Author: David Great

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Faruk Yahaya, has approved the posting and appointment of some top officers to command, instructional and staff positions across formations and units. The appointments were announced in a statement issued by the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu, on Thursday in Abuja. Nwachukwu said the new postings and appointments were done in an effort to reposition the army for operational efficiency. According to him, those affected in the redeployment include some Principal Staff Officers of the Army Headquarters, General Officers Commanding, Corps Commanders, Commandants of training institutions, Brigade Commanders, Commanding Officers, amongst others.…

Manchester City could abandon their plans to sign Brighton and Spain left-back Marc Cucurella, 24, until next summer and instead target Benfica’s Spanish defender Alex Grimaldo, 26, and Stuttgart and Croatia’s Borna Sosa, 24. (Mail) Everton have approached Paris St-Germain over re-signing 32-year-old Senegal midfielder Idrissa Gueye, with talks set to continue over the next few days. (Fabrizio Romano) Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo, 37, has urged Manchester United to set a transfer fee so he can accept an offer tabled by another club. (Sun) Ronaldo’s representatives have held talks with Sporting Lisbon, his first professional club. (Athletic – subscription required) Nuno Tavares will undergo a medical with Marseille on Friday after the French side agreed a…

…proceeds on annual recess till Sept. 20 The Senate, on Wednesday, resolved to summon the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, to educate and inform senators in a closed session on the reasons for the rapid depreciation of the value of the naira. It also mandated the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions to assess the impact of CBN intervention funds meant to support critical sectors of the economy. The resolutions were reached by lawmakers after the upper chamber considered a motion sponsored by Senator Olubunmi Adetunmbi (APC – Ekiti North). The motion…

Barcelona are close to beating Chelsea to the signing of Jules Kounde, 23, after agreeing a 50m euro fee with Sevilla for the France defender. (Guardian) Cristiano Ronaldo has told Manchester United he wants to be freed of his contract in order to play for a Champions League side but United have reiterated that they don’t want to sell the 37-year-old Portugal forward. (Mail) Ajax have raised their asking price for 22-year-old Brazil winger Antony, who has been linked with Manchester United, from £68m to £84m. (Mail) A deal for Liverpool’s 30-year-old Brazil forward Roberto Firmino to move to Juventus is reportedly “very close”. (Corriere dello Sport – in Italian) The move could put…

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has ruled out the chances of further extension of the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR). Chief Ken Okeagu, the INEC National Commissioner in charge of Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo States, said this at a news briefing in Abakaliki on Wednesday. Okeagu, who was on a one-day monitoring visit to Ebonyi, said his assignment was to appraise the exercise in the state. He said that he had visited the commission’s local government area offices to assess the progress so far made in the exercise. He expressed satisfaction with the turnout of prospective registrants. Okeagu commended…

The Presidency has frowned at the threats by some opposition members of the Senate to begin impeachment proceedings against President Muhammadu Buhari over nation’s security challenges. Some Senators from opposition political parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) were reported to have expressed frustration over the nation’s security problems, giving the president a six-week deadline to address the issue or face impeachment proceedings. However, Malam Garba Shehu, the Buhari’s spokesman, in a statement on Wednesday night described the impeachment attempt as ridiculous. The statement read in part: ”The performative and babyish antics of…

Senators from opposition parties have issued a six-week ultimatum to President Muhammadu Buhari to tackle the security challenges bedevilling the country. They also threatened to commence the impeachment proceedings against the President should he fail to address the insecurity within the period given by the lawmakers. The Minority Leader of the Senate, Senator Phillip Aduda, made the position of the lawmakers known on Wednesday while briefing reporters at the National Assembly in Abuja, the nation’s capital. More to follow…

The Senate, on Tuesday, considered two critical bills seeking to tackle poverty and put a stop to intellectual property theft in the country. One of the bills provides for the establishment of the National Poverty Alleviation Management Commission; while the other seeks to re-enact the Patent and Design Act 2021 to revise the existing intellectual property law to prohibit theft. Both bills scaled second reading during plenary. The bill to establish the National Poverty Alleviation Management Commission seeks to empower the Commission to coordinate and regulate all forms of poverty alleviation funds. The bill was sponsored by Senator Kabir Abdullahi…

Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi has expressed grief over the death of the Army officials killed in an ambush on the Presidential Guard Brigade on Sunday by suspected terrorists in the Federal Capital Territory. Bello also commiserated with the families of the deceased presidential guards and the Nigerian Army in a statement made available by his Chief Press Secretary, Onogwu Muhammed, on Tuesday in Abuja. The Army officers were ambushed after they responded to a distress call from the Nigeria Law School, Bwari. The governor stated that it was more saddening to find out that two out of the fallen…

Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong would only leave Barcelona for Chelsea but the London club are not prepared to pay as much as Manchester United for the 25-year-old. (Sport – in Spanish) Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo says he does not know who “invented” the story linking Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo to the Spanish side and that it is “practically impossible” the 37-year-old Portugal international will join them. (El Partidazo de COPE, via Eurosport) Newcastle United are interested in 26-year-old Chelsea and Germany striker Timo Werner. (Christian Falk, head of football at Bild) Juventus will look at Werner and Manchester United and France forward Anthony Martial, 26, if they cannot complete the capture…