Author: Festus Adeloye

The Federal Government, on Thursday, arraigned suspended Kogi Central Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, before the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja on charges of alleged criminal defamation. The lawmaker appeared before Justice Chizoba Orji on a three-count charge bordering on alleged defamation of Senate President Godswill Akpabio and former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello. The charges stemmed from public statements allegedly made by the Senator, including claims that the two high-profile politicians conspired to have her assassinated. One of the counts accused Akpoti-Uduaghan of stating during a televised interview that, “It was part of the meeting, the discussions that…

The prosecution in the terrorism trial of Nnamdi Kanu, detained self-acclaimed leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) closed its case on Thursday after calling five witnesses. Prosecuting lawyer, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN) announced the closure of the prosecution’s case after its fifth witness (PW5) concluded his testimony. Awomolo said after calling five witnesses in the trial, the prosecution was satisfied that from the evidence led and exhibits tendered, the prosecution is satisfied. Defence lawyer, Kanu Agabi (SAN) said the defendant plans to make a no-case submission, which would be filed in due course.

Former Vice President, Architect Namadi Sambo has refuted claims made by a former Minister of Budget and National Planning, Dr. Shamsudeen Usman that the 2013 power sector privatisation process was driven by political interests rather than technical and financial capabilities of buyers. Sambo, in a statement by his Personal Secretary, Mr. Yinka Ibrahim, described the allegations as “false, mischievous, and hypocritical.” He asserted that the claims were intended to tarnish the image of former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration and the National Council on Privatisation, which he chaired at the time. “My attention was drawn to a shocking statement attributed to…

A court in the United States has sentenced five Nigerians, Damilola Kumapayi, Sandra Iribhogbe Popnen, Edgal Iribhogbe, Chidindu Okeke and Chiagoziem Okeke, to over 159 years of combined jail term for $17 million fraud. Acting US Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas, Jay R. Combs announced this in a statement published on the website of the Department of Justice. Combs said the Texas residents being transnational organised criminals were sentenced by US District Judge Amos L. Mazzant, III on Monday, June 16, for defrauding over 100 Americans, companies and government entities to the tune of $17 million. Kumapayi, 39,…

The Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday officially presented party flags to its 57 chairmanship and 376 councillorship candidates for the 12 July Local Government Elections. The party also launched its campaign for the council at the event held at the APC State Secretariat, Ogba. Speaking at the ceremony, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by Mrs Abimbola Salu Hundeyin, the Secretary to the State Government, assured the candidates of the government’s support to help them emerge victorious in the election. “The love I have for this party is unquantifiable. I am with all the candidates; this…

Mustapha Salihu, the National Vice Chairman (Northeast) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has explained why he chose to endorse President Bola Tinubu and not Vice President Kashim Shettima. While speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s ‘Politics Today’ on Monday, Salihu clarified that Shettima was omitted from his endorsement during Sunday’s APC North-East summit in Gombe because it was in line with party convention and constitutional provisions. “In my full speech—the last paragraph before the endorsement—I eulogised Kashim Shettima, recognising him as our son and expressing that we stand by him as people of the North-East. “I also appreciated…

Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 election, has slammed President Bola Tinubu for failing to visit Benue State despite the ongoing killings. Obi said in a Monday morning post on X that it demonstrated Tinubu’s disregard for human life. He cited occurrences in India and South Africa as examples of excellent leadership when tragedy strikes. Tinubu’s response to the killings of more than 200 people by herdsmen in Benue state has sparked worldwide indignation. The president’s message came about 24 hours after the catastrophe, with Pope Leo offering his sympathies much earlier. Obi wrote: “Sadly, the…

Search teams have recovered the cockpit voice recorder from the site of last week’s Air India crash, a key component which could shed light on the cause of the disaster. The cockpit voice recorder was found in the wreckage in the western city of Ahmedabad, the government said on Monday. The flight data recorder had been retrieved earlier. Investigators hope the two recorders, commonly referred to as black boxes will help them determine what went wrong on Thursday, when the London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner went down shortly after take-off and burst into flames. The voice recorder captures cockpit conversations, while the data…

There was chaos at the meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) stakeholders in the North- East, on Sunday, after Comrade Mustapha Salihu, National Vice Chairman of the ruling in the North-East, failed to mention the name of Vice-President Kashim Shettima while endorsing President Bola Tinubu for a second term. The meeting, which was held in Gombe State, was attended by virtually all ministers, lawmakers, and governors of the party from the region. Abdullahi Ganduje, National Chairman of the APC, also led some key personalities to the event. When it was the turn of Salihu to speak, he endorsed Tinubu…

Former UFC welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman displayed a commanding performance on Saturday, besting Joaquin Buckley via unanimous decision in the main event of UFC Atlanta at State Farm Arena. The victory marked the end of Usman’s three-fight losing streak and was his first win since 2021 in a five-round welterweight main event. The fight was scored 49-46, 49-46, and 48-47 in favour of Usman, 38, and the Nigerian could barely contain his emotions after the encounter. “It’s been a while. I needed to get that monkey off my back. I know I’m still able to do this at the highest…