Author: Samuel Akpenpuun

The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has struck out the suit against four bloggers who were accused of cyber stalking Guaranty Trust Bank, its holding company, GTCO Plc and its Group Chief Executive Officer, Segun Agbaje. Justice Olayinka Faji struck out the suit following the withdrawal of the criminal charge filed against them by the police after reaching terms of settlement. This reprieve for the bloggers is coming after they have been held in custody for six months. The four bloggers, Precious Eze, male (38), Olawale Rotimi male (47), Rowland Olonishuwa, and Seun Odunlami, were arraigned before the court…

Social media giant Meta on Thursday announced it would begin testing its new “Community Notes” feature across its platforms on March 18, as it shifts away from third-party fact-checking toward a crowd-sourced approach to content moderation. Meta’s chief executive Mark Zuckerberg announced the new system in January as he appeared to align himself with the incoming Trump administration, including naming a Republican as the company’s head of public policy. The change of system came after years of criticism from supporters of US President Donald Trump, among others, that conservative voices were being censored or stifled under the guise of fighting…

Captain Kylian Mbappe returned to the France squad named Thursday for this month’s UEFA Nations League quarter-final against Croatia, as Paris Saint-Germain teenager Desire Doue earned a first call-up. Mbappe, 26, was left out of the last two France squads by coach Didier Deschamps for the Nations League group stage in October and November. The Real Madrid superstar was initially dropped because of fitness concerns, before later being left out amidst headlines about his private life. Deschamps said at the time that his decision to do without Mbappe was “for the best” due to the noise surrounding the striker. Mbappe…

The House of Representatives on Thursday approved the tax reform bills forwarded by President Bola Tinubu to the National Assembly. The bills include the Nigerian Tax Bill, the Tax Administration Bill, the Revenue Tax Board Bill, and the Nigerian Revenue Service Establishment Bill. This followed clause by clause consideration of all relevant amendments on the bills at the Committee of the Whole. READ ALSO: I’m Ready To Work With Peter Obi For A Stronger Opposition – Bala Mohammed Some of the amendments include retention of the Value Added Tax rate at the current 7.5 percent as opposed to a staggered…

Operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) have intercepted $1,154,900 and SR135,900 undeclared foreign currency at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) in Kano State. NCS spokesman, Abdullahi Maiwada, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday. He said the seizure was made recently during a routine baggage check on an inbound passenger, Hauwa Ibrahim Abdullahi, who arrived on Saudi Airline Flight No. SV401 from Saudi Arabia. According to Maiwada, during the physical examination of the passenger’s luggage conducted by NCS Officers, the undeclared currency was discovered concealed within palm-date fruit packs locally referred to as Dabino. He stated that…

The Chief Magistrate Court, Wuse Zone 6, Abuja, has issued a bench warrant for the arrest of blogger Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), for “criminal defamation” of the reputation of gospel singer, Mercy Chinwo. The magistrate ordered the Nigeria Police Force together with other law enforcement agencies to arrest VeryDarkMan and bring him to court to answer the allegations levelled against him. Magistrate Emmanuel Iyanna issued the bench warrant on Thursday, March 13, 2025, when VeryDarkMan failed to appear before the magistrate following a court summons on March 5, 2025, for him to do so. Though VeryDarkMan’s lawyer, Deji…

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has accused Kogi Central Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of distorting facts and misrepresenting the Senate in the international arena. Akpoti-Uduaghan, who was recently suspended for six months for violating Senate rules, reported the matter to the United Nations Inter-parliamentary conference in New York on Tuesday, accusing Akpabio of victimisation, sexual harassment and abuse of office. During Senate plenary on Thursday, Akpabio criticised the Kogi senator for trying to embarrass the upper chamber by presenting a misleading narrative to the international community. READ ALSO: Suspension: Natasha Files Contempt Charge Against Akpabio He acknowledged the intervention of a federal…

The trial of the former Governor of Kwara State, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, and his Finance Commissioner, Ademola Banu, over the alleged misappropriation of N5.78 billion in public funds continued on Wednesday, 12 March 2025, before Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin. At the resumed hearing on Wednesday, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) presented its second witness (PW2), Dr Musa Oladimeji Dasuki, a retired Permanent Secretary at the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), who served between 2011 and 2020. Led in evidence by EFCC counsel Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, Dasuki testified that…

Former  President of Nigeria Football  Federation (NFF), Amaju Melvin Pinnick, who lost his bid to retain his FIFA Council seat by a single vote at the Confederation of African Football General Assembly election  in Cairo on Wednesday, has expressed gratitude to President  Bola Tinubu for his support during his electioneering campaign for the position. Pinnick who thanked FIFA President, Gianni Infantino for his sincerity also expressed gratitude to the leadership of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) He said he remains ‘unbowed, full of gratitude to God and to the throng of persons’ that had supported his push to retain  the seat on the all-powerful  FIFA…

Holders Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid 4-2 on penalties to set up a Champions League quarter-final against Arsenal after the all-Spanish tie finished 2-2 on aggregate on Wednesday. Conor Gallagher struck in the opening minute of the second leg to bring Atletico level overall, but Real won the shootout as Julian Alvarez’s kick was disallowed for touching the ball twice before Marcos Llorente hit the bar.