Wizkid performs in Saudi Arabia, becomes first African artiste to headline world’s biggest gaming event (Vanguard)
Afrobeats sensational superstar, Wizkid has set another record by becoming the first ever artiste to headline world’s biggest gaming event. The event which is currently ongoing was held at the iconic NXT LVL Arena, Riyadh Boulevard in Saudi Arabia.
The Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter gave an electrifying performance in the presence of a mammoth crowd at the Gamers8 eSports concert on Thursday night, August 4, 2022.
The Afrobeats superstar with the aid of his official disc jockey, DJ Tunez, and his band, thrilled the crowd with smash tunes from his old and new music catalogue. He gave a stunning performance with an energetic display of hit songs like “Essence”, “Ojuelegba”, ‘Joro’, ‘Come Closer’, ‘Beat Of Life’, ‘Mood’, ‘Ginger’, ‘Soco’ and slew of others.
The ongoing event in the Middle East is regarded as “the biggest esports and gaming event worldwide,” where tournaments are played alongside entertainment and cultural offerings. It commenced on July 14 and is scheduled to end on September 8. Read more
Insecurity: Sanwo-Olu gives security chiefs marching orders (Sun)
Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu has given security chiefs marching orders to beef up security over alleged plans to attack the state by terrorists.
The governor disclosed this while addressing the press on Friday, after his meeting with all the heads of security agencies in the state.
Sanwo-Olu said he has read some news on social media about a threat of an impending attack on Lagos but urged Lagosians to remain calm and go about their normal businesses.
He reassured Lagosians of their safety and also stated various measures being put in place by the government to avert any security breaches in and around Lagos.
He urged all Lagosians to be on red alert and say something when they see something in there environment or anywhere, held that security is everybody businesses. Read more
Lagos Assembly warned against obstructing commission chairman’s duties (Punch)
The National Industrial Court on Thursday ordered the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, not to obstruct, disturb or frustrate the Chairman of the House’s Services Commission, Olawale Mogaji, in the discharge of his duties.
According to a statement made available to The PUNCH on Friday, the court sitting Thursday ordered that Obasa should halt action pending the motion of exparte filed by Olawale Mogaji is heard by the court.
Justice R. H. Gwandu, in his ruling, directed that any disobedience to the court order shall be treated as contempt.
Gwandu also ordered that the claimant immediately serve the defendants and put them on notice, and the case was adjourned to August 24 for a hearing. Read more
LASU, CARISCA brainstorm on pathway to stress-free transportation in Lagos (Independent)
Towards finding a workable and lasting solution to the perennial time-wasting, energy-sapping and economy-sucking traffic gridlock in Lagos, the Centre for Applied Research and Supply Chain-Africa (CARISCA) in partnership with the Lagos State University School of Transportation and Logistics (LASUSOTAL) has, again, risen from one-day transport sector stakeholders’ brainstorming.
Delivering a scholarly presentation richly blended with particulars of practicability, Prof. Gbadebo Odewumi, the immediate past Dean of the Lagos State School of Transportation and Logistics (LASUSOTAL) delved deeply into the topic: “City Logistics And Last-Mile Delivery In Lagos”.
The well-tavelled transportation-biased academic identified, as always, the near bestial challenges of intra-city movement in Lagos even as he marshalled out workable solutions to them.
He noted that the Last-Mile Delivery Logic is the “Most expensive delivery system”, adding that it cost more than the first 100 miles, even as it proves counter-productive and time-wasting apparently owing to the unpredictable transport situation in the Lagos metropolis. Read more
Atiku breaks the ice, meets Wike in Abuja (Guardian)
After weeks of brickbats since the conclusion of the presidential primary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the aggrieved governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, and the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, yesterday evening met behind closed doors in Abuja.
Although details of the meeting were still sketchy as of the time of this report, sources in the PDP said the meeting between the two gladiators took place at the residence of a former Minister of Information and National Orientation and prominent member of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT), Prof. Jerry Gana, signalling what observers believed were reconciliatory moves to pacify the governor.
It was confirmed that though the meeting took place in Gana’s house, he was not at the meeting. Also, interlopers were barred as the duo met without hangers-on.
A source disclosed: “The meeting took place in a very cordial atmosphere and at the end, both leaders happily exchanged banters openly. The two agreed to set up a small committee of equal representatives from both sides to thrash out issues of differences. That committee will ultimately submit a report to another larger committee that will finally lay the issues to rest. I can also tell you that the two leaders met without a third party.” Read more
Osun guber: Oyetola files 1,240-page petition before tribunal (Sun)
Osun State governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, yesterday filed a 1,240-page petition before the tribunal sitting at the State High Court, Osogbo.
Oyetola, who is the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the July 16 election, approached the tribunal to challenge the declaration of Senator Ademola Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as winner.
Oyetola and the state Chairman of the APC, Prince Gboyega Famodun, jointly signed the petition.
The APC had hinted that it would approach the tribunal to challenge the election, saying that the legal team of the party had assured them that they have a good case.
When contacted, the lead counsel of the APC, Rasheed Adegoke SAN, confirmed to Saturday Sun that the petition has been submitted expressing hope that the party would be victorious at the tribunal. Read more
Man nabbed for allegedly stealing UTME candidates’ phones (Punch)
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps has arrested a 23-year-old man identified as Quadri Qudus who allegedly stole 21 mobile phones from Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination candidates in Ilorin, Kwara State, in July this year.
Qudus was alleged to have stolen the phones from the candidates while sitting the examination at a Computer-Based Test centre in Ilorin on July 5, 2022.
He was said to have pretended selling face masks at the centre and collected the phones from the candidates because they were not allowed to enter the examination centre with their phones.
However, before the candidates could complete their examination papers, the suspect had disappeared with the phones. Read more
Benin City Mall: Developers rush to beat deadline (Leadership)
The ongoing construction of the Benin City Mall in Edo State has been a win-win situation for Edo residents and development partners as it has begun stimulating the Edo State economy.
A visit to the site that will host the Benin City Mall on Sapele Road, will excite any Edo resident as the developers of the largest mall in South-south Nigeria expedite work on the gigantic buildings that will house a digital library that will be free to the public, children’s entertainment centers, lounges, bars, restaurants, cinema, wellness spa and shopping areas amongst other features.
At the site, thousands of Edo youths (professionals) are seen working as masons, plumbers, surveyors, welders, carpenters, civil and electrical engineers, suppliers of sand, granite and other building materials and other players in the construction value chain as they rush to deliver the project come January 2023.
Also, landlords housing some of the workers have started benefitting from the project through rents, just as food and sachet water vendors as well as transporters are making their gains from the new economy that the Benin City Mall is bequeathing to the State. Read more
COVID-19 infections rise by 231.5% in one month (Punch)
COVID-19 infections have reportedly risen by 231.5 per cent within one month in the country.
Epidemiological data obtained from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control showed that from May 28 to June 29, a total of 1,262 cases were reported.
But from June 30 to August 1, the cases took a new surge as 4,183 cases were reported, indicating an increase of 2,921 (231.5 per cent).
The country now has 261,473 total confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 3,147 deaths. The total recoveries in the country have now increased to 254,953.
The NCDC confirmed in its latest biweekly epidemiological report that in the last 10 weeks, the test positivity ratio had continued to increase with the majority of cases reported from Lagos, FCT, Rivers, and Kano states. Read more
Doja Cat debuts new buzz-cut before shaving eyebrows off live on Instagram (Metro)
Doja Cat stunned fans by debuting her new buzz cut and proceeding to shave her eyebrows off during an Instagram Live session.
On Thursday, the 26-year-old took to her social media page and explained that she was undergoing the dramatic transformation because she ‘never liked’ having hair.
Doja, who is known for her quirkiness, then grabbed a razor and started shaving her brows off.
She said: ‘I just can’t believe that it took me this long to be like, “Shave your f**king head”. I feel like I was never supposed to have hair anyway… I don’t like having hair. Read more
Kevin Feige, James Gunn and Edgar Wright reached out to ‘Batgirl’ directors after Warner Bros. axed their film (Variety)
“Batgirl” co-director Adil El Arbi revealed on Instagram that several high-profile Hollywood names have reached out to him and fellow “Batgirl” director Bilall Fallah in the aftermath of Warner Bros. shelving their comic book movie. The studio announced Aug. 2 that the $90 million “Batgirl” film would not be released in theaters or on HBO Max despite already being shot. Arbi shared an email that Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige sent him and Fallah in the aftermath of the film’s cancellation. The “Batgirl” directors helmed two episodes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe series “Ms. Marvel.”
“My friends, I had to reach and let you know we are all thinking about you both,” Feige wrote. “Because of the wonderful news about the wedding (congrats!) and the disappointing news about ‘Batgirl.’ Very proud of you guys for all the amazing work you do and particularly ‘Ms. Marvel’ of course! Can’t wait to see what is next for you. Hope to see you soon.” Read more
Alex Jones must pay $50m for Sandy Hook hoax claim (BBC)
US conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has been ordered to pay $49.3m (£41m) in damages after falsely claiming a 2012 school shooting was a hoax.
A jury in Texas ruled the radio host must pay $45.2m in punitive damages, in addition to $4.1m in compensatory damages they awarded a day earlier.
The two-week defamation trial was brought by the parents of a child killed in the attack.
Twenty children and six adults were killed at Sandy Hook in Connecticut.
The lawsuit was filed by Scarlett Lewis and Neil Heslin, the separated parents of six-year-old Jesse Lewis, who died in the primary school shooting. Read more
Melanie Lynskey says she was ‘starving herself,’ body shamed on the ‘Coyote Ugly’ set (ET)
Melanie Lynskey’s memories from the set of Coyote Ugly aren’t all fond ones. While working on the film, which was released 22 years ago this week, Lynskey says she was body shamed.
“All the girls had this regimen they had to go on. It was ridiculous,” she tells The Hollywood Reporter. “I was already starving myself and as thin as I could possibly be for this body, and I was still a [size] four.”
The 2000 film follows a young songwriter, played by Piper Perabo, who takes a job at a trendy New York City bar where the all-female bar staff’s main job is to tantalize customers. Lynskey played Perabo’s best friend from her hometown in New Jersey.
“There were already people putting a lot of Spanx on me in wardrobe fittings and being very disappointed when they saw me, the costume designer [at the time] being like, ‘Nobody told me there would be girls like you,'” Lynskey tells THR. “In your early 20s, so much of it is about beauty, and how people respond to you, and do people want to f— you? Do people think you’re their best friend? Even the best friend thing, I started to be like, ‘I don’t want to do that too many times.'” Read more
Ozzy Osbourne makes rare appearance in London with wife Sharon and daughter Kelly after ‘major operation’ (Metro)
Ozzy Osbourne made a rare appearance with wife Sharon as they hit the streets of London, after a series of health issues.
The Black Sabbath frontman has kept a low profile recently after undergoing an operation in June that would ‘determine his life’.
The 73-year-old recently said that it was a ‘slow climb back’ after the surgery.
He was pictured making his way into a hotel in the capital on a getaway with the Talk host and their daughter, Kelly Osbourne, who is expecting her first child with boyfriend Sid Wilson. Read more
Benny Blanco is a BTS superfan in ‘Bad Decisions’ music video (UPI)
Benny Blanco, South Korean boy band BTS and Snoop Dogg have teamed up on new music.
The trio of artists released a single and music video for the song “Bad Decisions” on Friday.
In the “Bad Decisions” video, Blanco plays a BTS superfan preparing to see the K-pop group in concert. Blanco creates a sign featuring pictures of BTS, grabs his official light stick, and wears an outfit inspired by Jimin.
Blanco then rushes to the venue, only to discover he is more than 24 hours early to see the show. Read more
Russian hypersonic missile scientist arrested, charged with treason (Newsweek)
A prominent Russian scientist involved with the development of “hypersonic rocket systems” has been arrested and charged on suspicion of treason, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.
Alexander Shiplyuk was detained in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk and has been taken to Moscow’s Lefortovo pre-trial detention center.
The scientist worked at the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences as director of its Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics.
In this capacity he reportedly worked on developing hypersonic aircraft and rockets, a key weapon in Vladimir Putin’s arsenal. Read more
Nigeria appeals disqualification of two ‘late comers’ as Ofili, Chukwuma, Nwokocha make 200m semifinals (Guardian)
Team Nigeria has appealed the disqualification of two of its para powerlifting athletes, Onyinyechi Gift Mark and Latifat Tijani, for arriving late to the venue of their event.
Mark and Tijani, reportedly came late for their kit inspection. But Team Nigeria is saying the charge is not true.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports Development in a statement, yesterday, said: “Team Nigeria’s powerlifters did not arrive late for their event at the Commonwealth Games. Based on speculation in the media, there was also no query about the kits as they were approved at the technical meeting held on August 1, 2022.
“The decision to disqualify Latifat Tijani and Mark Onyinye Gift has been appealed by Nigeria to the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).” Read more
Villarreal favourites to sign Sadiq – Romano (Punch)
Contrary to reports that Super Eagles striker Sadiq Umar could be joining Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund, transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano says Spanish club Villarreal are the favourites to sign the Almeria man, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
On Wednesday, Spanish publication, FútbolFantasy, said Dortmund had identified the Nigeria international as a replacement for Sebastien Haller, who will be out for sometime with illness, and had submitted an offer of €25m for the striker.
The report added that the player had already left his house at El Toyo and didn’t renew his rent, and it’s believed to be in preparation for a move to Germany.
Sadiq has been in fine form for Almeria for consecutive seasons and has scored 38 goals in 74 LaLiga 2 appearances, also registering 19 assists in the process. Read more
4 Nigerian boxers battle for gold medals today (Guardian)
Four Nigerian boxers are eying gold medal spot today as they slug it out with their opponents in the semifinal at the ongoing 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
The four pugilists, one male and three females, qualified for this stage on Thursday, and it is expected that Nigeria will get some medals to improve its placement on the medals table.
In the women’s featherweight, Elizabeth Oshoba, who edged Tianna Guy of Trinidad & Tobago 3-2 in the quarterfinals, will take on Australia’s Aist Rahimi.
In the women’s lightweight category, Ogunsemilore Cynthia will fancy her chances against Nira Broadhurst of Northern Ireland. She out-punched Botswana’s Aratwa Fancinah Kasemang in the quarterfinals also on Thursday. Read more
Injured Mbappe ruled out of PSG season opener (France24)
Kylian Mbappe will miss Paris Saint-Germain’s first Ligue 1 outing of the new season this weekend against Clermont with an adductor injury, his club said on Friday.
PSG announced that Mbappe had been left out of the squad that would travel to Clermont for Saturday’s game “due to pain in his adductor muscles” and will instead remain behind for treatment.
“A further update will be provided in 72 hours time.”
Mbappe already missed PSG’s 4-0 win over Nantes in the French season-opening Champions Trophy in Tel-Aviv, Israel last weekend due to a suspension carried over from the last campaign. Read more
Brendan Rodgers insists that James Maddison and Wesley Fofana are not for sale (DailyMail)
Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers has insisted that James Maddison and Wesley Fofana will be staying at the club for the upcoming season.
The star duo have been the subject of serious interest, Newcastle making a £40m bid for Maddison while Chelsea are prepared to pay big money for Fofana.
However, Rodgers says they won’t be going anywhere.
‘Wesley Fofana and James Maddison are not for sale. Rodgers said during a press conference on Friday. These are very important players to us’. Read more
McLaren agree deal to sign Oscar Piastri with Daniel Ricciardo to be offered ‘pay-off’ (Mirror)
Daniel Ricciardo is set for pay-off negotiations with McLaren after the Woking team agreed a deal to sign Oscar Piastri.
The F2 champion was expected to be loaned to Williams for 2023, with Alpine keen on keeping Fernando Alonso. But the Spaniard’s surprise move to Aston Martin triggered a change of plans, and the French team decided instead to promote Piastri to a race seat alongside Esteban Ocon.
But they seemingly did so without his permission, as barely 90 minutes later the 21-year-old released a statement on social media in which he denied having signed a contract. “I will not be driving for Alpine next year,” was his unambiguous sign-off.
Alpine insist they are confident that they have the legal standing to keep Piastri, who is a member of their development programme and has been primed for a Formula 1 seat by the team. But since McLaren made it clear they had interest in the Australian, his manager Mark Webber has been working on a deal. Read more
Joe Joyce vs Joseph Parker: Juggernaut makes huge George Foreman claim (GMS)
Joe Joyce has compared himself to George Foreman ahead of his September showdown with Joseph Parker.
Joyce, 36, puts his unbeaten record on the line next month against former world champion Parker.
The New Zealander is one of the most dangerous operators in the heavyweight division, having previously only lost to the likes of Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte, who he took the distance in 2018.
And Joyce is determined to prove he belongs with the big boys as he looks to complete his toughest challenge yet by beating Parker at the AO Arena in Manchester on September 14. Read more
