We’re more than ready, INEC assures (Nation)
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has assured it is more than ready for the rescheduled general election starting tomorrow. Its chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said all arrangements have been put in place for commencement of the exercise. He also declared only those with Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will be able to participate in the exercise. The Inspector General of Police Mohammed Adamu also assured eligible voters, observers and INEC officials of their security. Read more
Woman caught dumping lover’s corpse in Ogun bush (Punch)
Operatives of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested a 45-year-old woman, Aderonke Ayinde, for allegedly dumping the corpse of her lover, Asimiu Abiodun, in the bush. The suspect was reportedly caught by a neighbour, Makinde Ishola, while trying to dump the corpse of her lover, who had passed the night in her rented apartment, in the bush. Abiodun was said to have died in the middle of the night at the suspect’s No. 1 Asalu Compound, Abeokuta, residence. Read more
Soldiers invade Abia communities over killing of colleague (Nation)
Soldiers from 144 Battalion in Ukwa West Local Government Area of Abia State have reportedly invaded the Ukpakiri and Umuezugbe communities in Obingwa Local Government Area of the state in search of killers of their colleague. The Nation gathered the soldier was killed near a military outpost located between Ukpakiri and Umuezugbe communities along the ever busy Aba-Ikot Ekpene Expressway. It was learnt the soldier, who was not on duty at the outpost, had apparently gone out to attend to his needs but the hoodlums who operated on a Motorbike, thinking he was armed, shot him with the intention of running away with his gun. Read more
Elections: IG-P warns officers to remain apolitical, non-partisan (Guardian)
The acting Inspector-General of Police (IG-P), Mr Mohammed Adamu, has warned officers deployed for Saturday`s Presidential and National Assembly elections to remain apolitical and nonpartisan. This is contained in a statement issued by the force Spokesman, Assistant Commissioner of Police Frank Mba, on Friday in Abuja. Mba said Adamu has directed the deployment of Deputy Inspectors General of Police (DIGs) to the six geo-political zones to ensure adequate security in their areas of supervision. Read more
Police detain APC Reps over Kwankwaso convoy attack (Guardian)
The House of Representatives member representing Kiru/Bebeji Federal constituency in Kano State, Abdulmumuni Jibrin, has been detained by police in Kano. The Federal lawmaker was arrested alongside 17 suspected political thugs by a detachment led by Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 1, Kano, AIG Dan Bature at his Kofa hometown at about 11 am. Abdulmumuni allegedly sponsored suspected thugs to ambush the convoy of Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso Thursday. Read more
Zamfara APC will participate in Gov, other elections, says INEC (Punch)
The Independent National Electoral Commission says “in compliance with court order,” the Zamfara chapter of the All Progressives Congress will participate in the governorship, National and State Assembly elections. INEC said this in a tweet on Friday, via its verified Twitter handle @inecnigeria. The APC primaries crisis had been lingering since October 2018 between the APC factions loyalist to Governor Abdula’ziz Yari and that of G8 group, which took the party to various courts seeking redress. Read more
Atiku’s order to security treasonable, says Yoruba Ronu (Guardian)
The Yoruba Ronu Leadership Forum, a socio-cultural group, says the order given by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the Presidential Candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), is treasonable. The group also condemned the call made by Abubakar on the military and other security organisations in the country to disregard President Muhammadu Buhari’s order on electoral violence.The forum made the condemnation via a statement signed by its Secretary-General, Mr Akin Malaolu, on Friday, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja. Read more
French troops kill senior Islamist militant in Mali (Nation)
France’s Defence Minister Florence Parly on Friday said French troops fighting Islamist militants in Mali have killed one of the Sahel region’s leading jihadists. Yahia Abou Hamman was the number two in command of Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an umbrella group for al Qaeda-linked insurgents in West Africa’s Sahara. The group claimed responsibility for a spate of attacks to disrupt Mali’s election July, and more recent strikes in Burkina Faso. “The removal of a prominent leader helps to dismantle the networks and disrupt terrorist activities in the region. Read more
May to meet Tusk, but no Brexit ‘deal in the desert’ (Guardian)
Prime Minister Theresa May will meet EU leader Donald Tusk on Sunday ahead of a summit with Arab leaders, officials said, but should not expect a Brexit breakthrough. The British leader will sit down with Tusk, president of the European Council, in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh ahead of the European Union talks with the Arab League. Tusk represents the governments of EU member states, and holds the key to any progress in May’s effort to lobby Brussels to renegotiate the terms of Britain’s departure from the bloc. Read more
Venezuela crisis: Rival border concerts as aid row continues (BBC)
Two rival concerts on either side of a bridge linking Venezuela and Colombia are to be held on Friday amid a row over the delivery of humanitarian aid. On the Colombian side, an event will raise money for Venezuela, where the opposition says the lack of basic items has left thousands at risk of dying. President Nicolás Maduro’s government will hold its own concert. Meanwhile, reports say one person has been killed and several injured near the Brazilian border. Read more
France bans words “Mother” and “Father” to accommodate gay couples (Guardian)
In the wake of gender equality and same-sex marriage, schools in France are taking an unusual turn to accommodate same-sex couples. France has introduced an amendment bill which will allow for the words “Father” and “Mother” to be replaced with parent 1 and parent 2 as an inclusive strategy for same-sex couples. According to The Scottish Sun, Valerie Petit, the MP of the majority party, REM which president Emmanuel Macron belongs to, noted that both words were against gay marriage in the recently passed gay marriage law. Read more
Jussie Smollett suspended from Empire TV show (BBC)
Jussie Smollett will not appear in the final two episodes of Empire, the shows executive producers have said. In a statement, they said the past few weeks had been “incredibly emotional” for the team. They called the allegations that Mr Smollett had falsely claimed he was the victim of a hate crime “disturbing”. Read more
Cyprus Women’s Cup: Super Falcons off to Cyprus on Sunday (Guardian)
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) says the Senior Female National team, Super Falcons, will on Sunday depart Nigeria for Cyprus to participate in the annual Cyprus Women’s Cup tournament. The tournament is billed to commence on Feb. 27, in Larnaca, Cyprus. NFF Director of Communication, Ademola Olajire, who made the announcement in a statement on Friday, added that the team would depart the country through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. Read more
Cesc Fabgregas speaks out on Chelsea’s poor form (Metro)
Cesc Fabregas has admitted he’s surprised at Chelsea’s recent poor form and has backed his former club to eventually come good. The Spaniard left the London side for AS Monaco in the January transfer window following five successful years at the club, winning the Premier League twice along with one FA Cup triumph. However, since his departure Maurizio Sarri’s men have endured a difficult few weeks, suffering embarrassing defeats to both Bournemouth and Manchester City. Read more