Author: David Great

Justice Kehinde Ogundare of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, ordered the final forfeiture of the sums of $16,500 and N127m, which were fraudulently diverted from the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA. The funds are forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria. On May 23, 2024, the judge ordered the interim forfeiture of the funds, following a motion ex parte filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. The EFCC, through its counsel, Suleiman I. Suleiman, had sought the interim forfeiture of the funds under Section 17 of the Advance…

A man has been caught trying to smuggle over 100 live snakes into mainland China by cramming them into his trousers, according to the country’s customs authority. The unnamed traveller was stopped by customs officers as he sought to slip out of semi-autonomous Hong Kong and into the border city of Shenzhen, China Customs said in a statement on Tuesday. “Upon inspection, customs officers discovered that the pockets of the trousers the passenger was wearing were packed with six canvas drawstring bags and sealed with tape,” the statement said. “Once opened, each bag was found to contain living snakes in…

The Lagos State Law Reform Commission has organised a three-day workshop to harness Artificial Intelligence (AI) in translating the laws of Lagos State into the Yoruba language. This was contained in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on New Media to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Jubril Gawat, posted on his X account on Tuesday. According to the statement, the theme for the three-day event was “Unlocking AI Powered Translation: Enhancing Access to Lagos State Laws in indigenous languages.” Gawat said the workshop was “with a view to boosting public order and safety, operational efficiency, and improved accessibility and scalability of…

Defending champions Argentina reached the final of the Copa America after goals from Julian Alvarez and Lionel Messi gave them a 2-0 win over Canada in Tuesday’s semi-final in New Jersey. Argentina have won a joint-record 15 Copa titles and reached the final six times in the past eight editions but Canada caused them problems in the opening 20 minutes, Jacob Shaffelburg twice shooting wide from promising positions. After soaking up the early pressure Argentina went ahead when Rodrigo De Paul played through Alvarez, who ghosted in between two defenders to score with a tidy finish in the 22nd minute.…

Spain beat France 2-1 in Munich to book their place in the Euro 2024 final as Lamine Yamal made history by becoming the youngest goalscorer in men’s European Championship history. Les Bleus hadn’t scored a single goal from open play in 480 minutes at this Euros but took just nine to do so this time around. After Fabian Ruiz had wastefully headed over, his Paris Saint-Germain teammate Kolo Muani was far more clinical as he converted from Kylian Mbappe’s cross. Freed of his mask and against Jesus Navas – the oldest player to feature in a Euros or World Cup…

President Bola Tinubu has appointed Professor Attahiru Jega, the former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, as co-chairman of the committee responsible for coordinating the implementation of livestock reforms in Nigeria. Jega’s appointment was announced by presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale during the inauguration of the Presidential Committee on Implementation of Livestock Reforms at the presidential villa in Abuja on Tuesday. President Tinubu stated that Jega will oversee the committee, which has been established to tackle barriers to agricultural productivity and create new opportunities for farmers, herders, processors, and distributors within the livestock-farming value chain. He emphasized that the successful…

President Bola Tinubu has approved the creation of a new Ministry of Livestock Development, following the inauguration of the Renewed Hope livestock reform implementation committee at the State House, Abuja, on Tuesday. This committee is tasked with providing sector-focused solutions to the longstanding farmers-herders conflict. The decision comes after the National Livestock Reforms Committee recommended the creation of a “Ministry of Livestock Resources” on September 14, 2023. The recommendation aimed to address the ongoing conflicts between farmers and nomadic cattle herders across the country. Former Kano State Governor and Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, shared the development…

Leicester City has officially signed Caleb Okoli, a 22-year-old Italian-born Nigerian centre-back, from Serie A club Atalanta. Okoli joins the recently promoted Foxes on a five-year contract for a reported fee of approximately €15 million (£12.6 million). Sports journalist Fabrizio Romano announced the transfer on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, stating, “Official, confirmed. Caleb Okoli joins Leicester City on €15m package deal from Atalanta.” Expressing his enthusiasm, Okoli shared his excitement about the move. He said, “I’m very happy with the choice I made, so I’m very excited to start in the Premier League. Now I’m here in Leicester I’m…

Former Nigeria international Sone Aluko has been appointed as first-team coach of Premier League outfit, Ipswich Town. After joining the Tractor Boys from Reading, the winger announced his retirement from active football on May 6th, 2024 after the club secured promotion to the English elite division. Before heading to Portman Road, Aluko had represented Aberdeen, Rangers, Hull City, Fulham, Reading and Chinese outfit Beijing Renhe. He will work under Kieran McKenna as the club hopes to make a lasting impact when the 2024/25 Premier League gets underway. “It is a real privilege to start the next phase of my career…

A Spanish tourist was trampled to death by an elephant after stepping out of his vehicle to take photos of a small herd at a renowned South African park, authorities said on Tuesday. The 43-year-old man was attacked on Sunday morning at the Pilanesberg National Park, a tourist magnet about 200 kilometres (130 miles) northwest of Johannesburg, according to park officials. The man, his fiancee and two women were driving their own vehicle within the reserve when they spotted three elephants and three calves, police said. “Reports suggest that the man stopped the vehicle, alighted and went closer to the…