Author: Opalim Lifted

Ademola Adeleke, governor of Osun, has formally joined the Accord party days after resigning from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Adeleke announced his defection to the Accord in a statement posted on his social media handle on X on Tuesday evening. “Today, we unveiled the Accord Party, our new platform for the good people of Osun State. From Osun West to Osun East to Osun Central, this is our party, our new platform for victory come August next year,” he wrote. “Today, we unveiled the Accord Party, our new platform for the good people of Osun State. From Osun West…

Officers of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) on Tuesday fired teargas canisters at members of the Coalition of Indigenous FCT Contractors who were protesting an alleged unpaid debt of N5.2 billion owed them by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA). The contractors arrived early at the FCTA secretariat in Abuja, blocking the main entrance with a truck while chanting the name of Nyesom Wike, the FCT minister, and demanding immediate payment for projects they said were fully executed and verified. Security operatives cordoned off the entrance to prevent the protesters from accessing the premises. After a standoff that lasted several…

President Bola Tinubu has written to the senate seeking consent for the deployment of Nigerian troops in the Republic of Benin. The letter was read on the floor of the upper legislative chamber by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary on Tuesday. “Pursuant to Section 5, Subsection 5, Part 2 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended,” the letter reads. “I seek, in further consultation with the National Defence Council, the consent of the senate, for the deployment of Nigerian troops to the Republic of Benin.” Tinubu said the request followed an appeal from the…

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has declared a state of emergency in the region. Omar Touray, president of the ECOWAS commission, relayed the declaration on Tuesday during the 55th session of the mediation and security council, at the ministerial level in Abuja. The meeting was convened following the string of coups and botched mutinies in the sub-region in recent times. Touray said the developments highlight the “imperative of serious introspection on the future of our democracy and the urgent need to invest in the security of our community”. Last month, a group of military officers in Guinea-Bissau…

Sixth-tier club Macclesfield will host holders Crystal Palace in the third round of the FA Cup. There are four all-Premier League ties, including Tottenham hosting Aston Villa, Sunderland travelling to Everton, Newcastle welcoming Bournemouth to St James’ Park, and Manchester United at home to Brighton. Fellow sixth-tier side Weston-super-Mare, who have reached this stage of the competition for the first time in their 138-year history, travel to League Two Grimsby. Premier League leaders Arsenal visit Portsmouth, while Manchester City host League One Exeter City and Liverpool are at home to third-tier Barnsley. In the other ties involving top-flight clubs, there…

Manchester United survived a scare at Molineux but eventually secured a victory over bottom-of-the-table Wolves that moved them up to sixth in the Premier League. On a night when a sizeable number of home fans heeded a call to delay their entrance for 15 minutes as a protest against the club’s Chinese ownership, Wolves ended a 540-minute wait for a goal when Jean-Ricner Bellegarde found the corner after David Moller Wolfe’s mis-hit shot had bounced into his path. It made United pay for a series of missed chances either side of a comical effort from skipper Bruno Fernandes after Andre…

TikTok has temporarily restricted access to the ‘Live’ feature for Nigerian users during late-night hours. At midnight on Sunday, the social media platform revealed that the restriction is to enhance an ongoing investigation and also keep the app “safe and protected”. “TikTok LIVE Update in Nigeria. We’re temporarily limiting LIVE late at night in Nigeria as part of our investigation to ensure our platform remains safe and our community stays protected,” the notification reads. The live sessions, which had been active earlier in the night, became unavailable between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., with affected accounts showing a “No Access” label. The…

A federal high court in Abuja has refused to grant a motion ex parte seeking the transfer of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), from Sokoto correctional facility. The IPOB leader was remanded in Sokoto prison following his conviction on a seven-count terrorism-related charge by a federal high court in Abuja on November 20. In an ex parte motion, Kanu is seeking “an order compelling the complainant (federal government)!and/or the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) to forthwith transfer him from the Sokoto Correctional Facility to a custodial facility within the jurisdiction of this honourable court”. Alternatively,…

Nigeria is rapidly becoming one of the most dangerous places on Earth to follow Christ, the US House Appropriations Committee said in an X post on Sunday, stressing that the United States cannot ignore the crisis. The post comes on the heels of a recent joint briefing convened by members of the US House Appropriations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, which renewed scrutiny of Nigeria’s security response to ongoing violence affecting communities across several states. The session, held on 2 December and led by House Appropriations Vice Chair Mario Díaz-Balart, followed President Donald Trump’s 31 October directive instructing…

The Federal Government of Nigeria has called for calm in the Republic of Benin after Sunday’s attempted coup, stressing the need for political grievances to be resolved through lawful and constitutional means. In a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, Nigeria reaffirmed its solidarity with Benin and expressed concern over the incident. “Nigeria stands in firm solidarity with the Government and people of the Republic of Benin, and applauds the swift action taken by Beninese authorities to protect its legitimate institutions and preserve the peace,” the statement read. The ministry commended the Beninese security forces…