Tribunal declares PDP’s Ombugadu Nasarawa governor, sacks APC’s Sule (Guardian)
The Governorship Elections Petition Tribunal sitting in Lafia, Nasarawa, has declared the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), David Ombugadu, as the new governor of the state.
The governorship election petition tribunal made this declaration after sacking Governor Abdullahi Sule of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from his position.
In a ruling delivered on Monday, two of the justices agreed that the 2023 governorship election in Nasarawa State was won by the PDP’s flagbearer, Ombugadu, while one judge dissented. Read more
Motorists decry constant reopening of Long Bridge expansion joints (Punch)
Motorists have slammed a construction company, Julius Berger Nigeria Limited, over the repeated temporary repair of the damaged joints on the Longbridge section of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the company commenced construction work on the bridge on Tuesday, September 26, as they patched the open joints.
The five-kilometre bridge stretching from the Warewa end of the expressway to OPIC, Ogun State was among the sections of the expressway reconstructed by the company when the project started. Read more
FG flags off social register verification in Makoko, others (Guardian)
Federal government has commenced verification of individuals under the National Social Register, (NSR), in communities across Lagos and the South Western states to ensure accuracy of available data ahead of government’s poverty alleviation intervention such as cash transfers.
Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, flagged off the exercise, in Lagos state even as it is expected to take place simultaneously across the country.
Promising that the government will get the data right so that those targets under the intervention will indeed be reached, she said the exercise will last for three weeks. Read more
Lagos airlifts 310 pilgrims to Jordan, Israel (Punch)
The Lagos State Government, on Saturday night, airlifted 310 intending pilgrims earlier scheduled for the Easter edition of the holy pilgrimage to the Kingdom of Jordan and Israel.
The pilgrims landed in the Kingdom of Jordan in the early hours of Sunday, after a seven-hour flight from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, to the Queen Alia International Airport in the Kingdom of Jordan, according to a statement on Sunday.
Before their airlifting, the pilgrims had, on Saturday, gathered for final administrative and logistic arrangements at the Chapel of Christ The Light, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos, where a session of prayers and praises was also observed. Read more
WAEC gets new Head of National Office (Nation)
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has appointed Dr Amos Josiah Dangut as the Head of the Nigeria National Office.
Prior to his appointment, he was the Deputy Registrar HNO’s Office.
He succeeds Patrick Ehidiamen Areghan,whose tenure ended October 1.
This was contained in a statement by Acting Head of Public Affairs, Moyosola Adesina. Read more
Nigeria’s 1st Emeritus Professor Umaru Shehu dies at 97 (Vanguard)
Nigeria’s first Emeritus Professor, Umaru Shehu, has died at the age of 97.
This is contained in a statement by Dr Bulama Gubio, the Secretary of the Borno Elders Forum on Monday in Maiduguri.
Gubio said that Shehu, a distinguished Professor of Medicine, died in the early hours of Monday. Read more
8 killed in fresh Plateau attack (Channels)
No fewer than eight persons were killed and three others injured in an attack by yet to be identified assailants at Adu Kwall district of Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State in North Central Nigeria.
The attack was carried out on Sunday evening at a market square in the community shortly after the people returned from the Sunday morning service.
One of the early callers to the community in sympathy with the bereaved was the member representing Jos North/Bassa Federal Constituency, Musa Agah, who described the attack as inhuman and criminal. Read more
NULGE set for nationwide strike, says president (Punch)
The National President of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees, Mr Ambali Olatunji, has expressed the readiness of his union to join the nationwide strike on Tuesday.
The Nigeria Labour Congress has earlier declared to embark on an indefinite strike beginning on Tuesday, October 3, 2023, following the hardship that came about over the removal of oil subsidy by the Federal Government.
Speaking in Akure, after the election of a new executive of the Ondo State Chapter of the NULGE, on Sunday, Olatunji declared that the union would join the strike. Read more
Netflix releases trailer for Barack and Michelle Obama-produced ‘‘Leave the World Behind’’ (Variety)
A weekend away in a luxurious Long Island home sounds quite idyllic until the apocalyptic doom starts to hit.
Netflix has released the trailer for its new thriller “Leave the World Behind,” executive produced by Barack and Michelle Obama.
The movie stars Julia Roberts and Ethan Hawke as a couple who book a weekend getaway with their children. In the middle of the night, the owner of the home, played by Mahershala Ali, shows up to seek refuge with his daughter, played by Myha’la Herrold. It is unclear what exactly is happening to the world, but the film is more concerned with what is happening inside the home: Will the two families work together to survive or instead turn against one another? Read more
Denis Mukwege, DRC’s Nobel prize winner, announces presidency bid (AlJazeera)
The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Denis Mukwege, a doctor who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on sexual violence in warfare, has said he will seek the presidency.
The 68-year-old Mukwege made the announcement before a crowd of supporters in the DRC capital of Kinshasa on Monday, challenging current President Felix Tshisekedi in the upcoming December elections.
“I agree to be your candidate for president of the republic,” he stated, adding that he would focus on issues such as insecurity and political leadership. Read more
Trump appears in New York court for trial on his business dealings (Global)
Former US President Donald Trump showed up on Monday for a trial in a lawsuit that could cost him control of Trump Tower and other prized properties, after vowing to defend his reputation in a case he calls “a sham.”
Trump, who built his political career on his fame as a billionaire real estate ace and master of “The Art of the Deal,” appeared voluntarily for a trial that has high stakes for him.
New York Attorney General Letitia James’ suit accuses Trump and his company of deceiving banks, insurers and others by habitually lying about his wealth in financial statements. Read more
Paw Patrol 2 is top dog at box office with $23m debut, Saw X creeps behind (USAToday)
After several quiet weeks in movie theaters, four films entered wide release over the weekend. PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie came out the top dog, with $23 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The performances of all four films – PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, Saw X, The Creator and Dumb Money – told a familiar story at the box office. What worked? Horror and animated franchises. What didn’t? Originality and comedy.
PAW Patrol, from Paramount Pictures and Spin Master, had timing on its side. The film, a sequel to the 2021 PAW Patrol movie adapted from the Nickelodeon TV series, was the first family animated movie in theaters since Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem was released in early August. Read more
Robin Williams’ daughter Zelda says AI recreations of her dad are “personally disturbing” (EW)
Artificial intelligence has a lot of potential uses, and abuses, such as recreating the image or voice of a person without their consent — which is one of the issues at the heart of the ongoing actors’ strike.
Zelda Williams understandably has some opinions on this — as her dad was the often imitated, never duplicated Robin Williams — and she weighed in on the practice of AI recreations, calling them “disturbing.”
“I am not an impartial voice in SAG’s fight against AI,” Williams wrote via her Instagram Story on Sunday. “I’ve witnessed for YEARS how many people want to train these models to create/recreate actors who cannot consent, like Dad. This isn’t theoretical, it is very very real.” Read more
Data show Americans want larger families even as fertility rates remains at historic lows (CNA)
Americans are increasingly of the view that families should be having more children. Yet most seem unwilling to do the job themselves.
That’s the takeaway after polling this month from Gallup, which found that “Americans’ belief that the ideal family size includes three or more children has been rising steadily in recent years.”
A total of 45% of recent respondents to Gallup’s decadeslong survey claim that the ideal family size is at least three children, with 12% preferring four children and smaller percentages choosing five or six. The 45% figure is ”currently up four percentage points from the previous reading in 2018 to its highest point since 1971.” Read more
Tony Jackson releases ‘‘Do You Remember Country Music, video featuring sweet Randy Travis cameo (People)
Tony Jackson is reflecting on country music’s legacy — and teaming up with Randy Travis to do so.
PEOPLE is exclusively premiering the country singer’s music video for his new track “Do You Remember Country Music,” which features the country icon, 64, on Thursday. The song and video are a nostalgic tribute to the power of the genre, and come ahead of the Friday release of his new album I’ve Got Songs to Sing.
Throughout the clip, Jackson performs the classic-sounding song in Johnny Cash’s cabin in Bon Aqua, Tennessee. Surrounded by memorabilia and photos of famed artists, the singer-songwriter reminisces about what country means to him and so many others, repeating, “Let me ask you / Do you remember country music?” Read more
Alozie wins Player of the Match award in Houston Dash’s away league win (Guardian)
Super Falcons star Michelle Alozie was voted Player of the Match in Houston Dash’s 2-0 win against Gotham FC in Sunday’s National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) in the US.
Alozie was announced as the Player of the Match in Houston Dash’s X handle.
It was a memorable return to action for Alozie, who served a one-match ban for a sending-off against the San Diego Wave on September 4. Read more
Francis Ngannou sends chilling Tyson Fury warning as Oleksandr Usyk fight signed (Mirror)
Francis Ngannou has warned Tyson Fury that he will be unable to fight Oleksandr Usyk in the pair’s undisputed world heavyweight title fight due to a medical suspension.
The UFC heavyweight champion will make his boxing debut against Fury in Saudi Arabia later this month, but is already seemingly being overlooked as Fury announced he has signed to face Usyk. A date as early as December 23 has been touted – less than two months after the Ngannou fight.
But the MMA star has warned that he will be leaving Fury in such a state that he won’t be medically cleared to fight Usyk any time soon after the pair meet. The Brit is a massive favourite against his cage fighting rival due to being a career boxer, but Ngannou has unbelievable punching power and is capable of landing an unthinkable upset. Read more
Coco Gauff issues fresh message to haters as tennis star not allowed to “comment back” (Express)
Coco Gauff has addressed her haters once again as she made a winning start in Beijing. The world No 3 is playing in her first tournament since winning the US Open, when she took the opportunity to thank her doubters for driving her to win a Grand Slam title. And the American addressed those who sent her negative comments again, revealing that she wasn’t allowed to respond online.
Gauff extended her winning streak to 13 matches on Monday as she defeated Ekaterina Alexandrova in the first round of the China Open. It was her first time taking to the court as a Grand Slam champion after lifting the US Open trophy last month.
During her victory speech in Flushing Meadows, the 19-year-old made waves when she thanked those who had doubted her for inspiring her first Grand Slam win. She later revealed that she had been on ‘tennis Twitter’ ahead of the final, reading negative comments to fuel her. Read more
Alcaraz, Sabalenka sail through at China Open (RFI)
Top seeds Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka both breezed into the next round of the China Open with routine victories on Sunday.
Alcaraz sealed a place in the men’s quarter-finals with a smooth 6-2, 6-2 victory over Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti in Beijing.
The world number two overpowered his opponent and seized the first set when Musetti whacked a baseline backhand into the net. Read more
Liverpool say “sporting integrity undermined” after VAR blunder in Spurs defeat, club to “explore options” (Eurosport)
Liverpool believe that “sporting integrity” was “undermined” after a VAR error in their 2-1 defeat to Tottenham on Saturday.
VAR did not overturn the on-field decision to disallow a goal from Luis Diaz for offside despite Tottenham defender Cristian Romero clearly playing the Colombian onside from the pass by Mohamed Salah.
The decision came when the match was still goalless but after Liverpool had gone down to 10 men due to Curtis Jones controversially having a yellow card upgraded to a straight red following a VAR check. Read more
Emma Hayes breaks down in tears as Chelsea stars make touching gesture after dad’s death (Mirror)
Chelsea manager Emma Hayes broke down in tears following her side’s 2-1 victory over Tottenham as she was presented with a tribute from her players in honour of her late father.
On Monday, Hayes announced the tragic passing of her father, Sid, on social media. The Chelsea boss has long described her father as a cornerstone in her football career, owing his influence to her unprecedented success.
Ahead of the new WSL season, Hayes said she would honour the legacy of her late father by continuing her success with the Blues in the upcoming season. But after the 2-1 victory over Spurs on Sunday evening, it was her players and staff who honoured Hayes as they surprised their manager with a framed Chelsea shirt with ‘Papa’ engraved on the back above the number 82, the age at which Hayes’ father passed away. Read more