Author: Festus Adeloye

President Bola Tinubu is presiding over the 21st meeting of the Federal Executive Council at the State House, Abuja. Monday’s meeting began at 01:20 pm. when Tinubu arrived at the Council Chamber. It is arguably the last for 2024. Seated are the Government of the Federation, George Akume, the President’s Chief of Staff, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila and the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack and all ministers and ministers of state. Vice President Kashim Shettima is not attending the meeting as he is away in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, to represent President Tinubu at…

Russell Martin has been sacked as Southampton boss after suffering a chastening 5-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. It was the Saints’ 13th loss in 16 Premier League matches this season, a torrid run which has seen them pick up just five points. Their latest defeat left them nine points from safety. Martin guided the club to promotion from the Championship via the play-offs last season, but struggled to impose his possession-heavy philosophy in the English top-flight, and often batted away suggestions his side could implement a more pragmatic style. The club confirmed that under-21’s boss Simon Rusk would…

The Defence Headquarters has refuted claims that the French military was planning to establish a base in Nigeria. A human rights activist, Mahdi Shehu, criticised the government on Saturday in a post for denying the development. In a video-accompanied post, Shehu claimed that some French military officers had arrived in Borno State as part of the process to set up the base. The post partly read, “Last week, the Chief of Defence Staff denied any plan to establish French military bases in Nigeria. “Yesterday, the Chief of Army Staff received the first contingent of French soldiers and immediately deployed them…

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery said it has exported Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol to Cameroon, Ghana, Angola and South Africa. Vice President of Oil and Gas, Dangote Industries Limited, Dr. Devakumar Edwin, disclosed this recently when a delegation from the Japanese Business Community in Nigeria, led by Japan’s Ambassador-designate to Nigeria, Suzuki Hideo, visited the facility. He said: “In recent weeks, we’ve exported petrol to Cameroon, Ghana, Angola, and South Africa among others. Diesel has gone all over the world, and jet fuel is being heavily exported to European markets. Our products are already making their mark…

Ahead of the CAF awards ceremony scheduled for today in Marrakesh, Morocco, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has expressed strong support for Nigerian stars Ademola Lookman and Chiamaka Nnadozie, who are finalists for the CAF Player of the Year awards in the men’s and women’s categories, respectively. Lookman and Super Falcons goalkeeper Nnadozie are leading Nigeria’s quest for recognition at this year’s awards, with the country in contention for a total of seven categories. The men’s Player of the Year category features a competitive lineup, with Lookman competing against Ivory Coast’s Simon Adingra, PSG’s Achraf Hakimi, Guinea’s Serhou Guirassy, and…

Doctors treating Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva after surgery this week to stop a hemorrhage inside his head took him out of intensive care on Friday but kept him hospitalised. Lula, 79, “remains in the Hospital Sirio-Libanes, in Sao Paulo, under semi-intensive care,” they said in a public medical update. The update came after doctors performed emergency surgery on Tuesday to drill through Lula’s skull to relieve pressure built up because of bleeding in protective intracranial membranes. The injury was linked to a blow to the head Lula suffered in October, when he fell in a bathroom in…

England were placed in a group with Serbia as the draw for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in Europe took place on Friday. As they prepare to begin life under new coach Thomas Tuchel, England were also drawn alongside Albania, Latvia and Andorra in the five-team Group K. England, who have qualified for every World Cup since missing the 1994 tournament in the United States, played Serbia in their opening game at Euro 2024, winning 1-0 thanks to a Jude Bellingham goal. Matches will take place between March and November next year, with the group winners qualifying directly for the…

The immediate past Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, has said that the galloping inflation caused by the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government led to the review of contracts under his administration in the state. Obaseki, in a statement issued through his media aide, Crusoe Osagie, on Friday, said the claim that the contract sum for a 17.5 km Benin-Abraka road project, Phase 1C, was increased by 100 per cent from N8 billion to N16 billion within one year under the immediate past administration was baseless. The Edo State Assets Verification Committee, through the Physical Assets and Infrastructure Committee, headed…

Liverpool boss, Arne Slot, has insisted that Darwin Núñez remains an important part of Liverpool’s plans despite the struggling striker falling below “standard” during the Champions League win against Girona. In the midst of a lengthy slump, Núñez has scored only one goal in his last 10 appearances and three in total this season. In Liverpool’s victory over Girona on Tuesday, the Uruguayan international appeared increasingly frustrated after missing several chances. Slot admitted he kept Núñez on the pitch for an extended period, before eventually substituting him in the 71st minute, in the hope he would score a confidence-boosting goal.…

The United States Attorney, Susan Lehr has announced the extradition of Abiola Kayode, 37, from Ghana to the District of Nebraska, United States over an alleged $6m cyber fraud indictment. According to the statement by the United States Attorney’s Office, District of Nebraska on Thursday, Kayode, who was on the FBI’s Most Wanted Cyber Criminal List, is alleged to have participated in a business email compromise (BEC) scheme from January 2015 to September 2016. The BEC scheme defrauded businesses in the District of Nebraska and elsewhere of more than $6 million. The case was filed in August 2019 in Omaha,…