Author: Festus Adeloye

The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, on Saturday, met with leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party from each ward across the 18 local government areas of the state to strategise ahead of the governorship election taking place on September 21, 2024. The meeting was held at the New Festival Hall, Government House, Benin City, the state capital. Obaseki, who expressed the party’s readiness for the election, thanked the party leaders for their commitment, dedication and courage, which has kept the party together as one strong, united, and indivisible party. He said, “I want to thank you all for rallying around…

Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has rejected claims that petroleum products from his refinery are substandard. Dangote rejected the allegations on Saturday when the leadership of the House of Representatives visited and toured the refinery located at the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Lagos. Reps Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and his deputy Benjamin Kalu led the delegation from the House which included Hon Ikenga Ugochinyere. To back his position, Dangote and his team tested diesel bought from two filling stations and that from his refinery at the refinery’s laboratories. The tested diesel from other stations was bought in the presence of…

American singer, Sean Kingston whose real name is Kisean Anderson, and his mother, Janice Turner, 61, are facing serious legal trouble after being indicted by a federal grand jury on wire fraud charges. According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, the duo has been charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and five counts of wire fraud each, for allegedly participating in a scheme to defraud sellers of high-end vehicles, jewelry, and other luxury goods using fraudulent payment documents. If convicted, Kingston and Turner could each face up…

The Lagos State Police Command said it has demoted one of its officers who attempted to extort money from a drone operator in a viral video. The video showed two security personnel demanding a permit from the yet-to-be-identified drone operator on the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge area of the state. This attracted reactions from netizens who asked whether the operator required a permit to shoot a video on the bridge. The state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, while justifying their actions in a statement, however, described the officer’s request for money in the process as unprofessional. Speaking to our correspondent…

Minister of Budget and National Planning, Atiku Bagudu on Friday said the country has not invested enough in infrastructural development. According to him, several problems being encountered recently by Nigerians are a direct result of under-investment in several multi-dimension infrastructures. The minister spoke at the National Assembly during an interactive session with the Senate Committee on Appropriation under the chairmanship of Senator Olamilekan Adeola. The minister was invited to provide insight into the ₦6.2tn supplementary appropriation approval for the 2024 budget by the National Assembly as requested by President Bola Tinubu. Bagudu commended President Tinubu for the political will to…

The Federal Government has fined the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, Meta Platforms Inc., the sum of $220m for an unauthorised appropriation of personal data without user consent, discriminatory practices against Nigerian users, and the abuse of Meta’s dominant market position. A statement by the the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) on Friday, said the decision was taken after its joint investigation with the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), revealed extensive and ongoing violations of Nigerian laws, following a comprehensive 38-month investigation into its data privacy practices and market behaviour. According to the statement, between May…

The Director-General of the Labour Party’s presidential campaign in the 2023 election, Dr Doyin Okupe, has stated that the candidate of the party, Peter Obi, betrayed the Peoples Democracy Party’s candidate, Atiku Abubakar, to contest the election. According to Okupe, Obi’s presidential interest forced him to go against Atiku, who brought him into national politics. Okupe denied the insinuation that he betrayed Obi, maintaining that he decided to withdraw his support for the LP presidential candidate because he was no longer interested in working with him. The politician spoke in a viral video circulated on social media on Friday. He…

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed all banks and other financial institutions to transfer funds in all dormant accounts to the apex bank. A circular by CBN Ag. Director of Financial Policy and Regulations, Mr. John Onoja, last night indicated that accounts that have remained dormant for 10 years and above would be affected. It said, “The provisions of this guideline shall apply to all financial institutions under the purview of the Central Bank of Nigeria.” The apex bank said that the objectives of these guidelines, among others, were to identify dormant accounts/unclaimed balances, and financial assets with…

Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has reflected on his survival during the regime of the late dictator, Gen. Sani Abacha, describing it as a “bit of a miracle.” In an interview with TheNEWS to mark his 90th birthday, Soyinka recounted how Abacha was “mad” and “obsessed” with him, leading many people to suffer for associating with him. Soyinka shared a story about a driver who once worked for Abacha and later approached his new boss, expressing a desire to meet Soyinka, the man who had given Abacha “such nightmares.” The driver had overheard Abacha and his visitor discussing Soyinka and…

Adidas said Friday it had dropped vocal pro-Palestinian model Bella Hadid from an advertising campaign for retro sneakers referencing the 1972 Munich Olympics, which were overshadowed by a massacre of Israeli athletes. The German sportswear giant recently relaunched the SL72, a shoe first showcased by athletes at the 1972 Olympics, as part of a series reviving old classic sneakers. Eleven Israeli athletes and a German police officer were killed at the 1972 Munich Games after gunmen from the Palestinian Black September group broke into the Olympic village and took them hostage. Hadid, who was born in the US but has…