Author: Opalim Lifted

Arsenal started their reign as Premier League champions with a routine win over Crystal Palace in a party atmosphere at Selhurst Park. Both sides named experimental line-ups, with Palace in the Conference League final on Wednesday and Arsenal in Saturday’s Champions League showpiece. And with nothing on the game for either of these sides – with the title wrapped up for Arsenal in the week – the match, with its lack of intensity and scheduled drinks breaks in the heat, had the feeling of a pre-season match. Gabriel Jesus, who had missed two good opportunities earlier in the first half,…

President Bola Tinubu has secured the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential ticket for the 2027 elections. Anyim Pius Anyim, chairman of the APC election committee, declared Tinubu the winner of the presidential primary on Sunday at the International Conference Centre in Abuja. The presidential primary was held on Saturday across 8,809 wards and 774 local government areas (LGAs) nationwide. Anyim said Tinubu secured 10,999,162 votes to defeat Stanley Osifo, his lone challenger, who received 16,503 votes. He said 12,643,306 members were registered for the exercise, while 11,069,756 voters were accredited and 11,015,665 votes were cast. Atiku says Nigeria needs experienced…

The Ogun state police command has reportedly arrested a man for allegedly staging and circulating a fake bandit attack video on social media to gain followers. According to Zagazola Makama, a counterinsurgency publication, the incident was reported on May 23 after one Ayinla Sodiq from Obasanjo Ota appeared at a police station alongside the suspect identified as Qowiy Oloyede from Oriya Sokoto road, Atan Ota. The complainant had accused the suspect of creating and sharing a misleading TikTok video falsely claiming that bandits had invaded the Atan Ota community. The publication reported that the divisional police officer (DPO) immediately questioned…

US President Donald Trump has said a framework for a peace agreement with Iran has been “largely negotiated”, raising hopes of an end to nearly three months of conflict and disruption in the Gulf region. Iran, the United States and mediator Pakistan all reported progress after high-level talks in Tehran involving Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, Iranian officials and negotiators. According to Reuters, Tehran is working to finalise a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending hostilities and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global shipping route that has faced severe disruption during the conflict. US Secretary of…

Nigerian media personality, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, has shared details about his past smoking addiction and how he eventually quit after years of struggling with it. Speaking on a recent episode of ‘MENtality’ alongside Banky W and Aproko Doctor, Ebuka said he started smoking while he was in JSS3. According to him, the habit continued for 13 years and became heavier after he gained admission to the university. “I started smoking in JSS3. I smoked for 13 years. By the time I entered university, I was smoking two packs a day. I was a heavy smoker,” he recalled. Ebuka explained that he…

Abubakar Malami, former minister of justice, has emerged as the 2027 governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Kebbi State. Mohammed Doka, special assistant on media to Malami, announced this in a statement posted on the former minister’s X page on Sunday. He said the former attorney-general of the federation thanked party leaders, stakeholders, and supporters for the confidence and support demonstrated ahead of the governorship election in the state. Doka said Aminu Bande, a retired military officer, was also affirmed as the party’s senatorial candidate for Kebbi Central, while Ibrahim Mera, a retired deputy comptroller-general, emerged as…

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has warned that Nigeria faces a high risk of an Ebola outbreak due to the continued spread of the virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. Although no Ebola case has been confirmed in Nigeria, the agency said it has intensified preparedness and surveillance efforts amid fears of cross-border transmission and increased international travel. In a statement issued on Sunday, the director-general of the NCDC, Jide Idris, said the agency’s latest assessment showed a significant likelihood of Ebola being imported into the country. According to the statement, the…

Pope Leo XIV has condemned companies making “dizzying” profits through activities that damage the environment, during a visit to one of Italy’s worst-affected toxic waste regions. Speaking on Saturday in Acerra, near Naples in southern Italy, the pontiff urged people to reject “practices that pollute the land, water, air, and social coexistence”. The visit took him to the so-called “Land of Fires”, an area long associated with illegal dumping and burning of toxic waste allegedly linked to organised crime groups, including the Camorra mafia. Residents in the region have for years complained of unusually high cancer rates and other health…

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, to immediately disclose the identities of all local contractors, subcontractors, consultants, vendors, and other entities that benefited from payments under the National Public Security Communication System project in Abuja, commonly referred to as the $460 million Abuja Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) Project. On May 15, 2023, the Federal High Court ordered the Ministry of Finance to disclose the total amount paid under the $460 million Abuja CCTV loan, the identities of local and Chinese contractors who received the funds, the…

Aichatou El-Rufai, wife of Nasir El-Rufai, has issued a pre-action notice to the chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), demanding N2 billion in damages over alleged defamatory statements. Mohammed Bello, son of the former governor, had earlier alleged that ICPC operatives denied his father access to medical and family care at the commission’s detention facility on Friday. Bello claimed the action by the anti-graft agency violated a court order granting El-Rufai “unrestricted access to his doctors”. He also said El-Rufai was prevented from seeing Aichatou, his second wife, who brought him his evening meal.…