Traffic offence: Lagos task force impounds over 5,000 Okada in 2 months (Vanguard)
Lagos State Government has said the state task force has impounded over 5,000 commercial motorcycles, popularly called Okada in the last two months across the metropolis.
It also revealed that about 856,680 traffic infractions were captured by the state’s automatic number plate recognition cameras.
Commissioner for Transportation, Mr Oluwaseun Osiyemi, disclosed this at the commencement of the Annual Ministerial Press Briefing, commemorating the first year of the second term in office of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on the activities of the ministry, held at Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos. Read more
Court jails 2 businessmen for illegal importation of 1,570 pump action rifles (ThisDay)
Justice Ambrose Lewis Alagoa of the Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday sentenced two businessmen, Ifeuwa Moses and Ayogu James, to two years imprisonment for unlawful importation of 1,570 pump action rifles into the country.
However, the Judge ordered the convicted businessmen to pay a fine of N1 million on each of the counts, as fine in lieu of the jail terms.
The Judge gave the judgment based on the plea bargain agreement reached between the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and counsel to the two convicted businessmen, Yakubu Galadima. Read more
EFCC withdraws appeal against order restraining Yahaya Bello’s arrest (Channels)
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has filed a notice of withdrawal to discontinue an appeal against an order of a Kogi High Court restraining it from arresting the immediate past governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello.
In the notice filed on April 22, the EFCC said the withdrawal is predicated on the fact that events have overtaken the appeal.
The commission also admits that the appeal was filed out of the time allowed by law. Read more
Resignation wave hits Imo PDP as party chair, more members quit (Leadership)
The Chairman, Imo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Charles Ugwu has resigned his position and membership of the party.
Ugwu’s resignation comes amid the wave of resignation sweeping across the state PDP, days after former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha announced his exit from the party.
Aside the state chairman, other top members that have resigned from the PDP in Imo include the immediate past deputy governor, Engr Gerald Irona; former Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology Owerri and one-time Education Commissioner, Prof Jude Njoku. Read more
UTME: JAMB rules out compensation for Lagos hijab-wearing candidate (Tribune)
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has clarified that its 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), Ms. Tiamiyu Ayisat Morenikeji, who was asked to remove her Hijab at Bafuto Institute, Ile-Iwe Bus Stop, Ejigbo, Lagos, was later allowed in to sit the examination.
The Board that she did not lose her scheduled time for the examination and such does nor require compensation of any kind as being canvassed by some persons.
Spokesperson of JAMB, Dr Fabian Benjamin in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja, said the clarification was necessary to dispel misleading and erroneous insinuations in some quarters that she was not allowed into the examination venue until after 30 minutes with some even calling for compensation. Read more
Rainstorm: Ogun promises restoration of power supply in Ado-Odo/Ota (Punch)
The Ogun State Government said it was in touch with the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company to ensure the immediate fixing of poles damaged as a result of the rainstorm during Sunday’s downpour in some parts of Sango in Ado Odo/Ota Local Government Area of the state.
The rainstorm affected over 30 communities such as lyana lyesi, Osuke Town, Egan Road, lyana Ilogbo, Ijagba, Itele, Lafenwa, Singer, Joju, Alishiba, Oju Ore, Tollgate, Eledi, Akeja, Abebi, Osi Round About, Ota Town, Ota Industrial Estate, among others
The government, in a statement signed by the Special Adviser on Media, Kayode Akinmade, however, said that a team from the state government was at the affected areas on Monday to ascertain the extent of damage and to know how to engage with IBEDC, as well as sympathising with victims. Read more
House of Reps to probe alleged discrimination by Chinese supermarket (Nation)
The House of Representatives has expressed deep concerns about the recent allegations of discrimination against Nigerians at a supermarket in Abuja operated by Chinese nationals, promising that it will get to root of the matter and ensure redress where necessary.
The House Committee on China/Nigeria Parliamentary Friendship Group, which disclosed the legislative position, said as a committee tasked with fostering positive and mutually beneficial relations between Nigeria and China, it was important to emphasise that such discriminatory practices, if substantiated by relevant authorities, go against the principles of friendship and cooperation both Nigeria and China have worked hard to cultivate over the years.
In a statement jointly signed by the chairman, House Committee on China/Nigeria Parliamentary Friendship Group, Jaafaru Yakubu and House spokesman/chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Akin Rotimi, Jr., the lawmakers said they believed in the importance of mutual respect and understanding between nations and the House condemned any form of discrimination or prejudice. Read more
Management shifts exams as AUN students protest blackout on campus (DailyTrust)
The students of American University of Nigeria (AUN), on Wednesday, staged a peaceful protest to voice their grievances about electricity crisis.
This is coming amidst prolonged power outage which has paralyzed economic and social activities in Adamawa State.
In a statement, Senior Director, Public Affairs, Yusuf Mohammed, said the students lamented the human and environmental cost of the prolonged outage and called on the authorities to address the situation. Read more
Taylor Swift hits 1b Spotify streams in a week with ‘Tortured Poets Department’ (Guardian)
Taylor Swift’s new album The Tortured Poets Department has become the first to reach one billion Spotify streams in a week.
The platform announced on X that with two days to go, it had become the “most-streamed album in a single week” and had surpassed a billion with the exact number undisclosed.
After its release on 19 April, the 31-track album became Spotify’s most streamed in a single day.
Swift has overtaken herself with the latest record which she previously held with Midnights. That album was estimated to have generated over $230m for her label Universal in 2022. Read more
Man sentenced to physical castration, 50 years for raping 14-year-old girl (People)
A Louisiana man has been sentenced to 50 years in prison and will be physically castrated after pleading guilty to raping a 14-year-old girl, District Attorney Scott Perrilloux announced.
On April 17, Glenn Sullivan, Sr., 54, of Springfield, pleaded guilty to four counts of second-degree rape.
On Monday, Judge William Dykes sentenced Sullivan to 50 years in prison and mandated him to be physically castrated, which was part of his plea agreement with prosecutors, Perrilloux said in the statement. Read more
Diddy’s alleged drug mule enters plea in cocaine possession case (HipHopDx)
Diddy‘s alleged drug mule, Brendan Paul, has entered a plea deal in his drug-possession case.
Miami-Dade State Attorneys officially filed a cocaine-possession charge against the 25-year-old on Wednesday (April 24), though they dropped another for the possession of a controlled substance.
Whereas the former Syracuse basketball player was not at the hearing, his attorney Brian Bieber entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf. Read more
Spain’s prime minister halts public duties after wife accused of corruption (AlJazeera)
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has said he will halt his public duties after a judicial investigation was launched into corruption allegations against his wife.
The Socialist leader said on Wednesday that while the allegations against his wife Begona Gomez were false, he was cancelling his public agenda until Monday, when he will appear before the media to announce his decision on his political future.
“I need to pause and think,” Sanchez wrote in a letter shared on his X account. “I urgently need an answer to the question of whether it is worthwhile… whether I should continue to lead the government or renounce this honour.” Read more
‘We will call him President Trump’: Defense lawyers vacillate between honorifics (NBC)
Former President Donald Trump has been called a lot of names in the first six days of his New York hush-money trial.
“We will call him ‘President Trump’ out of respect for the office that he held from 2017 to 2021,” Trump lawyer Todd Blanche told the jury during his opening statement Monday. “And as everybody knows, it’s the office he’s running for right now. He’s the Republican nominee.”
Longtime tabloid publisher David Pecker, who testified that he conspired with Trump in 2015 and 2016 to “catch and kill” stories that could harm Trump’s election effort, told the court that when they spoke, “I would call him Donald.” Read more
Nairobi residents grapple with floods aftermath (AfricaNews)
Floods continue to cause widespread devastation to some parts of Nairobi.
Residents of the Kenyan capital woke up Wednesday to extensive property damage, following a night of relentless rainfall.
In the shanty neighbourhood of Ngando, Nairobians pleaded for the government to help. Read more
Horse trainer on trial for rape and murder of showjumper found dead at home (Metro)
A horse trainer on trial for raping and killing a showjumper has been found dead.
Jonathan Creswell, 36, had denied the murder and rape of Katie Simpson when his trial started on Tuesday.
Police confirmed Creswell died in non-suspicious circumstances. Read more
Rangers not chasing NPFL title, says Ilechukwu (Punch)
Despite being on top of the 2023/24 Nigeria Premier Football League table, Enugu Rangers coach, Fidelis Ilechukwu, has said winning the title this season is not the primary target given to him by his employers, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The seven-time champions are currently topping the table with 54 points after 31 matches, two points ahead of Enyimba, who are second in the chasing pack that also have Lobi Stars, Plateau United and Remo Stars.
Ilechukwu’s team muscled their way to the top by displacing Lobi weeks back, but their gaffer insists they are not in the title race. Read more
Peaty calls for greater anti-doping transparency (BBC)
Olympic champion Adam Peaty has called for greater transparency from the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) after it failed to make public the discovery that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive for a banned substance ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Games.
The group were found to have heart medication trimetazidine (TMZ) in their systems.
China’s Anti-Doping Agency (Chinada) decided they would face no punishment after determining they had unintentionally ingesting the substance, with Wada concluding it was “not in a position to disprove” that assessment. Read more
Damian Sosa spoils Marques Valle’s undefeated record in Plant City scorcher (BoxingScene)
Undefeated junior middleweight prospect Marques Valle took a major step up against Damian Sosa in his first scheduled 10-rounder Wednesday night, and although Valle handled the two extra rounds just fine, he couldn’t quite cope with his experienced, relentless Mexican opponent.
At the end of 10 tremendously entertaining, hard-fought rounds at the ProBox TV Events Center in Plant City, Florida, underdog Sosa captured a deserved split decision by scores of 96-94, 97-93 – and a hard-to-figure 98-92 in Valle’s favor. Read more
Ex-Liverpool and England star John Barnes banned as company director over unpaid taxes (Mirror)
The 79-times England international John Barnes signed agreement that bars him from being a director of a company for three-and-a-half years following investigation by the Insolvency Service over unpaid tax
Former Liverpool star John Barnes has been banned as a company director for three-and-a-half years after his media firm failed to pay £190,000 in VAT and corporation tax.
The John Barnes Media Limited company went into liquidation in 2023 and an investigation by the Insolvency Service found that no tax was paid to HM Revenue and Customs between November 2018 and October 2020. Read more
QOC officials attend opening ceremony of GCC Youth Games (Independent)
Manchester United are set to oppose proposed new squad cost rules at a meeting of Premier League clubs on Monday, the PA news agency understands.
The top flight’s profitability and sustainability rules (PSR) have been in the headlines this season after Everton and Nottingham Forest had points deducted for breaching them.
Earlier this month Premier League club unanimously voted in support of squad spending caps linked to revenue being a key principle in the new-look cost control system, similar to UEFA’s financial sustainability regulations. Read nore
Bears unveil $5B proposal for new domed lakefront stadium (ABC)
The Bears unveiled a nearly $5 billion proposal Wednesday for an enclosed stadium next door to their current home at Soldier Field as part of a major project that would transform the city’s lakefront, and they are asking for public funding to help make it happen.
The plan calls for $3.2 billion for the new stadium plus an additional $1.5 billion in infrastructure. The team and the city said the project would add green and open space while improving access to the city’s Museum Campus and could also include a publicly owned hotel.
“This is not an easy project, but Chicago doesn’t like it easy,” Bears president Kevin Warren said. Read more