Author: Festus Adeloye

Justice K. B. Olawoyin, presiding over Court 8 of the Oyo State High Court, Ring Road, Ibadan, has fixed Tuesday, January 13, to deliver his ruling on the bail application filed by Ooni of Ife’s ex-queen, Naomi Silekunola, Alhaji Oriyomi Hamzat, and Abdulahi Fasasi. Hamzat is the proprietor of Agidigbo FM, an Ibadan-based radio station; while Fasasi is the Principal of Islamic High School, Bashorun, Ibadan. They are currently standing trial over the stampede which occurred during a Christmas funfair at Islamic High School, Bashorun, Ibadan, in December 2024. The incident claimed the lives of no fewer than 35 children.…

Jean-Marie Le Pen, the historic leader of France’s far-right, died on Tuesday aged 96, his family told AFP. Le Pen, who had been in a care home for several weeks, died at midday (1100 GMT) Tuesday “surrounded by his loved ones”, the family said in a statement. Le Pen, the co-founder of the National Front, sent shockwaves through France in 2002 when he made it to the second round of the presidential election on a staunch anti-immigration platform. He was often accused of racism and anti-Semitism and infamously dismissed the Holocaust as a detail of history. His daughter Marine Le…

The Ondo State Police Command has disclosed that a total of 19 people have been arrested in connection with the cult clash which occurred on Monday, in Owo town, the Owo Local Government Area of the state. No fewer than four persons were killed during the clash which ensued between two rival cult groups in the community. As a result, the state government imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew on the community as part of efforts to douse the tension. The state Commissioner of Police, Mr Wilfred Afolabi, who visited the community on Tuesday disclosed that 19 people have been apprehended in connection with the incident,…

The Police Command in Abia State has demoted a police corporal to a constable over his involvement in unprofessional conduct and incivility to members of the public. The command’s spokesperson, Maureen Chinaka, confirmed the demotion in a statement on Tuesday. According to the spokesperson, the decision followed the conclusion of an administrative action in which he was tried in an orderly room and found guilty of discreditable and unprofessional conduct and incivility to members of the public. “The Commissioner of Police, Abia State Command, CP Danladi Isa, in alignment with the vision of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), to…

Disengaged staff members of the Central Bank of Nigeria who were relieved of their jobs in a mass layoff last year have dragged the bank before the National Industrial Court of Nigeria in Abuja. In an originating summons, filed on July 4, 2024, under the NICN Civil Procedure Rules 2017, the aggrieved staff members raised several questions for determination. The Ex-CBN staff members among others, are asking the court to determine whether they were denied their constitutional right to a fair hearing before and after their appointments were terminated while they claimed that the CBN violated internal policies, Nigerian labour…

John Mahama has taken the oath of office as Ghana’s new president in a ceremony attended by world leaders. Mahama was sworn in at Independence Square in Accra, the Ghanaian capital on Tuesday. The new president took over from Nana Akufo-Ado who succeeded him in 2017. Before Mahama’s swearing-in, Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang was inaugurated as the country’s first female vice president. The Chief Justice of Ghana Gertrude Torkornoo administered the oath of office at the event. The duo won the election held in December with Mahama returning to the post he left seven years ago with a mission to revive…

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says the country is at “moderate” risk for Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV).  In a public health advisory, the agency said the Federal Government is closely monitoring the outbreak of the virus and is taking safety measures to “strengthen the country’s preparedness and response capacity”. The NCDC said it conducted a risk assessment for the HMPV in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and partners such as the World Health Organization (WHO), the U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (USCDC), and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). “The assessment classified the risk of…

The Management of Abuja Steel Company has refuted allegations linking the organisation to the purchase and smelting of stolen manhole covers. A statement signed by the Abuja Steel Mills Ltd’s spokesman, Chethan Kumar, on Tuesday, denied the claims and insinuations that the company is involved in such activities, calling them false and misleading. Recall that on Monday, operatives of the Federal Capital Territory Police Command arrested 50 suspects for allegedly stealing streetlights and manhole covers, among others. The arrest followed the vandalism of sewage manhole covers along critical road corridors in the capital city, with the company indicted as a…

Following the signing of the new terms and conditions of service of the Armed Forces, President Bola Tinubu has approved mouth-watering allowances for officers of General rank, who will retire after serving 35 years. Some of the allowances include the provision of a bulletproof SUV as take-home gift, fully paid foreign medical treatment, $20,000 as estacode while embarking on the medical trip, and payments for cooks and house helps. The T & C The Harmonised Terms and Conditions of Service for Officers and Enlisted Personnel in the Nigerian Armed Forces, which had been in the works since the tenure of…

Airtel Nigeria’s Chief Executive Officer, Dinesh Balsingh, has stated that a 300 percent increase in operational costs over the past 18 to 24 months has made tariff adjustments essential for the telecom sector’s long-term sustainability. Highlighting the economic challenges facing the industry, Balsingh explained that tariffs have remained unchanged for over a decade despite significant increases in operating expenses. To address these challenges, Nigerian telecom operators have submitted a proposal to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) for a 100 percent tariff hike. “For over a decade, tariffs have remained static despite the dramatic increase in operating expenses, which have surged…