Supreme Court Nullifies National Lottery Act (Channels)
The Supreme Court on Friday nullified the National Lottery Act 2005 enacted by the National Assembly on the grounds that it was made in violation of the powers donated by the Constitution to the federal Legislature.
In a unanimous judgment, a seven-member panel of the apex court, held that the National Assembly lacked the powers to legislate on issues relating to lottery and games of chance.
The court held that such powers only reside with the state Houses of Assembly, which possess exclusive jurisdiction over lottery and related issues. Read more
NASS retirees lose 20, others bedridden as FG delays inauguration of Pensions Board (Tribune)
No fewer than 20 retirees of the National Assembly have died while awaiting the payment of their gratuities and pensions, investigations by the Nigerian Tribune have revealed.
According to sources, the non-payment of their pensions and gratuities is a result of the failure of the Federal Government and the National Assembly to inaugurate the National Assembly Pensions Board, which was passed into law in the 9th National Assembly and assented to by former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Investigations showed that intrigues among some members of the National Assembly management and the political arm of the legislature have been responsible for the undue delay, which, according to sources, has also endangered no fewer than 12 other retirees, who are currently bedridden. Read more
Why payment must be made for new National ID Card – NIMC (Sun)
The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has explained why Nigerians must pay to get the new multipurpose national Identity card.
Speaking at a two-day roundtable organised for journalists in Lagos, NIMC Head of Card Management Services, Dr Peter Iwegbu disclosed that the payment is due to limited government revenue.
Iwegbu added that the payment is also to ensure that the card is produced for only those who need it.
He shared that the decision to make citizens pay was made to avoid repeating the mistake of the past efforts to issue physical cards to Nigerians for free, which many did not collect. Read more
Sen Ifeanyi Ubah laid to rest in Nnewi country home (NewTelegraph)
Senator who represented Anambra South Senatorial District, Late Sen Ifeanyi Ubah was on Friday committed to mother earth at his country home Umuanukam, Otolo Nnewi in Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State.
New Telegraph recalls that Sen Ifeanyi Ubah died in the United Kingdom (UK) while attending the graduation ceremony of his daughter.
Speaking at the funeral service at St Peter Clever Parish Umuanukam Otolo Nnewi, Cardinal Peter Ebere Okpaleke described the Denise of Ifeanyi Ubah as a lesson to those alive, adding that those alive should strive to leave exemplary lives while on earth in order to be remember when one is gone. Read more
YABATECH should drive Nigeria’s industrial revolution, says Sanwo-Olu (Nation)
Lagos State Governor Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu has challenged the management of Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) to drive Nigeria’s industrial revolution.
Sanwo-Olu threw this challenge while delivering the 36th Convocation Lecture on Tuesday in Lagos.
The theme of the lecture is: “Developing Exportable Alternatives for Nigeria’s Economic Recovery”.
While enjoining the college to conduct more research, the governor said the college is endowed with academics and professionals in various fields of technological endeavour. Read more
How to scale up impact of restorative justice – Lagos CJ, Attorney General (DailyTrust)
The Lagos State Chief Judge, Justice Kazeem Alogba, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro (SAN), have identified a collaborative effort of government agencies, the judiciary, civil society, and community leaders as the pathway to scale up the impact of Restorative Justice in Nigeria.
They spoke in Lagos on Thursday at a stakeholders’ engagement in commemoration of Restorative Justice Week, 2024, organized by Restorative Justice Centre of Lagos State Ministry of Justice with support of the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC) programme. Read more
2027 polls: Some disloyal PDP leaders working for APC – Bode George (Vanguard)
Former Deputy National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Bode George, on Thursday, revealed that some leaders of the party are working for the All Progressives Congress, APC, ahead of the 2027 elections.
He also advised former Vice President Atiku Abubakar not to be desperate to be president in 2027 saying the PDP is not the “private enterprise of any individual.”
The former Military Administrator of old Ondo State spoke at a press conference in Lagos.
Speaking on the state of the PDP, George said “all is not well with our party. In fact, our party is derailing”, just as he urged all aggrieved members and leaders to close ranks to fix the PDP. Read more
Okpebholo suspends recruitment into Edo Civil Service (Leadership)
Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo has ordered the suspension of recruitment into the state’s civil service until further notice.
Governor Okpebholo also directed a comprehensive review of all recruitment exercises carried out by the administration of the immediate-past governor, Godwin Obaseki between May-November 2024.
The directives are contained in a communication signed by the Secretary to State Government (SSG), Musa Umar Ikhilor on Friday, where Governor Okpebholo accused heads of various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of carrying out clandestine recruitment exercises into the state’s civil service. Read more
Keke Palmer gets emotional while reflecting on being family breadwinner as a child (VIBE)
Keke Palmer recently appeared on Club Shay Shay for a heartfelt interview, where she opened up about the emotional weight felt as her family’s breadwinner, from a young age.
Palmer, who has been in the entertainment industry since childhood, got visibly emotional in front of Shannon Sharpe as she reflected on the challenges of supporting her loved ones while navigating her early career.
“My parents at best made $40,000 a year when I was growing up. I was making that [per] show,” the 31-year-old admitted. Palmer then shared that her parents had access to her money and would “ration her out an allowance,” as well as her sister. “Somebody could say, ‘that was your money,’ but we a family,” she added. “And everybody sacrificed.” Read more
Cillian Murphy and wife Yvonne McGuinness buy Dingle’s historic Phoenix cinema (Deadline)
Oscar winner Cillian Murphy and artist Yvonne McGuinness are the new proprietors of The Phoenix Cinema in Dingle, County Kerry, Ireland. After 105 years in operation as a movie theater and dance hall, The Phoenix will remain an independently owned venue, which Time Out has previously named “one of the 50 best cinemas in the UK and Ireland.” Married couple McGuinness and Murphy plan to begin repair and refurbishment next year, with The Phoenix continuing to screen films and expand into a multidisciplinary space.
There’s history here for proud Irish man Murphy, who said, “I’ve been going to see films at The Phoenix since I was a young boy on summer holidays. My Dad saw movies there when he was a young man before me, and we’ve watched many films at The Phoenix with our own kids.” He added, “We recognize what the cinema means to Dingle.” Read more
Austin Butler teams up with Edward Berger for time-travel thriller ‘‘The Barrier’’ (TheHindu)
Academy Award nominee Austin Butler is set to star in and executive produce “The Barrier”, a new time-travel thriller directed by Edward Berger, the acclaimed filmmaker behind All Quiet on the Western Front.
The project, described as a hybrid of Interstellar and Top Gun, is generating significant buzz and is poised to spark a competitive bidding war among major studios and streamers.
Based on a short story by MacMillan Hedges, the film’s plot remains under wraps. Berger will direct from a screenplay written by Hedges, who will also produce alongside the director. Butler will be involved as both lead actor and executive producer. Read more
John Travolta “healed” Marlon Brando’s injured leg using Scientology exercise at Barbra Streisand party (NME)
John Travolta once healed Marlon Brando’s injured leg using a Scientology exercise, according to Josh Brolin.
The Dune actor, who is the stepson of Barbra Streisand, recounted how the incident happened at one of her star-studded dinner parties in his memoir “From Under the Truck”.
“It should have been a joke, but it turned out to be this amazing collective experience that I got to witness from afar,” Brolin told Variety. “At the time, I was like, ‘What the fuck is going on?’ Now I look back on it and go, ‘That was such a sweet moment.’” Read more
Only Fools and Horses reunion teased as Kelsey Grammer plans to get David Jason on Frasier (Mirror)
Kelsey Grammer has hinted at a possible Only Fools and Horses reunion between Nicholas Lyndhurst and Sir David Jason in Frasier.
TV fans will recall that the iconic British sitcom ran from 1981 until 2003 on the BBC – taking in 64 episodes across seven seasons. The show starred 63-year-old Nicholas and 84-year-old Sir David as brothers Rodney and Derek ‘Del Boy’ Trotter.
The series ran concurrently with iconic American sitcom Frasier which originally aired from 1993 until 2004 – with 69-year-old Kelsey in the title role of Dr. Frasier Crane. Last year, Kelsey reprised his role in a revival of his sitcom – which drafted in Nicholas to play a character named Professor Alan Cornwall. Read more
Google must sell Chrome to end search monopoly, says US justice department (Guardian)
The US Department of Justice has proposed a far-reaching overhaul of Google’s structure and business practices, including the sale of its Chrome browser, in a bid to end its monopoly on internet search.
The DoJ proposals follow a landmark court ruling in August in which a federal judge ruled that Google maintained an illegal monopoly over search services.
The proposals filed to a Washington federal court include the forced sale of the Chrome browser and a five-year ban from entering the browser market; a block on paying third parties such as Apple to make Google the default search engine on their products; and divestment of the Android mobile operating system if the initial proposals do not work. Read more
Gatwick terminal evacuated hours after controlled explosion outside US embassy (Telegraph)
Explosives experts are assessing a suspicious object found in luggage at Gatwick, as a package found outside the US embassy turned out to be a hoax device.
The Metropolitan Police carried out a “controlled explosion” using robots in central London in a separate incident on Friday morning.
Hours later, Gatwick airport announced it had closed part of its South Terminal, leaving thousands of passengers stranded. Read more
Rhasidat Adeleke wins Irish Athlete of the Year at the National Athletics Awards (IrishPost)
Ireland’s Rhasidat Adeleke has been named Irish Athlete of the Year at the National Athletics Awards.
The Tallaght native broke several Irish records, including the 60m, 200m, and 300m indoors, as well as the 100m and 400m outdoors.
Adeleke also played a pivotal role in helping the Irish team secure bronze medals in the mixed 4x400m at the World Relays. She won silver in both the 400m and the women’s 4x400m at the Europeans in June, along with gold in the mixed 4x400m. Read more
NFF President Gusau elected WAFU B 1st Vice President (Leadership)
The President of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau, has been elected as the 1st Vice President of the West African Football Union (WAFU) B Zone.
The election took place in Niamey, Niger Republic on Friday, on the margin of this year’s CAF African Schools Football Championship (WAFU B qualifying tournament) taking place in the country.
President of Ghana Football Association, Kurt Edwin-Simeon Okraku, was elected President of the zone, while Oumarou Sawadogo, President of the Burkinabe Football Federation, was elected as the 2nd Vice President. Read more
Enugu State to host 2026 National Sports Festival (VON)
The National Sports Commission (NSC) has announced Enugu State as the hosts of the 23rd edition of the National Sports Festival (NSF) in 2026.
NSC Director-General, Bukola Olopade disclosed this in a statement on Friday in Abuja. He said the decision was reached after a top management meeting of the NSC. According to him, Coal City emerged tops from a competitive bidding process and the state is set to deliver a world-class event.
Olopade said that early selection of Enugu State for the 23rd edition of the Games was in line with international best practices. Read more
Ruben Amorim makes confident Man Utd prediction after advice from Jose Mourinho (Mirror)
Ruben Amorim insists he is “the right man at the right time” to make Manchester United a major force once again.
Amorim faced the media for the first time as United boss today, ahead of his first game in charge, away to Ipswich on Sunday.
The former Sporting Lisbon boss cut an assured figure as he outlined his vision for United and said he is convinced he is the right man to save the fallen giants – despite referring to himself as a “dreamer”. Read more
Guardiola says he will stay even if Man City relegated (France24)
Pep Guardiola said on Friday he would remain at Manchester City even if the club were to face relegation from the Premier League over alleged breaches of financial rules.
Guardiola, who has won six Premier League titles in the past seven years with City, signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday, committing him to the English champions till 2027.
A hearing into the Premier League’s 115 charges against City has been ongoing for several weeks, with a verdict expected before the end of the season. Read more
Vegas disaster for Verstappen as team bring wrong wing (RTHK)
Max Verstappen’s hopes of clinching a fourth consecutive drivers’ world championship at the Las Vegas Grand Prix this weekend took a dent on Friday when Red Bull revealed they had brought the wrong rear wing.
In an interview with Auto Motor und Sport, the team’s senior advisor Helmut Marko said Red Bull were losing up to six-tenths of a second on the main straight, the Las Vegas Boulevard leading to Caesars Palace, after a packing blunder.
“We don’t have another rear wing, a smaller rear wing, as we see on our competitors,” said Marko. “It would be more helpful, for sure.” Read more