Author: David Great

Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, landed in Australia on Wednesday after pleading guilty to violating US espionage law in a settlement that ends a 14-year court struggle. His arrival brings an end to a tale in which Assange spent more than five years in a British high-security prison and seven years in asylum at the Ecuadorean embassy in London, fighting extradition to Sweden on sexual assault claims and to the United States, where he faced 18 criminal counts. These allegations resulted from Wikileaks’ 2010 publication of hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on Washington’s wars in Afghanistan…

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has approved the appointment of Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Adetayo Akerele as the new chairman of the Lagos State Taskforce. Akerele replaces CSP Shola Jejeloye who has been appointed in a new capacity. A statement by Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, director of press and public affairs says the appointment is with immediate effect. “The Lagos State Government has approved the appointment of CSP Adetayo Akerele as the new Chairman of the Lagos Environmental and Special Offenses Unit (Taskforce). CSP Akerele the new Chairman who is a seasoned administrator and a super cop was the former BRT Lane Monitoring…

The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, on Tuesday, ordered the final forfeiture of the sum of $1,426,175.14 linked to the immediate-past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele. Justice Ayokunle Faji ordered the final forfeiture of the funds to the Federal Government. The final forfeiture order followed an application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Tuesday. The anti-graft agency had earlier on May 29, 2014, secured an interim order temporarily forfeiting the money. The judge ordered the publication of the court order in the newspapers to give anyone interested in the funds to appear in…

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund, on Tuesday, announced a 14-day postponement of the application process for student loans for state institutions. According to a statement by the agency in Abuja, the development was due to “low data submissions.” NELFUND said the decision was necessitated by the failure of several state-owned institutions to upload the required student data and fee information to its Student Verification System. “To date, only a limited number of state-owned institutions have successfully completed the data submission process. These include 20 state universities out of 48; 12 state colleges out of 54 and two state polytechnics out…

Jonathan David’s second-half strike helped Canada secure a 1-0 victory over 10-man Peru in their Copa America Group A match in Kansas City on Tuesday to raise hopes of a top-two finish and a spot in the knockout stages. While Canada had the majority of possession in the first half, Peru had the better chances, with Canada goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau pulling off a sharp save to deny Piero Quispe, while Gianluca Lapadula had a goal ruled out for offside. The momentum swung in Canada’s favour after the break, as Peru defender Miguel Araujo was sent off following a VAR check…

Manchester United have held talks with Juventus about signing Adrien Rabiot, but face competition from Arsenal and Aston Villa for the 29-year-old France midfielder. (Teamtalk) Nottingham Forest and Brighton are interested in Norwegian side Sogndal’s 18-year-old Ghanaian winger Edmund Baidoo. (Sky Sports) Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag is set to sign a new deal with the club. (Fabrizio Romano) Barcelona could be interested in a loan deal for 24-year-old English winger Jadon Sancho after holding talks with Manchester United. (Sport – in Spanish) Tottenham are interested in Crystal Palace’s 25-year-old England forward Eberechi Eze and could look to activate a release clause in his contract. (Talksport) Brighton are keen on Leicester’s 25-year-old English midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. (Telegraph – subscription required) Mohammed Kudus to leave…

President Bola Tinubu expressed sadness over the passing of the Deputy Comptroller in charge of revenue at the Nigeria Customs Service, Etop Essien. Deputy Comptroller Essien slumped and died shortly after showing signs of discomfort during a presentation before the National Assembly House Committee on Public Accounts on Tuesday. In a statement on Tuesday issued by his spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, the President extended his heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased and described his passing while on an official assignment as most distressing. The President also commiserated with the Comptroller General of Customs, Mr. Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, as well…

The Fulani socio-cultural group, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, has rejected a bill to establish a national agency for the regulation and management of ranches in Nigeria. Baba Usman Ngelzarma, MACBAN’s national president, revealed the association’s opposition to the bill when he spoke to journalists in Damaturu, Yobe State over the weekend, just after the association’s state executive council was inaugurated. Speaking for Miyetti Allah, Ngelzarma proposed establishing a Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Development instead. Chronicle NG reports that a bill to prohibit open grazing and establish ranches as a solution to Nigeria’s persistent disputes…

England played a pulsating 0-0 draw against Slovenia as they secured passage to the last-16 at Euro 2024 while Denmark held Serbia and sent them packing from the tournament. England, Denmark and Slovenia are all through but not without a fight in what has been dubbed one of the most exciting group. Denmark also drew 0-0 against England in their second match. Denmark secured a place in the knockout phase of Euro 2024 with a nervy 0-0 draw in Munich on Tuesday against Serbia who head home after coming bottom of Group C. The Danes had most possession and chances,…

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has raised the alarm that the university system across the country is gradually crumbling as a result of the government’s unwillingness to address outstanding concerns with the union, hence, the need for urgent revival before it breaks down totally. ASUU urged concerned stakeholders to lobby federal and state governments to resolve unresolved concerns with the union to avoid unnecessary industrial crises in the country’s already weak university sector. Speaking to reporters at a rally held at Emmanuel Alayande University of Education (EAUED) in Oyo State, EAUED ASUU chairman Michael Ojo stated that the…