Author: Samuel Akpenpuun

President Emmanuel Macron on Friday named centrist leader Francois Bayrou as prime minister, handing him the daunting task of hauling France out of months of political crisis. Bayrou, the 73-year-old head of the MoDem group which is allied to Macron’s party, was appointed nine days after Michel Barnier’s government was ousted by parliament in a historic no-confidence vote following a standoff over an austerity budget. “The President of the Republic has appointed Mr. Francois Bayrou as prime minister and tasked him with forming a government,” the French presidency said in a statement, giving no more details. Bayrou is the sixth…

The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, has cautioned against the violation of the Supreme Court verdict on local government autonomy, vowing to deal with the erring council officials. Fagbemi gave the warning on Thursday in Abuja while speaking at a conference for judiciary correspondents. The AGF said governance at the grassroots has “suffered a lot” in the past but believes that with the enforcement of the verdict on local government autonomy, “life will come back to the local governments”. “People at the grassroots have suffered long negligence and it is enough. The government…

Former Super Eagles winger and Ajax FC star, Tijani Babangida, has opened up on the traumatic ghastly accident that claimed the lives of his one-year-old son, Fadil, and his younger brother, Ibrahim. The accident, which occurred on May 9, 2024, along the Kaduna–Zaria Road, had Babangida’s wife and his maid also injured, while he (Babangida) sustained injuries on his knees and legs. Ibrahim was buried the following day, according to Islamic rites. Recounting the ordeal in a 14-minute-long video documentary shared on the football club’s website on Thursday, December 12, 2024, the bereaved ex-footballer described the incident as a “nightmare,”…

Nigerian music icon Tiwa Savage has opened up about her perspective on infidelity in romantic relationships, revealing that cheating has never been a reason for her to end a relationship. During a candid interview on The Receipts Podcast, the 44-year-old singer disclosed that every man she has been involved with has cheated on her, yet she has always chosen to forgive. “I have been cheated on before. I found out and forgave every time,” Savage said. “Every man I have ever been with has cheated, and I’ve never left them because of it. I’ve left for other reasons, but not…

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has vowed to continue demolishing properties in the nation’s capital despite pressure. Wike has been criticised for embarking on widespread demolition of houses in Abuja. A construction company, Paullosa Nigeria Limited, had recently raised the alarm over a demolition notice issued by the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) to demolish its estate in the Lifecamp area of Abuja. The General Manager of the Estate, Mr Vincent Enoghase, who spoke to journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, claimed the FCDA had demanded N10 million, for a Right of Occupancy, which it had paid…

International lender, the World Bank, is expected to meet and approve a $500 million loan to Nigeria on Friday to boost rural access and agricultural marketing in the country. This is according to information obtained from the Washington-based institution on Thursday. The World Bank is expected to take a decision on the loan request by the Nigerian government on Friday, 13, 2024. The loan under the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project – Scale Up is designed to close the gap between communities and the broader marketplace in Nigeria. A major prerequisite to partake in the project is that subnationals…

Presidential Adviser on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala has dismissed insinuations by some partisans that the outcome of the recent presidential election in Ghana in which the ruling party lost could have a chain reaction on the chances of President Bola Tinubu retaining power in 2027, saying the president remained confident ahead of the polls. Bwala disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja when he visited the National Secretariat of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC. Former Ghanaian president and candidate of the opposition National Democratic Congress NDC in the December 7 Presidential Election in Ghana, John Mahama had defeated the incumbent…

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has announced a recall of one batch of Deekins Amoxycillin 500mg Capsules. This was made known in a statement shared by the Agency on X(formerly Twitter) on Wednesday. The affected batch, with lot number 4C639001, was manufactured by Eco-med Pharma Ltd and marketed by DevineKings Pharmaceutical Ltd. The recall followed reports of serious adverse drug reactions associated with this batch, according to NAFDAC. According to Eco-med Pharma Ltd, a hospital reported three cases of severe reactions in patients who were administered capsules from this batch. The statement said, “NAFDAC is…

An early-hour fire destroyed goods worth millions of naira at the popular Alaba Rago market in the Ojo area of Lagos state on Wednesday. An early-hour fire destroyed goods worth millions of naira at the popular Alaba Rago market in the Ojo area of Lagos state on Wednesday. A statement by Lagos State Emergency Management Authority’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Femi Oke-Osayintolu said the fire started at midnight. The immediate or remote cause of the fire could not be ascertained at the time of filing in this report. According to him, the LASEMA team stormed the market following distress calls, activated…

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP) have criticized the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, following his commendation of Ghana’s presidential election and his advice to Nigerian politicians on lessons to learn. In the recent Ghanaian election, ex-President John Mahama of the opposition party defeated Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, the candidate of the ruling party. Yakubu, in a video, praised the peaceful conduct of the election, describing it as a model for Nigeria. Reacting to his comments, the National Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party, Obiora Ifoh, criticized Yakubu for his…