Author: Chronicle Editor

Nobel laureate Prof Woke Soyinka on Tuesday said Nigeria is on the edge of total collapse, echoing the thoughts of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. Chief Obasanjo had last week noted that Nigeria is becoming a failed state and more divided under President Muhammadu Buhari. Soyinka said the Federal Government’s tactics of “aggressively” denying that Buhari’s policies and conduct were responsible, would lead to “collective suicide.” In a statement titled: “Between ‘Dividers-in-chief’ and Dividers-in-law,” Soyinka said former President correctly read the state of the nation. Obasanjo, last week said the Buhari administration had made Nigeria the headquarters of poverty. The former president…

Tottenham could use England midfielder Dele Alli, 24, as a makeweight as they attempt to re-sign Wales international Gareth Bale, 31, from Real Madrid. (Mail) Everton could listen to offers for a number of players, including England winger Theo Walcott, 31, Nigeria winger Alex Iwobi, 24, and Italy’s 20-year-old striker Moise Kean, as they look to trim Carlo Ancelotti’s squad. (Mirror) Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s new three-year deal with Arsenal is worth about £55m including bonuses. (Times – subscription required) Arsenal are still planning to add more players to their squad, with Atletico Madrid’s Ghanaian midfielder Thomas Partey, 27, and Lyon’s French playmaker Houssem Aouar, 22, two of their targets. (Mirror) Bayern…

Tottenham Hotspur are in talks to re-sign Wales forward Gareth Bale from Real Madrid, and are closing in on a deal for his team-mate Sergio Reguilon. Bale, 31, left Spurs to join Real for a then world record £85m in 2013 and has since scored more than 100 goals and won four Champions League titles. “Gareth still loves Spurs,” his agent Jonathan Barnett told BBC Sport Wales. “It’s where he wants to be.” Both Bale and left-back Reguilon had been linked with Manchester United. Spain international Reguilon, 23, came through the youth set-up at Real and made his first-team debut…

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has announced 90 confirmed new coronavirus cases in the country on Tuesday. The 90 cases announced by the Centre for Disease Control takes the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases to 56,478. The NCDC also announced the discharge of 93 patients from isolation centers across the country with five new deaths reported. Lagos state, the epicentre of the virus in Nigeria reported 33 new confirmed cases taking the total number of confirmed cases in Lagos alone to 18696. Nigeria announces 132 new coronavirus cases Plateau state reported 27 new cases, Kaduna recorded 17…

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday justified government borrowing to finance infrastructure, asserting that his government took loans in the interest of the country to solve the dire shortfall in infrastructure. Speaking at a virtual meeting with members of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC) at the State House, in Abuja, President Buhari said the country must fix its roads to save lives from soaring road accidents. “We have so many challenges with infrastructure. We just have to take loans to do roads, rail and power, so that investors will find us attractive and come here to put their money,’’ the…

Leading video entertainment company, MultiChoice Nigeria, has unveiled its new sport channels and content line-up for the remainder of the year 2020. The unveiling, which also featured the announcement of local and international entertainment, documentaries, reality and kiddies’ programming to be aired in 2020, occurred at the virtual MultiChoice Nigeria Showcase 2020 on Wednesday, 9 September. Martin Mabutho, Chief Customer Officer of MultiChoice Nigeria, said the pay-TV company is pleased to broadcast to Nigerians the very best of football from international football leagues such as the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, UEFA Champions League, Emirates FA Cup and others…

The Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 10, AIG Mohammed Mustapha has commended the efforts of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, in its arduous task of fighting economic and financial crimes. Mustapha stated this while hosting the EFCC’s Sokoto zonal head, Bawa Usman Kaltungo and his management team, who paid him a Courtesy Visit in his office. According to him, “the EFCC occupies a strategic position in actualizing the current administration’s key policies and this calls for enhanced intelligence- sharing and stronger partnership in service to the nation”. In the same vein, the Commissioner, Independent Corrupt Practices and…

Justice Mohammed Tukur Muazu Aliyu of the Kaduna State High Court, on Monday sentenced Adamu Aliyu to six months imprisonment, for fraudulently transferring N40, 000 to himself, from the account of an unsuspecting Automated Teller Machine, (ATM) user, under the false pretence of aiding the victim to effect a transfer. The convict was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Kaduna zonal office on one-count charge of theft to which he pleaded guilty. His plea prompted prosecution counsel, Jamilu Musa to ask the court to convict and sentence him accordingly. The six months prison sentence is without an…

Mali’s military coup leaders must hand over power to a civilian transitional government immediately, the chairman of ECOWAS said on Tuesday, as a deadline expired for the ruling junta to appoint interim leaders. The 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) imposed economic sanctions after the Aug. 18 overthrow of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, and said a new president should be appointed by Tuesday. But the junta pushed through a charter on Saturday that says the interim president can be a soldier or a civilian and has not yet indicated when the new government would be named. Regional presidents…

The family of Breonna Taylor, a black woman who was killed by police in Louisville, Kentucky, have agreed a multimillion-dollar settlement with the city, US media report. Ms Taylor, 26, was shot eight times when officers entered her home on 13 March during a drugs investigation. Her name has featured prominently in anti-racism protests around the world in recent months. The settlement will reportedly be announced later on Tuesday. It includes a “substantial” payment and will also mandate a series of police reforms in the city, the local Courier Journal newspaper reports. These are believed to include a requirement that all…