Author: Opalim Lifted

Shakhtar Donetsk kept themselves in contention to progress from the league phase of the Champions League by beating Brest. The Ukrainian side knew they needed to win both of their remaining games to have a chance of reaching the knockout round. They faced a tough task against a Brest side who have been the surprise package of this year’s Champions League. The French team had won four of their previous six games to put themselves on the cusp of sealing a top-eight finish. Another win against Shakhtar would have all but secured that, but they fell behind early in the…

Besiktas significantly boosted their chances of reaching the UEFA Europa League play-offs thanks to a 4-1 over Athletic Club at the Besiktas Stadyumu, which marked just a fourth win in their past 14 games in this competition. Following an emphatic, unbeaten start to the 2024/25 UEL league phase, Athletic entered this encounter needing just two points from their remaining two games to guarantee progression to the round of 16. Besiktas meanwhile, found themselves out of the top 24 altogether, and their urgency was clear during the first 45 minutes of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s reign. Milot Rashica’s well-hit strike from outside…

As US President Donald Trump mulls imposing 25% duties on imports from Canada and Mexico on Feb. 1, focus has shifted to the sectors likely to bear the brunt of the tariffs. About 28%, or about $844 billion, of all US imports in 2024 came from the two neighboring countries, data from the Census Bureau shows. The automobile industry accounted for imports of more than $202 billion from Canada and Mexico combined. “Japanese automakers like Toyota stand to gain the most so long as tariffs are applied to Canada and Mexico, as many of their imported parts come from Japan,…

Adebayo Omisakin Sunday, an ex-convict who was recently granted pardon, has been remanded in jail over alleged theft and burglary  Omisakin was among the 53 convicts granted pardon by Ademola Adeleke, governor of Osun, on December 26, 2024. His name was number eight on the list of those pardoned over “simple offences”. On January 3, 2025, eight days after he was granted pardon, Omisakin allegedly broke into a house in Osogbo, the Osun state capital, and stole a plasma television worth N600,000, The Nation reports. The police had charged Omisakin for alleged theft and burglary. During the court proceedings, the…

Ghana President John Mahama established a Constitutional Review Committee on Sunday to address gaps in implementing the 1992 constitution and continue the work of a former Constitutional Review Committee in 2010. The Constitutional Review Committee was created to “enhance democratic governance within the country”, the statement reads. Professor Kwasi Prempeh, executive director of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development, was named the committee chairperson. The other members of the eight-person committee include Justice Sophia Adinyirah, ⁠Professor Kwame Karikari, Charlotte Osei, etc. The members will have the duty to remedy the deficiencies of the work done by the previous committee. In…

The Kenyan government has approved recommendations to enhance its electronic travel authorisation (eTA) system for African visitors. The approval was granted during the federal government’s first cabinet meeting of the year chaired by President William Ruto. A statement issued by the State House said the meeting was held to discuss ways of driving transformative change in Kenya. Improving traveller experience and tourism were some of the priorities. “As part of efforts to support open skies policies and tourism growth, a key proposal is to grant eTA exemptions to all African countries — except Somalia and Libya — due to security…

Borussia Dortmund have fired coach Nuri Sahin, the German soccer club said on Wednesday, after Tuesday’s shock 2-1 loss to Bologna in the Champions League that stretched their losing run to four games across all competitions. “Borussia Dortmund have released head coach Nuri Sahin with immediate effect following an internal analysis of recent sporting developments,” said the club in a statement. The Ruhr valley club, last year’s Champions League finalists, conceded two goals in two minutes in the second half against the Italians after taking a 15th minute lead. They have also lost all three league matches in 2025, dropping…

The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has announced that its passport application portal is now open for optimal service. NIS stated that the portal was temporarily closed due to system upgrades and maintenance. This was contained in a statement signed by NIS Public Relations Officer, DCI KT Udo, titled: “Passport Application Portal Now Back in Optimal Service.” The statement reads: “The Nigeria Immigration Service has considered it exigent to inform the public that our online passport application portal is now back in optimal service, following a system upgrade and maintenance”. “While we apologize for any inconvenience the recently concluded system upgrade…

Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, minister of interior, says all passport applications will be processed online by March 1, 2025, as part of a broader digitalisation effort aimed at enhancing efficiency and curbing corruption. Speaking in an interview with Segun Awosanya, better known as Segalink, the minister said the establishment of a centralised passport approval centre aims to enhance security and eliminate human interference in the process. “With what we have now, over 100 people can apply for passport at a time without any physical intervention or appearance or queue,” Tunji-Ojo said. ”We’ve been able to open up a space and relocate immigration…

Nigeria’s former Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), has said that Africa’s climate change experience is a paradox. Osinbajo stated this in Lagos recently at the 23rd S.L. Edu Memorial Lecture, tagged Greening Africa’s Economies: Can Climate Positive Growth Deliver Prosperity? which was organised by the Nigeria Conservation Foundation. The ex-Vice President stated that Africa was the least emitters of dangerous gases yet are the worst affected by its devastating effects. “Despite our relatively negligible emissions, our continent is warming faster than the continents of the global north whose past and current emissions are largely responsible for the climate crisis”,…