Author: Chronicle Editor

Manchester City are ready to outbid Manchester United and Chelsea for 27-year-old England striker Harry Kane – who insists Tottenham cannot stop him leaving. (Star) Spurs players are said to be shocked by Kane’s decision to go public about his desire to leave. (Mirror) Arsenal have stepped up their efforts to sign 24-year-old Argentine midfielder Emiliano Buendia from Premier League-bound Norwich City as the Gunners look to replace Norway international Martin Odegaard, 22, who is poised to return to Real Madrid at the end of his loan. (Mail) Premier League champions Manchester City are set to offer England forward Raheem Sterling, 26, a new long-term deal. (Telegraph, subscription required) Real Madrid’s Wales forward Gareth Bale, 31, could…

The House of Representatives has asked the Federal Government to direct the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to halt with immediate effect, the proposed increase in electricity tariff scheduled to take effect from June 2021. Adopting a motion sponsored by Rep Aniekan Umanah, the House said Nigerians were already passing through difficult times and therefore, more burden should not be added to them. Presenting the motion before the House, Umanah said NERC, working with distribution companies, has increased electricity tariffs five times since 2015, the latest being on January 1, 2021. According to him, despite those increases, Nigerians have not…

The Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has criticised the shoot-at-sight order by the Inspector General of Police, describing it as reckless and undemocratic. The organisation in a statement by its acting leader, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, yesterday said the order endangers the fate of people in Southeast, who he posited seem endangered under the President Muhammadu Buhari administration. Adebanjo, who said the situation should be a source of concern to well-meaning Nigerians, said the order was targeted at protesting Igbo youths instead of embracing dialogue. The Afenifere acting leader observed that the same fate does not apply to Buhari’s Fulani ethnic group.…

A ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas has come into effect. The ceasefire began early on Friday, bringing to an end 11 days of bombardment in which more than 240 people have died, most of them in Gaza. Palestinians poured onto the streets of Gaza soon after the truce began, while a Hamas official warned its hands “are on the trigger”. Both Israel and Hamas have claimed victory in the conflict. US President Joe Biden said that the ceasefire brought “genuine opportunity” for progress. On Thursday more than 100 Israeli air strikes targeted Hamas infrastructure in the…

The World Bank has rejected request by African heads of state for cancellation of their countries’ debts, saying the world has moved past that line of action. President of the World Bank, David Malpass said, who disclosed this yesterday during a media roundtable for western and central Africa, said one of the themes of the Paris Conference two days ago, on Tuesday, was the call by African heads of state for cancellation of debts, but that’s not the direction that the world is moving at this point. Nigeria has the largest World Bank portfolio of more than $12 billion. Those…

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says governors do not run the affairs of the corporation, stressing that negotiation to determine a new pump price of petrol was still ongoing between the organised labour and the Federal Government. It added that there was no official announcement of any price hike for the product. Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna state was on Wednesday quoted as saying that there was a recommendation from the Nigeria Governors’ Forum that petrol should sell for between N380 to N408 per litre. The recommendation was a request for the complete removal of the subsidy on petrol.…

President Muhammadu Buhari Tuesday in Paris, France, called on European countries and global financial institutions to consider reducing devastating effect of the coronavirus pandemic on African economies by restructuring debt portfolios, opting for complete reliefs, and releasing vaccines to the continent, which is still behind in protecting majority of its citizens. The President, who spoke at the Financing Africa Summit held at Grande Palais Ephemere with the theme: “External Financing and debt Treatment”, said the fall in commodity prices as Covid-19 took a toll on the global economy further slowed growth in some countries and strained health facilities. “It is…

Operatives of the Lagos Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, have arrested a club owner, Emeka Williams Kingsley, alongside 14 other suspected internet fraudsters in Lagos. Kingsley, owner of Glass House, a club in the Abule Egba area of Lagos, was arrested alongside Adesoye Hussain Kehinde, Seun Joseph Adefala, Adebayo Gbadebo, Adebogun Olumuyiwa Adebowale, Aruna Ikoghane Odunayo, Israel Oluwatoyin, Junaid Idris Oladimeji, John Nnachi Ugochukwu, Oluwadare Olaiyan Aboderin, Ridwan Temitope Dada, Amosu Johnson Toby, Jimoh Kazeem Tunde, Oyemade Michael and Akeem Dada. They were arrested on April 15, 2021 at the Club, following credible intelligence gathered…

The Technical Assistant to the Vice President on New Media, Hon. Philip Obin, has congratulated and welcomed Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Describing the Governor’s decision to join the Progressive fold as timely, Hon. Obin commended him for taking the bold step, which majority of Cross Riverians would always cherish as the best thing to have ever happened in the political landscape of the state. Obin expressed firm believe that the governor would ride on the Progressive waves to achieve all the laudable programmes and policies lined up for the overall economic, political…

Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo state has mocked the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami after he compared the ban on open grazing to shutting down spare parts shop. In a statement titled, “Our decision is irreversible and will be enforced”, Akeredolu said Malami was clinging to an anachronistic model of animal husbandry which is wicked and arrogant. “I have just read the press statement credited to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami SAN on the resolution of the Southern Governors Forum to ban open grazing in…