temporarily – Official (Guardian)
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) says there will be a temporary closure of the regular drop off zone at the departure frontage of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
Mrs Henrietta Yakubu, FAAN General Manager, Corporate Affairs, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos.
Yakubu said it became necessary to notify passengers, airport users, stakeholders and the public that the closure takes effect from Oct. 6.
She said the temporary closure was to allow for the completion of the ongoing canopy installation works at the concourse of the old international building. Read more
UNIMAID security officials stripped female students naked during tuition hike protest -Eyewitnesses (Punch)
Some students of the University of Maiduguri sustained injuries while protesting the recent increment in tuition by the management of the institution.
Some of the females among them were reportedly stripped naked in public and sexually harassed during detention by campus security officials, eyewitnesses said.
Majority of those injured, according to sources, were female students, some of whom were allegedly sexually harassed by the institution’s security personnel.
Dean of Student Affairs at UNIMAID, Gimba, warned that the university management would deal with those trying to breach the campus peace. Read more
NDLEA charges 20-year-old with drug trafficking (DailyTrust)
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Wednesday charged one 20-year-old Oluwafemi Abbas with drug trafficking.
Abbas is charged on one count before a Federal High Court in Lagos State.
NDLEA counsel, Mr Jeremiah Aernan, alleged that Abbas committed the offence on Sept. 11.
Aernan said that the defendant was arrested at Old Garage in Ikotun, Lagos State, for unlawfully trading in hemp weighing 400g, in contravention of Section 11(c) of the NDLEA Act of 2004.
The law provides for a maximum of life imprisonment for convicted drug traffickers. Read more
US to construct new Consulate General at Eko Atlantic (Guardian)
The Department of State has awarded Pernix Federal, LLC of Lombard, Illinois the $319 million design-build contract for the new U.S. Consulate General in Lagos, Nigeria.
A statement by the Consulate General office said the 12.2-acre site for the new Consulate-General is part of Eko Atlantic, a development led by South Energyx Nigeria Limited in collaboration with Lagos State.
The location will provide the future diplomatic campus and its neighbours with access to sustainable, modern infrastructure, including an 8.5 km seawall designed to protect the city from rising sea levels and coastal erosion.
Ennead Architects of New York, New York is the design architect. Read more
Obaseki swears in 11 commissioners, two special advisers (Guardian)
Edo State governor Godwin Obaseki inaugurated 11 commissioners and two Special Advisers on Wednesday in Benin as part of those that will constitute the Edo State Executive Council.
The governor charged the new appointees to ensure transparency and uphold accountability in all they did in their respective beats.
He told them that organisational performance scorecards had been developed for each ministry to enthrone a high performance culture.
“The scorecard shall track key performance targets and deliverables of each ministry and reports will be demanded on a quarterly basis,” Obaseki said. Read more
NLC, Ogun residents block Abeokuta-Lagos Expressway (Punch)
Scores of members of the Nigeria Labour Congress and residents of Ogun State on Wednesday blocked the Sango Ota section of the Lagos—Abeokuta Expressway in protest against the deplorable condition of the road.
The protesters blocked the Sango-Ota road in the Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area of the state from Joju Bus-Stop to the Garage area of the area during the protest.
The protesters demanded that the federal and state governments should find a lasting solution to the deplorable state of the road.
The protesters carried placards with various inscriptions such as “Repair our road with immediate effect or face the wrath of the masses; “400% hike in transport fare due to bad road”; “Our roads are death traps fix our roads”; “No good roads, No payment of tax”; “Our taxes are meant for fixing road so what happened”; and “Industries in Ota are relocating and closing down due to bad roads”. Read more
Election: We may declare state of emergency in Anambra, FG warns (DailyTrust)
The federal government has said it is not foreclosing the possibility of declaring state of emergency in Anambra State.
There has been widespread violence in the state in the buildup to the November 6 governorship election.
Daily Trust had reported how politicians went into hiding following the activities of rampaging gunmen suspected to be members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
While speaking with State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, on Wednesday, the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, said the election must hold. Read more
How to secretly view WhatsApp images without opening the chat (Metro)
A simple trick means you can take a look at images without letting everyone else know you’ve seen them (Getty)
There’s a secret trick to view images on WhatsApp without alerting the sender to the fact you’ve seen them.
It neatly sidesteps that awkward pressure of having to reply because they know you’ve seen their message.
As we know, when it comes to WhatsApp the message report begins with one grey tick (when sent), then two grey ticks (when the message has reached their phone), then two blue ticks (when it’s been read). You’ll also find the images saved to your camera roll (unless you’ve got this option switched off) once you’ve viewed them.
Sadly, the way to skip the ticks only works on iPhones so if you’re using an Android-based device you’re out of luck. Read more
US jury orders Tesla to pay ex-employee $137 million over racism (Guardian)
A California verdict ordering Tesla to pay a Black former employee $137 million in damages for turning a blind eye to racism the man encountered at the firm’s Silicon Valley auto plant is a resounding message to corporate America in the eyes of his attorney.
“They awarded an amount that could be a wake-up call for American corporations,” civil rights attorney Larry Organ told AFP on Tuesday.
“Don’t engage in racist conduct and don’t allow racist conduct to continue.”
Owen Diaz was hired through a staffing agency as an elevator operator at the electric vehicle-maker’s Fremont factory between June 2015 and July 2016, where he was subjected to racist abuse and a hostile work environment, according to the court filing. Read more
Donald Trump drops off Forbes’ 400 Richest Americans (DailyTrust)
A former U.S. President, Donald Trump, was not included in the annual Forbes 400 ranking of the wealthiest Americans.
Forbes said Trump is now worth an estimated 2.5 billion dollars, leaving him 400 million dollars short of the cutoff to make this year’s 400 list.
This is contained in a message on Forbes’ verified Instagram page on Tuesday night.
Forbes said the real estate mogul is just as wealthy as he was a year ago, when he stood at No. 339 on the ranking, but he is down 600 million dollars since the start of the pandemic.
It reported that technology stocks, cryptocurrencies and other assets have thrived in the COVID era. Read more
Tina Turner sells music rights for reported $50m sum (BBC)
Tina Turner sold the rights to her music catalogue, including hits like The Best and Nutbush City Limits, to music publishing company BMG.
The deal also sees BMG acquire the rights to Turner’s name, image, and likeness for future sponsorship and merchandising deals.
The company did not disclose how much it paid, but industry sources said the figure would be north of $50m (£37m).
Turner said she was confident her music was “in reliable hands”. Read more
UAE says has ‘overcome’ Covid crisis (Guardian)
The United Arab Emirates declared Wednesday that it has overcome the Covid crisis, recording its lowest number of infections this month since summer last year.
“I wanted to assure you all that our lives must go back to normal,” said Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed in footage published by the official WAM new agency.
“There are some changes in how we work, in our families’ studies or our personal lives… but we thank God for everything,” said the de facto UAE ruler.
“We also thank God that we have overcome this crisis… safely, in good health and with an experience, for which we paid the price, but we learnt a lot.” Read more
How to download Windows 11 and upgrade your computer for free (Metro)
The newest version of Microsoft’s Windows operating system is now available and rolling out to computers worldwide.
As with any big software update, it can take some time to filter through to the millions of devices capable of running it.
When it becomes available for your machine (providing it’s capable of running the new OS) you should be notified automatically.
A message will pop up prompting you to update if you wish. This usually takes place once you restart your machine. Read more
NBA star Kyrie Irving willing to forfeit $380,000 per game over vaccine refusal (Metro)
NBA superstar Kyrie Irving is set to lose $380,000 per home game he misses due to his continued reluctance to get vaccinated and there are now huge questions over his future with the Brooklyn Nets.
The All-Star guard is the highest profile basketball player who is still refusing to get jabbed, but that means he is now unable to train or play in New York due to the city’s Covid-19 vaccine mandate.
There had been a belief that Irving would eventually get vaccinated, with the Nets supporting and educating Irving on the decision, but according to ESPN those hopes are now waning.
While Irving remains unvaccinated, he will be unable to play in any home games or practices for the foreseeable future and will forfeit a large chunk of his salary. Read more
Eagles camp bubbles as 21 players train (Punch)
Super Eagles coach Gernot Rohr held his first training session with 21 players on Tuesday ahead of their Qatar 2022 World Cup qualifier against Central African Republic at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos on Thursday, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
Sparta Rotterdam goalkeeper Maduka Okoye and Genk striker Paul Onuachu did not take part in the session which lasted for an hour.
While Okoye is still being expected to join up with the team, Onuachu sat out Tuesday’s training.
Skipper Ahmed Musa, William Troost- Ekong, Leon Balogun, Kevin Akpoguma, Jamilu Collins, Chidozie Awaziem, Leon Balogun, Calvin Bassey, Olaoluwa Aina, Abdullahi Shehu and Kenneth Omeruo were among the players that took part in the training session. Read more
Russian owner Roman Abramovich is in London and set to visit Chelsea on first UK trip in 3 years following visa issues – media (RT)
After not being spotted in London for three years due to visa issues, Russian businessman Roman Abramovich is said to be in the city and set to visit Chelsea.
The billionaire is thought to be likely to pay a visit the club’s Cobham training facility, which he famously overhauled after taking over in 2003, and could attend a home game should he remain in England until October 20, when Chelsea host Malmo in the Champions League.
Chelsea are also away to west London side Brentford on October 16 and play three home games in six days starting with the visit of the Swedish side.
Premier League bottom side Norwich visit on October 23, with Southampton – who Chelsea beat 3-1 on Saturday to end a winless run of three matches including two successive defeats – visiting in the EFL Cup three days later. Read more
Leicester City midfielder Wilfred Ndidi responds to fan asking him to sign for Arsenal (Metro)
Wilfred Ndidi was quick to point out that Arsenal already have Thomas Partey when asked by a fan to join the Gunners.
The Nigeria international has established himself as a key player under Brendan Rodgers at the heart of Leicester City’s midfield.
Ndidi has previously been linked with a move to Manchester United as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer continues to target a new defensive midfielder.
But one Arsenal fan bumped into the 24-year-old at an event and asked the Leicester City midfielder to make the move to Mikel Arteta’s side. Read more
The Match: Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka to go head-to-head (BBC)
Americans Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka will renew their rivalry when they go head-to-head in The Match in Las Vegas.
The Match will see the pair face off in a 12-hole event at the Wynn Golf Course on 26 November.
DeChambeau and Koepka, both major winners, put aside their long-standing rivalry to help the United States win the Ryder Cup in September.
“Finally, what the world has been waiting to see,” DeChambeau said.
With the event set to take place the day after Thanksgiving in the US, 31-year-old Koepka said: “So does this mean we’re having ‘Friendsgiving’.” Read more
Brazilian footballer faces attempted murder charge after kicking referee in the neck (Metro)
William Ribeiro, a footballer for lower-league Brazilian side Sao Paulo RS, is facing an attempted murder charge after intentionally kicking a referee in the neck during a match.
The game against Guarani on Monday was abandoned early in the second half when Ribeiro attacked match official Rodrigo Crivellaro, leaving him unconscious.
Crivellaro had given a free-kick against Sao Paulo RS which prompted Ribeiro to react viciously.
William Ribeiro kicks referee
Crivellaro was left unconscious after the attack (Picture: FGF TV)
The referee was taken away in an ambulance, while Ribeiro has escorted out of the stadium by police. Read more