Seven escape death as bus driving against traffic rams into another on highway (Guardian)
It was a close shave with death at Toyota bus stop on Oshodi-Apapa expressway yesterday after seven persons including a driver and his conductor were injured as two commercial buses, popularly known as Danfo, collided against each other in Lagos.
A commercial bus with registration number LSR221BB, rammed into a 14-seater bus with plate number XP610KSF, just opposite Rutam House, head office of The Guardian newspaper, leaving a man and a woman severely injured.
The driver, who drove against traffic on the expressway, fled the scene as soon as the accident occurred, along with his conductor. Driver of the damaged bus, Mr. Tony Maxwell, who was in shock over the incident, said: “I have been driving for almost 20 years, I have never experienced a thing like this. The bus taking one-way was coming at me on top speed…” Read more
Ambode shuns Lagos Assembly again, ex-aides indict him (PMNews)
Immediate past Governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode on Tuesday shunned the 16-man House of Assembly Committee set up to investigate alleged shady activities of his administration, even as some commissioners who served under his administration indicted him.
The Lagos State House of Assembly is investigating the former governor in the purchase of 820 mass transit buses at about N7 billion which was not approved by the House and other issues.
The Assembly had last week threatened to issue a warrant of arrest on the governor if he refused to appear before the committee to defend himself. Read more
Lagos Ready to Pay above N30,000 Minimum Wage, Says Sanwo-Olu (ThisDay)
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State yesterday disclosed that the State is ready to pay more than the N30,000 benchmark for the National Minimum Wage.
Sanwo-Olu said the implementation of the new minimum wage payment would take off when the federal government and the labour unions conclude their negotiations.
The state, he said, was drawing up its finances and creating additional revenue sources that would enable the government sustain the new minimum wage payment. Read more
Lagos residents scoop fuel from leaking tanker (Punch)
There was drama on Tuesday as a petrol-laden tanker ran into a container lorry in the Mile 2 area of Lagos State.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the tanker driver, had in a bid to avoid a mild traffic, ignored the directives of officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority and rammed into the container lorry around 11am.
Our correspondent learnt that the tanker was punctured by the side as a result of the crash, causing intense fuel spillage that sent shivers down the spines of commuters and traders in the area. Read more
Nigerians are reluctant to buy local rice – Sellers in Ilorin lament (Vanguard)
Rice sellers in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital have expressed worry over the reluctance of consumers to buy locally produced rice.
Some rice sellers who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday said consumers preferred to pay more for foreign imported rice than the cheaper locally produced one. Read more
Pension assets hit N9.4trn in August, PenCom says (DailyTrust)
Nigeria’s contributory pension industry has accumulated assets worth over N9.4 trillion as at August 2019. This was disclosed by the Acting Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Aisha Dahir-Umar, at the 7th Conference for directors of pension operators held In Abuja yesterday. The latest growth recorded in pension assets translates a growth of N700 billion in seven months from the N8.74 trillion recorded in January 2015 to N9.4 trillion as at August. Read more
Ben Enwonwu’s painting sold for £1.1m after Google search (Punch)
A painting by the Nigerian artist responsible for the ‘African Mona Lisa’ sold at auction in London on Tuesday for £1.1m after the family who owned it googled the signature and realised its importance.
“Christine”, by 20th century master of African modernism Ben Enwonwu, had been in the sitter’s family home ever since it was painted in Lagos in 1971.
“The family were unaware of the significance of the painting or the importance of the artist, until a chance “googling” of the signature led them to Sotheby’s free Online Estimate Platform,” said the London auction house. Read more
London: Men high-five and hug each other after raping woman (DailyStar)
CCTV footage has emerged of two students high-fiving and hugging one another moments after they raped a “petite” young woman in a central London nightclub.
The pair, from Italy, were observed “passing the woman from one to another” just six minutes after they first met her at the West End nightclub in February 2017, Isleworth Crown Court heard.
Post-graduate students, Ferdinando Orlando, of Pimlico, who is reading international law, and Lorenzo Costanzo, who is taking a masters in business and management, were today found guilty of four counts of rape, two counts per person. Read more
Lib Dems in renewed push for second Brexit referendum vote (Guardian)
Public should have final say on any deal PM brings back from EU summit, Lib Dems argue.
The Liberal Democrats will try to push MPs to a fresh vote on a second Brexit referendum next week.
The party has tabled an amendment to the Queen’s speech requesting that any deal brought back from Brussels by the prime minister is put to another public vote.
The Lib Dem leader, Jo Swinson, said: “The Liberal Democrats are the strongest party of remain and have been the leading voice in the People’s Vote campaign.
“Boris Johnson is determined to have a general election, but the best way to resolve the Brexit chaos is to have a people’s vote and give the British people the final say about their future. Read more
The Ukrainian Prosecutor Behind the Dossier Targeting Hunter Biden (NYTimes)
When the Ukrainian prosecutor Konstiantyn H. Kulyk compiled a seven-page dossier in English that accused the son of former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. of corruption, he helped set off a political firestorm that has led to the impeachment investigation of President Trump.
But even as he was reopening a corruption case related to Hunter Biden’s service on the board of Burisma Holdings, a major Ukrainian gas company, Mr. Kulyk himself was under a cloud of suspicion.
He has been indicted three times on corruption charges and accused of bringing politically motivated criminal cases against his opponents. Read more
Politician WINS election as mayor of Hungarian city despite leaked footage of him taking part in an orgy(DailyMail)
Zsolt Borkai, 54, re-elected mayor of Gyor in northern Hungary despite scandal
Married father-of-two was caught on tape in yacht orgy he described as ‘mistake’
He was said to be joined by prostitutes during the ‘cocaine-fuelled’ party at sea
A former Olympic champion has been re-elected as mayor of a Hungarian city – despite footage of him having sex on a yacht being leaked online just days earlier.
Zsolt Borkai, who won a gold medal in gymnastics at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and is married with two children, has apologised for actions he called a ‘mistake’ after an explicit video of him having sex with a young woman appeared online last week. Read more
Eagles rated second youngest team (Punch)
The Super Eagles have been rated second youngest national team in the World according to statistics revealed by Transfermarket.
The Eagles average age is placed at 24.1, a statistics only bettered by Mexico, whose team averages 23.5.
The Eagles have Maduka Okoye, Samuel Chukwueze, Francis Uzoho, and Victor Osimhen, who are all 20 years of age among other players who are in their early 20s.
England occupies the third spot with an average age of 25.0. Other countries that completed the top 10 are USA (25.2), Wales (25.3), Tunisia (25.5), Germany (25.6), Brazil (25.7), Argentina (26.0) and Italy (26.1). Read more
Bulgaria’s FA president resigns over racist chants during England match (Vanguard)
The president of the Bulgarian Football Association has resigned from his position after England’s black players were subjected to shocking racist chants and monkey noises in Sofia on Monday night.
The news comes just hours after the prime minister of Bulgaria had demanded that the FA chief steps down, announcing that the government would freeze all relations with the Bulgarian FA – including denying them any funding – until Borislav Mihaylov was gone.
Meanwhile, the Bulgarian FA’s offices have been raided by 30 uniformed officers from the country’s State Security Council, sportal.bg reports. The purpose of the operation is yet to be announced.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin also spoke out on Tuesday, urging the ‘football family’ to ‘wage war on the racists’ following the abuse suffered by the likes of Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford on Monday. Read more
Patriots suspend Michael Bennett after ‘philosophical disagreement’ with coach (NYPost)
The Patriots just reduced Michael Bennett’s role even more.
The three-time Pro Bowler, who has seen his playing time drop significantly in his first season with the Patriots, has been suspended by New England for Monday night’s game against the Jets due to conduct detrimental to the team, according to multiple reports.
Bennett, 33, confirmed the suspension to ESPN.
On Friday, I had a philosophical disagreement with my position coach (Bret Bielema) that has led to my suspension,” Bennett said. “I apologize to my teammates for any distraction this may have caused.” Read more
Euro 2020 Qualifier: UEFA Probes Turkey for Military Salute (ThisDay)
UEFA announced yesterday that it is opening disciplinary proceedings against Turkey into “potential provocative political behaviour” by their players after making military salutes in their last two matches.
In both their Euro 2020 qualifiers against Albania on Friday and France on Tuesday, Turkish players made the salutes – seen as supporting Turkey’s current military operation in Syria – as they celebrated late goals.
UEFA said in a statement that it has appointed an ‘Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector’ to investigate. Read more
‘I don’t look for records, they look for me’, says Ronaldo after 700th goal (Vanguard)
Cristiano Ronaldo has lost count of the number of records he has broken, Portugal forward said after scoring the 700th goal of his career during a 2-1 defeat to Ukraine on Monday.
“The records come naturally, I don’t look for them, the records look for me,” he told reporters after scoring his 95th goal for his country.
“It’s not for anyone to reach this number and I thank everyone, teammates, colleagues, coaches and everyone who helped Cristiano become the player that he is.” Read more
North Korea plays South Korea in empty stadium for World Cup qualifier (TMZ)
North Korea faced off with South Korea in a historic soccer World Cup qualifier … but nobody saw it — ’cause North Korea didn’t allow fans in the stadium OR a TV broadcast.
The meeting between the two teams on Monday — which ended in a 0-0 tie — was surreal … it was reportedly the first match between the two national squads in Pyongyang EVER.
But … North Korean officials reportedly put massive restrictions on who could view the game — with no TV coverage, no fans in the stands and no journalists allowed. Read more
2019/2020 Nigeria Professional Football League to begin on Nov 3 (Vanguard)
The League Management Company (LMC), organisers of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), have now picked Nov. 3 as a new kick-off date for the 2019/2020 NPFL season.
The new date for the start of the Nigeria League is being backed by the conduct of the draw for the competition, held late on Monday in Abuja.
The draw was supervised by the LMC Chairman, Shehu Dikko, and the company’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Salihu Abubakar.
According to the LMC, the league will revert to its original format of the 20 club sides represented in a single NPFL log. Read more
LeBron under fire after blaming China row on ‘misinformed’ Rockets GM (Guardian)
Basketball superstar LeBron James was accused of turning a blind eye to Chinese repression on Tuesday after he criticized a Houston Rockets executive for angering China with a “misinformed” tweet supporting protesters in Hong Kong.
James told reporters that Rockets general manager Daryl Morey “wasn’t educated” on Hong Kong and should have kept his mouth shut, as the outspoken Lakers forward waded into a charged debate that other high-profile NBA figures have shied away from. Read more