Author: Samuel Akpenpuun

The Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission (NCPC) will airlift 10,000 Christians for this year’s holy pilgrimage to Jordan, starting on December 22. Each pilgrim paid N3 million for the journey, amounting to a total of N30 billion from the Nigerian contingent. According to the NCPC’s Executive Secretary, Bishop Stephen Adegbite, the pilgrimage will last 10 days and include visits to holy sites in Jordan and Turkey. This marks the first pilgrimage of 2024 after several delays. Earlier plans for the President’s wife, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, to lead the contingent…

The Secretary to the Bauchi State Government, Ibrahim Kashim, has resigned. This was disclosed in a press release issued to journalists on Friday by Mukhtar Gidado, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed. Gidado noted that the governor has accepted Kashim’s resignation with immediate effect. “The Chief of Staff, Government House, Bauchi, Dr. Aminu Gamawa, has been directed to take over from him in an acting capacity. “Governor Bala Mohammed, on behalf of the government and the people of Bauchi State, appreciated him for the services he rendered to the State and wished…

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said Friday he felt privileged to work with Cole Palmer after labelling him as “different” to the Premier League’s other star forwards. Palmer has been Chelsea’s outstanding player in their unexpected rise to second place in the Premier League. With 11 goals in 15 games, the England international is Chelsea’s top scorer and has also provided six assists. Palmer’s confidence and quality were on display once again with the cheeky chipped penalty in last weekend’s win at Tottenham. It was the kind of eye-catching moment that Maresca claimed as evidence that the 22-year-old is a truly…

The Appeal Court Abuja has set aside all orders restraining the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Accountant General of the Federation from releasing funds to the Rivers State Government. The Three-member panel, presided by Justice Hamman Barka, held that the subject matter was not within the jurisdiction of the court relating to the revenue of the state. While allowing the appeal of the Rivers State government, the appellate court also set aside all the orders made by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, stating that it was unconstitutional for her to make orders restricting Rivers State government to receive funds due…

President Bola Tinubu, House of Representatives Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas, governors, senators, and other prominent figures attended the wedding fatiha of the children of Deputy Senate President Senator Barau I. Jibrin on Friday. The ceremonies saw the joining of Jibrin Barau I. Jibrin (Abba) and Maryam Nasir Ado Bayero, daughter of the Emir of Bichi, as well as Aisha Barau I. Jibrin and Abubakar Abdulmunaf, son of Dr. Abdulmunaf Yunusa Sarina, President of Azman Group of Companies. The event was held at the National Mosque in Abuja after the two raka’at Juma’at prayers and officiated by Professor Ibrahim Maqari, the mosque’s…

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, recently met with President Bola Tinubu to discuss advancements in the aviation sector under the Renewed Hope Agenda. Speaking after their meeting at the State House in Abuja on Thursday, Onyema commended the President for implementing policies aimed at stabilising business operations across Nigeria, particularly in the aviation industry. He highlighted significant progress made by the Tinubu administration in enhancing the ease of doing business in the sector and introducing reforms spearheaded by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo. Expressing optimism about the administration’s impact on…

South African singer Tyla defeated Asake, Burna Boy, Rema, and Tems to win two Afrobeats categories at the 2024 Billboard Music Awardsceremony, which was held on Thursday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The singer won “Top Afrobeats Song” for her hit track “Water” and also clinched the title of Top Afrobeats Artist”, triumphing among her eight nominations. Tyla has been on a roll since the start of the year, dominating the Afrobeats category on the international awards and beating Nigerian music stars to the crown. In September, the South African rising star was announced the winner of…

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,”…