Author: Chronicle Editor

Atletico Madrid forward Fernando Torres says he will leave the club at the end of the season. The former Liverpool and Chelsea striker, 34, who is out of contract in the summer, has seen his first-team opportunities limited this season. The Spain forward was an unused sub as Atletico drew 1-1 at home to rivals Real Madrid in La Liga on Sunday. “This will be my last season at the club. As you can see I am playing very little,” said Torres. The Spaniard rejoined his boyhood side in 2014 after a period on loan at AC Milan. He has…

US Senator Tammy Duckworth has given birth to a daughter, becoming the first sitting female US senator to give birth while in office. The Illinois Democrat, 50, said on Twitter that Maile Pearl Bowlsbey was named after her husband’s great aunt, who served as a nurse during World War Two. Bryan, Abigail and I couldn’t be happier to welcome little Maile Pearl as the newest addition to our family and we’re deeply honored that our good friend Senator Akaka was able to bless her name for us—his help in naming both of our daughters means he will always be with…

There are two options for those in contention for the presidency in 2019: run, or run away. Now that President Muhammadu Buhari has indicated his intention to run, dwarfs trying to wear a giant’s shoes should simply run away. The cat has returned from a journey, let the rats scamper for safety. Show clean pairs of heels? But this is a democracy! Everybody is free to run in the direction he or she fancies. True. So, what I’ve said is mere advice, which they can take, or choose not to take. Nigerians will decide early next year. The greater the…

…Says Crime Rate Now On Consistent Decline …As Ambode Advocates Collective Vigilance To Stay Ahead Of Violent Crimes Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Imohimi Edgal on Monday said the activities of the dreaded Badoo Cult Group hitherto prevalent in Ikorodu axis of the State as well as militancy especially along the riverine communities have been degraded in the State. Speaking at the inaugural edition of the Lagos State Security Summit held at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, Edgal said it was also gratifying to report that in view of the massive assistance extended to security forces by the…

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, said arrangements were being concluded for the historic groundbreaking of the 40inch x 614km Ajaokuta-Kaduna–Kano, AKK, gas pipeline and stations in the weeks ahead. The corporation said following last week’s successful execution of contract agreements for the engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning and financing for Lots 1&3 of the over $2.8billion trans-Nigeria gas pipeline project, measures had been activated for the flag-off of what has been described as the single biggest gas pipeline project in the history of oil & gas operation in Nigeria. In a statement by Ndu Ughamadu, Group General Manager, Group Public…

Oil giant Shell says it paid the Nigerian government $4.32 billion in 2017 nearly 19 per cent from the $3.64 billion it paid in 2016, according to its annual sustainability report released on Monday. The company noted that the bulk of the $3.197 billion payments made to the oil-rich country, went to state oil company Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, for production entitlement. The report revealed that crude oil theft from pipelines of Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary SPDC increased by some 50 per cent, rising to roughly 9,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2017 from 6,000 bpd in 2016. Shell said…

Manchester City will have to play the “perfect game” on Tuesday to overturn a 3-0 deficit in their Champions League quarter-final against Liverpool, says manager Pep Guardiola. City go into the second leg after back-to-back defeats by the Reds and derby rivals Manchester United in what Guardiola described as a “tough” week. The Spaniard said he still had belief in his “extraordinary” side. “The only way to play good football is to be positive,” he added. “To go through you have to make the perfect game, create chances and concede few chances. The chances we receive, we have to defend…

President Muhammadu Buhari has declared his intentions to seek a second term in office after many months of speculation in political quarters. In a tweet by Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna he said he Buhari made his intentions known to the All Progressives Congress National Executive Committee. “PMB has just announced to APC NEC his intention to run for a second term of office. Alhamdulillah. – Nasir El-Rufai,” he tweeted. BREAKING NEWS: PMB has just announced to APC NEC his intention to run for a second term of office. Alhamdulillah. – Nasir El-Rufai— Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai (@elrufai) April 9, 2018…

Harriet Harman has accepted an apology from a Tory high flyer after she admitted hacking into her website in an interview. Kemi Badenoch confessed to the incident yesterday despite it technically being a criminal offence punishable by up to two years in jail. Ms Badenoch – who introduced Theresa May at the Tory conference last year – was first elected last year and has been tipped as a future Prime Minister. The MP launched the cyber-attack on the Labour MP’s site a decade ago in order to write pro-Tory propaganda under their name. After she apologised for the incident last…

By Thomas Ola Adebanwi One issue which kept the media space buzzing almost endlessly last week was the threat by the Senate to cut down the budget for the National Social Intervention Programme (NSIP) on reason no well meaning Nigeria considered as serious and rational. The Senate issued the threat through its Chairman Appropriation Committee during the 2018 Budget Defence by NSIP led by Mrs. Maryam Uwais, the Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on NSIP. It was apparent that some federal lawmakers have been ogling the fast paced activities and record breaking achievements by the NSIP Office amid of…