Tinubu hosts son’s family, bonds with grandchildren in Lagos (Nation)
President Bola Tinubu on Thursday, December 28, shared precious moments with his grandchildren while hosting his son, Seyi and daughter in-law, Layal at his residence in Lagos.
Seyi took to his Instagram account to share a video clip of their visit.
Captioning the post, he wrote: “Lord, we thank You for Your faithfulness and love. We praise You for all the blessings You have given us this year, both big and small. Read more
South-West governors pay condolence visit to Akeredolu’s family (Channels)
Governors of the South-West region have paid a condolence visit to the family of the late former Governor of Ondo State Rotimi Akeredolu.
Akeredolu died on Wednesday in Germany. He was aged 67.
Governors present at the Jerico Ibadan, Oyo State residence of the Akeredolus were Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), Abiodun Oyebanj (Ekiti), and Ademola Adeleke (Osun).
Abiodun disclosed this on his X handle, sharing pictures from the visit. Read more
2 siblings drown celebrating Christmas at Lagos beach (Punch)
A 26-year-old Femi Adegboyega and 23-year-old Ibukun Adegboyega drowned while swimming at the Ibeshe Beach in the Amuwo-Odofin area of Lagos State.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the incident happened on Christmas Day at about 6:00pm.
It was also gathered that the deceased were swimming with their friends before the disaster and that they were siblings who resided in the FESTAC Town area of the state. Read more
Family of 8 perish in Imo accident (Vanguard)
The police in Imo, have confirmed the death of eight members of a family in an auto crash at the Amanwozuzu junction, Ikeduru Local Government Area (LGA) of Imo.
The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of the Ikeduru LGA, Lucky Ahiole, confirmed the development to newsmen in Owerri, on Friday.
Ahiole said that the accident which occurred at about 3.00p.m. on Friday resulted in the death of all eight persons in a Sienna car conveying the family. Read more
Naira crashes to all-time low, hits N1043.09/$1 at official market (DailyTrust)
Naira depreciated to the worst low in recent times exchanging at N1,043.09 to the dollar at the official foreign exchange market on Thursday.
This is against N872.59 /$ recorded on Wednesday at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM).
According to dealers, the rate was stronger than N885.88/$ quoted on Friday before the Christmas holidays. Read more
SLG fetes Ikeja residents with food items, others (Guardian)
The Secretary of Ikeja Local Council, Akeem Olalekan Dauda, has distributed food items to support some residents through community leaders across the six political wards in the council area.
Beneficiaries of the food items donated during the Christmas celebration include traditional rulers, party leaders, as well as council and ward executives. The food items were distributed to six community heads (Baales), 23 apex leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the council, 24 APC chairpersons across the council and six ward executive, former council executive, former councilors, former ward chairmen, former council executive and other categories of leaders in Ikeja Local Council. Read more
Emmanuel Ijewere, ICAN’s ex-president is dead (Vanguard)
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) has announced the death of its former president, Mr Emmanuel Itoya Ijewere, who died on Friday at the age of 78.
The information was contained in a statement issued by the ICAN president, Innocent Iweka Okwuosa, describing Ijewere as “a stalwart in the accounting profession.”
Paying tribute, Okwusa said Ijewere exemplified professionalism and integrity in the accounting profession during his lifetime. Read more
Kano gov reunites abducted children with parents (Punch)
The Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, on Friday reunited no fewer than seven children from Bauchi State with their parents at the Government House, Kano.
The police rescued the children after they were abducted and sold in Anambra and Lagos states.
The governor commended the state police command under the leadership of Commissioner of Police ,Usaini Gumel, for their efforts in rescuing the children. Read more
SZA celebrates ‘Snooze’ being only song to spend entirety of 2023 on Billboard Hot 100 (HipHopDx)
SZA‘s “Snooze” has been a massive hit since its release in late 2022, but the singer has now celebrated a new milestone for the track — it’s the only song to spend the entirety of 2023 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“Snooze” is No. 20 on the chart for the week of December 30. This marks the song’s 54th week on the chart, which includes the final two weeks of 2022 and all 52 weeks of 2023.
On Thursday (December 28), The Shade Room posted on Instagram to commemorate that accomplishment, noting that “Snooze” was the only song to hit the benchmark of remaining on the singles chart for the entire calendar year. Read more
Dame Shirley Bassey ‘humbled’ as honour recognises music career spanning decades (BelfastTelegraph)
Dame Shirley Bassey has said she is “truly humbled” to be made a Companion of Honour in the New Year Honours list.
The Welsh singer, 86, is recognised for her services to music this year after previously becoming a dame in the 1999 honours list.
Dame Shirley said in a statement to the PA news agency: “Receiving the Order of the Companions of Honour is just one of the most wonderful feelings. Read more
Kyle Richards meets Rihanna and A$AP Rocky while shopping in Aspen with Mauricio Umansky (People)
Rihanna is living her best Bravo fangirl life after meeting Kyle Richards at a boutique in Aspen, Colorado!
In photos obtained by TMZ, the Fenty Beauty mogul, 35, and The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, 54, were seen shopping at a western apparel store called Kemo Sabe.
The duo arrived separately; Rihanna arrived with her partner A$AP Rocky and their children after hours to shop in a private room. Kyle made her appearance shortly after for VIP shopping. Read more
Sophie Ellis-Bexter speaks out on Barry Keoghan’s dance to “Murder On The Dancefloor” (RTE)
Sophie Ellis-Bextor has spoken out about Barry Keoghan’s character’s dance scene at the end of the film Saltburn to her famous song Murder On The Dancefloor and said: “Barry really went for it.”
Speaking to People Magazine about how her 2001 hit ended up in the movie, Ellis-Bextor said that director Emerald Fennell sent her a synopsis of the scene: “This little synopsis described how the character would be dancing, but I didn’t have any context. I’ve got quite a quirky sense of humour anyway, so I was like, I think I have to see how this plays out.”
“Barry really went for it. And it’s, like, the whole song! I didn’t really know exactly how it would play in terms of the role it was in the movie until I saw it at the screening, but I absolutely loved it,” she said. “I think it’s such a clever, funny, smart film. I really enjoyed it.” Read more
Twins Arnold Schwarzenegger And Danny DeVito reunite in magic backstage moment (Deadline)
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito had a Twins reunion when Schwarzenegger attended DeVito’s Broadway play I Need That.
Schwarzenegger shared a photo with DeVito and daughter Lucy DeVito on social media Friday.
“My brother!” Schwarzenegger wrote in the caption. “It was fantastic to see Danny on Broadway in I Need That. He and Lucy and everybody involved kept the audience entertained, laughing and loving every minute — one of the best plays I’ve ever seen, a true spectacle with heart!! I can’t wait to work together again.” Read more
South Africa files case at ICJ accusing Israel of ‘genocidal acts’ in Gaza (AlJazeera)
South Africa has filed a case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing it of crimes of genocide against Palestinians in Gaza after nearly three months of relentless Israeli bombardment has killed more than 21,500 people and caused widespread destruction in the besieged enclave.
In an application to the court on Friday, South Africa described Israel’s actions in Gaza as “genocidal in character because they are intended to bring about the destruction of a substantial part of the Palestinian national, racial and ethnical group”.
“The acts in question include killing Palestinians in Gaza, causing them serious bodily and mental harm, and inflicting on them conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction,” the application said. Read more
Former Trump ‘‘fixer’’ Michael Cohen blames AI for citing fake cases in bid to end sentence early (NYPost)
Former Donald Trump “fixer” Michael Cohen admitted to giving his lawyer non-existent cases to cite as part of a bid to wrap up his supervised release following his guilty plea on charges of tax evasion and campaign finance offenses in 2018.
In a pair of court filings unsealed Friday, Cohen and his legal team informed Manhattan federal judge Jesse Furman that attorney David Schwartz submitted false citations that were provided by Cohen and produced by the artificial intelligence service Google Bard to argue for an end to Cohen’s court supervision last month.
“As a non-lawyer, I have not kept up with emerging trends (and related risks) in legal technology and did not realize that Google Bard was a generative text service that, like Chat-GPT, could show citations and descriptions that looked real but were actually not,” Cohen stated in a seven-page declaration submitted to Furman Thursday. Read more
Peseiro names 25 players for AFCON (Leadership)
Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro has named a 25-man squad for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast, with familiar faces making up the bulk of the roster. The team aims to secure a fourth continental title, building on their previous victories in 1980, 1994, and 2013.
Peseiro has opted for a mix of experience and youth, with a roster featuring three goalkeepers, nine defenders, five midfielders, and eight forwards.
Captain Ahmed Musa returns after missing the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification series, while South Africa-based goalkeeper Stanley Nwabili joins Francis Uzoho and Olorunleke Ojo in the team. Read more
NFF denies new Super Eagles jersey launch (Punch)
The Nigeria Football Federation has dismissed reports of the launch of a new jersey design for the Men’s National team ahead of the 2023 African Cup of Nations starting in Cote’ D’ Ivoire in January 2024.
Images of the retro jersey design went viral online on Thursday with several media outlets (Not The PUNCH) also announcing its unveiling by the kit manufacturer, Nike.
However, the Glass House in a short statement released on Friday stated that the reports of the launch were untrue. Read more
Pep Guardiola advises Man City players on social media use after Jack Grealish burglary (MEN)
Pep Guardiola has advised his players to be careful with their use of social media to avoid making themselves the target of thieves after Jack Grealish became the latest footballer living in the northwest to have his home broken into.
Grealish’s mansion was burgled while he was playing for Manchester City at Everton on Wednesday, but around 10 family members were inside the property. They were unharmed but had to take cover as thieves made off with jewellery worth around £1 million.
The player was informed of the incident by City’s head of player support and protocol Manel Estiarte after the final whistle had blown at Goodison and he was absent from the training ground for a recovery session on Thursday, instead spending the day with his family. Grealish was due back for training on Friday afternoon, at which point Guardiola was planning to talk to him to assess his availability for Saturday’s game with Sheffield United. Read more
Monaco winger Gelson Martins set to join Nottingham Forest in January (SportsMole)
Nottingham Forest have reportedly entered the advanced stage in talks to sign Gelson Martins from Monaco.
The signing could well be the first for new manager Nuno Espirito Santo at the City Ground, and would see him link up with a fellow Portuguese compatriot.
Martins has been completely frozen out of the squad at Monaco by manager Adi Hutter, having not featured in almost a year. Read more
Former McLaren boss Dennis knighted in New Year Honours (RN365)
Former McLaren boss Ron Dennis has been knighted in the New Year Honours list of King Charles III.
Dennis, who left McLaren and F1, in June 2017 after being ousted has received a knighthood for services to charity, with the 76-year-old a founder of the Dreamchasing project that aims to reduce poverty around the world.
Dennis is also chairman and founder of Podium Analytics and Tommy’s – charities which help sports stars reduce injury and also support those who suffer complications and loss of children during pregnancy, respectively, with Dennis and former wife Lisa losing a child of their own. Read more
Emma Raducanu facing early Australian Open blow as Brit left sweating by organisers (Express)
Emma Raducanu is reportedly facing the prospect of competing in the Australian Open qualifiers in order to play in next month’s tournament. The Brit is set to make her long-awaited comeback from injury in preparation for the Major, but is holding onto hope of being awarded a last-minute wildcard.
The i claim that Raducanu has requested a wildcard after her special ranking (world No 103) was not enough to qualify her for the main draw, as a result of an injury-ravaged 2023 that saw her spend eight months sidelined following surgeries on both wrists.
But the 21-year-old has not received any indication, positive or negative, as to whether she will receive a wildcard with the tournament two weeks away – leaving her sweating over whether she will need to take part in qualifiers. Read more