Why we’re excited about proposed Lagos-Ibadan Expressway closure–Highway hawkers (Punch)
He ran as fast as his legs could carry him, latching on to transparent white nylon bags containing cooked guinea fowl eggs, his face etched with tiredness. Tall and swift, the dark-complexioned Solomon Miracle from Ebonyi State sped past moving vehicles to catch up with a fair-complexioned lady at the back of a yellow 18-seater bus heading from Lagos towards Mowe, Ogun State. Miracle was lucky; the bus had not moved beyond a few metres when the traffic on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway held it down, so he was able to quickly meet up with the lady who wanted to patronise him. Read more
IGP, northern govs oppose El-Zakzaky’s travel for treatment (Punch)
Fresh facts have emerged that the Federal Government may not grant the request of the Islamic Republic of Iran that the leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, be released for medical treatment in Tehran, the Iranian capital. A reliable government source told Saturday PUNCH that powerful forces within the government were not favourably disposed to the request. The source also gave details of a high-level security meeting held in Katsina on Thursday of the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, and governors from 11 states in the North. Read more
Ihedioha wasn’t elected governor to fight me – Okorocha (Punch)
The immediate past governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha, on Friday told his successor, Emeka Ihedioha, that he was not elected the governor of the state to fight him. This followed the report of a seven-man committee inaugurated by Ihedioha to investigate the status of the newly established tertiary institutions by Okorocha. The committee had recommended the sack of all the vice-chancellors, rectors and principal officers of the institutions. Read more
Oshiomhole manipulating National Assembly over Edo crisis –Okiye, Speaker (Punch)
The Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Mr Frank Okiye, has accused the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Mr Adams Oshiomhole, of manipulating the National Assembly to engage in practices that are beyond their power. The two chambers of the National Assembly, dominated by the APC, had respectively threatened to take over the state Assembly if the governor, Godwin Obaseki, did not issue a new proclamation for the inauguration of the Assembly. Read more
Wike sacks Rivers perm sec for spending unapproved funds (Punch)
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has sacked the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Transport, Samuel Eguma. Report of Eguma’s sacking by the governor was contained in a statement signed by the Special Assistant on Electronic Media to the Rivers State Governor, Mr Simeon Nwakaudu. It was gathered that Eguma might have been relieved of the position for allegedly spending state funds without getting an approval. Read more
Joint security to patrol Southwest roads, says Abiodun (Guardian)
A joint security team that would patrol major roads and provides adequate security to the people of the Southwest Region of the country would soon be set up. The Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun gave the hint while speaking yesterday at a Sensitisation Programme on the Vision and Focus of the State Government Towards the Preparation of the 2020 Budget held at the Obas Complex, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta. The security team, the Governor said would comprise some members from all the security agencies. Read more
Shi’ites: Buhari condoles with family of slain policeman (Punch)
President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday sent a delegation to condole with the family of the late Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) at the Federal Capital Territory Police Command, Mr Usman Umar. Umar was killed on July 22 during a violent protest by members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria in Abuja. The Shi’ites were protesting against the continued detention of their leader, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, by the Federal Government. Read more
NYSC begins physical verification of foreign graduates (Punch)
The National Youth Service Corps on Friday said it would begin the verification of foreign-trained graduates on August 6. It said this in a statement on Friday by the Director of Press and Public Relations, Mrs Adenike Adeyemi. It said it had devised a new strategy to verify the certificates and other documents submitted by the graduates. Read more
Recover our stolen funds, Magu begs UK (Punch)
The acting Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, has appealed to the British Government to assist Nigeria with the repatriation of stolen money stashed in banks in the United Kingdom. Magu made the appeal while receiving a delegation from the UK’s Serious and Organised Crime Joint Analysis for West Africa at the EFCC’s headquarters, Abuja. The acting EFCC spokesman, Tony Orilade, in a statement on Friday, said Magu expressed worries that the wealth of the country had for a very long time remained trapped in foreign countries, thereby hindering infrastructural development of the country. Read more
Police deploy detectives to hunt killers of Catholic Priest (Guardian)
The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Mohammed Adamu, has deployed detectives from the Force Headquarters to hunt for the killers of Rev. Fr. Paul Offu, a Catholic Priest in Enugu State. The Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), DCP Frank Mba in a statement on Friday in Abuja said the IGP had ordered massive manhunt for the killers of the priest. The priest, who was shot dead on Aug. 1 by unknown gunmen, was in charge of St. James the Greater Parish Catholic Church, Ugbawka, Enugu state. Read more
Half of Ebola cases in DR Congo ‘unidentified’ (BBC)
Only about 50% of cases of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo are being identified, the government’s response co-ordinator has said. Jean-Jacques Muyembe warned that the current deadly outbreak could last up to three years. He said a man who died this week in the city of Goma, on the Rwandan border, had 10 children and had infected a number of people. The Ebola outbreak has killed more than 1,800 people in the past year. Read more
Sudan crisis: Military and opposition agree constitutional declaration (BBC)
Sudan’s ruling military council and main opposition coalition have agreed on a constitutional declaration which will pave the way for a new period of transitional government. African Union mediator Mohamed Hassan Lebatt made the announcement early on Saturday, without giving any details. Sudan has been in turmoil since the military ousted President Omar al-Bashir in April. Read more
Judge urges sacking for US policeman in choking death of black man (Guardian)
A US judge has recommended that a New York police officer accused of placing a black man in a banned chokehold just before his death five years ago should be fired, sources told AFP Friday. The landmark case fueled nationwide “Black Lives Matter” protests calling for police to be held accountable for the deaths of unarmed African-Americans in custody or facing arrest. Read more
INF nuclear treaty: Trump says new pact should include China (BBC)
US President Donald Trump has said he wants a new nuclear pact to be signed by both Russia and China. Mr Trump said he had spoken to the two countries about the idea, and that they were both “very, very excited”. His comments came after the US withdrew from a key nuclear treaty with Russia, raising fears of a new arms race. Read more
Husband left mother of his five children to die after crashing car (Metro)
A mother-of-five died after her husband crashed their car and fled the scene, leaving her seriously injured without help. Joseph Berry, 39, crashed his Mercedes while driving down Meadow View in Elton, Cheshire, with his wife Theresa Maguire, 37, on November 24, last year. After colliding head-on with a Range Rover while driving over the speed limit, he fled the scene and left his seriously injured wife alone. Read more
Alexandra Macesanu murder: Minister sacked over ‘deeply wrong’ remarks (BBC)
Romania’s prime minister has fired her education minister over her “deeply wrong” comments about a kidnapping case. Prime Minister Viorica Dancila said Ecaterina Andronescu’s remarks about a teen’s abduction show a “lack of understanding”. Alexandra Macesanu, 15, was kidnapped west of the capital, Bucharest, last Wednesday. Ms Andronescu said on TV she was taught “not to get in cars with strangers”. Read more
Polish president picks October general election date (Guardian)
Polish President Andrzej Duda on Friday said he had picked October 13 as the date of the country’s general election in order to keep the electoral campaign nice and short. The national electoral commission must still give its stamp of approval, which it is expected to do next week. “The electoral campaign is never a calm period. By its very nature, it’s always a time of political clashes,” Duda said in an interview with television channel Polsat News. Read more
Brazil deforestation row: Space research head Galvão out (BBC)
The head of Brazil’s National Space Research Institute says he will be sacked after a public row with President Jair Bolsonaro over the scale of deforestation in the Amazon. Ricardo Galvão had accused the far-right president of “cowardice” for questioning the institute’s data. It showed an 88% increase in deforestation in June compared with the same month a year ago. Read more
A$AP Rocky breaks silence as he’s released from Swedish prison amid assault case (Metro)
A$AP Rocky has broken his silence after being released from prison in Sweden, amid his assault case. Taking to Instagram, the 30-year-old took a second to thank his fans for all their help, following his arrest. Alongside a close-up snap, the Praise The Lord rapper told his 10.7million followers: ‘Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of my fans, friends and anyone across the globe who supported me during these last few weeks. Read more
- Kelly denied bail in sex crime case in New York (BBC)
R&B star R. Kelly has pleaded not guilty in New York’s Brooklyn courtroom on charges of recruiting and sexually exploiting women and underage girls. The singer, 52, was denied bail on the grounds that he was a flight risk. He will be kept in custody pending trial. The musician is already awaiting trial for more than 20 other alleged sexual crimes – all of which he denies. Read more
Makelele joins Chelsea as mentor to young stars (Guardian)
Former Chelsea star Claude Makelele has returned to the Premier League club to work as a technical mentor to young players. Makelele is working with Chelsea for the first time in 11 years after the former France midfielder had coaching roles at Paris Saint-Germain, Bastia, Swansea and Belgium’s Eupen since his retirement in 2011. Makelele made 217 Chelsea appearances and won two league titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups during his five-year spell with the club. Read more
Nani reveals the transfer advice he gave Man Utd target Bruno Fernandes (Metro)
Former Manchester United star Nani has revealed he told Bruno Fernandes to test himself in the Premier League during their time together at Sporting Lisbon. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has focused on strengthening his forward line and defence during the transfer window, but is likely to turn his attention to bolstering a midfield which has lost the services of Marouane Fellaini and Ander Herrera in the space of six months. Read more
Newcastle sign Willems on loan from Eintracht (Guardian)
Newcastle United have signed Netherlands defender Jetro Willems from Eintracht Frankfurt on a season-long loan, the Premier League club announced on Friday. The Magpies added in a statement that they have the option of signing Willems on a permanent basis at the end of the upcoming season, which begins next weekend. “Jetro brings a wealth of experience into the dressing room and I’m very pleased to have brought him here,” Newcastle boss Steve Bruce said. Read more
Everton sign Ivory Coast midfielder Gbamin (Punch)
Everton signed Ivory Coast midfielder Jean-Philippe Gbamin from Mainz for an undisclosed fee on Friday. Gbamin agreed a five-year contract with the Premier League outfit and fills the void left by Idrissa Gueye’s move to Paris Saint-Germain earlier in the week. The 23-year-old told Evertontv: “It’s a big moment with a lot of emotion and now it’s on me to prove on the pitch why they bought me. Read more
Premier League 2019-20: Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp unhappy with season start date (BBC)
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says it “doesn’t make sense” that the Premier League starts before other leagues. The Reds kick-off the English top-flight season when they host Norwich City on Friday, 9 August. The top divisions in Germany and Spain start a week later, and Italy’s Serie A on 24 August – the leagues all have 20 teams, bar Germany’s Bundesliga (18). Read more
Luke Shaw hits back at Romelu Lukaku for leaking Manchester United speed statistics (Metro)
Luke Shaw hit back at his Manchester United teammate Romelu Lukaku for leaking the results of the club’s pre-season speed tests. The Belgium international is on the verge of leaving Old Trafford having fallen out of favour with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer who has deemed the 26-year-old surplus to requirements. Lukaku travelled with the rest of the first team squad to Australia and Asia for the club’s pre-season tour earlier this month, but did not feature in any of the four matches and has again been left out of the squad of Saturday’s game against AC Milan. Read more
Lionel Messi: Argentina forward banned from international football for three months (BBC)
Argentina captain Lionel Messi has been banned from international football for three months after claiming the Copa America was “corrupt”. Barcelona forward Messi, 32, was sent off in Argentina’s 2-1 third-place play-off win over Chile and later said the “cup was fixed for Brazil”. He has also been fined $50,000 (£41,121) by Conmebol, the South American Football Confederation. Read more
Tyson Fury agrees terms to fight Otto Wallin in Las Vegas (BBC)
British former world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury has agreed terms to fight Sweden’s Otto Wallin. Fury, 30, looks set to compete in Las Vegas for his second consecutive fight after his impressive stoppage win over Tom Schwarz in June. The bout has not been officially confirmed but has been slated to take place on 14 September. Read more