Author: David Great

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has urged Nigerians to rally behind President-elect Bola Tinubu, claiming that the time for politics is past. Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) defeated Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) to win the seat in the tense February election. Although he is a member of the PDP (though he did not support the party’s candidate but worked for Tinubu), the Rivers governor is urging Nigerians to support the incoming administration, which is set to take office on May 29th, 2023. Wike was accompanied by Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, who supported his Rivers counterpart’s remarks. “Elections have…

Mrs. Patience Omoike-Mark, counsel to former Minister of Aviation, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode, revealed on Thursday that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was not ordered to bring new charges against him and others by a Federal High Court (FHC) in Lagos. Justice Daniel Osiagor, according to Omoike-Mark, decided that the suit no longer had life before the court following a Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal’s judgement quashing the lawsuit. The lawyer, who provided the explanation in a statement issued on Thursday in Abuja, also made a Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judge’s order available to journalists.…

Manchester United and Brazil midfielder Casemiro, 31, is a summer transfer target for Thomas Tuchel at Bayern Munich. (Kicker – in German) Bayern boss Tuchel is also keen to re-unite with Chelsea and Croatia midfielder Mateo Kovacic, 28. (Sport1 – in German) Bayern, though, have no intention of selling 20-year-old Netherlands Real Madrid officials will travel to Germany this week in a bid to convince Borussia Dortmund and England midfielder Jude Bellingham, 19, to join the Spanish club this summer. (Marca – in Spanish) West Ham and England midfielder Declan Rice, 24, is at the top of Arsenal’s transfer list…

Presidential adviser Femi Adesina claims his boss is oblivious to the promises made to Nigerians by All Progressives Congress (APC) supporters in the run-up to President Muhammadu Buhari’s 2015 election. Buhari’s campaign made a slew of promises in the run-up to the election, ranging from combating insecurity to reviving the economy and developing infrastructure, among other things. However, Adesina stated on Thursday that his principal is not aware of some of the commitments. “What happened in 2015 was that there was a rash of documents passing themselves off as the party’s manifesto,” he explained on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily. “You…

Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC Ltd, announced late Wednesday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Golar LNG of Norway to build a floating liquefied natural gas plant in the country. Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer, has some of the world’s largest gas reserves and is looking for investment to enhance local supply and exports. The pact was signed in Abuja by NNPC chief executive, Mele Kyari and Golar CEO, Karl Fredrik Staubo, according to NNPC on Twitter late Wednesday. NNPC has spent $1.1bn on uncompleted AKK gas pipeline – Kyari The corporation provided no additional information and…

A Lagos Federal High Court sentenced Udogwu James Johnson to five years in prison today for illegally importing drugs up to 300 grammes of cocaine. After pleading guilty to an amended charge filed against him by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), the defendant was sentenced to prison by Justice Nicholas Oweibo. According to the prosecution, Mr. Abu Ibrahim, the defendant was first arraigned in court on August 12, 2021, but pled not guilty to the accusation. The defendant jumped bail halfway through his trial, and his bail was revoked on June 6, 2022. He was later detained again…

A Lagos Federal High Court on Thursday remanded a driver, Jackson Ndubuisi, in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Services (NCoS), for alleged conspiracy, fraud, and impersonation. The driver was remanded in the custody of the NCoS by Justice Nicholas Oweibo after pleading not guilty to the allegations brought against him by officers from the Force Criminal Investigation Department (Force CID), Alagbon-Ikoyi, Lagos. The police, through their prosecutor, Sunday Oladitan Ayodele, told the court that the defendant, along with others who are still at large, falsely presented himself to the duo of Ebenezer Omowunmi and Alexander Fayankinnu in March 2020,…

The National Economic Council (NEC) on Thursday recommended that the planned fuel subsidy be suspended because of the impending economic hardship. At the valedictory NEC chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, disclosed to journalists that the Council agreed that the fuel subsidy regime must be removed eventually as it is not sustainable. “Today I was in the National Economic Council, where we discussed the issue of post-subsidy removal. Council agreed that the timing for the removal of subsidy should not be now, but that we should continue with all…

The Spanish La Liga’s 5.36 cards per match are the highest across Europe’s top-five leagues, a sports company says. The site has presented data showing that the Spanish league’s 1220 matches between January 2020 and March 2023 drew an average of 5.08 yellow cards and 0.28 red cards/match, the highest in the continent. Following in the second spot was the Italian Serie A with an average of 4.95 cards/game (4.71 yellow and 0.24 red). The French Ligue 1 wrapped the top 3 spots with 4.81 cards/game (3.89 yellow and 0.29 red). Meanwhile, the English Premier League was the most disciplined…

Mauricio Pochettino is not using an agent as he negotiates the finer details of his appointment as Chelsea’s next head coach. (Telegraph – subscription required)  Pochettino has reached a verbal agreement with Chelsea to take over as the club’s next manager. (Talksport) Manchester United want to sign 29-year-old England striker Harry Kane, but will walk away and pursue other options rather than get involved in a lengthy battle over transfer fees with Tottenham. (Star) Sir Jim Ratcliffe will allow Manchester United’s owners, the Glazer family, to keep 20% of the club as part of his latest offer. (Times – subscription required) Spain goalkeeper David Raya and England striker Ivan Toney,…