Train Accident: Lagos hospitals discharge 21 more patients (DailyTrust)
The Lagos State Ministry of Health says 21 survivors of the train-bus collision were discharged on Sunday from five state public health facilities after quality medical care and management.
Prof. Akin Abayomi, the state Commissioner for Health, stated this in an update about the accident.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the state on March 10 discharged 32 survivors involved in the accident from three state hospitals.
“Total number of patients on admission as of today March 12 are 43. Read more
Corps member who died in Lagos train accident buried (Punch)
The remains of Oreoluwa Aina, a 28-year-old National Youth Corps member, who was involved in the Lagos train accident which occurred on Thursday, March 9, have been laid to rest.
Aina was among the six victims who were confirmed dead by the state government.
The late corps member, who was serving with the Curriculum Services Department of the Lagos State Ministry of Education in Alausa was buried on Saturday at Atan cemetery. Read more
Naira scarcity compounds woes of beggars, porters, cart pushers, others (DailyTrust)
The scarcity of naira notes occasioned by the cashless and naira redesign policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has compounded the woes of beggars, porters, cart pushers, commercial motorcycle riders and several other daily low income earners.
Beggars have complained that public spirited individuals who were willing to give them money could not do so because of the lack of cash.
Beggars at the popular Ayetoro Junction in Osogbo, Osun State, lamented that the cash crunch was becoming unbearable. Read more
We won’t accept old naira notes until we hear from Buhari, CBN — Ekiti traders (Tribune)
Many traders, business owners, service providers, and others in Ekiti state have continued to reject the old N500 and N1,000 notes despite the supreme court’s judgment.
Nigerian Tribune gathered that many residents of the state are frustrated by the rejection of the old naira notes amidst the growing scarcity of the new notes across major banks in the state.
Investigations by our correspondent revealed that in the markets, filling stations, supermarkets and other business centers, the old N500 and N1,000 notes were not allowed for business transactions. Read more
New substations, transformers push power above 4,000MW (Punch)
Power generation on the national grid has continued to hover above 4,000 megawatts since January this year, following the deployment of transformers, substations and other accessories to boost supply.
Grid performance data obtained from the Federal Ministry of Power in Abuja on Sunday showed that electricity generation on the national grid as at 6am on the same day was 4,456.8MW.
On the preceding day, it was 4,618.8MW (peak generation); and 4,000.2MW (off-peak generation), according to figures obtained by our correspondent the power ministry’s headquarters. Read more
Shareholders to get N762b dividends from Dangote Cement, 10 others (Guardian)
Dangote Cement Plc and 10 listed firms on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) have declared a N762.121 billion dividend payout for the 2022 financial year.
The 10 companies are MTN Nigeria Communication (MTNN), Geregu Power, Nigerian Breweries, United Capital, Lafarge Africa, BUA Cement, Nestle Nigeria, Dangote Sugar Refinery, Transcorp Hotel and NASCON Allied Industries (NASCON).
A breakdown of the dividend declared showed that Dangote Cement, in line with its dividend policy, is proposing a final dividend of N340.82 billion, representing N20 per share, while MTNN recommended a final dividend of N10 per share culminating in N203.55 billion. Geregu Power proposed a final dividend of N8 per share, amounting to N20 billion. Read more
Why our ICT director was redeployed before 2023 elections – INEC (Channels)
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has justified the transfer of its director in charge of Information Communication Technology (ICT), Chidi Nwafor, who was transferred a few months before the 2023 general elections.
Following the failure of INEC to upload results of the February 25 presidential election from the polling units to its portal in real time, there have been speculations of what could have gone wrong, with many saying that the commission missed the expertise of Nwafor.
However, speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, INEC National Commissioner, Festus Okoye, insisted that the commission is built in a way that no department is wrapped around an individual. Read more
Ebonyi NUJ recommends Umahi for Senate President (Vanguard)
The Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Ebonyi State Council has appealed to the President-elect, Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu and National Chairman of APC to consider supporting Governor David Nweze Umahi to emerge President of the 10th Senate.
The Union stated this in a letter it addressed to the President-elect and APC National Chairman, Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu at the end of their State Executive Council meeting in Abakaliki, Sunday.
In the letter endorsed by Chairman of the Council, Comrade Tony Nwizi and three others, the Union argued that with the massive infrastructural development of Ebonyi State under Engineer Umahi, he would lay the background for more robust reengineering of Nigeria as President of the next Senate. Read more
Ke Huy Quan, Jamie Lee Curtis win Oscars for Everything Everywhere (UPI)
Everything Everywhere All at Once co-stars Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee Curtis were early winners at the 95th Academy Awards presentation at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, Calif. Sunday.
They won for Best Supporting Actor and Actress respectively.
“Thank you! My mom is 84 years old and she is watching at home. Mom, I just won an Oscar!” the actor tearfully said as he collected his prize. Read more
Ruth E. Carter becomes 1st black woman to win 2 Oscars (Deadline)
Ruth E. Carter once again made history at Sunday’s 95th annual Academy Awards, becoming the first Black woman to win two Oscars. Carter received the award for Best Costume Design for her work on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Carter, who previously became the first Black woman to win the Oscar for Best Costume Design in 2019 for Black Panther, dedicated the award to her late mother — who she said died recently at the age of 101.
“Thank you for recognizing the superhero that is a Black woman. She endures. She loves. She overcomes. She is every woman in this film. She is my mother. This past week Mable Carter became an ancestor. This film prepared me for this moment,” she said. Read more
A single injection of stem cells slashes risk of heart attack or stroke by 58% (FreeThink)
A new stem cell therapy slashes the risk of heart attacks and strokes in people with heart failure, cutting the rate by more than half — a discovery that could give doctors an entirely new way to treat heart failure.
“We’ve made an enormous step to be able to harness the real power of adult stem cells to treating the heart,” co-principal investigator Emerson Perin from the Texas Heart Institute told CNN. “This trial really is a signal of a new era.” Read more
Jimmy Kimmel cracks joke about Will Smith slap in Oscars monologue (Newsweek)
Academy Awards host Jimmy Kimmel on Sunday wasted little time in addressing one of the most talked-about Oscars moments in recent years: Will Smith smacking Chris Rock during last year’s ceremony.
After talking about the importance of feeling safe, Kimmel joked, “We have strict policies in place. If anyone in this theater commits an act of violence at any point during the show, you will be awarded the Oscar for best actor and permitted to give a 19-minute long speech.”
He added “that if anything unpredictable or violent happens during the ceremony, just do what you did last year: Nothing. Just sit there and do absolutely nothing. Maybe even get the assailant a hug.” Read more
Madonna teases new dates for Celebration world tour (NME)
Madonna has teased that new dates will be announced soon for her 2023 ‘‘Celebration’’ world tour.
The pop icon is due to hit the road this summer for a 35+ date stint to mark her 40 years in music. “I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for,” Madonna said of the upcoming trek in a statement.
The tour will begin in North America, with gigs planned for New York, Chicago, Miami, Washington, Houston, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and other cities up until early October. Read more
North Korea fires 2 missiles from submarine, state media reports (CNN)
North Korea launched two missiles from a submarine in the waters of the Sea of Japan Sunday morning local time, according to the state-run news agency KCNA.
The “strategic cruise missiles” were launched from a “8.24 Yongung” submarine, according to KCNA – the same vessel used to test North Korea’s first submarine-launched ballistic missile in 2016, CNN previously reported.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said earlier Sunday that North Korea fired at least one unidentified missile from a submarine near the port city of Sinpo in the South Hamgyong province. Read more
Migrant smuggling boats capsize near San Diego Coast, 8 dead (VOA)
At least eight people were killed when two migrant smuggling boats capsized in shallow but treacherous surf amid heavy fog, authorities said Sunday, marking one of the deadliest maritime human smuggling operations ever off U.S. shores.
A Spanish-speaking woman on one of the panga-style boats called 911 Saturday night to report the other vessel overturned in waves at Black’s Beach, authorities said. She said there were 15 people on the capsized vessel and eight on hers.
Coast Guard and San Diego Fire-Rescue crews pulled the bodies of eight adults from the water, but fog hampered the search for additional victims. Recovery efforts resumed Sunday, but no additional bodies were found. Read more
Agbalaka, Njoku make U-20 AFCON team (Punch)
Flying Eagles defenders Augustine Njoku and Solomom Agbalaka have been named among the Best XI of the just-concluded CAF U-20 AFCON in Egypt.
Nigeria finished the competition as the third best team thanks to a 4-0 win over Tunisia in the third-place playoff on Friday, while Senegal defeated Gambia 2-0 to lift the trophy for the first time.
Njoku was placed in the right-back position while Agbalaka was best at left-back.
Njoku and Agbalaka starred for Nigeria during the competition with brilliant defensive displays, with the latter taking much of the spotlight with his man of the match performances against Egypt and Mozambique. Read more
ABS to battle Kwara United in Kwara FA Cup finals (DailyTrust)
Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) side, Kwara United and Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS) FC have reached the finals of this year’s Kwara FA Cup and will battle for the coveted trophy on Wednesday, March 15.
In the first semi-final match played at the Kwara Football Academy (KFA) in Ilorin, Kwara United edged SGFC Athletics 3-2.
KFA graduate, Godwin Oshagbemi, nodded home the winning goal after the underdogs fought back to tie the match at 2-2. Read more
Mikel Arteta praises January signing Leandro Trossard for sparking win at Fulham (IrishNews)
Mikel Arteta hailed Leandro Trossard’s “football intelligence” after he set up all three goals as Arsenal restored their five-point cushion at the top of the Premier League with a 3-0 win at Fulham.
The 28-year-old joined Arsenal in January from Brighton and has shone for the Gunners, helping to compensate for the injuries to forward’s Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah.
Trossard’s delivery at Craven Cottage was exceptional, with his first assist coming in the 21st minute as picked out Gabriel Magalhaes from a corner for the Brazilian to nod home. Read more
Barca snatch win in Bilbao, Real Sociedad stumble (France24)
Raphinha’s strike earned Barcelona an agonising 1-0 win over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday to restore their nine-point lead over Real Madrid at the top of La Liga.
Real Sociedad stumbled to a 1-1 draw at Real Mallorca, with their bid to finish in the top four losing steam at an alarming rate.
Struggling Sevilla earned an important 2-1 win over Almeria to climb to 13th, two points clear of the relegation zone, leaving their opponents 19th. Read more
Francis Ngannou confirms talks with Deontay Wilder, says next step in his career has to be boxing (BoxingScene)
Francis Ngannou is determined to get in the squared circle first before he ever steps back into the octagon.
In an interview with ESPN on Friday, the former UFC champion from Cameroon offered an update on his career, saying he expects to announce his boxing debut in the next “month or two.”
His opponent is up in the air, but Ngannou was not shy about noting that the fighter with whom he has had the most meaningful discussions thus far has been former champion Deontay Wilder. Read more
Mercedes warned against copying Aston Martin after Lewis Hamilton criticism (F1News)
F1 technical analyst Craig Scarborough has downplayed suggestions that Mercedes should simply “copy” Aston Martin’s ultra-competitive AMR23, after an abysmal Bahrain Grand Prix for the Silver Arrows.
The Germans had to settle for fifth and seventh at the Bahrain International Circuit, with the side having looked uncompetitive all weekend.
Mercedes’ customer team Aston Martin on the other hand, looked sensational, with Fernando Alonso having been the only driver capable of pressuring the Red Bull drivers all weekend.
Lewis Hamilton was incredibly critical of the Silver Arrows after the race, where he vented his frustration at the Germans for opting to not “listen” to his feedback. Read more