Senate to back deployment of soldiers to highways (Nation)
Towards checking insecurity, the Senate may support the deployment of soldiers to highways across the country. The Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, dropped this hint when he spoke with State House correspondents after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, on Monday. Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, at the weekend had canvassed for deployment of soldiers. Read more
Buhari’s lawyer seeks to play counter-video exhibit to tribunal (Punch)
The lead counsel for President Muhammadu Buhari at the Monday’s proceedings of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja, Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN), has asked for permission to play a video clip to counter the ones earlier played by the Peoples Democratic Party and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. The PDP and its presidential candidate in the February 23, 2019 election, Atiku, are by their petition challenging the victory of Buhari and his All Progressives Congress at the poll. The Independent National Electoral Commission, Buhari and the APC are the respondents to the petition. Read more
Tribunal: No accreditation of voters in Chibok, voters were just given ballot papers —PDP agent (Punch)
The 38th petitioners’ witness at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, in Abuja, Mr. Abana Koku, said on Monday, that voters were not accredited before they were allowed to vote at Chibok Local Government Area of Borno State during the February 23, 2019 poll. Koku served as the collation agent for the Peoples Democratic Party and its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, in Chibok Local Government Area, during the election. The party and Atiku are by their petition filed before the five-man tribunal led by Justice Mohammed Garba, challenging the victory of President Muhammadu Buhari and his All Progressives Congress at the poll. Read more
Oshiomhole, Obaseki helped each other, says Idahosa (Nation)
Former Political Adviser to Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, Mr. Charles Idahosa, has said it was wrong for some politicians to say Governor Godwin Obaseki is being ungrateful to Oshiomhole for making him Edo Governor in 2016. Idahosa said Oshiomhole first emerged Governor through the support of Obaseki and that the emergence of Obaseki was one good turn deserve another. He stated that Obaseki mobilised hundreds of millions of naira for Oshiomhole ahead of the 2007 governorship election. Read more
Supreme Court dismisses suit against Bulkachuwa (Guardian)
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a suit filed by Usman Tuggar of the All Progressives Congress (APC), seeking to sack Adamu Bulkachuwa also of the APC, as the Senator elect for Bauchi North Senatorial District of Bauchi State. Tuggar, who through his counsel withdrew his cause of action, claimed he won the APC primary election held on Oct. 3, 2018, in his senatorial district. Justice Jonn Okoro in his judgment, held that the case was statute barred and therefore dismissed the motion on notice brought to the apex court by Tuggar. Read more
Sex-for-marks: EKSU lecturer alleges frame-up, heads to court (Punch)
A lecturer at the Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti, Dr Olayeye Aduwo, on Monday denied involvement in the sex-for-marks allegations levelled against him. The lecturer in the Department of Accounting alleged that he was framed-up by a female student, who he alleged, brought some armed men to assault him at his residence in Ado Ekiti on June 12. The lecturer, following a video that went viral, was accused of attempting to have sex with one of his female students in exchange for marks before he was tortured. Read more
Ex-Kogi gov, Wada joins gov race (Punch)
A former Governor of Kogi State, Capt Idris Wada (rtd) has joined the governorship race in the state. Wada in an interview with journalists in Abuja on Monday after collecting his Expression of Interest and Nomination Forms said Kogi State was in a precarious situation. Wada said, “The November election is critical to the survival of Kogi State. Kogi was on a part of progress as of the time I left and if I had spent four more years, with the kind of money that’s coming into the hands of this present governor, Kogi would have become a state that all of us would have been proud of. Read more
95% Ogonis involved in Ogoniland Clean-up, says FG (Guardian)
The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) on Monday assured indigent Ogoni people of their full participation in the ongoing clean-up of oil impacted Ogoni communities in Rivers. HYPREP, under the Federal Ministry of Environment, said that 95 per cent Ogonis were currently working in different capacities in the clean-up of 21 remediation sites in Ogoniland. Read more
Niger to grant amnesty to well-behaved prisoners (Punch)
The Niger State Government on Monday commenced plans to decongest prisons by granting amnesty to prisoners who have been of good behavior. The government through the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy and its Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Baba Wachiko Yahaya, said the council would make recommendations to Governor Abubakar Sani Bello on how to apply leniency on inmates who had shown good behavior. Read more
Notorious kidnapper arrested in Abia (Nation)
It was a huge breakthrough for security agencies in Abia state as they have reportedly nabbed a notorious kidnapper that has been terrorizing Aba and other neighbouring states. The kidnapper simply identified as Echendu is linked to several kidnapping activities, including being behind the death of a well-known businessman from Ekwulumili, Anambra state. Our reporter gathered that Echendu had gone to Umunka, Ala Ojiegbe; Asa Nnentu with his group to kidnap some school children. Read more
UNIBEN student dies after fall from faculty building (Punch)
In what authorities suspect might be suicide, a student of the University of Benin has reportedly died after he fell from the second floor of the Faculty of Arts. Ephraim Imaghodora, a final year student of the Department of Actuarial Science, was said to be battling some academic issues as of the time of his death. Michael Osasuyi, Public Relations Officer of Uniben, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Benin, on Monday. Read more
Italy seizes ‘combat-ready’ missile in raids on far right (BBC)
Anti-terrorism police in northern Italy have seized an air-to-air missile and other sophisticated weapons during raids on far-right extremist groups. Three people were arrested – two of them near Forli airport. Neo-Nazi propaganda was also seized, in raids in several cities. Italian media say the raids were part of an investigation into Italian far-right help for Russian-backed separatist forces in eastern Ukraine. Read more
Death toll in Pakistan train collision rises to 23 (Guardian)
The death toll from a train collision in central Pakistan rose to 23 on Friday after several people succumbed to their injuries overnight, officials said. The incident took place Thursday in Rahim Yar Khan district in Punjab province when a passenger train coming from the eastern city of Lahore rammed into a goods train that had stopped at a crossing. The accident saw mangled carriages flipped on their sides and left debris strewn by the sides of the tracks as rescuers used cranes to enable them to pick through some of the twisted wreckage. Read more
US migrant crisis: Trump seeks to curb Central America asylum claims (BBC)
The Trump administration is seeking to curb migration from Central America by introducing new rules over who can claim asylum in the US. Under the new rules, announced on Monday, migrants who travel via another country before reaching the US border will be ineligible for US asylum. Migrants who have been trafficked will be exempt from the ban. Read more
Drug gangs behind Sri Lanka Easter bombings, president claims (Guardian)
International drug syndicates orchestrated Sri Lanka’s deadly Easter Sunday bombings, the country’s leader claimed Monday, despite earlier blaming the attacks on Islamists. The statement comes amid a nationwide narcotics crackdown, with President Maithripala Sirisena aiming to reintroduce capital punishment for drug offences. Authorities have said local jihadist group National Thowheeth Jama’ath (NTJ) were responsible for the suicide bombings in churches and hotels that killed at least 258 people in April. Read more
Fariba Adelkhah: French-Iranian academic ‘arrested in Iran’ (BBC)
France says a French-Iranian academic has been detained in Iran and denied consular assistance. The French foreign ministry called on the Iranian authorities to “shed full light” on Fariba Adelkhah’s situation and allow diplomats to visit her. Ms Adelkhah, an anthropologist and researcher at Sciences Po university in Paris, was reportedly detained in June. Read more
Canadian student detained on drug charges in China (Punch)
The Chinese authority has detained a third Canadian amid the cold relations between the two countries since Canada’s detention of an executive from the Chinese tech giant Huawei. This was disclosed by the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Monday. The suspect is a student who was being held in the Eastern Shandong province on drug-related charges, a ministry spokesman said on Monday. Read more
Australian children take 900km drive in stolen car (BBC)
Four children packed fishing rods and money into a 4×4 before illegally driving themselves more than 900km (560 miles) across Australia, police say. The three boys and a girl – all aged 10-14 – were discovered safe in the New South Wales town of Grafton on Sunday. They had left Gracemere, in Queensland, sometime earlier in the weekend. One boy reportedly wrote a note to his family to say he was leaving. Read more
Turkey marks third anniversary of failed coup (Guardian)
Turkey on Monday marked the anniversary of a bloody attempt to overthrow President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2016, an event whose impact is still felt today. Nearly 250 people were killed — excluding coup-plotters — and over 2,000 others were injured after a rogue military faction tried to wrest power from the president, but thousands took to the streets in response to Erdogan’s call to defeat the uprising. Read more
Mother meets boy who shot her son dead two days ago and forgives him (Metro)
A mother met and forgave a young boy two days after he shot and killed her 15-year-old son. Jordan Angel died after his 17-year-old friend, Zaylyn Cooks, shot him in the head while playing with a gun on Saturday in Spring, Texas, investigators said. Cooks later told police that he pointed a handgun at Jordan and pulled the trigger, unaware that a live round of ammunition was chambered. Read more
Police launch manhunt for abductors of Siasia’s mother (Nation)
The police on Monday began manhunt for abductors of Madam Beauty Ogere Siasia, the octogenarian mother of a former Coach of the Super Eagles, Samson Siasia and two other women in Bayelsa State. It was gathered from security sources that the 80-year-old woman and the two other victims were whisked away from their residences at Odoni community Sagbama Local Government Area by unknown gunmen. Read more
Encourage Super Eagles, not rebuke them, Owolabi tells Nigerians (Punch)
Felix Owolabi, an ex-international has urged Nigerians not to rebuke the Super Eagles following Sunday’s loss to the Desert Foxes of Algeria in the semi-final of the AFCON in Egypt. He made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos State on Monday while reacting to the team’s 2-1 defeat. Owolabi noted that the team performed better than he had expected, adding that he would give them credit for their hard work. Read more
Garba Lawal blames Super Eagles loss on poor tactics (Guardian)
As more Nigerians react to the Super Eagles loss to the Desert Foxes of Algeria in Sunday’s semi-final, ex-international Garba Lawal has attributed it to poor tactics by the players. Lawal told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna on Monday that though the loss was painful, but the Algerians were better than the Super Eagles. “The Algerians were tactically sound than the Super Eagles, though, they created a lot of chances, which they failed to convert, therefore, they deserve to win and we hope they will win their next match. Read more
Mason Mount signs new five-year contract with Chelsea (Punch)
Midfielder Mason Mount has signed a new five-year deal with Chelsea that will see him stay until at least 2024, the Premier League club said in a statement on Monday. The 20-year-old was on loan last season at Derby County under Frank Lampard, now the Chelsea coach, making 44 appearances in all competitions and scoring 11 goals. “I joined this club at six years old and it was always my goal to play for the first team one day. Read more
Neymar finally shows up for PSG training —report (Punch)
Neymar showed up Monday for training at Paris Saint-Germain according to French media reports, a week late and just days after upsetting the club by saying his best football memory was beating PSG when he played for Barcelona. PSG resumed training last Monday but Neymar, linked to a move back to Barcelona, turned up a week late according to the club, while the player’s camp maintained he had a prior agreement to stay away. Read more
Griezmann trains for the first time with Barcelona (Guardian)
French striker Antoine Griezmann trained with his new Barcelona teammates for the first time on Monday following his controversial move from Atletic Madrid last week. “The first of two sessions scheduled for the day was completed by all available first team players, including the newest incorporations, Frenkie de Jong, Neto, and Antoine Griezmann,” the Catalan club reported on its website. Another French forward, Ousmane Dembele and German goalkeeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen were both declared fit after recovering from injuries late last season. Read more
Juventus unveil Ramsey (Punch)
Aaron Ramsey says that he wants to follow in the footsteps of compatriot and Juventus hero John Charles after the Welshman was unveiled at the Serie A club on Monday. Ramsey will have a tough task emulating Charles, who died in 2004 at the age of 72, as the former Leeds United and Wales player is a bona fide legend in Turin thanks to a hugely successful five-year spell in the late 1950s and early 60s. Nicknamed ‘The Gentle Giant’, Charles scored over 100 goals for Juve as they bagged three league titles and two Coppa Italias, and became part of the ‘Magic Trio’ alongside Omar Sivori and Giampiero Boniperti. Read more
19m ticket requests for Euro 2020 games, says UEFA (Punch)
UEFA has received 19.3 million ticket requests for Euro 2020 matches in the first phase of ticket sales, the European governing body said on Monday. UEFA said that 1.9 million requests alone were placed for July 12, 2020, final at London’s Wembley Stadium, 22 times the stadium capacity. Tickets for the London semi-finals and group matches in Munich and Amsterdam were also in high demand. Read more
Dortmund’s Diallo heading to PSG (Guardian)
French defender Abdou Diallo is on the brink of a 32-million-euro move from Borussia Dortmund to Paris Saint-Germain, German magazine Kicker reported Monday. Diallo, 23, was absent from the Dortmund squad who set off earlier Monday for a pre-season US tour and is expected to take a medical prior to signing a five-year deal for the French champions, Kicker said. Read more
Boxing legend ‘Sweet Pea’ Whitaker dies at 55 (Punch)
Former Olympic boxing gold medallist and four-weight world champion Pernell Whitaker has died after a traffic accident in Virginia, police confirmed on Monday. The 55-year-old was killed after being struck by a vehicle at an intersection in Virginia Beach on Sunday, police said in a statement. “When officers arrived on scene they located an adult male victim who had been hit by a vehicle,” the statement said. Read more